hello, i’m from europe, i’m going to live in taiwan for my studies.
if you can answer some of those question, it’d be cool!
-is internet free on Taiwan? for example in europe I can go to any site from an country ( even violence, porn, politics )
-is Taiwanese water drinkable?
-is Taiwan safe? ( no thiefs, gangsters, and also diseases )
-are there fucking roachs in taiwan? ( if yes, please, tell me how much…) :fume: :fume: :fume:
thank you for reading, see you !
[quote=“loklok”]hello, I’m from europe, I’m going to live in taiwan for my studies.
if you can answer some of those question, it’d be cool!
[/quote]
Welcome. I’ll try.
Yes, completely. Taiwan is not (yet) China.
In Taipei, yes, although most people don’t drink it without boiling it. Buy a filter if you are worried.
Taiwan is very safe.
Taiwan is hot, wet semi-tropical country, so there are lots of insects including roaches. There are quite a few, and they are bigger than in colder countries. If you live in the hills, there will be giant flying cockroaches. Keep your house very, very clean and you shouldn’t see too many.
In Taipei, yes, although most people don’t drink it without boiling it. Buy a filter if you are worried.[/quote]
The tapwater will make you sick if you drink it, even (perhaps especially) in Taipei.
Taiwan is very safe.[/quote]
Plenty of diseases, but you don’t generally have to worry about being assaulted.
[/quote]
About NT$1000 for “short time”, or so I used to hear.
[quote=“loklok”]hello, I’m from europe, I’m going to live in taiwan for my studies.
if you can answer some of those question, it’d be cool!
-is internet free on Taiwan? for example in europe I can go to any site from an country ( even violence, porn, politics )
-is Taiwanese water drinkable?
-is Taiwan safe? ( no thiefs, gangsters, and also diseases )
-are there fucking roachs in Taiwan? ( if yes, please, tell me how much…) :fume: :fume: :fume:
thank you for reading, see you ![/quote]
The internet is not censored but you do generally have to pay for a connection - as in Europe
I never drank the water, my wife and her family (Taiwanese) do
We had some trouble with a bar that opened immediately under our apartment, the police were clearly on the payroll. You do occasionaly hear stories of foreigners getting into trouble but its rare - stay away from drugs, hookers, gambling and you are pretty much safe.
Cockroaches are a problem in most parts of Asia. You can keep them down by being clean, bleaching your drains regulalry etc. but you will not be completely free of them if you stay any length of time. There are less in the winter months and they seem to reappear around April time.
Taiwan is a great place to live, its cheap and the people are sociable and friendly. You wil have a good time.
In Taipei, yes, although most people don’t drink it without boiling it. Buy a filter if you are worried.[/quote]
The tapwater will make you sick if you drink it, even (perhaps especially) in Taipei.
[/quote]
Here are the official statistics from the Taipei Department of Water. The water is tested regularly all over the city, and you can have the water tested at your residence. I’ve drunk unboiled tap water here for years without any ill effects.
That said, most Taiwanese people boil and filter the water. I chalk this up to old habits dying hard.
If Taiwan is the first Asian country you have lived in, you are likely to have regular stomach upsets in the first few months you are here. Most people get used to the new bugs, some unfortunate people never do. But I suspect that experience plus the Taiwanese taboo against drinking tap water convinces many foreigners that they can’t drink the tap water.
Nonsense I say.
Of course you can drink the water, at least in Taipei. I’ve been drinking it for many many years, at least.
Of course there are roaches and they do indeed fuck, or at least have their own little version of insect-lovin’.
Of course you can look at porn on the Internet, although I’m guessing you’re not very good at internetting, as all this information has been posted many many many times on here.
[quote=“sandman”]Of course you can drink the water, at least in Taipei. I’ve been drinking it for many many years, at least.[/quote]Ditto. When I lived in a smaller rooftop apartment, I boiled the water because I heard that in the heat of summer the water stored on the rooftop tanks gets a little more algae-friendly which can lead to frequent trips to the bathroom, but I’ve never actually suffered from that. And where I live now, the tank isn’t exposed to the elements, and is frequently cleaned out.
