Teaching English & Living in Taiwan

City or Countryside?

Living in Taiwan is great in both cities and countryside! But you should still ask yourself: "Where do I want to settle down in Taiwan?". Here, this article can help you make the right decision...

City or countryside?
Moving to a new country is like picking out an outfit when all of your clothes are clean; the range of options seems limitless. In the same way, after you've decided you want to make a change and head to Taiwan, you might be overwhelmed by the number of different places to live. While Taiwan is a relatively small place, there is still a wide range of cities and towns ranging from tiny villages with a few hundred people to the international city of Taipei with almost 3 million inhabitants.

The city and the countryside differ greatly in Taiwan, as it does in most other places in the world. However, there are some special features of both that will apply to you as a prospective English teacher.

1. Taipei - fast, expensive, accepting
Taipei is considerably different from the other cities in Taiwan. It is home to a number of multinational corporations and foreign businesspeople. If you like a faster pace of life, Taipei will be a good place to call home. Nearly everything you could hope for is available in the country's capital - for a price. Elegant Italian dinners, fine cheeses, swanky lounge bars, the best universities, all of these things can be found in Taipei.
Related to foreigners, also, it's the place where you will get the fewest strange looks of "who are you and what are you doing here?" which is a big plus. Taipei residents are used to seeing foreigners all day all the time, and will not hassle you about it nearly as often as in other locations.

2. The countryside - friendly, cheap, confused
The countryside in Taiwan has a reputation amongst foreigners for having beautiful views, extremely friendly people and for being amazingly cheap. Incredibly, English schools pay at similar rates in spite of the fact that cost of living is so inexpensive. Also, the size of Taiwan and the effective train systems make it easy to quickly dart across the island from the countryside to city centers.

There are disadvantages, though. For one thing, in small towns, especially in the south, Chinese may not be used all that often. Local dialects are often favored on the street and at home. You will almost definitely need a scooter as public transit can be nearly non-existent.

Importantly, the residents of small towns will treat you differently than in cities, where you can blend in a bit more easily. Standing out in Taiwan is not necessarily a bad thing, as people enjoy foreigners being around and value your contribution to their education system as an English instructor. However, you can be singled out, stared at, randomly talked to and stereotyped a lot. If that kind of thing gets to you, beware of the smaller stops.

3. Why not compromise? - mid-size cities
Taiwan also has a number of cities that are not small but aren't quite on par with Taipei in terms of cosmopolitanism. These might make a good fit for those that aren't sure where to go. Places like Kaohsiung, Taichung and Tainan do not quite have the international flavor of Taipei, but they are transit hubs that can get you anywhere quickly, have every modern convenience you could think of and manage to maintain the relaxed lifestyle of countryside living. They are also significantly cheaper than Taipei. These cities also tend to have lots of open space, which Taipei definitely lacks.

Overall, it will be up to your interests. Take a look at what there is to do in these places, and if possible talk to people who have lived in or visited them. Living in Taiwan will only be fun if you find the place that's right for you, so don't rush it - take your time before settling down.

Need more info about Teaching English in Taiwan?

If you'd like to learn more about living in Taiwan, you should have a look at this guide. It explains in details how to find work in Taiwan and how to settle down. With this eBook, renting an apartment, buying a scooter, getting your license and insurance will be a breeze.

This book answers all the questions you might have about teaching and living in Taiwan - it's a step-by-step blueprint that shows everything you need to know to have a successful teaching experience in Taiwan.

This guide also has a massive directory that lists more than 500 English schools around Taiwan in big cities like Taipei, Taichung, Kaohsiung, Taoyuan, and Hsinchu, as well as in smaller, more remote towns like Hualien, Taitung (Taidong), Changhua, Pingtung, and Miaoli. You can learn more about this eBook here.

Return from Living in Taiwan to Teaching English in Taiwan.