I am currently in Manila but I was offered a position in Taoyuan and I’m not sure if I am going accept it or not as I would really like to be in Danshui. I hear Taoyuan isn’t the greatest place on the island but that’s not what this is about. I fell in love with Danshui when I visited and think it’s far enough outside of Taipei but close enough for me to enjoy living there.
My question is if I showed up in Danshui are there enough schools there for me to be able to find employment there off the street? I’d also be willing to commute to Taipei from Danshui but I really would want to live in Danshui.
How much time should I give myself? Is a month enough time to do this?
I guess a more absolutely ridiculous question is can I possibly commute to Taoyuan from Danshui or is this the most ridiculous anyone on this board has ever heard?
I’m really torn as to what to do, I showed up in Manila thinking I would be able to find employment fairly easily (not as an English teacher) and I’ve been here 2 1/2 months and am no closer to having a job then I was when I got off the plane in September.
You could definitely do it with a car, but you’d go crazy after a week doing it on a scooter and you literally cannot realistically do it with public transit. Where in Taoyuan are you talking about? Some parts of it are easier to get to, others harder.
Also Taoyuan is really really not a great place to live.
Been to Manila recently Hokk? Believe me Taoyuan is a big step up!
Just on safety alone Taoyuan is 10x better, but then consider traffic and the fact that yes the OP can actually get a job and safe bit of money , OP should just take the job or get his arse over here now to check out schools.
[quote=“headhonchoII”]Been to Manila recently Hokk? Believe me Taoyuan is a big step up!
Just on safety alone Taoyuan is 10x better, but then consider traffic and the fact that yes the OP can actually get a job and safe bit of money , OP should just take the job or get his arse over here now to check out schools.[/quote]
Hahaha so you are familiar with Manila…lol. Yeah I am fortunate as I live in a high rise in Makati City but I’m not a big fan of seeing kids eating out of garbage bags or sleeping in dumpsters. Throw in the smell of garbage and the traffic. It’s not a great place to live. My thinking is as bad as people might think Taoyuan is it can’t be any worse then Manila.
No Taoyuan ain’t so bad comparatively. Lots of nice communities (meaning gated highrise complexes) and the mountains are very close on weekends. Where is the job offer?
I don’t know the exact location yet as it’s a chain and from the sounds of it I could work at a few different locations. Do you have any websites that could assist in looking for places to live, What you mention is exactly what I would be looking for. A high rise on the newer side.
I don’t know the exact location yet as it’s a chain and from the sounds of it I could work at a few different locations. Do you have any websites that could assist in looking for places to live, What you mention is exactly what I would be looking for. A high rise on the newer side.[/quote]
It’s been a long time since I lived in Taoyuan though I have friends there still and I used to own an apartment. The area around Tigerhead Mountain is pretty good. Lots of buildings that would suit you. You should be able to get a small apartment in a nice building with pool for under NT10,000.
Check carefully where you want to live. Taoyuan has some bike lanes now that can connect you with the longer lanes that run all the way to…Danshui. (No kidding.)
There are posters who still live there who can probably offer more help.
I don’t know the exact location yet as it’s a chain and from the sounds of it I could work at a few different locations. Do you have any websites that could assist in looking for places to live, What you mention is exactly what I would be looking for. A high rise on the newer side.[/quote]
It’s been a long time since I lived in Taoyuan though I have friends there still and I used to own an apartment. The area around Tigerhead Mountain is pretty good. Lots of buildings that would suit you. You should be able to get a small apartment in a nice building with pool for under NT10,000.
Check carefully where you want to live. Taoyuan has some bike lanes now that can connect you with the longer lanes that run all the way to…Danshui. (No kidding.)
There are posters who still live there who can probably offer more help.[/quote]
I have been searching in New Taipei City as well as it seems newer and modern and on the MRT right into Taipei. I’m definitely an urbanite as I love the city but I’d love to be able to get a little bit of both mountain and city which is why I love Taiwan. Last time I was there I took the gondola from Taipei Zoo to the top of the mountain and it was an awesome afternoon. Little tea shops and great views. I will definitely check out Tigerhead Mountain.
