Spring Break in Taiwan: Day 9

Mercifully, today was a lazy morning, and the entire day was a good change of pace. The last couple of days (and week really) has been a crunch of language, culture, places, people, and traveling, all within a very short time window. It’s been amazing, but it was good to get a day off.

After slowly and begrudgingly getting up, we made our way to brunch/lunch. I say brunch/lunch because the meal started at brunch time and lasted well past lunchtime. Again, long meals and good conversations. After eating, our host buddies decided to take us canoeing in the city. It was exactly what it sounds like—a small pond in a small park in the big city. It was beautiful, much cooler on the water, and no one fell in despite several paddle fights (stealing and splashing).

Some of the Taiwanese buddies and Americans broke off for lunch or homework and the remaining group went to a very high end KTV. KTV in Taiwan is ultra karaoke, with a frankly dizzyingly selection of Chinese, Korean, Japanese, and English songs. We had our own private room, ordered orange juice, and sang English songs picked by our buddies (a lot of Maroon 5) for over two hours. We then (at my suggestion and everyone’s approval) went to a Taiwanese stationery store. These are my favorite—they are where practical school supplies meet art and DIY, and then everything that comes in between (plus stuffed animals and books). We spent a hectic hour before closing time dashing around the store choosing pens, notebooks, and a probably unusable amount of stickers. As it was around after 10pm, for dinner we ended up having an awesome adventure tracking down a local 7, choosing the right balance of food (for me, rice balls, bread, drinks, and gummy worms), and walking to a local park to eat.

I haven’t really had the chance to think about the fact that the trip is almost over. I don’t really want to either, so I’ll say ‘goodnight and good morning’ and leave it there.