Cost of Living - a guide for anyone who plan to travel or live in Taiwan

Taiwan Living in Taiwan
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Hello. This is my very first post on forumosa, so let me introduce myself: my name is Maciej and I am from Poland. I have been living in Taiwan since December 2006 and currently study a master degree in economics in National Taiwan University. I am also married to Taiwanese lady and own two Labradors. I am looking forward to meet all of you.

In my first post, I would like to introduce a blog that I am working on. It is called Taiwan: Cost of Living and can be accessed here:http://taiwancost.blogspot.com/.

My goal is to write couple longer articles a month and much more shorts to put together an informative guide for people that live in Taiwan or plan to come here. While my main goal is to present material from ‘monetary perspective,’ in the larger articles I also try to review places and services and give them rating (an example: Taco restaurant in Taipei with a food review and a score.)

I am also working on categorizing the blog, so there will be sections for ‘every day items,’ ‘travel’ ‘restaurants’ ‘hobbies’ and such. I am also looking at interesting idea of developing a section of ‘hard to find’ items and giving details of how to acquire stuff on the island, examples would be: German sauerkraut, nacho cheese dip, or Amazon Kindle.

If you own a business, or would like something to be reviewed / research by me, feel free to post here and I’ll do my best to get the info in a as short time as possible.

I am looking for quality, not quantity, but if the interest is large, I will spend much more time on this blog. Old posts are always updated with new information, such as new items in convenient shops, or price changes, and I also ask my wife to review my grammar from time to time (she teaches English at some universities,) so if the post is at first mediocre written, it will be given an update.

I’m truly hoping that what I am doing can help others and I can get some good advises from you guys.

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Hey maciejburno,

Just read through your blog and just wanted to thank ya!!

I’m heading to Taiwan around May 2012 to teach English, and really enjoyed all the information. I also like how you broke down much of my renting expenses. Been a little worried that I won’t have enough money saved when I travel over, but your blog has helped me figure things out.

I also love my video games, so the section for gamers was beauty! I’m thinking Ill just buy a bunch of PC games here in Canada, load them on my laptop and hope I buy enough to keep me entertained for a year hahaha.

Thanks again, and I look forward to more info!

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your website is really good indeed, I like reading it! Thanks!

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Can’t read through it all but it seems well on its way to a being a very good breakdown of costs.

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Book marked, thanks for sharing. Top work!

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[quote=“CanadianTeacher”]Hey maciejburno,

Just read through your blog and just wanted to thank ya!!

I’m heading to Taiwan around May 2012 to teach English, and really enjoyed all the information. I also like how you broke down much of my renting expenses. Been a little worried that I won’t have enough money saved when I travel over, but your blog has helped me figure things out.

I also love my video games, so the section for gamers was beauty! I’m thinking Ill just buy a bunch of PC games here in Canada, load them on my laptop and hope I buy enough to keep me entertained for a year hahaha.

Thanks again, and I look forward to more info![/quote]

You are welcome. I’m great that this information can be helpful and it motivates me to write even more :slight_smile:. I will try to write a guide for foreigners that plan to come here for work - a long guide of what to bring (such as bring extra shoes if your feet are larger than size 12.) If you notice my ‘working pages’ I am actually working on it, plus few more sections (such as visa information, categorizing the site) to make it more informational.

I know the situation of most foreigners who come to Taiwan for the first few years and try to find themselves - for some it is easy, for others its hard. I say ‘enjoy your time here’ and do what you always wanted to do, because if you look well, you’ll find all the things that you see in your old country.

I also enjoy my games. Currently playing ‘World of Warcraft,’ Fifa Manager 2012 and got early access to Diablo 3 - all on PC, while on XBOX360 finally found some time to beat GTA4 (4 missions left.) In Nov 11 Skyrim is going to be released, so yeah, I’ll probably mention it in the ‘shorts’ in my blog. Video games in Taiwan are much cheaper than in North America and Europe, PC games will work everywhere, but for consoles - region locked.

When I finish layout of the blog and categorize it, I’ll add more vital information such as 'address and how to get there’s guide.

