tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38315588653101366132024-03-28T07:54:37.736+08:00The Greatest Adventure Is What Lies AheadAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06411589356995917223noreply@blogger.comBlogger81125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3831558865310136613.post-17991796214712268582024-03-17T01:13:00.002+08:002024-03-17T01:52:02.864+08:00Spring Break in Taiwan: Day 9Mercifully, 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. <br /><br />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). <br /><br />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.<br /><br />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.<br /><br /><br /><img src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/gLuOSxtVtFP49RX6x4SVAwWZdX4xCNBUlqbtzfoZYmDhabZq2j6S4RT05ywrHRd5o0h7akB-Iqwvg8UT2-G7C4vaoRAiakOke64XYtZ-XpgPQj0QJALBsUgx_EQt8h73LLVUO252jONxlbJWn43agdY" /><img src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/nIaaPEFiUN2gEZzfzFf_GAT1Qfys4yFEakOzUx-K1kOiOv6ZsKXtgwLU3vP_FCZypRFMu6D6UGZ5TYTDwEDgFAox5VY14HaKmHDjDv1WmmP1IGS5QsBHIYByvmlh18YPS8OeBZV1o54NMGA577IgJCs" /><img src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/xdcQbE6fNRwJbDw_3auXAnfd3we0ypyxta4kaaM3ZkH1Rv8bQpQh5YuI9zOhCWJKjDCjVp7VZPuIG9ceFCzSbalJ9BYY4xmPNS0OsJqp8UGyipF2-9CpvJosgerVKPLQ8JhapxevXvSUtZrqDplDgZw" /><img src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/opbMIlSb-FUj7K1gaHSSYJ78gflsstwsIrgtr5thnk1aGYgKVCCi_xaViUR49WRG2W6qQvejIDm9sfgFMPkHs4UEDGZHstOBb185yV7DcWEVn42NqOopTlYwuFPoaWJ_WyWQxuCLQt_PiInG-E1ycX4" /><img src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/NdT3N4tVfAbLVvPox0OsUSzw_-30AqxE483syhva-wGnvIza7AkAiNli1VhCIfcXfauL0uTo-fzPXfQCbbYrwF9gAEfGFetmV0ZA289dvzAiHcjPE1eJWeGBohjkqSphnqRGT4I4GZKF7obJg3517GI" /><img src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/a9ZWGeAZhdf4MVMyuj-Sh1qR4TeSF8XXpw2sBq5n0SD3Gaf8kSLIsJvKadwoo61xf7IV3_MADekJN8Ob43PYA8IVCxDb3VQnpsjgX8mO0kcsSz5fO8rf4Zkx0t_kzhLeTirIj0DsmIRCotUqjzjxvNA" /><img src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/NvI7wP4FcTxVVFY_gqK-PFKOJ-R0vrskPrTmZImHU6RW9ptr4E-u8yKTY6ES_eDOCzE58bcEF8hTQ8jjBkmLpkDoqnEeFvkXYmUx7j-cJ400IqIOrRCJe9gD0P125I_w1E5NRsjKd9Ipqa93-TI3uC8" /><img src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/OeSuP5mFS-rCqtW2BPUohEc8regrQpAFkER-hf19XzffSwZR8R8jRd3013Yw5Eloik1jIhIv76FSzgsJPLxZkS2ubfuc781AfyRkVp2KAbGVp0xTsAfcFUxyOPKRemCQCG-aD9Q_5ZD-u3mwRCoXYHA" /><img src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/V81Momanch5OOdEiOOOVn6TWcyyKaMskE7foOwgsdpeiZoLKaqOR64dQ68zqhY_G-oQuIVseCU4TLyCG1qPfcBam_qp_Muf3F_WekhAUUIaLQHQMqvtrWFVWWsp6KJ_vhk4lrFOeyvxnoeR-4MDmtsE" /><img src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/tPOxywPwOd0w6BrPmVtZ0nKfp0UThp19WwaZD8kNBlT73D8RZcw5ZtdVI5gcGOm5-qgJR2_w9rR-p3AXViBtTtNl-pIBiczAjHXNwf6LCC90h2tSE66xZTDGHe3ED_w7qtlQCV2_O84qALMBqfGIZPE" /><img src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/DLB8OhEffFQhcFX8e5egrBFWYZxrcX4gQtWqEdiMzdVFmoqTjPZ20gXJIHFetezaP5CMmQMRxxeldQiTV_paGB24MQlMrLkXc6RQk1SlK8TGzhjqUymmFWbGuA0UqPbR_wgRZQIznY6mzuFR6PDsiQQ" /><img src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/QnJUQcAM_bKzD1NyrKcgyXN0jAkqhJw3lavpHoZDHZEJyXdHjIgD5iaS7RfW9fh6jlDve758IvKsCVymfjoDN4RZiKfjtligGe2ee1sOr3a4qgzpAYMWNFg9-amgPTkOCb1vvn9wKrynZbkir9wVWW4" /><img src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/hknbZGv8sOtzubnTku-3nMu05bg1Mald3Bsx4ZNeuKY2suMWOOj2EPTfmmggT_v4FQZlThLc2u1IDWH10PkDXdhgdHHr3YQ82AqKRMlYBw9P-LX00iB8wewi-T3qM2Ji2-J1NdKGognCFOpS6NrkenY" /><img src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/Z_0gPeR0fxiLltQjYlOzo99gerg9Dll26xNRaQRBrPMJHjRZ0QxnGYw88bmPL1FRsJSnw1NJO8CH9RlamFi5DH2eAytcYah-PVGkuMfwD53M93dtJ6e9RR4wK7AyEZfx5uH14E2PVVU7lbH8osxykxk" /><img src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/nKa6uK1GjqAu5z-bMd16OlHPysFz7Pmfcx8kbBiQT8MGO9OJlLYZjeTzxIc-Y39nGJ02nmCyOy3iCW3vhiqRn-6pPDXmNu7A17SnpwAqfoEKI0fA1p_MPoGnMzyQDORj43ECw_fSIn9VQ5OiTfgOCeQ" /><img src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/mbYmCXjVR7UOrZe4tpcu6BBKlE8HktdbR3lMAFtswxuHuAIA3GE5z6FavoPDtBB7xcb0oDiY5yDsESF-7CAz2CKO_PniWn5TitLo_oTczASw4vdHlnkKnpeQGh7sityQxj0X_9zqekKDt3EEknzgGJs" /><br />Violethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12655471521148840299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3831558865310136613.post-84111985978479605282024-03-17T00:40:00.004+08:002024-03-17T00:55:22.654+08:00Spring Break in Taiwan: Day 8Yesterday the Park Bruin Pack went on a whirlwind tour of the area around Taiwan’s famous Sun Moon Lake, a gorgeous, jewel colored, man made lake in the Nano area in central Taiwan. We stopped at a mix of small shopping districts (each looking like they were carved out of a major city and moved overnight) and century old Taoist and Buddhist temples. <br /><br />The first stop was one such small shopping district, where I ate Taiwan famous number 18 black tea ice cream and a strawberry mochi-esk doughnut. I had to force myself not to buy more tea, and instead tortured myself by browsing a local pottery store (again, the itch to get back in the studio came back so strong, but this time it was more like a perpetual creative hunger). We then briefly visited the Sun Moon Lake visitor center, which I had also visited last summer with NSLI-Y. I was particularly excited because I had promised myself that I’d get the chance to buy the matcha ice cream, but as luck would have it, our stop only included time for about 2 pictures and a bathroom break. So unfortunately I’ll have to return to Taiwan specifically for this place’s matcha ice cream. Sorry.<br /><br />We then visited a small Buddhist temple that I had also been to last summer. Again, our stops were quick, but the views are gorgeous and I had some wonderful introspective moments about creating new memories with different friends. Again, I’ll have to come back to Taiwan to really understand how those things stuck in my memory. We then went to the shopping town/district where the NSLI-Y cohort last summer spent our night. It was interesting to come back in the day to explore where I had really only been at night as almost every shop on Main Street was different. But again, it’s so wonderful mixing old happy memories with new happy moments. Next was another NSLI-Y visit, to one of the most large and gorgeous temples I have ever seen. I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves, but I also bought a lovely pair of earrings. <br /><br />And just like that, we were homeward bound. Each stop we took couldn’t have been more than 40 minutes, and I am so lucky that I had the opportunity to explore these places in more detail previously, because really I was having memory lane trips instead of trying to cram as much history and culture into my head as possible.<br /><br />After the two hour drive back to Taichung, the excitement didn’t stop. Instead the entire group and our host buddies went to hotpot together. The food was excellent (and seemingly endless) and afterwards we hung out at one of the tables. The afterwards was brief because the meal itself took just under three hours, which was honestly perfect. Meals eaten out here are usually very, very long, but in my opinion there’s nothing better than food and long conversations, so mixing the two is divine.<br /><br />Catch up writing is no fun, but these last few days of the trip have been amazing, and really have cemented the need for me to return to Taiwan. 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font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span style="border: none; display: inline-block; height: 468px; overflow: hidden; width: 624px;"><img height="468" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/CtUt_bzatrRwJctCe8nPbZU-NKc6ks9Hhp-uA8w6r476RpTv8SeKvN3zECGimZHsgthMndPf0wQC-xAzLK03kCiKTbtjA9IN6oKwOTj0ngqY97JuRWFwYxkDIeB8R2kJfTFkzndep9k2_XsRbKkkeFQ" style="margin-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px;" width="624" /></span></span></p><br /></span></div>Violethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12655471521148840299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3831558865310136613.post-20433364936925774202024-03-14T22:32:00.003+08:002024-03-14T23:24:09.315+08:00Spring Break in Taiwan: Day 7Our second day in Taipei dawned bright and early; and before I knew what was happening, I was in our hotel’s restaurant eating the garbled assortment of corn flakes, white rice, and toast. After scrambling to finish breakfast, we made our way down to the lobby and out to the bus, where we drove to the National Palace Museum. I visited this museum during our NSLI-Y trip to Taipei and had wished for more time to explore. Despite my wishes being granted today, I still wish I had more time to fully delve into this place.<br /><br />First, it’s massive; and second, it’s incredibly difficult not to get caught up in the detail and sheer craftsmanship of every piece. This museum houses the treasures of the imperial Chinese families, passed down throughout literally centuries. When the Kuomintang fled China, they selected the most precious and most historically significant artifacts and hid them deep inside the mountains of Taiwan. Later they built this museum to share some of the artifacts with the public. Due to the sheer massive amounts of artifacts accumulated, only 1% at a given time are shown (of about 700,000 pieces). Like I said, it’s an amazing place, and the coolest part was that about half the museum was totally different then when I was there last. The newest exhibit was displaying the emperor’s personal porcelain workers experimentation with different methods of glazing–mixing domestic and foreign materials, underglazes, overglazes, different firing temperatures–to create unique looks for the imperial court. Again, seeing pottery gave me an itch to get back in the studio, even if my references are (just a little) unattainable, being century old crafted-to-perfection pottery. Unfortunately the famous jade cabbage is still on loan to a touring show, which is disappointing. Guess I’ll just have to come back again (oh no!).<br /><br />Next up was Xi Men district, a section of street side shops cutting through downtown Taipei. This place was amazing, yet an odd mix of incredibly fancy high brand name international stores and mom and pop shops. Everything kind of stood in contrast with one another. But the food was good and there were still some affordable (yay!) shops on the strip. This is also where, surprisingly, Simone and I learned we would be changing host families. One of the host family’s kids has the flu, and rather than send us back and risk exposure, we switched out: I’m staying with Trixie and Simone with Nia. I was sad to end my time with our host family so quietly, packing up our things and saying a quick goodbye. Our wonderful host mom gave us snacks for the road and wished us well. I’ll definitely miss this family, they were so welcoming, excited, and utterly generous. After grabbing my things I went straight to my new host family’s house for dinner and an early night. This new family is also really, really lovely, and were super excited to hear that I’d studied in Kaohsiung. We ate meatloaf with cheese for dinner, and snacked on wax apples and matcha ice cream while playing rummy cube (which I was so, so excited to see and play, as my family regularly plays this after dinner. Felt just like home).<br /><br />Tomorrow we are off for more adventures as we visit Sun Moon Lake. But right now I am too tired to think about any of it. Goodnight and good morning.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="401" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/nbjXZn3u-Riek71zVZTG3owJQz6ZI0jE1ieWYVAuumhCRvKanBWyXAPLbdZbgue9K8D8qjOCPRloFbkTAHorX5ddMNlpMvrL3DKlecLinJWWYt0ZxZ7pNuKwQQKOsWKNMLlc-BLYBUMq-BLVS0HM18M=w551-h401" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="551" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="264" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/gmtZMfik06zr523J_5BqRL6w7ZJWBZu1OLmj3Kfmot3kuukUCtDwmJmiqEWpOWubxUvpTc0d0n2tF35CBAOWShY6cYO-Ufb2IBCkOpoaBdovN6S5bQmjvQibwGt0-I7YU7WVl79NnFLVOfPwR3NJois=w352-h264" style="margin-left: auto; 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margin-right: auto;" width="613" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="454" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/73y0YVcsIZbTgv-IY9sbujeMnllna2S1ZB8kr_eXRNxv6DEKTefgoshmzMUK11-E651hTCQfqOI_4RrNsYnAQYyLhPoIGjl4wbzuyTY0HLepAkNYFVsbE8pm3j_5pIu9PIdaVJF9cX4w548luTER1AA=w604-h454" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="604" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="473" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/ZUp2lO8552dFygI3rvBWeVZY0H1JErERJQ64Bg8DTBzluPEc7skBciXBPre4GlYA4X_qvOZ_ilMK_Vl_5pFJAg6VcQulE8jv2CwpRYx_qgqBBMv87JpxDU_9iqRQEERX7gJjJuewCioMbDcc6orgYhY=w630-h473" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="630" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br />Violethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12655471521148840299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3831558865310136613.post-34700360302457322872024-03-14T21:08:00.001+08:002024-03-14T21:19:05.767+08:00Spring Break in Taiwan: Day 6Our day started by saying goodbye to Hong Wen. We lined up outside in front of the entire Hong Wen assembled upper school and gave impromptu speeches about ourselves. We all expressed how excited we were to talk with the local Taiwanese students and thanked the school for hosting. We then promptly boarded a bus for Taipei. <br /><br />On the way, our amazing guide Daphne, who grew up in Taipei, gave us a crash course in Taipei history, culture, and its significance to Taiwan. This was much needed as the first stop on our whirlwind tour around the city was the memorial building of Chiang Kai-shek, a complicated historical figure, controversial for implementing martial law and shutting down free speech in a period from 1949 to 1992 known as the “White Terror.”. We toured the underbelly of the memorial which housed a plethora of incredibly maintained documents from the Kuomingtang, a major political party initially based in Chinese, from its foundation to establishment in Taiwan. The top floor, much like the Lincoln Memorial, features a large, sitting version of Chiang Kai-shek. We watched the stepping (performance? dance?) military ritual at the changing of the guard, where four guards moved in total sync stepwise and rifle throwing-wise, and replaced the old guards at their posts. It was beautiful, surreal, and hypnotic. <br /><br />Next up was lunch–a traditional Taiwanese seafood spread. The food wasn’t my favorite, but the meal (and desert) was super enjoyable. We then walked around a shopping district in historic Old Taipei, where a blend of European-inspired buildings from the 1970s have been reworked as smaller shops and apartment buildings. I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many dried fruit/mushroom/spice blend sellers, much less on the same street.<br /><br />Next we visited the temple of Guanyin, the Taoist Goddess of Mercy. Daphne walked us through the history of Taiwanese religion, as well as her own personal beliefs and values. She showed us the traditional and still common practice jiaobei, in which a person throws two crescent shaped pieces of wood to seek answers for any questions. For particularly complicated questions, there was a system of number pulling, crescent throwing, and finally, a conference with the resident master, there to interpret results from 8am to 6:45pm.<br /><br />After the temple tour we took a brief break/free time in a modern shopping district outside of the temple. I introduced the group to traditional shaved Taiwanese ice and excused myself to have a minute to walk around by myself to take in the sights (and bubble tea and several pastries). I returned to find that the group had devoured both ices I had ordered–but they’d ordered another for me to compensate. So we’ll call it even.<br /><br />We then completely veered off the track of tours and shopping to hike a local mountain. This, dear reader, I was not expecting, as I had conveniently forgotten to read the agenda. But I persevered making it to the top of the climb to meet the stunning view of Taipei. After heading down the mountains and sharing a bowl of passion fruit juice/tea and jelly, we learned that we had in fact not made it to the top of the mountain but a random observation deck before, but we quietly counted our wins (that we made it back in one piece) and continued to sip the tea.<br /><br />Our last official adventure for the night was the Taipei night market–which was huge, linear, and by far the most foreign-catering night market I’ve experienced. I’ve never before had a vendor give me a quick once over and ask for my order in English. But the food was excellent (as always) and I have my favorite fruit, bala, ready for tomorrow.<br /><br />Our real last adventure was short, but a wonderful way to end the night. After saying goodnight to Daphne, the students split off to go to the local Family Mart (a 7-11 equivalent), and we bought pretty much every snack under the sun. We then retired to a hotel room to unwind, chatting about the day, our experiences, and pretty much nothing important. As it is always true at late hours, everything was extremely hilarious.<br /><br />I’m writing this now near falling asleep while I wait for my turn to shower. I’ll post this in the morning as it needs a coherent re-read and midnight-me is not cut out for that type of work. Goodnight and good morning (and good morning and goodnight).<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="395" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/BlqU_9RyQa8Jbr_Mrw0iDuAcwAkD4bpljzhbqtkntOARcEXl6iQ3bW4bxmqlerhpdzVbPFGjv886OFWlJHfZDDh0UcHTNXrbXA3p6X67FPyG7qrOV1apT62SN4UdI6JDukADqkdWI2FzFfgYq77iACw=w593-h395" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="593" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="391" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/LASCb0zzO2qh1NwIm8Ee1yCSS4vWX-Cee4HkMsiEH8-NnYy7X-deyb0H4KU0maCXrkaNqf9PvPkFTO0aUmuRmO_NMdNBJDJsILo4lTpz5QUUMN4GSlhroIaAnNpzXR4AOPM2_mwNAJUy-yDj034S36Q=w587-h391" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="587" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="384" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/1Rsn9-Oy0PREaB-AVhSCWX8aUqeTwFSgi29pgkiFN63NXT56DyDTEOjAMbaqeHLupoCID0gtA5M294eVchJDQF0QCUwMuSXxCha8PZ9hAKUA1j3UG22LSwEQcs3WH156exfIDC44K4fCWrxaAWWcUYA=w577-h384" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="577" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="866" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/gU4ktn6qdKorAyX26xWNunDUgPU6-pH4z5Rz3HCKiYExjGFokieydDVmZJLk7ixuqr122Nr3o5_CGBOoRc3I4Ll7TQcF1CbLdRj6AIjMdbcwFpg1T8tVepYVkuk4es7U0ZEBkQhFSdtFLLwO5yzsstc=w650-h866" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="650" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="425" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/17E0TnXzaWY1erNVc9EuN9Th5KzJzCvC6FHnLJ_pq8XRuHDQoiDkBR5088wVb0DUpA0Jy9OBQEidA8vcJnI6f-DyJeP4XsagiZ_TIuS_89FaHqLjLvaPI-DqOqSvAVXZCaneK1aOdE00z4p9_5qoqKg=w567-h425" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="567" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="781" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/YpgtYUr4MYNhED3eMDmVNUFUoaXBOf_Hkt35Zq_U7PIjUeHEgGRgzzdimml4XiKw0w1bxbD_n7q1WSxGQQJ4eut8Vnp8GiJZlZv4AU1IniGq-luWxSL3UpWIHJjRBqm4GIxh_FLUfJAKNBHCqFwhp90=w586-h781" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="586" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><img src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/claLQJ_A-jp4z4-wNCKYss3er6oBlJeQizCX-TdRb0dKwoyHZd2Pr2Zcq0KsfE4KhasKDvmbcE8oBS1BrkT-6uTKKRhR-vzMHbidCD8Se0wvfeJzP9utntoo9Fqjt4YDkfz8L7UK5tHZLO394Eji4ps" /><img 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/>Violethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12655471521148840299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3831558865310136613.post-10528339986736668672024-03-12T23:23:00.004+08:002024-03-12T23:26:53.916+08:00Spring Break in Taiwan: Day 5Hong Wen high school is split into two sections: the International and ‘Taiwanese’ section. The international section is the private school that serves to prepare Taiwanese high schoolers for studying abroad, so all the classes are taught in English (this is where we spent yesterday). The other section is taught in Mandarin and is where we spent today. <br /><br />It turns out it is much, much harder to follow what is going on in class if you don’t speak the language and can’t read the textbooks. And, Mandarin is much harder to follow when these things are happening at the same time: the teacher is talking, every other student is chatting at their tables, half the students are wearing masks, there’s a video demonstration playing, and then one of the masked kids at your table leans forward to ask you a question and you know you have about two seconds to give an answer before the dreaded attempted English translation beings. So. It’s a lot.<br /><br />I feel happy with my process but so incredibly frustrated, because I can feel in my ears and tongue how on the cusp of fluency I am–it’s tangible, always squirming around in my hands, in reach, but never quite steady. But I think today was more fulfilling than yesterday, partially because I used a ton more Mandarin, and partially because I simply liked the ‘Taiwanese’ section of the school more. It felt more Park-like, despite the larger classes and (mostly) lack of English. The students in this section seemed less stressed, much more carefree, and yet they seemed to work harder and were more respectful in general. They were also much more friendly and more curious about the exchange trip. I’m actually kind of sad to be leaving this wing of the school tomorrow, despite the eight classes from 8 to 5.<br /><br />The Park students spent the day bouncing between the eight different classes. Somehow, after every single one of us having no idea where to go and having an awesome time wandering around, a chaperone found us and shepherded us back to our next class. We ate lunch again on the roof, which was a much needed resurfacing from the almost overwhelming amount of language and stares. We then bought matching sweatshirts from the school store (which I later learned were made for the middle school; and therefore, we spent the better part of the day parading around as self proclaimed middle schoolers). We did calligraphy in the Chinese class, math with Sophomores, English with Juniors, and physics where everyone was equally confused, language barrier or not. Last period was entirely dedicated to splitting into groups and talking to the Americans. I ended up having a great conversation about my favorite Taiwanese foods (all of them) and my time living in Gaoxiong. Our final class at Hong Wen ended somehow with gentle karaoke to Baby and Love Yourself by Justin Bieber, featuring yours truly on backup vocals.<br /><br />The evening with our host family was quiet. We ate a delicious dumpling dinner at home. But seeing as it was only 7:00pm when we finished eating, our host mom gave us a key to the building and texted us a google map location of a local bookstore. This was perfect for me and Simone as we were planning on trying to figure out how to ask if we could jump ship to explore the city for a bit. Our host mom is truly wonderful and very insightful. Simone and I hit the town and walked through the massive streets to the bookstore, stopping inside the National Taichung Theatre to poke around on the way. The bookstore was a wonderful mix of hundreds of new books and stationary; and, as we couldn’t really read any of the books, we spent the better part of our time carefully picking out pens, pencils, and letters to buy and bring home. Simone and I fit perfectly into the bookstore-loving, stationary-hunting mold, and I couldn’t have picked a better roommate for late-night bookstore crashing. I did buy the one book in the shop I could read, a pocket sized collection of work from a Japanese artist who paints watercolor sketches of urban and rural landscapes. They’re super reminiscent of the style I try to emulate when I draw my surroundings in my travel sketchbook. I’m hoping some more inspiration will rub off.<br /><br />We came back just in time to procrastinate writing this blog and, instead of packing for our trip to Taipei tomorrow, take an amazing shower. I’m in for a fun and hectic morning tomorrow, complete with Violet style frantic packing. <br /><br />Goodnight and goodmorning all!