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Hi Paul. I saw London's Bubble Tea shop in London just after Christmas. Full of Taiwanese customers, no 'laowai'. My interview subjects in Taiwan's MoFA believed that everyone was now enjoying bubble tea in London, if not the UK. I had to explain that the only customers are those who want to try it once as a novelty or homesick Taiwanese. I am very cynical about Bubble Tea Diplomacy ....
I am a bit more optimistic on this side of the Atlantic. Bubble tea is pretty popular beyond just Taiwanese ex-pats. You can find bubble tea shops in just about every shopping mall. The problem is that there is no identification with Taiwan, it is just some "exotic Asian" thing.
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Hi Paul. I saw London's Bubble Tea shop in London just after Christmas. Full of Taiwanese customers, no 'laowai'. My interview subjects in Taiwan's MoFA believed that everyone was now enjoying bubble tea in London, if not the UK. I had to explain that the only customers are those who want to try it once as a novelty or homesick Taiwanese. I am very cynical about Bubble Tea Diplomacy ....
I am a bit more optimistic on this side of the Atlantic. Bubble tea is pretty popular beyond just Taiwanese ex-pats. You can find bubble tea shops in just about every shopping mall. The problem is that there is no identification with Taiwan, it is just some "exotic Asian" thing.
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