Preemptive apology for rambling on so long and the awkward fidgeting, but I'm sure I'll get better at this.
Thursday, October 25, 2012
First Vlog
Preemptive apology for rambling on so long and the awkward fidgeting, but I'm sure I'll get better at this.
Monday, October 15, 2012
Moon Festival and Tainan
The Saturday before the Moon Festival I embarked on a trip with my Rotary Club, my dad, and my brother to a Rotary Moon Festival Party. The party was out on a farm (now I know that sounds odd but the place was commercialzed and had a small cafe and they had areas set up for events/parties/etc.) The party was great! Before we went down to the barbeque area I was able to chat with my next host dad for a bit who seems awesome. He said his wife loves to cook and would be happy to teach me how to cook some Taiwanese/Chinese dishes so I'm looking forward to that come early January. We eventually walked down to where the real party was happening. There were many fire pits with benches around them for barbeque and a stage set up that was later host to karoke. Taiwanese babrbeque is slightly different than American barbecue. The menu that night included bamboo, cow tongue, red bean soup, and roasted squid among other delicacies. My Rotary Club somehow convinced me to go up on stage with them multiple times throughout the night to sing karoke with them, but all of the lyrics were in Chinese...so the only time I actually sang was when I recognized one or two words. Which I made sure to practically scream to try and convince everyone that I was in fact singing along.
Sunday was the actual Moon Festival. For most of the morning I didn't do too much as I was still in recovery from my late night party. In the afternoon though my mom, sister, and I took a walk around our neighborhood. My family just moved into this house a few months ago so things are new for them too. My neighborhood is kind of set up in "tiers". The first tier, where we live is made up of houses/villas, homes that are not apartments. The second tier is about 8 blocks away and is made up of apartments. I have no idea what lies beyond that because that's as far as we went. The neighborhood is really nice, our area is super quiet compared to all the bustling that is happening where the apartments are. But the downside is the apartment area gets a 7-11. After our walk we went over to my grandma's for dinner. My dad's side of the family was all there and we enjoyed a more tradional meal together.
Last Wednesday, as it was the first Wednesday of the month, I would have gone to my Rotary meeting during lunch. But instead it was a dinner meeting! We had some guest from Rotary International which called for a dinner meeting instead of a lunch meeting. Unfortunatley for me that meant more karoke, and this time by myself. But I am happily living in my world of self-delusion thinking that I killed it during a solo rendtion of Mama Mia. Karoke aside, it was a nice dinner.
Last weekend I went on a trip to the south of Taiwan with my Rotary Club and my family. We woke up what I would consider early beack at home in the US but 6:15 isn't bad at all here. We took a taxi to the MRT Station, where we took the MRT to the High Speed Rail Station, where we rode the train to Chiya, where we embarked on a bus to the sea. When we reached the ocean we then boarded a boat. We were heading out past a ton of oyster fields to an island that is only visible when the tide is low. It was about an hour ride out to said island. We landed and got to spend some time walking around the island. We then headed back to land. Upon returning from the dock we set out from, we headed over to the small fish market that was in fullswing. Sharks, octopi, crabs, shrimp, and fish larger than my head were all up for sale. We headed back on the bus to go hang out with a 1,200lb crocodile at a nearby zoo. I originally thought that the crocodile was a fake because it was so still, so I jumped a little when it snapped it's jaws shut. We then headed out to the beach to watch the sun set while wading in the waves. We spent the night in Tainan. The next moring we drove out to a park where we boarded a boat and took an ecological tour of the area, sadly I couldn't understand a thing. We also went to this absolutey stunning temple that may have been the largest place of worship I have ever seen. It was beautiful. My dad and I ducked into the temples devoted to the major gods and godesses and I was happy to learn more about religion in Taiwan. I also learned how to say "God bless you" and "Amen" in Chinese, so I'm set for more temple visits. We then returned to the park where we had the ecological tour and this time we boarded a different boat and went down a small river that had an overarching tunnel of mangrove trees above us. Once again I did not understand a thing, but just enjoyed the scenery. Next up was a tour of these old warehouse ruins that had been completely overtaken by an enormous banyan tree. This was the last stop on our trip and after we drove back to the train. All in all it was an amazing trip.
