After returning to the US after 3 years for a wedding I realized I would actually have a hard time moving back. It was interesting to see first hand especially the US under trumps presidency with only what I can see from the media. I know we bash Taiwan for things such as driving and ignoring traffic laws and such. But there were things that I really appreciated when I left about living in Taiwan.
cheap, accessible public transportation. Sucks uber is not allowed, but I used uber to get around and it was one of the largest chunk of my expenses there in one week without a car.
No tipping or fixed service charge eating out. One of the most annoying things was tipping when I got to the US.
Along with tipping, costs of eating out and cost of eating healthy or buying and making your food is ridiculous. 1$ hamburgers and a 15$ salad, no wonder the country’s obesity from is so bad. I love going to the market here in Taiwan, besides the smell that you get used to, fresh fruits and veggies are all pretty cheap here.
Hearing what my friends pay for rent and utilities, ouch.
I don’t know if i’ll stay in taiwan forever but I really appreciated some of these things when I was gone.
I went home last year as well and had almost the exact same thoughts as you did. There’s no perfect world, but if I had to pick between the two, Taiwan would take top honors.
It’s awesome how driving is a luxury and not a necessity in Taiwan. Of course, it’s nice to have the freedom, but renting is never out of the question if you travel outside of major cities.
I sometimes get upset about the stupid 10% service charge in Taiwan, but nothing grinds my gears more than tipping someone for poor service AND figuring out how much to give.
I’ll add that a lot of the food we eat in Taiwan, a large amount of it is good compared to the states. When friends visited Taiwan and we had to grab a quick bite instead of going to somewhere “famous” I usually pick a small clean restaurant. What’s mediocre to me tastes amazing to them.
What Andrew said, plus personal safety -the odds of me getting shot/robed/raped there in the ol coyntry are still higher than me getting run over by a blue truck or taxi here. This counting the times I had to fight for my life there vs. the times I have been run over here.
Other quirky bits:
Access to knowledge, as in libraries, bookstores, fast Internet, courses at any level. You want to learn, you can find it here.
As a woman, I love being ignored on the street. No cat calls, no grabs. As a foreign woman, I feel protected. A shout and an angry mob of amas descends on the pervert.
My money is safe in the bank. It is insured. I have investments. They grow, and I know where they are. I can save money.
And many other personal preference things. Love me Asian guys.
Only in Taipei is the public transportation good. Elsewhere in Taiwan, it is not really that good.
I think rent and utilities depends on your lifestyle. I pay more here than back home when you adjust the price to compared apples to apples.
That said here are my positives
1)The ability to cycle to a lot of places is definitely better than back home.
2) Ubike system
3) I like the public transport in Taipei, but outside Taipei it’s not that good.
4) Cheaper medicine
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As a woman, I love being ignored on the street. No cat calls, no grabs. As a foreign woman, I feel protected.[/quote]
Several years ago my little sister came to visit. At the end of the first week we were drinking and she says “What’s with the guys here?”
And say, like how?
And she says “I’ve been out walking around Taipei for a week now and not a single one of them has checked out my tits!”
This week my new Global Dept Head (from Trumerica) was here for the first time. After several meetings and one dreadful Departmental Dinner, I can easily say that one of my favourite things about here is that I don’t have to spend all day surrounded by people like that.
I spend a couple months a year back in the U.S., so I’m pretty much in a constant state of comparison. Taiwan comes out ahead in most areas, which is why I spend most of my time here.
With the exception of shopping (supermarkets in the U.S. are generally cheaper and much better stocked that in Taiwan, other consumer goods are often a wash if you shop carefully), living in Taiwan is vastly cheaper than the U.S., especially when it comes to medical care, taxes, transportation, any kind of service, eating out, etc. It’s becoming standard to tip 20% in California restaurants for so-so service, and even rude service gets 10-15%. And the prices on menus can be shocking.
It’s also nice to feel safe and unmolested walking the streets (if not crossing the streets) in Taiwan. No worries about getting mugged or accosted by aggressive “street people” (the PC term in Berkeley for bums and derelicts). This makes for a relaxed state of mind that I associate with Taiwan. I’ve never found people in Taipei particularly friendly, but their live-and-let-live attitude suits me just fine.
Things I do miss about the U.S. when I’m not there: the delicious California weather, comfortable and aesthetically pleasing homes (it would be nice not to live in a moldy concrete box, but you can’t have everything), the variety and quality of food (especially authentic ethnic food), peace and quiet, and relatively fresh air.
One thing that I hated was sales tax in the US being slapped on when you checked out. I would see something and be like oh wow it’s like 30-40$ cheaper in the US and as I checkout, it really is about the same.
Oh, it can be worse, much worse. And I do not have all the eggs in one basket, that is for sure. But in comparison, my nest egg in teh ol country… gone. My pension fund… gone. And sinc ethey are state banks, no responsibility. Here, at least your savings are insured. And most hackers do not go for the small stuff, they have the “lying gangs” for that.
The way I see it, they do have nice homes beyond the moldy concrete box, but they are beyond our average means.
Like when some foreigners complain about not finding decent steaks, I tell them there are really good ones, it is just that they are not the 100 TWD kind.
Unfortunately, the fresh air and nice weather is definetively not in Taipei.
I’ve been exposed to the Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous here, and they just live in marginally nicer concrete boxes, maybe a concrete box “town house” if they’re really loaded. It’s partially a matter of aesthetics (i.e. lack of taste and imagination), and partially a matter of environment…concrete boxes are the only kind that can withstand earthquakes and typhoons.
Ah guys, while I agree most have too much money and little elegance, people with artful dsigns can make wonders here. Stand alone houses with gardens, apartments with clever additions that simplift your life. I know foreigners and loals of means that turn their houses into unique art coletions, not garbage.
Yep, or 100-ping places dudded up with tacky naugahyde-looking leather couches and hideous floral-print curtains. But worst of all is when they have the whole place decorated in that awful gold-plated Baroque style. It’s so classy and “European.”
You asked why I thought it was beyond our means. We do not have the means to buy a house and decorate it as we like… at least, not all of us, or not yet.
Mine would just have lots of catwalks. Or a sweet allocated cat area. Those I’ve seen awesome stuff.
