He has been casting his net in both Kaohsiung and Tainan waters for years.
A pal of mine was hard on his luck a couple of years ago, as his contract with a university was not renewed contrary to the assurances of his supervisor. I helped him to find a couple of buxiban jobs by posting on Chinese-language websites (such as
http://www.1111.com.tw) and insisting upon direct contact with schools (i.e., no agents). However, his own attempts to secure a job (i.e., posting on English-language online forums looking for work) resulted in several urgent calls from Simon, as he was wont to call himself at the time. My friend had a Master's degree, was married to a Taiwanese woman, and was reasonably handsome. Simon must have nearly came in his pants thinking of the opportunities!
Thankfully, my pal is an intelligent individual and saw through the bullshit of the agent immediately. When Simon stated that he could only find jobs paying in the 500 - 550 dollar range, my friend immediately realized this bastard was skimming at least 100 NT per hour off of the top. Instead of simply ignoring the bastard, he hatched his plan for mind-manipulation. He told Simon that he was also an agent, and was directly recruiting "fresh off the boat" South Africans for 400 per hour while charging the school 650 and taking a sign-up bonus. Apparently Simon nearly wet himself and was desperate to find out how such a plan could be actualized. While my friend was simply taking the piss, I doubt his mind-games had any lasting effect. His lesson, learned after more than a few years on the beautiful island, was that agents are not, under any circumstances, to be trusted.
I believe that any seasoned resident of this country/forum would be glad to offer advice to newbies (via public posts or PMs) if they would only ask. Allow me to "poncify" (my new favourite word, thanks to sandman) by encouraging you explore your options before you arrive, google every contact, and feel free to ask the veterans.
Hats off to Lighthouse! Battle on!
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