Chongqing or Taibei?

[Juliette (法珠雷)]

Hi everyone,

I am to spend a semester (university exchange) in a Chinese university next year (third year of Chinese language degree), and have to choose between Chongqing and Taibei (HK is also on the list but as I am studying mandarin Chinese it might be slightly irrelevant). Which city do you think would be best ? I only have ever been to northern China, so I am fairly unfamiliar with both.

Thanks for your help.

[xuexiansheng]

Do you eat spicy food? If yes, then Chongqing. If no, then Taipei. 

 

But all joking aside, what do you want from your exchange experience? What aspects of a city are most important to you? Do you value a clean environment and unhindered access to the internet? Then Taipei might fit you better. Are you going to be doing business on the mainland and want to cultivate contacts there? Then Chongqing might be best. Both are great cities, can you tell us a bit more? I bet some knowledgeable folks here on the website can make recommendations.

 

Good luck!

[Juliette (法珠雷)]

First, thanks for your reply.

As I said my major is mandarin Chinese, therefore my main focus is language and culture. I have already been to Mainland China so I am aware of the small hindrances you mentioned, but don't really mind any of them.

Moreover, and I can't really explain why, I am more "fond of" the Mainland, but seeing as I've never been to Taiwan I'm trying to keep an open mind, hence my inquiry.

[gato]

Taipei is a great city with lots of cafes, bookstores, and good food. Since you've never been to Taiwan, it might be worth a try.

[Lu]

I recommend Taipei. I have spent virtually no time in Chongqing, but from what I know, the environment (in the broadest sense of the word) is not that great. It's famous for having very bad weather and pretty serious smog. Which university would you be studying at, and how good is that university? Others might have more information there, but I don't know of any well-known university in Chongqing, or how good its program for foreigners would be. 四川大学 is probably good, but that's in Chengdu.

Taipei had nice weather, nice people and good food (and although there have been a few safety issues, it's generally better than in China). It doesn't have a Great Wall or 九寨沟, but it's a great place to live. I don't know which university you'd be studying at, but Taipei has several with reputable programs for foreigners. Some people find it a problem that Taiwan Mandarin has a different accent than mainland Mandarin (see heated discussions elsewhere on the forum), but in Taipei at least it's probably at least as standard as you'd hear in Chongqing. It does use traditional and not simplified characters, but since you're focusing on Chinese language & culture that might actually be an advantage: it's a good opportunity to learn traditional.

Moreover, and I can't really explain why, I am more "fond of" the Mainland, but seeing as I've never been to Taiwan I'm trying to keep an open mind, hence my inquiry.

That's the thing: if you study China, Taiwan is easy to ignore. It's small, it doesn't seem to have a huge impact on anything, and it's kinda off to the side. I used to have the same feeling: China is the real China and you don't really need to pay attention to Taiwan. Then I actually went to Taiwan and I've never overlooked it since. So, all in all, I recommend Taiwan.

[skylee]

Taipei.

[Juliette (法珠雷)]

Thanks. So the consensus is that language-wise , I'd better go to Taibei? I have to admit I am having a hard time understanding everything my taiwanese friend tells me, but I guess the Sichuanese-y accent isn't much better.

Universities are Chongqing University and Taiwan National university.

Re. accommodations, do Taiwanese universities have on-campus dorms like in China ?

[Lu]

Life-wise, you'd better go to Taipei. Language-wise, I think Taipei is also the better choice. In my experience, Taiwan Mandarin is easier to understand than Beijing Mandarin (but here, too, see heated discussion in other threads). Even if it's different for you, you'll soon get used to it.

The Taiwanese universities I have seen have on-campus dorms, just like in China.

[Juliette (法珠雷)]

Thanks,

regarding the dorms, I was wondering if the price indicated was the overall price (ie for a 4 people dorm price is divided into four), or the price per student (in which case it's pretty darn expensive)

[ChTTay]

Everyone says good things about learning in Taiwan.

You said your goal is language and culture... If you mean the culture and history found on the mainland then wouldn't it be better to go there? You said you were already "fond" of China mainland also.

Equally, do you plan to work in or with mainland Chinese people? If so, it might benefit you more to study in mainland China. You will likely be exposed to and get used to different mainland accents. Also you may understand mainland people a bit more having lived here for a year. Also, rightly or wrongly, some Chinese people may wonder why you didn't study on China mainland. I have also found a fair few Chinese people in Beijing find the Taiwanese accent very funny sounding.

Of course, most of the above are generalisations.

As others mention, the flipside is Chongqing might not be a very nice place. I've certainly hears Taibei is a very nice city to live in.

Are there any other choices for you other than Chongqing in China?

[Juliette (法珠雷)]

Thanks for your reply.

Regarding your first point, I am personally interested in all "Chinas" , but I would be lying if I said Chinese studies don't mainly consists in studying the Mainland.

I indeed plan to teach French and/or English there, and I agree it might make a better impression to go mainland "all the way".

