Four Things I’ve Learned From My First Week Living in Taiwan

Recently I dropped everything and moved to Taiwan in a bid to take my Chinese to the next level. Here are four things I learned from my first week living in Taipei! Four Things I’ve Learned From My First Week Living in Taiwan – I'm Learning Mandarin

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Very cool, Micha!

Have fun in Taiwan…

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Enjoy. I found Khaosiung much nicer than Taipei. It is directly at the waterfront, more accessible by bicycle and English is really not commonly spoken. It is also much cheaper.

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Thanks Peter. Be sure to stay tuned for more updates on my adventures coming very soon…

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Thanks, I’ll check it out.

In case you haven’t heard, China is preparing to invade Taiwan in order to take it by force. Should the invasion start, it could get quite intense, but combat probably won’t go on for too long before Taiwan falls to China. 祝你好运。

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There is really no good evidence to suggest this will happen in the next 6 months. So scaring him on his short stay is really unnecessary. Also, anyone, who has not lived under a rock would know that there are tensions… Anyway, I know you mean no harm, your warning is a bit intense…

Good article. You are right that the simplified/traditional issue is dwarfed by the much larger deal of just learning Chinese one way or the other.

Taiwan is great. The book stores there are bigger and higher quality than I have seen anywhere else.

I can also recommend the mango juice and mangos, if you’ve never had them fresh in the tropics. No comparison to imports.
And also getting a 道地 foot massage, preferably from a huge aboriginal guy, who looks like a Samoan Rugby player.
Don’t judge, I know it sounds weird, but it’s a thing. You’ll never be the same. Thank me later.

Maybe the only disappointment of Taiwan is, that when you think it’s the ice cream truck…

…It’s the garbage truck!

PS
I second JanFinster that Gaoxiong and anything out of Taibei is even better.

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Lol it’s OK I took it for what it was: a totally ridiculous and pointless comment. Not in the least scary.

If one is paying attention to what is happening between China and Taiwan, it is clear that tensions between them have increased a lot recently. Since Nancy Pelosi’s visit last August, which angered China,
China’s military for the first time fired missiles over Taipei, flew waves of drones over some of Taiwan’s offshore islands, sailed warships and flew fighter jets across the median line of the Taiwan Strait and surrounded the island in what Taiwan’s military said amounted to a practice “blockade.” So, I’m just giving Michilini a warning based on recent developments there. I hope nothing happens, but there is a much greater chance of something happening now than ever before.

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Haha yeah the garbage trucks are interesting. Looking forward to when I can comfortably read traditional characters so I can take advantage of the bookstores.

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Thinking about it:
One podcast about the awesome Taiwanese garbage trucks and
another one about the foot message “from a huge aboriginal guy, who looks like a Samoan Rugby player” would be great :slight_smile:

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Hehe.

When I originally read your article I jumped from title to bullet point 1. and totally skipped the intro, where you make clear that you have travelled there before. I was thinking very first time, but it’s first week permanently residing. So you know most of this stuff.

Eslite Bookstore 誠品書店 is the one I mostly went to.
Watch your step.
Lots of youngsters rolling around on the floor reading any comicbook for free that’s not wrapped.

On a different note, that “China is preparing to invade Taiwan” is actually not the most ridiculous and irrelevant Taiwan warning I have ever heard.

Imagine what my boomer parents said when I told them:
“…also, I’m going to Taiwan.”

Parent: disturbed, dissapointed look of hidden scorn
“Well… Two things. First of: How many condoms are you packing? Second of: Always make sure that that girl is really a girl, and not a boy.”

Me:
“Taiwaaaaan, not Thailaaaand”

Parent:
“Aha. So what does one go to Taiwan for?”

Me:
“It’s like a real, free China without “communism”, just mini and tropical. You know how North Korea has South Korea, East Germany had West Germany, and Canada has the US? Roughly like that.”
(Ok, the Canada one is a post hoc joke I didn’t really say :P)

…Those boomers. God help them.

PS.
The most “dangerous” things I experienced in Taiwan were, one builing-shaking earthquake, and one typhoon that emptied the streets, locked down people where they were for a couple hours, and resulted in 24h without running water (rooftop watertanks knocked over). No real problems ultimately.

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“On a different note, that “China is preparing to invade Taiwan” is actually not the most ridiculous and irrelevant Taiwan warning I have ever heard.”
I agree.
On the other hand, this sword of Damocles has been hanging over Taiwan for many decades (I had a Taiwanese girlfriend many years ago and we were constantly talking about those invasion threats)…

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What makes it ridiculous is not the degree to which it’s likely to happen but the fact that someone would think it’s helpful to point out.

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I just checked out your Blog an it´s amazing! Keep up the good work! :slight_smile:

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You seemed to be so utterly clueless about the current situation in Taiwan that I thought someone should should clue you in. So, you’re welcome. By the way, you wrote that you "moved to " Taiwan, which means a long-term relocation to a place. Six months is just a visit or a temporary stay. So, your post is untruthful and misleading.

@Kongbu_Haja
Hm, I’ve got a background in international relations and esp. military theory / security politics and I have been interested in these topics for a long time:

Do you have any in-depth “knowledge” that goes beyond, for example, the BBC (Taiwan - BBC News) or Foreign Affairs (Taiwan’s Urgent Task)?

If not, then why do you think you should be taken seriously?

Lol, Yes, I do have better sources and a more in-depth knowledge than what the Biased Broadcasting Corp. offers. I don’t care what anyone thinks about my post. It’s based on good intel. Take it or leave it. Michilini seemed to be totally unaware of the current state of affairs in Taiwan, so I clued him in. My conscience is clear.

“It’s based on good intel.”
Sources?

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