Job Discussion Forums

Jay_canada · Joined: 16 Feb 2006 Posts: 3

Teaching English in a foreign country can be a very scary concept for many but for many others who come with an open mind and a touch of
enthusiasm, it can a rewarding life enriching experience. The world is a big place but if you really want to live comfortably and cheaply while saving money the Chinese Republic and tropical island of Taiwan seems like best spot in the world for many Westerners. But please be ready for lots of things. Getting a ARC work visa and health card isn't hard you just need to get your paper work in order before you get here. Be sure to bring about 20 passport style mug shots of yourself, any diplomas whether University or College, and of course copies of your passport.

What else to be ready for?

*Some cold days especially if you're on a scooter it can be cold on one of those puppies. By cold I don't mean North Pole cold but have a few sweaters and long Jon's packed and ready to wear. Generally the temperature here year round is beautiful but note cold days (8-15oC)
sandwiched by 25oC sun from December to March. Although, during the summer months it can unbearable with most apartments running two air conditioners.

*Scooters. They are your best friend, cherish them. So convenient to save out of traffic, and so good on gas. And really cool to ride even after many years. They can take you up to the mountains no problem but don't waste your time a crappy 50cc one spend the extra and get a bigger one like a 125cc. Ask around to fellow foreigners, see who's selling one, check out local expat hangouts for people selling them. A license? If your paranoid then by all means go out and get one, but I guess I've been a bad and haven't driven with a license or registration for a couple of years and never got pulled over. But I can understand those that want to be better safe then sorry.

*Speaking Mandarin or Taiwanese can be hard especially if you're new
here and are coming to be an English teacher. You can save some really good money and live pretty cheaply as thousands of other Westerners have done for years. If you really want to learn Mandarin and want a 3-6 month visa enroll at one of the numerous universities. They hook you up with the paperwork for your ARC.

* Finding a good place. Some schools in Taipei or Type-a will show you
places where you can live, but why would you want to live in that stink hole of a city. It's too large, traffic and pollution are a serious problem and it rains as much as it would in London or Vancouver. My advice is to get to "Type-a", settle for a day or two then head down to Taichung.

It's the third largest city in Taiwan and has unbelievable weather, it rains very infrequently almost a third less than Type-a and its not small at all. The second largest city, Kaoshuing, is really hot but the pollution and over layout of that city is disgusting. The foreigner community in Taichung is a nice mix mainly of Canadians but there are heaps of South Africans, Brits, Auzzie's and Kiwi's. This is the city where I have called home for a two plus years before I went back home to Canada on Christmas. I lived in the twin towers with blue roofs off Daya Rd. and Zhong Ming Rd.

Overall, I'd say the place was pretty good and had all the amenities including a monster sized 24-hr grocery/walmart/costco store called RT Mart, right behind the buildings. I had 24 security guards, cheap cable Internet in my room about $10 USD. a month, 4 different laundry services downstairs that will do your load of laundry for less than $2 USD, a decent gym with some new cardio machines, swimming pool, underground parking for scooter $1 USD per month, a 22nd roof top patio with a nice view of the mountains and good for BBQ's, a pool table and ping pong table, movie night in the games room was on Friday nights - new flicks on a large screen, and most of all it's in the vibrant artsy city center of Taichung!

Be warned that there are heaps of foreigners that live in that building so if you are stand off ish and don't like to meet other English teachers and
drinking buddies it's okay, go home and read and watch DVDs. I
settled on it because the landlord Miss Lee could speak English and it was very cheap for a decent sized place pretty much fully furnished. It is a 15 minute walk to Sogo or a 2 minute scooter ride and the Science Museum and Botanical Gardens are even closer.

Miss Lee is a very busy lady, she likes to talk English and will sometimes give you free stuff ie: computer desks, furniture, plants, hot plates, chairs, if you stay calm and talk to her nicely. Miss Lee is always around to show you a potential apartment almost anytime of the day, seven days a week, just walk into her place on the ground floor and you can see her cell on her door and she'll show you some place. There are studios and even three-bedroom places. One time she had repairmen install a sink on my balcony just because I wanted a second one. Enough with that free plug, the place is okay but have a look and find a place that makes you comfortable.

I encourage you to do your research on Taiwan. I think I spent a good
solid month reading up on this island either at a book store, library
or on the Net. Check sites like www.tealit.com

This is a great place and many friendly people speak decent English. The ridiculously cheap prices for clothes, goods and electronics make everything worthwhile. The rent is much cheaper than most places in the world for what you get but it can be pricey in Type-a.

Good luck to you all, peace and love
Jay
Cool

SanChong · Joined: 22 Nov 2005 Posts: 335

Right on Jay! Great informational post.... just the kind of post that are so helpful to newbies... I enjoyed reading it also.

Continuing the theme you have set, here are a few other useful websites for those considering a move to Taiwan:

http://ReachToTeachRecruiting.com

http://buxiban.com

http://forumosa.com

Jay_canada · Joined: 16 Feb 2006 Posts: 3

I think its sad that 145 people read this post and less than 5 people voted in the poll. Is it because I'm right? Taipei is definetly a proper city with lots of stuff going on, but its too big and too rainy. Taichung is a nice size at a million people and the weather is the best on the island. Anyway, the beauty of this forum is that have your say. Peace
J
Cool

Serious_Fun · Joined: 28 Jun 2005 Posts: 1171 Location: terra incognita

deleted

travelkat · Joined: 13 Jul 2005 Posts: 6

WOW great info Jay!!! Thanks for such an informative post! I find it particularly useful, as I will be off to Taichung in a few short days to look for work. Would it be ok to PM for a little more elaboration on the city and your life there? The apartment you described sounds fantastic! I would love to check it out as a potential home. Thanks again for such a great post & I hope to chat more in the future.

