Distinctions between Living in I-Lan and Taipei

張貼日期：May 23, 2016 1:6:30 PM

Stephanie Wu

I was born and grew up in I-Lan. Now, I am studying in college in Taipei. I-Lan is a countryside with gorgeous natural sceneries, while Taipei is a prosperous and advanced city. When I was in I-Lan, I always dreamed to live in Taipei one day. I love big cities. And now, my dream has come true. But I found that there are many distinctions between living in I-Lan and Taipei. According to my experiences, there are three main differences, which include the transportations, the entertainments, and the living costs.

Taipei is famous for its well-developed transportations. The MRT and the bus systems are very convenient for people. By contrast, there’s no MRT in I-Lan. The bus system is also not as convenient as Taipei’s. When I was in I-Lan, if I wanted to go anywhere, I had to ask my parents to drive me there. But my parents have to work. They aren’t always available to drive me everywhere. However, in Taipei, I can easily reach the places I want to visit by taking the buses or the MRT now. I am very thankful for the perfect public transportations in Taipei.

Entertainment is an important part of people’s lives. Someone said we can see one city’s development through the number of entertainment places. There are more than one hundred movie theaters in Taipei, but there are only three movie theaters in I-Lan. Every time I went back to I-Lan and wanted to hang out with my friends, we didn’t know where to go. Actually, my friends and I think I-Lan is very boring. There are more restaurants, theaters, shopping malls, exhibitions and entertaining activities in Taipei than in I-Lan. We young people prefer to hang out in Taipei.

Compared to I-Lan, Taipei’s living cost is pretty high. For instance, one movie ticket costs a hundred and eighty dollars in I-Lan. But the cheapest movie ticket in Taipei is two hundred and twenty dollars. One of my friends is renting a house in I-Lan. She told me her rent is four thousand and five hundred per month, while I have to pay double than that for renting a place in Taipei. The disparity of the costs in Taipei and in I-Lan made me shocked at first.

Living in I-Lan is really different from living in Taipei. Although everything costs more in Taipei than in I-Lan, I still prefer living in Taipei for its convenient public transportation and the varieties of entertaining places. I love big cities very much. After graduating from the college, I will choose to stay and work in Taipei. But I-Lan is always my hometown, and my love for it will never change.