tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28625614744510104522024-03-06T06:40:43.626+08:00Taiwan 101A French-American goes to Taipei to study Mandarin Chinese and discover the secrets of the Ilha Formosa.Adrien Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680105011770992676noreply@blogger.comBlogger55125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2862561474451010452.post-32640935713303127492010-08-17T19:29:00.002+08:002010-08-17T19:54:40.422+08:00The last one...I know, I know...it's been over six months since my last post (I just published one which has been lingering in the pre-publication stage). After two years of studying Chinese, I have been accepted to a graduate program in the United States and will be leaving Taiwan soon, thus ending the blog as well.<br /><br />Of course I am leaving with mixed feelings. There were so many people I met who helped me, so many friends I made, and so many experiences which I have learned from that I will never forget my time here. At the same time I look forward to going back to the States, where I haven't lived in over eight years, and haven't visited for four years. I look forward to meeting long-lost friends and family, eating American comfort food, and being able to understand everything! I also look forward to starting my Master's degree, and continuing my inquiries into languages and cultures.<br /><br />Farewell, Formosa!Adrien Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680105011770992676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2862561474451010452.post-38666347667332750002009-11-02T20:50:00.009+08:002010-08-17T19:45:55.130+08:00Chinese Literature And Other Colorful TopicsToday we were talking about Chinese literature in class, and we started a chapter about a book called 'The Dream of the Red Chamber". Our teacher, Lin laoshi (laoshi means teacher), told us it was one of four classic Chinese books, and asked us to name the other three. I quickly checked my notes from the last class<br /><br />"Three kingdoms," I blurted out.<br />"Journey to the West," a Korean girl said.<br />"Water Margin," said someone else.<br />"What about Jin Ping Mei?" asked Norie, the Japanese girl.<br /><br />Our teacher replied: "Jin Ping Mei is not considered one of the original classics, because people considered it to be..." and then she said something I didn't understand. It sounded something like 'color,' which piqued my curiosity, because the word color in Chinese sometimes has connotations of sex. I asked Lin laoshi to repeat just to make sure, as since there are so many homonyms in Chinese sometimes it is easy to get the completely wrong word.<br /><br />"It is a what color book?" I asked<br />"It is a yellow-color book," she replied.<br /><br />I quickly checked in my dictionary, and, indeed, when something is 'yellow color,' it means it's pornographic or has some mention of sex.<br /><br />"I think 'Dream of the Red Chamber' sounds pornographic," I said.<br /><br />Lin laoshi looked back at me. "Why, because of the red-light districts of your country?" She replied.<br /><br />"Yes, well. Originally, the word comes from Holland," I said, suddenly feeling defensive.<br /><br />"I know, but now the word can be used for areas in all of Europe. In China, we actually say 'green-light districts' for that part of town." (all this talk about colors reminded me of when I was in Japan, my friends and I discovered that what we called 'blue movies' were called 'pink films' over there. It's funny, colors really do have a connection to sex in one or another language.)<br /><br />About brothels, there are quite a few here in Taipei. It seems to be tacitly accepted, as there is scarcely a street without a 'massage parlour' or a 'karaoke bar' (distinguishable from actual karaoke bars by the use of the words Ka-la-OK instead of KTV)*. I read in my Lonely Planet that if a shop has a barber's pole outside and tinted windows, chances are it's a brothel. But I haven't actually found this to be the case as many times I see dodgy-looking shops with tinted windows and barber poles, only to find an old woman getting her hair permed on the inside. Not that I was actually looking for a brothel, or anything. I did see a garish looking barber shop outside the train station in Zhongli which had the words 'barber shop' in neon lights, and was probably not a barber shop).<br /><br />I read an article about it in the newspaper <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">Taipei Times </span>and it seems prostitution is illegal here, but (as I had guessed) tacitly accepted. Many sex workers come from other countries (mainland China or South-east Asia) or from disadvantaged families. There are the typical brothels I mentioned above, and special places which cater to niche markets like Linsen bei-lu, a street which has many 'hostess bars' catering to Japanese business men on trips here.**<br /><br />Back to class, our teacher went on to explain that Jin Ping Mei talks about some of the same things as in Dream of the Red Chamber, but more explicitly, and so was banned during the Ming dynasty. Then she talked more at length about it, though I'm not sure what she said. She tells us a lot, Lin laoshi, and I don't always know what she is talking about, though it's usually interesting, and does make for good listening practice.<br /><br />* update August 17, 2010: I've actually found that ka-la-OK bars are not necessarily brothels. I discovered this after my friend invited me to one of the aforementioned places and found that it was just a bunch of old people sitting around singing songs in Taiwanese. There were some hostesses in the bar but nothing strange going on. After interviewing some ex-pats here who are more in the know than I, it seems there is a huge grey area between hostessing and straight prostitution.<br /><span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">**Just found an article about it </span><a style="FONT-STYLE: italic" href="http://www.nowpublic.com/world/taiwan-legalizes-prostitution-after-campaign-sex-trade-workers">here</a><span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">. It seems it's legal after all.</span>Adrien Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680105011770992676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2862561474451010452.post-39978808035881936192009-10-01T19:03:00.006+08:002009-10-01T19:56:30.191+08:00Storms, viruses, and Taiwanese languageI've been back a few weeks now, and the weather is finally starting to get cooler. That means a bunch of low-pressure cold fronts (read: wind and rain) which, while giving a brief respite to the sweltering heat of the sun, also means that, well, it's getting cooler.<br /><br />I moved out of Mr. Zhang's apartment and am now occupying a friend's house while he is out of the country. My friend, JR, also lent me his bicycle, and I've started to bike to school and back, which gives me some exercise. This has caused me to get sunburns (and then tans) on my arms and neck (a real farmer's tan), so on Monday I started applying suncream in those areas, as well as my face, before going to school.<br /><br />As luck would have it, when I got outside there was no sun, only clouds, and to add insult to injury raindrops started coming down. After running back inside to get my rainjacket (for the bike) and umbrella (for walking around), I got on my bike and started pedaling on the side of the street.<br /><br />I tried to hurry, but still be cautious of the cars and rain. When I got to the bridge I was especially careful, and biked on the sidewalk instead of the road. Still when I got on the other side of the bridge, I went back among the cars and endless scooters which zipped passed me.<br /><br />When I got to school class had already started. My new class (the new semester started in September) consists of three Koreans, three Japanese, one other American, and one Indonesian. Anyway the teacher was warning us about H1N1, and if we had a fever we should immediately go to a doctor and have it checked out.<br /><br />I don't know if it was because I was in such a rush to get to school, or if the teacher's words had some effect on me, but it was precisely at this moment that I started to feel queasy. I had difficulty concentrating for the rest of the class and wondered whether I should leave for fear of spreading whatever it was I had (God forbid H1N1).<br /><br />Later, I went to the school medical center where my temperature and symptoms were checked. Apparently I had a flu, but it wasn't THE flu. Phew.<br /><br />After I rushed to go to a Taiwanese language class. The auditorium, which held about 400 people, was almost full when I got there, but I spotted a seat next to two Japanese friends, Yusuke and Yoshi. Yoshi is half-Taiwanese, which was great cuz he would correct me on my pronunciation.<br /><br />A little side note, if you think Chinese sounds hard, you should wrap your head around Taiwanese, a dialect which originates from the Fujianese province which faces Taiwan in mainland China. The Taiwanese dialect has eight tones (compared to Mandarin's four). Unlike Mandarin, those tones can change depending on where the word is in the sentence. Crazy!<br /><br />In most of these courses, which are mandatory (more on that later), they don't bother too much about the details of the language, and instead just focus on learning everyday phrases (for example to say hello, instead of Ni Hao, you say Li Ho). To my ear it sounds a little like Vietnamese, though I haven't actually asked a Vietnamese person what they think it sounds like.<br /><br />About the mandatory classes, it's part of the governments scheme to make students go to school more. For a person on a student visa, ten hours of class a week used to be sufficient, but then they said that wasn't enough, so they made it fifteen hours.<br /><br />Since our school's regular course only has ten hours of class a week, they gave us cards which we have to stamp, and we could choose to go to the library, or watch a video, or go to one of these large language classes (like the Taiwanese language class described earlier).