<div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="468" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/L9Hznwj7k9DPTNJrn5EbsdZ-Zce9eWrQ7WjHHhCiKIqP2KT5I2baoq4k62zHDfXSBoDatt2K9zDO8YGjxLe_p-t6eW8kLieF-4MXMyu174GSPt__5MShRd8xxEw_3rV48S5uV9Jz4wzmOKdlQV-lIV0" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px;" width="624" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">New friends :)</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="468" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/weyjBPmBdFdK1zFDQfoMt00-pX6qQRFAfYkDHdIpjCcanuZLw-fYYhwgUunODFCXcnEwgbi2eaTEKaSHVIkNMuz6dsJ9lSRJaDvzav2J45HHMDlanP-boYkYFZvOHjw447nD0mt0RlIGKR1GFK31LjI" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px;" width="624" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My morning view from my host family's apartment</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="832" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/fzJPr32yL-Ex6xSPV7fzYf02y4x4g21085XaTkt69cEnQqYbSAtksb6EggHpPVFnx00VMyya9NjDIXNwGgTy5oB_e2edpzJ_tyFUbjl9SvXUp9Bhr2_4AHkhORIgBfqfvNjRbx7LMBhwMpKEZ5HD7vo" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px;" width="624" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me and Sarah</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="832" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/f3xc4AR-jrEamirpy2FnA2IX1b0H60rKaxrM1IFJxK7LSykf3JSFLGDo-kSJ8AI_Q5V3Dw7NlTnJ804Yw5BUH1qq6ZOkGh3jaQeUzb_xlbE1Epq3Bo6L7wkUAMUHAIG5iO2ele1TJR4vtZzMFtNuNIc" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px;" width="624" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Half of the Park pack</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="832" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/qiFH8DiEaX2X6diS3SGZLzI_ZMePbu2QqjQl5Zxg8SgfRRvgKkWrNbIOW4xM7LN5S_HY9AL6E4qPovJ7xMAR-2-ZGW-9UIJVO6Q3YfgAipTiUvtEXmE5wRC_vxXN3B_m7zuSZk3BDrh9_svG8Z7R7GA" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px;" width="624" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="832" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/CjKp_fOcxTZWgGYxN02qp1MmNQK_PtvfQPkO3zBoaZ5_a-tNxo9VCZcAUxbXiw-kzQaxMAa7aVrJFEoyYFOX2sraN9Divs3BVRo5J8Q-CX3diY6ivzJ22KUdqoay2jfpA7_QzI0nQPjVnD1yHIt5tCI" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px;" width="624" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The character for dragon (guess what year it is)</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="468" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/Knynk2_RG7Hpl6lh5m1UkvMRjQ36M4_-I-XDermUfvANDAZdfvrMsp_xC8XqBiWZ5Htk5BZM0ob_jt35mgatoWCvh0BynMaDEml1UM7_bxXeE8TBsxS14zHALB6-OG4Cz6fOF5LdNy9jkvE3KuUjbhc" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px;" width="624" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our math/Chinese classroom</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="468" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/Sydzx1y3pnHIL_n7laB3NfQHto2W06zVRMw1V-2BRFtPGO2rdOsnOdR8b31Qbi70SfGbi4qPIPg_Xouo9RDT-0FXJpt2QTatz1Vp6cl10vhLczK3BSzC5YwVVyXZCNCaiWQhQ8HHcsu1PQgkn28xTRk" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px;" width="624" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The center courtyard of Hong Wen</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="468" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/MDrN0mZD9iVaheHC7sddZTE4giQTmXIzl_4VK_91e04IwKNTF4QcB42QDfd22JyGin--G3MFyQEEyh6TsmVaBe0eskFnWMe34mJy5Rjtr5_HFxU9fAgghtvPwBCj0BGmVLTa9ButKjMSINRTsH2Mx5o" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px;" width="624" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Park Maul, plus friends</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="468" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/u7dVfVPt_wG5PgA6iXGv0pUMs-Lhwz8icUx1Bkm4dieAZ4tdpFtauGsZn_TL88J9yWoaF2bLUDteGmaShsWPT-EqxrVzaOd4ndWP9qUXrKaE6fibMIDFzu_7OC7TnRNNVndXDVsnKK8v3TwTj7MZaFE" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px;" width="624" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Basketball and volleyball courts (hot.)</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="832" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/Z61Rdm2mqHBluFNFeRom_Uh32ZJYcyzgenWTmFXKIL7p4kkRQs4u26O-VbrYJDONxhTZTgNQKW_7IWb0wosqPItWHa-M9QcS0ETCIenqb2W19oG56RkXFLhMj9e2fPNVB3R45gfowiW7v9Fw7T0UCkM" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px;" width="624" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bus ride home</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="468" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/Jh9ycVKgGe7QiBRnFQrkiZZzG7oj6RHiSNpZFFzi2jg3k-Sy6NB_2-JbQKnApiLUgpB7JEkn6ZRjbRYsNLEtjFC-cSgENVzSdsMqNdOkzoWpRLQ1dHtTUdk8PUUOVL78cYC1ZK8kk_7fD8NOxy5jDq8" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px;" width="624" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Taichung theatre</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="468" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/7FlevzidI07Lt0OHezyYrAXoqa0G5PncIZrq8aEVsp-OaNeLzRNGevFCTEeBpFY_jf-ChUrZLVZ7SjWlDPFNxj-9BoWH21_BpPu_nZWWZJTM2AaSSfkVg7AfdR-GcAiHCfopFK95OSM3yyLrRFCRGQI" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px;" width="624" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="832" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/dkOxMo_eFA3JKsJyR7KFuGeOaU7Pv97brrp17P1-v8vyqfCoxLACbq3pv1tze2cp042NbqldY9A8ERiKD0lybPWfZnkHfOOAd2OXvXfL16IKVgXrD-NUvVn-kERljFiHpoCe5TQEk7-U2S0Ywx6qOfI" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px;" width="624" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Night outside the theatre</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="468" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/nbsslgT6_FGkKm6U2bXxc0laO32H65TFRsRh7fIhysHfo2cDO5bKRuslJghivE4K3kLohN2n_K97m29MRrxOrx1OEoQk9TAGZX8UGhTxDhv-lTpwvxqnpMeSIp5qxS9-FS4riu42nh6yjg308Fiq43Q" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px;" width="624" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Night in Taichung</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="468" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/3qMIDlBRb4fFJadM1f5naCVZUaqom6_xXE0WeH2Qp7K_Kw3ncpleb84Uiog-V5wFH9zR9FkV9nBDWTA2-22Md_smvyo6SdgbSguFj0mh9Q3I3iqBt03KZgGxWzIBgiIhgdyNSCi6mcwG7Ri_TyV1H8A" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px;" width="624" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gorgeous bookstore</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="468" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/6yrRcaeOt6yOpiKbBmakwpNuT_X2X-t1MfUBxf8u-bJGe5X12egirSm6OzUIyHI4aiPzSqmNvCYT2Bn_7zYqyv6XNyu6pkmhkUg4sPGfmbkF5P8Y4XG29e_WIUO_WaRoI_EElThjgTpGLfhcd5leeAI" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px;" width="624" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mouthwatering stationary corner in said gorgeous book store</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="468" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/2Aqnob3p0Vz3tjl1MqV1h58fK8wwyYKVaeJhifE_373BSilQ5bpqMCzcwmz_XmjAFTNZd3W0Ys-a-kxHBr27-AyrJ7-y4i9zbIRzU90SQBghuSCrZyeGmDJV3X_SWGaDShmCtY_sjOI-5_yGIWTlvwg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; margin-top: 0px;" width="624" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Soap for sale here too...amazing place</td></tr></tbody></table></div>Violethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12655471521148840299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3831558865310136613.post-86312323620295318722024-03-11T22:14:00.005+08:002024-03-11T22:16:17.633+08:00Spring Break in Taiwan: Day 4<span id="docs-internal-guid-2641028e-7fff-45ff-b15c-785d7856668f">Day four dawned bright and early, arriving at school and heading to classes with our host students. I’ve slipped very much back into my rhythm, in terms of language and general comfort in Taiwan. <br /><br />I feel very lucky that my summer in Gaoxiong allowed me to adjust so quickly. I’ve talked with the other Park students and some of them feel like everyone is staring at them. I feel that a bit as well, but not to the same level—but I think I might just be used to it. Taiwan is in no way a monolithic culture, but when roughly 99% of the population is of Chinese descent, anyone of non Asian descent tends to stick out quite a bit.<br /><br />Classes were intensive and relaxed at the same time. I get the impression that the students here are a little burnt out from 8 classes a day from 8am to 5pm. But everyone is wonderfully friendly, and very curious about who we are and what we’re doing at the school. There’s been a lot of exchanged instagrams and selfies.<br /><br />I’m starting to feel the effects of homesickness but in a different way than I expected. Of course I miss my home in Baltimore, my friends and family, but right now I really miss Gaoxiong. I miss the routine I had carved out for myself that I’ve unconsciously thought of as what living in Taiwan is like. I miss my nightly ritual of walking down Wenzao Street to buy myself dinner, snacks, boba, more snacks, and breakfast. I miss hanging in coffee shops to study. Part of me misses cramming to finish the homework on time. I miss quiet moments alone on the bus, and mad dashes around the city with my friends. Part of me really misses the freedom that my time in Taiwan before afforded me. Another part of me is so happy for the structure this trip has provided, how everything is so thoughtfully and carefully planned. Today that structure was weighing on me a bit, and around lunch I was itching to hop on a bus and strike out for some midday adventure. <br /><br />I started feeling more at ease once we ate lunch at the cafeteria (that usually helps a lot), after a quick wander around in the school, in which Sarah and I found a music room and jammed out, and when I purchased what I think was the equivalent of celery Gatorade. The rest of classes, American Literature, Human Geography, Ecology, passed without anything too crazy happening. An interesting aspect of this part of the school, the international school, is that all the classes are taught in English. So while it’s definitely a struggle to parse what’s going on between students, at least it’s easy to understand what’s actually going on in class. A couple of the teachers also incorporated some of Baltimore’s history into their lesson plans, and gave us room to answer questions about our home. It was raining too hard to play basketball, so a group of students and I spent our last period, PE, on the roof next to a hydroponic mint garden, chatting and enjoying getting some fresh air. <br /><br />All and all, today was by far the most exhausting day yet. I was so drained that by dinnertime with my host family, I dejectedly defaulted to English when Mandarin started to hit my ears like wet slabs of tofu. But it was also an incredibly rewarding day, and I’m super excited for our final day exchanging with Hong Wen. Goodnight, and goodmorning.</span><div><br /><span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span style="border: none; display: inline-block; height: 318px; overflow: hidden; width: 425px;"><img height="318" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/oHjThF4JDlCbDl9dek6-QIzfN8Q0oro62US_ZiHQfPen6hEUkxDnWjdShs3DhUA_ZGM4MkiWwsGKar2LcIY8s1R41dw-f-VV3w0mHI0jsuvXgBHpsQH4KWslZu3eIfNe0kdlMFWB5AtKekOxlQ5RH0I" style="margin-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px;" width="425" /></span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span style="border: none; display: inline-block; height: 332px; overflow: hidden; width: 443px;"><img height="332" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/zeGc4zda7VLsQ_MEcx4ljtifsj6A3a_wvO09R3tx-w1r4YDAsepT2NvZkPrZ3oZPs9XXGJ2CyYdx3BPUXF6vlLbfzGej1wuM4nDdTpE6lDZy45YmUzGNYRDxUXhuBUoMGh40JVuGslhS1Cd5IYosLKU" style="margin-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px;" width="443" /></span></span><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span style="border: none; display: inline-block; height: 350px; overflow: hidden; width: 467px;"><img height="350" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/vyz1oMBDGF6pplqmD-B1aGjwSqKKTkjsZT_kkKgZvw5IdJiZrH29UfGrgEEk71WiiINpQxapx0A0lwSqcm6XqEYiDRlsJRpfF8J02WTd61K9Lvrhd6TRwQ68a8RbjT06XVqdscHPOLh9AlFKzVALWiI" style="margin-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px;" width="467" /></span></span></p><div><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span style="border: none; display: inline-block; height: 350px; overflow: hidden; width: 467px;"><br /></span></span></div></span></div>Violethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12655471521148840299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3831558865310136613.post-18003496709057379582024-03-10T23:08:00.000+08:002024-03-10T23:08:03.524+08:00Spring Break in Taiwan: Day 3Today was a blur of car rides through pineapple and tea leaf fields and amazing amounts of food. We had a wonderfully leisurely morning, followed by my favorite Taiwanese breakfast, Danbing (eggs wrapped in soft, crepe-like pastry). We drove through the outskirts of Tainan to a dam just outside of Sun Moon Lake, where we explored a hillside town full of shops and restaurants. I have never eaten more food in such a short amount of time: Taiwanese hamburger (soft bread and pork with scallions), Taiwanese sausage, a sweet pastry tasting almost like roti chini, oolong icecream, and more I can’t remember. Simone and I windowshopped, and talked about the amazing appreciation here for cute things, which I sorely have missed in America. After the hillside town, we went to a traditional porcelain ceramics studio/shopping experience, where Simone, myself, and our host siblings made wheel pottery (thankfully, right before this trip, my ceramics class got to wheel throwing, so I managed to simultaneously make a presentable pot and impress my host parents. Thank you Rhys). The pottery at this place was genuinely gorgeous, and gave me an itch to get back in the Park studio.<br /><br />The last thing on the agenda was sushi–an incredible amount of sushi. I ate so much that I felt like I was going to turn into a salmon and swim away, and somehow managed to eat more.<br /><br />I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves today. Enjoy!<div><br /><span id="docs-internal-guid-55dd854b-7fff-6dfb-20dc-43a9f8f40625"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span style="border: none; display: inline-block; height: 832px; overflow: hidden; width: 624px;"><img height="832" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/eC3_sUl2vONQTD7Kw13zt-8Ws2jZQ7sX_gipaeom78tWSg8pzFkHp-WFBwRxm_oKEZfXTUSoX780LkDamUYg2bzbZzl5G8qpO-t6O3YE4eyVCnYT-BMZoZoLpfAfKi9tgo5PXo4_JDMdrLPZR69yag4" style="margin-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px;" width="624" /></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; 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width: 624px;"><img height="832" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/12eCzJoDIyaKpEItgOcejYOTG9mOUGBBuSOpVcz7V9YIio_1Iuus5Xzp6p9gnLFkKbH9e7rGVVa8952D9m0Q-FPhSvRbgF7GkOYpR3HD0URVKZOjAo2jHBdkQTtTmZnAgvASY23kPoewi30tb1b7Xww" style="margin-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px;" width="624" /></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span style="border: none; display: inline-block; height: 832px; overflow: hidden; width: 624px;"><img height="832" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/ZuDcOY-uleZF-jdWmhu2PDTN-CmV2T5Yge53iGYn7v8h4n1Jv7kLAvFzH-FhbmZkmddnPLbq3Qz8xtQtiETEi-HwfdrhhvAive8tionmP7FZZwN7uovTu5eEktNjQeSCfYwFfjpIAHyKb7tr8llBhn0" style="margin-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px;" width="624" /></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span style="border: none; display: inline-block; height: 832px; overflow: hidden; width: 624px;"><img height="832" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/YlyJNaJ4Dyb3fXs2Vq-9ER1hGO3uFNcV4uvylH9ISSgpRN-xr5Fa52jzEV6MXZ5P9becxATEJ5Dnj_l_94nE9PrycACjhd6PEmMQUFytqaF6ptEbN51XshqC_KvzUgs27Au0Jrkcnc3mAiHK5hmZi7k" style="margin-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px;" width="624" /></span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><span style="border: none; display: inline-block; height: 468px; overflow: hidden; width: 624px;"><img height="468" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/AIYzSyevkGNqx-THX--sGaA4f4IZJeHU4v4G85G8yHTGvUo7T8GHE0yt82qJhAHJzAFc3Kr8LJ1J0sg_80VrBs-MwD_PS73QU1PBiTz-8xuCveiQLMhuGeLhC29qIsFucsxFKgoFpC31t5Zj8i6nUm8" style="margin-left: 0px; margin-top: 0px;" width="624" /></span></span></p><br /><br /></span></div>Violethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12655471521148840299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3831558865310136613.post-11924726284963315692024-03-10T11:04:00.006+08:002024-03-10T11:04:38.478+08:00Spring Break in Taiwan: Day 2 Photo BombHere's a ton of photos from day 2, courtesy of my host family!<div><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi52-BA4JJs8PHlwooX6qMHzLtuAdnDrTAm5oPM0wvVOrUnusgIzB7oe3WKlO_4FiDI9wnYbSIsMcFQft6DCXm-NKO4vRMyw758ZX08xn4YQpHjzb9gSQKcNbFBZ1agDKXW4oVD8_FcytUInDFdghYxvWCK25SoS-BrFQEPDL20zfIsjwvsfRdL4YfOX1Gb" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1477" data-original-width="1108" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi52-BA4JJs8PHlwooX6qMHzLtuAdnDrTAm5oPM0wvVOrUnusgIzB7oe3WKlO_4FiDI9wnYbSIsMcFQft6DCXm-NKO4vRMyw758ZX08xn4YQpHjzb9gSQKcNbFBZ1agDKXW4oVD8_FcytUInDFdghYxvWCK25SoS-BrFQEPDL20zfIsjwvsfRdL4YfOX1Gb" width="180" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg29k2A_AigaIc8Gib5QldOj5h8ZZPi6j1TFsk0Um9YoMN81wgVG90gfDNk1mzuBVTMQ-XNsaTYFuzgBelSW4bXSbYf5wKO3_IgJB_-TK0hQ0b1DrKy06PDKBcxJKGlNm7tssnMwI09_Rrt0qLOqi1oVf4w08Bs7tdiV3R7PPaRgJJlYHpOeED_KFDPSuQc" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1108" data-original-width="1477" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg29k2A_AigaIc8Gib5QldOj5h8ZZPi6j1TFsk0Um9YoMN81wgVG90gfDNk1mzuBVTMQ-XNsaTYFuzgBelSW4bXSbYf5wKO3_IgJB_-TK0hQ0b1DrKy06PDKBcxJKGlNm7tssnMwI09_Rrt0qLOqi1oVf4w08Bs7tdiV3R7PPaRgJJlYHpOeED_KFDPSuQc" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg4yO8hitXPl7SpDi1BTq-bASuTMvvkwXgKOFpoySr6JgxrWrdf0iZfQ7fq10oynNMww9XSHU5RlIRzlEhmMgB3GtLODsY1SMJgY1VdbQJoewBwbA7Fht7ZX5TP6VCb9Ii4DNsF9R2YMo1hu9xDR4dHGN61ihl1ak9X7wULiXUFBXPcBLJOVxMNrobDLB3-" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1108" data-original-width="1477" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEg4yO8hitXPl7SpDi1BTq-bASuTMvvkwXgKOFpoySr6JgxrWrdf0iZfQ7fq10oynNMww9XSHU5RlIRzlEhmMgB3GtLODsY1SMJgY1VdbQJoewBwbA7Fht7ZX5TP6VCb9Ii4DNsF9R2YMo1hu9xDR4dHGN61ihl1ak9X7wULiXUFBXPcBLJOVxMNrobDLB3-" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiCONgFm8Glq_wlp6RfeBbAUMiPsWnCcGqRXX1yUUh04sngZmoVb_ZqXRacR77ISl07cY6XF0_mwoaiJbobs6n6m8ehH1knnEnGNY7Ry3pDr5vd1yblF1G8067nGpzXNA9RaeHoBDCnt3EmqI6PzDzDorBG5wUP7OpH7_DPoBo31FDoQixbCuN6rTTN76rB" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1108" data-original-width="1477" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiCONgFm8Glq_wlp6RfeBbAUMiPsWnCcGqRXX1yUUh04sngZmoVb_ZqXRacR77ISl07cY6XF0_mwoaiJbobs6n6m8ehH1knnEnGNY7Ry3pDr5vd1yblF1G8067nGpzXNA9RaeHoBDCnt3EmqI6PzDzDorBG5wUP7OpH7_DPoBo31FDoQixbCuN6rTTN76rB" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; 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margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1108" data-original-width="1477" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgCKFukvKyrfrVdc_zpn6MOWPFivZdcZDGX-T-tOP5xXCjwJhhF2PZc3KTBysXQZyKpVLcleRA4Zwgm1IYvA7DjpLuJBjYmP9MfCool7gq3JjA15p5wpz3uLku6JAHbutqiFtpR72idMdSlbg1SWmk9y7R_67RpFGh3zI-eCjGNb226WsIsmYNDh9mYxrCZ" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh4VvlyhsV17cyc1yAKBR9zZ-2x3wa3oTKU7WcDUt4PtvOPbfZ1w9Z1ZMZGV0gq5nubBCi1MRR-dR0DlAGeqwfYKQBpO_u4Kcf-oMV340AENr2Zsp7XI9l5TokBKclSyPNNcNhukc7bFw1F2EA21FoKT4xLXk36qqRufrFKwV1bq8mqVIHjbryxh1OEdUqN" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1108" data-original-width="1477" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh4VvlyhsV17cyc1yAKBR9zZ-2x3wa3oTKU7WcDUt4PtvOPbfZ1w9Z1ZMZGV0gq5nubBCi1MRR-dR0DlAGeqwfYKQBpO_u4Kcf-oMV340AENr2Zsp7XI9l5TokBKclSyPNNcNhukc7bFw1F2EA21FoKT4xLXk36qqRufrFKwV1bq8mqVIHjbryxh1OEdUqN" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiROYxNHltRyQMDhDTmrXfbXo7s_gRu0qmpNvhDG96_ttrc6UQp9fPE_c0v1Ay6cICQp7oX2L8AA2U_KQ7mbZmqFZOFAZ0Ry-VaJ4KnoHhm9nzrGP-LUCvnPVIyGOUfzEo_WFB-0aab204g1ncOK_9ct9y7J_g-VtDm8LLysh_VL4JJxxqeEw5AKxJ6VucM" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1108" data-original-width="1477" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiROYxNHltRyQMDhDTmrXfbXo7s_gRu0qmpNvhDG96_ttrc6UQp9fPE_c0v1Ay6cICQp7oX2L8AA2U_KQ7mbZmqFZOFAZ0Ry-VaJ4KnoHhm9nzrGP-LUCvnPVIyGOUfzEo_WFB-0aab204g1ncOK_9ct9y7J_g-VtDm8LLysh_VL4JJxxqeEw5AKxJ6VucM" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgfXADobJ7zlAy-02PiEbBujsy95JRc_H1XMRjlkZT-7wBlT9eX-ZVPDy2Va0lsxX4q3UkRRUejIXdeL9mVATVvH2dqxBWCgN5Dq5VcFr5-HmFD-wkOa3-FDCiudpS7edQFc2olvYSvq1PDhTfVJZx_y8r1_KabCo1XQzag7VU3BfQ3DqtQRoSeTp2bD31r" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1477" data-original-width="1108" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgfXADobJ7zlAy-02PiEbBujsy95JRc_H1XMRjlkZT-7wBlT9eX-ZVPDy2Va0lsxX4q3UkRRUejIXdeL9mVATVvH2dqxBWCgN5Dq5VcFr5-HmFD-wkOa3-FDCiudpS7edQFc2olvYSvq1PDhTfVJZx_y8r1_KabCo1XQzag7VU3BfQ3DqtQRoSeTp2bD31r" width="180" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhc_Akn7vMNk1v24xxsnEz35psY6rNfUKIxARZakzAyrOHFV6HEHj8m1zleJmKlxa9xPjr3pIvf8rwkBjrm74sSC86CMIoPjALV0PZCCaBwlTnQ582xk8wRgOsMLXsYi-y_-WV-uxQXfP9Mg2cWGsurzVorLvXF7ZXOGcSt4iGxWdzW6FbrMDRbL_7xMq0c" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1477" data-original-width="1108" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhc_Akn7vMNk1v24xxsnEz35psY6rNfUKIxARZakzAyrOHFV6HEHj8m1zleJmKlxa9xPjr3pIvf8rwkBjrm74sSC86CMIoPjALV0PZCCaBwlTnQ582xk8wRgOsMLXsYi-y_-WV-uxQXfP9Mg2cWGsurzVorLvXF7ZXOGcSt4iGxWdzW6FbrMDRbL_7xMq0c" width="180" /></a></div></div>Violethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12655471521148840299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3831558865310136613.post-79771380156611448672024-03-10T01:23:00.001+08:002024-03-10T01:23:11.254+08:00Spring Break in Taiwan: Tainan's 400th AnniversaryI woke up in my host family’s apartment to the rising sun and Taichung skyline. Despite initial superficial similarities, this city is very different from Gaoxiong. For one, there are so many more cars. Where I lived in downtown Gaoxiong, very few people had cars—most rode mopeds or public transport and parking lots were nonexistent (as weird as that sounds). It makes me wonder what plays into cities being built to accommodate cars vs public transport. Most cities I’ve seen in the US are car cities. But Taiwan is much smaller than the US and it’s super interesting to see such a small country have cities built with such different transit goals. In Taichung, I’ve only seen a few bus stops, the roads are wider, and there are actual parking lots. Parking lots!<div> <br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="420" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/FqodUW5gRniPVBb2mSerhHsEPXZsibSx2P5XoGc7CTOWsKWaCgCv6gzcqqSONdWWb421cMKxLfNc9aojw-xe0OWRmYcd1cj9i_olajQp35-3fw4zrwSYs4uheLQRzTWQ3ATtgVYNQ0PMqwsBCxCno1U=w236-h420" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="236" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Road trip!!</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br />The stars seem to have aligned perfectly for this trip, because at 9am our host family told us the plan was to move to another city for the weekend to see the local once-a-year lantern festival and celebrate the 400th anniversary of the city. So Simone and I packed up our temporary setup and headed to our new, more temporary home in the historic heart of Taiwan, Tainan. I actually was briefly in Tainan for NSIL-Y last summer, where we visited the oldest Confucius temple in Taiwan. Beyond that, we didn’t venture far into the city, so I was excited to see more.<br /><br /><br />Breakfast on the way to Tainan was 燒餅油條, a dish made of my favorite Taiwanese bread, youtiao, wrapped in scallions, sweet and sour hot sauce with chili chips, and a sesame wrapped pastry. Every type of person waited in line with us—from people in suits, to pajamas, and day clothes. We made a pit stop to introduce Simone to the amazing Taiwanese 7-11s (“they’re so clean”). Back on the road, our host mom’s playlist is a mix of romantic Chinese rock, Imagine Dragons, a bunch of rap songs Tyler loves (think kid LAROI, Stay, Mood), and American pop from the 2010s.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="394" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/EARFCT1RUFk1079ky2q9hBFzYa_t0ujl9d0h8cVZt6RFOptQ9-PA63FU0MJdYH94ULBhKdulfGpq9JT5116DJ4rfwQ-Kx6k95iNh22TnalNe_bQ7NG0YP62U4UXNu5Rg3beOW76npdulJK4YzKJHqJc=w296-h394" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="296" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Youtiao breakfast stop!!</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br />After arriving at our home-away-from-home-away-from-home, I ate my new favorite Taiwanese fruit, wax apples (fun fact: native to Malaysia), and watched Simone and Rex play basketball, and later, horse. Some things transcend language.