Adventures in Taiwan (cont'd)

July 22nd
Last night my roommate Yvonne and I went to Danshui (Taiwan Mach 1), which is like the harbour front area. It was so crowded it was crazy, but I did finally manage to find some postcards. So we went to Fisherman’s Wharf which is less crowded because it’s harder to get to. It was beautiful, though. There’s a big wooden bridge that goes along the water’s edge. At one point there were some guys playing guitar and singing songs out of a book, that the audience could request. As soon as they saw me, they started looking through their book for any English songs. Eventually they came up with "How do I Live" by Leanne Rimes. It was really sweet. Then one of Yvonne’s friends drove us home. Taiwanese driving is SO scary!! Cab drivers in Toronto have nothing on the drivers here.
This morning I met some of the other teachers to go hiking (Hiking). It was like being in a sauna and then climbing a mountain. Literally. The temperature was about 37C and we were actually climbing up and down a mountain. Geniuses that we are, we ended up hiking through the hottest part of the day. Also, I am completely out of shape. It was worth it, though. The vegetation is beautiful. I took a million pictures and we even saw a buffalo.

July 24th
Yesterday was pretty uneventful. I finally got to work with some of the kids I’ll be teaching. They are super cute! There are only 6 kids in the class right now, but there will be more once the fall semester actually starts. There’s this one that is so adorable and way too smart for his own good. He’s actually quite a little trouble maker, but I think it’s just because he’s bored. I’m really excited to find new ways to challenge him. Tomorrow I actually get to teach a lesson. I came up with the lesson plan all by myself. Not with the little ones, yet. But with the first group I worked with. It should be interesting to say the least.
So last night marked my first attempt at doing laundry in Asia. It worked out not at all. My roommate, Yvonne, wasn’t home, so I tried to do it myself. It was made much more difficult by the fact that all of the instructions and labels were in Chinese. So tonight, I asked Yvonne to show me how it worked and tried again. Turns out I had all of the settings right, but the machine’s just broken. At least I know it’s not my own incompetence.
Before I hopped on the laundry train tonight, I had a drink after work with one of the other teachers, Sam. I had a really good time. We just sat in a bar and had a drink, and then because I wanted dessert, he took me to a café and had cake with me.
Today was also my first experience with Taiwanese rain. It was kinda cloudy and drizzly all day, but right around 1 we had a HUGE thunderstorm. It was right on top of us. There was thunder and lightning at exactly the same time and giant raindrops. It was fantastic. The rain was warm and the humidity was less severe than normal. I would have stayed out in it for my whole lunch break, except that I had to go back to school for the afternoon and had no change of clothes with me. Of course, by the time school ended the rain had mostly stopped and the humidity was back to normal.
Anyway, on my way home I was distracted and I missed the turn for my alley. On the next corner, I discovered an amazing temple(Taiwan Mach 1). It’s so funny, when you’re looking at it, it’s all you can see and every detail is defined. But if you’re not looking right at it, it just blends into the rest of the scenery. I’ve been here a week and never noticed it before.
One other random thing I realized today; there’s no grass here. I mean, in the city. There are no lawns or boulevards. The only greenery is in parks (Taiwan Mach 1)and the occasional tree leaves. Don’t get me wrong, the parks are beautiful, and super green. And there are way more of them than in most North American cities, but does it make up for the lack of green everywhere else? Just some food for thought.

July 25th
Today I taught my first class! It went really well. The kids even liked the game that I made up for them. Luckily it was Wed. which is a half day, so I only had to teach them in the morning. Unfortunately, right now, the school is turning the current play area into my classroom. So the poor kids didn’t get a chance to have "recess". They had to stay in the classroom and just play with lego and stuff. It was as bad as an indoor recess when I was a kid. Those were the worst.
After school I had lunch with Sam. He introduced me to teppenyaki. It’s a Japanese style, where they prepare your food on the grill right in front of where you sit. I had the chicken and it was good. He also let me try his salmon, and I liked it. Ha! Take that, not liking fish!
The place was in a mall food court close to school. It was right next to the mall’s playworld. So we went in to play. The games were interesting and some were a little weird. We played this one where the balls float up from the middle and you have to catch them and throw them into a pig’s mouth. It was really hard and you look like a moron while you’re playing. Of course there were the old standards, too, like air hockey.
Turns out pool is really big here. After we played in the playworld, Sam showed me a pool hall near school. It’s really nice. We played a few games and I actually won 1 legitimately and 2 on technicalities (he scratched on the 8 ball).