<br /><br />But when I went to the library in early September, they told me part of my extra hours had to be done by taking the large language classes. I went to Jenny, the English-speaking girl who works at the MTC to ask her the reason behind the new rule.<br /><br />"Because everyone was filling out their hours by going to the library, and a lot of people don't really study there, so..."<br /><br />Which led me to another question: "But why do they have the fifteen-hour rule in the first place?"<br /><br />"They thought student's weren't studying enough, and working illegally and stuff," she said, smiling.<br /><br />Jenny continued: "Our school is the only school which has kept the two-hour a day class system, which is cheaper for students. So to compensate we have to create other ways to study."<br /><br />I'm happy that my school is thinking of us, the little guys, who can't afford or don't necessarily want to go to three-hour intensive classes every day. It seems like the government is taking band-aid measures to try to force students to stop working illegally (which they won't, because there will always be a demand). And now they are trying to force us to go to the large language classes. Not that I mind learning a bit of Taiwanese, or anything ;)Adrien Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680105011770992676noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2862561474451010452.post-9020974096020342872009-09-15T18:12:00.003+08:002009-09-15T18:15:19.506+08:00Back to square oneI arrived last Monday, tired and trying hard to beat the jet-lag, to a still hot Taipei. In a way, the change was welcome, as Paris was already getting cold and windy when I left.<br /><br />Now I'm staying (temporarily) in a friend's place, trying to find a job and apartment. It's just like I'm starting over again, except I already know the basics.Adrien Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680105011770992676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2862561474451010452.post-2910212864703315532009-08-22T19:07:00.003+08:002009-08-22T19:12:46.965+08:00The end of summer... and the end of my first year in TaiwanThe walls are bare, and only a few cardboard boxes remain in the room I have rented for almost exactly one year. August 20, 2009 marked my one year anniversary in Taiwan. I'll be going back to Paris for a few weeks to recoup and meet up with family and friends before coming back for another year. I'm really looking forward to that.<br /><br />The next year promises to be very different as I will be working (probably as an English teacher) as well as continuing my studies. But for now, I'm on vacation!Adrien Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680105011770992676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2862561474451010452.post-25630576890301490292009-08-17T18:49:00.005+08:002009-08-17T22:58:25.559+08:00Morakot: The AftermathI know this is a bit of a cop out, but I've been pretty busy lately and haven't written about the biggest story about Taiwan so far this year, namely Typhoon Morakot, which hit the island on August 8, or ten days ago.<br /><br />For me it was just another typhoon, with perhaps the most dangerous thing that happened to me was heavy wind and rain which was hitting me as I went to the video rental store to get some DVDs.<br /><br />Now it seems everyone is blaming each other for the slow response to mudslides, broken roads, and evacuating people from isolated areas. The media blamed the Taiwanese government. President Ma Ying-jeou blamed the weathermen for not making accurate predictions of the rainfall, which depending on who you ask was between 2.5 and 3 meters in three days (a year's worth of rain). Some people are even calling this the Katrina of Taiwan.<br /><br />If you want to read a general, bland, and not very interesting but at least informative article which sums up what happened, look <a href="http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/08/17/taiwan.typhoon/index.html?eref=rss_latest">here</a>.<br /><br />On Saturday I got an issue of the local English newspaper, the <span style="font-style: italic;">Taipei Times</span>, and it was full of articles about Morakot. As usual in Taiwanese politics, the articles colorfully describe the antagonism between leaders and the people, like <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2009/08/15/2003451192">this one</a> and this <a href="http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/editorials/archives/2009/08/15/2003451169">editorial piece</a>. My favorite line is "In China, officials often overestimate the impact of a disaster to attract greater donations. In Taiwan, officials often underestimate the impact of a disaster to conceal their incompetence."<br /><br />Hey, maybe this democracy isn't perfect, but at least it's a democracy (with a free press, I might add).<br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />Update:</span><br /><br />I just found this link of <a href="http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/08/typhoon_morakot.html">amazing pics </a>from my friend Bob's Facebook links (thanks Bob). Looking at these pictures, I'm amazed that I'm living so close to the havoc with so little apparent damage around me. I really hope the government will get its ass in gear and help the people down there.Adrien Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680105011770992676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2862561474451010452.post-26756259019852395852009-08-01T14:33:00.006+08:002009-08-01T15:51:55.650+08:00The super-futuristic library near my houseNear my house is a really beautiful, fully functional, modern library. The sleek gray building looks like it was designed by some hot-shot international architecture firm. When you walk through the gigantic glass gate surrounding the entrance, a moving LED screen alerts you of news about the library and events around town. Then you enter the lobby, which, though fully staffed, rarely has any lines because you can check out books yourself on special machines. Most people are at computers here, surfing the internet or viewing the library's book collection.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-SAULKiYw9GJAB0fdXnUMKZYBY3qyYfipFaMKaGsVk0p3RFztFZhKPvX64gXRUeQcBmYohxxFHdVctotw-1lt0Lr3tiAvmmfVbkhbNui9iWRuE63CZkfdlCmcaz6aOcQNsBKtxPpWKLI/s1600-h/CIMG6142.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-SAULKiYw9GJAB0fdXnUMKZYBY3qyYfipFaMKaGsVk0p3RFztFZhKPvX64gXRUeQcBmYohxxFHdVctotw-1lt0Lr3tiAvmmfVbkhbNui9iWRuE63CZkfdlCmcaz6aOcQNsBKtxPpWKLI/s320/CIMG6142.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5364893581567702162" border="0" /></a><br />The library would be very good, except for a certain group of people who use the library. They start lining up outside the gate sometime around 7am (the library opens at 9am, I'm not sure exactly what time they start lining up because I don't get up that early on weekends). By the time the doors open, there is a huge line which snakes around the plaza in front of the library.<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBYhGrOFKGDzHKHzVMsz2kd2C0qeXjWK4KVjpF_H5yyGRDOs9bhFLQ1LoT0lVyJnC-7Fh3SpaO_pGqGJUYMwRe7UDmHrUtT3Db7xJt_TWux88uCbdadOR2uhKSGMj01GtHte4VIcl8rvA/s1600-h/CIMG6264.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBYhGrOFKGDzHKHzVMsz2kd2C0qeXjWK4KVjpF_H5yyGRDOs9bhFLQ1LoT0lVyJnC-7Fh3SpaO_pGqGJUYMwRe7UDmHrUtT3Db7xJt_TWux88uCbdadOR2uhKSGMj01GtHte4VIcl8rvA/s320/CIMG6264.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5364895582977538274" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" >Students lining up outside the library. This photo was taken at eight in the morning on a Sunday</span>.<br /></div><br />I'm talking about students, of course. Which is all well and good-- I have no problem with kids who want to do well on their exams and study. The problem is that by the time I get there (which is usually in the early afternoon) there are literally no seats left. Again, this wouldn't be a problem if the kids were actually studying. But at any given time fully half of the occupied seats are unattended. What most of them do is leave their books at the place, and then go off with their friends to eat/play/chat somewhere outside the library.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOCr5EsDc2kSjxGRE3OpO9B-BaZyu0WTlOp5GRQGQFRBbSQ28C9ktwyp7zTxzDt3txuG2YokGVHbVJowFdEwGxqqI8YQLGLWq5vY4yhfmASAwCG9omH9PtqJNaXO0MXtjZf7juyCnENQE/s1600-h/CIMG6153.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOCr5EsDc2kSjxGRE3OpO9B-BaZyu0WTlOp5GRQGQFRBbSQ28C9ktwyp7zTxzDt3txuG2YokGVHbVJowFdEwGxqqI8YQLGLWq5vY4yhfmASAwCG9omH9PtqJNaXO0MXtjZf7juyCnENQE/s320/CIMG6153.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5364893586712857250" border="0" /></a><br />Of course, in the West this would never work as people would be afraid of having something stolen and would always be at the desk, save for a bathroom break. But here no one seems to bat an eye.<br /><br />There is one secret place, though, which I discovered when I first had the problem of searching for a seat. While floors one to four are chock-full of students (and/or their school accessories), the fifth floor is empty like Siberia, with only one or two seats taken (out of about a hundred).<br /><br />I went to this floor (which to me seemed like the promised land of studying) quite often, until one day one of the staff informed me that I was not allowed to take books from outside to study there. Though I'm not sure exactly what she said, I imagine it was something like this:<br /><br />"Excuse me sir, do you know you are not supposed to bring outside books into this area of the library?"<br /><br />[confused expression]"What?"<br /><br />She replied: "Please take your bag and put it in one of the lockers over there," at which point I took my bag, ambled over to the lockers, fiddled with one of them, then came back to where I was sitting and resumed studying.<br /><br />I don't really feel bad about doing this because I find it's ridiculous that they have hundreds of perfectly good seats downstairs which could be put to better use. I wish they could have some kind of rule where if they see a place with someone's things unattended for over half an hour, they just confiscate it and let someone else sit there. Till that happens though, I'm going to be sneaking into the hidden library paradise of the fifth floor.