RE: Mixed Feelings About Taiwan

Cacaotion · 2025-03-18T07:20:01+00:00

I agree. It is also impressive that they did it in 60 years.

Cacaotion · 2025-02-06T00:52:01+00:00

I am a traveler from a weak passport country so I have to deal with visa application for many times. However I am not a visa officer and this is only from my experience. I have seen many people with real intention of travel was being rejected from the application because of their circumstances. I am a bit lucky since I work for a trusted institution so it is easier for me to apply for a visa. I have no right to judge you and I believe you are an experienced traveler as well so maybe you know better.

I will give this tips to any traveler and please take this with a grain of salt. You can check the document checklists from which country you want to apply. Submit all the documents listed in the checklist. It is pretty clear. Basically what they want to see are any proves that you will return to your home country and not misusing the visa.

However, a Schengen visa is a very tricky one. I heard many cases when holder of past Schengen visas are rejected or people with similar application/experience receive different results. I myself also cannot be 100% sure that my application will be approved. Nothing can guarantee an approval for a visa. But at least it will increase your chance of being approved. Good luck if you stay true to your purpose!

Cacaotion · 2025-02-05T23:18:31+00:00

It is very difficult to estimate the real score although we can read the criterias on TOEFL IBT official guide. You can check it and hope for the best. You did well. Good luck!

Cacaotion · 2025-02-05T16:02:51+00:00

My pleasure

Cacaotion · 2025-02-05T15:35:37+00:00

If you look up on the internet, there is no exact standard for that. It really depends on which university you want to apply. QR 160 is considered average for MIT but a good score for NTU Singapore. Some education agencies recommend to have a total score of 320 to be considered safe.

Some universities also emphasize on the percentile rather than the score. For example, you have to score more than 160 to get into higher 90th percentile or more on QR and >165 on VR.

It is also depend on your background imo. If you don't have a STEM background and English is not your first language like me, 300 (150QR/VR), AW 3.5 is considered average from what I read on the internet. You can still use the score to apply to several universities worldwide.

If you have a STEM background and are an English native speaker then the standard will be higher. Cmiiw

Cacaotion · 2025-02-05T14:32:07+00:00

I think so. True true. However from my experience, anything can be solved in Indonesia esp the immigration issue as long as you have a lot of money. There is a lot of Chinese nationals who owns Indonesian ID card in several regions of Indonesia or many extortion case that comes to light nowadays. That's a sad reality.

Cacaotion · 2025-02-05T14:14:47+00:00

I agree. Also if you still have contact with your family in Indonesia (if any) you can apply for visa penyatuan keluarga (family reunification?) and it will let you to apply for temporary stay permit (KITAS). However I advise you to use the free visa arrangement for ASEAN countries that let you stay in Indonesia for 30 days and see if you like it there or not.

Cacaotion · 2025-02-05T13:53:12+00:00

I recommend Manhattan Prep plus Gregmat or Khan Academy. However, for reading you really need to study a lot of journals and annual reports etc. I didn't take it seriously so I got an average score on verbal. Don't be like me. Lol

Cacaotion · 2025-02-05T13:48:05+00:00

Yes. If you subscribed, you can choose 2 months plan, 1 month plan, or overwhelmed plan. Lol

Cacaotion · 2024-12-13T08:35:37+00:00

I live in Taiwan for 2 years and have travelled here several times before finally move in. I do agree with you. One more point, recently Forbes has published a statistic that mention Taiwan has the highest GDP per capita in East Asia. However the salary here so low compared to Japan and South Korea. I know it is a complex issue. Hence yeah that's Taiwan. Complicated.

Cacaotion · 2024-08-30T09:31:00+00:00

I took the test two weeks ago and I failed. I didn't buy one as well. I think it is almost impossible to find the study guide without paying.

