Living in Taiwan

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Pictures of receipts to play the Taiwan Receipt Lottery

The Taiwan Receipt Lottery: How to Play & Redeem Your Winnings

In Taiwan, it’s well worth keeping track of your receipts. The Taiwan Receipt Lottery, formally known as the “Uniform Invoice Lottery” (In Chinese 統一發票 Tǒngyī Fāpiào), gives all residents the chance to win up to 10 million NTD (over 350,000 USD)! Say whaaaaaaat?! YES, and it doesn’t matter who you are – even tourists can redeem winnings (assuming you stick around long enough)! Entry is as simple as buying a bottle of water at 7-11 – the numerical code on...

Taking out the trash in Taiwan
Claw Machine Arcade Taiwan

Claw Machine Arcades in Taiwan: Why Are There So Many?!

Claw machine arcades are one of Taiwan’s great novelties, inspiring the curiosity, delight and bewilderment of travelers and new-comers alike. If you’re wondering what a claw machine arcade is, well, it’s exactly what it sounds like: an arcade filled exclusively with claw machines. Before I came to Taiwan, I had never seen a claw machine arcade. I’d seen many a claw machine, sure, but usually only one or two at a time in the context of an arcade mostly full...

Image of me at 8 months pregnant to introduce the post "Giving Birth in Taiwan".

Giving Birth in Taiwan: My Personal Experience

Giving birth (especially for the first time) is daunting, no matter where you are. When you find yourself about to go through such a life altering event in a foreign country where you don’t speak the language, it’s even crazier. When we decided to have our little one (born April 3rd) in Taiwan, I began searching for information about having a baby here. Like with most things, however, English resources were scarce, and the most compelling information I had came...

Applying for a Spousal Visa in Taiwan 2021 Spousal Visa Application Foreign Spouse Residence Permit
Taiwan COVID level 3 alert

Life in the Time of COVID: Taiwan Edition

For the past year and a half, I’ve been extremely grateful to live here. It has been a place largely free of the dangers of COVID-19, a safe bubble, thanks to Taiwan’s rapid response to the initial outbreak, careful contact tracing and strict border control and quarantine enforcement. Taiwan’s response was “among the best“. But over the past month we’ve watched our case numbers steadily climb as outbreaks in and around Taipei have spiralled. All because of a simple decision...

Refrigerator Repair Illustrated

A Visit From the Refrigerator Repair Man, Illustrated

Sometimes, when you’re living in a foreign country, the language barrier can turn the most simple of tasks into the most aggravating and troublesome ones. A lot of the time, though, it’s pretty funny (usually in hindsight). A couple weeks ago we had a “fridge incident” (read: I didn’t unplug the fridge while I gave it a deep clean, and because the door was open for so long it froze over and the temp soared. I’ve cleaned many a fridge...