April 12, 2006
It's official. This is my last email from Taiwan.
I have no more weird food to share, no more tips, no more Chinese to learn. I'm too sad to be witty.
Rotary gave us a farewell party tonight and it was quite the shindig. We each had to get up and give a little three-minute speech about our time here. Since my last name starts with Z, I went last. I heard everybody else talk, so I was already all worked up and emotional. I got up there and managed to get out about six sentences and cried the rest of the time. But I made everybody else cry too, so it's OK.
Afterwards, many of the Rotarians came up to me and said that I was welcome in Taiwan anytime and each of my seven host families told me that when I come back, I must tell them so they can be my host family again. I was so touched, I started crying again. I couldn't stop! It was embarrassing....it was the kind of crying where you're choking on your own tears and snot. I took several deep breaths while on stage and led the room in some Yoga breathing, but it didn't really help.
One of my host dads, Jeff, was very insistent I set up his 20-year-old daughter Moru with my 20-year-old brother Tim. He said that he knew my brother was a good person because I am a good person. How do you refuse somebody who says stuff like that? So I have to talk to Timmy about it. Timmy, don't worry too much - Jeff was pretty drunk, so maybe he'll forget... He and I kept "gambaying" each other. I think we were both pretty sad about my departure.
I know this all must sound crazy to you guys. I've written all these ridiculous emails about the weird food and what seem like crazy customs, but honestly, I loved every friggin' minute of it. And the people here are just amazing. They go so far out of their way to make you feel welcome. I've made some real friends here and it will be hard to leave them for what could possibly be a very, very long time.
But I will be back. I have it all planned out: I will save every penny and come back for a while, stay with some of my host families and then fly on down to Australia and visit people there that I haven't seen in years.
I just need a job first.
Anyway, thanks for your attention and for reading my Taiwan ramblings. And thanks for your wonderful emails. It always made me ridiculously happy to get email from home and I appreciate it. So thank you all. Despite my sadness to leave Taiwan, I am excited to see family, friends, boyfriend and home.
I will be in the good ol' USA soon. Oh say can you see me eating a whole pizza by myself.
Zai jian. (good-bye)
Monday, May 14, 2007
The most Taiwan nostalgia EVER
April 8, 2006
Weird food: I'm running out of weird food to tell you about. They keep serving us the same weird stuff. Plus, there are things I don't like but are not necessarily weird. There are also things I love which are more or less normal. Dumplings for example. I love dumplings.
Speaking of food, egg rolls are a complete Western invention. You will only find them in American Chinese restaurants. They do not exist in actual Chinese cuisine. I found out there are many American inventions or interpretations of Chinese cuisine. Spring rolls are real though.
Tip: Bring toilet paper or carry tissues. There are some public rest rooms that do not provide toilet paper (usually it's places like rest stops along the highway). Sometimes they have toilet paper holders on the walls outside the toilet stalls, but more often than not, they're empty. Also, be prepared for very smelly bathrooms. The bathrooms here are not so nice. Someone told me they don't flush their toilet paper and instead just throw it in the garbage can next to the toilet. I don't know if that's true, but if it is, it could account for the smell. No one native to Taiwan has mentioned anything of the kind to me though. There are lots of signs in the bathroom and maybe they say "Don't flush your toilet paper," but of course, I can't read them. So I might be single-handedly overloading their sewer system by constantly flushing my toilet paper. Taipei won't soon forget me.
Word/phrase: Wo bu dong. I don't understand. Good to know for obvious reasons.
So I went to a wedding last night. Actually, I went to what we would call a wedding reception. My host mother explained to me that the actual ceremony takes place in the bride's parent's home. The groom shows up and "someone respected" in the community ordains over the vows and stuff. I don't know what kind of vows they take because only close friends and relatives attend the ceremony. I assume it's short.
There were no bridesmaids or groomsmen at the reception, so I think there may not be any. Also, only the groom's friends and relatives attend the wedding party. The bride's friends and relatives have a separate engagement party, but don't get to party after the wedding. Crazy, huh? Plus, instead of taking pictures after the ceremony like Americans do, they take them days or weeks before the wedding. They
also wear many different outfits and have many different settings outside. During my time here, I've seen at least three couples getting their wedding pictures taken. One of the outfits they wear is a traditional Western white wedding dress.
Back to the so-called reception. It's basically only dinner. There was an MC up front on stage talking constantly and loudly into a mic to the crowd as they ate. I assume he was introducing the new couple and their parents, but I'm not really sure what was going on; I haven't learned that much Chinese. The bride did not wear white. She wore what looked like a glittery red prom dress. Later on, I saw her again and she changed into a glittery purple prom dress. We left pretty early so I don't know if she changed again or what. It was like a Cher concert.