<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dyGDRUJfuuoo001v8cDJTq9RccOpoqX1TSje8TrCAdJZSmollP9racmp-KZOP9wAs4nhKMI0uab09qQbXGyQg' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe><br /><span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" >A video tour of the lobby (I was stopped by a guard before I could go further)</span><br /></div>Adrien Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680105011770992676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2862561474451010452.post-12726091383295369972009-07-20T18:16:00.005+08:002009-07-20T19:08:18.256+08:00Taiwan, one of the last bastions of pro-Americana?I was walking home from school today, listening to my <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">iPod</span>, when someone tapped me on my shoulder. I looked back to see a Taiwanese man with thick-rimmed glasses smiling back at me.<br /><br />"Are you a student at <span style="font-style: italic;"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Shida</span></span>?" he asked in Chinese.<br /><br />"Yes," I replied, somewhat cautiously. He didn't seem ill-willed, just a little nervous and excited at meeting a foreigner.<br /><br />"Are you American?" he asked.<br /><br />This last question took me off my guard. What if I said yes? Would this lead to more questions and pestering? It's not that the guy was unfriendly, just that I didn't see why being American should be the basis for meeting someone. So I decided to be French.<br /><br />"No, I'm French," I said.<br /><br />Now, don't get me wrong. I am in no way neglecting my American side. It's just that this is not the first time someone has tried to strike up a conversation, or ask me several personal questions in an interview format, just because I'm American.<br /><br />It's not necessarily a bad thing that some Taiwanese look up to the USA. I met an American at a bar last week who was on vacation here. He said he was thrilled that he would get a positive reaction when he told people he was American, as opposed to when he visited Europe, and people would give him an answer like "Oh, you're alright, even though you're American."<br /><br />Mind you, playing the French card doesn't always work. Once, in a similar encounter, a man (or should I say kid, as he was fresh out of high-school) wanted to do <span style="font-style: italic;">la <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">bise</span></span> with me after I told him I was French (and, after I declined, insisted on giving me a hug).<br /><br />Anyway, after I replied, the man excused himself and said "oh, sorry, I thought you were someone else," and promptly left. I was relieved.Adrien Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680105011770992676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2862561474451010452.post-70117929529486509622009-07-15T21:27:00.002+08:002009-07-15T21:52:51.174+08:00DoctorI must've eaten something bad in Hong Kong because I've had the worst case of the runs in years.<br /><br />Finally today I decided to go visit a doctor. I took my National Health Insurance card, some money, and my English-Chinese dictionary and walked to the closest possible clinic.<br /><br />The doctor gave me four different kinds of drugs. The nurse next to him gave me helpful advice like drink sports drinks (to replace the electrolytes), don't eat oily things, and no dairy.<br /><br />I just hope the medicine works. My stomach has been aching for days.Adrien Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680105011770992676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2862561474451010452.post-20616403883382824802009-07-14T20:31:00.004+08:002009-07-14T21:23:55.190+08:00HK Visa RunLast weekend I went to Hong Kong on a visa run with Paris. I took the opportunity to stay and see some of the southern Chinese city. I found it to be a lively, modern, cosmopolitan metropolis, thriving and bustling with people from all over. Imagine London's chinatown (with double-decker buses and trams), with New York-style skyscrapers, with hot and sunny weather, and you have a pretty good idea of what it's like.<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKZlq6_YPeXRKbELu8WqiXq3oTM3dmbvdt4Ntf4iIGS4txV2F5k9ei2c3zKMgdAYAy89WMbgtEO00EwjqFJwBz1qqpYD9DQhUgyQWDM48IewfejgrOcE8g-R4Pb79v0pi5RJCM9eKhL2A/s1600-h/CIMG7240.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKZlq6_YPeXRKbELu8WqiXq3oTM3dmbvdt4Ntf4iIGS4txV2F5k9ei2c3zKMgdAYAy89WMbgtEO00EwjqFJwBz1qqpYD9DQhUgyQWDM48IewfejgrOcE8g-R4Pb79v0pi5RJCM9eKhL2A/s320/CIMG7240.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5358294756958172770" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">On a tram (or ding-ding) at night on one of the main thoroughfares, Des Voeux Road</span></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNK_4aRMbyjTfpgkgv05CUnLrGemngxzm-rDAvWlR9apTxHKO1gXkU2dP45gOUWbtmV6xDtar9uy79szUCsMfPMgvkmvBzCZJ0cKgS27VF22wBcCGadh51ykMBsHiUXk5HqfWlTTdBtOU/s1600-h/CIMG7263.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNK_4aRMbyjTfpgkgv05CUnLrGemngxzm-rDAvWlR9apTxHKO1gXkU2dP45gOUWbtmV6xDtar9uy79szUCsMfPMgvkmvBzCZJ0cKgS27VF22wBcCGadh51ykMBsHiUXk5HqfWlTTdBtOU/s320/CIMG7263.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5358294761833088082" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">In the Lan Kwai Fong nightlife district</span></span><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPK8frKr7C48dcaJT1S1vRSr8Yp_ciOcvTn9CXQ-_AS-U1uBfIJAoH6EcNX4QFnsqqvqIDdAUcMVW3DdE8VtW4ToBx_bXvac5tSRDqYHE5fohaSpLOCG5YhPT1D8JfCjRA6rE4uSvQ2gU/s1600-h/CIMG7365.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPK8frKr7C48dcaJT1S1vRSr8Yp_ciOcvTn9CXQ-_AS-U1uBfIJAoH6EcNX4QFnsqqvqIDdAUcMVW3DdE8VtW4ToBx_bXvac5tSRDqYHE5fohaSpLOCG5YhPT1D8JfCjRA6rE4uSvQ2gU/s320/CIMG7365.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5358294767344716642" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTaDLwnDaqX2zZL8F3fy36hvOK0AjmNVXC0MoEkGlHl90_gDqt_-CipGJSJJBwXp2WKcA-wdn6lCeTbHzfYD-xSaOXLhZEvQWTJUeX5Ejj3MKpHYa6l-0RmtQ7fRt5VupnhGcnPJMFd94/s1600-h/CIMG7367.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTaDLwnDaqX2zZL8F3fy36hvOK0AjmNVXC0MoEkGlHl90_gDqt_-CipGJSJJBwXp2WKcA-wdn6lCeTbHzfYD-xSaOXLhZEvQWTJUeX5Ejj3MKpHYa6l-0RmtQ7fRt5VupnhGcnPJMFd94/s320/CIMG7367.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5358294775669402690" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Dusk and nighttime views from 'the peak' (my camera got busted so the pictures are a bit fuzzy)</span></span><br /></div>Adrien Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680105011770992676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2862561474451010452.post-80615779115818215452009-07-03T18:05:00.004+08:002009-07-03T18:25:56.934+08:00Summer Session- Back To School BluesWell, after a one-month break from anything remotely resembling studying Chinese, I got back to studying Chinese on Wednesday morning. Early morning, I add. 8AM is a hard time to start class, particularly when you are accustomed to not being awake for at least another two hours.<br /><br />Since there are not many people who arrive in the beginning of July, I was put in a class which started at the beginning of the regular quarter, in June. When I got there, short of breath from walking quickly to avoid being late, I was met by a tall blond foreigner.<br /><br />"Are you here for the class with Yan laoshi?" I asked (and may I add that the teacher's name "Yan" is the first character for the word "strict").<br />"Yes," said the young man.<br /><br />We entered the empty room and exchanged our attendance papers so we could check we were in the right place. According to the paper, we were. The bell rang. I found out he was a new student at <span style="font-style: italic;">Shida</span>, unlike me who is a returning student. He is a Dutchman who is to start his doctoral studies at <span style="font-style: italic;">Taida </span>in September.<br /><br />To make a long story short, we went down to the administrative offices, only to find that the classroom had not changed. When we got back, we found the teacher and one student, and slowly students filed in late. I should have known better.<br /><br />To tell you a bit about the class, there are three Indonesians, one Vietnamese, two Koreans, as well as me and the aforementioned Dutchman.<br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span>Anyway, after the initial shock (what? writing test the first day!?), I think I'm getting back into the swing of things. At the same time I'm in a kind of visa limbo as I messed up when I went to Japan and just got a landing visa. I'm also trying to figure out what kind of job I should get. Now that my scholarship is over, I have to find some way to sustain myself.Adrien Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680105011770992676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2862561474451010452.post-77103582428404963832009-06-27T19:32:00.004+08:002009-06-27T21:00:46.002+08:00TOPTOP (pronounced Tee Oh Pee)- These three letters have been echoing in my head the past few days... Like images from a bad dream which keep returning.<br /><br />TOP stands for Test Of Proficiency- Huayu. Still don't get it? It's like the TOEFL for Mandarin Chinese, in Taiwan. And though I have taken it four times now, I still haven't passed it.<br /><br />I woke up this morning at 7:36. Then I went to the bathroom to shave and brush my teeth. I don't know what happens in the morning, but when I looked at the clock again it was already 8:30. The test was at 9. As I walked out of the apartment, I debated whether to get my umbrella. I remembered seeing a forecast of rainy days throughout the week, so I decided to take it. I also put on some flip-flops.<br /><br />Outside, the sun shone bright. I rushed to the Family Mart around the corner to pick up some brain food- that's right, my brain needs food, preferably protein, caffeine, and glucose. There were no egg sandwiches (my preferred form of protein in the morning) but I did find some tuna <span style="font-style: italic;">onigiri </span>(the rice triangles wrapped in dried seaweed) and a Weider Vitamin pack (it's like this space-age looking pouch which contains a kind of jell-o which is supposed to be good for you). I added a black coffee- no sugar- and went for the counter.