July 26th
I got to teach the little ones today. I taught them a new song and read a story. It’s so great when you can actually see them picking stuff up. It happens so fast with this age group. One minute they’re lookin’ at you like your crazy and the next they’re doing the actions and laughing and having fun. Tomorrow, I’ll re-teach them the exact same thing and hopefully this time they’ll remember and there will be more participation.
I also talked to my boss about the apartment again. She talked to the personnel office, or whatever, and it looks like I can move. So as soon as I pay first and last, I get my key and I can move in. I’ll probably move over the weekend. I can’t wait because once I move, Mom can send me the rest of my things and I can start buying the other stuff that I still need.
After work Katherine took me to 3 different book stores, each with large English language sections. One of them actually has Nix books and Katherine says that they will special order. This makes me very excited. I hope I can get my hands on Across the Wall. I also found The Deathly Hollows and bought it. So far it’s SO good. I finally put it down at 2am because I have to work in the morning.

July 27th
Holy Crap!!!!! I finished Harry Potter today. It was everything I wanted it to be.... except for a certain werewolf attack that never happened. Don’t worry, no spoilers here, because I’m done talking about it. But I did get my Taipei library card today. So many more books are available now. All for free!! Whoever thought up libraries was a genius... Seriously, if I knew their name, I just might name my first born after them.
In other news, I got my key for my new apartment today. I also got to see it for the first time. It’s actually not quite as nice as the one I’m in now, but it’s worth it for the convenience. It’s literally across the street from my school. I will be moving in tomorrow and then I can start buying all of the things I wish I had, but didn’t want to get before I moved, like dishes and towels. Also, I’ve met 2/3 of my new roommates and they seem really laid back and cool. They teach kids, so their schedules are a little more varied than mine, but it shouldn’t be a problem.
My current roommate also offered to meet with me weekly, starting next week, for Chinese lessons. Turns out she went to university to learn specifically how to teach Chinese. So I’ll be getting personal lessons until September, when she leaves for France. I’m so excited about it. I’ll finally be able to order my own food without having to rely on Sam, or whoever else I happen to be with.
At school, I'll be sitting in with Sam's class, which is actually a mix of 2 classes. There’s supposed to be a new teacher covering the Zebra half of Sam’s class (all classes have animal names), but she won’t be starting until Wed. So I have to sub for her and I don’t get to start with my Pandas (the 3 year olds) until after she is trained. Luckily, though, my first day actually teaching the older ones is just a half day, so I don’t have to worry about keeping them occupied for the whole day.
I did get to spend one last morning with my kids before moving to the zebras. We did the colour song again and this time they participated with very little encouragement. They were much more into the storybook, too. They even did all the actions and counted along when they were supposed to. Those kids are just so cute. It’s horrible, really, because no matter how much they misbehave, they just have to look at me and grin and I want to let them off the hook. There’s one in particular that I just want to smuggle home with me.
After work, Katherine took me to this place called "The Diner" that serves western style food. She had a cheeseburger and fries and I had eggs and hashbrown and toast. It was pretty good, but everything was super greasy and apparently here toast means warm bread. I mean, this wasn’t even toasted enough for me and I like my toast anemic. It was well worth it though, for the brownie and ice cream desert. It was warm brownie served with 2 scoops of vanilla ice cream on top. Mmmmm...... seriously as good as the one at the Pheonix, which was my favourite back home.
Also, I have a tan! Well, my face, neck and arms are tan. My legs are still pasty white. And it’s not tan, tan; it’s tan for me, tan. To everyone else it probably just looks like I’m a normal skin colour and not a corpse, but it’s actually a tan. I even have a few freckles on my nose.

