The material contained in these pages has been written by travelers who have experienced Taiwan from a Working Holiday Maker’s perspective, and who have offered to share some of their story, their impressions, and their knowledge which they’ve gained during their visit to Taiwan.
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My First Job – as a Working Holiday Maker in Taiwan!
by Benjamin St. Clair
My first job placement in Taiwan was fantastic!
Having my first "Working Holiday" job pre-arranged for me by the Working Holiday Taiwan Service Centre (WHTSC) prior to my arrival in Taiwan made it so much easier to settle into my new environment. The position I took was with a hotel beach resort at Kenting in southern Taiwan. It was an ideal job for a working holiday maker for a number of reasons.
The work itself was reasonably straight forward, with good conditions and good hours that allowed me plenty of free time to explore the local area after work and on my days-off. Also, I have previously worked in the hospitality industry which meant that I only had to learn one new thing - Chinese!
The first weeks were challenging and at times I felt like life was a big game of charades. Surprisingly, I did manage to pick up quite a bit of basic language during my 6 weeks at the hotel, which has been invaluable while travelling around Taiwan after my job finished. I'm sure I would not have learned as much Chinese, if I'd been teaching English or if I'd been living with other native English speakers.
My accomodation was provided by my employer (which was another great thing!) in a three-bed shared room in an apartment building where 200 other hotel employees lived – many of whom were young students from different parts of Taiwan. It was a brilliant environment in which to live and work as we were all keen to practice and learn more of our second language – Chinese or English.
Living together also made it a lot easier to speak with my co-workers about the local area and some of the national current affairs. This local knowledge made it a lot easier for me to put my days-off to very good use – I knew about all the "good spots" before I actually arrived at them!
Taiwan has constantly surprised me from the moment I landed at CKS airport. The unexpected is to be expected as there's always something quirky or spectacular around almost every corner. You never know what surprise or fascination will be waiting for you tomorrow.
Another good thing about my first job placement in Taiwan was that its location was a long way from Taipei. Although Taipei has much to offer, and even though I'm sure it's quite possible to spend a whole year living and working in Taipei, there are so many diverse things to see and do around the island. For me, living in a smaller town encouraged me to get out and about, and to explore more of the surrounding areas – rather than being too easily magnetized by a large city.
Finally, although it was very sad to say goodbye to my new friends who I'd worked with at the hotel, I knew I'd see a lot of them again as I traveled around Taiwan – after all, when friends insist that you visit them in their home town, what can you say! I know I'll be offering the same hospitality to my Taiwanese friends when they visit me in Australia, as they've extended to me throughout my stay in Taiwan. It's been an amazing journey!
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Experiencing Taiwan – as a Working Holiday Maker
by Nathan Roberts
To start there is only one way to describe my Working Holiday experience in Taiwan: "Out of this World"!
For the past two months being here in Taiwan as a Working Holiday Maker has been anything but a walk in the park – but – it's for this very reason that my trip here has been so exciting! Although the idea of "living" in an Asian country had never really crossed my mind, by working and traveling around Taiwan over the past few months, I've actually begun to consider the idea and the more I think about it, the more appealing it's become.
The Working Holiday programs are an amazing opportunity – to not only work in a completely new environment, but to also enrich yourself by learning about a different culture, by experiencing unusual customs and by trying to speak a whole new language. Personally, I think everyone should take a "working holiday" at least once in their life. This is number two for me – and counting!
The best way to describe my experiences in Taiwan is to describe exactly what has shocked me the most and what has surprised me the most. The most culturally shocking event I have experienced here (so far!) was a ceremony for the re-opening of a temple in Gongliao which involved 70 sacrificial boars, one of which I saw being killed and 'prepared' directly outside my front door.
However, by the same token, what has surprised me the most is the sheer beauty of the landscape in this country and the amazing people who inhabit it. So far, my travels in Taiwan have taken me anti-clockwise around the island, proving to me again and again just how amazingly friendly and generous Taiwanese people are with their time and with their money, especially to foreigners.
Working here in a tourist visitor’s centre along the beautiful northeast coast has been a tremendously rewarding experience – and the ultimate rollercoaster ride – a real blast and something I'll always remember! It's also been a unique way for me to get a grip on Chinese as a language – although, it's always been a real pleasure to assist English speakers whenever they visit the centre!
Working with Taiwanese people has also helped introduce me to the 'real' Taiwan – and to develop 'real' friendships with local people who I wouldn't otherwise have met by simply walking around big cities. Having co-workers who are happy with their lot and content with the simple things in life has shown me patience and wisdom, well beyond their years.
As a Working Holiday destination, Taiwan has a lot going for it. The market is relatively untapped so finding interesting jobs is easy, especially if you bring an open mind and know how to have fun and enjoy yourself.
Taiwan is full of amazing people, amazing scenery, and amazing experiences – so much so that words often fail to capture the moment or the memory. People often talk the talk, but Taiwan's the type of place which simply needs to be seen, to really appreciate its diversity!