<br /><br />Twenty-five minutes to go. I rush to the MRT (metro) while eating (drinking?) the jello stuff. It feels like forever before the train gets there. In the train, I'm not supposed to but I start to open the coffee and gulp it down. There is no eating or drinking on the Taipei MRT. That's even stricter than Japan.<br /><br />When I arrive at the destination station, Gongguan, I look around to see if anyone has an umbrella but nobody does. I wonder if I look like an idiot for having one.<br /><br />When I get out of the station I start running, as much as you can 'run' with flip-flops anyway, and end up being right on time. The test is actually a "pilot" test, which means the results are not official. I don't know why they need to have these so often, but the upside is they are free, and it's good practice for the real one.<br /><br />I signed up for two tests today, one basic and one intermediate. By now I should be able to do the basic one no problem, but I still have trouble with the listening part. They speak very fast in the recorded dialogues, and you only get to hear them once. Sometimes I wonder if the people who made the test are secretly trying to take their revenge on the people who write the TOEFL tests.<br /><br />After the first test people rush out. A Japanese girl followed by a man speaking Spanish to his friend. I walk out, go to a bench, and pull the tuna rice-ball out of my bag. I am already hungry (guess that jell-o thing doesn't have so much energy after all).<br /><br />Before long, the second test starts. At first I think it's not that hard, there are a few words I don't understand but I can understand them from the context. But near the end of the test, in the reading comprehension section, the passages get longer and longer, and I don't understand what it's talking about. I have ten minutes left so I mark the rest of my answer sheet as 'C'. I hear 'C' is the best answer.<br /><br />When I walk out of the second test, there are big storm clouds overhead and big raindrops falling down. I'm glad I brought my umbrella.Adrien Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680105011770992676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2862561474451010452.post-25014362764690758002009-05-30T10:29:00.003+08:002009-05-30T10:49:28.149+08:00The end, or a new beginningYou can tell it's the end of a semester at the Mandarin Training Center (MTC) just by looking at the practically empty library. Hallways are no longer filled with voices from all over the world. On Tuesday, the last day of class, two of my classmates were already out of the country (not that many but in a class of eight the difference is felt).<br /><br />When I arrived in Taiwan, I was shocked to find out that I had to keep an 80% grade point average and a very good attendance record to keep my scholarship money coming in. I vowed to not skip class unless I was seriously ill or had an emergency. I have to say I felt really good on Wednesday when I picked up my report card (which I need to get my new student visa)- a perfect attendance record and grades all above 80%. Neither in high school nor in college did I feel the need to go to class every day or to get very good grades. I guess I'm growing up.<br /><br />At the same time I did not get very good grades on my TOP test- kind of like a TOEFL for Chinese in Taiwan. I know even though I have studied a lot, I still need to practice more to get really good at Chinese.<br /><br />That's why I've decided to stay here at least another year- to improve my Chinese and explore more of Taipei, a city brimming with noise and liveliness, and Taiwan, an exotic island with yet-to-be-discovered treasures. Next year will be different- I'll probably be more busy with work. But since I've already gotten over the 'adaptation' stage, I'll also be able to enjoy it more.<br /><br />Now, in Taipei Taoyuan International Airport, I am about to go back to Japan for a couple of weeks.Adrien Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680105011770992676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2862561474451010452.post-90918598065357579152009-05-21T20:22:00.005+08:002009-05-27T12:07:54.261+08:00VisaI finish pushing the last set of weights when my phone rings. It's Bob (name changed to protect privacy), my workout partner.<br /><br />"Where are you?" I ask, noting that he is exactly 47 minutes late.<br /><br />"My visa extension got refused and I had to go to Hong Kong on a visa run."<br /><br />OK, that's a good excuse if ever there was one. And he follows this up with:<br /><br />"Wanna go to lunch?"<br /><br />"Sure. Meet me in the gym."<br /><br />Bob, a Canadian, has been in Taiwan eight years, at least some of them illegally. He reminds me a bit of the character Jay in Stephen Clarke's <span style="font-style: italic;">A Year in The Merde</span>, an American who has lived in Paris so long he switches between the two languages unknowingly and has absorbed some of the French customs. Bob is like that. He told me once when he went back to Canada, he was surprised at how many white people there were.<br /><br />Lately Bob has been trying to live here on a study visa, but as he works (and parties) full-time, he has trouble keeping up with the attendance quotas. That would explain the Hong Kong trip.<br /><br />I see him coming down the stairs, in his shorts and white t-shirt and bag strapped around his shoulder. He is 30 years old but still exudes a high-school student vibe, talking fast with a giddy smile on his face.<br /><br />"Come on, let's take my bike."<br /><br />Having visa problems has not stopped Bob from acquiring all the trappings of a Taipei resident though. And his bike is one of them. We walk out of the air-conditioned gym into a wave of moisture, heat, and cloudy skies. It's the first time I've ever ridden on his bike, an old black Yamaha, and for a minute I feel a little odd getting onto the back of another guy's bike. But this is Taiwan, and nobody would give us a second glance.<br /><br />"I feel like I'm your bitch," I say.<br /><br />"Or I'm your bitch, depending on which way you look at it," he replies.<br /><br />We begin driving and I soon realize this is very different from the scooters I have ridden in Taiwan. It's a black beast which accelerates in short bursts, and though it isn't going much faster than the scooters alongside us, I can feel it has not unleashed all its power.<br /><br />We speed down a major road, zipping past cars, the wind blowing in my face and the helmet barely staying on my skull. I grip onto the bars behind me but still don't feel quite safe. That's when I start to feel rain drops on my face.<br /><br />Fortunately, we turn into a smaller street; almost there. Bob races between people and scooters. We pass a wooden sign which says "Bongos".<br /><br />"That's my friend's restaurant, they make hamburgers and Mexican food. It's doing really well," shouts Bob over the engine and wind. He has been here so long, he seems to know every ex-pat in town.<br /><br />We stop in front of a restaurant with a middle-eastern theme and get off the bike. As soon as we enter I go to look at the menu. Bob goes to say hi to one of the patrons, another foreigner, tall with brown hair falling over his eyes.<br /><br />After ordering, I go to where they are talking.<br /><br />"I dunno what I'm gonna do man, I gotta leave the country and change my name and come back or something."<br /><br />Apparently Bob isn't the only one with visa problems. The guy, also Canadian, explains that he overstayed his visa after he realized the rules for visas had changed and his papers were not in order.<br /><br />Originally, hiring foreigners under the table was attractive to employers (especially English schools) because neither party had to pay taxes. Recently though, the government has been cracking down on schools, and so they in turn have been following the rules more strictly.<br /><br />Back in the middle-eastern restaurant, we order falafel sandwiches and discuss the plight of foreigners. It seems the Taiwanese government makes it difficult for foreigners to stay here. I guess it's normal as they don't want foreigners flooding the country, but it makes life more complicated.<br /><br />After nine months of no problems (as a scholarship student I got an Alien Resident Card, the much-coveted "Green card" of Taiwan), on May 31 my visa will expire and I will have to find a new one. I'm going to Japan next week and will be able to get a new study visa, but the new one will only last three months, renewable once before I have to leave the country. That's why I'm trying to find a job which will sponsor a work visa for me (valid a year).Adrien Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680105011770992676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2862561474451010452.post-556582279144805672009-05-13T00:43:00.003+08:002009-05-13T00:49:22.969+08:00My (not so) secret weaponSo it's getting hotter every day. More humid. What this means is, more mosquitoes. You may have read previous posts where I rant about how much I hate mosquitoes.<br /><br />Well, a while back I decided to get a secret weapon. The mosquitoes cannot see it. It's like an invisible wall which blocks me from them. At night, I can hear them buzzing around me, but this does not bother me for I know I am safe from them. It's a mosquito net!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4aoJgA2w6WpHL0Y2e9f2KS4Cj-vGqtcWDsDwM1cE0_bajlDBFoiB_EFclDcHkdCX3DpRU0LvUSSaxw0d75imxPj_6CVg0wJKJBlPWdBgoF1v6QEa84cRr8fagasAAhfId5sdKOKUp51A/s1600-h/CIMG6275.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4aoJgA2w6WpHL0Y2e9f2KS4Cj-vGqtcWDsDwM1cE0_bajlDBFoiB_EFclDcHkdCX3DpRU0LvUSSaxw0d75imxPj_6CVg0wJKJBlPWdBgoF1v6QEa84cRr8fagasAAhfId5sdKOKUp51A/s400/CIMG6275.