<div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="475" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/XTABfKPCWXWBT9JkbHUNMqdCpQMLFVRB97yr3z_x2v7JS42JsO9G3WARM3295cQV75CqFXHG_7g_w2h13Flc8-qZWVkYQYlTPTmR9hcGfkGIUiEb3tc2a0u0eFJDfmkeI04A376h6gd2O9Nxi7lV5-E=w356-h475" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="356" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Mochi/red bean paste, wax apples, ba la (guava)</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Before hitting the town and lantern festival, I should mention the weather. I’ve been living under the assumption that not only is all Taiwanese weather the same as the most southern city where I lived last summer, but also in a perpetual state of June heat and humidity. This could not be further from the truth. So I unhappily had to commit the egregious aesthetic sin of socks and sandals.<br /><br /><br />We were on our way to the festival when, in classic Violet fashion, I realized I had forgotten to tell my NSLI-Y host family I was back in Taiwan. I reached out to them, and coincidentally they were headed to the same area after the lantern festival to visit Tainan’s largest night market. We coordinated (with my broken mandarin failing me, gave the reins to my Taizhong host mom) to meet at the night market after the festival!<br /><br /><br />An hour out of the festival, we stopped to try a locally delicacy, whose name is long forgotten to me. It was a sort of fishy rice pudding with chunks of pork. Not my cup of tea, but I gave it a shot and mostly ate around the fish goo. My host family implicitly agreed that there’s usually a reason regional delicacies are regional, except for Simone who enjoyed it a lot. I realize again I forgot to take a picture and this time can’t make the excuse that I ate it too fast. Sorry y’all. Next to the festival there was a street side market (really another night market, but instead of in a parking lot like area, it was built into the surrounding streets), where we walked around and ate a ton of Taiwanese desserts (all whose names I don’t know): coffee boba, tiny fluffy chocolate pancakes, strawberries covered in melted sugar, crumbly peanut pastry the texture of baklava, and by far my least favorite, shrimp cakes—which had the same texture as crispy rice waffles with the unfortunately strong flavor of shrimp.<div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="398" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/Yoh6Ap8mjozodNs_q8raumFZcqf2CFQFYioCO6v-OYvRJ9uhdZCrAncxjHyrSstF_0nB0FWyweIs_uwpBEtxWANNlJ4SXBtJRNbmpQEp1aGfW7HwMxkVHtIyDXEDKI5oMzk2pjLB7KURjYVDr53MaG0=w298-h398" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="298" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">A poor excuse--sorry</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="710" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/4cB7onyG9wi00wcHNnCTTDUgYiX-A_nMs3vUwuwP1TnGzqwngMfkE2XqrPUM8hVF3vDc-Tr-W9obFSWAg2Wd3gvqfACg8hp5OPh8pqxfEHgh4kgzzBTGEOfQD9mOjpxk6mkl2vjOz2Op8038rv9r7A0=w533-h710" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="533" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Start of the market</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="892" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/TQ5jEnWQRI1t4soVnsuMJcpTEYkresKCU-g6X1I6fg1PnOPWx1aSO6KVZPL5l43k29StwrqF6vyCDDbkXB9ChK84_lQyqCVHu2ZxcdewM-ets7RqKHM1AgABiTX9X53eFY07BYwe2PXWey_SVWXMXZE=w669-h892" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="669" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Simone (the only other Park student allergic to cats, and therefore we share a host family)!</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="889" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/mYGp1M1uMV9HzqgUXyDzzrlFQ2VRLiPZXwdpocnoeUF7ZIvtX0Ggu6Yu0Tu8AbKu40tfGPy-q0g1-lEI8i74zy2Vga-y-n1Kdu-Pjr-vw8AcxCVhwmcQ7ZfA1gZUbl2SoNbtR3JopqGrP_d52_WjFBg=w667-h889" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="667" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Streetside market</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Munching on deserts, we walked to the cities’ harbor, which looks comfortably like the Baltimore Inner harbor, but cleaner. We then walked through a huge park filled with playgrounds, trees, light up sculptures, and ancient stranger fig trees. Before the festival show, we sat to watch several dance performances, ranging from a quick diablo show to a longer, more interpretive dance which I think was about an identity crisis in the face of extreme culture shock of moving West.<div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="491" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/hUkJ9VlK2SR87lZmrF97h6ACRf8chuiedBcZjX5bATc_UyssL-0GJtZ6YK3bp7TikuIRiRnL_2bkm-PYeuUgxxPjtmZ_rAqLoLahyanXGREPiPLlYT-PnYG3dVZD5wjARZrbqchED01Foe-9AVO4pHM=w655-h491" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="655" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The inner harbor</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="443" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/2fwkAY8vXJnxhTGDCxB-RRo4ZsQ5KpJMgfoVkoZMFCz-kclkcMmjVoqPQCkV9M802KytXW-9Owo9fFMc44uqRGpnurq-lYOzkDPui70NvLf9qoqAEXNhQ1wZbzE9cUQi28ET6feXogDjeE9VmqbvUms=w591-h443" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="591" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Light-up park</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br />The festival show was truly a spectacle worth waiting for. It started off with a literal bang, a fireworks show that would have rivaled Fourth of July in Cross and ended with a drone show that made my night and would have made Grandpa Bulldog’s, too.<div> <br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="449" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/Sc2BmbdvTTJCOeWd9phFJXW6hK3GGAWzSxX5zl2Xn4XnJ_spOXDc9BQ7JJzr2teAWeiGqqmF095641ua-kQ_hgA9YKikglmfKlXz6u2UtQLO5_8eBDWu3GQJnFq4rn9oAP-zLgRgVcAXv-Afbw25_UU=w598-h449" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="598" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Sunset in Tainan</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Lastly, we went to (you guessed it) another night market, the largest in Tainan, where we got dinner and met up with my host family from the summer. The parents immediately hit it off, talking about the program I am in now vs. NSLI-Y. While the kids were shy at first, they ended up warming up and gifted me a Starbucks cup and a new capibara keychain for my bag. Shoutout to An Bo (Ian, one of my NSLI-Y friends), they are so excited for you to return to Taiwan for college and want me to do the same.<div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="649" src="https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/rGGpJHL3F6lJ1yfuusjXO1j-6EkxBuuwVN1FLvVVk84gHVUrZeU0BbF-QwwzxVoGn25EmorDPk2d_5OoTUswm5AzwxoUxvF15264ql45bVN8LRaEt3i9x1tCNej8bmhIdyAH7krVho5VI38UXZwtzA0=w486-h649" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="486" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Final night market</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Back at home, I am super tired, and very happy to be back inside after a long day out. My final note for the day is that my Mandarin really is coming back to me, and I’ve had several moments today where I seemingly pulled phrases and words from nowhere. I’m not sure if it’s Taiwan or the immersion or (hopefully) the food, but there’s something wonderful and satisfying about suddenly remembering how to say “we don’t have to buy more food if you don’t want to”. <br /><br /><br />Thank you and goodnight, and for most of you, have a good rest of your day!</div></div></div></div></div></div>Violethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12655471521148840299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3831558865310136613.post-78043408595675101902024-03-08T21:22:00.003+08:002024-03-09T00:47:20.631+08:00Spring Break in Taiwan: Blogging Take 2Last summer when I wrote a blog about my time in Taiwan, it didn’t really end how I wanted it to (or at all, really). The experiences I had in Taiwan were incredible, and I will forever fondly remember the people I met, the places I visited, and all the Chinese I learned, but the blog didn’t come together in a way that captured that meaningfulness.<br /><br />However, due to my amazing high school (thank you Park), I not only get the chance to revisit one of my most favorite places and experience it in a new light, but also have a chance to continue (and conclude) my high school study abroad journey. So, in the coming ten days, here’s to consistency, and finally, sharing with you a satisfying Taiwan blog ending.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9ME8A6Um2KrAAdkCmWc4ZEA6AZGeu6cuRFeZWLosxuFHspHzTLr_KuUFD5toy6akkBedqyPaTlf-rCEWHaplJ79WMiSc2HylrPO4M3-nKVaxvzcXASOT2c1VFMDg3jcPLYc33QxXdg0YWWVohfK3PRIlcP5CAF5fM_qWH470D0rFk1aTkcBF_8PaOdV8B/s320/IMG_6578%20Small.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="240" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9ME8A6Um2KrAAdkCmWc4ZEA6AZGeu6cuRFeZWLosxuFHspHzTLr_KuUFD5toy6akkBedqyPaTlf-rCEWHaplJ79WMiSc2HylrPO4M3-nKVaxvzcXASOT2c1VFMDg3jcPLYc33QxXdg0YWWVohfK3PRIlcP5CAF5fM_qWH470D0rFk1aTkcBF_8PaOdV8B/s1600/IMG_6578%20Small.png" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">My favorite Taiwanese sign so far</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br />This trip started differently. Instead of a quick goodbye to Mom in BWI and meeting a cohort of unfamiliar faces from across the country, the Park Pack departed from the science wing and crawled through the turnpike up to New York’s JFK. (Fun fact: We are the Park “Bruins.” A group of bears is called a sloth, pack, maul, or sleuth, so I’ll be switching between those.) Thanks to the good company of the Park Sleuth and movie recommendations (Kill Bill–thanks Lucia), the drive went smooth. After checking bags and making it through security (with only a few items lost), the nine students and two teachers boarded the 17 hour flight. Departing the plane, going through Taiwanese customs, and picking up our bags was entirely normal, and also super strange, as it was the same setup as NSLI-Y. The whole situation didn’t even inspire deja vu levels of familiarity; it was just too exactly the same. We even boarded our bus to Taichung in the same parking lot, and listened to our wonderful guide Daphne tell us about Taiwanese culture and history through the bus’s built-in karaoke system.<div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMPON4ExOEJgJnbqylcS073wifbtSOLk6JjInFCjKs-u843zPFBTxsDmDDvvsgFNwJWPNUvukou2K7HOVD6xCgGpI12Thi2TXc4fcleM3xp-bARIUiK1ewenqt9pqnpmSuJcBhfE_xKJ50lnzIuNJwd30VbyoNhb2zrJ85KuTgSuKsrXmhQQpV-g5F2EOc/s320/IMG_6571%20Small.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="240" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMPON4ExOEJgJnbqylcS073wifbtSOLk6JjInFCjKs-u843zPFBTxsDmDDvvsgFNwJWPNUvukou2K7HOVD6xCgGpI12Thi2TXc4fcleM3xp-bARIUiK1ewenqt9pqnpmSuJcBhfE_xKJ50lnzIuNJwd30VbyoNhb2zrJ85KuTgSuKsrXmhQQpV-g5F2EOc/s1600/IMG_6571%20Small.png" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Baggage claim</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKOycn1MgorHwkHfTHxYBs-vRNA554UaUGanRdIkDHqdet39CKsIZU3A-VHShbStWxGVgAFx5oLoRKcHTvOSfkK8hGwmJ1s4mznu-VIyeBKGAhgBdvKGqieOcrlKWrOvdekI_2dxucrTcz4uYdOnKeqElTXsE_KVOTvbab50W7lNNQBCidkvyABHN4A9JU/s320/IMG_6572%20Small.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="240" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKOycn1MgorHwkHfTHxYBs-vRNA554UaUGanRdIkDHqdet39CKsIZU3A-VHShbStWxGVgAFx5oLoRKcHTvOSfkK8hGwmJ1s4mznu-VIyeBKGAhgBdvKGqieOcrlKWrOvdekI_2dxucrTcz4uYdOnKeqElTXsE_KVOTvbab50W7lNNQBCidkvyABHN4A9JU/s1600/IMG_6572%20Small.png" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The place my NSLI-Y cohort took our first photo</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /><br />It was jarring how quickly we were out of the US and thrown into Taiwan. In NSLI-Y, it felt like I was anticipating the switch, probably due to the all day two day orientation pre departure. But the switch here was like falling asleep in my home bedroom while packing and waking up at Hong Wen, our exchange school. And yes–we went directly from a full day at school to a 5 hour bus ride to a 17 hour plane ride to a 2 hour drive to our host school.</div><div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX9lFAeqsCoNEXV2uI4GkMB9k-D9J2Tq7ftpMHQPT9K_cbcNl3dtjcYfCPIUVcMFc6IqECj82SFlgkvCFcrq_OqVYNKUtCHS0f7FyMQTKp5uXQ42uNKHnOiV3p6xhzl9kHWGDu5Fer868PgIDOeVDSQOSQGmVdKXpmjiij0piegkj3SfqL_Mzy0dbc6qK6/s320/IMG_6576%20Small.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="240" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiX9lFAeqsCoNEXV2uI4GkMB9k-D9J2Tq7ftpMHQPT9K_cbcNl3dtjcYfCPIUVcMFc6IqECj82SFlgkvCFcrq_OqVYNKUtCHS0f7FyMQTKp5uXQ42uNKHnOiV3p6xhzl9kHWGDu5Fer868PgIDOeVDSQOSQGmVdKXpmjiij0piegkj3SfqL_Mzy0dbc6qK6/s1600/IMG_6576%20Small.png" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Drive to school</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br />The first thing I noticed is how excited the Taiwanese students are to show us their school, with about four times as many Taiwanese exchange kids as us showing us around. The second thing was that everyone's English is really, really good. After a quick orientation, we split off into random groups and walked around the school, popping into classrooms, saying hi to students, and generally being the bubbly, walking circus act that teenagers become in new environments. Several members of the Park Maul had super sweet fangirls/boys ask for pictures and instagrams.</div><div><br /><div><br />I ended up being bribed with a single piece of Toblerone chocolate to hang out with an awesome group of Taiwanese seniors. When the school took us to the local night market (at 1:30 in the afternoon), I hung out with this group. This ended up totally being the right call, as my claw machine skills were rusty at best and embarrassing at worst, and my new friends won me a new keychain for my purse. We celebrated with fried chicken, squid, potato-like starchy vegetables, fresh fruit, and more fresh fruit covered in melted sugar. Back at school, we Park Sleuths said our goodbyes, and Simone and I departed with our host family.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzp7kUh7JsluKiunnqgMat5joHHr1M0wz82wJkL1xEFqgr-H3WapCOcKaK_rbBJ6yDXF9KZkHCFr8nw0LXZ7ddsK5zncbZ9z2dikI2Te3rxV9KInRPRYRKj7YCw29NiyTUHyvTFWCvw8Fw_61I7JCoSrodx-sa8UmeD0uEOpy3pjGM40_A8J4Da3t7cz4v/s320/IMG_6579%20Small.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="240" data-original-width="320" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzp7kUh7JsluKiunnqgMat5joHHr1M0wz82wJkL1xEFqgr-H3WapCOcKaK_rbBJ6yDXF9KZkHCFr8nw0LXZ7ddsK5zncbZ9z2dikI2Te3rxV9KInRPRYRKj7YCw29NiyTUHyvTFWCvw8Fw_61I7JCoSrodx-sa8UmeD0uEOpy3pjGM40_A8J4Da3t7cz4v/s1600/IMG_6579%20Small.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Park and Hong Wen students<br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Our host family took us to a real (larger and actually at night) night market and bought us a ton more fresh fruit and some local Taiwanese desserts that I hadn’t seen before. As a side note, Simone and I need to look up the word for ‘share’, as somewhere the phrase ‘we’ll share one’ got lost in translation and our host mom generously bought almost double the food we could eat.<br /><br /><br />It was then on the car ride home that the jetlag really started to take effect. Simone and I spent the better part of twenty minutes elbowing each other out of sleep before our 7th grade host sister, Emma, took us out for late night caffeinated boba. After the caffeine started to set in, we enjoyed some of the best duck I have ever eaten, rolled into rice tortillas with a sweet and sour sauce.<br /><br /><br />Now, I’m sitting here, finishing off my midnight boba and wax apples, and thinking about how amazing it will be to shower and get out of the clothes that I’ve been wearing for the last 40 hours. I’m excited to say that even early into this trip, I am proud of how much Mandarin I’ve maintained. And I’m super excited to see where the next week will take me and the Park Sleuth’s.<br /><br /><br />I think I’ll go take that shower now.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuNg-3f7mXgfrrSF5jXwitNCO0nxbedc0y9BVofIOyTwaStBwL7pOrB4mxZ22H0gR430ef_OwS1BEu99bMCxAM9_zuo9EcC5_n1k58eX3H-vSAARxoTlvnnfv96b217Fn03Ev9FwZKhdxc_hI-EdIFn3KzWkP3dSo9BAIWdbCTbrk0ghICGLKOLriIlBKX/s320/IMG_6577%20Small.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="180" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuNg-3f7mXgfrrSF5jXwitNCO0nxbedc0y9BVofIOyTwaStBwL7pOrB4mxZ22H0gR430ef_OwS1BEu99bMCxAM9_zuo9EcC5_n1k58eX3H-vSAARxoTlvnnfv96b217Fn03Ev9FwZKhdxc_hI-EdIFn3KzWkP3dSo9BAIWdbCTbrk0ghICGLKOLriIlBKX/s1600/IMG_6577%20Small.png" width="180" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Me and Simone in our room</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><br /><br /><br /></div></div></div>Violethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12655471521148840299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3831558865310136613.post-67694296937568871822023-07-31T22:02:00.000+08:002023-07-31T22:02:00.924+08:00Beautiful Lakes and Bogs: Excursion Weekend!<p><span style="font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;">In good Taiwan news, I’m finally adjusted to everyday life here. Unfortunately, this also means I’m now finding it pretty difficult to pinpoint exactly what I want to write about day to day. So instead of grasping at straws to try and describe my everyday experience (which will be coming soon), I’ll talk about a more standout experience: the cohort excursion to Nantou, Sun Moon Lake. </span></p><span id="docs-internal-guid-7300ada4-7fff-f4b8-38c2-63ed88d25c79"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPj-fFG8dNfKZ8EU7Zp6AqDTN99I2AyJlZjdffdRRSGx-T9zH2n_YielP1iEfTCxqz1m0sLu9w5eH_hBqmJYRko_X57xQb5ELp4YsUeRDaHY-K27ZURz-4RocxFAZblzL7vbTOPjDwPBLVI2ZUbqIoF9D-bCoy5oSQPMuCVa3tdjHgtEqp1gg-H5HP_W2g/s4032/IMG_5810.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPj-fFG8dNfKZ8EU7Zp6AqDTN99I2AyJlZjdffdRRSGx-T9zH2n_YielP1iEfTCxqz1m0sLu9w5eH_hBqmJYRko_X57xQb5ELp4YsUeRDaHY-K27ZURz-4RocxFAZblzL7vbTOPjDwPBLVI2ZUbqIoF9D-bCoy5oSQPMuCVa3tdjHgtEqp1gg-H5HP_W2g/s320/IMG_5810.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Sun Moon Lake, in all it's glory</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The first day started off very exciting, with me realizing I had forgotten to pack the night before. After scrambling to throw all the needed things for a two day trip in my bag, I rushed out of the dorm and remembered I also had forgotten to buy breakfast the night before. Not to worry, thanks to some Trader Joe's granola bars (thank you San Francisco) I had plenty of food. As the bus ride was going to be a couple hours, I planned to finish my homework early. Naturally, I immediately fell asleep. </span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7LWpt6MPyn13a3Mwrbb460T8kfRmh63lD8R_RATp3msDslxoPuS9AOlp9yJPbo5QZ9nGajcWdrnvM_Okf4UlYKAKtrmsngs0XA67q-MTEmuXoY-67T13mL8MU3X-O9-k9e4pesWcz5mVDTAPGSJ4eQMMGwdZRLmgjdMeyPGtn3Ksb80b7u8sK2-hKGkRq/s4032/IMG_5766.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7LWpt6MPyn13a3Mwrbb460T8kfRmh63lD8R_RATp3msDslxoPuS9AOlp9yJPbo5QZ9nGajcWdrnvM_Okf4UlYKAKtrmsngs0XA67q-MTEmuXoY-67T13mL8MU3X-O9-k9e4pesWcz5mVDTAPGSJ4eQMMGwdZRLmgjdMeyPGtn3Ksb80b7u8sK2-hKGkRq/s320/IMG_5766.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Bus ride on the edge of the lake</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div><span style="font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Y_SUjGuJtoXmVBRou7FHDkEUqeqRAnS4atvd0ln6Ji9WXRRR1xibpPw6oZyn-XpCvE3ZxYjoAuOSmxfjvtkpi_NrIWVDa5HExTrSRl-TKMlA9G4SiWy4qS3RBSPKheRAp1_C6dBFR6X9qY7qBuOEjduZJIXok2qw5hM8djTI7Ug-pBpWDEpqMvV-deJs/s4032/IMG_5758.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7Y_SUjGuJtoXmVBRou7FHDkEUqeqRAnS4atvd0ln6Ji9WXRRR1xibpPw6oZyn-XpCvE3ZxYjoAuOSmxfjvtkpi_NrIWVDa5HExTrSRl-TKMlA9G4SiWy4qS3RBSPKheRAp1_C6dBFR6X9qY7qBuOEjduZJIXok2qw5hM8djTI7Ug-pBpWDEpqMvV-deJs/s320/IMG_5758.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Favorite sign at the winery, where their products are obviously the best chooise.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Our first stop on the trip was visiting a winery. I know, it sounds a little strange, bringing people who were least likely to enjoy a tourist spot centered around alcohol… to the alcohol centered tourist spot. Fortunately the place had planned for this, and we all enjoyed traditional Taiwanese wine sausages, obviously alcohol free. I bought some potions (juice in potion shaped bottles) and watched helplessly as my friend got tactically pressured into buying candy by a very insistent salesman who kept offering samples saying “You’re American! Try! You can try!” After the unfortunate incident, we rolled back to the bus and headed for the next stop, traditional tea making. There we rolled, fermented, and dried our own tea leaves, and packaged them with custom stamps. I’ll leave a picture here as I’m honestly not quite sure what they all say. </span></div><div><span><br /></span></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPGEWKS1eB_elFg_aO3TW4xwa64hVDR5NRi2L8OJMmn08XHuRUNlzkcvLQX4sVu9U5TZB4ywXr1gCmzAqUjBhbS7O26dWB6PtoZnXsd7XA2naffqmuqnhnVf0pWUiN4vPJEIkfGqceavKvWWbUiXYHNc-GyQeUSdG0AYeSPybBSENNHe-Nd1JD5MXTQzMP/s4032/IMG_5759.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPGEWKS1eB_elFg_aO3TW4xwa64hVDR5NRi2L8OJMmn08XHuRUNlzkcvLQX4sVu9U5TZB4ywXr1gCmzAqUjBhbS7O26dWB6PtoZnXsd7XA2naffqmuqnhnVf0pWUiN4vPJEIkfGqceavKvWWbUiXYHNc-GyQeUSdG0AYeSPybBSENNHe-Nd1JD5MXTQzMP/s320/IMG_5759.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Inside, where we rolled tea leaves on flat baskets</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk5kKmhMbKWr4j6ZgDtn-FU29fwyQ9coXFBww1H7lQttriv7oeydkAfSItUBxZRrpNrxLD6cNw8JXyA_N1phiDBdkpAidlkiY0lOyRorUn1QR2Ic4GinqgnOMvN_7BYWXnUp_UA4cGBrrWrijy0N0SGxh1hFKg77bfVE-yKnURa6_YgpAveylAMV1D2xQZ/s4032/IMG_5761.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjk5kKmhMbKWr4j6ZgDtn-FU29fwyQ9coXFBww1H7lQttriv7oeydkAfSItUBxZRrpNrxLD6cNw8JXyA_N1phiDBdkpAidlkiY0lOyRorUn1QR2Ic4GinqgnOMvN_7BYWXnUp_UA4cGBrrWrijy0N0SGxh1hFKg77bfVE-yKnURa6_YgpAveylAMV1D2xQZ/s320/IMG_5761.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Outside rows of squash grow</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJcI8X0YjoMqcJMo7Aa9fVxClAN7FhhWh_ECuET1MPN41YQFkSpRYDJqKQlTnAKlCf_iSE5W2npSPPLidlIZzfDs8XH_TKtr8Qtlmi1lenY8Ik93yyvE1e4Q0HT6zERm0lSjnpWulHkszy-f1gyEONSf1wxZi8EJ-9KMlm4IFxkrdxfYD-fCSXdxzvwNsL/s4032/IMG_5763.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJcI8X0YjoMqcJMo7Aa9fVxClAN7FhhWh_ECuET1MPN41YQFkSpRYDJqKQlTnAKlCf_iSE5W2npSPPLidlIZzfDs8XH_TKtr8Qtlmi1lenY8Ik93yyvE1e4Q0HT6zERm0lSjnpWulHkszy-f1gyEONSf1wxZi8EJ-9KMlm4IFxkrdxfYD-fCSXdxzvwNsL/s320/IMG_5763.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Outside, just plain beautiful</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigJVnttddSPDszsLrMi2E9t1ft7PzSGvCaGHUZ0z1vuDjNTeo5eQGDgUV3TBeOsuAvZb7oG2xeXrQ1VTvVtxR8XeGzBELu_ZVfeW8OEM8zxfm0WnX53wtG6IeK4Xp2xijNhqI6Iaha3_JujIVToxgJ59SOW0ynJxEBcVsV0ZwFRZ9UkDfrf1MZdrvq0v4x/s4032/IMG_5760.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigJVnttddSPDszsLrMi2E9t1ft7PzSGvCaGHUZ0z1vuDjNTeo5eQGDgUV3TBeOsuAvZb7oG2xeXrQ1VTvVtxR8XeGzBELu_ZVfeW8OEM8zxfm0WnX53wtG6IeK4Xp2xijNhqI6Iaha3_JujIVToxgJ59SOW0ynJxEBcVsV0ZwFRZ9UkDfrf1MZdrvq0v4x/s320/IMG_5760.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Our lunch, 火锅, hot pot, where you put meats, vegetables, noodles, and anything else into a boiling pot of water to cook food and make a soup at the same time.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisqGzOcPJIu8BaCNQ4mtGUOdVvGCREoFUoBkxkQvpI990QwJPCYjKdK-UKqaBUVmioSz-k_Bylb3NY9wnNi2psN7nRsaj7-YjyRHEyCarJzTwqw-QcMTT1Hjf1BAMCUVqpyUmU48Q8wANVtRQZiBrhn40iYb_S9Z5l5kMlKEkqwJ1IXAIH5lPxksYByhZV/s4032/IMG_5919.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisqGzOcPJIu8BaCNQ4mtGUOdVvGCREoFUoBkxkQvpI990QwJPCYjKdK-UKqaBUVmioSz-k_Bylb3NY9wnNi2psN7nRsaj7-YjyRHEyCarJzTwqw-QcMTT1Hjf1BAMCUVqpyUmU48Q8wANVtRQZiBrhn40iYb_S9Z5l5kMlKEkqwJ1IXAIH5lPxksYByhZV/s320/IMG_5919.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The teabag with mysterious but well spaced stamps</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-size: 11pt;">One of the simple highlights of this trip was the driving. Personally, I don’t love being behind the wheel, but riding in a car is one of my favorite daily things. It’s a time where I don’t have to stress, work, or do much of anything (unless I’m on a field hockey trip, Dad), and can just think, relax, and look at the scenery. I loved these drives because the scenery was downright incredible: past small towns, through fields, and finally to the edge of Sun Moon lake. From there, between excursions all the driving was around the lake, and pictures of this place don’t even do it justice. The entire lake is a collage of jewel toned blues and greens, ringed by mountains touching the clouds and a lush jungle. Dotted among the trees are a mix of centuries-old temples and modern tourism cities. One of the most fascinating things about this lake is that everyone is completely prohibited from swimming in the lake year round, except for one day where a 2 mile race is held. I’m not sure if that’s what is keeping the lake so utterly gorgeous, but I’m in favor of maintaining that tradition in case that’s what it is.