Taiwan has a very serious culture of following things that are popular and wanting to be with the group. Granted this is how most of the world works but Taiwanese take it to a whole new level. With the most extreme example being it's not uncommon to see a long line of people and if you ask somebody what they are in line for, they will say they don't know. It sounds hard to believe but i've gone and seen it and other non-believers have gone and seen it.
At first i used to be a bit upset by this. that people didn't want to think for themselves and break out from the pack. Especially when it came to things, stores, restaurants of lower quality being more popular than those that are actually good. However in my older age I have become much wiser and seen how much of a good thing this is. I can now enjoy the things i like peacefully and quietly without long lines.
Some examples are a special type of Taiwanese ice cream that i enjoy, there are two restaurants next door to each other, one is very popular and always has a line out the door, while the other one tastes much better but nobody goes. So i am able to go in without having to wait and enjoy my ice cream.
The beach is another example, everybody wants to be huddled together in one small area, which leaves the rest of the beach all to myself. Or when people want a burger they all go to this one very famous burger restaurant while i go to the best tasting one with no wait, and no screaming groups of kids. But...since that restaurant got no business, it's closed now, one of the drawbacks of the things i like not being popular is that they often close down.
Anyway this picture is another example. At the university there are some basketball, tennis, volleyball courts in the front, and they are always packed. however hidden in the back of the university behind a scooter parking lot are these other courts that hardly anybody ever knows about or uses. in fact anybody i've ever gone here to play tennis or basketball with has always said "wow i didn't know that these were here."
But i can appreciate that. That when i wanted to go shoot some hopes without sharing the court with ten other people, i could go here. or if i wanted to play tennis with some friends without waiting for a court, we could go here. And i know what you are thinking, "if you were always taking people, than wouldn't these courts get crowded too?" Well i'm sorry to say that you are not thinking Taiwanese. You have to remember that these courts are not popular so even if they knew there were empty courts here, they would still go to the crowded popular ones.