July 28th
Moving day!!! I spent the whole day moving things into my new apartment. It took me 3 trips. 2 on the MRT and 1 by cab. There was no way I was lugging my 2 big suitcases to the MRT station. All things considered, the move went very smoothly. My new room is a really awkward shape and the bed is smaller but there’s more storage furniture. I will also have the internet as soon as I can figure out which network is ours.
Went to the mall with one of my new roomies, Diana, tonight. Another teacher (but at a different school), Robert, was with us as well. They were both on the hike last week. The mall was actually quite fun. We started with dinner in the food court (I had a fantastic chicken sandwich and fresh kiwi juice). Then we played some games in the playworld and each got a super bouncy ball. I won’t bore you with the shopping details, but lets just say I’m surprised we didn’t get kicked out of the mall for behaving like hooligans with our bouncy balls.
Now I’m just unpacking and arranging things. There are a bunch of new things I need to get from the ‘everything store’ tomorrow. I’m writing a list. But now I need to shower because I’m gross from moving all day.

July 29th
My first day to wake up in my new apartment was wonderful. My room gets lots of light, so my lack of alarm clock is still not going to be a problem. The air conditioner is lovely and it doesn’t blow directly on me. I also have my very own (tiny) balcony. It would be cozy for 2 people standing and there’s not room for even 1 person to sit, but it’s all mine.
This morning Katherine and I went to the presidential gardens (Official Residence), which is now officially called the "Official Residence" I think. It was really pretty. But I think it must be the wrong time of year to go because a lot of the flowers weren’t in bloom. There’s a beautiful rose garden, though and I took pictures of some of the more interesting roses. I also took pictures of their name plaques so I would remember which was which. We also explored the orchid hut, which was amazing. I took tons of pictures of the gardens.
The gardens also had tons of topiaries and statues of pigs. I mean, everywhere you looked there was a cute little pig staring at you. It was weird enough that I actually asked Katherine about it. Turns out it’s the year of the pig in the Chinese calender. But it’s not just any year of the pig. Nope, it’s year of the Golden Pig. Apparently it’s supposed to be a very prosperous year, financially. So the giant pig on one of the banks makes a lot more sense now.
Across the street from my apartment is a fruit market. I can actually see it from my balcony. The guys stand out front yelling at the cars and scooters trying to get them to stop and buy some fruit. It’s pretty cheap, too (as long as the fruit is in season). I think I’m going to become a regular there. I like it.
I made it to the store to pick up some essentials. I didn’t get everything on my list because it’s not all necessary right now. But I got a few things, like a mug, and clothes pegs so I could finally do some laundry. I know, it’s not interesting but I’m really excited that the washing machine actually works. After the fiasco with the last one, I’m really pleased with the nearly new Japanese washer. It works really well, too. It didn’t eat any of my clothes. And they are hanging up to dry right now.

July 30th
My first day going to school from my new apartment. It was sweet. I got out of bed at the time I would’ve been leaving my old place. I’ve also done some more cleaning and put up posters and pictures and stuff. It actually looks like my space, now. The only issue that I continue to have is lack of internet. I thought the router had wireless, but on closer inspection, I don’t think it does.
I also made another trip to the everything store to pick up some cleaning supplies and munchies. Yes it does have both. It is the everything store. Now I just need to find places to put a few last things and I’ll be completely settled.
School was good. Hung out with Sam’s class again. I’m finally starting to learn their names. They’re sweet, mostly, but loud. There were 18 kids yesterday, all 4 and 5 years old. My head was killing me by lunch. Of course the hour and a half that we get for break helps. I went to a place called Casa Della Pasta with Sam for lunch. It was really nice, and not too pricey.
There was a thunderstorm today, too. I walked the block home in the rain :) and then sat on my (sheltered) balcony to watch the storm. It was stupendous. And there was a crash of lightning and thunder at exactly the same time right in front of me. It was a little scary, but really cool. After that the storm abated, and I came inside to clean.

