Mostly this will be addressing some common misunderstanding about Taiwan that I've noticed that people have in the US and Europe. Of course, I am no expert on Taiwan but most of the things that I will mention are perhaps a bit shallow. As I learn more, I will add to the list and hopefully I can become an expert one day.
First of all, Taiwan is not Thailand. It really baffles me how many people get the two countries mixed up. The two countries are nothing alike and to me it's almost as ridiculous as mixing up the United States with the United Arab Emirates. The food is different, the language is different, the culture is different; basically everything is different. Yet, for some reason I am constantly hearing, "oh Thailand is so beautiful! How long were you there?" from Americans and Europeans. I usually just respond, "I'm sorry, I've never been to Thailand. I did, however, just mention Taiwan", or something to that effect. Taiwan is a small island located in the Pacific Ocean, South of Japan and East of Hong Kong.
In Taiwan there is a huge variety of languages to choose from. The official language of the island is Mandarin Chinese but Taiwanese is also widely spoken. My knowledge of Taiwanese is minimal but it is a very interesting linguistic rabbit trail to follow. Several different dialects of Taiwanese are spoken throughout the island and they are genetically linked to Mandarin because Taiwanese originates from the mainland. There is actually no native Formosan language, or at least no Proto-Formosan just to be a little more clear. In Tainan, Taiwanese is heavily spoken but usually in combination with Mandarin. When locals encounter a foreigner, Mandarin is used because it is extremely rare for foreigners to come to Taiwan to learn Taiwanese. If a foreigner does know Taiwanese, it is most likely because he/she has been living in Taiwan for an extended period of time and is usually unmarried. That brings up another point, most of the foreigners that I meet here who marry locals don't speak Mandarin or Taiwanese. Their significant other will always translate and quite honestly, English is everywhere. Everything has subtitles in English or an English version. And when I say everything, I don't mean literally everything; mostly things like restaurant menus and legal documents. Nonetheless, as long as you can speak English, life is survivable but still very tricky. It is always far better to speak the local language of any place that you go/live, if not for any other reason but that it is just the polite thing to do.
The food in Taiwan is not so weird and exotic. The food, especially in Tainan, is very delicious and not at all bizarre. I found French food to be more exotic than Taiwanese food, actually. The most common dish in Tainan is beef noodle soup. My favorite is seafood noodles with a side of baozi, which is a steamed or fried bun with either meat or vegetable filling. Probably the strangest food that you can find is called stinky tofu. It's almost like a test of your food tolerance for foreigners to see whether it is tolerable to them or not. But seriously, stinky tofu is no stranger than how we eat cottage cheese in the US. I quite enjoyed stinky tofu when I first tried it but I probably wouldn't seek it out or anything. Of course, in Taipei everything is a lot more international, which means that we can find cuisines from around the world which is unlike Tainan, yet Tainan is more well known for its restaurants.
Taiwan is in a kind of twilight zone of independence. Officially, Taiwan is ROC (Republic of China) but according to international laws regarding Rights of Autonomy, Taiwan certainly qualifies for sovereignty. Language, culture, economy, currency and the political system in Taiwan are all different and from mainland China. In fact, Taiwanese need to apply for a visa to enter China, whereas a Taiwanese passport allows an automatic landing visa in the US. Surely it is clear to see that Taiwan is not China, yet it is. Taiwanese people will acknowledge that their roots are from China for the most part but the vast majority of Taiwanese people will not identify themselves as Chinese.
Taiwan is not a poor, third world country. It's one of the strongest economies in East Asia. Taiwan is highly industrialized and very modern. This modernity is less noticeable in the country-side but can still be readily seen. Average wage is still quite low compared with the US or the UK but that is to be expected. In relation to cost of living, the ratios seem to give the advantage to Taiwanese workers. Average wage is low but cost of living is also low unlike most European countries. Also, opportunity is very high here as long as you are willing to work hard and be competitive, which then can make that wage-cost of living gap so much less of an issue.
These are a few of the biggest question marks that most people have, according to my observations anyway. I might add to this post in the future or make follow-up if needed. Questions are welcomed in either the comments or by personal message.