</span></span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">We then briefly visited the Sun Moon Lake visitors center, which is exactly what it sounds like, a place for tourists to stop and take gorgeous photos of the lake from an opportune spot. I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves even if they can’t quite do it justice. </span></p><div><span><br /></span></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL-EJZN0wpNolUj9gv--npk5adIPtb0Eum6QIleJoSjdBVO_D2pkPYBmLYpZnaCMeV0j0281lcFetWVCY87LrnjYmB_P9TiCL4KrHHD6IEkkYnxxiQbasiq79N-jqWDfDJJ3h0jYaWEomdE7yoaM4t2UTFFhM9R_ZnFnpPw6ldKB9fHCbippCepl2erEim/s4032/IMG_5768.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL-EJZN0wpNolUj9gv--npk5adIPtb0Eum6QIleJoSjdBVO_D2pkPYBmLYpZnaCMeV0j0281lcFetWVCY87LrnjYmB_P9TiCL4KrHHD6IEkkYnxxiQbasiq79N-jqWDfDJJ3h0jYaWEomdE7yoaM4t2UTFFhM9R_ZnFnpPw6ldKB9fHCbippCepl2erEim/s320/IMG_5768.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">On the drive, rain is brewing</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKCSYelAj96oVFe5MEcRcEmdBS3tbBHvCBobS_tV7f-7z2Q4LV28m8MPDn9hlxunti9Bp_cgDRwC3vGQD1Ke5-Bm8tEt-OwUYfryTmhwZGcF8rudrRG-ksoO0JU2Tbf_ZkFAcV49Yq9DzvkVIXPlXIorLkfaTeOWlO4Trgg_CfSqdFQxdPwuwn__RbHIa1/s4032/IMG_5770.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKCSYelAj96oVFe5MEcRcEmdBS3tbBHvCBobS_tV7f-7z2Q4LV28m8MPDn9hlxunti9Bp_cgDRwC3vGQD1Ke5-Bm8tEt-OwUYfryTmhwZGcF8rudrRG-ksoO0JU2Tbf_ZkFAcV49Yq9DzvkVIXPlXIorLkfaTeOWlO4Trgg_CfSqdFQxdPwuwn__RbHIa1/s320/IMG_5770.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">At the visitors center</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6U-H4Kh368vKk1sPnsSaWmzquc612vtwGPXh4b4ESJFgjopiX7Gjtc6uDKXFeX3wKubXADXtJqTAPEUseX6srsp4cwmmv3YxzqjhZFt2sFIyVmzRE7s0WlDKODTqg68HSj0XEflzSmsTyIxLKe4J9IDQ3H9X-j-jeBHiZsF0WJTZXEeXl7cleui9GSJtM/s4032/IMG_5772.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh6U-H4Kh368vKk1sPnsSaWmzquc612vtwGPXh4b4ESJFgjopiX7Gjtc6uDKXFeX3wKubXADXtJqTAPEUseX6srsp4cwmmv3YxzqjhZFt2sFIyVmzRE7s0WlDKODTqg68HSj0XEflzSmsTyIxLKe4J9IDQ3H9X-j-jeBHiZsF0WJTZXEeXl7cleui9GSJtM/s320/IMG_5772.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">And more</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmnji5XNGuzcHvIIopVViBQp88Kec0i9R1bSgZnEPn89CPHPbZeDCUFqKOcTcd7D0uddMu3x0KrM1GKpnhEuSMAFlwTRpPM7feaxdxE5aPPwH8rVVOvOgIwrWTBprSoL-Gdv80Oeg3TLuRKwdh2b2Cw7pmVKGj-7pytkum4ROp8NUxDcdymUrYfpKl64Cl/s4032/IMG_5778.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmnji5XNGuzcHvIIopVViBQp88Kec0i9R1bSgZnEPn89CPHPbZeDCUFqKOcTcd7D0uddMu3x0KrM1GKpnhEuSMAFlwTRpPM7feaxdxE5aPPwH8rVVOvOgIwrWTBprSoL-Gdv80Oeg3TLuRKwdh2b2Cw7pmVKGj-7pytkum4ROp8NUxDcdymUrYfpKl64Cl/s320/IMG_5778.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The highest observation deck</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">En route to the next stop the overcast skies broke and it began to rain. In Baltimore, we have some pretty intense rains but they are always short and sweet. In Taiwan, we get those same intense rains, amped up a notch and for ten times as long, oftentimes occupied by bouts of wind. Needless to say, it was a little precarious arriving at our next stop, a gorgeous four hundred year old temple, and we all gratefully grabbed a NSLI-Y provided poncho along with our umbrellas (thank you Kai and Matt). Even with the rain, the temple was spectacular. Perhaps even more so with the weather, it provided a specific exciting atmosphere that’s hard to emulate. I wandered around some of the larger halls, admiring the presteined (and later I learned newly renovated) intricate murals, colors, and carvings. As the clouds dispersed and the rain subsided to a drizzle, a group of us naturally convened at the top of the temple to admire the view, and feed some surprisingly rabid koi fish. Again, I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves.</span></p><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4VA_TQDi5yUdMrAtka2Fe4Ul5ccdzF5Y0h7R9Pm9VogH5_BhnNbYKcO-lCJ6MSqk_nA7GRt2-YD35db9MwMqF1raf04D-xMuXClYqwKiGc1lvfTIMvzwWsHB17gItkUHLTkHPDq-CPS2saRsWOLt8YwCO16INCvP0ws8iVUkTigYf7T7Gl3W0XmZjdeUD/s4032/IMG_5780.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4VA_TQDi5yUdMrAtka2Fe4Ul5ccdzF5Y0h7R9Pm9VogH5_BhnNbYKcO-lCJ6MSqk_nA7GRt2-YD35db9MwMqF1raf04D-xMuXClYqwKiGc1lvfTIMvzwWsHB17gItkUHLTkHPDq-CPS2saRsWOLt8YwCO16INCvP0ws8iVUkTigYf7T7Gl3W0XmZjdeUD/s320/IMG_5780.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg71YpuEX_BDWrKYOaQ6hT1Ks2eBkTQHX_9Ikazkzf-pTygB07IhtzPIA1OokVei9lts9RInUOSSF8DreZjFsrL4oXOiJLRIEv8g3CxQDokxz8Okrv3MTfKH1oX0eMcvkmRWJt1WOrYgALf6KIfR7ycJCAYACPHxX4PmYTS6ZNI213yXGGDjfdUxY3qVxsH/s4032/IMG_5781.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="325" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg71YpuEX_BDWrKYOaQ6hT1Ks2eBkTQHX_9Ikazkzf-pTygB07IhtzPIA1OokVei9lts9RInUOSSF8DreZjFsrL4oXOiJLRIEv8g3CxQDokxz8Okrv3MTfKH1oX0eMcvkmRWJt1WOrYgALf6KIfR7ycJCAYACPHxX4PmYTS6ZNI213yXGGDjfdUxY3qVxsH/w244-h325/IMG_5781.JPG" width="244" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGgi6nSfPNLI48pCNt60Dq0WDJgqVOQmCYSUg4i6DOmfpAhvzyQV6K0t2GcXp_sfVf64U1Qj7aOrDfgLVKYJT4RpWA3tE2zR9WzUCoEsptoEAMzNE3j5ZuX7t-CZW0FqPvcIZFgThpk0T7lyZktX5h_cnITVqcVYSBG8BM65axvO-4q61MZFSK_U-YJO2t/s3088/IMG_5783.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3088" data-original-width="2316" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGgi6nSfPNLI48pCNt60Dq0WDJgqVOQmCYSUg4i6DOmfpAhvzyQV6K0t2GcXp_sfVf64U1Qj7aOrDfgLVKYJT4RpWA3tE2zR9WzUCoEsptoEAMzNE3j5ZuX7t-CZW0FqPvcIZFgThpk0T7lyZktX5h_cnITVqcVYSBG8BM65axvO-4q61MZFSK_U-YJO2t/w150-h200/IMG_5783.JPG" width="150" /></a></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA0qlFPDG_qwRSQcuyYYmVQk5-N8i5BdEo4Gufkg7o1VZbAt0MwkBBbn2tX640cg0CJlw1jM3ndHEg4g0SgOP3xpFosVwhhFeGyFuA8ldBoImTZufNBAWwRdzmGBi3TenQkYrYYU4SFHnQ_AHZNIYINC4zAXjcK_WcbpP9kjxx8Mz5jI1keJJ3-IKoEeP9/s4032/IMG_5782.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; 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margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK941wyUENGLEnC8pD6mRakJWfBh36EMA1C_rn9nd1L562i2Fq4Ooqo2vCyP4xoHcU2tOwUWZjbihJjqjhIXcTZmkck11wnME-vVGPsAGWqYXFKD7AdjokUvax3ded9lyqyRZSDV8Cj1ZUffntZm_NdVMRClPdM7AAc5GgnFcOF_Ag9_0tkEl24yW9m3O1/s320/IMG_5800.JPG" width="320" /></a></div></div><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjixfFBAZmPxWCn9JkhLkTFZhfKUb4NVfIRcDIsbNE6c7MW2x2d4q5kND54wtDuwFDP1KyhxDY3Koh1RZcFRwo2nA0lMCVNUkROVN16Z1dAhBEZpFQPj-CQQLG8zicKPfGsCWaOAuET77MOj3ZErtaGTqzHqYFTyKdxBoeywYgx5hq-qo_c0NYqrh49M4aR/s4032/IMG_5807.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; font-size: medium; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center; white-space-collapse: collapse;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjixfFBAZmPxWCn9JkhLkTFZhfKUb4NVfIRcDIsbNE6c7MW2x2d4q5kND54wtDuwFDP1KyhxDY3Koh1RZcFRwo2nA0lMCVNUkROVN16Z1dAhBEZpFQPj-CQQLG8zicKPfGsCWaOAuET77MOj3ZErtaGTqzHqYFTyKdxBoeywYgx5hq-qo_c0NYqrh49M4aR/s320/IMG_5807.JPG" width="240" /></a><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"></span><span style="font-size: 11pt; white-space-collapse: preserve;">After a long day of the sun (and rain) I was very happy to arrive at the hotel. We were staying at a cute and clean hotel in a ‘mini city’ situated directly next to the lake. I say ‘mini city’ because the size of the area was more akin to a town, but because of the strange mix of tall hotel buildings, apartments, and tourist spots it felt like we were staying in an upscale model of a real city. Or like someone had taken a chunk out of a touristy part of a city and placed it directly next to the lake. After a quick recharge a group of us decided to hit the local night market which quickly became another highlight of the day. We spent a few hours eating the best doughnuts, cabbage buns, and ice cream, and blew a little too much NTD on the totally rigged Taiwanese claw machines. To end the night we practically skipped down to the pier and enjoyed the last few rays of sunshine cresting the mountains across the eerie but beautiful lake. Me and my roommate returned happy and full, and ended up watching X-Men Apocalypse (after talking about mutual appreciation for the superhero format), before calling it a night.</span></p><div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4XCUMJNGJrzb1HUjjPNk04Uln9UEoBsEG86-lfqXcGaTOTJBbmLwWAUdv6l5EXVUH3UMgbR3PTyriOBB9VzYw6DojmYQRuJ1bxQNYYaua135XEr7-cys0g57h33jCTBIuxpjtvWdQCH89UZOrMZor9Swzse53g6geh8AjpFJoFZe8Wf2sGAxW8FwN3tHv/s4032/IMG_5808.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4XCUMJNGJrzb1HUjjPNk04Uln9UEoBsEG86-lfqXcGaTOTJBbmLwWAUdv6l5EXVUH3UMgbR3PTyriOBB9VzYw6DojmYQRuJ1bxQNYYaua135XEr7-cys0g57h33jCTBIuxpjtvWdQCH89UZOrMZor9Swzse53g6geh8AjpFJoFZe8Wf2sGAxW8FwN3tHv/s320/IMG_5808.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Another awesome english translation</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /></div><div><br /></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6Fna-IwlvvWmLzPTl-yVaC3ZecMclLTRub2169x3pzRB2i4YCCELdD1Ku_8p_y2UMhTrEOgFuMFj7xRtOH8iuqG4IcqmNtrIkrvAFwLSVpQ1-VxgAwIN7mRlhCED4PHApWT9xOYwLhLFreFC_v_sTqCKE6pPpA71IaWS2E1f4oL2GjM-rHrUb3FS-sFUa/s4032/IMG_5809.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6Fna-IwlvvWmLzPTl-yVaC3ZecMclLTRub2169x3pzRB2i4YCCELdD1Ku_8p_y2UMhTrEOgFuMFj7xRtOH8iuqG4IcqmNtrIkrvAFwLSVpQ1-VxgAwIN7mRlhCED4PHApWT9xOYwLhLFreFC_v_sTqCKE6pPpA71IaWS2E1f4oL2GjM-rHrUb3FS-sFUa/s320/IMG_5809.JPG" width="320" /></a><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">The next day dawned and I enjoyed a quiet breakfast at the hotel, chowing down on a mix of fruits, Taiwanese breads, noodles, and dumplings. We started the day off strong (and hot) with a boat cruise on Sun Moon Lake spotted with smaller excursions. Being on the lake was somehow more gorgeous than observing it. It reminded me a lot of Cross (the lake my grandparents used to live on) if Cross had jewel colored water and water surrounded by ethereal mountains. Okay maybe on second thought not super reminiscent of Cross, but flying over the water on a boat sort of was (again if the boat was not a pontoon). Our first stop after a short climb was a small temple where we drank tea (that I later learned had been fermented for about twice my lifespan) with a very friendly monk, who afterwards was so excited about meeting Americans who could speak Mandarin took out his phone for a video of us reciting a good luck chant. Back to the boat, and arriving at the port, we walked through a different ‘mini city’ to our bus. We went to another tea farm, but this time the experience was much more catered around tourism and shopping. I ended up buying an incredible amount of tea for the price I paid, including tea for making bubble tea at home. </span></p><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji3lobx_t3Rx4c_J1JTONa0fw1qjd3R20MnjAWWXvDm4M8AFfOMmYqUMTNGmpOzh7zLeK1GrOSOa9HEC8inWGMbgYGwLGuqC2JCTMIkRPH02NaE-TJA4CJHK48vy2zWzxUwMfCy4MwjBP0dKt2gMeRg80EG5414fi8XvqsXzkXQcUUTHg9-3Z9NG-7-7wY/s4032/IMG_5811.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji3lobx_t3Rx4c_J1JTONa0fw1qjd3R20MnjAWWXvDm4M8AFfOMmYqUMTNGmpOzh7zLeK1GrOSOa9HEC8inWGMbgYGwLGuqC2JCTMIkRPH02NaE-TJA4CJHK48vy2zWzxUwMfCy4MwjBP0dKt2gMeRg80EG5414fi8XvqsXzkXQcUUTHg9-3Z9NG-7-7wY/s320/IMG_5811.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Leaving our mini city in the distance</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo77MDswWrK2hj3mf3wNyzUyJxyr3oVLhTsURYDUUZ1hQbSrZJ3q91kKsoEk4gaZCjB2Hi5FIYV52w6AHhJPlPSa9sm9wfDjWalqPcta4-od5a6Ah-4cAH4IfOaK_Iey1bu6myG_uW9qpPJ9_hdZaGxRm9OAbcFYt6JxgYSCyNkp0OWFd1OMq8H6yLZnO-/s4032/IMG_5812.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo77MDswWrK2hj3mf3wNyzUyJxyr3oVLhTsURYDUUZ1hQbSrZJ3q91kKsoEk4gaZCjB2Hi5FIYV52w6AHhJPlPSa9sm9wfDjWalqPcta4-od5a6Ah-4cAH4IfOaK_Iey1bu6myG_uW9qpPJ9_hdZaGxRm9OAbcFYt6JxgYSCyNkp0OWFd1OMq8H6yLZnO-/s320/IMG_5812.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">...and an even farther distance...</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbPZ6QP0PUZLAxeB9mX8Jc8xQ8SKHGBgVLN4slS22aMLG3Qck1qegAj9WpvgU9AwGvd3LcKc4A-SyXlWzrr57nXIfv0NF8cmuxiQKzBOtwOB-Go9BZAwY-70kG_6sBYn8VAwu_d5h_s3dPvM6J5xA37hXCfksuKI-gKvjBuHu3LPGglrnyOjVPf1q040p5/s4032/IMG_5813.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbPZ6QP0PUZLAxeB9mX8Jc8xQ8SKHGBgVLN4slS22aMLG3Qck1qegAj9WpvgU9AwGvd3LcKc4A-SyXlWzrr57nXIfv0NF8cmuxiQKzBOtwOB-Go9BZAwY-70kG_6sBYn8VAwu_d5h_s3dPvM6J5xA37hXCfksuKI-gKvjBuHu3LPGglrnyOjVPf1q040p5/s320/IMG_5813.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My precariously perched tea, freshly purchased!</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy83hS1qfq5drgzvCpvLAKJmZFJD1feEG3JraPxnh5GjXT49-GBEToofa-sZ9jtb0T_S3C-i2sp_jUGE5bj54Jndpv5Heq7RiafNd69eN-Y1QJ5aV-G8jxkMsZxDxQLa-1WQ2fZGBpL_bDWraqNTgIrTjl5qa9MkduN9K2tUYO7ECxJ1fH1t-IR1Xu5M_z/s4032/IMG_5815.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy83hS1qfq5drgzvCpvLAKJmZFJD1feEG3JraPxnh5GjXT49-GBEToofa-sZ9jtb0T_S3C-i2sp_jUGE5bj54Jndpv5Heq7RiafNd69eN-Y1QJ5aV-G8jxkMsZxDxQLa-1WQ2fZGBpL_bDWraqNTgIrTjl5qa9MkduN9K2tUYO7ECxJ1fH1t-IR1Xu5M_z/s320/IMG_5815.JPG" width="320" /></a></span></div><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Next stop was lunch. We drove out of the winding mountain roads into a valley housing farm fields–mostly different types of gourds and cucumbers. Lunch was a fairly standard spread, rice, noodles, boiled vegetables (eggplant, Chinese cabbage, mushrooms), and a few types of meat. The plan was to head to a local wetland, but it initially was unsafely hot to be outside, so we made tea tree soap from the local farm’s supply. This was particularly ironic as after our soap had boiled and set, it started to rain again. Not quite as hard but there were definitely some groans as now we were actually headed to the wetlands. The trip (at least I thought) was super fun. Our first stop in our newly fitted rain gear was a demonstration of how deep some seemingly innocent patches of water were, with our guide managing to shove a fifteen foot pole into a puddle only about as large as a coffee table. The next leg of the trip, which was met with extremely mixed responses afterwards, was an ‘obstacle’ course through the wetlands. The most fun part was the entire cohort realizing halfway through that it was in fact an obstacle course, a path through the bog that wound directly back to where we started, not a hike to a cool spot. The start of the ‘trail’ consisted of patches of semi-solid ground, about half a meter across, surrounded by inconspicuous mud-quicksand and grass. Further along, it got more tricky, as the partially stable mud ground was replaced with soggy wooden boards balanced precariously on a mud and water mix, which would certainly give way to a misplaced step. And many people misplaced their steps, with a total of five NSLI-Y students either breaking the seal on their rain boots or submerging a leg. Fortunately no one was (seriously) injured, and although we were mostly confused as to why we went in a circle around a swamp, it was altogether a fun trip.</span><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbU-cAHszV6wZT_Kn8EZIEOLqM-JT-5ffxurY_jnW5SFhZ4XvEPUFhrICd3ueZ9DIRuIjQ54lwRoD7PzqEoruCczr6Nw2P4vP5QO0oggoM3CYZyKaFGHxwVtIrq7tR4u2C0hQPbF8TsQlc2ovGQx1TyAuRyg0EheDXlj1itL_ZeMH8a-KkT8E-vxi_7p4x/s4032/IMG_5816.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbU-cAHszV6wZT_Kn8EZIEOLqM-JT-5ffxurY_jnW5SFhZ4XvEPUFhrICd3ueZ9DIRuIjQ54lwRoD7PzqEoruCczr6Nw2P4vP5QO0oggoM3CYZyKaFGHxwVtIrq7tR4u2C0hQPbF8TsQlc2ovGQx1TyAuRyg0EheDXlj1itL_ZeMH8a-KkT8E-vxi_7p4x/s320/IMG_5816.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">A gorgeous photo of the wetlands, captured with my phone (safely locked in a ziplock bag)</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: x-small; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;"></span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Our last trip before heading back to Wenzao was a comparatively tame shopping run. I spent the forty five minutes we had waiting in line to buy gelato, which ended up being not too bad. And just like that, we were back on the bus to Wenzao, prepping for the next day’s classes, chatting, and falling asleep like nothing had happened.</span></p><div><span><br /></span></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRo4ItJoct-gLpJ3iI10RRhLbOfpbQgQY0Sh6fQq-N1jQeCXKx2nZYL0ZlIVOCksH2aaFBS6zim1xmLePqDIp77wUUz1EW8xv1Y9eFfAwfKXHzyAj9JaV7oc2Ky_oCBcS3SjpQlT7U5S8-FJQZ0ekSE2D28eQGKQCX0YOwRL-w6fKkljV6RMBVX5JbQO9W/s4032/IMG_5814.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRo4ItJoct-gLpJ3iI10RRhLbOfpbQgQY0Sh6fQq-N1jQeCXKx2nZYL0ZlIVOCksH2aaFBS6zim1xmLePqDIp77wUUz1EW8xv1Y9eFfAwfKXHzyAj9JaV7oc2Ky_oCBcS3SjpQlT7U5S8-FJQZ0ekSE2D28eQGKQCX0YOwRL-w6fKkljV6RMBVX5JbQO9W/s320/IMG_5814.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Back on the bus</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxbnS5PaBfem0nhB3Ll6nnBlmKXbI6m4tIBGmejmt1QfbSgGq5q0Nrez5R_iZXtHpwZKOkRIFjpN1HM61QBvS-vSzKy3MlOOPCoZ_bhrVffDugj4gvlnToS7gJ3ZTA_nU96efW_SaeUs0NUI5miWQ9sqgxLVZXty7PS-_0d8Rd_OwGrEzkG2eeOfQpU7PI/s4032/IMG_5817.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxbnS5PaBfem0nhB3Ll6nnBlmKXbI6m4tIBGmejmt1QfbSgGq5q0Nrez5R_iZXtHpwZKOkRIFjpN1HM61QBvS-vSzKy3MlOOPCoZ_bhrVffDugj4gvlnToS7gJ3ZTA_nU96efW_SaeUs0NUI5miWQ9sqgxLVZXty7PS-_0d8Rd_OwGrEzkG2eeOfQpU7PI/s320/IMG_5817.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjflTXjcdNUgJVXDhAeJ8IBrybmluHpPmQ3BCH_jjX8lDgBBQkUN21u6QPZPsqQhO0IoX19nhwzpYOSS1L7RJPV5tWfHLEVF5zJKXFLlvOuAB8S9aIfu4Fnoq1NewO7ZKjul-xfIaMFW89XhkG_hnQdSSKKRLs2cuwCMu5A8Lp3pakeF_RwQNsjHEfLBTSP/s4032/IMG_5818.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjflTXjcdNUgJVXDhAeJ8IBrybmluHpPmQ3BCH_jjX8lDgBBQkUN21u6QPZPsqQhO0IoX19nhwzpYOSS1L7RJPV5tWfHLEVF5zJKXFLlvOuAB8S9aIfu4Fnoq1NewO7ZKjul-xfIaMFW89XhkG_hnQdSSKKRLs2cuwCMu5A8Lp3pakeF_RwQNsjHEfLBTSP/s320/IMG_5818.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Sunset departing</span></td></tr></tbody></table></div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">To be honest, it’s been getting harder and harder to write this blog. I’d like to see this as a good thing, as I’ve been happily busy with day to day life and my classes, and I think it’s been mostly hard to write because I’m feeling so strangely normal here in Taiwan. I definitely think that’s a good thing. I’ve adjusted my everyday life here and now it’s more difficult to find the momentum to figure out what is different or worthwhile to talk about. And the dorm Wifi isn’t the best so I have the added excuse of the difficulty of uploading photos. Time here has flown by, and while I have some regret about not making more smaller posts, I plan on putting together a few more entries before my time here ends in not a week.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">Love you all, and I’ll see you soon back in the states.</span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span face="Arial, sans-serif" style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-alternates: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space-collapse: preserve;">-Violet</span></p></span>Violethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12655471521148840299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3831558865310136613.post-39268696974060582032023-07-16T21:43:00.000+08:002023-07-16T21:43:58.399+08:00Catch up and Photos: TLDR Lot's HappeningThe last few weeks have been incredibly exciting and fulfilling, but also very difficult. Who knew that the intensive language study abroad program would involve intensive language study along with adjusting to a new environment? Crazy.<br /><br />Despite challenges of general adjustment to a new culture, moving in with my host family, moving out of my host family’s house into a (questionable but functional) college dorm, and the difficulty of classes, I’m really enjoying my time here. I’m going to have a longer entry soon to fill in all the details from starting classes to currently, but for now you’ll have to settle for a bunch of pictures that I’ll explain in detail another time. Until then, I'll leave you to guess what I've been up to loosely based on context clues!<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg-8GlS2qMk0REnUPJJC34Hv2jXoJELI2K84ePon9iqJ2SW5IPW3MMqmhjuSQQHUYF1BSrizTzCLkN_QgRYEtd8B83sDcpXtMaRbDxh4J4F4d5lwx2H4Wc-eltFsmJ_ceQQA8oi69NA1zlbpVsmxAaC13Yh1jF9ts_5ysPc_vH_GFZSTeSc_Os88UiCVhS/s4032/IMG_5653.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgg-8GlS2qMk0REnUPJJC34Hv2jXoJELI2K84ePon9iqJ2SW5IPW3MMqmhjuSQQHUYF1BSrizTzCLkN_QgRYEtd8B83sDcpXtMaRbDxh4J4F4d5lwx2H4Wc-eltFsmJ_ceQQA8oi69NA1zlbpVsmxAaC13Yh1jF9ts_5ysPc_vH_GFZSTeSc_Os88UiCVhS/s320/IMG_5653.JPG" width="240" /></a></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCEq1uZCLBUNp78e42Fes0iR6ILFXJUfufdDUDbGwANP25Rb2Psf602rfr0cUw07RZEz5cwvgsE-vkxqdsZDn-ylflQGkXbG40lQ3558CGGBZVimwElMzokabTwF_iTzxc3xVUTC8Bay54kq8juRS9el_Ce1Vpd7Eomneubx6nC2uN6z3H-7mCOt_iQXAj/s4032/IMG_5657.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; 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margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3392" data-original-width="1908" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUJINRZiNQuJBWOjSmQrzMMsISkZraWcAfR3Mq5dkvAeIwMkAepnD8OjKBdY-m_CZ9G_0bE0Abz0kgeupeAQyp2tnflKCVa7XkpfhXYVmrzyaq-Swt4hZSgdgJiH2fQMlDpcqDWWk1E45FOgAAOhwqSFpuskxRJGIMXBhd-ClJDdKWI3P1h7xgyYxrciq3/s320/IMG_5711.JPG" width="180" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: start;"><br /></span></div>Love you all,<br /><br />-Violet<br />Violethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12655471521148840299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3831558865310136613.post-6825700223893349252023-07-06T18:27:00.001+08:002023-07-06T18:27:35.102+08:00Jet Lag and Seven Elevens: Traveling to Taiwan<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX9xyv-ShzpFMgexGG9aWBbC26BzqXp8N1-qon-d9vVF63JPzBWablYzwB--3uBe_bkgAtrHaazVcurkHnlsuNNhF3KhYyLyWOPiscJi2VkwpIgrbpygqGJVmCujtLS4d6nX9m25y8-O7leiIhlwWYrzJ6umRwrqX5vK8YHNb6w1v4nxAKkIGDYyQ8K-yr/s4032/IMG_5583.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjX9xyv-ShzpFMgexGG9aWBbC26BzqXp8N1-qon-d9vVF63JPzBWablYzwB--3uBe_bkgAtrHaazVcurkHnlsuNNhF3KhYyLyWOPiscJi2VkwpIgrbpygqGJVmCujtLS4d6nX9m25y8-O7leiIhlwWYrzJ6umRwrqX5vK8YHNb6w1v4nxAKkIGDYyQ8K-yr/s320/IMG_5583.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Celebrating arriving in Taiwan</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div>I’ve never been able to pull an all-nighter. Partly out of inability to keep my eyes open and partly out of a fear of the next day’s consequences. But I’m proud to say that through egregious boredom and sheer will (loud music) I was successfully able to stay awake throughout the entire time traveling to Taiwan on June 23rd, for about 30 hours.</div><div><br /></div><div><div>The day started bright and early at 8 o’clock rolling out of bed and repacking the room me and my roommate had managed to destroy in less than two days. I want to thank my Mom and Grandma for being the reason I could fit more than 2 pairs of clothes and a jacket in my suitcase. Without these two wizard’s spatial awareness and time management I would never have made it to San Francisco. At the same time, I had to figure out how to recreate their work which was time consuming and involved many repackings, but just in time I was ready to go without needing to use the pop out zipper. The trip to the airport and through security went off without a hitch, and by the time my cohort members were done putting their shoes and jackets back on (let’s go precheck!) I was ravenous. We decided to get airport udon, which I was initially skeptical about, but was actually delicious. I was going to buy some snacks with my leftover stipend, but my cute artisan candied pineapple rang up at 8 dollars. So no ‘stacks’, but plenty of granola bars and leftover udon.</div><div><br /></div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizhI4WdlB3g5QUc87ErGJvYYnHQou3bT25TOFDzSvfDmImh1pF-gZ_bFRjZcQZBXceoLiJCWUQPcJIQtDp3lxpPH930opyCsNVZixRezicaYezpgDMpDgwKqy0hR5Yf_6H7VT_6jrd4P_FUd25BnDE1-zDxWCMGzKAz0Ouo-lbv9Qicmv4tdRcmAUZMclJ/s1707/S__1540105.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1707" data-original-width="960" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizhI4WdlB3g5QUc87ErGJvYYnHQou3bT25TOFDzSvfDmImh1pF-gZ_bFRjZcQZBXceoLiJCWUQPcJIQtDp3lxpPH930opyCsNVZixRezicaYezpgDMpDgwKqy0hR5Yf_6H7VT_6jrd4P_FUd25BnDE1-zDxWCMGzKAz0Ouo-lbv9Qicmv4tdRcmAUZMclJ/s320/S__1540105.