Job Discussion Forums

refazenda · Posted: Wed Apr 07, 2004 1:57 pm Post subject: Air quality

How bad is it really? I have heard the south is especially bad, but how about the north? Hod does it compare to cities in the US - LA, NY, Houston?

jason_seeburn · Joined: 26 Apr 2003 Posts: 399 Location: Toronto

MTurton · Joined: 10 Mar 2004 Posts: 107

I've been in Houston, LA, and Taiwan. There is no comparison. Good air quality here is like LA on a bad day. Don't be fooled by the pictures you see -- they are generally taken on days when air quality is good.

There are a few pix on my website, particularly a nasty one on my letters page, that show the pollution. But most of my scenic shots were done when the air pollution had been abated by rain or hurricanes.

Michael

mjed9 · Joined: 25 Oct 2003 Posts: 242

The air is not the cleanest in the big cities (in fact the other are correct it can be downright awful) but it is still breathable and if you drive maybe ten minutes out of the cityscape you will find very clean air (noticeably so). I guess some areas will be worse than others. I can only truly vouch for Taipei and its county.

matchstick_man · Joined: 21 May 2003 Posts: 244 Location: Taiwan

Air quality is reasonable in the East Coast however there are less jobs around. Jason and M-Turton mostly spend or spent time on the West Coast.

MTurton · Joined: 10 Mar 2004 Posts: 107

daily chai · Joined: 16 Nov 2003 Posts: 150 Location: Brussels

I live in Tien Mu (suburb of Taipei) and go to Yangminshan mountain a lot--it's just a 15 minute walk from my door. I have no grimy window problem. I used to live in Xin Yi district/Taipei 101 area but the air was worse there (no shocker). Once my partner and I motored (scootered?) across town and THEN I noticed grit on my cheeks. All in all, the air quality is MUCH better in Taipei than it was 4 years ago. Then all the 50cc scooters were belching smoke and burning oil--awful. 80-90% of the scooters I see now have great filters on them. I don't even see a sudden burst of smog when the accelerate from a stop. OK, a long answer to your question: it's getting a lot better here, and there is breathable air in Taipei. You just have to live outside of the center.

MTurton · Joined: 10 Mar 2004 Posts: 107

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

How bad is it really? I lived in Taipei from 1997 to 2000. Even though I hanged my helmet in Shilin and Beitou respectively, I quickly learned that those grimy coffee table / window / teeth stories are TRUE (Zhanghua was even WORSE, owing to the huge plastics factory).

Here is a quick test that any Taiwanese / Expat can do: (1) Keep a white face towel or handkerchief handy. (2) Every one or two hours, wipe your face. (3) Examine the cloth at the end of the day. (4) Swear. (5) Remind yourself that you are making more money than the blokes back home who teased you about using your degree to work at McDonald's. (6) Repeat as needed.

Shocked

travelgoddess · Posted: Sun Apr 18, 2004 2:43 pm Post subject: Southern Taiwan

I live in Tainan right now. Smack dab in the middle of a one year contract. Like clockwork every 3 weeks for the first 4 months I got a serious throat cold. Coughing, soreness, and more. Even lost my throat at work one night. That has NEVER happened to me before. And I am used to working in jobs where I am talking for 8 hours at a time(I only teach 3-4 hours per night).

The scary part is that now I dont get these colds anymore...am I used to the pollution. What will my lungs be like when (if) I go home soon. Hmmm.

A note about the white cloth test-do it. I did it the first few weeks I was here, just cause I wasnt used to the grime on my face. Shocking really. wow. ANd yes, I can see the pollution most days. Not to mention that I wipe my desk at work clean every couple of days and my scooter every 3-4 days. Lets not even talk about the weird dark stains on my khaki pants. Yikes.

I have heard that Kaoshung is building a new subway system to help cut down on pollution. But to be honest, I dont know details of that.

Gotta love Taiwan. (cough, cough)
D

travelgoddess · Posted: Sun Apr 18, 2004 2:44 pm Post subject: oops

Lost my voice, not my throat.

hha
D

chi-chi · Joined: 16 Jan 2003 Posts: 127 Location: Back in Asia!

Lots of men on the board complain that Taiwanese women are not as pretty as Korean ones, the answer is simple, dressing up there (in Taiwan) will wreck your clothes. I used to get black soot on my ankles. It is hard to be cutsey there, really. It is icky.