New Taipei is right next to Taoyuan, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy to get to! Taoyuan is surprisingly poorly connected in parts. If you have a scooter or a car, it’s not so big of an issue, but for example getting from Linkou (New Taipei) to Nankan (Taoyuan) is a complete nightmare even though they basically are right next to each other. That’s why it’s important to know where in Taoyuan you’d be. Taoyuan City and Zhongli (Jung li… however they want to spell it these days) are the most convenient for transport links, and everything else is really sort of hit or miss.
It very much depends where in Danshui, and where in Taoyuan. Assuming Danshui by the MRT (metro) station, and Taoyuan somewhere near the train station, which is probably the most optimistic scenario, your are looking at an 1.5h commute each way, at a cost of about $200 per day, which is quite a lot by the local standards. Here’s what it would look like: goo.gl/maps/WBDYq
With a car it’d be about 1h each way, so not really much better. Driving in and out of Danshui is not exactly very convenient either.
It’s technically possible to commute like that, even on public transport, but it’s totally not worth it unless you had an apartment there for free. And it would need to be a very nice apartment to justify that. Since you’ll be renting anyway, my suggestion is to live near your work.
A piece of unsolicited advice follows:
To me, Danshui is a damp (both literally and figuratively), overgrown satellite town with an inconvenient commute, little to offer on its own, and well past its prime. I wouldn’t want to live there. It’s a matter of opinion of course, but I’d suggest you take another, closer look before deciding to settle there. If you’re looking for a small-town vibe, I’d consider some places down south instead (if you can find a job there). At the very least, it wont’be be as crowded, and the weather will be nicer.
It very much depends where in Danshui, and where in Taoyuan. Assuming Danshui by the MRT (metro) station, and Taoyuan somewhere near the train station, which is probably the most optimistic scenario, your are looking at an 1.5h commute each way, at a cost of about $200 per day, which is quite a lot by the local standards. Here’s what it would look like: goo.gl/maps/WBDYq
With a car it’d be about 1h each way, so not really much better. Driving in and out of Danshui is not exactly very convenient either.
It’s technically possible to commute like that, even on public transport, but it’s totally not worth it unless you had an apartment there for free. And it would need to be a very nice apartment to justify that. Since you’ll be renting anyway, my suggestion is to live near your work.
A piece of unsolicited advice follows:
To me, Danshui is a damp (both literally and figuratively), overgrown satellite town with an inconvenient commute, little to offer on its own, and well past its prime. I wouldn’t want to live there. It’s a matter of opinion of course, but I’d suggest you take another, closer look before deciding to settle there. If you’re looking for a small-town vibe, I’d consider some places down south instead (if you can find a job there). At the very least, it wont’be be as crowded, and the weather will be nicer.
Yeah I was looking at that last night and it does not seem doable from Danshui. It seems like the Banqiao area in New Taipei City might be more my speed. I’m one who likes urban areas so satellite towns don’t really bother me. I grew up in the burbs, I like high rises and malls…lol
Personally I like Taoyuan - it’s not the most exciting town on the planet, and you really need your own transport; but there’s not much to actively dislike about the place. If, for whatever reason, you need to visit Taipei/Danshui, well, as Tommy said, it’s easy enough to get to. Depending on exactly where you live, you could take the shuttle bus to the HSR, or get the local TRA train. Either option will get you to Taipei main station in less than an hour.
I live in Danshui at the moment, and it suits me. But if I were living in Manila, and my company were offering a relocation to Taoyuan, I’d be walking to NAIA right now (walking, because it’s quicker than taking a taxi).
[quote=“finley”]Personally I like Taoyuan - it’s not the most exciting town on the planet, and you really need your own transport; but there’s not much to actively dislike about the place. If, for whatever reason, you need to visit Taipei/Danshui, well, as Tommy said, it’s easy enough to get to. Depending on exactly where you live, you could take the shuttle bus to the HSR, or get the local TRA train. Either option will get you to Taipei main station in less than an hour.