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The surprisingly delicious airport udon<br /><br /><br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><div>The plane itself would have been uneventful if not for a near recreation of my flight to Malaysia many years ago. On the plane, as the other NSLI-Y students I was sitting with and I tried to squeeze our baggage underneath the seats in front of us, my hand came up from the floor sticky and wet. The farther under my seat I felt the more damp it became, until it was clear that underneath all of our seats was soaked, and steadily leeching towards our backpacks. We managed to make makeshift dams from the airline-provided blankets, and passed the rest of the flights watching the actually impressive collection of movies United has curated. While the mysterious liquid wasn’t Tiger Beer, the memories of the Malaysia flight made me surprisingly comfortable, despite the damp slickness clinging between my fingers. And instead of the bad airplane food (what’s the deal with that) I ate leftover udon and felt like a king.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0Fihw9Q95VKEMJMW8z_Xlc2_0ibErldpsnxaQuC3gBRB3eZ3Mhfa2I8xet7VsPcrXBA3WMOfysfN38Aw8oHp5YCZT0LtAktdzeikNn6HgZEUbz0CzCSkqIX0ISFchS4wABxiW2keYF9gsTTXDnC2o0-h7Srf6LBaJWHcRpt-4cbwd8qeOkn-Rg--SEiIe/s1568/IMG_5585.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1046" data-original-width="1568" height="299" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0Fihw9Q95VKEMJMW8z_Xlc2_0ibErldpsnxaQuC3gBRB3eZ3Mhfa2I8xet7VsPcrXBA3WMOfysfN38Aw8oHp5YCZT0LtAktdzeikNn6HgZEUbz0CzCSkqIX0ISFchS4wABxiW2keYF9gsTTXDnC2o0-h7Srf6LBaJWHcRpt-4cbwd8qeOkn-Rg--SEiIe/w449-h299/IMG_5585.JPG" width="449" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Landing in Taiwan!</span></td></tr></tbody></table>We landed in Taiwan just outside of Taipei and made our way to customs. While waiting in line, I was furiously trying to figure out what greeting I should use. Should I say “hi”? “Hello”? What time is it, does a “good afternoon” suffice or is it nighttime already? Should I try Mandarin? And then I was at the front, frozen between saying “您好” and “hello”. The customs officer took one look at me and immediately pegged me rightfully as an American with little practical Chinese ability and cued me through with courteous English. We got our bags with no problem (thanks United for not sending any to Japan) and made our way onto our super Mario themed bus, to which everyone screamed “Mario!!”.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2JZU2jn6Kc-TxuakKVIURvsKFjFW_vHK9W_wi3miOSpCnt_v8nd_XmbGko4IFxaB4SMV3IMbOqbr3VXhWDOJPy2qt2QwuXLeqA1FqDpH-SRH4fTlXIElZPOWf3TydTYB-ZSQzbhMp5Ov_eOLoSWmKJqMJ4hDFYJY6qGTmEB5bRzX7c-K6ZAP0mt_dGRYk/s4032/IMG_5582.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2JZU2jn6Kc-TxuakKVIURvsKFjFW_vHK9W_wi3miOSpCnt_v8nd_XmbGko4IFxaB4SMV3IMbOqbr3VXhWDOJPy2qt2QwuXLeqA1FqDpH-SRH4fTlXIElZPOWf3TydTYB-ZSQzbhMp5Ov_eOLoSWmKJqMJ4hDFYJY6qGTmEB5bRzX7c-K6ZAP0mt_dGRYk/w285-h214/IMG_5582.JPG" width="285" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Taiwan at night</span></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdF55D_XUZtkMNNO2oqfcLcLAlqr4Zp00qklsT-ETlFMBytll7fzZr9h_B9qcpMIcyOoFbtGpKSEAt8IjmnUem3vJXPeBD2Je8wwT5SYRSue-ENRzyLLxvNDL7YKflRFX06HJe01VA26ukz48J6pjI9ypgarA7SamNANiCMvKIFz7hsjafSvVHS1Exo5Ki/s4032/IMG_5600.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdF55D_XUZtkMNNO2oqfcLcLAlqr4Zp00qklsT-ETlFMBytll7fzZr9h_B9qcpMIcyOoFbtGpKSEAt8IjmnUem3vJXPeBD2Je8wwT5SYRSue-ENRzyLLxvNDL7YKflRFX06HJe01VA26ukz48J6pjI9ypgarA7SamNANiCMvKIFz7hsjafSvVHS1Exo5Ki/w284-h214/IMG_5600.JPG" width="284" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Taiwain the following morning</span></td></tr></tbody></table>Taiwan’s highways and skylines look very similar to many cities in the US with smaller buildings gradually coalescing into tall apartment buildings and small skyscrapers. I had a wonderful moment of to myself listening to this album on the bus before taking a short cheat nap (on an hour) during the 3 and a half hour drive too Gaoxiong. Correct, from the top of Taiwan where our plane landed near Taipei to the very southern city of Gaoxiong, Taiwan is only slightly larger than Maryland, and takes only a little more time to drive North to South as Maryland does East to West. Despite similar drive times, the climate is wildly different. Keyword: hot. The sentence I’ve said the most since arriving in Gaoxiong beyond “sorry, my Chinese is very bad!” Is “台湾太热了”, which translates to “Taiwan is way too hot”. Stepping off the bus at a rest stop halfway through the drive we were hit with waves of hot, sticky tropical air, even at 11 at night in a more Northern part of Taiwan. As unsurprisingly uncomfortable the climate is, with the wave of heat came a wave of nostalgia. The air smells just like Malaysian air—slightly sweet, fresh, thick, with a hint of diesel fuel. It smelled familiar, like home, and was the first time I truly understood that I was going to live here for the next month and a half. By the time we got to the hotel I was so tired I couldn’t even feel it anymore. In fact, I was so jazzed I proceeded to take a forty five minute shower (though shorter than my usual) and eat several American chocolate candies that I decided wouldn’t travel well before forcing myself to crash. <br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWbtC8kAnguUd4t8Uze32R-liyUwOL11Mt8csaQAROCpsjJ6WwBrMkqdv96m6agykaea2nC5k6YpUT9PsOwS4yoQGDeehNm5eijREMR7dtJeqJvRgmS_oSDcH0jeXlmCW6ZiehASjx0upldjF3KFb287j0msiW5DlQmFCASSdfOVwVp-483r4WSiRHkSJm/s1707/S__1818628.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1707" data-original-width="960" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWbtC8kAnguUd4t8Uze32R-liyUwOL11Mt8csaQAROCpsjJ6WwBrMkqdv96m6agykaea2nC5k6YpUT9PsOwS4yoQGDeehNm5eijREMR7dtJeqJvRgmS_oSDcH0jeXlmCW6ZiehASjx0upldjF3KFb287j0msiW5DlQmFCASSdfOVwVp-483r4WSiRHkSJm/w180-h320/S__1818628.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Hotel snacks from our resident director</span></td></tr></tbody></table><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDW5QCLwGoolC7Q8VnuvpvoVmhJDsTQtlCOPJ-4Zj-X1iDhZBEZsZVQEIlyHbj-V-rI2pYDAan7Mf2RuPthNw0ruvQDcZPxcGcgu_euQPvE_INazq5zt-e8DqDkObhpjsWDnBPHSkudTw7eWb2MB5QJRG7y6VtmWAyn3QvsZTsLgWB_wuyxe5r5aJjuIJB/s1568/S__1966082.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1046" data-original-width="1568" height="247" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDW5QCLwGoolC7Q8VnuvpvoVmhJDsTQtlCOPJ-4Zj-X1iDhZBEZsZVQEIlyHbj-V-rI2pYDAan7Mf2RuPthNw0ruvQDcZPxcGcgu_euQPvE_INazq5zt-e8DqDkObhpjsWDnBPHSkudTw7eWb2MB5QJRG7y6VtmWAyn3QvsZTsLgWB_wuyxe5r5aJjuIJB/w372-h247/S__1966082.jpg" width="372" /></a><br />The next two days in Gaoxiong we had almost completely to ourselves to relax, recuperate, and rest in the hotel. So naturally everyone in the cohort decided to immediately get outside and explore the city. I promptly added this as yet another reason why I love the cohort. It was an absolute blast. Sort of a repeat of our time spent relaxing in San Francisco, but with so much more freedom and such a completely different environment. Gaoxiong is an incredible city, bustling with people, motor scooters, cars, with every street lined with restaurants. Even though it's clearly busy there's a calmness to the city, a sort of unstressful and purposeful way people go about their days. We fell into this mood, and pretty much immediately got lost. With no idea where we were going and many of us not having changed our sims cards (so no google maps), we ended up splitting the group several times. My group wandered around a gorgeous park, explored our first Taiwanese 7-11 (which is a total upgrade from the states), and ended up hot, tired, and triumphant back at the hotel. The next day there wasn’t as much city wandering, and a group of us met in my hotel room to watch a Taiwanese version of The Little Mermaid called “The Mermaid Princess”. I highly recommend it. The animation quality is unity asset store level and for the storyline I think the writers went around the room each saying one word to formulate the plot. It was a surprisingly good assessment of our Chinese skills as the language level was very child friendly, and therefore very learner friendly. Another reason why I love the cohort—we ended up all talking throughout the movie comparing our hometowns, living experiences, and reasons why we wanted to study in Taiwan. Again, NSLI-Y picked an incredible group of people, and I’m very excited to spend the summer with them. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1UCWhsU5EF4ebzXnILk4gmAUTA5EPxySXK1pU8V5xsBVXbL-nIRm0_3uyXbw-nTrJYQ5W_58eO5DxwCAOVjmuPyFKtq_C3FoZxlbG8g0G7qWcrJv7YdkCFgpxbIaKqEMsXpY7b_-T9q6wfhrnMO0p21921q-kxZU3qLAYXxnrGtriFwKfvRx4ff7vOjgf/s1620/IMG_0299.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1620" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1UCWhsU5EF4ebzXnILk4gmAUTA5EPxySXK1pU8V5xsBVXbL-nIRm0_3uyXbw-nTrJYQ5W_58eO5DxwCAOVjmuPyFKtq_C3FoZxlbG8g0G7qWcrJv7YdkCFgpxbIaKqEMsXpY7b_-T9q6wfhrnMO0p21921q-kxZU3qLAYXxnrGtriFwKfvRx4ff7vOjgf/s320/IMG_0299.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Lost at the park</span></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQDApNDWHBCyZi-uulFxoC-pfnaWE4bL2_WgxyQ09rnz_XiLKYCrehuFwcYkkW3hDZVhXyWF1B0agShD8yIgOZEkQrFnVBH3vtCpW3zTcwN9NwUeyLP8I2jply4rrnIwPNQxpHGCsYV9KLQAVK8GcBwJzQYBR6ca6ks_8LUF6LlnkX1GgSFXbZsedS8PwG/s4032/IMG_5602.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQDApNDWHBCyZi-uulFxoC-pfnaWE4bL2_WgxyQ09rnz_XiLKYCrehuFwcYkkW3hDZVhXyWF1B0agShD8yIgOZEkQrFnVBH3vtCpW3zTcwN9NwUeyLP8I2jply4rrnIwPNQxpHGCsYV9KLQAVK8GcBwJzQYBR6ca6ks_8LUF6LlnkX1GgSFXbZsedS8PwG/w169-h225/IMG_5602.JPG" width="169" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Yes!!! Burger king!!! Very chillburger</span></td></tr></tbody></table>That night, we met our host families for the first time. Before the program each NSLI-Y student was given very basic information about the family—a two sentence introduction, list of family members and ages, the parent’s careers, and each family members’ English proficiency. I was under the impression that each member of my host family spoke “basic” English, and that the father could communicate effectively. I arrived at the table with my host family and immediately realized how completely wrong I was. Apparently ‘Basic’ English consists of knowing how to say ‘hello’, ‘goodbye’, and ’bathroom’, and the only member of the family who could communicate in English was the 15 year old daughter who was studying in school. While right now I’m very happy that’s how it turned out, as I pretty much exclusively speak to my host family in Mandarin (excluding the help from google translate when needed), in the moment I was extremely nervous. Way more nervous than expected. And what’s worse is I didn’t realize how rusty my Chinese is, and how utterly broken my grammar is in practice. Before NSLI-Y I’d only ever spoken to a few native speakers, one including my amazing Chinese teacher back home (hi Xiaomu!). But I think because my teacher is used to speaking with non native speakers, she can understand my Mandarin way better than native speakers who haven't spoken with a native English student. After a month of not studying intensely, apparently it was so bad I couldn’t speak in full sentences. I would string words together that I thought made sense, and my host family would stare expectantly, then whip out the pocket translator. But the night ended on a really nice note. My host family took me out for boba tea, and my host mom pointed out the college where I would be studying Mandarin. Ian’s (a member of the cohort) host family and mine are close friends, and we spent the rest of the night at their house eating Taiwanese fruits, cakes, playing pickleball in the dining room and Mario Kart in the living room.</div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgex9megUFQGwFZiuAqReJBD5U1aID1m_nKF5Pwt1eVQn-JPVo49-gzjhA77sXTwbPrzPXP8DqDW27pXV3xptU50X-oJ3XvzXIWFiI496daZ67OuXGtNTT1EF-ImGONHlFpgsSSDzQbB3jhyE2XH1IAkZLJzGB86Rw3UiJ8UCKI5th5aJo6tdAC0akH_IT9/s1479/IMG_5593.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1109" data-original-width="1479" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgex9megUFQGwFZiuAqReJBD5U1aID1m_nKF5Pwt1eVQn-JPVo49-gzjhA77sXTwbPrzPXP8DqDW27pXV3xptU50X-oJ3XvzXIWFiI496daZ67OuXGtNTT1EF-ImGONHlFpgsSSDzQbB3jhyE2XH1IAkZLJzGB86Rw3UiJ8UCKI5th5aJo6tdAC0akH_IT9/s320/IMG_5593.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Me and my host sister, she's super excited about the old bay</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEjK0BW6YeRWW-u572nrK8JYTW2pjztwmxvEGNCgb7t6pdbOpC6h6s8GLgmqMBu0AVconQoQ27PbD3y2Mcx2L2c_R4_2bxIRqXUSR_VYqyaBrBnWHGorRKJzNrAuHIbi0B4E6sQw0jRDVpBs8b5aDjvCoymaDMpUzPG5Ef5hfz0rCfONSvuwmfx7hoeY13/s1479/IMG_5596.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1479" data-original-width="1109" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEjK0BW6YeRWW-u572nrK8JYTW2pjztwmxvEGNCgb7t6pdbOpC6h6s8GLgmqMBu0AVconQoQ27PbD3y2Mcx2L2c_R4_2bxIRqXUSR_VYqyaBrBnWHGorRKJzNrAuHIbi0B4E6sQw0jRDVpBs8b5aDjvCoymaDMpUzPG5Ef5hfz0rCfONSvuwmfx7hoeY13/s320/IMG_5596.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">On the other hand I don't know if my host brother likes the hat</span></td></tr></tbody></table></div><div><br />I’ve leave off this entry here, right before starting Mandarin classes. It's actually incredible how busy this last week has been. I’m excited to let you know all about once I can find some free time!<br /><br />In the meantime, here's some random photos of my first few days in the city! More explanations to follow.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEixXI92CpLr0eMtdB1m-dBE3LzHQGDVfQwymOYOiiHCI_JLhIUNPKxP6V8Z1b6iKzJ96sGeAQqrIUf6bg-wpq1ovxfP0NXJM5V2jzG5rqIRbAdV5XwgNaqeJP5Za2GhEo8F5RoRfz6ORMMwaIQkswAaicVPVFMbYUF-gz5Uk1BeVq-n6pz2TqnZKTVkKg/s4032/IMG_5608.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhEixXI92CpLr0eMtdB1m-dBE3LzHQGDVfQwymOYOiiHCI_JLhIUNPKxP6V8Z1b6iKzJ96sGeAQqrIUf6bg-wpq1ovxfP0NXJM5V2jzG5rqIRbAdV5XwgNaqeJP5Za2GhEo8F5RoRfz6ORMMwaIQkswAaicVPVFMbYUF-gz5Uk1BeVq-n6pz2TqnZKTVkKg/s320/IMG_5608.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">My friends may be happy to see Chainsaw man for sale... in Japanese.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidwzNURetS6E1X1iB9exkP8PSUMMioCSVhmmic6oBw9gF5pREu8a1sPesuEDAX9ai467EpWoT8gLvmj5WARsXKNsT2WB4GgpbO1Jx3uZ3j2YFOsG3eON9pcwtIzFDT7xwb8YRoK6cxdAAg4z23Z3xeuqopKwviYvY-BFh5RYNHFHa1udVr1LnFRmU-Trvz/s4032/IMG_5642.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidwzNURetS6E1X1iB9exkP8PSUMMioCSVhmmic6oBw9gF5pREu8a1sPesuEDAX9ai467EpWoT8gLvmj5WARsXKNsT2WB4GgpbO1Jx3uZ3j2YFOsG3eON9pcwtIzFDT7xwb8YRoK6cxdAAg4z23Z3xeuqopKwviYvY-BFh5RYNHFHa1udVr1LnFRmU-Trvz/s320/IMG_5642.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">One particular friends likes this I can't remember who (jk Mallory)</span></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCF2mhsuhlCV5J8z1Vqk9PcLSTOGeeMuofL2YBVHKlgU3e5Sradc8g5JaSU0PFLEYbqlCFJXOd4Jez4QJba1ry7mxubVlg_fptdSNkKGQy66lYwjUrOULCb6t-MsMjiarYAnXJRepu7PuxV3BMZDWdIqqFrNPhv-ID2Z21rrazj1_aIH7LgcfJb6jElCKT/s4032/IMG_5634.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCF2mhsuhlCV5J8z1Vqk9PcLSTOGeeMuofL2YBVHKlgU3e5Sradc8g5JaSU0PFLEYbqlCFJXOd4Jez4QJba1ry7mxubVlg_fptdSNkKGQy66lYwjUrOULCb6t-MsMjiarYAnXJRepu7PuxV3BMZDWdIqqFrNPhv-ID2Z21rrazj1_aIH7LgcfJb6jElCKT/s320/IMG_5634.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">They have milo here!!</span></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvIgG5irvSIBPLjuRA_bvsZD00DY7xxCpzifbspBEunqYL4w-E5o0jK_HBlUjIGFuknFNDQ4cokztmBQyTmgYU6kAunNYhLfDsUOMppO2yyOSxeMjszyulfOZDKcs7cIfnwriveLuQ9YGC-JfaMMUY48sF6FSx4olXX56h4lR01gRcjFxSxKDHCqnqNlks/s4032/IMG_5633.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvIgG5irvSIBPLjuRA_bvsZD00DY7xxCpzifbspBEunqYL4w-E5o0jK_HBlUjIGFuknFNDQ4cokztmBQyTmgYU6kAunNYhLfDsUOMppO2yyOSxeMjszyulfOZDKcs7cIfnwriveLuQ9YGC-JfaMMUY48sF6FSx4olXX56h4lR01gRcjFxSxKDHCqnqNlks/s320/IMG_5633.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">And my favorite jam</span></td></tr></tbody></table></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAPwRXOgz8qmdwnsAizc9k9SIkyG9gW2sHcuNO-xb1OOK5tiEz8aOnDUHZaCGoDOZFLgJZF3pOMYmjA_y-rb3oM_V7xSJ_D8_Yjqg_gAq8EzI0skaBvW6USfi5Pjrpd6hmBARebIbeNBVP-PNVj6Ts7FNe_C8c4VRXAiygPDRbjvz1HOvH8NreWBzQ7KWb/s4032/IMG_5640.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAPwRXOgz8qmdwnsAizc9k9SIkyG9gW2sHcuNO-xb1OOK5tiEz8aOnDUHZaCGoDOZFLgJZF3pOMYmjA_y-rb3oM_V7xSJ_D8_Yjqg_gAq8EzI0skaBvW6USfi5Pjrpd6hmBARebIbeNBVP-PNVj6Ts7FNe_C8c4VRXAiygPDRbjvz1HOvH8NreWBzQ7KWb/s320/IMG_5640.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Shopping for fruit with my host family</span></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBzE3G0SIxhWheLfGWOJiPWg5Q-9OiluiZDj4535u9c7y7yBSxP60gsK3XWpQ8Cw_lSyLSle3EV8ooDsGS1rrq6GEtTFLfe1MQo8TtZwayWuJZlboK2RGQsUCUdBp3dWsxml8twks9O772qIW1C6ez-A5AK8fOi3XWb0pX1nA7mhBOcOd8KslmxDOOg_mJ/s4032/IMG_5635.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBzE3G0SIxhWheLfGWOJiPWg5Q-9OiluiZDj4535u9c7y7yBSxP60gsK3XWpQ8Cw_lSyLSle3EV8ooDsGS1rrq6GEtTFLfe1MQo8TtZwayWuJZlboK2RGQsUCUdBp3dWsxml8twks9O772qIW1C6ez-A5AK8fOi3XWb0pX1nA7mhBOcOd8KslmxDOOg_mJ/s320/IMG_5635.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Taiwanese night market</span></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN_LPzDbMMDyZarUZRc4pyz0XROSMXdFZBkBImq57LVFnPk46nOjMO4ZL4Hs5aTwMOn-PedwiJ5LK9nbUcTTFYdW9JUW8Ecdw1heyg4-AUsFwdtNFIcqfochfT3N1lH2jg5kXX36Byajupwr2dOOMeVzRURVcy31RvwG42Af_HT96oZOsMCNElx1qjHbHd/s4032/IMG_5632.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiN_LPzDbMMDyZarUZRc4pyz0XROSMXdFZBkBImq57LVFnPk46nOjMO4ZL4Hs5aTwMOn-PedwiJ5LK9nbUcTTFYdW9JUW8Ecdw1heyg4-AUsFwdtNFIcqfochfT3N1lH2jg5kXX36Byajupwr2dOOMeVzRURVcy31RvwG42Af_HT96oZOsMCNElx1qjHbHd/s320/IMG_5632.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">A blurry view of the American school</span></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj87xuXTJQrw4BoySibQjoxM81mFNPTLPgxXZWw2upT5UDhESb9LoBhBtvFGbjnenOucsj7BRMgO5qqwMytehS6IAtriNBIp2MiYNUv7_q9aCGrP_T7wtOuMygdje1FpSoG7RVl5ZCQuNn3bBjKdxv0lLTNjCVJjqZHH3Rk1lRWiGcp02CPByo03oXKU9NA/s4032/IMG_5621.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj87xuXTJQrw4BoySibQjoxM81mFNPTLPgxXZWw2upT5UDhESb9LoBhBtvFGbjnenOucsj7BRMgO5qqwMytehS6IAtriNBIp2MiYNUv7_q9aCGrP_T7wtOuMygdje1FpSoG7RVl5ZCQuNn3bBjKdxv0lLTNjCVJjqZHH3Rk1lRWiGcp02CPByo03oXKU9NA/s320/IMG_5621.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">One example of an amazing meal I've had</span></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFxHsECLJchS-8uTiVzf3ttqG0RDMU5JST8JeVmV5k7TZjKBRCm6JvF8vHt9CkoWshWIRZjFj07PqXqEv6BrM64HLXYJQGZJOx20owfYqSZtDlD4glsxwME3LIe5nndqDgcNNyFdhKj5Vxw9LZOoxrT480mBtkt4qQ-PHhRJks-v1Gq9LscT-9ch1C2dye/s4224/IMG_5607.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4224" data-original-width="2376" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFxHsECLJchS-8uTiVzf3ttqG0RDMU5JST8JeVmV5k7TZjKBRCm6JvF8vHt9CkoWshWIRZjFj07PqXqEv6BrM64HLXYJQGZJOx20owfYqSZtDlD4glsxwME3LIe5nndqDgcNNyFdhKj5Vxw9LZOoxrT480mBtkt4qQ-PHhRJks-v1Gq9LscT-9ch1C2dye/s320/IMG_5607.JPG" width="180" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">The back gates of my school, Wenzao</span></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjzVAV_9YM8H7Wh0pKeYruzYcWXkqZILqbaYjU7ZLGcWcYU1mMLDfSNboMu85Mtms33b64zP7x-nN-oDfneK8dfiPyLYx4L-uRAmSMGCy83FhtXoO-HLVGrObxeyI7v1rQpCPtjc1p8R6Kvn8YAWYKeSy4pnQoVwaAV_wniR2qr-AodRvAojHkwH_nJWet/s4032/IMG_5613.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="4032" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjzVAV_9YM8H7Wh0pKeYruzYcWXkqZILqbaYjU7ZLGcWcYU1mMLDfSNboMu85Mtms33b64zP7x-nN-oDfneK8dfiPyLYx4L-uRAmSMGCy83FhtXoO-HLVGrObxeyI7v1rQpCPtjc1p8R6Kvn8YAWYKeSy4pnQoVwaAV_wniR2qr-AodRvAojHkwH_nJWet/s320/IMG_5613.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">A delicious new fruit, 书葡萄(tree grape). It's much more sour and strong than grapes and instead tastes like American grape juice.</span></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsowKLDbZDh93D8RmJpGbq_1fu-LNz2IwBVKy4kZm6RyST9NC9UJO7X8z7jEaT-wnD09Xl6EFdyDMPZXBoiSl28RAsqVmbd60_g46yUtRYKPuJ84Ma1eBXEZI4rmL39Ow5Lhrsuk0_p35Y_0Q6KcFs2mNCGLp3in8KP2jak_NYUWx98jeM7oKcwcDj5MIW/s4032/IMG_5611.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsowKLDbZDh93D8RmJpGbq_1fu-LNz2IwBVKy4kZm6RyST9NC9UJO7X8z7jEaT-wnD09Xl6EFdyDMPZXBoiSl28RAsqVmbd60_g46yUtRYKPuJ84Ma1eBXEZI4rmL39Ow5Lhrsuk0_p35Y_0Q6KcFs2mNCGLp3in8KP2jak_NYUWx98jeM7oKcwcDj5MIW/s320/IMG_5611.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Not cantaloupe, but yellow watermelon (although it tastes too much like cantaloupe for my liking)</span></td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMKyL4SIgEdtzYgWBucjQWBXySc0Qlb4lM2zFMqQYEg3nW_H5pXSbDpyyJ-BhSVpuAlOhJvW8STUvwgx5pTumkfW8flKIxKMpr-2hLpEKdfLv55bIzHP2X_B-olK1Os2DAxzWbAuB0mWty5Qd9pDwjZIUPQW-107HMaqu4ehmbU5KB7-X3qs3y-94hmoEk/s4032/IMG_5590.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMKyL4SIgEdtzYgWBucjQWBXySc0Qlb4lM2zFMqQYEg3nW_H5pXSbDpyyJ-BhSVpuAlOhJvW8STUvwgx5pTumkfW8flKIxKMpr-2hLpEKdfLv55bIzHP2X_B-olK1Os2DAxzWbAuB0mWty5Qd9pDwjZIUPQW-107HMaqu4ehmbU5KB7-X3qs3y-94hmoEk/s320/IMG_5590.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">View from Wenzao</span></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><div>Until then, 再见, and I love you all.<br /><br />-Violet</div></div>Violethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12655471521148840299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3831558865310136613.post-83935031017049360092023-06-23T13:47:00.000+08:002023-06-23T13:47:54.951+08:00Lost in San Francisco: The In and Out ExpeditionIt hasn’t hit me that soon I’ll be embarking on a life changing trip: summer immersion in Taiwan through <a href="https://www.nsliforyouth.org/">NSLI-Y</a>. I’m sitting in my hotel room waiting for my roommate to finish brushing her teeth and reminiscing about today, the day before, and everything that has led up to our pre-departure orientation in San Francisco.<br /><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmokawHQ0Zt5RpV4f5UTtHyESXFfcsRnJq3RXKVl1CwloI-6qSaCqblaQhV2OXuarPB6M7Bg3LksizemdFJhbjJoXk9tVuXMv5OIe51eQnO_isPR4BWo2umQqsj-Ohrk7x22QC0ehtI-uDyNAbMMD2t863DlpR1yUbGmWWY-WTO7r6g5JwWIjvnQkohm49/s4032/IMG_8410.HEIC" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmokawHQ0Zt5RpV4f5UTtHyESXFfcsRnJq3RXKVl1CwloI-6qSaCqblaQhV2OXuarPB6M7Bg3LksizemdFJhbjJoXk9tVuXMv5OIe51eQnO_isPR4BWo2umQqsj-Ohrk7x22QC0ehtI-uDyNAbMMD2t863DlpR1yUbGmWWY-WTO7r6g5JwWIjvnQkohm49/w320-h240/IMG_8410.HEIC" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me and my cohort members fighting to stay awake</td></tr></tbody></table>Yesterday, the first day of orientation, started off pretty normal with me (literally) rolling out of my bed in Baltimore and getting dressed. Except at four in the morning. I pulled up to the airport an hour later woozy from no sleep, slowly eating a burrito from the night before, and met up with a few of my immersion cohort members flying through BWI to San Francisco. After an uneventful plane ride with lots of sleeping, we grabbed our bags (in under 30 seconds, thank you SFO) and met two more cohort members, Laura and Jayne. Needing to grab taxis, I stepped outside for the first time into the San Francisco, California air. To be honest, I was expecting more popstars and less wind, but it was still a gorgeous day in a new smog-free city. The buildings remind me of New Mexico’s standards of old fashioned chalky yellow walls and curved tile roofs with modern coffee shops crammed inside (shoutout to Donna!).<br /><br />We arrived at our hotel having time traveled to 9:30am PST. With nothing on the agenda until 6:30pm and each with a whopping $75 dollar stipend, we decided to go out of America in style by cramming ourselves full of processed foods and shopping. Of course, In and Out was a must-see West coast staple, and of course, we immediately got lost the second cell service died. We happily wandered around the shopping center suburb, completely disoriented and following the flickering beacon that Google maps provided, until hot and ravenous we found the glorious In and Out. <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO1BpEEe5DVeSWIh5x7FajmeUPCdCP9kEkBojnaTFTXPVACVSOxLSgpCz6s1c6X_8CCrvHmiWXNsqAapW-s_21UV6Ktf-lFcteWrhbzWH7Dbp7-BXATaZz4k-ZkWWcu5f_GJmCeCJCwV2CEkDMZxnJHBZuzo9pLTa1aKw3LANphtGfBqCgRzmp55fm7AVE/s4032/IMG_5565.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO1BpEEe5DVeSWIh5x7FajmeUPCdCP9kEkBojnaTFTXPVACVSOxLSgpCz6s1c6X_8CCrvHmiWXNsqAapW-s_21UV6Ktf-lFcteWrhbzWH7Dbp7-BXATaZz4k-ZkWWcu5f_GJmCeCJCwV2CEkDMZxnJHBZuzo9pLTa1aKw3LANphtGfBqCgRzmp55fm7AVE/s320/IMG_5565.