Job Discussion Forums

[Kosh]

If you were given a choice of where you want to teach in Taiwan, where would you teach?

The choices are;

Taipei (northern Taiwan)

Taichung(central Taiwan)

Kaohsiung (southern Taiwan)

What are the advantages and disadvantages of living and working in each of these places?


Kosh

[wood]

I would start with Taipei and then move
down the list in the order that you presented.

You could probably find a good job in any
of those places.

[demaratus]

Hi, I lived in kaohsiung for a year and a half. I loved it there. Here are the discernable benefits of living there: 1. Proximity to Shaoliojo and Kenting- the nicest beach areas in Taiwan. 2.Proximity to Maolin and Taidong-great accessible mountain areas and a nice coastal city on the east coast. 3. Proximity to Tainan- The cultural heart of Taiwan and a nice place to visit. 4. You are on the sea. 5. Some say the pay is better to start, there certainly is a lot of good schools always needing workers there. 6. Low cost of living compared to Taipei- I had a fantastic appartment which would have cost more than double in Taipei. 7. Great expat community- There is a really good group of foriegners there that are easy going and fun. They also try to involve themselves in the community as a whole and have actually succeeded in this. 8. Hotter than the other cities you mentioned. 9. Excellent affordable options for learning Chinese at any level. 10. The city while having many amenities of a big city, isnt too big and is easily traversed in a short time by scooter.

The downside would have to include: 1. Pollution-to my knowledge Kao has the worst pollution of any city in Taiwan, it is horrible imho, but not as bad in the summer and spring months. 2. Backwoods mentality of the locals-Not all are bad however the betel nut stains and general disgusting-ness of some areas makes Taipei look like it is in a whole other country. 3. The language barrier is definatley more apperent in Kao than Taipei, but even if you learn no Chinese (you should learn some) you could have a good life there. 4. No public transport. The bus here is a joke, and the mrt has been in construction for years (it may be done soon but it is hardly as expensive as it should be) scooters are fine though traffic can be a pain, litterally.

All in all, Kaohsiung is a good place to live, travel and save. Taipei is probably a better place to live (it can be really fun to visit!) but financially I believe kaohsiung is better. Taichung I cant comment for.

[TaoyuanSteve]

Taipei is the most modern, liveable big city on the island. It boasts many good restaurants, shopping and a transit system that eliminates the need for the foreign resident to own a vehicle and try their luck on the roads. Downsides are that rents in desirable areas are pretty high and, with foreigners aplenty, the job market can be more competitive.

Kaohsiung boasts warm, sunny weather year round and a fair amount of the amenities you might find in Taipei (but certainly not all) for lower living costs. Downsides are that the place is not as clean and orderly, pollution is nasty and (until their mrt system opens) one needs their own transport to get aorund. I visited Taichung a number of times. It appears to have some nice areas. However, overall, my impression of the place was that it was like a very big version of a typical town in Taiwan (busy narrow streets, characterless buildings, not much appeal).

[Jamer]

I lived in Kaohsiung for one year and a blogger who spent a few days there put is best- "The Newark, New Jersey of the orient". I've travelled all over the world to such places as Shanghai, Beijing and Bangkok- and IMO I found Kaohsiung to be one of the dirtiest, most polluted cities I've ever been to.

However, I did stay there a year and the reason. I had a HUGE apartment that only cost me about 10 percent of my salary (with utilities included), Kenting is fun, night markets are cool, had a 24 hour tepiyaki restaurant right next to my apartment building and each menu thing was easily affordable (so if I wanted a steak at 3 AM, I could get it) and the foreign community is cool. SO if you can deal with the filth of the city, it can be a OK place to be.

Going back to Taiwan in a month for another year, but this time to Taipei. I found it to be a lot more fun, a lot more going on and a bit cleaner. Just gonna have to deal with smaller more expensive apartment