Learning Chinese in Kaohsiung, Taiwan

By Jasmine Yu
(Attended in Summer 2023)

Arrival

31 hours later and I had finally arrived at Kaohsiung airport. First note of advice, because there are no direct flights to Kaohsiung from New York, do yourself a favor and just fly direct to Taipei and take the HSR (high speed rail) for 2-3 hours down to Kaohsiung, it will save your sanity! I was exhausted and starving! But I had to find my way to my apartment which my roommates (also Hunter students studying with me) were at. I took the MRT for 45 minutes and walked 15 mins and finally was able to settle down in our home for the next 3 months. Our first order of business though was to get food, because eating a full day worth of plane food was not ideal! So we headed to our first night market luckily a couple blocks from our place and enjoyed a great first meal!

Money & Phone & Housing

My first order of business was the money, so of course right after arriving at Kaohsiung airport I went to the currency exchange booth. Because we didn’t get our monthly stipend till a week later, it was important to have some extra money because you will probably need extra money for buying sim cards, easy cards (their metrocard), etc. however, don’t worry if you didn’t bring enough cash, some 7/11 ATMs accept foreign debit cards, and you can take out NTD for a fee of 5 USD. But besides that, every month, we got $15,000NTD from Wenzao that covered most of our daily expenses. Next, I went to a sim card booth to buy a 90 day sim card so I didn’t have to worry about it for the rest of my stay. All you need is your passport and some money (around NT2000-3000) and they will put in the new sim card for you. Just make sure to put your NYC sim card in a safe place afterwards and you’re good to google maps/uber your way home. In terms of housing, Daya is definitely the most convenient but it was full by the time I had asked, so I also used 591 website (note: the website is fully in Chinese), however most renters expected a 6 month - 1 year lease. Luckily, in the Taiwan Huayu group chat we had, one student had a place to stay and was looking for roommates so I joined her! Although it was pretty far out from Kaohsiung city, I wouldn’t have stayed anywhere else. But don’t worry, if neither of those sites work, you can definitely reach out to the Huayu program and they will help you find housing. The last thing on was VISAs. Because we stayed for less than 90 days, as U.S. citizens we didn’t need to apply for a VISA, so that was one thing off our plates!

Studying

Now, the reason we’re all here, to study! We did our Chinese language course at Wenzao Ursuline University, where we had class 5 days a week, 3 hours a day with alternating teachers each day. Before starting the class, we had to take a placement exam. They used the TOCFL exam to rank our listening and speaking skills to determine what level we were placed into, since all the students in the Chinese Language Center (CLC) weren’t native Chinese speakers. Since we were all learning Chinese together, I was able to meet so many different people and broaden my Chinese skills as that was now our common language. Besides classes, they held many activities such as Chinese chess and Taiwanese language courses. We even went on a school trip to Meinong to learn about the native Hakka people and traditional Taiwanese things, such as these umbrellas! I also met so many new people that I wouldn’t have met otherwise and I loved hearing about why they were learning Chinese in Taiwan. It was so cool to meet so many different people I would’ve never gotten the chance to speak with and some whom I am still in touch with.

Recreational, Social Activities, and Food

Besides school, there were also many different things we could do! Taiwan is such a beautiful place and it’s very convenient to travel to different cities as well with the local train or the HSR. During our long weekend, we took the HSR and got to explore Taipei. They had great night markets and so many scenic places, such as Jiufen. We even went to smaller cities nearby such as Tainan and Kenting and got to see their old streets and do a nice walk around the city. However, you don't need to go far to see so many great things, as Kaohsiung itself has so many places to sightsee. We visited many malls and monuments such as Dragon Tiger Pagodas, San fong temple (on the left), Fo Guan Shan Temple (on the right), Hanshin Arena, Dream mall, and SKM mall to name a few. We even saw amazing sunsets at Cijin beach and visited their foreign bar as well! Needless to say there is so much to do in and around Kaohsiung, you will hardly get bored. Now this part might arguably be the most important section! The food in Taiwan was so yummy and not expensive at all, especially at the night markets! There are so many night markets scattered around the city with many different kinds of street foods as well as small shops that sell traditional Chinese cuisine such as xiao long boas and dumplings! We loved visiting food places near Wenzao before or after class and tried many different cuisines. And their desserts are so great as well! The bingsoo was a perfect refresher for a hot summer day and we can never forget about bubble tea as it originated in Taiwan.

Weather and Public Transportation

In terms of the weather, the summer is the hottest time in Taiwan. Temperatures ranged from 90-100 degrees and the humidity made it worse, even at night it felt so muggy and hot outside. The sun is always blasting unless it’s raining and when it does it comes down hard. Luckily there are courtesy umbrellas at most big businesses and in apartment buildings as well which is very helpful. It was also typhoon season during our visit, we encountered typhoon Doksuri and had school canceled for two days due to heavy rain and wind. For transportation, they have a train system known as the MRT, which is the main route that goes through the city. They also had tons of different bus routes that we could take too. Riding a bus or train is simple, you just tap in and out with your easy card.

Reflection

Overall, although it was a big adjustment at first, I thoroughly enjoyed my time and studies in Taiwan. I was able to see so many things, as as a Chinese-American I really felt right at home there. I met and became so close to so many people that I know I will be friends with for years to come and got to explore a place I’ve heard so much about! My Chinese skills also drastically increased and I now feel way more confident in having a conversation in Chinese. Some things I would recommend is, join as many activities in school as possible and talk to many different people in order to branch out. Also explore as much of the city as possible since you really don’t know when you’ll be back. For jet lag, getting there wasn't bad, but going from East to West, jet lag really killed me so that is something I wasn’t prepared for. Everything in Taiwan is so cute and affordable! But be sure to know your limits and don’t overbuy or your suitcase and your back will be suffering. Through all the good and bad, I would still highly recommend this experience to broaden your world views and learn Chinese and Taiwanese culture.