Hello everyone! After long travel, I arrived to Taipei to meet my friend Simon. Taiwan is the second most populated place on earth after Bangladesh and Taipei is a bustling, clean and safe city. The weather is hot, approximately 85 F degrees and very humid. It's typhoon season and I'm told that usually the weather is much hotter. I'll acclimate eventually. :)
On our first day in Taipei, we started the day by visiting the weekend flower and jade markets. The flower market was beautiful. The weather and knowledge of plant lovers helps create a gorgeous variety of orchids, succelents, bonsai and many other plants. I can't wait to try to keep my own orchid here. They are beautiful and there are many types that I've never seen before.
Next we took the MRT, which is the Taipei train transit. As many of you know, I used to work in transit and have a real love for transit and trains. The MRT is a very clean, efficient and inexpensive way to see the huge city. A Taiwanese woman even lectured me on drinking a beverage while entering the station. She was not at all impressed or let up on me when I explained that I was an American and didn't know the rules. Needless to say, I threw the drink away as soon as I could. Oy!
Our first stop was the Longshan Temple. It was built in 1783 by Fujianese locals and is a huge, amazing temple surrounded by dragon pillars through out. We joined many people in prayer and the burning of incense. It was so refreshing to visit a temple again and I am so thankful for the time to pray, meditate and appreciate the wonderful travels and life that I am so privileged to experience. Next we visited the Snake Alley Night market. Much of the market was closed since it we visited during the day, but we did have a nice lunch of snake soup. Turns out, snake tastes like chicken and is very bony. The soup also had a mixture of Chinese plums and nuts that are apparently good for women's health. All in all, it was a delicious experience.
My friend Simon has been studying Taiwanese for 2.5 months and is quite good, I think. The Taiwanese are confused that I can't speak a lick of their language, but the caucasian guy with me can... So, he's taught me a few basic phrases and words to barely get by: Hello (nee how), Thank you (shie shie ny), I don't understand/literally I hear you but don't understand (wor ting bu dong) and toilet (tsu swor). My first attempt to find a bathroom was very successful and he was impressed that the locals could understand me. Many people here learn English by Western foreigners so perhaps an American trying to speak Mandarinis easier to understand than a Kiwi. At any rate, we'll see how well I embrace this difficult language. However, so far, with a smile and some laughter, the Taiwanese are quick to try to communicate... in any language.
Next we visited the Chiang Kai-Shek memorial built after the late president. The buildings in the compound are covered in blue glass-like tiles and surrounded by white marble walls. The grounds are covered in beautiful fauna. The actual memorial has a huge statue of the late president (think Lincoln Memorial size) and is guarded by two guards in full uniform, armed with bayonet guns that didn't look very automatic. The sun was hot at this time of the day and we quickly found a cafe for turnip cake, rice noodles and iced tea to cool us.
Then, we traveled to the end of the MRT line to Danshui which is the harbor along the Danshui river. I suggested we dip our toes in the river, as I like to physically touch many of the new bodies of water I experience. Simon quickly explained that this was the only river out of Taipei and the pollution was probably thick. Ah Asia, so beautiful, but not the most environmentally aware. Danshui was the equivalent of a beach front boardwalk complete with arcade games, shops, restaurants, musicians and entertainers. We arrived just before sunset and the area was full of people, young and old alike. There was a Turkish ice cream man who was so entertaining using a metal rod to hold the ice cream cone. He sang, flipped the cones around, slapping ice cream on top like a champion. Even though I don't eat ice cream, I bought one just for the entertainment value. Taiwan is such an inexpensive place to experience, so $0.93 for a few moments of laughter and fun was certainly worth it.
We traveled back to the city and visited Taipei 101, which is the tallest building in the world at 1,670 feet. The night views of the city were spectacular as the city was light up and life below was in abundance. Then, we ended our day by visiting the Tonghua, Linjian St. night market. Another perk about Asia is that shopping and eating can be found at nearly all hours of the night.
Today, we took a train to Taichung, Taiwan. The country is very industrialized and I saw many factories, flood plains, bits of nature and hills. My apartment is cozy and comfortable, complete with a roof top patio. My flatmate, Elza is a fun, spunky woman from South Africa. Her accent is very different from any other I've experienced, so it will take me a bit to get used to it. However, I'm here safe and sound and so far, loving my new home. I'm off to explore my new neighborhood (on foot). Hope this finds you all well, happy and healthy! XO!
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