I also find the taiwanese accent rather funny sounding, but that's because I am used to Northern mainland accent.

Finally, my options are : Chongqing, Suzhou (but I have to pay the enrollment fee for this one, not sure I can afford it), Hong Kong, Taibei and Changhua .

[Angelina]

It is better to choose Taiwan National University over Chongqing University, at least when it comes to learning Chinese. You will have access to the Academia Sinica and it covers the language and culture of all "Chinas". Plus better teaching quality and so on.

 

You are used to Northern Mainland pronunciation, you will find that the local Mandarin is slightly different in all the places you can choose from, so it makes no difference. Although, in Suzhou, Chongqing and even Hong Kong you will meet some people that speak 100% standard Beijing Mandarin. 

 

Taiwan has less pollution than the Mainland and it is probably a nice place to be living in. However, you are already planning to be teaching on the Mainland, I guess you are not concerned about the pollution that much. Maybe it's better to choose Chongqing or Suzhou if you want to understand Mainland China better. I've never been to Chongqing, I have heard it is a very different place, not for everyone. There is a movie called 日照重庆, the city looks sort of brutal. 

 

Living expenses in Suzhou are lower than Taiwan, although Taiwan offers better quality. 

 

I definitely recommend Taiwan. Suzhou if you want to learn more about Mainland China. 

[Lu]

There are actually quite a number of aspects of Chinese culture that are more alive in Taiwan than on the mainland. The most obvious one is religion: In Taipei, you can find a little temple in every neighbourhood, and all are in active use. You'll often see people making offerings to the ghosts outside, in shopping streets. That aspect is just gone in China (or at least I've never seen it.) Of course, China and Taiwan have had a very different 20th century, but if you already know a bit about the mainland, in my opinion it's actually a good idea to take a look at Taiwan to see how things worked out there.

If you want to teach English or French on the mainland, your main concern is meeting the visa requirements and having the right credentials. I doubt any school is going to care you spent time in Taiwan, as long as you don't join the FLG there. On the other hand, if you want a career in China, the connections you make in China (with classmates, teachers, friends) might come in more useful than the ones you make in Taiwan. On yet the other hand, I have plenty of former classmates from Taiwan who went on to have a career in China.

As to dorms, perhaps there is a thread on NTU here? Or you could try asking the university directly.

[ChTTay]

Compromise. Go to Taiwan for the year then spend the summer or winter break in mainland China either travelling and/or on a summer program.

[Juliette (法珠雷)]

Not sure I can afford to spend the whole year there though,  the amount of catching up when I go back to France will be huge and I very well plan to graduate next year. I wish I could though.

 

Also, which of Chongqing, Taibei and Changhua have the lesser amount of foreigners ?

[ChTTay]

Then a semester in Taipei and a summer somewhere on the mainland. Regardless of timing, you know what i'm getting at right?

Id guess Changhua

[Juliette (法珠雷)]

Yeah, sorry about the nitpicking.

May I bother you again and ask to link me to discussions about the three universities (chongqing, Taibei and Changhua), mainly concerning the teaching quality ?

[XuanWu]

i visited Chongqing university last month as i am planning to start studying Chinese there next february.

 

The city is cloudy and it rains very often, but is not very cold.I was impressed mostly by the population as the roads are packed with people.

I havent seen so many people in the streets and subway , not even Beijing or Shanghai. I will never forget when i took the subway from the train staion.

Sardins were more comftarble. Thankfully, when you change line and move to the one that stops in the university is(almost) normal.Thats because it is the most

populated city with 20 million people, inside the city.Not including the surrounding small cities.

Full of scyscrapers.Not that classy as Shanghai. I stayed only one day, but the feeling i had is different than in the 2 big cities i mentioned.

Friendly people, they looked used to foreigners, not many people staring at you.

The street food i tried was delicious, and i havent saw it before in Hubei or Beijing-Shanghai.

 

The university it self is quite big and it consists of 4 campuses. 3 inside the city, close to each other and 1 a little outside(campus D).

I visited Campus A( for Chinese learning).Big Campus ,full of very old trees, some with the roots on the surface outside the soil, kinda spooky.

The classrooms i saw were pretty neat.

I read in a website that it currently has about 200 international students. I saw 2-3 only in the walk i had but i did not stay for too long

and didnt discover the whole campus as i got tired...

[889]

If you’re learning Chinese and learning Chinese culture, then I think you should be learning about Mainland people and Mainland culture. That’s what China is.

Problem is, Chongqing is pretty dreadful, especially in terms of climate, but the dreariness extends well beyond the weather. A shame you can’t find something in Chengdu, which would be a fine place to spend some time.

[Lu]

There is plenty of Chinese culture in Taiwan (and plenty of Chinese culture lost in China itself). Taiwanese Mandarin is just as Chinese as Chinese Mandarin. If you want to learn about Mainland China specifically, you obviously should be in Mainland China. But it's not true that you can't learn just as much in Taiwan.