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5334980222694998066" border="0" /></a>And it means no more bloody mosquito stains on my wall.Adrien Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680105011770992676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2862561474451010452.post-9793044780186291122009-05-09T11:20:00.003+08:002009-05-09T12:45:40.602+08:00Is Taiwan Strange? Uhhh, yeah...A few days ago a Taiwanese college student approached me at the Mandarin Training Center and asked me to fill out a form for her research. This is not unusual and I usually try to make up some excuse as to why I couldn't do it (these forms usually take 20-30 minutes and are not fun) but this time the form's title caught my eye: Taiwan is strange. I decided to take it.<br /><br />I have written down some of the 'strange' things that go on in Taiwan so you can see what kind of culture-shock things I have experienced and how (if) I've adapted to them. Just a disclaimer: some of these things really annoy me (I still really like living here though, and believe the good things far outweigh the bad).<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">It is strange that Taiwanese eat stinky tofu</span><br /><br />Near my apartment is a restaurant which serves, among other things, stinky tofu. When I first moved here I couldn't stand the smell as I passed by every day. Now, I eat there regularly. Most of the time I don't even notice the smell. I still don't like the smell of stinky tofu, but it tastes great.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">It is strange that there is some stuff you can eat inside of your drink (for example pearl milk tea)</span><br /><br />I have to admit, even if I have gotten used to this, there is still some part of me that thinks it's kind of weird that when you are sipping from a straw some gelatinous substance ends up on your tongue.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">It is strange that there are a lot of foreigner models on Taiwanese advertisements</span><br /><br />Well, not really. I got used to that in Japan. The thing that is weird is their choice of foreigner models. Sometimes the models are not all that good-looking and make me wonder about the difference in perception of what is beautiful.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">It is strange that Taiwanese wear thick-framed eyeglasses</span><br /><br />They look kind of dorky. No, very dorky. Still, they do have some interesting variations on the theme and I have on more than one occasion considered getting a pair.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The way Taiwanese dispose of their trash is quite weird (for example, in Taiwan garbage truck pick up trash at a certain time and place while announcing their arrival with music)</span><br /><br />I bet anyone that when Beethoven composed the opening lines of 'Fur Elise' he never imagined that hundreds of years later the song would be played to signal to residents to take their trash out to a garbage truck. I guess it's because nobody wants to leave there stinky trash on the street (yeah you can imagine how much that would smell in the hot summer months). When I first heard it I would think of Tenacious D in the Pick of Destiny, "If you think it's time to fu*in rock, and fu*in roll, out of control..." but pretty soon that got old.<br /><br />The noise pollution of this, and other trucks which emit various sounds (such as recordings of commercials to fix your window screens), is something I think I will never get used to (most of them park right outside my apartment building, where there is a park).<br /><br />Especially when I'm just about to take a mid-afternoon nap.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">It is strange that there are water dispensing machines everywhere in Taiwan</span><br /><br />This isn't so strange as the fact that Taiwan still doesn't have clean drinking water. My landlord keeps a huge kettle in the kitchen which he uses to boil water so we can drink it. Every time I wash a dish I have to dry it before eating from it. Same with fruit. When I order a drink I never ask for ice as I have had stomach aches from ice, which I guess was from water that was not boiled properly.<br /><br />For a country which has a high quality of life, high-speed Internet access, and modern roads and transportation systems, you'd think the government would invest in mass filtration systems. It makes me wonder whether those companies which make the water-dispensing machines have some kind of lobbying power in the government.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">It's strange that there are a lot of scooters in Taiwan.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">It's strange that Taiwanese often travel with several (three or more) people on one scooter</span><br /><br />I've already talked about the scooters in Taiwan. I guess it annoys me both on a personal level (as when I'm walking on the sidewalk and some scooter almost runs me over, assuming that he has every right being there) and an environmental level. The 2-stroke engines that many people drive here emit much more than their 4-stroke counterparts.<br /><br />To be fair, scooters are pretty convenient and according to one expat friend, cheaper than riding the metro. Also, they are fun to drive.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">The KTV culture of Taiwan is quite strange (for example: one person may sing several songs without a break and nobody mind)</span><br /><br />I remember when I first came here, some friends invited me to sing karaoke. There was this one Taiwanese girl who simply wouldn't put down the mic. Apparently you can bump up your songs in the order. This really annoyed me. I haven't sung karaoke since.Adrien Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680105011770992676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2862561474451010452.post-90943018883315562922009-04-22T01:45:00.004+08:002009-05-09T12:48:45.017+08:00The Heat is BackWe had a mild winter, even by Taiwanese standards (it seldom dropped below 10 degrees C). It did feel cold at times though, as there is no central heating and I didn't have any space heaters.<br /><br />Then, around March, came a few warm spells. It wasn't all good of course, most days were rainy and gray. Lately it's been alternating between rainy and gray, and sunny and mild.<br /><br />Yesterday for the first time it felt almost... hot. Humid. I didn't need my big blanket anymore. In class we asked the teacher to put on the AC. Girls started wearing short shorts again (yay!)<br /><br />Today I walked down a street near the night market and saw some cockroaches, trampled, on the ground. There were one or two survivors on the street (and probably 5,000 more wherever they came from).<br /><br />Surprisingly there haven't been many mosquitoes so far. Knock on wood.<br /><br />All this means the coming of summer. Sadly I don't think Taiwan has a stable Spring to speak of. It just alternates between too hot and too cold before becoming too hot for good. Well, maybe I'm exaggerating a little.<br /><br />This weekend will be my DJ debut in Taiwan as I have been invited to mix at a club by some ex-pat DJs/promoters. It should be fun.Adrien Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680105011770992676noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2862561474451010452.post-3442510327895362422009-04-11T20:52:00.007+08:002009-04-11T21:45:21.983+08:00Strange and exotic fruitOne thing that struck me when I first came to Taiwan was the large amount of fruit available everywhere. If you are feeling too hot after walking in the summer heat, you will no doubt find a stand selling cut fruit to cool you down (served in a small plastic bag with a toothpick). In a night market you can get not just different types of teas but also freshly-made smoothies from whatever fruit are available. And rather than buy fruit in the supermarket, most Taiwanese choose to buy their fruit in shops dedicated to selling just fruit, open 24 hours.<br /><br />But personally, I don't go out of my way to buy fruit. I buy fruit on my way home at a stand which sells it. I used to buy apples and oranges because I wasn't familiar with the local fruit, till one day they didn't have apples (usually imported from Korea, Japan, or the US).<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsJnRfgYOB0NbWUTXNSPEWO26ajwBMvot1xGmb60nXfwxCIRk_Bp07dat1NE4vpL40oHGXIm9L9OZzCndLxCayx_jUFrBVPF9cgudDnqE68FYIiAs_jdOdxhNP1Sfa2-H-VUZIbLnXbco/s1600-h/CIMG6262.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsJnRfgYOB0NbWUTXNSPEWO26ajwBMvot1xGmb60nXfwxCIRk_Bp07dat1NE4vpL40oHGXIm9L9OZzCndLxCayx_jUFrBVPF9cgudDnqE68FYIiAs_jdOdxhNP1Sfa2-H-VUZIbLnXbco/s320/CIMG6262.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5323424074921162194" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-size:85%;">the fruit stand by my house, here selling mandarin oranges, pineapples, watermelons, etc...</span></span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"></span></div><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span>Upon the suggestion of the shop clerk I instead got some <span style="font-style: italic;">bala</span>, as it is known in Taiwanese or, for the rest of us, guava. Guava can be hard like an apple or mushy like a banana, depending on the type and how long you let it ripen. It has hard seeds inside it which you can eat or spit out. Its taste is slightly sour and a little sweet. I wonder why I only had guava juice and never the real fruit before coming to Taiwan.<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNubtq8R8rrbCDRhdCBHb-ntXpuWJUfjIAFXIWWnzZq9_Xe4fo2SZLO0-790y3hrAZyaBxL9vL-RrFpkXKFIycEQco-D2fczqXfpm92KztjcCnHkI2aMdS0giOL58DKsRUiSIm92WyORI/s1600-h/CIMG6253.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNubtq8R8rrbCDRhdCBHb-ntXpuWJUfjIAFXIWWnzZq9_Xe4fo2SZLO0-790y3hrAZyaBxL9vL-RrFpkXKFIycEQco-D2fczqXfpm92KztjcCnHkI2aMdS0giOL58DKsRUiSIm92WyORI/s320/CIMG6253.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5323424066979184514" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-size:85%;">guava and wax apples</span><br /></span></div><br />The other day for the first time I bought all local fruit- guava and wax apples. Wax apples have a nice crunchy consistency not unlike a fresh watermelon. The flavor is zesty and sweet.