That’s your microbiome. Your gut bacteria will have completely changed if your diet has changed , it can take a few years to become resistant to food poisoning.
Update:
Just got to Changhua, this is a quiet place (foreigner wise). I’m sure my Chinese will be much better after living here for a while
Got interviews or a job lined up?
I have a job and start on Monday, it was semi set up from back home. They have sorted me out with an apartment too. As I have a few days before I start I am in Taichung having a nosey
You living in Changhua and commuting to Taichung to teach, or?
I am living in changhua to teach in hemei and huatan
Changhua is okay, just small. Get yourself a nice bicycle if you like to exercise, or a nice scooter if you do not, and you can start roaming around the city and to the east and south of it on free weekends.
Changhua has a cool railway roundhouse.
“In Changhua, this is the only railway roundhouse , or also called fan-shaped train garage (扇形車庫), remaining in Taiwan, and there are no more than 3 railway roundhouses still in use in the world (the rest two are in Mexico).”
They have a roundhouse in Derby, it’s been converted to a college though…
I’ll check it out.
Thanks for the advice, I will get a bike (motor or push) soon enough, for now I’m just strolling the streets
Life is good. Settled in to Changhua and live in bagua San. I’ve been doing the hash every month which I highly recommend every foreigner to do, it’s so much fun.
The honeymoon stage still pulsates through me after 4 months
I am still in that phase 3 years on. lol.
Great thread! Thanks for keeping us updated, Sam. It’s nice to see people positively enjoying their life experiences. Enjoy the adventure 
It can’t all be bad, for starters the weather is glorious. I could see people moving over just for that.
Well, I don’t know about the weather being glorious. I sweat like a pig every day from April to October in Kaohsiung.
But you have a good attitude. Much better to be positive than negative. I probably land in the middle. A bit jaded and disappointed in some aspects of the country after a couple years here, but still having an appreciation for the positive attributes Taiwan has to offer. No place is perfect; Taiwan definitely has its pros and cons. Anyway, carry on young Samwise… uh, I mean Samwell.
Thanks for the comments. I’m sure there will be a stangnant point, but for now I’m enjoying it. Having a lot of foreign friends helps. Going to NCUE in Changhua to study Chinese will improve my life here no doubt.
I’ll keep you posted guys and gals.
What is the stagnant point?
I think I may have reached it.
I’m guessing when you’re bored and the thought of taking vacations all the time…
How’s life so far in Taiwan Sam? Is it everything you’d hope it would be? 
You didn’t keep us posted. 
Sorry I’ve been busy! I do t have a weekend where I’m not doing something, so I guess that’s good…?
Update:
Settled in baguashan near the big Buddha in Changhua City, in a Taiwanese family house rented out by me and 3 others( 2 Americans and 2 English people, what can go wrong? XD)
The job is good, working at Joy which for a brand new teacher is perfect. I had my first trip outside of Taiwan where I went to the phillipines for 1 week, which was fun. I came back and for the first time I felt I wanted to move to a bigger city. ‘Changhua has everything you need but nothing you want’ is the common coined phrase here amongst foreigners.
I have been studying chinese in the morning 3 times a week for 5 months, so my level can get me by now.
My single favourite part about foreigner life in Taiwan? The Hash.
I’m part of the Doulio hash, which stemmed off from the Kaohsiung hash house harriers. They have their 45th anniversary/ 2500th run this weekend, which I’m excited to go to.
All in all I’ve landed on my feet pretty quickly. My advice to anyone new/ thinking of coming over is to just do it, everything will pan out eventually. Also SOCIALISE with other foreigners, were all in the same boat, so why not get to know one another. So many teacher here in changhua hide away and don’t go out (I’ve created a Facebook group to try and get those people out and not inprisoned in their own home)
Further updates will follow
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