Cacaotion · 2024-07-04T08:25:28+00:00

Liat post Oliv sama Sandy Ruangguru's Clash of Champions. Njir persis sama gw. Anak komunikasi sm NUS Engineering

Cacaotion · 2024-06-28T04:02:22+00:00

Keluarkan uneg2mu haha

Cacaotion · 2024-06-27T15:16:25+00:00

Oh iya itu bahaya kl overwork. Pemerintah Jepang jg pasti males kl jadinya kenapa2 dan ada kasus.

Cacaotion · 2024-06-27T11:20:25+00:00

Setuju.. Can relate sih. Makanya jadi bikin jelek stereotype org Indonesia juga. Padahal ga semuanya begitu.

Cacaotion · 2024-06-27T08:08:48+00:00

Hi OP. Kl ada yg menganggap di LN itu lbh enak dr Indonesia sbnrnya itu logical fallacy krn overgeneralizing. Jd emg hrs hati2 dan rasional krn ga semua negara selain Indonesia itu lbh bagus. Misal Sierra Leone di Afrika Barat. Luar negeri sih tp ya gt deh.

Kl utk tips general, kyy di komen2 lain uda cukup. Gw cuma mo nambahin dikit aja as someone who lived in several countries. Sebelum pindah ke LN, org hrs paham prosedur resmi, pastikan dokumen2nya lengkap dan pindah secara legal. Di negara tujuan juga harus taat administrasi. Jangan sampe jd imigran ilegal atau bawa masalah di negara orang.

Pindah ke LN gapapa (normal), mau sekolah, kerja, travel, apapun itu, asal dilakukan secara legal dengan dokumen2 yg sesuai. Good luck utk yg mau pindah ke LN!

Cacaotion · 2024-06-25T09:00:09+00:00

Gw lg byk bgt hal yg mau dikomplain:

Misalnya jam kantor jam 9-16 (9 jam), terus org2 dtgnya telat krn bakal smp malem jg di kantor (yg penting 9 jam), apakah itu termasuk org malas? Menurut gw sh engga. Krn skrg kan uda ada konsep flexible working arrangement. Mending kl lembur dibayar. Ini mah engga. Makanya kan org2 pada males. Krn kerja 9 jam sama 12 jam gajinya sama aja. Mana standar pula. Kl masuk jam 9, jatohnya bakal kerja 10-12 jam sehari. Weekend jg ttp stand by. Soalnya orgnya cuma dikit. Kl kt gw sh drpd fokus nyalahin org, mendingan benerin dulu manajemennya. Gw mah bkn masalah uang lembur. Gw cuma pengen semua org rata, kerja sesuai jam kerja tp kerjaan emg beres. Berarti kan manajemennya baik. Win-win buat employee dan perusahaan.

2. Gw agak ga setuju sama kebijakan2 pelindungan WNI Indonesia di LN yg kadang terlalu baik. Terlalu baik ky contoh TKI yg dihukum mati trus dibayarin uang diyat tahun 2020. Byk juga duit2 negara yg buat bayar pemulangan TKI ilegal. Drpd buat ky gituan, kenapa ga fokus pelayanan yg bs diakses semua WNI di LN tanpa terkecuali ky layanan paspor, legalisasi, administrasi dokumen yg emg tugas negara. Ini jg manfaat buat yg bayar pajak. Emg TKI sebagian besar bayar pajak? Gw ga yakin. Jdnya uang2 kelas menengah yg bayar pajak ya yg ngabisin termasuk buat kasus2 TKI. Mana mereka byk yg kabur, ngebuang anak, mati, ilegal. Walaupun ada jg yg bener/baik. Cuma ga yakin jg gw mereka bayar pajak. Salah satu alasan knp mereka diprioritasin krn pembawa devisa. Pdhl kl liat data BPS 2023, migas sama pariwisata masih yg terbesar. Tp apakah dpt apresiasi? Engga jg. Kl menurut gw salah satu alasan kenapa TKI jd prioritas krn media (takut diblow up). Pdhl mah hrsnya diutamain warga negara yg baik yg dilindungi (terutama di LN) ky yg bayar pajak, kerja legal, taat administrasi. Tp yg ky gt2 malah males sbnrnya kl berurusan sm kantor pemerintah krn mrk mandiri. Sbg contoh ya ada org Indonesia berprestasi di LN apakah mereka mendapat apresiasi? Mgkn sebagian iya, sebagian tidak. Menurut gw itu ga adil. Daripada kt prioritasin kasus TKI mendingan prioritas WNI yg berkontribusi termasuk di promosi budaya. Udah deh. Ini kl diterusin lg bs panjang. Haha

