I think I will ask for 20k rmb or 92k NTD It at least makes me feel secure about moving there and setting up as I’m sure my first few months will cost me more to set things up. And it will give me a chance to have enough money to fly out to see my gf at least 1-2 times a month and she can also come out to me 1-2 a month. So it’s wouldn’t be that bad. Also this is the highest position I’ll most likely be offered in a while. Operations and head of marketing. Possibly take the GM role in a high end gym. For someone who never finished getting their degree. At 25, that’s not all that bad. And It gives me the option for more jobs down the road in places for me and my gf to be together. Because at this moment, she most likely won’t stay in school in taiwan. She’s looking at somewhere else in Asian. And I think it will be hard for me to find a job and work visa somewhere else. So at least for a real future this job will give me the experience and option to find a place where both of us can work and live in.
Hey in case anyone really cares and I hope maybe someone else can read this and help them make a decision in the future. I decided to stay in taiwan for now. I’m open to moving and relocating but I do want to be with my gf and I had to pass on the offer.
I did however give shanghai a call and just thanked them for the offer and just explained shortly why I decided to pass of the offer. I was upfront already about it but I just wanted to give a curtesy call to them and thank them. You’d be surprised how much that means to your professionalism. Although I’m friendly with the people there already that short phone call just backs why they wanted me in the first place. And left a door open for anything in the future. In my short time working I’ve encountered many people that won’t have that professionalism and just never called back or something like that. Had a guy quit for another job without notice. It’s just bad for your look. You’d be surprised how many people I decided not to hire before passing on to my previous bosses from the first interview when I wanted to hire them and they told me basically yeah fuck their current work They can start right away lol.
I’m a bit confused, isn’t the gf planning on applying to schools elsewhere because there’s not many schools in Taiwan that meet her requirements?
Yup. School doesn’t start till end of next summer. So that’s 1 year for now and a while before she needs to put in all applications
I lived for 13 months in Shanghai and for 3.5 years in Taipei and New Taipei. I was single the whole time, living on a teacher’s salary.
In Shanghai, I lived in the heart of the city, just two blocks from Jing An Temple. I found a single bedroom there that I paid around $165 USD per month for. I had to share a bathroom with my one other roommate. I think the same room in a comparable location would have cost twice as much in Taipei.
I definitely found the cost of living to be cheaper in Shanghai. Food was cheaper and, imo, better in Shanghai. Transportation consisted of walking, the subway, and taxis. Taxis were about half as much in Shanghai, as was rent, food, and my social life. At least, that was all true on a teacher’s salary. If you’re making more money and have more expensive tastes, the conversion might not work the same way.
I made “less” in Shanghai than in Taipei, but felt richer, because I was in a much higher bracket compared to the people around me.
When people ask me whether they should move to Shanghai, I always tell them, “Absolutely, for a year.” For you, I would say don’t move without scoping out your neighborhood, or without knowing that you’ll like your neighborhood. I loved mine to death, and that made Shanghai much more enjoyable/tolerable. I was able to go to Zhongshan park every day, as it was about 2.5 miles from my apartment - a long walk, or a short bus or taxi ride.
One of the negatives of Shanghai was seeing people fight and argue with each other in the streets on a weekly basis. People were usually nice to my white face, but to each other the Chinese are far less civil than are Taiwanese. Getting out of the city was also much less convenient in Shanghai (and, besides Suzhou, the interesting places were much farther away). Shanghai is also dirtier than Taipei.
All told, I would rather live absolutely anywhere in Taiwan (I’ve also lived in a small town for two years there) than absolutely anywhere in China. There’s just no substitute for freedom and friendly people, if you ask me. But, I guess if you have some great opportunity (money or whatever), I could still recommend Shanghai. The spring and fall are beautiful.
Well, I posted before reading through the whole thread!
I’m glad to hear you opted to stay in Taiwan. I tried not to admit it in my post, but I do honestly see Taiwan as the “good” side and China as the “bad” side.
Choosing relationships is a great choice over choosing money, imo. I trust you’ll be happy with your choice!