July 31st
School was empty today. All of the students went on a field trip except for my Panda class. So there were 6 students with the run of the school... Except of course that we didn’t let them. It was much more relaxing during playtime, though. We weren’t worried about our kids getting trampled by the older ones. The new teacher arrived today also. Now, even though I haven’t actually taught a class by myself yet, I’m no longer "the new teacher". She seems nice and she just finished a year of teaching English in Japan. I still feel like the newbie, because she’s got some experience, even if it’s not with Kojen.
I have my first official class by myself tomorrow. I’m a little nervous, because it’s not the kids that I know, but I’ll deal. I have a lesson plan ready. And I figure if all else fails I’ll throw a couple of drama games at them. I’m just listening to a CD of kid’s songs to find some extra material. Katherine has been a huge help going offer my lesson plans with me and offering advice.
To get my ARC I need 3000NT$ and to get that I need to exchange my traveler’s cheques. Let me tell you, it’s like pulling teeth. Some banks only exchange American dollars, one will exchange Canadian, but only cash, not traveler’s cheques. I spent my whole lunch hour going from bank to bank, and I was completely unsuccessful. So tomorrow I have to go to some special American Express place, that’s super far away. Good thing it’s a half day.

Aug 2nd
So yesterday was my first day teaching all by myself. It went well in spite of my stupidity. I planned enough activities to get through my time but I also grabbed a book to read, out loud to the class, just in case I lost the kids’ attention. So with about 10 minutes left in class we had finished everything that I had planned. I forgot that I had grabbed the book though. So I made a slight change to the game and let them keep playing til the end. It worked out ok, in the end. We just read the book today.
Last night I went to dinner with 2/3 of my roommates as well as a bunch of other teachers at TGI Friday’s. Compared to restaurants back home, it was fairly inexpensive, but in relation to food places here, it was crazy. We had a good time though. And it gave me a chance to get to know some of the non-preschool teachers better. After dinner we hit the playworld for some air hockey and bouncy-ball winning games. I got another orange one. We were going to see a movie, but one by one people bailed and then it was too late.
Today’s teaching went really well. I’m finding it really easy to work with the Chinese teacher who has this class. She’s got some fantastic ideas and is making my life so much easier. She actually studied ECE at Conestoga in Waterloo so she was asking me about where I’m from and everything. She also told me that I’m a good teacher, which means a lot coming from her. She’s been with the school for years and knows what she’s talking about. But when I mentioned it to Katherine, she said the same thing. Apparently finding people who are good at working with kids is difficult. *shrug* Who knew? I just don’t know how you would behave any other way with them.
One of the kids who was absent yesterday was back today. I swear I thought I was teaching Jamie(Goodbye Canada) 19 years ago. This kid is so smart, but trying to get him to sit still was like pulling teeth. I’m finding it difficult to discipline him, though, because I know that he’s trying, but at the same time, he disrupts the class. Oh well, tomorrow’s my last day teaching these kids anyway. Their real teacher takes over on Monday, and I get my babies back. (who all say hello every time I pass them in the hall, so I know they still remember me).
After work, I went to dinner with Katherine and then we went Chang Kai Shek Memorial Hall(Sightseeing). I saw some amazingly massive and beautiful architecture and learned some history. I actually fell in love with the gate out front. I’m not even sure what drew me to it, but I couldn’t get enough. I didn’t even care so much about the museum, except for some cool friezes on the ceiling. I didn’t get pictures of those, though, cuz we couldn’t take pictures inside.
I also figured out that the router in my apartment isn’t wireless. All of my stupid internet problems could have been solved ages ago, if I’d just thought to look. I just need to buy an ethernet cord and I should be good to go. I can’t wait. I don’t mind checking my e-mail at school, but I really do prefer my own computer.