The most interesting part of the reception is the entertainment. There was a half-naked girl on stage singing and strutting her stuff. She wore an elaborate red bikini with a short little non-existent skirt that barely covered her ass. (She later took the skirt off. Must have been uncomfortable). I am told that this is typical Chinese wedding entertainment. It's actually watered down because outside of the city, the girls are naked and do a little strip tease. I would like to take the time to remind you that this was a WEDDING. The men seemed only vaguely interested, but they were watching. The women barely saw the half-naked chick.
I must say, I really love it here and I think I will probably take a lot of things home from this amazing culture. But not that.
I think the most disappointing thing about this wedding party was that there was no dancing and not nearly enough drinking. The men mostly drank. Some came over to our table and toasted everyone, but no one offered me a drink. I toasted with orange juice. It's not the same.
I was quite a spectacle at the wedding though, despite the short time we were there. No one expects to see a complete stranger at a wedding, let alone an obvious foreigner. I got lots of stares. My host mum's male bosses came over to our table and were introduced to me. I think they were drunk. She insisted I give one of them a hug, so I did, reluctantly. But he wouldn't let go. I don't know how long I stood there with this old man hanging all over me. It was awkward.
Everyone I met asked if I had a boyfriend.
"Yes, I have a boyfriend."
"How many?"
"Just one!"
"Only one!? You want another one?"
"NO."
Last night was the first time men tried to flirt with me here. They're bad at it number one and number two, it's unnerving when they just stare. It's like they've never seen a woman up close before. Maybe they haven't....who knows.
Either way, I've never in my life stood out like I do here. I keep forgetting I look different to these people.
April 10, 2006
Food: Bird's nest soup. It's an apparently very expensive dish and considered a delicacy. The base is some kind of vegetable (I think green beans or something like that, since it was bright green) blended to a liquid and then there are some clear noodle-looking things in it. The noodle-looking things are bird spit. You know, the stuff birds regurgitate for their babies. The soup I had was spit of swallow. It actually didn't taste too bad.
Tip: This one's for the women. Get used to squatting. Those who are experts at hovering (a.k.a. squatting over the toilet seat to pee) will love many of the so-called toilets here. Picture a urinal built into the floor. That's what I lovingly call a "squatter" or "squat pot." The idea is that you just squat over it and pee. The stalls are often smelly and nobody knows for sure if the wetness on the floor is from the squatter flushing or something a bit more unpleasant. Some of you already know I can't squat and pee at the same time. I have often had to hold it when I encounter a bathroom with no regular toilets. Usually, there are a few stalls that have them, but I've seen a few without. There were only two occasions where I was forced to squat because I couldn't hold it anymore. My first time was in a moving train. Baptism by fire.
Word: Doi-ya. Means "yes" or "right" or "OK." Probably the word I hear most in conversations. You know how English-speaking people usually say, "Yeah yeah yeah" real fast? Here they say, "doi-ya doi-ya" or more often, just "doi doi doi."
My latest personal tragedy: Chinese food is extremely oily and as a result, I have a zit on my face that casts its own shadow.
April 11, 2006
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to one of my last emails from Taiwan.
I will be leaving this beautiful country Thursday, April 13 at 6:20 pm Taiwan time and arriving in Newark, NJ, at 11:30 pm Thursday Newark time. I am hoping to be able to write again Wednesday night (Wednesday morning EST), but I can make no promises. Despite the bird spit and squat pots, I am not quite ready to leave. I miss home, I miss you guys, and I really miss pizza, but I'd rather bring home here until I'm completely ready to leave. I'm just starting to get the hang of things here.
Plus, I'd rather face people at home without this zit.
Anyway.
Weird Food: Snake meat and snake's blood. I have not tried either and never will. You'll find it at the night markets of Taipei (which are pretty cool by the way). Most of the locals don't touch that stuff either. It's nice to know they draw the line somewhere, though I don't know how the vendors make their money if nobody really eats or drinks that stuff. Stupid tourists I guess.
Tip: When at a fancy-pants banquet or dinner, do not drink your alcoholic beverage without toasting first. Taiwanese people are adamant that you do not drink alone. You must toast someone or a group of someones before taking a sip of anything alcoholic. It's incredibly frustrating when all you want to do is sip a bit of your wine, but you can't because your table is full of duds who don't drink. Conversely, it's easy to get drunk when in the company of drunks. You can always tell who the heavy drinkers are; they're the ones going around to all the tables toasting everybody, whether they know them or not.
