Have to ask: why do people come to Taiwan to be teachers?

[Charlie Jack]

Well, I'd heard so much about Thailand, I decided to go check it out for myself. Turns out, it's not anything like the way folks back home described it.

[bigduke6]

So, from what I read, people came here because they wanted to retire early with some money inflow in return of few hours of unstressed job!

Well, I will probably retire later, now that I am here and earning less. If I kept my job and worked like a dog for another 10 to 15 years, I could have retired early with ease.

So, unless my folks have a couple of bar I don't know about........

[Isha]

Stress is no way to live life. I learned it by watching other die with heart-attacks in 30s. I believe you did good.

[PigBloodCake]

I'm actively looking around for a suitable place to move to, meaning a good location and a home that meets all of my requirements at a reasonable price.

Sounds like Danshui to me. Except for that god-awful road construction (total pain-in-the-ass), Danshui is actually quite pleasant to live in. During summertime, it's about a few degrees cooler than Taipei proper. Plus you could actually get a decent townhouse (not a flat) for a reasonable price.

Or you could try 文山 district where MM is currently living in (since he is the 木柵人)

[headhonchoII]

Danshui is nice, but just like everywhere in the north getting more crowded. It's a bit far from Taipei but okay if you don't need to commute. It's cold and rains a lot too in winter but Danshui area does have the beaches, the river paths, the history, Yangming Shan, so more interesting than Linkou for sure!

[Ducked]

Because I fucked up a good thing back home.

I find the apparent concensus above that the norm is "cruising" or "phoning-in" in the context of a low-stress teaching gig here a bit astonishing.

Its a people-facing, performance situation. The roar of the grease-paint. The smell of the crowd. I don't see how cruising is possible.

I've tried it, and its even more depressing than it often is when I make an effort.

[headhonchoII]

Theres nowhere to hide when you are a teacher, it's no picnic.

[Ducked]

The EXACT same thing happens all over the world. My sister knows the founder of one of the worlds first payment security dot coms. The guy admitted he rented luxury cars when he was starting out because it was all about the impression made when talking with investors. Subsequently the company went bust but he made bank.

In Taiwan it is the same thing, hence the number of laobans and such driving black Mercs and Lexus ,and these days luxury SUVs. It is ridiculous but it is the way the human mind works unfortunately.

In some cultures this might be changing somewhat , you have to adapt to the audience.

So I'm at this "strategy" session at a company that, for the sake of argument, we'll call Moneywell Network Solutions, in which "The Salesman is King", (though often a rather flash, incompetent, parasitic King with a counter-productive short-term "tactical" focus on his bonus).

I sit down and take my shades off, and a colleage picks them up and compares them to the 200+ quid designer pair of the salesman sitting next to us.

"You've got the same shades" ses he, slightly shocked.
"Don't think so" ses I
"Yes you have" ses he. "They're identical" "Where did you get them?"
"Um..McDonald's. They were free with a MacBrunch"

[Isha]

"You've got the same shades" ses he, slightly shocked.
"Don't think so" ses I
"Yes you have" ses he. "They're identical" "Where did you get them?"
"Um..McDonald's. They were free with a MacBrunch"

I am gonna try it in real time

[Ducked]

Got a 1 mth bonus on CNY, Ford Cortina on bricks, holidays in sunny Pingdong, the summer house is the in-laws rooftop in Taichung county, majesty 150cc (upgraded from the 15 year old Kymco) , the other bike is a Giant iguana.
Living large my friend, living large.

；）

If I believed you, I'd ask if you wanted to sell your Ford Cortina.