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The sought after for burger, finally found</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><div>It was the best burger I’ve ever had (minus the french onion soup burger we had at that field hockey tournament, Dad) paired with some seriously mediocre fries (I don’t know how but the fries were lukewarm on the outside and refrigerator cold on the inside). We headed back for boba (needing an American comparison for the famous Taiwanese drink) and ran into two new people, Tyler and Ajahla, who had just arrived from the airport (as our cohort was landing in shifts). It’s at this point I should mention the immediate connection our group had. I’ll admit, I was initially worried about meeting the other members of the cohort. I didn't know who they would be or if I would fit in. But NSLI-Y has handpicked some seriously incredible people for this trip, and not just in terms of stellar academics or impressive resumes. Everyone here is genuinely excited about meeting the cohort and passionate about the program we’re in. There was instant chemistry with the group, and adding people along the way only just built our excitement and sense of childlike fun.</div><div><br /></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLeixU_-g1n0mK9rcqmYNK7_YzN-Sd-iQ4plrZgQd-0kGnda2D8ksfx0fN7xKenA7HTiFdmXybR7sJQydTib-KjGucrFOaDYdNIbJ1nUrVNwHiutKH7ivDTfym8WiMU_zPtKcxhsmoN06H2CDnhFlAZIzYSbtrMG200TI5ZrSS1UbdVzYOqD88x02IgYcy/s1568/IMG_5572.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1046" data-original-width="1568" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLeixU_-g1n0mK9rcqmYNK7_YzN-Sd-iQ4plrZgQd-0kGnda2D8ksfx0fN7xKenA7HTiFdmXybR7sJQydTib-KjGucrFOaDYdNIbJ1nUrVNwHiutKH7ivDTfym8WiMU_zPtKcxhsmoN06H2CDnhFlAZIzYSbtrMG200TI5ZrSS1UbdVzYOqD88x02IgYcy/w409-h272/IMG_5572.JPG" width="409" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption">The In and Out Gang (thank you Laura for all the amazing pictures!)</td></tr></tbody></table></div><div><br /></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7MZPFl-TC50inlCcTEQmJqW-TrTufzTSvTQW-vmWaGdI9j92Vim9FcJSTeWN6t49mwczrQrhF3IJRHI4nEZeOynpD8qi0ggy9QqsqQv_d4hiHrR5ZEdux-lPYpEsFY4tMu1W9vVLHboDBQb7r9xn75yvfndzygWe0oetaNF9So81RkNZaIZ1gm5E1p4WI/s1568/IMG_5570.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1046" data-original-width="1568" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7MZPFl-TC50inlCcTEQmJqW-TrTufzTSvTQW-vmWaGdI9j92Vim9FcJSTeWN6t49mwczrQrhF3IJRHI4nEZeOynpD8qi0ggy9QqsqQv_d4hiHrR5ZEdux-lPYpEsFY4tMu1W9vVLHboDBQb7r9xn75yvfndzygWe0oetaNF9So81RkNZaIZ1gm5E1p4WI/w338-h225/IMG_5570.JPG" width="338" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ian displaying a stellar example of childlike fun at the cards table<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table></div><div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0cCSJR2XEcpu966IioG2VXkML3v5wAbzpWD_2vyv4jaRUWML4zxDBWm7UpTcep5I2NLHZnXKxlnzL16Yqz6nj0VapamHgy_uUMMt8zc7AXxfzO5C8FCVNTV8Q-Fa6xRaDvY0CMVzpMz8HJeJ6bO_v7MUOyQB5mD_NLfJgm2inueuSLTDy7k-LYulNnlnS/s1568/IMG_5573.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1046" data-original-width="1568" height="208" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0cCSJR2XEcpu966IioG2VXkML3v5wAbzpWD_2vyv4jaRUWML4zxDBWm7UpTcep5I2NLHZnXKxlnzL16Yqz6nj0VapamHgy_uUMMt8zc7AXxfzO5C8FCVNTV8Q-Fa6xRaDvY0CMVzpMz8HJeJ6bO_v7MUOyQB5mD_NLfJgm2inueuSLTDy7k-LYulNnlnS/w312-h208/IMG_5573.JPG" width="312" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Trader Joes travels</td></tr></tbody></table>With newfound momentum we headed towards Trader Joes, buying snacks, sparkling apple juice, and talking about regional grocery stores. Back at the hotel we spent the next hour relaxing in Laura and Ajahla’s hotel room and talked about our shared excitement for the upcoming months. The excitement never bubbled over. The group is so warm and genuinely kind, and after moving down to the lobby, we met with other cohort members (newly landed) and played cards for over an hour. After an awesome Chipotle dinner (again, cramming in as much Americanized food as possible), we celebrated our first night together with a toast of fancy apple juice. A group of us (now calling ourselves the “lost foreigners” after our In and Out adventure) returned to Laura’s room and ended up watching Family Feud and discussing memories of our own families watching the show. Hailey and I, my hotel room mate, returned to our room and began to get ready for bed. One of us made an offhand comment about the upcoming program that spawned an hour-long conversation about human nature, how culture shapes humanity, varying government models, and good versus evil based on cultural definitions. I went to bed that night with a greater sense of purpose and more excitement about the program we’ll be embarking on.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu3-BYAJWY5WGXA1AgYaBpb9jhUj3flr7s6CQuoEggBH_8fR9m5fmdniauDA8NLOXms3DdUshdZxZZJRJMenIJASNr6qKK4Mbg0S7RdUjhNR4HIBgyVZ8B3we4R2m3gGmhqLBhlMFdA4rqGD7a-i13fuNqMW9mRDwPKktz8-qVtVqz_GhfA4KVV4gAeu1F/s4032/IMG_5569.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="273" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhu3-BYAJWY5WGXA1AgYaBpb9jhUj3flr7s6CQuoEggBH_8fR9m5fmdniauDA8NLOXms3DdUshdZxZZJRJMenIJASNr6qKK4Mbg0S7RdUjhNR4HIBgyVZ8B3we4R2m3gGmhqLBhlMFdA4rqGD7a-i13fuNqMW9mRDwPKktz8-qVtVqz_GhfA4KVV4gAeu1F/w364-h273/IMG_5569.JPG" width="364" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">BS in the lobby with new arrivals</td></tr></tbody></table><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxMP5atnDHzb1tPFahl7IcddOqmH-x8F37vcKVbugrJmhywF7u6R0kAU4J_AeA3n1-LdzIlIpj0Assa39akqqk3XlfYUUQXay9LGs4BLYwIvO_BuPk4NCJx5j3Yhre1O8Sagxp4WdR5SHq1PgTKbzdelqs8liJ-lsDyIlJFGn-Ru7R09N_mMo-UFCt0lhJ/s4032/IMG_5568.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="4032" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhxMP5atnDHzb1tPFahl7IcddOqmH-x8F37vcKVbugrJmhywF7u6R0kAU4J_AeA3n1-LdzIlIpj0Assa39akqqk3XlfYUUQXay9LGs4BLYwIvO_BuPk4NCJx5j3Yhre1O8Sagxp4WdR5SHq1PgTKbzdelqs8liJ-lsDyIlJFGn-Ru7R09N_mMo-UFCt0lhJ/s320/IMG_5568.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Cooling the fancy apple juice for the toast</td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLhU1Ja_J6rAmRzBlm5bqZJ6-2PyHhcmFtF-9_3skKBByNG9amefftMXCsIOD8KPb0zQjoIwqDbHGiI_vAkLeQUl56uMxhiMqxIWpQcDzlvRUNxLWTXBDVc5HdIXpGoBVx_1SydPHhzP8cJFHvvLylCu3z1VX7mkedgBljLevmD8yDRScgaEoxfScqKPQg/s1568/IMG_5579.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1046" data-original-width="1568" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLhU1Ja_J6rAmRzBlm5bqZJ6-2PyHhcmFtF-9_3skKBByNG9amefftMXCsIOD8KPb0zQjoIwqDbHGiI_vAkLeQUl56uMxhiMqxIWpQcDzlvRUNxLWTXBDVc5HdIXpGoBVx_1SydPHhzP8cJFHvvLylCu3z1VX7mkedgBljLevmD8yDRScgaEoxfScqKPQg/s320/IMG_5579.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Park icebreakers</td></tr></tbody></table>Through the next day excitement somehow continued to build. We spent most of the day at a beautiful public park, complete with a state of the art jungle gym and community garden. I’ll admit I was jealous of the neighborhood kids. The playset would have been perfect for a daring game of woodchips but alas, we had work to do. It was amazing to get to fully meet the rest of the group. I was able to talk to or at least say hello to all twenty four other people, and I’m grateful to the icebreakers despite the initial awkwardness as I think I know everyone's names (which is impressive by my standards as I always struggle to remember names). After introductions was lunch, followed by cultural fluency exercises. These were incredibly beneficial, as well as self reflective. We compared personal, American, and Taiwanese societal beliefs, dissecting where we individually and where the group lay on a scale between individual vs. collective for each category, as well as discussing culture shock and how to respond to subtle cultural differences. I will carry the advice with me, though I know that responding to fake cultural standards by holding up fingers per cultural norm violation during a controlled exercise will be wildly different from actual cultural misunderstandings.<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi26tlNDNIM8kF5lUv_GJgOlOIOW-evfd2mOZPz0WH6aLfaeJWCXsBqqdV_YTpZjIL7PhjylBfAUwtIUxv4tVDcqE4DHwVWBpvXclHqSfEHRuYcLja8bUn2t-V_FyIGNFN10QV_vkXK5XfY_0oIIykrkZPPQwEDHAbmMYoRNwQPZmu4xAaxxtID3k2gvNvc/s1568/IMG_5578.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1046" data-original-width="1568" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi26tlNDNIM8kF5lUv_GJgOlOIOW-evfd2mOZPz0WH6aLfaeJWCXsBqqdV_YTpZjIL7PhjylBfAUwtIUxv4tVDcqE4DHwVWBpvXclHqSfEHRuYcLja8bUn2t-V_FyIGNFN10QV_vkXK5XfY_0oIIykrkZPPQwEDHAbmMYoRNwQPZmu4xAaxxtID3k2gvNvc/s320/IMG_5578.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Program terms of conditions review complete with flaming hot cheeto prizes </td></tr></tbody></table><br />And yet, despite all of the prep work and mutual excitement, it still feels like this experience is a summer camp that I’ll be picked up from in a few days. Even as I’m nodding along to explanations about last minute packing and our international flight information, it all feels theoretical. As much as I may be physically prepared (thank you Grandma and Mom for everything) nothing could perfectly prepare me for living outside the US without the concrete safety net of family and friends. But as much as I am nervous, there’s more buzzing excitement. While I can’t pinpoint exactly what makes me afraid, I can point to exactly what I’m thrilled about: language study, talking to native speakers, meeting my host family, sharing my culture, learning about a new culture, living outside of the US, and cheap amazing Asian food. I have everything to look forward to, I am delighted to share my journey with you (if not just so I don’t have to tell the same stories over and over again, I can just say “check out my blog), and I am honored to be continuing my family's living abroad blog. Hi to everyone in Baltimore and beyond, and I’ll write soon.</div><div><br /></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK_eq_Ga-gNeHKvBh9JM4X6L75YWemx0_1-7gcmNBdGlTDDdpMZoM5iX1tKIeTRiT0wfwyXDO7jPEMn3_w0obJaWn1EHf3ubKUuJfMDnYho8JNSqi3MdC-EskxZPI0Q8Syis02JZ09HukyN-HYdvmIzd1L3c5TWP6t3XldupwA0L26XX0rYKBLO_aXDHVf/s1568/IMG_5575.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1046" data-original-width="1568" height="269" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjK_eq_Ga-gNeHKvBh9JM4X6L75YWemx0_1-7gcmNBdGlTDDdpMZoM5iX1tKIeTRiT0wfwyXDO7jPEMn3_w0obJaWn1EHf3ubKUuJfMDnYho8JNSqi3MdC-EskxZPI0Q8Syis02JZ09HukyN-HYdvmIzd1L3c5TWP6t3XldupwA0L26XX0rYKBLO_aXDHVf/w404-h269/IMG_5575.JPG" width="404" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hello from half of the NSLI-Y Kaohsiung cohort! The rest soon arrived after this photo.</td></tr></tbody></table><br />Lots of love from San Francisco,<br /><br />Violet<br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><br />Violethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12655471521148840299noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3831558865310136613.post-42722431859191191662014-09-03T01:12:00.000+08:002014-09-03T01:12:11.772+08:00Returning to Baltimore<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
As many of you know, Hopkins formally ended its relationship with Perdana University on July 31st. As a result we had to end our Malaysian adventure (at least) one year earlier than expected. It is difficult to put into words how amazing this experience has been for us as individuals and as a family. It is also hard to imagine that after 67 posts this is going to be our last blog post for a while. For a family that previously included one person who prided himself on not having a Facebook account (Brian) and another who had no interest in taking pictures (Mary), the blog has become an important part of our life routine. It is a powerful vehicle for conversation and reflection in our family. It has also been a great way to keep in touch with our friends and family throughout the world. We are incredibly humbled that we have had over 15,000 views since we started in July of 2013. We only hope that you have enjoyed reading it as much as we have enjoyed creating it.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCrP3JM8eL6_sGnqJiGaqg_Dt4bECEDdswDQ-H52TIFY-8WJIWVJfR0xBa9wkBSSDsN0cQtl1jmCws-QvXeM__zfu4gN135562CfuF5ocvJKGHdfeT2_sWFtM_ZOu6NKfd87EDcXI4EIyU/s1600/IMG_4531.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCrP3JM8eL6_sGnqJiGaqg_Dt4bECEDdswDQ-H52TIFY-8WJIWVJfR0xBa9wkBSSDsN0cQtl1jmCws-QvXeM__zfu4gN135562CfuF5ocvJKGHdfeT2_sWFtM_ZOu6NKfd87EDcXI4EIyU/s1600/IMG_4531.JPG" height="318" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our KL farewell dinner at Soul'd Out!</td></tr>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="text-align: left;">There are simply too many people to thank for making this past year possible so we are not going to try to list everyone here. If you are reading this blog, you are an important part of our lives and we thank you for sharing in our family.</span></div>
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Until next time, remember the greatest adventure is what lies ahead -- Selamat Jalan!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfVfgTim7qkqkWE6Qfmx4bnNirEk9wOvHZ5sUiYOUIHXnWVaIUO32pL-RH6b3Lr5m7tN0GygzpWDtbpb3KJhQrsPvZjbFXVj6zN_geGrnTMylp2UyLh6UxTiWKfNxWW1xeB2ysv9BQFEo/s1600/possible+back+cover+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfVfgTim7qkqkWE6Qfmx4bnNirEk9wOvHZ5sUiYOUIHXnWVaIUO32pL-RH6b3Lr5m7tN0GygzpWDtbpb3KJhQrsPvZjbFXVj6zN_geGrnTMylp2UyLh6UxTiWKfNxWW1xeB2ysv9BQFEo/s1600/possible+back+cover+2.jpg" height="640" width="424" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At a welcome home bbq in New York</td></tr>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06411589356995917223noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3831558865310136613.post-3311377782284324662014-08-30T04:52:00.001+08:002014-08-30T04:52:27.953+08:00Tourists at Home in Kuala Lumpur<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
With Vicki and Gil in town for two of our last three weeks in Malaysia, we became KL tourists. This turned out to be a fun way to wind down our time in KL. We hit some of our favorite spots and introduced them to the cast of characters that colored our lives here this year. And we also said our goodbyes...<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGp1CED1B0fiLSOmG1QXYoyLYLJdusvW0vbyFT-PNTridbKKA2pFidjsYzIDMGwbBJfOxKRPAI9RtA-dfQ_hyphenhyphenL7Aen1WCkuGOdubAYFUJoGWLWWwJF4ANSCHOmGHPgrMzyKXhM9TY5TOX4/s1600/DSCN2228.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGp1CED1B0fiLSOmG1QXYoyLYLJdusvW0vbyFT-PNTridbKKA2pFidjsYzIDMGwbBJfOxKRPAI9RtA-dfQ_hyphenhyphenL7Aen1WCkuGOdubAYFUJoGWLWWwJF4ANSCHOmGHPgrMzyKXhM9TY5TOX4/s1600/DSCN2228.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mary and Rosie at TTDI market</td></tr>
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As you might expect from reading our blog this year, much of the year centered around food. Ana and Sue from LaZat put together a special family Malaysian Chinese cooking class for us. In addition to the adult student cooks, Monique's daughter, Aimee, and Violet joined us. Mary has been looking forward to this for the entire year since the focus of the class was her favorite Chinese dish, char kuey tao (CKT). The morning began with a tour of the TTDI wet market to learn about the ingredients we would be using in the class. Mary of course stopped by to see her resident spice lady Rosie, who as usual was delightfully cheerful and even put together a special snack pack for Gil. We then we headed over to LaZat for 4 hours of cooking and gorging! We started off by making fried wantons with shrimp and prawns. Next up, a delicious crab salad followed by the CKT. The trick to a flavorful CKT is frying the ingredients in a wok at incredibly high heat. After nearly choking to death on the the thick black smoke of frying chili (ok, maybe Violet and Brian burned them a little) it was amazing to us that anyone survives long enough to become an expert Chinese Malaysian cook! The Malay cooking class next to us nearly had to be evacuated. Sue of course was un-phased and found the whole scene somewhat amusing. Overall the food was delicious (of course!) and Violet and Aimee represented the next generation of chefs well.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkDE-a6ozVCbx9Wji2wIu0DHtpVwSeFq-_E96aNbLkoTjQxTThel3xquRsGkpcKFai8AkQXVRUKoi_XdWDnw7WjMhT_iUyFrNPmzfLrSTbI5wM6KYUyc-V8bz25ouUeeHwE1gOk__KCib0/s1600/DSCN2239.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkDE-a6ozVCbx9Wji2wIu0DHtpVwSeFq-_E96aNbLkoTjQxTThel3xquRsGkpcKFai8AkQXVRUKoi_XdWDnw7WjMhT_iUyFrNPmzfLrSTbI5wM6KYUyc-V8bz25ouUeeHwE1gOk__KCib0/s1600/DSCN2239.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Sue in her element at the TTDI market</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYx3aMUzpmNoAIekxA5Jw6KIRam2vcUWUyBM5Znz9jebxOLdtvXLOyIZWMruegE99v28Y6DR4dNlgCbAgFeQmvJiAU4GMj51BUDQVvc1sdfu0lOt8w_kxqQxk_0WmzCfkoKavtL9fRIER_/s1600/IMG_2578.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYx3aMUzpmNoAIekxA5Jw6KIRam2vcUWUyBM5Znz9jebxOLdtvXLOyIZWMruegE99v28Y6DR4dNlgCbAgFeQmvJiAU4GMj51BUDQVvc1sdfu0lOt8w_kxqQxk_0WmzCfkoKavtL9fRIER_/s1600/IMG_2578.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcOj5sv-nnqrDjB2DXmozO242BkeQ7o8_2cY3hUR7kpDwkLkzy73k0dqUQ_sXX4bogUIywY4YKLZLzZYkcvssFX4IJQOwmd8SdR3q0Q9IPvf7_tBDTEh1p4PqtZf-Eu_t7l1XWOLXPCZfj/s1600/IMG_2582.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcOj5sv-nnqrDjB2DXmozO242BkeQ7o8_2cY3hUR7kpDwkLkzy73k0dqUQ_sXX4bogUIywY4YKLZLzZYkcvssFX4IJQOwmd8SdR3q0Q9IPvf7_tBDTEh1p4PqtZf-Eu_t7l1XWOLXPCZfj/s1600/IMG_2582.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicBz5wKIJ4Zh1XsEvHMfiRWjoY8uR8oYvR-OBx50BahtZl1qVigxftaZHEHZZ4S_qRoH052yzh74Vrk0CuSlxkz55CnDVnun3Ogcn5xuS1YD6ZvKhmpQ6VhuvWj5NdTxObv96eLDE4AB5H/s1600/P8240281.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicBz5wKIJ4Zh1XsEvHMfiRWjoY8uR8oYvR-OBx50BahtZl1qVigxftaZHEHZZ4S_qRoH052yzh74Vrk0CuSlxkz55CnDVnun3Ogcn5xuS1YD6ZvKhmpQ6VhuvWj5NdTxObv96eLDE4AB5H/s1600/P8240281.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We were glad to be in town to go to LaZat's Hari Raya open house<br />and say farewell to Ana, LaZat's owner. </td></tr>
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We also had to continue the Pohl tradition of Korean barbeque so we took everyone to our favorite Korean restaurant, Dao Rae. This also doubled as a farewell dinner for Nicole. We were so happy that she met Gil and Vicki since Nicole has been such an important part of our life this year. (Violet is still asking when she and Nicole are going out for another foot massage.)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv8j_Ws-94SUseYrfdEoRrSUXRigLYL7OZgo0Q9Mc-88ke13lekzDSlUSOuKrZHqPja0BTBPyQCG84WJGhUjSoneZIlwyzp9F6TZFjRhV4Y8z9T0l_oXCQrfhsKqqhK5MtspAYcB5jai9u/s1600/IMG_2549.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv8j_Ws-94SUseYrfdEoRrSUXRigLYL7OZgo0Q9Mc-88ke13lekzDSlUSOuKrZHqPja0BTBPyQCG84WJGhUjSoneZIlwyzp9F6TZFjRhV4Y8z9T0l_oXCQrfhsKqqhK5MtspAYcB5jai9u/s1600/IMG_2549.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiLtHd0sEmPQ6DdXr1VSU3ILBQnOCKQm-hePpLS_G8KIdVthS_amfi2mOCfwXvs1CDEDm6N7v3-r6cYFm1srr6knFEMSwO4ADNOfkEN44JbEEJnc3k4lkaA1gkc1xGma7G0c7gj6daJ7kK/s1600/P8220186.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiLtHd0sEmPQ6DdXr1VSU3ILBQnOCKQm-hePpLS_G8KIdVthS_amfi2mOCfwXvs1CDEDm6N7v3-r6cYFm1srr6knFEMSwO4ADNOfkEN44JbEEJnc3k4lkaA1gkc1xGma7G0c7gj6daJ7kK/s1600/P8220186.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a>No visit to KL would be complete without a trip to Restoran Lim Kee on the food street Jalan Alor. As usual, Lillian did not disappoint. The salt and pepper squid is still the best dish we have had in KL (sorry duck curry from My Elephant - you're close but not quite there!) and Lillian made a special noodle dish for Gil that was one of his favorite dinners of the trip. Lillian and Simon are simply wonderful hosts. Our friend has celiac disease and Lillian prepared separate dishes for her using gluten-free ingredients our friend brought from home. We have convinced all of our Mont Kiara friends that Lillian's is the place to go on Jalan Alor and we hope they continue the tradition of eating there at least once a month (remember guys, she is closed on Thursdays).<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7tyWFnx_K_JgxofERW8YiSatBV_4Y3ylGyk0VfVBPyc7oqqG1PQvgcwTYYqLiUUo4WhJve-MKk56wgV9rInYMTQ47zVYpr4XtagPC8DlGj97M3rfFD41cCT2f-kr3EGiRIw27lhDIS0Tw/s1600/P8220231.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7tyWFnx_K_JgxofERW8YiSatBV_4Y3ylGyk0VfVBPyc7oqqG1PQvgcwTYYqLiUUo4WhJve-MKk56wgV9rInYMTQ47zVYpr4XtagPC8DlGj97M3rfFD41cCT2f-kr3EGiRIw27lhDIS0Tw/s1600/P8220231.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our final dinner with Lillian on Jalan Alor</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv00ajqgUiXjcCV1jAoDrwx5cQ2iBr1kwH_iNXaW-stIHEHO30a7aKG0iHJj-ZvyMUEu63IKoQ2yH4cMzjOoxOOY2CApBJATzI7eS-QBlW_D9rjGU1fIwT119dgqVlOAA7ZBh84ZKZammu/s1600/P8210091.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv00ajqgUiXjcCV1jAoDrwx5cQ2iBr1kwH_iNXaW-stIHEHO30a7aKG0iHJj-ZvyMUEu63IKoQ2yH4cMzjOoxOOY2CApBJATzI7eS-QBlW_D9rjGU1fIwT119dgqVlOAA7ZBh84ZKZammu/s1600/P8210091.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a>Gil loves malls and tall buildings so we spent an evening in KLCC at the Petronas Towers. We started off by exploring Suria KLCC mall and then headed over to the Sky Bar at the Traders hotel to watch the sunset over the backdrop of the Towers. Patrick took us here in July 2013 to introduce us to the city so it was a fitting goodbye to one of the most gorgeous architectural structures in the world. The view at night is simply spectacular and it is a wonderful place to spend an evening with family and friends.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiStvfC7-1tbBb59wQl3Ip4B0jVA2v2f_rUBsEnBwVEKl-IZTdSZf2VxaGsm0NtXdbfXesysctq4MOmcfev27JauFHdwaPe-aQi8sNgg8Wzo78xLeLHcz3VPj0ExLoDOj2FEb6LDnGSyOwv/s1600/IMG_4455.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiStvfC7-1tbBb59wQl3Ip4B0jVA2v2f_rUBsEnBwVEKl-IZTdSZf2VxaGsm0NtXdbfXesysctq4MOmcfev27JauFHdwaPe-aQi8sNgg8Wzo78xLeLHcz3VPj0ExLoDOj2FEb6LDnGSyOwv/s1600/IMG_4455.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj409blOJHnnr5E3sz3He0dygJgBuNHGpkjXryf0kVAwjhR_6F0q0WzoOVdDwjJjj41xW36uDsKxOn0WcONmwfjzL95CKOS02VoriyST9pY7kk_D7Tvp2MIAvS1JHMZHhxsoqMd8e7Rc1pa/s1600/P8210100.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj409blOJHnnr5E3sz3He0dygJgBuNHGpkjXryf0kVAwjhR_6F0q0WzoOVdDwjJjj41xW36uDsKxOn0WcONmwfjzL95CKOS02VoriyST9pY7kk_D7Tvp2MIAvS1JHMZHhxsoqMd8e7Rc1pa/s1600/P8210100.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9wPlHfEJ2JRq48Ol2GJgLucQmSfRq5g0_U8hgCEajGTc0TRqZUON9NQV0nUjJak7mi_ut0yJzp0_dsEP9vhw_dJpavFfFlB3UYDZ_Ewen25mG_i8Z-7R6ND0t9sgyNd6WKeoTOnUGI4Ds/s1600/P8210125.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9wPlHfEJ2JRq48Ol2GJgLucQmSfRq5g0_U8hgCEajGTc0TRqZUON9NQV0nUjJak7mi_ut0yJzp0_dsEP9vhw_dJpavFfFlB3UYDZ_Ewen25mG_i8Z-7R6ND0t9sgyNd6WKeoTOnUGI4Ds/s1600/P8210125.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghO9VSlXIUnSp5JYRCQ2qbGfz6ejD-rw1Vd59yRokFkcHkGfstuDdbFV41_UB5zTcooV9r_bLUKp9eefKRFkOe-olKaVCObGEQtTsdJNoT-JDeS6P9DFHqZUTs409d0X1N8a9Gs0E_rAvQ/s1600/IMG_4460.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghO9VSlXIUnSp5JYRCQ2qbGfz6ejD-rw1Vd59yRokFkcHkGfstuDdbFV41_UB5zTcooV9r_bLUKp9eefKRFkOe-olKaVCObGEQtTsdJNoT-JDeS6P9DFHqZUTs409d0X1N8a9Gs0E_rAvQ/s1600/IMG_4460.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnxfcroLG1ZVATuqb72o5bccrWka6z-mzuxeEWPZt3mzrFfmziU1VIe9904_p8YgTz3PtNfY4SWQ_C1jaNJW0RdDBWrK-lqA5BfRmQ-zdf2RSZSBNi1STS4SMv1eWng2u_QPlPZl0drTm7/s1600/P8210009.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnxfcroLG1ZVATuqb72o5bccrWka6z-mzuxeEWPZt3mzrFfmziU1VIe9904_p8YgTz3PtNfY4SWQ_C1jaNJW0RdDBWrK-lqA5BfRmQ-zdf2RSZSBNi1STS4SMv1eWng2u_QPlPZl0drTm7/s1600/P8210009.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Are they drums, are they stools? Brian can't tell...</td></tr>
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In addition to loving malls, Gil and Vicki also love to shop, and shopping we did. We have officially dubbed Vicki and Gil "the great shopping enablers." Mary went to Jim Moore's to buy two stools and ended up with 4. She went to IPC to buy 1 Thai pillow and came home with 2. Brian went to get 1 instrument in Hanoi and came home with 3. You get the idea...<br />