[quote=“loklok”]hello, I’m from europe, I’m going to live in taiwan for my studies.
if you can answer some of those question, it’d be cool!
-is internet free on Taiwan? for example in europe I can go to any site from an country ( even violence, porn, politics )
-is Taiwanese water drinkable?
-is Taiwan safe? ( no thiefs, gangsters, and also diseases )
-are there fucking roachs in Taiwan? ( if yes, please, tell me how much…) :fume: :fume: :fume:
thank you for reading, see you ![/quote]
Enjoy your time in Taiwan 
.
Internet is free but not of charge 
Its drinkable but I dont recommend to drink it without boiling it first. In some places, even in Taipei, but especially in Southern Taiwan, water has a strong “chlorine” taste.
Its safe, unless you like to gang up with some mafia guys 
There are a lot of roachs, new app. usually dont have them, older app. have them. I can only repeat keep it clean, clean, clean and clean…
To sum it up enjoy your time as a student 
Wasn’t there a thread called “I drank the water… will I live?”
Water everywhere has different trace elements. Food and water will have different bacteria from the one back home. Both require a lapse of time while yours system adjusts to the change. If you just avoid the water, you will not be able to avoid the food -prepared with that water- and hence you will keep on getting “sick”. So bite the bullet and get the system going sooner.
And don’t talk to me about roaches… at least they are smaller here. We can lend you a cat to foster during your time here, so that problem will be covered. 
Aside from insects, Taiwan is overall safer than other developed countries. Do watch your step, though. There s little chance of getting robbed, but a higher one of being run over by careless drivers or tripping over uneven sidewalks. Do not take beaten up, dirty taxis, not because they can kidnapp and rob you -very, very, extremely rare, practically unheard of-, but rather because they have nothing to lose and drive like lunatics. Always take pristine taxis -cheap transportation here- from reputable companies, Mercedes or Volvo models are OK.
Internet is free, plenty of discussion groups to join in, things to buy, e-government, banking… very interesting media, by the way.
I pay for my home connection. But depending on where you go, you may find free wireless hotspots.
No problem in that department, except for “this video isn’t available in your country for copyright reasons” for certain YouTube videos. :fume:
As said above, Taiwan is not China.
I assume you mean tap water? Taipei’s tap water is supposed to be drinkable, but I filter it in any case. You never know what may be going on between the time the water leaves the treatment plant and the time it leaves your faucet.
In Kaohsiung, don’t even drink boiled tap water. The water has relatively high concentrations of arsenic (enough to make George W. Bush envious) that occurs naturally from the surrounding soils. Drink bottled water there.
There are all three, as anywhere. But compared to the rest of the world, Taiwan is one of the safest places on the planet.
Most thievery here that you may have to worry about comes in the form of home burglaries, which is why so many apartments have bars on the windows. Choose a secure apartment. You don’t really have to worry about muggings or pickpocketing, though take precautions anyway: despite their utter rarity, I’ve heard stories. And I did once encounter a gang of pickpockets at a crowded event. In any case, the few muggers and pickpockets that do exist will probably target locals, who are more likely to carry large wads of cash on them than foreigners do.
Gangsters: if you don’t bother them, they won’t bother you.
Diseases: there are diseases such as dengue fever and scrub typhus that can be caught deep in the wilderness, but the chances you’ll catch these is exceedingly low. You may have to contend with travellers’ diarrhea, as anyone who moves to a new country will experience.
Yes. Many. But as said above, keep your apartment clean and you’ll have few problems.
Of course one does need to pay attention that nobody has murdered someone and dumped the dead body in the water tank? Which has happened once or twice? :bluemad:
Thank you very much for all those answers!
well, in a very few months i’ll be there 
Taiwan seems too cool!
ciao!