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeFeJVxdek32Da7PUWhMbSzO0mm1acML8FUdYPtwoRxGuU21Bpv4YtWOeOEuQdcgdkGRP8h8ae-ekv8bK6ArsgKcb0GrA29_6VjQoBiBfhwFPdpYWtcFJPn4HyzeBXuZJRP7OQnGVEHvQ/s1600-h/CIMG6254.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeFeJVxdek32Da7PUWhMbSzO0mm1acML8FUdYPtwoRxGuU21Bpv4YtWOeOEuQdcgdkGRP8h8ae-ekv8bK6ArsgKcb0GrA29_6VjQoBiBfhwFPdpYWtcFJPn4HyzeBXuZJRP7OQnGVEHvQ/s320/CIMG6254.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5323424068873617122" border="0" /></a><br />Taiwan has a large array of fruit you would never find in your standard Western super market: dragon fruit (which taste a little like kiwi fruit), star fruit (looks cool but not my favorite taste), pomelos (a very big citrus fruit), jujubes (looks like a small apple) and more.<br /><br />For more information on fruit in Taiwan, check out <a href="http://www.taiwanembassy.org/ct.asp?xItem=29683&ctNode=3483&mp=62&nowPage=1&pagesize=50">this site</a>, brought to you by the Taiwanese government office in New York.Adrien Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680105011770992676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2862561474451010452.post-8137711718430276862009-03-27T22:06:00.004+08:002009-03-27T22:34:54.148+08:00I won the lottery!Well, kinda. When you walk into a store and buy something, even if you don't want the receipt, the clerk will insist you take it. I asked a Taiwanese friend why and he said every receipt is a lottery ticket. But why? The plot thickens...<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2SaEncOHvIzW2juqS9_LiS2xByQXi36Vct4w_LjOyOJMfI2sWaQ9tse4CTQiYb_2v12C64J9A6CfIcY1WbOVIn2GC7UBEkkhPmbvnyVvHA1EeIOBvn4elPnh4wpWbdEaU_0OqGmm8ca4/s1600-h/CIMG6243.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2SaEncOHvIzW2juqS9_LiS2xByQXi36Vct4w_LjOyOJMfI2sWaQ9tse4CTQiYb_2v12C64J9A6CfIcY1WbOVIn2GC7UBEkkhPmbvnyVvHA1EeIOBvn4elPnh4wpWbdEaU_0OqGmm8ca4/s320/CIMG6243.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317871357639788034" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">My receipts. I didn't notice how many of them were from 7-11 until now.<br /></span></div><br />The government wants to encourage businesses to report all earnings. So to do that, they instituted this scheme where the receipts which businesses print out will be part of a national lottery. That way customers will have a vested interest in getting a printed receipt of their transaction.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWd0GodGFtJx98JyABw2Kldytvo-qhtQ3D4UelVse1KqLfz01TZJFs8VtRc2nW-eIAeoyggMQe_TLbLK8_Wg-uQe0ZnsgYKCcNApkEvPguiSLMZfFinJZqiCq7rOUBKO2hVadm1Oj3xJE/s1600-h/CIMG6249_edited.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 247px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWd0GodGFtJx98JyABw2Kldytvo-qhtQ3D4UelVse1KqLfz01TZJFs8VtRc2nW-eIAeoyggMQe_TLbLK8_Wg-uQe0ZnsgYKCcNApkEvPguiSLMZfFinJZqiCq7rOUBKO2hVadm1Oj3xJE/s320/CIMG6249_edited.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317875209207373282" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">The list of winning numbers and the prizes to be had</span><br /></div><br /><br />The 'lottery' runs every two months, and depending on how many numbers on the ticket match the winning numbers, you could win between NT$200 (currently about US$6 or €4.6) and, if you win the 'grand prize', NT$2mn (about US$59,000 or €44,650). Not bad.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyeO45tRHMrx4Hi0Sg5ov6oz-wTvbcd9hE9P6byyQum8VlNb1d1sCzwFnKJDKUOjJJ0aXarq47K9mQREu0KV1nHN2pBEGeGw7znIyE5F8_KnToIlz2l0bx0ARBn642fOQJS7gEfgbrWqU/s1600-h/CIMG6252.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyeO45tRHMrx4Hi0Sg5ov6oz-wTvbcd9hE9P6byyQum8VlNb1d1sCzwFnKJDKUOjJJ0aXarq47K9mQREu0KV1nHN2pBEGeGw7znIyE5F8_KnToIlz2l0bx0ARBn642fOQJS7gEfgbrWqU/s320/CIMG6252.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317871362959463858" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Can you spot the winning number?</span><br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">Well, I just won 200NT. But it was worth saving all those receipts, right?<br /></div></div>Adrien Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680105011770992676noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2862561474451010452.post-12649796342716713312009-03-17T00:14:00.005+08:002009-03-17T01:00:43.830+08:00WeekendSome friends of mine who are part of the THC (Taiwan Hip-Hop Crew) were performing on Friday night at a bar called Bliss. The crowd was half Taiwanese, half waiguren (foreigner) and the high point of the night was when it got so loud and people were dancing so much that the police had to come to tell us to quiet down.<br /><br />On Saturday I went to see Tizzy Bac, a Taiwanese band, play a free concert at the National Palace museum. Though the band was tight, it was a bit too poppy for my taste. After that my Taiwanese friend Evena took me with some of her friends through a tour of Shilin market, which by my count is the biggest night market in Taipei. She brought us to eat fried chicken steak, a specialty here.<br /><br />On Sunday I went to see the movie "Watchmen" at the brand-spanking new Miramar mall in Dazhi, an upscale neighborhood. That movie theater is so amazingly big, you really feel like you are in the movie itself.<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGE8D6-CSqR1rxLkK8UpYeCRoysdGuwTHg1n4ohocM-NF213lg7wR7adP5TDTZNvSiS5D82ZBITAMZXa0VsqAUtcDt93UrDqWFXKTS-ETjmyYxjGGIToonXtDd5IcNmMZU7sT1xf0JCTE/s1600-h/CIMG5039.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGE8D6-CSqR1rxLkK8UpYeCRoysdGuwTHg1n4ohocM-NF213lg7wR7adP5TDTZNvSiS5D82ZBITAMZXa0VsqAUtcDt93UrDqWFXKTS-ETjmyYxjGGIToonXtDd5IcNmMZU7sT1xf0JCTE/s320/CIMG5039.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5313827084671259922" border="0" /></a>Shilin night market, the biggest one in Taipei.<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL66NJ8kL7dt79IGYPHY0wBkRdw6DHgQUWApMaCeYHDpw8DZwerrNeMjD3TZE9SF2xglokDVrKYs9jiaDBZWMynrkpGYsGDhSxDGl2F7TFFOgcxhFPLnDi2DJvephPGlMmRDsyEWVO-vc/s1600-h/CIMG5044.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL66NJ8kL7dt79IGYPHY0wBkRdw6DHgQUWApMaCeYHDpw8DZwerrNeMjD3TZE9SF2xglokDVrKYs9jiaDBZWMynrkpGYsGDhSxDGl2F7TFFOgcxhFPLnDi2DJvephPGlMmRDsyEWVO-vc/s320/CIMG5044.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5313827097712803010" border="0" /></a>Food...<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHyDPNTLtj0qPvPsnJok-VtkGrjoUQP4lY5_r_9p4qir5sQgihDNabytXpoGvZEW1hO8pgbPMmQqfIQ6Tuc9w1gvGFmmoI5JyHAkBUyS6afhTio-EtI4u4Q1DWOraJUis76P6hGt3yrIg/s1600-h/CIMG5047.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHyDPNTLtj0qPvPsnJok-VtkGrjoUQP4lY5_r_9p4qir5sQgihDNabytXpoGvZEW1hO8pgbPMmQqfIQ6Tuc9w1gvGFmmoI5JyHAkBUyS6afhTio-EtI4u4Q1DWOraJUis76P6hGt3yrIg/s320/CIMG5047.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5313827105767652994" border="0" /></a>food...,<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKVOoGptS5-zhmfR63BNKdEnpZViSUueHN3jYy_kWwULasSPWJTIwmDPjL3eMZVbbktrmegIn7zHIW7B_5xsk4KLbaQ01HUcGZcHVE5jly6YaEbliyXarLNsD4W_tO2OAEw8Dnv_iJeJU/s1600-h/CIMG5048.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKVOoGptS5-zhmfR63BNKdEnpZViSUueHN3jYy_kWwULasSPWJTIwmDPjL3eMZVbbktrmegIn7zHIW7B_5xsk4KLbaQ01HUcGZcHVE5jly6YaEbliyXarLNsD4W_tO2OAEw8Dnv_iJeJU/s320/CIMG5048.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5313827120114710962" border="0" /></a>And more food.<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw5rvEGTkb1lRe0GPMr8QnAdQRZpYnvYiCnW5_rRJ9WCfNfDaFQxTooGznhhxZmO66DEHAtUu-gi1C65vYfbkU55mOlI3gjf7QrKP2KQ-CIyAr6nNe2M-6k3RPViFMMCBoOhn089UVivk/s1600-h/CIMG5053.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjw5rvEGTkb1lRe0GPMr8QnAdQRZpYnvYiCnW5_rRJ9WCfNfDaFQxTooGznhhxZmO66DEHAtUu-gi1C65vYfbkU55mOlI3gjf7QrKP2KQ-CIyAr6nNe2M-6k3RPViFMMCBoOhn089UVivk/s320/CIMG5053.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5313827110857644322" border="0" /></a>Great name for a hair salon (I wonder if they have some kind of undercover operation going on.)<br /></div>Adrien Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680105011770992676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2862561474451010452.post-34990607008464074102009-02-07T16:28:00.005+08:002009-02-20T16:53:04.863+08:00Festival of the 'launching lanterns'I went to Pingxi (a village in the nearby mountains) today with Meng Yao and her friends to celebrate a lantern festival. You write your wishes on the paper lanterns, then light a small piece of inflammable material under the lantern, making it light up and slowly rise like a hot air balloon. Since we arrived in the afternoon to avoid the crowds, we took the opportunity to visit a defunct coalmine (now a museum) in a nearby town. We even got to ride in a small train which used to be used to transport coal from the mine to the refinery. Some pictures...<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_9SL54QQJdVt1r9nqRfqW10We6pD-BKk8ISI1MepuZgo7oTZ3fZSG58fuMdfvroU82uPSN-f_eMtG0Qa-YojT-uJZlc7cXWR_9fuTPy4B3FYybmi3Uh0YP50cvDm0Y5pM3ZwJxR5LWKc/s1600-h/P2071792.JPG"><img yle="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_9SL54QQJdVt1r9nqRfqW10We6pD-BKk8ISI1MepuZgo7oTZ3fZSG58fuMdfvroU82uPSN-f_eMtG0Qa-YojT-uJZlc7cXWR_9fuTPy4B3FYybmi3Uh0YP50cvDm0Y5pM3ZwJxR5LWKc/s320/P2071792.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5304797767097473650" border="0" /></a><br /></div><span style="font-style: italic;">On the coal train...</span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp9fq2r9lA1XuLDTKHtcLz4e1rZFhg0dYUs4JNEAp8bZkYUbsVYUV4FyCehdBt9IVYrLiRIRPEnJyJq_3EvgS3G57JymaiPvc3AdZ5QNgxn1ounLJB3qxHMoj0rhFkWaH91-jRV05p288/s1600-h/%E6%9C%AA%E5%88%86%E9%A1%9E+434.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp9fq2r9lA1XuLDTKHtcLz4e1rZFhg0dYUs4JNEAp8bZkYUbsVYUV4FyCehdBt9IVYrLiRIRPEnJyJq_3EvgS3G57JymaiPvc3AdZ5QNgxn1ounLJB3qxHMoj0rhFkWaH91-jRV05p288/s320/%E6%9C%AA%E5%88%86%E9%A1%9E+434.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5304796808189163218" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Off we go!</span><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8GHnHvOE09ixWp5D9OcL46ZpohY8sJ9DR1rPAMDUn-FHnpCIWqzJu2Eijd79baZXeRxNlbhjON8vIz6KfnplRxg9TNbS6NmflRx-NC_SUiFCxciRHsDYLaFWvpC8GXloL_1wm_I39n-4/s1600-h/%E6%9C%AA%E5%88%86%E9%A1%9E+395.