Moving to Taipei

Hi,
I may be moving to Taipei in one year time and having a (now Protected content old daughter, I was advised to get a house in Tien Mu neighbourwood because of the proximity to the European school (french baby).

My husband would be working near Taipei Protected content I intend to learn chinese (if the communication is as hard as in Mainland China, I guess I will be very strongly motivated! And I do love the sound of Mandarin) .
We love going out to nice western restaurants and bars. And we love having all of that near us (walking distance)

My questions are...
1) Tien Mu: is it realy so self contended that I wont be listening to Mandarin all the time? If yes... wich neighbourwood would you advise, still close to all foreign amenities and the European School but with a local twist that will help boost my mandarin? (yes I really wanna learn it!!) - any Mandarin Schools you may recomend?

2) driving licence - I dont have one. At all. From no where in the world... so, is a car really so helpfull? If it is, then, is it possible to convert a Hong Kong driving licence to an international one - can you use it then in Taiwan?

3) housing - i am finding it hard to find nice real estate agencies with english to browse some homes and get an idea of the prices, can you recommend some?

4)Living-In Helper/ Nanny - Do you have such thing there? Coming from Hong Kong where that is common I would like to have the same in Taipei. Can you recommend any good agency to recruit and are Taiwanese Nannies normaly reliable? Ca we hire a english speaking Nanny from the Philippines or try to have ours comming with us? Wich authority to inquire and do they speak english? What is their regular monthly wage and what does that include (how many days per week, how many yearly holidays, living in or out)?

5) Global feeling: Do you like living there? Why?

Thanks for all your help!
Carla