Word: While we're on the subject of drinking. Gam-bay. Means bottoms up! And you can gambay anything from a small shot to a full glass of beer or wine. You are expected to finish it all, though I got away with just sipping things. If you just want to toast and take a sip, say su-ay-ee. It's the Chinese equivalent to "cheers."
Something must be said about cell phone etiquette here: it's non-existent. In the US, we become very annoyed with cell phones and their constant presence in public places. It's customary to turn them off during dinner, meetings, work etc. Not so in Taiwan. One of our tour guides excused himself and answered his cell phone in the middle of his schpeel at a Confucius temple.
Something else must be said about the cemeteries here. They're immaculate. Apparently, in Chinese culture, life is all about where you end up when you're dead. James the Rotarian told us that feng shui of a grave is very important. They believe that the better your ancestors' resting place looks, the more future generations will benefit. So if you want to be successful, take care of your dead ancestors. We visited the biggest and most extravagant cemetery in Taiwan today. There was so much artwork it was like a museum, and the graves looked like houses built into a hill. And the view those dead people had was to die for.
HA! (I just slapped my knee)
Weird food: I'm running out of weird food to tell you about. They keep serving us the same weird stuff. Plus, there are things I don't like but are not necessarily weird. There are also things I love which are more or less normal. Dumplings for example. I love dumplings.
Speaking of food, egg rolls are a complete Western invention. You will only find them in American Chinese restaurants. They do not exist in actual Chinese cuisine. I found out there are many American inventions or interpretations of Chinese cuisine. Spring rolls are real though.
Tip: Bring toilet paper or carry tissues. There are some public rest rooms that do not provide toilet paper (usually it's places like rest stops along the highway). Sometimes they have toilet paper holders on the walls outside the toilet stalls, but more often than not, they're empty. Also, be prepared for very smelly bathrooms. The bathrooms here are not so nice. Someone told me they don't flush their toilet paper and instead just throw it in the garbage can next to the toilet. I don't know if that's true, but if it is, it could account for the smell. No one native to Taiwan has mentioned anything of the kind to me though. There are lots of signs in the bathroom and maybe they say "Don't flush your toilet paper," but of course, I can't read them. So I might be single-handedly overloading their sewer system by constantly flushing my toilet paper. Taipei won't soon forget me.
Word/phrase: Wo bu dong. I don't understand. Good to know for obvious reasons.
So I went to a wedding last night. Actually, I went to what we would call a wedding reception. My host mother explained to me that the actual ceremony takes place in the bride's parent's home. The groom shows up and "someone respected" in the community ordains over the vows and stuff. I don't know what kind of vows they take because only close friends and relatives attend the ceremony. I assume it's short.
There were no bridesmaids or groomsmen at the reception, so I think there may not be any. Also, only the groom's friends and relatives attend the wedding party. The bride's friends and relatives have a separate engagement party, but don't get to party after the wedding. Crazy, huh? Plus, instead of taking pictures after the ceremony like Americans do, they take them days or weeks before the wedding. They
also wear many different outfits and have many different settings outside. During my time here, I've seen at least three couples getting their wedding pictures taken. One of the outfits they wear is a traditional Western white wedding dress.
Back to the so-called reception. It's basically only dinner. There was an MC up front on stage talking constantly and loudly into a mic to the crowd as they ate. I assume he was introducing the new couple and their parents, but I'm not really sure what was going on; I haven't learned that much Chinese. The bride did not wear white. She wore what looked like a glittery red prom dress. Later on, I saw her again and she changed into a glittery purple prom dress. We left pretty early so I don't know if she changed again or what. It was like a Cher concert.
The most interesting part of the reception is the entertainment. There was a half-naked girl on stage singing and strutting her stuff. She wore an elaborate red bikini with a short little non-existent skirt that barely covered her ass. (She later took the skirt off. Must have been uncomfortable). I am told that this is typical Chinese wedding entertainment. It's actually watered down because outside of the city, the girls are naked and do a little strip tease. I would like to take the time to remind you that this was a WEDDING. The men seemed only vaguely interested, but they were watching. The women barely saw the half-naked chick.
I must say, I really love it here and I think I will probably take a lot of things home from this amazing culture. But not that.
I think the most disappointing thing about this wedding party was that there was no dancing and not nearly enough drinking. The men mostly drank. Some came over to our table and toasted everyone, but no one offered me a drink. I toasted with orange juice. It's not the same.