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8GHnHvOE09ixWp5D9OcL46ZpohY8sJ9DR1rPAMDUn-FHnpCIWqzJu2Eijd79baZXeRxNlbhjON8vIz6KfnplRxg9TNbS6NmflRx-NC_SUiFCxciRHsDYLaFWvpC8GXloL_1wm_I39n-4/s320/%E6%9C%AA%E5%88%86%E9%A1%9E+395.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5304796803275672530" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">People wrote their wishes on the lanterns...</span><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHN0Us44CAtwT4EcuOcf602-3WaBfYORKniTB6sls3p7_BrLfsiBSAN9d6e3iJtcBOFpoaWHxcUN-Mt7Y5s8UJsxfmdCPJGpPN6CWp1mxNzOhmXCCDkKK4BokloqgHoRs3Ue-bVyvCPfQ/s1600-h/%E6%9C%AA%E5%88%86%E9%A1%9E+347.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHN0Us44CAtwT4EcuOcf602-3WaBfYORKniTB6sls3p7_BrLfsiBSAN9d6e3iJtcBOFpoaWHxcUN-Mt7Y5s8UJsxfmdCPJGpPN6CWp1mxNzOhmXCCDkKK4BokloqgHoRs3Ue-bVyvCPfQ/s320/%E6%9C%AA%E5%88%86%E9%A1%9E+347.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5304796804327504242" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">...as did I.</span><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH0YMSizhv61AIAli53N-kfqKMfcmuPtGvBNELha-NglhCjDAYMUVUm64Jy1zHuSS4ll9HDUsnm8qYdgIvUuehpVVbvCxvooZ0b8l8FpPuEZuD1toDipo-V6Rqmrd8h4GpviWW2hlaIWo/s1600-h/P2071821.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgH0YMSizhv61AIAli53N-kfqKMfcmuPtGvBNELha-NglhCjDAYMUVUm64Jy1zHuSS4ll9HDUsnm8qYdgIvUuehpVVbvCxvooZ0b8l8FpPuEZuD1toDipo-V6Rqmrd8h4GpviWW2hlaIWo/s320/P2071821.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5304796798290416498" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">Light the lantern...</span><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZc9gxcasXTXwo-6qDukU3KjUy6-HUdcMrikyTlIMiAa9X7RuJVULDYKaWDdvhmlcnRdkChyphenhyphen6QB_JX3JNFBt2jVhMlBsEG9KlPeGCgjwoYNhR-DxXwzny_OpTkKoO-h3fDxnEkxhbbNsw/s1600-h/DSC03327.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 180px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZc9gxcasXTXwo-6qDukU3KjUy6-HUdcMrikyTlIMiAa9X7RuJVULDYKaWDdvhmlcnRdkChyphenhyphen6QB_JX3JNFBt2jVhMlBsEG9KlPeGCgjwoYNhR-DxXwzny_OpTkKoO-h3fDxnEkxhbbNsw/s320/DSC03327.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5304796797719891810" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">...and let it fly!</span><br /></div>Adrien Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680105011770992676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2862561474451010452.post-3836739534391938852009-02-06T00:32:00.004+08:002009-02-11T01:29:07.828+08:00The mid-semester presentationI woke up today with a stuffy nose and a raspy throat. That didn't stop me from getting out of bed though- today was an important day, as I had to give a presentation to my class and another class about our day trip to Danshui, a small seaside town north of Taipei. The presentation was to be graded as our mid-semester oral exam.<br /><br />I meet my partner, Henry, an American born Chinese classmate of mine before the 10:20 meeting time to make some final adjustments.<br /><br />Later, we are in the meeting room, listening to others speak. They are talking about Fuyougong, the Buddhist temple we visited, Mazu, the temple's deity, and how people can ask the divinity questions by throwing two crescent-shaped pieces of wood. They talk about George Leslie Mackay, the missionary who oversaw the building of a church, a school (called Oxford), and a clinic.<br /><br />By the time it gets to be our turn, we have heard about these things several times, and it's starting to get boring. People are practically falling asleep. So we get up in front, introduce ourselves, and start to talk.<br /><br />"Our teacher came a little late, so we decided to stop by the Dunkin' Donuts to get some breakfast," says Henry as I show a slide of the chain restaurant. People start to chuckle.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi3fQpZbTAWWeb3EztjKQvn5RXCEZl7WY5Ky4YTRP450nkwFqfpdNO8jWq81tkbt_7hl0hmiXfOH6eGTZnlLTJZJ2jF9SoIQe04KAaG8Hp8i3AXCeNDiJAbR0yJnBbyE2ntOheDiPysd8/s1600-h/DSC02623.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi3fQpZbTAWWeb3EztjKQvn5RXCEZl7WY5Ky4YTRP450nkwFqfpdNO8jWq81tkbt_7hl0hmiXfOH6eGTZnlLTJZJ2jF9SoIQe04KAaG8Hp8i3AXCeNDiJAbR0yJnBbyE2ntOheDiPysd8/s320/DSC02623.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5301214136233838258" border="0" /></a>By the time it gets to be my turn, the other students are awake again. I talk about how we almost got lost trying to find the school that Mackay built, how we tried to go to a Mexican restaurant but it was closed by the time we got there, and how we enjoyed Italian fried ice-cream.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBdBfKvSXknxvMPEbm9yi8l9sMYCJtbRNaJAiwvqh6vUJenNTyOngSPV_h5qU6Z725Uw9mM_s-mbr7d2toMzX2D0qbZ2nv6Dwx-Xop_BWcJHMcO5tiA6BuodVvHHIgilja26zfGzLW0jQ/s1600-h/DSC02624.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBdBfKvSXknxvMPEbm9yi8l9sMYCJtbRNaJAiwvqh6vUJenNTyOngSPV_h5qU6Z725Uw9mM_s-mbr7d2toMzX2D0qbZ2nv6Dwx-Xop_BWcJHMcO5tiA6BuodVvHHIgilja26zfGzLW0jQ/s320/DSC02624.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5301214138134300754" border="0" /></a>Well, ours wasn't the most content-rich presentation, but at least it made people laugh.<br /><br />After the presentation, I decide to go to the doctor for my cold. I go to a clinic near my school. The clinics here are very efficient, and within a few minutes I am sitting in front of an ENT doctor, who is asking me questions.<br />"You have a broke nose?" he asks as he probes my nostril with a metal tool which looks like it could be painful. I wonder why he's asking whether I broke my nose.<br />"No, actually." I reply. Then I realize he means "blocked nose"<br />"Yes! Yes!"<br />"OK," says the old doctor, dropping the metal tool in a bucket of (I hope) antiseptic solution, then picking up a pen and writing a prescription.<br />"You have phlegm?"<br />"Yes."<br />Another prescription.<br />By the time I'm finished, he has written prescriptions for four drugs. I guess Taiwan ranks up there with Japan and France as a country which gives out a lot of meds to its citizens.Adrien Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680105011770992676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2862561474451010452.post-59552348613528789962009-01-29T19:14:00.005+08:002009-01-29T20:41:08.078+08:00The Chinese New Year PostIt all started about two weeks ago, when I saw Mr. Zhang frantically cleaning the apartment. I walked into the apartment to see him bent over scrubbing the floor in the bathroom.<br /><br />"Cleaning?" I asked.<br />"Yes, it's for the Chinese New Year," he replied.<br /><br />The Chinese New Year, also known as the Spring festival (春節) , marks a fresh start and hence requires you to clean up your place. Another time I walked in to see the big couch in front of the TV displaced, carpets hanging off the coffeetable, chairs on the dining table, and Mr. Zhang practically inside a kitchen closet cleaning something. They don't take their Spring cleaning lightly here.<br /><br />Though I had a week of vacation for this festival, I heard that travel was bothersome because people flock to their home towns during this time of year to be with their family, so I decided to stay put. On Saturday you could tell there were less people in town, and on Sunday Taipei, a city usually bustling with activity, was like a ghost town. Most shops had closed for the vacation.<br /><br />I walked around and noticed that almost every home or business puts up a red poster of some sort, with a sign saying "happy new year" or some variation of it. There was so much red, I felt like they were putting up these posters to prevent the angel of death from coming. Actually that's not entirely untrue, there is a story about why the Taiwanese (and Chinese in general) put up these posters. The story goes like this:<br /><br />A long time ago, there was a monster called "Nian" (年, year) who lived in the mountains. When the end of the year approached, Nian liked to go into the villages to find people to eat. To protect themselves, families stayed inside. The families found out that Nian was afraid of three things: loud noises, the light of fire, and the color red. So the families put red paper outside their houses, and lit bamboo, which made a crackling sound and scared the monster away.<br /><br />I live right next to a park, and believe me, they have really been scaring the monster away with the fireworks. From nightfall till sunrise, you can hear explosions. It kind of makes me feel like I'm in a warzone or something.<br /><br />When people are invited to someone's house, they should bring fruit. It is a simple gift. (I know in Japan it is also customary to bring fruit when visiting a household, but I'm not sure if there's any connection. I will address similarities between Taiwan and Japan in a later post)<br /><br />On Tuesday I was invited to have lunch with Mr. Zhang and his wife's family. I woke up at 8:30 that morning to the sounds of pots and pans being moved, meat being cut, stoves being lit. We had planned to have lunch at 12 noon but all the relatives hadn't arrived yet. Finally by 1pm everone had arrived. Mr. Zhang's wife's two daughters and son, as well as their spouses and children, all came to eat a massive feast. Some of them came from Taipei, others from neighboring Taoyuan county.<br /><br />As we sat down to eat, the children who were old enough to run (all under five) ran around and played with the toys they had bought with their hong bao, (perhaps inadvertantly) scaring the Nian monster away. Hong bao (紅包), or red envelopes, are envelopes stuffed with cash which parents and relatives give the kids, kind of the equivalent of Western Christmas presents except you never get the "that's not what I wanted" refrain.<br /><br />The meal featured dishes not just from Taiwan but from all parts of China. Spicy chicken, braised pork's feet, beef cartilage, chicken soup, roasted fish, and a few vegetables (one of the relatives actually asked me "do you eat vegetables?"). Though the meal was big, everyone quickly took things from the different dishes with their chopsticks, and the whole thing was finished by 2. Such a meal would've taken three hours in France.<br /><br />Zhang's son, Ken, explained to me that on Monday, the first day of New Year's families go to the father's family and today, the second day, was the day for going to the mother's family. That's why there is traffic on every day of the festival.