I live in Danshui at the moment, and it suits me. But if I were living in Manila, and my company were offering a relocation to Taoyuan, I’d be walking to NAIA right now (walking, because it’s quicker than taking a taxi).[/quote]
Hahaha so you’ve seen Manila and all it’s charms or lack there of
More like 35 minutes. OP, the half-hour trainride from Banqiao to Taoyuan city may not seem that bad, but imagine having to get off work at 9 or 10 every night an needing to take that to get home. Not to mention, it’s not terribly likely your job will be right near the Taoyuan train station as there isn’t much there.
If we’re talking about Taoyuan City, soon to be Taoyuan District: crowded, embarassingly bad public transit, awful road layout, heavy traffic, too-small streets, dearth of eating options, little green space outside of Hutoushan Park (which is pretty nice, but totally inacessable without your own wheels). If we’re talking about the rest of Taoyuan, it’s all either underdeveloped or overdeveloped, the streams are horribly polluted, the air quality is not very good, there are NO sidewalks, and there really just isn’t much to do in general.
It’s noisy, boring, inconvenient, and polluted. I see very little to like about Taoyuan.
I timed it once . Service at 5-8 minute intervals.
Which makes it pretty much identical to most of the rest of Taiwan, including much of Taipei (and Danshui, where the ‘protected nature reserve’ is a dumping-ground for untreated sewage and the obligatory flotsam of plastic waste). Personally, I prefer the small-town feel. But yeah, you absolutely DO need your own transport. I think we get spoiled living in Taipei, where everything works (mostly) extremely well, so anything less stands out as awful.
I didn’t say it was a top-notch place to live - but it’s a huge improvement on Manila, where nothing works.
I think ‘things to do’ is hugely overrated. When it comes right down to it, most people spend their lives working, eating, and sleeping. The facilities available in the Big City are rarely used, if ever (when was the last time you went to the Palace Museum or needed heart surgery?). Personally, I think it’s good enough to have those things a short train-ride away, but that’s just me.
Well, the wife and I are the kind who wake up late on a weekend with no idea what to do or where to go. A lot of the times, we end up just wandering the streets of Taipei totally aimlessly and sometimes find cool shops or restaurants or just go on an impromptu hike or bike ride. There is really nowhere to wander in Taoyuan – you’ll just end up at a factory – and an impromptu bike ride is a good way to get crushed by the avalanche of cars and scooters. Things to do is relative: I go up 101 about once every two years and I’ve never been to a concert at the National Theater, but it’s nice to have lively districts like Ximen and Dongqu to head off to when you have nothing else to do, and there is an enormity of places you can meet up with friends.
In Taoyuan, we never invited our friends out there simply because we wouldn’t know where to meet. Even the wife, who is a native, wants out really badly now.
I timed it once . Service at 5-8 minute intervals.
Which makes it pretty much identical to most of the rest of Taiwan, including much of Taipei (and Danshui, where the ‘protected nature reserve’ is a dumping-ground for untreated sewage and the obligatory flotsam of plastic waste). Personally, I prefer the small-town feel. But yeah, you absolutely DO need your own transport. I think we get spoiled living in Taipei, where everything works (mostly) extremely well, so anything less stands out as awful.
I didn’t say it was a top-notch place to live - but it’s a huge improvement on Manila, where nothing works.
Amen to that, this city is really trying on you. I basically live in a bubble but within my bubble I have a nice 24th floor high rise studio that offers me a gym, arcade, movie room with top notch surround sound, a nice pool and about 5 really nice malls all within a 10-15 walk or cab ride. Granted I’m also about a 5 minute walk to the very nice family area of Burgos (sarcasm) but I don’t go there other than to eat at this great African restaurant.
Unfortunately I’m also at the stage where I need to find a job that pays rent or pack up and head home. I definitely don’t want to go home.
However things just got a little more complicated as I was offered a job in Guangzhou which could be interesting but China offers a whole new set of challenges.
The big question is this, I have been in Chiayi and I wanted to shoot myself after an hour (unfortunately I was stuck there because of the ex’s family, can Taoyuan possibly be more dreary with less to do than Chiayi?
Jiayi city isn’t that bad compared to a lot of towns in Taiwan. The county is also spectacular, with awesome forests, waterfalls and aboriginal culture.
. Service at 5-8 minute intervals.