Now THIS is the Taiwanese look!

"That's so ______!"

There are certain things that represent a country so well, they are practically a synonym.

Now, what reminds people of country A may be different for people from within (country A) and without (country B, C, or D).

As a Taiwanese, apart from boba milk tea and democracy, there's also something very Taiwanese that we put on our feet--the blue and white slippers (藍白拖). Let's just call them the b&w slippers.

Generally speaking, there are two levels of Taiwanese: the "from Taiwan" kind of Taiwanese (just Taiwanese), and the "of Taiwan" type (very Taiwanese, or "很台" in Chinese), like the b&w slippers.

It protec (your feet), it attac (cockroaches), but most importantly, you can slip them on anytime (well, almost) (important occasions like meeting the president might not be a good idea).

These slippers originated in the 1950s and were a popular alternative to walking bare foot. The two chosen colors: blue and white, are taken from the national emblem of Taiwan, the blue symbolizing the sky, and the while the sun.

And in case you're wondering, these b&w slippers are usually found at traditional markets, but sometimes at Carrefour too (how lovely).