expats – 台味ㄉ愛爾蘭人 Nihao's It Going?

The Geographic Cure – How Not to Live in Taiwan

For many of us, the contemplation of a better life being elsewhere is a comforting thought. Heck, many expatriates and immigrants in Taiwan probably had a yearning for life elsewhere because, in their minds, it’s new and different. This mindset is called the “Geographical Cure,” and it’s a means for many of us to fall […]

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Why You Shouldn’t Think all Expats are “Losers”

I’ve been guilty, like a lot of people, of believing that something around 50% of expats in Asia, Taiwan, China or wherever you may be losers. There’s a lot of talk about how people come to Asia because they couldn’t make it in their own country. It’s an easy lie to fall into because it’s […]

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6 Blogs Worth Following in Taiwan For History, Culture, Politics, and All Things Current

I am always grateful for bloggers. Think about it, what are bloggers getting in return for their work? Some bloggers make a living out of it, but the vast majority of expat bloggers in Asia do it as a passion, and not for a source of income. I’ve been accused of being an attention seeker […]

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We Need to Talk About Mental Illness and Taiwan’s Foreign Community

It is easy to be noticed on the Taiwan foreigner scene. For better or worse, we have a small ecosystem of foreigners in Taiwan. Some people take advantage of this fact and network like there is no tomorrow. Seriously, look at all your friends in Taiwan and chances are, you all have a friend in […]

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It’s Time To Stop Mystifying Asian Culture to Make Yourself Interesting

If there is one thing I can’t stand about Asia sometimes, it is the amount of Europeans or North Americans who mystify the “orient” or “east”. I have said this before but, why is it the only people here I know that do Kung Fu are Europeans or North Americans? Kind of funny to overhear […]

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Being Thankful in Taiwan: Learning to Get Past Awkwardness and Move On

What has kept me feeling thankful in Taiwan the most is my scholarship. I am not sure if I could have pushed myself to come to Taiwan if I didn’t have a scholarship. I had the savings to make the trip here and set up shop, but I don’t think I would have had the […]

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Mandarin is Not Worth Learning: Unless You Have a Good Reason

I can’t find any statistics on what percentage of foreigners (Westerners) speak Mandarin in Taiwan, but by simple observation I wouldn’t expect that number to be quite low. When I say “speak Mandarin” I am setting the standard to be able to work in an office with a decent amount of Mandarin or to be […]

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Job Scams in China: How To Know You Are Being Scammed

Two years ago I was approached for a job in Beijing. I won’t say who it was from because quite frankly it isn’t worth my time to get into details. Okay it was a company called GI2C and they are sketchy as they come. At first it looked like a good position. A good salary for […]