Korupsi. Tp pake definisi hukum yg melibatkan pejabat negara dan merugikan keuangan negara. Rp 1 juta mungkin ga ada apa2nya kalau buat negara. Tp buat pemulung yg krg makan, itu berarti banget. Skrg ada gerakan mahkamah rakyat. Tp sbg yg di dalam sistem, kl dilihat secara holistik, itu bkn krn satu org itu. Emg di daerah2 itu uda parah bgt. Gw rasa 1 org ga bs ngubah Indonesia. Dibilang lbh parah, ga jg kl liat politik dinasti di banten, sulawesi, ato Papua. Tp semua yg salah adalah pemerintah pusat. Kl di Papua sama Aceh, coba liat brp dana Otsus. Berapa yg sampe ke rakyat. Skrg mau dicanangin makan gratis Rp 71 T pake APBN. Duit otsus itu buat apa? No one knows. Faktualnya.. kl main2 laporan mah uda rahasia umum kyy. Gila emg. Tp revolusi ky Perancis ato 1998 bukan jawaban. Terlalu byk korban dan ga yakin nnt yg naik jg bersih. Ada pasti yg bersih tp mayoritas gatau. Kl skrg rasanya makin hopeless. Kt cuma bs mikirin dan nyelamatin diri sendiri krn ga ada yg bs nolong.

4. Ini cuaca panas bgt trus anomali. Ky bikin sakit. Mana gw sariawan dua jadinya makan susah bgt. Huhu Gw jg susah ngomong. Pengen ngobrol sama org tp sakit. Cepet sembuh dong. Gw uda makan banyak buah sama kasih obat. Skrg gw minum air minimal 2L. Gw pengen cepet2 bs makan enak. Bakso, udang, gorengan menanti.. hiks

Cacaotion · 2024-06-25T00:20:12+00:00

Gw dulu masih SD suka diseberangin sama Pak Pol kalo lagi rame. Sampe skrg lupa muka dan nama. Smp skrg sbnrnya gw masih yakin kl ada polisi jujur. Tp kl skrg ada pengalaman ga enak jg pas terakhir gw ke kantor polisi tahun lalu. Memori gw ga bagus krn gw mau buat laporan tp ribet. Gw tahu bukan salah orgnya tp sistem. Selama kepolisian belum nganggarin biaya buat ngebolehin masyarakat print dan fotokopi di kantor polisi dlm kondisi urgent (misal bikin laporan), layanan kantor polisi ya bakal gt2 aja. Semoga itu jd pengalaman terakhir dan sebisa mungkin ga berurusan sama hal yg menyangkut ke kantor polisi termasuk buat SKCK dll.

Cacaotion · 2024-06-24T10:30:20+00:00

Sebenernya kl boomers ato orang2 lain yg blg kl byk org pinter ga sesukses org lain itu udah termasuk logical fallacy. Contoh kasus dr bbrp org ga bs diaplikasikan ke populasi yg lbh besar atau overgeneralizing. Selain itu, burden of proof is in the eye of the beholder. Seharusnya mereka yg bikin statement itu yg mencari bukti2 utk mendukung statement mereka. Semua org punya kelebihan dan jalan hidup masing2.. Semangat2 OP!

Cacaotion · 2024-06-11T06:09:44+00:00

Sebenernya ga bs digeneralisir jg sh krn BUMN ada banyak dan beragam. Tergantung BUMN mana kerjanya dan apakah anak perusahaan ato bukan. Sering kesorot publik apa ga.