Serious_Fun · Joined: 28 Jun 2005 Posts: 1171 Location: terra incognita

ni men hao:

More info. re: the benefits of living/working in Tai-zhong, from the Taipei Times website:

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2006/03/17/2003297747
===========================================
Taichung City leads in number of health buffs

CNA , TAIPEI
Friday, Mar 17, 2006,Page 2
Taichung City topped 23 cities and counties around the nation as the place whose residents take the most regular exercise and play the most sports, followed by Kinmen County and Taipei City, the National Council on Physical Fitness and Sports said on Wednesday.

The council unveiled a ranking of 23 cities and counties for last year under its program to double the number of people who participate in sports in every city and county. The results showed that the program had borne fruit, with the number of those who exercised regularly increasing by 2.4 percent from the previous year.

The survey based its ranking on four categories: the ratio of the population who exercise regularly, are members of sports clubs, watch sports regularly, and the average body-mass index (BMI) ratio. A total of 15,060 effective samples were collected.

BMI is measured by dividing one's weight by the square of one's height in meters. A person whose BMI ratio is lower than 18.5 is considered underweight, while one who has a BMI ratio of more than 24 is considered overweight.

The top three in the category of "the ratio of the population that exercise regularly" were Hualien, Nantou and Penghu counties, while Miaoli County, Taichung City and Hualien County topped the category of "the ratio of the population who are members of sports clubs."

In the category of "regular sports watchers," the top three were Taipei City, Tainan City and Hualien County. As to the "BMI ratio" category, the top three were Taipei City, Tainan City and Changhua County.

Council official Wu Lung-shan (吳龍山) said that the promotion of regular exercise was the council's primary goal, especially as the survey showed that people aged 35 to 45 -- the backbone of Taiwan's productivity -- exercised the least.

Jay_canada · Joined: 16 Feb 2006 Posts: 3

If you're looking for a nice building check out Miss Lee's web site at
www.104house.cc/888/misslee.asp

Miss Lee speaks English well and the building is full of things to do and foreigners to hang out with. Call her at 0963142288 or email her at
[email protected]

BigWally · Posted: Fri Jul 28, 2006 4:00 pm Post subject:

great post jay...thanks

trukesehammer · Joined: 25 Mar 2003 Posts: 168 Location: The Vatican

You guys are right about the crappy housing and overcrowded living in Taipei --which is precisely why I live on Yangming Mountain.

Not that I'm gloating or anything, but perched on my lovely mountain villa with lots of fresh air, greenery, eagles playing overhead, cicadas, doves and pukaluka birds singing in the trees, I can literally look out my window and snicker at all the poor schmucks choking in the smog below.

Well, okay, so I am gloating. Sorry about that! Cool

I_is_teach_English · Joined: 01 Aug 2006 Posts: 44 Location: Taiwan

Taichung is a great city! I have lived here for three years and have sometimes thought about moving for a different experience, but nowhere else on the island seems quite as good.

Weather : protected by mountains on three sides, it has the most sunny days of the three major cities. Taipei can be cold and wet for too long in the winter and Kaohsiung is too hot and steamy in the summer.

Cost of living : food, rent and going out is all cheaper than Taipei and on par with Kaohsiung.

Entertainment : Taichung likes to be known as the cultural city of Taiwan and as such it promotes a large number of art, music and other cultural activities. It has a thriving bar scene, a good range of western restaurants as well as a great art museum and science museum. It is close to many of the national parks, so hiking/camping and beautiful scenery are easily accessible.

Location : Located in the middle of the island it is never too far to travel anywhere else, whether by train or air (Taichung airport allows you to fly all over the island for those long weekend getaways and they have even started doing flights to Hong Kong). If you want to fly abroad, CKS International airport is a cheap bus ride away and takes about 1.5 hours.

Vibe : Taichung is more relaxed and friendly than Taipei, but still has a buzz about it. As one Taipei friend said, "I always feel as though I have been on holiday when I come down here." I couldn't have summed it up better myself.

Viva Taichung! Cool

Wahoo · Joined: 27 Dec 2007 Posts: 17

Taichung sounds great! But how far is it from a decent beach?

BigWally · Posted: Fri Jan 04, 2008 2:52 pm Post subject:

well its about the middle of the island, and i think the best beaches are on the southern tip (Kenting area), but if you're looking for more remote, awesome beaches the east coast is where to be...check out a map and your answers will come to you...

Taichung aka. TaiJhong, TaiZhong

Mr. Green

and with that.....POST 500!!!!! Mr. Green

SanChong · Joined: 22 Nov 2005 Posts: 335

stunnershades · Joined: 06 Mar 2007 Posts: 32

Taichung, I have found to be just as polluted as the rest of Taiwan. On an average day I see maybe 2 foreigners there which makes for some great exclamations from the more ignorant locals. And an artsy city center? Seriously, don't come to Taichung expecting anything but a sweltering suburb swarming sickening sewage. The public transportation is also pretty inconvenient compared to Taipei. There is no beach, no sights, and obviously no fresh air. The only thing attractive is the salary you'll make when compared to the cost of living. Don't forget this. Only someone who grew up in a place like Kazakhstan or Chernobyl would romanticize their experience here on this Island.

SanChong · Joined: 22 Nov 2005 Posts: 335