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Thanks. I try to improve it more after categorizing it. Once done, you will simply click drinks, then ‘coca cola’ and you should have a list of:
A can
600ml bottle
1l bottle
2l bottle

with locations, such as “Cosco”, “7/11”, “Supermarket”, “Taiwanese Restaurants” “Western Restaurants” Lounge Bars, Bars, Night Clubs"

And if it is not a ‘short article’ - you will also get here an entire review of 'how coca cola tastes, where is most comfortable to drink it, and where is the cheapest, and how to get to it.
I haven’t decide it yet how to implement it - either put as a list with link to articles for more information, or a table with details. I will browse the net and see how other bloggers do that to get some ideas. I still want it to be a guide, not just a price list.

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Added new post about Maokong Gondola.
I will be also changing a layout in the near future to make it more user friendly.

Thanks for all the posts so far :slight_smile:.

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Today I’ve added 3 more posts to the blog:
Buying Timberland in Taiwan
King of Fast Food Pizza - Just Kidding - Pizza Hut in Taiwan
Getting Amazon Kindle to Taiwan

Also the entire layout changed to make things more easier to navigate, and working on specific guides to make the process even more easier to navigate. In few days I will also post a link directly to this forum tread that will invite more readers to come and join forumosa.

I will go over some of the posts in here and watch for things that are most often asked and add it slowly there.

Feel free to comment!

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Hi Mac! We love your blog and the way you integrate your personal experiences to such great tips (especially love the post of convenience stores lol)! =) We are a start-up which aims to be a professional international marketing & translation team, delicates to connect small and local Taiwanese tourism business to the world without language barrier. We are currently looking for guest blogger who has passion in introducing taiwan’s living style & tips to overseas travelers/expats. Do we have the honor to invite you to contribute to our blogs? We would always put a bio box at the end of your post, so our visitors would learn more about you & your blog.

(We noticed that you’ve changed ur blog theme - the previous theme is so cool (the magzine one). would you mind to tell us the secret? :wink:

Looking forward to your reply!! :slight_smile:

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Hi Mac! We love your blog and the way you integrate your personal experiences to such great tips (especially love the post about convenience store, we love 7-11!! lol) =) We are a start-up which aims to be a professional international marketing & translation team, delicates to connect small and local Taiwanese tourism business to the world without language barrier. We are currently looking for guest blogger who has passion in introducing taiwan’s living style & tips to overseas travelers/expats. Do we have the honor to invite you to contribute to our blogs? We would always put a bio box at the end of your post, so our visitors would learn more about you & your blog.

(We noticed that you’ve changed ur blog theme - the previous theme is so cool (the magzine one). would you mind to tell us the secret? :wink:

Looking forward to your reply!! :slight_smile:

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[quote=“TaipeiVacation”]Hi Mac! We love your blog and the way you integrate your personal experiences to such great tips (especially love the post about convenience store, we love 7-11!! lol) =) We are a start-up which aims to be a professional international marketing & translation team, delicates to connect small and local Taiwanese tourism business to the world without language barrier. We are currently looking for guest blogger who has passion in introducing Taiwan’s living style & tips to overseas travelers/expats. Do we have the honor to invite you to contribute to our blogs? We would always put a bio box at the end of your post, so our visitors would learn more about you & your blog.

(We noticed that you’ve changed your blog theme - the previous theme is so cool (the magzine one). would you mind to tell us the secret? :wink:

Looking forward to your reply!! :slight_smile:[/quote]

Hello,
Since my blog is mainly for informational purposes, I do not see a reason why extra exposure can harm it :slight_smile:. There is a lot to be done with my blog, but the main theme is: a cost of living guide with tips on every aspect of living in Taipei, from shopping from groceries, to watching football at night time in the local bar to traveling all over the place. Currently in my ‘to do’ list are reviews of 2 hotels in Kenting and I am preparing already another 10 longer articles to place there. Current articles are also changing all the time to update and add items to the basket, for example, yesterday I’ve added about 5 more items under ‘Cosco.’

So feel free to PM me and let me know the details. :wink:
Regarding a layout, oh yeah - it changed and will probably change when more articles are added. I know it might not as cool as before, but is more practical for finding the info. When I finish categorizing website, most likely the entire blog will be changed as well and gets its own domain address for easier finding.