Last Wednesday was Double 10, Taiwan's birthday so I had the day off of school. Around 11AM my dad took my brother and I up into the surrounding moutains. We had a short walk up to a small lake and walked around there for a bit. Then we drove up to Wuzhishan, Five Finger Mountain, to look at the view. We rested at the house for a bit, ate lunch, then around 2pm we went to pick up my grandma and then we set off to the Yehliu Geopark. The park is right on the coast and features strangely rocks that have odd shapes due to the constant assault from the sea. We stayed there and wandered around, but a storm seemed to be approaching so we left after a bit.
On Saturday my parents had eight guests come over for dinner, so I spent the day at home as they prepped for the evening. I ducked downstairs a couple times for food but remained largely out of sight. Sunday, as it was my understanding, my brother, mom, sister, my sister's friend and I would go to the top of 101. But first my mom was dropping us off at Eslite, the huge bookstore chain in Taiwan, while she went with my brother to go get his hair cut. And as is usually the case, my understanding is a far deviation from what actually happens. We ended up spending four hours at the bookstore, which for me is some degree torturous when I could only read a small small fraction of the books. Then my mom showed up with my Aunt and we ended up eating in the food court at the bookstore. Then we went home. This is the second time I thought I'd be going up to that top floor, but for now it still remains inevitably out of reach. Until next time 101.
Today is currently Tuesday and today and yesterday my classmates have their midterms. Which of course we exchange students are incapable of doing. So Monday morning I had my Chinese class at university like always, then made it back to the school at one. The school had arranged a little trip in the afternoon for us exchange students. When I got to the school we (the two other excchange students and one of our teachers) set out to a hiking trail via bus. At the trail we met up with another teacher of ours and two students who graduated from the high school. Then we climbed. It wasn't that long of a distance but at times I swear the steps were more akin to a ladder. But we made it to the top eventually and took tons of pictures. The descent was somehow more vertical than the climb up. For me it became the anatomical version of the movie Speed, in which if I had stopped midway at all I probably would have fallen to my death due to the pace I was walking and the steepness of the trail. Thankfully that did not happen and I survived. We headed to Taipei 101 after the climb and enjoyed Starbucks and the accompanying gorgeous view that was the 35th floor. So much better than tests.
Today, once again due to midterms, we had another mini-trip. But we didn't have to meet our teacher until 8:30 at the MRT Station. I got to sleep in until 6:45, hold back the "oohs" and "ahhs" but for me it was glorious. So we met up at 8:30 and went to Taipei's City Hall, which in addition to playing host to various government offices, also has a Discovery Center. The Discovery Center was a small museum about Taipei, the history, the architecture, the people, you get the point. After a thorough look, we had an early lunch at a Korean place in the lower floor of a department store. I'm not 100% sure what my lunch was, but it was delicious. After lunch we quickly looked around the store, then headed back to school. Where I am now, sitting in the library while my poor classmates test some more. But at 2:30 we exchange students are supposed to head back to class because we have some sort of guest speaker? I'm not sure what the speaker will be speaking about so you'll have to wait for that riverting information, so until next time!
Abbie
Sunday was the actual Moon Festival. For most of the morning I didn't do too much as I was still in recovery from my late night party. In the afternoon though my mom, sister, and I took a walk around our neighborhood. My family just moved into this house a few months ago so things are new for them too. My neighborhood is kind of set up in "tiers". The first tier, where we live is made up of houses/villas, homes that are not apartments. The second tier is about 8 blocks away and is made up of apartments. I have no idea what lies beyond that because that's as far as we went. The neighborhood is really nice, our area is super quiet compared to all the bustling that is happening where the apartments are. But the downside is the apartment area gets a 7-11. After our walk we went over to my grandma's for dinner. My dad's side of the family was all there and we enjoyed a more tradional meal together.
Last Wednesday, as it was the first Wednesday of the month, I would have gone to my Rotary meeting during lunch. But instead it was a dinner meeting! We had some guest from Rotary International which called for a dinner meeting instead of a lunch meeting. Unfortunatley for me that meant more karoke, and this time by myself. But I am happily living in my world of self-delusion thinking that I killed it during a solo rendtion of Mama Mia. Karoke aside, it was a nice dinner.