Aug. 4th
Yesterday was Friday and you could tell the kids were ready for it. They weren’t bad, just a little unruly. We also had a birthday party for all the kids who have a birthday in August. Each class prepares and performs a song of some sort. We did a song about making pizza. It was really cute.
After work I went for drinks with Sam and the new teacher, Corrie. We started at a place called Day and Night, then we moved to the less stuffy atmosphere of 0204, which happens to be directly across the street from my apartment(Random Fun). My window actually overlooks it, but I’d never been in. We just sat at the bar, so I didn’t really get a feel for the place.
I’d been home for a couple of hours when Diana invited me to 0204 with her. This time I got to see the rest of the place. The decor is mostly wood, upstairs there’s a pool table and downstairs there’s a foosball table and a stage. It’s not very big, though. A bunch of the teachers from the kids’ classes were there. One, Michelle, I had met before but the others (except for my roommate Thadeus and his gf) were all new. There’s a couple, Paul and Michelle (a different one), from New York and a couple of other guys from Canada. It appears that the teaching population here is highly Canadian. I feel right at home.
This morning I lounged for hours and finished Lireal. Then, in spite of the thunder and lightning that had been going on for hours, I decided it was time to go get me an ethernet cord. We often get thunder storms without rain, so I didn’t think anything of it. When I went out, it was pouring buckets. Usually, it’ll rain hard for about 15 minutes and then slow to a drizzle and eventually stop, so I just went out anyway. It was still pouring when I got home about an hour later, without my ethernet cord. I was soaked through to the skin, literally dripping. Not only did I not get what I wanted, but I’ve also ruined my copy of Abhorsen. I had it in my bag (which is still saturated with water) in case I decided to stop at a café for a drink. The whole experience makes me want to rethink my stand on umbrellas. But there was so much wind today, too, that I don’t know an umbrella would have helped.
I made it home and got dry while watching a couple of Buffy episodes. Then I decided that it was time for food. I was planning just to grab a bite from the alley but when I went out, I ran into Diana, T and Michelle. So Michelle offered to treat me to a hair-gism and I’ll admit, I was intrigued. We went to a salon where they gave us massages (head and shoulders) then washed and styled our hair. All for about $6. It was fantastic. Then we went to dinner with Paul and Michelle and Callum (one of the Canadian boys).
After dinner we went to see 1408. John Cusack is freaking amazing. It was actually pretty scary. I watched a lot of it through my fingers. And the timing is not typical, predictable, horror movie timing, which made it great. Poor Michelle gets scared really easily, so she spent most of the movie watching her own feet. Luckily for me, it’s not one of those disturbing scary movies that stick with me for weeks after. I’m already done being scared. Now I’m just replaying it in my head and thinking about it intellectually, instead of emotionally.

Aug. 6th
Yesterday was a super duper fantastic day. And I did absolutely nothing that was specific to Taiwan. Beach blanket Val is one of my favourite Vals, and we were at the beach most of the day (Random Fun). There were the regulars in my life here, Diana, Robert and my other roommate Thadeus and his girlfried. But there were some new faces as well. It took us 2 ½ hours to get to the beach, because we stopped for food and didn’t know which bus to take. But it was still fun.
At the beach we rented these little tent-type things, which you need because there is no natural shade on a barren stretch of sand. The water was amazingly warm. It was like being in a wavy, salty bath. I loved it! The waves weren’t quite big enough to surf, but they were strong enough to knock you off balance when you tried to get out of the water.
One of the girls, Jackie, bought a huge inflatable whale and we played with it for ages. We each took turns riding it. It’s one of the few things that actually less fun as you get better at it. When you’re good, you get on and just sit there while the water moves you around, but when you’re bad, you splash and kick and fall in the water.
We had all brought a little bit of food, so we just snacked right on the beach. When we were finished (about 5 hours after we had arrived) we went to Will’s place for a barbeque. It was so much fun. We all went to the grocery store and pitched in on things to grill. Some of the others bought alcohol, but I was so dehydrated from the beach, that I passed. Then we all went to a park by Will’s house and had a cookout. It was a tremendously good time, but it ended up being a late night. We didn’t get home until around 1am, having left the house at about 10:30 the previous morning.
Today I had my kids for the very first time. They are super cute. There were only 6 of them, but it felt like so many more. One cried on and off for most of the day, another is 3 years old physically, but in every other respect he is still like a baby. I mean, he’s sweet, but he can barely eat solid food because of how they pamper him at home. 3 of the kids that I’ve worked with before are also in my class. They are already so ahead of the newer students, even though they’ve only been at school for a month. I love working with them, even if it is tiring. This week we’re working on parts of the school (ie. classroom, bathroom, play area) and the numbers 1-5.
Tonight I’m having dinner with Katherine and Diana and then we’re having a little going away party for Thadeus’ girlfriend Patrice. She’s flying back to Atlanta tomorrow. There will be pastries and possibly wine.