I always invite businesses to let me know they want an article, no matter how small or what kind of business it is as long as it has ties to Taiwan. That way, everyone can learn about it and have solid info.

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The blog looks interesting and with some good topics.

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A new update on with couple articles recently added:
Adidas Shoes in Taiwan
Taiwanese World of Warcraft
Bungee Jumping in Taiwan
Fried Food Stands in Taiwan
Small Clinics in Taiwan
Bookstores and English Books

I am trying to fix some older post (mainly grammar) and the new layout is almost complete - it looks more clear now and soon there will be categories added to the blog for easy info.
The link section is already added, and it also post directly to this topic - so hopefully more people register with forumosa. If you have a website about Taiwan, please send me a message with a link and we can share links.
This week I will be also getting a domain address for this blog, (thanks to ads) so I’ll update you guys here :slight_smile:.

Currently there are 24 posts and by the end of next year I plan to have about 300 with varied information and as detailed as possible + advises how to save or get extra discounts on pretty much everything.
If you want me to write about something related to Taiwan, let me know - I will research it as much as possible and if it is interesting, add the article to the post.

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A post about the library system and the ways to take advantage of it might be helpful. For instance

-there are many branch libraries in addition to the main one
-many of these have better or different book selections than the main library (specializing in topics like literature, travel books, one even has a large selection comics/graphic novels)
-library fines go down over time
-the main library at one time offered free Chinese classes (I think)
-library card can be combined with EZ card
-books can be ordered from different branches (like interlibrary loan), but if you don’t pick them within a few days, there are penalties
-English language books/Chinese learning materials at libraries?
-etc.

I found out information like this through experimentation and some trial and error over the years, so if the information was collected in one place in might be helpful, especially for people interested in saving money by taking advantage of public services.

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Hi John,
Oh right - public libraries. I thought about it few weeks ago, and then exams and flu came so kind of slow down my writing (catching up on it now :wink:)

I do plan to write about public libraries - and I do have experience with it. I just forgot a lot of details (did my library card 6 years ago) so I need to revisit and see changes.

In the meantime, post few things that I do remember here:

  • Anyone can apply for a public library card, when I applied I did not have ARC, just 2 months extendable visa
  • If I remember correct, it either doesn’t cost anything or cost a very little to make new library card
  • You can borrow books for 2-3 weeks (need to recheck it) and you only pay if you are late, but you can extend the time
  • there is free computer access offering standard office package as well as internet connection
  • Most of branches have English section with new and archive magazines and some selection of books. Main library in Taipei? Not sure. I’ll take a look in the next few week.

What changed over the past few year? Not sure, most likely a lot (like Easy card that can be combined with library card - did not know that!)

Later today I will add this to my ‘to do list’ and should have an article ready within 2 weeks.

There is a lot in Taiwan that can be obtained really cheap or even for free, depending if you know how to look for it. Slowly while blog is growing, I have a plan to point how to save on things, but also how to enjoy your time in Taiwan by doing and experimenting things you would not normally do.

There are pretty much unlimited number of articles that can be written: introduce bookstores and explain how to import kindle to Taiwan or other books, then write about public libraries, school libraries and how anyone could gain an access, then another post about some small private owned bookstores that specialize in something, or are simply special (hehe I am thinking of Harry Potter and magical textbook, nah, don’t take my word for it :smiley:) Well, what about audio books, or video books? Could be added later. I could think of at least 20 articles just about concerning book lovers (we also have music lovers, game lovers, movie lowers… :slight_smile:) and then I do categorizing in the blog (too many posts) - you simply will click a section called ‘Entertainment’ and choose ‘Reading’ and you will get all the material there is about… well… books! If I can get to 300 articles by the end of the next year (meaning about 1 article every 1-2 day) that will be a really large specific collection of information.

Thanks for your input John, I really appreciate it. I will drive to main library in Taiwan perhaps next weekend and visit 2-3 branches to collect information and maybe shoot some pictures and get the article going in no time:).

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good luck