I was quite a spectacle at the wedding though, despite the short time we were there. No one expects to see a complete stranger at a wedding, let alone an obvious foreigner. I got lots of stares. My host mum's male bosses came over to our table and were introduced to me. I think they were drunk. She insisted I give one of them a hug, so I did, reluctantly. But he wouldn't let go. I don't know how long I stood there with this old man hanging all over me. It was awkward.
Everyone I met asked if I had a boyfriend.
"Yes, I have a boyfriend."
"How many?"
"Just one!"
"Only one!? You want another one?"
"NO."
Last night was the first time men tried to flirt with me here. They're bad at it number one and number two, it's unnerving when they just stare. It's like they've never seen a woman up close before. Maybe they haven't....who knows.
Either way, I've never in my life stood out like I do here. I keep forgetting I look different to these people.
April 10, 2006
Food: Bird's nest soup. It's an apparently very expensive dish and considered a delicacy. The base is some kind of vegetable (I think green beans or something like that, since it was bright green) blended to a liquid and then there are some clear noodle-looking things in it. The noodle-looking things are bird spit. You know, the stuff birds regurgitate for their babies. The soup I had was spit of swallow. It actually didn't taste too bad.
Tip: This one's for the women. Get used to squatting. Those who are experts at hovering (a.k.a. squatting over the toilet seat to pee) will love many of the so-called toilets here. Picture a urinal built into the floor. That's what I lovingly call a "squatter" or "squat pot." The idea is that you just squat over it and pee. The stalls are often smelly and nobody knows for sure if the wetness on the floor is from the squatter flushing or something a bit more unpleasant. Some of you already know I can't squat and pee at the same time. I have often had to hold it when I encounter a bathroom with no regular toilets. Usually, there are a few stalls that have them, but I've seen a few without. There were only two occasions where I was forced to squat because I couldn't hold it anymore. My first time was in a moving train. Baptism by fire.
Word: Doi-ya. Means "yes" or "right" or "OK." Probably the word I hear most in conversations. You know how English-speaking people usually say, "Yeah yeah yeah" real fast? Here they say, "doi-ya doi-ya" or more often, just "doi doi doi."
My latest personal tragedy: Chinese food is extremely oily and as a result, I have a zit on my face that casts its own shadow.
April 11, 2006
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to one of my last emails from Taiwan.
I will be leaving this beautiful country Thursday, April 13 at 6:20 pm Taiwan time and arriving in Newark, NJ, at 11:30 pm Thursday Newark time. I am hoping to be able to write again Wednesday night (Wednesday morning EST), but I can make no promises. Despite the bird spit and squat pots, I am not quite ready to leave. I miss home, I miss you guys, and I really miss pizza, but I'd rather bring home here until I'm completely ready to leave. I'm just starting to get the hang of things here.
Plus, I'd rather face people at home without this zit.
Anyway.
Weird Food: Snake meat and snake's blood. I have not tried either and never will. You'll find it at the night markets of Taipei (which are pretty cool by the way). Most of the locals don't touch that stuff either. It's nice to know they draw the line somewhere, though I don't know how the vendors make their money if nobody really eats or drinks that stuff. Stupid tourists I guess.
Tip: When at a fancy-pants banquet or dinner, do not drink your alcoholic beverage without toasting first. Taiwanese people are adamant that you do not drink alone. You must toast someone or a group of someones before taking a sip of anything alcoholic. It's incredibly frustrating when all you want to do is sip a bit of your wine, but you can't because your table is full of duds who don't drink. Conversely, it's easy to get drunk when in the company of drunks. You can always tell who the heavy drinkers are; they're the ones going around to all the tables toasting everybody, whether they know them or not.
Word: While we're on the subject of drinking. Gam-bay. Means bottoms up! And you can gambay anything from a small shot to a full glass of beer or wine. You are expected to finish it all, though I got away with just sipping things. If you just want to toast and take a sip, say su-ay-ee. It's the Chinese equivalent to "cheers."
Something must be said about cell phone etiquette here: it's non-existent. In the US, we become very annoyed with cell phones and their constant presence in public places. It's customary to turn them off during dinner, meetings, work etc. Not so in Taiwan. One of our tour guides excused himself and answered his cell phone in the middle of his schpeel at a Confucius temple.
Something else must be said about the cemeteries here. They're immaculate. Apparently, in Chinese culture, life is all about where you end up when you're dead. James the Rotarian told us that feng shui of a grave is very important. They believe that the better your ancestors' resting place looks, the more future generations will benefit. So if you want to be successful, take care of your dead ancestors. We visited the biggest and most extravagant cemetery in Taiwan today. There was so much artwork it was like a museum, and the graves looked like houses built into a hill. And the view those dead people had was to die for.
HA! (I just slapped my knee)
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