In general, you'll do best by watching the darkest part of your sky, wherever you may be. All you need to observe these celestial displays are a dark sky, a way to stay comfortable, and a little patience. Light pollution or moonlight will drastically reduce the number of meteors you see. Give your eyes at least 15 minutes to adjust to the dark. Make yourself comfortable with a reclining lawn chair, sleeping bag, snacks, music, the company of other stargazers, or whatever will help you remain interested enough to keep your eyes turned toward the sky.
Experts differ in their opinions.
The best estimate is 3 meteors per second at certain period of time. Some of them would be faint meteors. The field of view of telescope is very small. It is not appropriate to use telescope for meteor shower observation. Meteors would streak across a good portion of the night sky.