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Brian however wins the award for the most ridiculous shopping adventure. Whenever we go to a new country he tries to learn about the local music with a particular focus on stringed instruments. For the past few months he has been looking for a traditional Malaysian stringed instrument called a sape' but they have been impossible to find anywhere outside of a few towns in Borneo. He briefly talked about going to Kuching with Gil for a 12 hour trip but we had too much to do in KL to get ready for our move. So he did the next best thing - he brought the sape' store to our apartment. Brian found a sape' teacher and musician who commissions sape's from local makers in Sarawak, Borneo. After discussing things over Facebook, Saufi agreed to bring a traditional 4-string sape' to KL from Borneo the weekend before we moved. It is solid wood, handcrafted, heavy and beautiful. It is by far the coolest instrument that Brian acquired from Southeast Asia. Saufi stayed for over an hour teaching Brian how to care for, tune and even play the sape' and then he gave us a ton of both traditional and contemporary sape' tunes to download. Check him out at <a href="http://melodyofborneo.blog.com/">http://melodyofborneo.blog.com/</a>.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipNEM2BIleI8938g7l0oQQSZSAoUxpy1cwUnvrALeeInElZSIKs-fZt-unOh4wqgYhmOc4fuEuyajmLxzpi6qJciff7O5SHD8de4n2fbKIsv-0_vzkY5TpFOky_Yz6nKKFcmYVIoNU_bS2/s1600/P8240278.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipNEM2BIleI8938g7l0oQQSZSAoUxpy1cwUnvrALeeInElZSIKs-fZt-unOh4wqgYhmOc4fuEuyajmLxzpi6qJciff7O5SHD8de4n2fbKIsv-0_vzkY5TpFOky_Yz6nKKFcmYVIoNU_bS2/s1600/P8240278.JPG" height="274" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tyler and his swim coach, Michelle (or as Ty called her <br />for months -- "Miss Shell") at the kids' final swim lesson. </td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVUmV0-LbrP4Li3QOE4iGN7YPcwRCHzmr8idiJ_U42D2lV9otLSopqqK1u9e8Nc3L_V4iBpvCbxfUJHy9t5iySphNDnG598UNrlNMEO89Ag4ug5oI-bcK4IZK-BXlmXbXbdmfehsPqXIuI/s1600/P8240280.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVUmV0-LbrP4Li3QOE4iGN7YPcwRCHzmr8idiJ_U42D2lV9otLSopqqK1u9e8Nc3L_V4iBpvCbxfUJHy9t5iySphNDnG598UNrlNMEO89Ag4ug5oI-bcK4IZK-BXlmXbXbdmfehsPqXIuI/s1600/P8240280.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A heartfelt goodbye to Mr. Madu Tapa, our wonderful apartment guard</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW1IdFK-3bjzpvAOZaYTN7qu7kRSrUo4ocjUE4pv1ooBU4F7u7UskyUUsFPlbQpWLIeuOeO6DXKTUDQNUiIbd-Ds_H2sw0CzuKTfglCJfCoo1t3LfoSJpGS-04yfYolRKgP0NENQMRxgiE/s1600/IMG_4485.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW1IdFK-3bjzpvAOZaYTN7qu7kRSrUo4ocjUE4pv1ooBU4F7u7UskyUUsFPlbQpWLIeuOeO6DXKTUDQNUiIbd-Ds_H2sw0CzuKTfglCJfCoo1t3LfoSJpGS-04yfYolRKgP0NENQMRxgiE/s1600/IMG_4485.jpg" height="320" width="179" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Brian and Saufi with the sape'</td></tr>
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In addition to being tourists, we also started the unappealing task of packing our apartment and preparing to move back home. Our apologies to Gil and Vicki that their last day was spent changing lightbulbs and sorting pictures.<br />
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While Gil and Vicki were incredibly helpful, we simply could not have gotten through the last few weeks (or quite honestly, the last 8 months) without the help of Anita. Anita has been our helper around the apartment since the beginning of the new year. She has been a god-send. She is thoughtful, organized, generous and caring. She is wonderful with Violet and Tyler and just knows how to get things done. Need to find the obscure downtown office to pay your parking ticket? <i>My favorite weekend market is right there - I'll handle it.</i> Craving some fresh Indonesian tempeh wrapped in banana leaf? <i>I know where to get the authentic stuff. </i>Need someone to watch the kids for a date night? <i>I'm free tonight on short notice. </i>Need someone to sew country patches onto Brian's guitar case? <i>I'll do it without you even asking.</i> Anita, we have been so blessed to have you in our lives this year. Thank you for bringing fresh flowers to the apartment every morning, keeping us organized and sane, and being an overall force for good in the world! We will miss you more than words can express.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd6gZVqOBL59LlY2SGFn9PSfo0e1IGLNEjuYgPvyNYAjsG4QXkZnX3TVjRLBVd60itAoDkeHgghLJf8bKxrT0_uuVInrm5yiW2CQGvYU9Fa3cq9OwOoqX8NlOHLC-0yBA-IccYnNQ5e3xX/s1600/IMG_2724.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjd6gZVqOBL59LlY2SGFn9PSfo0e1IGLNEjuYgPvyNYAjsG4QXkZnX3TVjRLBVd60itAoDkeHgghLJf8bKxrT0_uuVInrm5yiW2CQGvYU9Fa3cq9OwOoqX8NlOHLC-0yBA-IccYnNQ5e3xX/s1600/IMG_2724.jpg" height="278" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Anita, we miss you already!</td></tr>
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Maryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07097737124628100844noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3831558865310136613.post-6305545732395038062014-08-23T13:44:00.001+08:002014-08-23T13:44:31.842+08:00Good Morning, Vietnam!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaIlJSCUWc-dXAgTQKyy0KFDBSbDQZr3GJEdJCtI6KvizWJvqTFHlC-UIRqSD4DK-Atrw6L15ol-ZO0GQIS57lVUkPA9w7eYGHfoZTO1iYIS3b7IOH0_LfECeXQKYisVWHx1fMXWIM33K-/s1600/P8120107.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaIlJSCUWc-dXAgTQKyy0KFDBSbDQZr3GJEdJCtI6KvizWJvqTFHlC-UIRqSD4DK-Atrw6L15ol-ZO0GQIS57lVUkPA9w7eYGHfoZTO1iYIS3b7IOH0_LfECeXQKYisVWHx1fMXWIM33K-/s1600/P8120107.JPG" height="278" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">(<span style="font-family: inherit;">The title of this blog is our small tribute to Robin Williams, a comic </span>genius.)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Mary’s parents, Vicki and
Gil, planned their trip to visit us in Malaysia almost a year ago. Gil
requested two things of this trip. He wanted to 1) go somewhere south of the
equator, and 2) ride an elephant. We had originally planned to go back to Bali
to kill two birds with one stone... but... as we learned that we were
running out of time to explore new places in Southeast Asia, we decided to make alternative plans (AKA - we didn't listen to our parents). Although it is north of the equator and does not have a sizeable ridable elephant population, Gil and Vicki love to experience new foods and cultures so
Vietnam seemed like an otherwise ideal country to visit. Inspired by Ethan and Robin’s experiences in Hanoi and Halong Bay, we decided to
focus on the northern part of the country for our trip.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRXlmrLWmHA-J8eu33uLYz8sohWbHq8eaW9mTAKDcOtl276BncBFR2NOlAp6XsOgfK43IwJquGW1_Yu0Oaj8GVc-5VVy79HTZziiBJk1w88OggoZ6GdrypuQKD9U08RFlmJfDJ_fGIcAZT/s1600/P8120109.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRXlmrLWmHA-J8eu33uLYz8sohWbHq8eaW9mTAKDcOtl276BncBFR2NOlAp6XsOgfK43IwJquGW1_Yu0Oaj8GVc-5VVy79HTZziiBJk1w88OggoZ6GdrypuQKD9U08RFlmJfDJ_fGIcAZT/s1600/P8120109.JPG" height="248" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">Gil and Violet wandering the alleys in Old Quarter</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">To say that we fell in love
with Hanoi is a criminal understatement. Mary (with the help of the
awesome team at Custom Vietnam Travel <span style="background: white;"><a href="http://customvietnamtravel.com.vn/">http://customvietnamtravel.com</a>)</span> chose a higher-end hotel in the center of
the “Old Quarter.” (<a href="http://silkpathhotel.com/">http://silkpathhotel.com/</a>) Immediately on arrival from our AirAsia flight, we set
out to explore the city. We had heard great tales of the street food in
Hanoi and we were not disappointed. We stopped at a stall on a small
alleyway by our hotel and had delicious Pho Bo and a couple of the famously
inexpensive Hanoi beers.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM8y1gJqjlOa6KqyVJEx657zFZFNNv88YnfYJ2NUzEIHy4h5mj0SlfVi6y2TXmDS0pezoDdeJfN2jYdsqm-6RfZhfAMEU5p6FwvNE3spV0xpMbcBIjhpUspr4BhQL13dBLpShxlC4KXynv/s1600/P8120114.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM8y1gJqjlOa6KqyVJEx657zFZFNNv88YnfYJ2NUzEIHy4h5mj0SlfVi6y2TXmDS0pezoDdeJfN2jYdsqm-6RfZhfAMEU5p6FwvNE3spV0xpMbcBIjhpUspr4BhQL13dBLpShxlC4KXynv/s1600/P8120114.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">My dad took this picture.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Before leaving KL we'd
decided a Hanoi tour the first afternoon of our arrival would provide us some
orientation. Trusty TripAdvisor recommended we contact "Hanoi
Kids" for a tour. Hanoi Kids is a 300-person strong group of volunteer
students from local universities offering FREE walking tours of Hanoi (<span style="color: black;"><a href="http://hanoikids.org/">http://hanoikids.org/</a>). The
students use the tours as an opportunity to practice their english language
skills and tourists receive a lovely tour while chatting about the
life of a Hanoi resident. Two university students met us at our hotel the
afternoon of our arrival. While the kids (and Vicki) were hot and tired and
opted to spend the afternoon drinking hotel cocktails from room service, Brian,
Mary, and Gil joined Trang and Hoa -- two university students -- to walk around the Old Quarter and French Quarter. They gave us a nice history of the area and
oriented us around <span style="background: white;">Hồ Hoàn Kiếm Lake
("The Lake of the Returned Sword"). As we chatted we learned about
each of their childhoods and studies and got to ask questions that we'd never
ask on a normal tour -- "Does everyone in Hanoi own a motor scooter"
(It's pretty normal to have one for everyone in the family.) "Is it just
tourists that shop in Old Quarter?" (A lot of the shops are for tourists,
but then there are places like that one that
repair appliance motors. Not many tourists bring along their
broken blenders.) "Is it this clean everywhere in Hanoi?" (There is
extra street cleaning here for tourists.) "Are the sidewalk badminton courts
used?" (YES!) We ended the tour with a "fresh beer"
(draught beer) and fried fermented pork (AMAZING, despite the name).</span></span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzpCC6b3LgypqC_bwwew6WaXF4flzcqFpJsV3zTWWhyphenhyphen9qxsAvnbV_O_84fG-xfLpVk5tqzoBtPqMqjdGTTc6pN6X_vTJdQlzIghu1RjCvb6XfgqDGw7Mrk93w9GVEcBiuhDiPQ-VzPevly/s1600/P8120112.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgzpCC6b3LgypqC_bwwew6WaXF4flzcqFpJsV3zTWWhyphenhyphen9qxsAvnbV_O_84fG-xfLpVk5tqzoBtPqMqjdGTTc6pN6X_vTJdQlzIghu1RjCvb6XfgqDGw7Mrk93w9GVEcBiuhDiPQ-VzPevly/s1600/P8120112.JPG" height="200" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">Hanoi Kids tour guides</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Because of zoning
restrictions, the architecture in the Old Quarter is essentially the
same as it was over 50 years ago. There are endless narrow streets and
alleyways of 2-3 story buildings with stores below and apartments and balconies
above. It is very similar in both appearance and feel to the French
Quarter of New Orleans. The main streets in the Old Quarter were
originally organized based on trade. For example, Silk Road housed
all of the silk traders and fabric dealers. Many of the streets still retain
that identity. We spent a lot of time on Silk Street but also walked through
“electrical street,” “locksmith street,” “shoe street,” “toilet bowl street”
"beer street"(we clearly had some fun coming up with our own names
based on what we saw). <span style="background-color: white;">Thank you
to Trang and Hoa! These ladies were so awesome. They accepted no
tip or donation for their time and they even emailed us later that evening
with the names of must eat street food places around the Old Quarter.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCdQL60iPoHf_RY9BaFA14LeEAmHR3UMM16J_eLJTgtfo04zwpQtkvx6bIpLXcsfM4rxjqSv6_RKOGSNlmutVZIyro_OurqRvntweSXG6aOL5Dydl7e3rniOypQ-9yx5Pi0TO7uuEWZz6I/s1600/P8130122.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCdQL60iPoHf_RY9BaFA14LeEAmHR3UMM16J_eLJTgtfo04zwpQtkvx6bIpLXcsfM4rxjqSv6_RKOGSNlmutVZIyro_OurqRvntweSXG6aOL5Dydl7e3rniOypQ-9yx5Pi0TO7uuEWZz6I/s1600/P8130122.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">Riding in style in Custom Vietnam Travel's <br />brand new touring van</span></td></tr>
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<span style="background: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The morning after our arrival in Vietnam, we headed out for Ninh Bihn and Halong Bay. As we left town, we were already looking forward to the two days we'd spend in Hanoi on the back end of our visit.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The landscape of northeastern Vietnam is dotted with limestone karst towers. Karsts are what's left behind after rainwater dissolves limestone cliffs. In Vietnam, the karsts are giant, isolated limestone formations. Our first stop outside Halong was in Ninh Binh, often called the inland Halong Bay. We stopped at a small town to take a river tour of the landscape. While a gentle rain fell, two women paddled our boats through isolated rices fields and agricultural lands. We saw villagers fishing and crabbing and we even paddled through some caves! Pretty cool. After a delicious lunch, we started out on bicycles. Tyler learned to bike just one week before this trip and we were all super proud that he kept up even with the rain and the gravel road (although there were a few moments when he almost went unintentionally off-roading through the rice paddies). We decided to skip hiking up the cliff and instead checked in at the Emeralda Resort (<a href="http://www.emeraldaresort.com/">http://www.emeraldaresort.com/</a>), which turned out to be as beautiful as it looks online. </span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc6CDiV3qMO4cEuLicvjaGnW2hqBnewbRGy8fiB4j_mxrBzB3R81j-8e1l_Gxc4Ks_SrdFx_XCM6t05iEnkp8wxDXsHIwJrxmMhxNlyeOZ2cfVPyVy_3THilBVNQGaiEIIxrelFr5ClrYe/s1600/P8130225.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhc6CDiV3qMO4cEuLicvjaGnW2hqBnewbRGy8fiB4j_mxrBzB3R81j-8e1l_Gxc4Ks_SrdFx_XCM6t05iEnkp8wxDXsHIwJrxmMhxNlyeOZ2cfVPyVy_3THilBVNQGaiEIIxrelFr5ClrYe/s1600/P8130225.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">We're on a boat named "Dang"</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYs4RFiOnvpQumE08mWRcsc5D_85c6woSiqLPlksMbG84EPdw3QRsKX3HeAVnBxZ3d51xmJefI_2o8Xcugedqh4kjKCCpN_P2xKb2sFheS6IAkCRXWQ6PtSEZ_6ZzLLtnOms6NrnLHTTvI/s1600/P8130234.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYs4RFiOnvpQumE08mWRcsc5D_85c6woSiqLPlksMbG84EPdw3QRsKX3HeAVnBxZ3d51xmJefI_2o8Xcugedqh4kjKCCpN_P2xKb2sFheS6IAkCRXWQ6PtSEZ_6ZzLLtnOms6NrnLHTTvI/s1600/P8130234.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">Enjoying the giant karaoke room at the Emeralda. </span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz1e0FCsrFqZ8Zc2NNldwsld9KxdMVxIWmgt_eJMMDGkYPJC3h4lE_iO-LCVOaysCbZbBhAw_GFXizXJmkqQvVcm7bSKwOYNDa_9982ihCKZ3RArwmjyszJZPaqLAgqTaZE2WwFTiai9Ei/s1600/P8160081.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiz1e0FCsrFqZ8Zc2NNldwsld9KxdMVxIWmgt_eJMMDGkYPJC3h4lE_iO-LCVOaysCbZbBhAw_GFXizXJmkqQvVcm7bSKwOYNDa_9982ihCKZ3RArwmjyszJZPaqLAgqTaZE2WwFTiai9Ei/s1600/P8160081.JPG" height="220" width="320" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">We were up early for the 4 hour drive to Halong Bay. Halong Bay was the real reason for this trip. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, Halong Bay is the landscape of dreams. (<a href="http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/672">http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/672</a>) We opted for the three day - two night cruise which is a day longer than most tours and takes visitors out to the isolated areas in the far east of Halong Bay. We sailed on the Dragon Pearl II by IndoChina Junk, a boat which carries up to 20 guests. The beauty of the landscape is difficult to put into words, so we're going to put in a bunch of pictures! Our only disappointment in Halong was the tremendous amount of trash in the water near the major tourist routes. On our first kayak trip, we picked up plastic bag after plastic bag. What would otherwise be beautiful beaches were spoiled by the rubbish. Our second day took us far east. The sea and beaches here were free of trash and our 1-hour kayak trip was stunning! </span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">Our ship towed the kayaks along as we sailed.</span></td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijVwwCwL3bov1jJsXZ2am_Q7rTApYEzDZ6cZy0Ih7nPfRN9Fnvzyx6nAN4UZgukurJrBy2rCFFCY7Lu_EpVUiOMmwIkG1CyYhWjVczQPgaJJJzgT5yYgNG9W6tH-AZ3IDF7BJsXvcWDAMD/s1600/P8140128.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijVwwCwL3bov1jJsXZ2am_Q7rTApYEzDZ6cZy0Ih7nPfRN9Fnvzyx6nAN4UZgukurJrBy2rCFFCY7Lu_EpVUiOMmwIkG1CyYhWjVczQPgaJJJzgT5yYgNG9W6tH-AZ3IDF7BJsXvcWDAMD/s1600/P8140128.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></span></a><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Oh, the food! IndoChina Junk is known for amazing food, especially seafood. Each meal brought us course after course of deliciousness. Violet is now a big fan of prawn (Tyler confirmed that he, indeed, likes only white rice, meaning Brian and Gil got extra helpings from his rations). The rain confined us to eating indoors most of the trip, but our favorite meal was our first lunch after setting sail when we sat at a table on the bow's upper deck and watched the limestone formations go by. For our last dinner, we ate BBQ in a cave (it was awesome except for the smoke - they actually did the cooking in the cave as well)!!! For friends heading to Vietnam, we recommend you check out IndoChina Junk.</span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">Tyler helped cruise the ship!</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">Super cool in-cave dining!</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">After our Halong Bay time, we were excited to return to Hanoi. We spent two days wandering around the Old Quarter and we could have easily spent 2 or 3 more. For Brian, music was the highlight of Hanoi part 2. We went to a traditional Ca Tru performance in a beautiful old house in the Old Quarter and Brian got to go onstage to try out one of the Vietnamese lutes used in the performance. It was a surreal experience since the show was in the covered courtyard of the house and an intense rain storm began about halfway through the show. With the rain pounding on the tarp covering, it was at times impossible to hear the singing. We were also nearly flooded out by the torrential downpour. At one point one of the audience members had to reach his hand into the courtyard's drain and pull out a handful of weeds to prevent the entire show from going underwater! </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM9deW3-lTAMlX8Ig3r_VC_heMhfpm0KaDgBqHF7PF0ThkyAJKaeWYUvvjzsRXnNh90UGNzcFk78C-t4_rlQkGqotu_BOjUZLDUYpEuTnis1U9VgpDoLWfy1amEOiKWbDcdCAUKw9U8Gix/s1600/photo+(8).jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM9deW3-lTAMlX8Ig3r_VC_heMhfpm0KaDgBqHF7PF0ThkyAJKaeWYUvvjzsRXnNh90UGNzcFk78C-t4_rlQkGqotu_BOjUZLDUYpEuTnis1U9VgpDoLWfy1amEOiKWbDcdCAUKw9U8Gix/s1600/photo+(8).jpg" height="320" width="240" /></span></a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcS44yZzJVfyoNiQ6EJPUproH-Qv89lNxyXBP8iTo_weC-7vsw7IzIS2QfbLkbmQE4OfYIMSE-ciC02hQsb72mG9mV6BamM-OIK0EAg1KZtXavAutBWRTRTA18iZYT6JC3a92pc0kuzD3G/s1600/photo+(9).JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcS44yZzJVfyoNiQ6EJPUproH-Qv89lNxyXBP8iTo_weC-7vsw7IzIS2QfbLkbmQE4OfYIMSE-ciC02hQsb72mG9mV6BamM-OIK0EAg1KZtXavAutBWRTRTA18iZYT6JC3a92pc0kuzD3G/s1600/photo+(9).JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: white; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial;">The performance cemented Brian's desire to buy a traditional Vietnamese stringed instrument so the next day Gil and Brian went on a mission to find actual non-souvenir grade lutes. They came home with not one but two - a Dan Nguyet and a Dan Ty Ba. They are amazingly beautiful with mother-of-pearl inlay and sound great. Later that evening we went to a water puppet show and the band featured a Dan Nguyet as one of the main instruments. During the show Brian fell in love with a Dan Bau, a single-stringed instrument that is played by creating harmonics and then bending the string to get all of the notes of the scale. With his trusty instrument hunter Gil, they ran out of the show back to the music store and got one of those as well! You can probably tell that we are in full-on binge shopping mode before we head back to the U.S. Mary splurged on a couple </span><span style="background-color: white;">(ok, three) paintings, and even Violet got into the act and got herself a traditional tea set. </span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">Strangest shopping experience. To enter "The Big C" (Tesco/Walmat-like store), <br />we had to have our purses shrouded and sealed in plastic.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ4BBsx65vYzB2YJ7yVrcqa-GDKXwpP9WYu5nAVqVJDmFidzLrqdKRUMPaIrEwUWWOLyt7Zt16Jh3ftEgd1-Y4zMPksAIqUtkQT_2PUZQ1Icul-6nC2f5xWour1rXT6TbeHxdRt7uxt4n8/s1600/IMG_2487.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><span style="color: black; font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJ4BBsx65vYzB2YJ7yVrcqa-GDKXwpP9WYu5nAVqVJDmFidzLrqdKRUMPaIrEwUWWOLyt7Zt16Jh3ftEgd1-Y4zMPksAIqUtkQT_2PUZQ1Icul-6nC2f5xWour1rXT6TbeHxdRt7uxt4n8/s1600/IMG_2487.JPG" height="241" width="640" /></span></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">A dike wall covered in beautiful mosaic mural runs 4 km through Hanoi</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: inherit; font-size: x-small;">Water puppet theater</span></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Mary also spent the days hunting down the best pho soup -- we had to get her this shirt...</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">We are so glad that we were able to get to Vietnam before heading home and we feel blessed that we were able to share our last trip in Southeast Asia with Gil and Vicki. </span></span></div>
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Maryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07097737124628100844noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3831558865310136613.post-5634393561327673012014-08-07T00:44:00.000+08:002014-08-07T00:44:07.555+08:00Taman Negara GUNUNG MULU!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB8Rjfoyf7B2aIUxnsJ-qEPNzb-wo4A7YHiwrXAV1s5PBipF3_0JrNstOGs7uU1gBZPqnDN8fH6Fc3gAgGpEZHHj1VOLVWHCiZEASO3nMqAdcEFbeQBP-prMCQs8ualTJe_Z2wpHEnGG4/s1600/P8030932.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB8Rjfoyf7B2aIUxnsJ-qEPNzb-wo4A7YHiwrXAV1s5PBipF3_0JrNstOGs7uU1gBZPqnDN8fH6Fc3gAgGpEZHHj1VOLVWHCiZEASO3nMqAdcEFbeQBP-prMCQs8ualTJe_Z2wpHEnGG4/s1600/P8030932.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
When we told the kids that we were moving to Malaysia last year, Violet immediately asked if we could go to Mulu caves. The kids absolutely love the BBC Planet Earth series and there is an episode devoted to caves. Deer Cave in Mulu National Park is one of the highlights of the show and Violet remembered that it was located in Malaysian Borneo. Since our time in Malaysia is rapidly coming to an end we decided to take a last minute trip to Gunung Mulu National Park to see the caves firsthand.<br />
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Mulu National Park is on the northwest coast of Sarawak, Borneo, very close to the country of Brunei. To get there, we had to take a flight to the small city of Miri, followed by a puddle-jumper to Mulu airport, which is essentially a small runway in the middle of the rainforest. Since we booked last minute, the only accommodations available were at the higher end Royal Mulu Resort, about a kilometer outside of the park, so we decided to splurge for the long weekend.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo6qTIMYOnqDhXjV6ABeaoT90yyrQzWmXiQ-yjNXy89RzREGBVOBZlhU7swBeGsdXuaM3Icgi2mdTWeXBXLGQKPan68CRcG2O0Yk-_MG65xV6-vxlxUwA5ySD9DcORrAp4mxiLcJXhays/s1600/mulu+map.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgo6qTIMYOnqDhXjV6ABeaoT90yyrQzWmXiQ-yjNXy89RzREGBVOBZlhU7swBeGsdXuaM3Icgi2mdTWeXBXLGQKPan68CRcG2O0Yk-_MG65xV6-vxlxUwA5ySD9DcORrAp4mxiLcJXhays/s1600/mulu+map.jpeg" height="216" width="320" /></a>As soon as we arrived, we set out on a 3 kilometer hike to the entrance of Deer Cave. Deer Cave is the largest single cavern in the world and is home to approximately 3 million bats. There are 12 species of bats in the cave which makes it the most diverse bat population in the world. Every night before sunset, all of the bats head out to the forest to hunt insects. The "bat exodus" is one of the most spectacular natural phenomena that we have ever witnessed. In order to avoid predators like bat-hawks, falcons and eagles, the bats exit the cave in a tight spiral formation and proceed to rotate in a helical pattern to make it difficult to target any one individual. From far away it almost looks like a plume of smoke exiting the limestone cliff. The show lasted for a full half hour! I hope you can view the video below.</div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dzS5DmxFL_HKMOScC_3ILc9iUGx3ctzdJGzv0npHRG_eYLYqzP0fyHq6abjfGz39niTovlsz5UG2Yyp8uZlgQ' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4JUDkTLECfrYlN8WsrH_0G8LZ6PXE-6IF7eEZSmNy6GefV27MYWrJWbaOhKpyBF5X2Oa2kmmbUyRUMNJKlTNa6NTvlDG-yj1myomswC05VNJA3P824YMgU8-MJZZn0gtO8-8WL7vaHqE/s1600/P8021096.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4JUDkTLECfrYlN8WsrH_0G8LZ6PXE-6IF7eEZSmNy6GefV27MYWrJWbaOhKpyBF5X2Oa2kmmbUyRUMNJKlTNa6NTvlDG-yj1myomswC05VNJA3P824YMgU8-MJZZn0gtO8-8WL7vaHqE/s1600/P8021096.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSXnYSXJ6YyJeydMtBi7MNXobv4ec6v9M4N-8UYJlRWpz7weQWak5UY36lIz8mA7u4uTXddacyccO_yXXfO1vx1z5JJA5T-irND5JeXy4gg4gAzCWwgAOIttQw1pAKSXHQ2Jitc0iHG-g/s1600/P8021099.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSXnYSXJ6YyJeydMtBi7MNXobv4ec6v9M4N-8UYJlRWpz7weQWak5UY36lIz8mA7u4uTXddacyccO_yXXfO1vx1z5JJA5T-irND5JeXy4gg4gAzCWwgAOIttQw1pAKSXHQ2Jitc0iHG-g/s1600/P8021099.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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After the exodus, we grabbed a quick bite at the park canteen (which turned out to be our go-to restaurant) and set out on a guided night hike. To be honest, the night hike was probably the lowlight of the trip. We were in a large group on a gravel path. Combined with Tyler's newly developed whistling talent/obsession, we scared everything away except for a few "walking-stick" insects and one pit viper that according to the guide hadn't moved in almost two weeks! The best part of the hike might have been the lack of the mosquitos which as Vi correctly reasoned was due to the millions of bats on the prowl.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7S7YYF9w13Csz0jVeD0jXjzHR4ycnsbL_98PViDjosERRLeIcK43hfKOS3aAu7C03bSFLS-vKrMw90GxUxItDic4BoZF9ATjbaajVmWVFGHIYTN70CARgDDXb29FBxmeXgbTjz1hx-qU/s1600/P8021021.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7S7YYF9w13Csz0jVeD0jXjzHR4ycnsbL_98PViDjosERRLeIcK43hfKOS3aAu7C03bSFLS-vKrMw90GxUxItDic4BoZF9ATjbaajVmWVFGHIYTN70CARgDDXb29FBxmeXgbTjz1hx-qU/s1600/P8021021.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a><br />