Last weekend I went on a trip to the south of Taiwan with my Rotary Club and my family. We woke up what I would consider early beack at home in the US but 6:15 isn't bad at all here. We took a taxi to the MRT Station, where we took the MRT to the High Speed Rail Station, where we rode the train to Chiya, where we embarked on a bus to the sea. When we reached the ocean we then boarded a boat. We were heading out past a ton of oyster fields to an island that is only visible when the tide is low. It was about an hour ride out to said island. We landed and got to spend some time walking around the island. We then headed back to land. Upon returning from the dock we set out from, we headed over to the small fish market that was in fullswing. Sharks, octopi, crabs, shrimp, and fish larger than my head were all up for sale. We headed back on the bus to go hang out with a 1,200lb crocodile at a nearby zoo. I originally thought that the crocodile was a fake because it was so still, so I jumped a little when it snapped it's jaws shut. We then headed out to the beach to watch the sun set while wading in the waves. We spent the night in Tainan. The next moring we drove out to a park where we boarded a boat and took an ecological tour of the area, sadly I couldn't understand a thing. We also went to this absolutey stunning temple that may have been the largest place of worship I have ever seen. It was beautiful. My dad and I ducked into the temples devoted to the major gods and godesses and I was happy to learn more about religion in Taiwan. I also learned how to say "God bless you" and "Amen" in Chinese, so I'm set for more temple visits. We then returned to the park where we had the ecological tour and this time we boarded a different boat and went down a small river that had an overarching tunnel of mangrove trees above us. Once again I did not understand a thing, but just enjoyed the scenery. Next up was a tour of these old warehouse ruins that had been completely overtaken by an enormous banyan tree. This was the last stop on our trip and after we drove back to the train. All in all it was an amazing trip.
Last Wednesday was Double 10, Taiwan's birthday so I had the day off of school. Around 11AM my dad took my brother and I up into the surrounding moutains. We had a short walk up to a small lake and walked around there for a bit. Then we drove up to Wuzhishan, Five Finger Mountain, to look at the view. We rested at the house for a bit, ate lunch, then around 2pm we went to pick up my grandma and then we set off to the Yehliu Geopark. The park is right on the coast and features strangely rocks that have odd shapes due to the constant assault from the sea. We stayed there and wandered around, but a storm seemed to be approaching so we left after a bit.
On Saturday my parents had eight guests come over for dinner, so I spent the day at home as they prepped for the evening. I ducked downstairs a couple times for food but remained largely out of sight. Sunday, as it was my understanding, my brother, mom, sister, my sister's friend and I would go to the top of 101. But first my mom was dropping us off at Eslite, the huge bookstore chain in Taiwan, while she went with my brother to go get his hair cut. And as is usually the case, my understanding is a far deviation from what actually happens. We ended up spending four hours at the bookstore, which for me is some degree torturous when I could only read a small small fraction of the books. Then my mom showed up with my Aunt and we ended up eating in the food court at the bookstore. Then we went home. This is the second time I thought I'd be going up to that top floor, but for now it still remains inevitably out of reach. Until next time 101.
Today is currently Tuesday and today and yesterday my classmates have their midterms. Which of course we exchange students are incapable of doing. So Monday morning I had my Chinese class at university like always, then made it back to the school at one. The school had arranged a little trip in the afternoon for us exchange students. When I got to the school we (the two other excchange students and one of our teachers) set out to a hiking trail via bus. At the trail we met up with another teacher of ours and two students who graduated from the high school. Then we climbed. It wasn't that long of a distance but at times I swear the steps were more akin to a ladder. But we made it to the top eventually and took tons of pictures. The descent was somehow more vertical than the climb up. For me it became the anatomical version of the movie Speed, in which if I had stopped midway at all I probably would have fallen to my death due to the pace I was walking and the steepness of the trail. Thankfully that did not happen and I survived. We headed to Taipei 101 after the climb and enjoyed Starbucks and the accompanying gorgeous view that was the 35th floor. So much better than tests.
Today, once again due to midterms, we had another mini-trip. But we didn't have to meet our teacher until 8:30 at the MRT Station. I got to sleep in until 6:45, hold back the "oohs" and "ahhs" but for me it was glorious. So we met up at 8:30 and went to Taipei's City Hall, which in addition to playing host to various government offices, also has a Discovery Center. The Discovery Center was a small museum about Taipei, the history, the architecture, the people, you get the point. After a thorough look, we had an early lunch at a Korean place in the lower floor of a department store. I'm not 100% sure what my lunch was, but it was delicious. After lunch we quickly looked around the store, then headed back to school. Where I am now, sitting in the library while my poor classmates test some more. But at 2:30 we exchange students are supposed to head back to class because we have some sort of guest speaker? I'm not sure what the speaker will be speaking about so you'll have to wait for that riverting information, so until next time!
Abbie
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