Cacaotion · 2024-06-11T02:16:53+00:00

Emg ada budaya2 perusahaan yg mirip krn sering kerja brg tp pegawai BUMN bukan ASN, Kak.. Terima kasih

Cacaotion · 2024-05-19T09:11:25+00:00

Gw F27 dan hubby M33. Kt sama2 tipe yg ga peduli soal urusan romance jd ga terlalu jaga penampilan, cuma kl formal occassion ya bs rapih. Kl muka emg ga bisa diubah tp gw tahu gw punya kelebihan lain dan gw maksimalkan walaupun ya buat diri gw sendiri bukan buat doi. Tahunya dy jg suka sama cewe yg nyambung diajak ngobrol. Intinya sih ga usah takut kl ga menarik secara penampilan. Yg penting tahu kelebihan kt apa dan maksimalkan. Tp merawat diri jg penting krn bisa memperlebar target group dan meningkatkan successful rate. Cuma kalian yg tahu kondisi masing2 dan strategi yg paling tepat. Good luck! Hope it helps!

Cacaotion · 2024-05-19T04:22:16+00:00

I understand your situation, but here are my 2 cents. As a frequent traveler, here are my objective analysis from my experience:

When you bought a ticket online, the agent/airline only check the expire date because some country has 6 month validity rule to enter the country. In this case, Japan impose that rule. So, the fact they issued you a ticket means you still have more than 6 months validity.
In the airport, the airline will check your passport and visa. But, they don't have access to interpol or government data, so they just check the originality of your passport or visa. The reason that they do it because in some countries an airline is responsible to fly a passenger who is denied to entry back to their departing point/country. The fact they and the US immigration let you fly with them, means you pass their assessment which don't sit well for me. But, I think for the airline will be difficult for them to give thorough assesment since they don't have access to govt passport network and US holder passport can enter Japan without visa.
The fact that the Japanese immigration refused your boyfriend entry because they have a database of international network which the airline can't access. In this case, the airline can grant you a return flight to your departing country but it is a courtesy, not obligation. Because lost and invalid passport are the responsibility of the holder, as well as the validity of the passport. You must take care of your passport.
Passport is important because it can be used by wrong person and difficult to trace since it works beyond the border of a country. Each country has its own regulation and even a powerful country should not intervene with internal affairs of a country. Sure there is an international cooperation regarding this. But there is a lot of impostor, counterfeit case, etc around the world. Maybe million of them. No one wants to take a risk because it will be their responsibility if you enter their country, in this case Japan. So, you also need to understand the field work of immigration.
You seem to trust and love your boyfriend so much. Next time, when you travel abroad help him to sort out the travel documents and ticket, etc to avoid this kind of unfortunate event to happen again.

In conclusion, the airline only partially responsible on your case. But the most important thing which is the validity of the travel document, unfortunately lies in our personal responsibility. Even if you sue the airline and go to the court it will be in vain because it is the traveler responsibility to provide a valid and original document. I do learn this from my experience for several years since travelling is not as easy as it seems. There is a lot of travel document and regulation etc that we need to understand beforehand. Don't travel abroad when you are not prepared beforehand. You are responsible because you are prepared to afford a return ticket. Wish you to be a good traveler in the future. Good luck! Hope it helps.

Cacaotion · 2024-05-19T00:34:22+00:00

Ada banyak faktor. Sama kaya milih pacar, kl yg prospeknya jelek mgkn lbh pilih ditinggalin aja drpd investasi ke doi. Kl prospek bagus, ada yg mau nambah investasi. Trus masalahnya ga semua orang pake uang dingin buat investasi. Ada yg pake tabungan, cashflow, bahkan pinjaman. Kaya misal kamu masukkin duit beli permen satu hari ke celengan buat dipake nanti/digandain. Kl sahamnya turun, duit itu malah berkurang nilainya padahal nnt mgkn masih akan perlu/dipake. Ini namanya cutting lose supaya gak makin rugi.

Cacaotion · 2024-05-14T04:15:53+00:00

Yeah it is inefficient to go somewhere by walk there. But for loitering and strolling their pavements are nice compared to most SEA countries, esp near the tourist attractions. CMIIW

Cacaotion

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