Before actually travelling, it’s always a great idea to accumulate a good list of tips in order to assure that you will encounter the least amount of problems during your time abroad. Of course, it’s important to use all of Wofford’s International Programs resources and the resources of the program you apply to, but it pays to do outside research. Searching up videos and news articles of the country you’re going to visit is an excellent way to get real time information on how your life will look for the next couple of months.
One tip that I believe is extremely important for living in Taiwan is about money. This society relies heavily on cash. Credit cards and Apple Pay obviously can be used in more commercialized settings, however, if you plan on getting a more authentic experience of the culture and eat out at more family owned restaurants, cash is usually the only way to pay. I was aware of this before leaving, but I did not know to what extent I would have to actually rely on cash. For those who accidentally miss this memo could find themselves in a troublesome spot if their cards don’t tend to work overseas. Therefore, tip #1 is to always check which form of pay is widely used in the country you plan to go to.
Tip #2 pertains to language. Most who travel abroad tend to know or are studying the language of the country they are visiting, however, if that is not the case, it is highly recommended to download the google translate app. Especially for languages that don’t have Romanized letters, the google translate app can easily translate words you can not understand, simply by taking a picture of the words. This came in handy at restaurants when the menu was completely in Mandarin Chinese.
Tip #3; really pay attention to the type of weather your chosen country experiences each month. This can really affect how you pack and how much you pack. I typically wear hoodies and pants back home, however, Taiwan is still currently in the 80s in the middle of November. This was another tip I was aware of, but still did not pack accordingly. Not only are most of clothes not suitable for the hot, rainy and humid weather, but I also overpacked because of them. So, remember that your everyday clothing could change drastically while abroad due to the weather.