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVZbcireI3lgn-tHPyjzCwl5cUkQ6Ig1nzyIjRLIaD0CLPVwEvblnEUL-OJQCQBIiylZ1qKYoABrvj4bb6Ibj7OSQsX2uS7ANzjKjh_mYMehqtugkWQfcdcNoNEcfFhlESmykVoGT5nxM/s1600-h/CIMG6133.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVZbcireI3lgn-tHPyjzCwl5cUkQ6Ig1nzyIjRLIaD0CLPVwEvblnEUL-OJQCQBIiylZ1qKYoABrvj4bb6Ibj7OSQsX2uS7ANzjKjh_mYMehqtugkWQfcdcNoNEcfFhlESmykVoGT5nxM/s320/CIMG6133.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296689242868312802" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">I walked around and noticed that almost every home or business puts up a red poster of some sort, with a sign saying "happy new year" or some variation of it. </span></span></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwfpwV_0TvlrB-vGcIEfEKtvKtG5rzCPvEtVI_w_VcHYW25z5SMrexPgmwdxebZZ3CMSCOQvHQ6LNU9bZd-2_JcJw2mPJZBXJybaOuWF-3bYjOjQq4LxDaxTG479cEpshUZ2ziPegtoKM/s1600-h/CIMG6131.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwfpwV_0TvlrB-vGcIEfEKtvKtG5rzCPvEtVI_w_VcHYW25z5SMrexPgmwdxebZZ3CMSCOQvHQ6LNU9bZd-2_JcJw2mPJZBXJybaOuWF-3bYjOjQq4LxDaxTG479cEpshUZ2ziPegtoKM/s320/CIMG6131.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296689239556805410" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;"></span></span></div> <div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">When people are invited to someone's house, they should bring fruit.</span></span></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiheI5WW7ri6Sdeyb3zIzFrUpQ1nc7fc9Om65iGNo9SoVxZogYkRy21HEuEvApsTDrR0vgbtO792FwoCJ23O7X9XyxjjsTHQiCweM4DJSpYt1v50tE8IX6h6euvNSKQVw0BEQKlOWuI-pM/s1600-h/CIMG6122.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiheI5WW7ri6Sdeyb3zIzFrUpQ1nc7fc9Om65iGNo9SoVxZogYkRy21HEuEvApsTDrR0vgbtO792FwoCJ23O7X9XyxjjsTHQiCweM4DJSpYt1v50tE8IX6h6euvNSKQVw0BEQKlOWuI-pM/s320/CIMG6122.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296689265061082226" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Even convenience stores are decked out in red-- and sell ready-made gifts to bring to the in-laws.</span></span><br /></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBRgJwwWYfYg9i_ASrmllz9TXkxsLRAODOKCWjgI2Q0x_xQ3ovhRL89Eo_eJ7eRaGj3ckh6Zr1_NyTYFJ-yjrPGU6WB_oLodo6zWf5yVarOpO3ggz-KhS9J4HyuMic5DlM1c2S3Z_S5hw/s1600-h/CIMG6128.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBRgJwwWYfYg9i_ASrmllz9TXkxsLRAODOKCWjgI2Q0x_xQ3ovhRL89Eo_eJ7eRaGj3ckh6Zr1_NyTYFJ-yjrPGU6WB_oLodo6zWf5yVarOpO3ggz-KhS9J4HyuMic5DlM1c2S3Z_S5hw/s320/CIMG6128.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5296689229338106546" border="0" /></a><span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;">On Tuesday I was invited to have lunch with Mr. Zhang and his wife's family. </span></span><br /><br />To find out more about Chinese New Year in Taiwan, go <a href="http://www.gio.gov.tw/taiwan-website/5-gp/culture/lunar-NY/">here</a>.<br /></div>Adrien Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680105011770992676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2862561474451010452.post-78729917181134382392009-01-21T21:16:00.002+08:002009-01-21T21:25:48.278+08:00DisagreementI know this is not really within the topic of this blog, but a few days ago I read an article in the New York Times by Professor Stanley Fish that annoyed me so much I decided to write a comment about it. This smug, pretentious, hypocritical professor claims that in the future tenured professors in the humanities will cease to exist. (Or am I just mad because I have a degree in the humanities?)<br /><br />To my surprise, no comments had been written (or at least published, as I would later find out). I just now checked to see if my comment was published and had to scroll through SIX PAGES of comments to find it.<br /><br />Anyway, here are links to the <a href="http://fish.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/01/18/the-last-professor/">article </a>and the <a href="http://fish.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/01/18/the-last-professor/?em&apage=6#comment-51841">comment</a>.Adrien Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680105011770992676noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2862561474451010452.post-4431830257136133182009-01-09T00:19:00.006+08:002009-01-09T00:49:55.473+08:00Vacation in KentingFor the New Year we had a long (four-day) weekend, so I went to Kenting and Kaohsiung in the very south of the island with my girlfriend. I'll let the pictures do the talking...<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSrT9-zOW0uhfEceMythGl8rFjwg5MPSuxor3d9jw6iteW00ObhHrZZQVGH4XNhQC56k1j6zOl6SYNLjM6rIUQDZ-DQMyAiZnOHnHkoYjDbdZwViqP-kA6aSaID1Hs87kDhM190gfxGlg/s1600-h/CIMG5741.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSrT9-zOW0uhfEceMythGl8rFjwg5MPSuxor3d9jw6iteW00ObhHrZZQVGH4XNhQC56k1j6zOl6SYNLjM6rIUQDZ-DQMyAiZnOHnHkoYjDbdZwViqP-kA6aSaID1Hs87kDhM190gfxGlg/s320/CIMG5741.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5288960923873568866" border="0" /></a>The first beach we went to<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaWcVPb7GmWelTG2IMknM5k0s60eAO5XdH92Bog9HviO-_Z7AUxPaQzLWZMrVJWgHEJMFlaN0YS8mombJGd4QGnz5HaFJ_6SHKg7Y7qRDSIQixi6cz3TzkEHUv5PCIrdvvWHJ6QoqfGOk/s1600-h/CIMG5750.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaWcVPb7GmWelTG2IMknM5k0s60eAO5XdH92Bog9HviO-_Z7AUxPaQzLWZMrVJWgHEJMFlaN0YS8mombJGd4QGnz5HaFJ_6SHKg7Y7qRDSIQixi6cz3TzkEHUv5PCIrdvvWHJ6QoqfGOk/s320/CIMG5750.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5288960933721102626" border="0" /></a>Entering the forest recreation center<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfiPSEVhyUMkMl7MF6U4fSwSYY_Cl3QkYbeDxbNd-N1CYubG8A8XM0JsyEu_itSpd86-VvA0x0Iea_28M3NaEJ5TMz5kx5MOCrqjuSGtmuyI-HQ-jtSr7mIOe-YfFK5zB9htJV-zdzjkY/s1600-h/CIMG5763.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfiPSEVhyUMkMl7MF6U4fSwSYY_Cl3QkYbeDxbNd-N1CYubG8A8XM0JsyEu_itSpd86-VvA0x0Iea_28M3NaEJ5TMz5kx5MOCrqjuSGtmuyI-HQ-jtSr7mIOe-YfFK5zB9htJV-zdzjkY/s320/CIMG5763.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5288960943499475650" border="0" /></a>Exotic orchids<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJZNmbuhxJUkiXNi1jXQLw0gksDVHjMrlBYu46EY_1XxJzwVY27w2E7FMhbSTv5W6YVpf1_ih1kdc2RjSIVD4dUrzL5nrcot6NUVDXdo1ehMO-UtpLj3PJv1iUaEzG7EjuJMWg999XdG4/s1600-h/CIMG5802.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJZNmbuhxJUkiXNi1jXQLw0gksDVHjMrlBYu46EY_1XxJzwVY27w2E7FMhbSTv5W6YVpf1_ih1kdc2RjSIVD4dUrzL5nrcot6NUVDXdo1ehMO-UtpLj3PJv1iUaEzG7EjuJMWg999XdG4/s320/CIMG5802.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5288960946485747090" border="0" /></a>Entering a cave<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ2jUAUTwAXLk7O35SOx9lLe7ayMB2owcO3bPDGYuExe6bqoTcFZ7bAgRkNn2IQ9gc_COpn25qSVysJvQyGw7G6evHQhjx3JOs5ybn71di-zIaCelzzHlwi9oEete2UN5F9gn4h45JtIE/s1600-h/CIMG5869.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ2jUAUTwAXLk7O35SOx9lLe7ayMB2owcO3bPDGYuExe6bqoTcFZ7bAgRkNn2IQ9gc_COpn25qSVysJvQyGw7G6evHQhjx3JOs5ybn71di-zIaCelzzHlwi9oEete2UN5F9gn4h45JtIE/s320/CIMG5869.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5288960952636434274" border="0" /></a>Sunset<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ3xoTjRkcemj81qTExBfNbxdfGJ8TLqYoqXe9N3xfy-IaOXS4BMQDT77H4sKzHiZdH-CZRpmGpTKutHlhkdbf6X-qprZQb0R-FUrBapjkaJR5YIqyrGx7Vn3hBlb7X-jYbhdXc0yOqfM/s1600-h/CIMG5906.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ3xoTjRkcemj81qTExBfNbxdfGJ8TLqYoqXe9N3xfy-IaOXS4BMQDT77H4sKzHiZdH-CZRpmGpTKutHlhkdbf6X-qprZQb0R-FUrBapjkaJR5YIqyrGx7Vn3hBlb7X-jYbhdXc0yOqfM/s320/CIMG5906.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5288964204342986914" border="0" /></a>Maobitou, or cat's nose point, is so named because the rock at the southern tip resembles a cat crouching. It is one of the most southern points of the island.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc14-MneCwoI5JV94uWEk84FCugEJcsOu68w4w_klgyIQfPnw5SmHsoiVEUwYJrzrtM9ae41l39ARh3z84xLba8N4n-Z-4YK9tIMstZk2FBNzDvqCHDLbFlJPQ4447kP96N-M50xSN1d8/s1600-h/CIMG5920.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc14-MneCwoI5JV94uWEk84FCugEJcsOu68w4w_klgyIQfPnw5SmHsoiVEUwYJrzrtM9ae41l39ARh3z84xLba8N4n-Z-4YK9tIMstZk2FBNzDvqCHDLbFlJPQ4447kP96N-M50xSN1d8/s320/CIMG5920.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5288964205709021666" border="0" /></a>Baisha beach<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv4H-_KMNXCu2pzM_-Wt_0QLiXSewStXqAz5eaBA8Op-Rn2UWx2ruBgEKdBMuSIorYpV5_MxHxVyDHbSZs8-AzcOFnmbXSGEbGBd5f7brNPUbTyqq8jygnVB08Ov45bUVInu1zHtQBvgQ/s1600-h/CIMG5979.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv4H-_KMNXCu2pzM_-Wt_0QLiXSewStXqAz5eaBA8Op-Rn2UWx2ruBgEKdBMuSIorYpV5_MxHxVyDHbSZs8-AzcOFnmbXSGEbGBd5f7brNPUbTyqq8jygnVB08Ov45bUVInu1zHtQBvgQ/s320/CIMG5979.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5288964215147617218" border="0" /></a>Outside Kaohsiung, a woman and a cart of raw meat<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWON4H96jPORiTGYVkYHcKyVKmhaDjE6iTaV22HRpUo9LlkAIRlNxCdKmfcE-_ufANg8nJsA-Vkt2Qpe3ZN_VkMFA6lYPQNIafpL8fxq7RrtcRuEBOn_0PO3cgw8FFQ2_qqsnmUe5IuZE/s1600-h/CIMG6006.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWON4H96jPORiTGYVkYHcKyVKmhaDjE6iTaV22HRpUo9LlkAIRlNxCdKmfcE-_ufANg8nJsA-Vkt2Qpe3ZN_VkMFA6lYPQNIafpL8fxq7RrtcRuEBOn_0PO3cgw8FFQ2_qqsnmUe5IuZE/s320/CIMG6006.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5288964227206833922" border="0" /></a>The lotus pond in Zuoying is lined with temples and pagodas.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM7KfuGY9CmaHV6Q0dzi5RcuaWtvWcJpEWBEIeAKACau_REAPY7tEb3qCoXgaCeVbINldHW-NPL2-PZEb91cCHr4NGWjXoxbLNk61mioEJV-U3i4ffVSkkmQ3SypYdLxzvD7g-04huFHo/s1600-h/CIMG6037.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM7KfuGY9CmaHV6Q0dzi5RcuaWtvWcJpEWBEIeAKACau_REAPY7tEb3qCoXgaCeVbINldHW-NPL2-PZEb91cCHr4NGWjXoxbLNk61mioEJV-U3i4ffVSkkmQ3SypYdLxzvD7g-04huFHo/s320/CIMG6037.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5288964241718862466" border="0" /></a>Two children playing outside of a temple, shaped like a war god.<br /></div>Adrien Shttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10680105011770992676noreply@blogger.com3