Thinking Aloud - Plans For The Future

As I mentioned in a previous blog, on the line between hope and despair, I am now on the side of despair. What that means is that, while I will still try to do what I can, at this time I don’t believe there is any quick fix for my situation, and I believe I will not be able to get a job in Tokyo.

You might think that sounds horrible, but there is a positive aspect to this. It forces me to really look hard at my options and consider my plans for the future.

I have many possibilities that I am considering at this time, but one option that is becoming considerably more attractive to me is the Taipei option. The Taipei option would be for me to move to Taipei and teach English there. Here is what I find attractive about the Taipei option:

Good money. Exchange rates fluctuate, but generally speaking an English teacher in Taipei makes a comparable wage to one in Tokyo, when you compare actual dollar/yen per hour of teaching. But in Taipei, living expenses are much lower. I’ve read reports of people saving $500-1000 USD a month once they are settled there, which sounds pretty good.

Chinese language. Right now my Chinese really sucks. I took a couple of semesters at Seneca, but I forgot most of it. But apparently Chinese classes are pretty cheap in Taipei, and learning Mandarin would be a potentially useful skill down the road.

Japan in the vicinity. Tokyo is just a few hours and a couple hundred bucks away, as are places like Fukuoka, Osaka and Nagoya. Going to Japan for a two or three-day visit to see my friends is actually feasible and doable.

Tokyo on the horizon. With three years of directly-related work experience, I could then go on to teach English in Tokyo and get a work visa, even without a degree.

Many of the same benefits as Toronto: Toronto is attractive because in Toronto I have the option to work legally, save money, and possibly try to complete my university degree by distance. But these are all the same benefits I would have in Taipei. Plus in Toronto, I worry that if I get a job, get an apartment, get some furniture, sign a lease and everything, then I might get too ‘settled’ again and it would be difficult for me to take off.

But of course, there are bad things about Taipei as well, and so these are things I have to consider:

Chinese language. I know I listed this as an advantage, but like I said my Chinese really sucks. Unlike in Tokyo, where I can get around pretty easily and read the signs and stuff, in Taipei I can’t do any of that. The places I could go and the and things I could do by myself, at least at first, would be very limited.

Lack of Japanese language. In Toronto I am very connected with the Japanese community so it’s easy for me to make friends and find people to practice with. I worry that if I go to Taipei and study Mandarin, I will forget a lot of the Japanese that I have learned. But it’s possible they have a Japanese community in Taipei as well, so if I can get connected with them, maybe this won’t be as big of an issue.

TEFL certificate. In order to teach legally in Taiwan, I have to get a TEFL certificate. The problem is, there are so many different kinds of TEFL certificates available, I really have no idea what kind of certificate is required to meet government standards. I’ve seen TEFL courses that are $190 and 20 hours online, or courses that are 1 month of full-time intensive training at a school and $2,000. I’m tempted to go ask the Taiwanese consulate here in Tokyo if they have any guidelines on how to choose a TEFL course. It’s possible that before I go to Taiwan, I might have to get a job in Toronto, save some money, and then proceed to Taipei. Another option is to move to Taipei and work illegally to save some money, then take a month off and get the CELTA TEFL course in Bangkok ($1400 USD), come back to Taiwan and get a legal job. I know “working illegally” sounds scary but from what I’ve read it’s quite common in Taiwan, and many teachers actually prefer to work illegally due to the way their laws are set up. That’s not to say it’s not without risk however.

Lack of friends. While it’s true that I could and would make new friends once I’m over there, the reality is that I really have only one good friend in Taipei at the moment, and that’s Pi Chen. In Tokyo I’ve needed favors from friends but I can spread it out and ask different friends for different favors. But in Taipei, at least at first, I’d be dependent on Pi Chen for everything. Especially due to my embarrassingly poor Chinese (see above).

But at the end of the day, the real question I have to ask myself is, if Tokyo is not an option for me at this time, where would I be happier? I guess I won’t know for sure until I try it, but having been to Taipei a couple times before, I actually think I’d feel happier living there than living in Toronto. And maybe from Taipei, I can continue to work toward my dream of living and working in Tokyo.