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On day 2, we decided to do a guided canopy walk in the morning. The canopy at Mulu is one of the longest in the world at nearly 500 meters. It was a much different experience than the canopy at Taman Negara. We went first thing in the morning and did not see another soul either on the canopy or down on the trail below. We got to see a number of birds and even saw a gliding gecko jump from the canopy down to the trees below.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7WZpMfSsjLAl51AgjvR8uqw91xiv4NhAHk5XJpC-CtCrcKDupw6dtQnjC-mE7nHLGQVp8lMPWWZAPjptK7uFDPYPgWq0jkxTpIipRDitzb6N25n25t8GHtq3VmM0IzvGhSg6qGH6FNtM/s1600/P8021017.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7WZpMfSsjLAl51AgjvR8uqw91xiv4NhAHk5XJpC-CtCrcKDupw6dtQnjC-mE7nHLGQVp8lMPWWZAPjptK7uFDPYPgWq0jkxTpIipRDitzb6N25n25t8GHtq3VmM0IzvGhSg6qGH6FNtM/s1600/P8021017.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyC54euJaVizvWvzCnUp2Hc_4UJFVbkXCxKWn0KY1PkQC3BaO0ZqhcOsextMKcE7XGv2hAIzALWzsSMQHDxlWxUC190lfCYXKWqRrhqZcHswNTVu5RVA9TIgc72Pgj4fZnWpsb2lN5MQw/s1600/P8021033.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyC54euJaVizvWvzCnUp2Hc_4UJFVbkXCxKWn0KY1PkQC3BaO0ZqhcOsextMKcE7XGv2hAIzALWzsSMQHDxlWxUC190lfCYXKWqRrhqZcHswNTVu5RVA9TIgc72Pgj4fZnWpsb2lN5MQw/s1600/P8021033.JPG" height="285" width="320" /></a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigrV-LalB72CXdiIIauGTbnQFzCdioAlZQJBOj-66H3kmcKpyaYnbb1fe2SnKYs2LOqn27bTGxaX4asOeVLpcLTHEeCzlZGIbbDykNzIQ9O5A32gLsKITrh7efB7lgIWkxCaUliQSLqUk/s1600/P8021045.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigrV-LalB72CXdiIIauGTbnQFzCdioAlZQJBOj-66H3kmcKpyaYnbb1fe2SnKYs2LOqn27bTGxaX4asOeVLpcLTHEeCzlZGIbbDykNzIQ9O5A32gLsKITrh7efB7lgIWkxCaUliQSLqUk/s1600/P8021045.JPG" height="236" width="320" /></a>After the canopy walk we did a short hike to Paku waterfall. The river was running a little low so the falls were not as impressive as their photo but Ty got to go for a swim in the freezing water. We spent the rest of the morning lounging by the pool (well, Mary lounged while I wrestled with Tyler and Violet), grabbed some lunch at a local roadside restaurant and then went back to park headquarters for a guided hike through Deer and Lang Caves. Lang cave is a much smaller cave than Deer Cave but had some really interesting biology. We saw tube worms that basically "fish" for insects by lowering a long strand of saliva down from the cave ceiling. When an insect gets caught, the worm reels it in directly into its mouth. In completely dark caves (Lang Cave is unfortunately not one of these) some worms actually have glowing tail sections that attract their prey.</div>
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Deer Cave was again the highlight of the day. The grand cavern is simply amazing. When looking out from the inside, there is actually a formation that looks like Abraham Lincoln in profile (unfortunately, Nicole was not with us to get a real photo of it - mine is all glare from the sun). Tyler hates to wear hats but when he looked up and saw large areas of black made up of thousands of bats on the ceiling far above, he finally relented. We were all careful to make sure our mouths were closed when looking up! Yes, there were massive piles of bat guano in the cave that support an entire cave-dwelling ecosystem. It also turned out that our guide for Deer Cave assisted the film crew for Planet Earth. Upon hearing that the kids were big fans, he told us all about how the crew managed to collect such amazing images of the caves and the bat exodus.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifImQ1QMdOin7OC6FyHT9vZOqnNydrN9WUpuDpndkqLZxLzIZibeqU_rG8nfUtexpWtRXxwXkVJ6mbZ_4p4uKmD5F0x8q2S0To7qmXFcV3U-W1XDSm6JqTOhJCSzre-EzSJU5Cq6mcG1U/s1600/P8021052.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifImQ1QMdOin7OC6FyHT9vZOqnNydrN9WUpuDpndkqLZxLzIZibeqU_rG8nfUtexpWtRXxwXkVJ6mbZ_4p4uKmD5F0x8q2S0To7qmXFcV3U-W1XDSm6JqTOhJCSzre-EzSJU5Cq6mcG1U/s1600/P8021052.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOyknVkHug8tJsZhvgcybpKHVTs2AE1Zeey5PXrLjjyCXv4qqIAiao4w1_yPGTECsyNecELER81BeL3H8d-F9JMsNNN1rXvv0GwgnVDuFDiWpmVZPwoBi0nQ2-g24ykWQTqELIa91Zhno/s1600/P8021065.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOyknVkHug8tJsZhvgcybpKHVTs2AE1Zeey5PXrLjjyCXv4qqIAiao4w1_yPGTECsyNecELER81BeL3H8d-F9JMsNNN1rXvv0GwgnVDuFDiWpmVZPwoBi0nQ2-g24ykWQTqELIa91Zhno/s1600/P8021065.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
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After about a 1.5 kilometer hike through the cave, we stayed at the bat observatory by the entrance to see "bat exodus" part II. The day was less overcast so the encore performance was even better than the first show. Up to that point, we had already hiked about 10 kilometers over the course of the day and we were pretty exhausted. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoUlEwFOIqqndIiPfMvC8qRM6WyV1Q5g23hXTE9vsjoS6cXlGcwlvJmT6FUcHN55ujw8TmV2Dh8KGHg3zE_EF_rogtztfRkS5vr4Y81VBe5SQyJt4MNsR0SivBPvFzbKHJxuswxLkIQpw/s1600/P8021108.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoUlEwFOIqqndIiPfMvC8qRM6WyV1Q5g23hXTE9vsjoS6cXlGcwlvJmT6FUcHN55ujw8TmV2Dh8KGHg3zE_EF_rogtztfRkS5vr4Y81VBe5SQyJt4MNsR0SivBPvFzbKHJxuswxLkIQpw/s1600/P8021108.JPG" height="157" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Even the local restaurants had interesting fauna.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3TjRrxExsVGDRetBkIRTsitrfQko0W77UiOMxnoVVU42_p0YI5HE5p8xgvPfjwqKuMPHUPkq-QTv4krKf6lfRcZwwVsB-i28ewssnsmnVs3Ke9x4WQg6pF-wn4qwuAqgHW6b2-TrLdfM/s1600/P8021112.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3TjRrxExsVGDRetBkIRTsitrfQko0W77UiOMxnoVVU42_p0YI5HE5p8xgvPfjwqKuMPHUPkq-QTv4krKf6lfRcZwwVsB-i28ewssnsmnVs3Ke9x4WQg6pF-wn4qwuAqgHW6b2-TrLdfM/s1600/P8021112.JPG" height="150" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Homemade rice wine is a great way to unwind after a busy day of hiking!</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAMImMfaJ6Jv8JSU2n7hfOLukbu6NYj2I5ORYiserZOl2RaaVyampo8hWR-rch_Otw5HtsodCI7hCNAXAWUE3dRCq1eWR0B1oMgT7xQfN1FUZ9xuzW9QZ9MVjb5ZhhHmZJ2SSOOInpzzQ/s1600/P8030898.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAMImMfaJ6Jv8JSU2n7hfOLukbu6NYj2I5ORYiserZOl2RaaVyampo8hWR-rch_Otw5HtsodCI7hCNAXAWUE3dRCq1eWR0B1oMgT7xQfN1FUZ9xuzW9QZ9MVjb5ZhhHmZJ2SSOOInpzzQ/s1600/P8030898.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a>On day 3 we decided to have a leisurely morning at the hotel since the kids were clearly fried from a good day of hiking. After lunch we signed up for one final cave tour. A family of 7 cancelled so we had a private tour through Lagang cave. Lagang cave is about a 6 kilometer walk from the park office so we took a longboat and travelled about 4 kilometers upriver before beginning our hike. Lagang cave is one of the lesser touristed caves so it has a lot more wildlife close to the path. We saw swiftlet nests with baby chicks (these birds make their nest out of their own saliva), bats hanging from the ceiling by 1 leg, gigantic cave crickets, blind white crabs and a really scaring looking centipede that was too fast to capture on film. At one point Violet asked our guide to turn off his light so that we could listen to the cave in complete darkness. Swiftlets navigate using a primitive form of echolocation. It was interesting to listen to their clicks and chirps followed by a rush of air as they flew overhead (also a little creepy so we didn't have the lights off for long...). </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVUrDVpFtjqfr77P1RQmzerPkbpdpGlDHVIrPyiAQ6801ir_BrRVeaRqpWaIPsnMY9J0VPBSG5T9_cD-o-nB6rExgZfHAh-j2D0rqd5IGpBLbhcGnwVazZYSjRqY4LsOTm9HjWwhFsrbE/s1600/P8030919.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVUrDVpFtjqfr77P1RQmzerPkbpdpGlDHVIrPyiAQ6801ir_BrRVeaRqpWaIPsnMY9J0VPBSG5T9_cD-o-nB6rExgZfHAh-j2D0rqd5IGpBLbhcGnwVazZYSjRqY4LsOTm9HjWwhFsrbE/s1600/P8030919.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a>We spent our final day in Mulu relaxing at the resort and visiting a local village and craft market. We did have one of our most amazing customer service experiences in Malaysia on the way home that afternoon. Our flight from Mulu to Miri was delayed and actually landed right at the scheduled departure time of our flight back to KL. For some reason you have to clear immigration to go from Malaysian Borneo to Peninsular Malaysia, so we had to exit the arrival lounge, clear security, go through immigration and get to our gate. We decided that I would make a break for it and try to hold the plane for the rest of the family. An Air Asia rep saw me sprinting across the tarmac and asked me where I was headed. She was about to tell me that we had missed our flight but when she saw Tyler running with Pooh bear about 20 meters behind me, she called ahead to the gate and asked them to hold the plane! She opened a side door for us, bypassed the security line and had the immigration officer stamp our passports while Mary and the kids ran ahead to the gate. They had already pulled back the jetway so the ground crew rolled a stairway to the plane and let us board from the runway. We were in our seats and took off only five minutes after our scheduled departure time. The best part - Mary pre-ordered online a fresh coconut which arrived at my seat just as we reached 10,000 feet! Just one of the little things I will dearly miss about traveling in Southeast Asia.</div>
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We are now back in KL and preparing for the arrival of Mary's parents. We have one more trip planned with them to Vietnam before moving back to Baltimore in a few weeks. </div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06411589356995917223noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3831558865310136613.post-43650246547243273692014-07-28T22:18:00.000+08:002014-07-28T22:18:06.701+08:00Are you for scuba? and turtles?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Ryan Tedford was in town as our final visiting faculty of the year. Since Ryan is scuba certified, we decided that one last scuba trip was in order. This was a chance for Violet to use the skills she earned in her scuba class this year. It was also Aunt Nicole's birthday so it was a perfect excuse to take a long weekend. With Charlie, Aunt Nicole, and Ryan, we headed up to the Perhentian Islands off peninsular Malaysia's northeast coast.<br />
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The Perhentians are in the same chain of islands as Redang, where we went for the new faculty retreat exactly a year ago. We flew into Kota Bharu and drove to the dock where our diveshop/hotel picked us up for the short ride to the islands. It was hard to find a hotel on short notice but we were able to get 3 rooms at an awesome place called Bubbles which is both a diveshop and a green turtle sanctuary. It was great to get back into the water again. Mary and I took turns diving and watching the kids while the rest of the crew dove. On the first day the group did a total of 4 dives including a night dive. Visibility was not spectacular but the wildlife was interesting and our dive master, Adam, was super experienced and a lot of fun. <br />
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The highlight of the diving was by far the morning of the second day. While Mary joined the gang for an interesting wreck dive, I got to snorkel along with the kids as they geared up and experienced SCUBA for the first time. Violet did a PADI bubblemakers session which means she dove 2 meters down with a dive instructor. She did great. Tyler and I swam alongside her for most of the dive. After Violet finished, Tyler geared up and swam along the surface to get a glimpse of what diving is all about. He saw a baby reef shark, but his favorite part of the dive was the finish. His instructor Mervin let him play with the inflator/deflator in shallow water and he bobbed up and down for about 15 minutes. He also discovered the octopus, which is a second mouthpiece that allows you to share air with a dive buddy in an emergency.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigWBPp17JOWrAD_kRwGOxIF2b8kUWUrgZogrUtFCcjRX2XcYhjIIvwueOdnEmDoXV0h4R-JDQ_CQcPgZ2_GTp0cB79UYo705d5OjaTTcLblk5nf1k01vr9l08Bp0pdmlpe60VuhTHggv6R/s1600/P7180887.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigWBPp17JOWrAD_kRwGOxIF2b8kUWUrgZogrUtFCcjRX2XcYhjIIvwueOdnEmDoXV0h4R-JDQ_CQcPgZ2_GTp0cB79UYo705d5OjaTTcLblk5nf1k01vr9l08Bp0pdmlpe60VuhTHggv6R/s1600/P7180887.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></div>
When we weren't in the water we experienced the wonders of the turtle sanctuary. 30 baby turtles hatched the morning of our arrival and our first night we watched Tom and the turtle sanctuary team release them into the wild. Before the release, Tom gave a short talk about green turtles. The kids were really into it. Tyler was especially vigilant about preventing any adults from shining white light on the beach since the baby turtles might accidentally follow the artificial light and never make it to the safety of the Sargassum seaweed. <br />
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Each night, the kids signed us up for a wakeup call if an adult female turtle landed on the beach to lay her eggs. What a great birthday present for Aunt Nicole as we were awoken at 3am on our last night (after celebrating her birthday) to a huge turtle digging her nest. After we all had a chance to see her covering over the egg chamber with sand, Tyler and I decided to head back to bed. Mary and Violet slept out on the beach and waited for the turtle to go back out to sea. Once she left, Violet helped Tom and the conservation team dig up the 97 eggs and move them to the safety of the hatchery. Violet probably moved half of them over the course of 2 hours.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxU1ytEd_v1g-mNsr_5XlfR5d-OXMeYrdVbaE1YLP-Y47AmexQINH3OSerFvzrhrNv1HiPvh0F2SQ9VZPl2MH2ugu1Q3t2vCeSgHeSRyouMchNHm2WbrCEKDIqPblubq8ylw-CZuRLFnNN/s1600/P7211050.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxU1ytEd_v1g-mNsr_5XlfR5d-OXMeYrdVbaE1YLP-Y47AmexQINH3OSerFvzrhrNv1HiPvh0F2SQ9VZPl2MH2ugu1Q3t2vCeSgHeSRyouMchNHm2WbrCEKDIqPblubq8ylw-CZuRLFnNN/s1600/P7211050.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a>One of the pleasant surprises of the trip was the snorkeling tour we took on our last morning. In general we have done our best to avoid large organized tours this year. Snorkeling tours are probably the epitome of tour purgatory. They make you wear oversized life vests and drop you in the water with about 50 people from different boats, the majority of whom can't swim. There's lots of screaming and kicking, and anything worth seeing underwater heads for the hills. But this tour was different. We signed up because we wanted to see adult turtles feeding on the sea grass. We were not disappointed. The first tour stop had some nice coral formations and Violet totally rocked a narrow coral swim through. Pretty amazing! Check out the picture of her coming through the tunnel.<br />
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The second stop on the tour was Turtle Point. Our guides spotted a turtle about 10 meters below the surface and we all dropped in to check it out. It was absolutely beautiful and our pictures don't do it justice.<br />
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After Turtle Point we briefly stopped at a white sandy beach to relax before heading to Shark Point. Shark Point is actually named for a rock formation that looks like the dorsal fin of a shark. There are occasionally reef sharks there but Ryan and I dove Shark Point the day before and did not see any. We were pleasantly surprised when we got in the water and there were 3 black tipped reef sharks about 3 meters below the surface. We were so proud of the kids. When Tyler spotted the first shark he popped his head out of the water, screamed "Shark!" with excitement and then dove back down to try to get a closer look. When I saw Jaws I didn't go in the backyard pool for a month (OK, so a great white shark with a vendetta is a lot bigger and scarier than a reef shark) but Tyler was actually chasing after them. I had to grab him by the ankles and pull him back towards me because it looked like the sharks were starting to circle our group. Don't worry grandma/Uncle Danny, at that point we decided to head back to the boat. We learned from our guide once we were back on the boat that one of the other boats was feeding the sharks. That probably explains why they were starting to seem more aggressive. <br />
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Overall it was probably the best snorkeling we have ever done and the kids were simply amazing! It was a great end to a wonderful weekend. Thanks to Ryan, Nicole and Charlie for being amazing dive buddies (and for watching the kids so Mary and I could do one dive together). Not a bad way to end our diving adventures in Southeast Asia!<br />
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And HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Nicole! We've loved celebrating your last two birthdays on tropical island paradises. We should continue this habit. Never stop enjoying the two pieces of cake that life brings your way.<br />
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Maryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07097737124628100844noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3831558865310136613.post-18318068819898141642014-07-24T18:56:00.001+08:002014-07-24T22:08:00.400+08:00Zombie ants and flying monkey cousins (Tioman Island)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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With the new realization that our time in Asia is sunsetting, we decided to binge travel. Monique and Dave have been amazing travel friends starting way back at LegoLand in November. (Amazing friends generally, as well!) Before they headed back to Holland for the summer, we scheduled a quick trip to the beach.<br />
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Tioman Island is just a 90 minute ferry ride from mainland Malaysia off peninsular Malaysia's east coast. We drove from KL over to the east coast port city of Mersing. The 4 1/2 hour drive went by quickly -- again I'm so grateful the kids have grown into excellent travelers. If you are planning a trip to Tioman, note that the ferry is a pain. The irregular schedule (it changes with the tides) is unpublished. To find times and get tickets, you need someone local such as a ticket broker, to assist. Arriving at the ferry, before boarding, you need to wait in line to get tickets, wait to pay for tickets, queue up to register, wait again to pay the marine park fee (they take iPass for the local rate), wait again to get the marine park fee stamped, and then fight an amorphous mass sometimes referred to as a "line" to pick up boarding passes. Then shove into the gate to try to get seats. All that said, these logistics worked fine and all 9 of us made it aboard. And the ferry was only 30 minutes behind schedule, which I hear is stellar.<br />
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We stayed at a wonderful little resort, the Melina Beach Resort, in their beach-front cottages. Across the board, Melina was a fantastic place for a family holiday. There are a couple things that stand out as amazing. The beach is isolated (you boat in from the ferry dock), with natural boulder barriers on each side of the stretch of sand. We were able to give the kids freedom to run and play and just be kids. They spent hours and hours in the sea, on the boulders, in the fresh water stream that trickled out of the rain forest. The team at Melina was also fantastic. The kids fell in love with Aimee at the front desk (She also makes a mean Dark and Stormy). A biologist researching the island's monkeys works onsite and she was alway game to show the kids an animal or answer their many questions. She also took us on a night hike during which we saw the island's colugos, a mammal that climbs palm trees and when threatened glides down in the air using its skin flaps as a parachute. We were super fortunate to see one in flight! Awesome! Clearly, the biologist does not have kids. As we were ending the night hike she told everyone about the zombie fungus that infects ants' nervous systems and makes them climb to the top of a tree before the spores explode from their heads! She even showed the kids pictures. She did tell them not to worry because it doesn't infect humans. Surprisingly all the kids slept through the night.<br />
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http://www.melinabeachresort.com/<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px; padding-top: 4px; text-align: center;">Melina faces west. Gorgeous sunsets every night!</td></tr>
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A major highlight of the trip was an island hopping/snorkeling trip. The seas were a bit rough, but after a not so fun boat ride, our boat driver found a white sand beach to rest our bruised tail bones. We later hopped back over to another sheltered island for amazing snorkeling. After rolling into the water amid hundreds of fish, Violet spotted a huge moray eel. Tyler later saw a reef shark! Vi, Ty, A, and J were amazing snorkelers. Violet and Ty both mastered diving under the water and clearing their snorkels! A and J had never snorkeled before, but were pros by the end. Beautiful 2-year-old V rigged out in a life vest and water wings bobbed along as we snorkeled! We tried to put a mask on her, but she'd get so excited about everything she was seeing underwater that her elated squeals resulted in sucking up mouths full of salt water.<br />
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The adults capped off every night with cocktails and boardgames on our porch. With the sound of the ocean as background, we had great times and lots of laughs with amazing friends.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fun critters on the beach by night.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Fun critters on the beach by day. This monitor lizard (Violet is sure is it a blue-tongued stink) was trying to nab our lunch!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A very nice stop along the snorkelling tour!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">As we waited for the ferry to leave Tioman, some folks fishing on <br />
the dock taught the kids fishing skills!</td></tr>
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Maryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07097737124628100844noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3831558865310136613.post-12103052057614111172014-07-21T22:16:00.000+08:002014-07-21T22:16:18.011+08:00The King of Fruit!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="text-align: left;">Hello, durian, the king of fruit! I'm so glad you are back in season...</span></div>
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<span style="text-align: left;">Last week Zack and I had the total pleasure of visiting a durian farm. Ana, who owns LaZat -- the fabulous cooking school that I've raved about on this blog -- heard that Zack is a big durian fan. So before his departure for graduate school, Ana arranged for us to see these spiky delights in all their natural glory. Ana's friend, a dentist and hiking friend of Ana's, with his wonderful brother met up with me, Zack, and Ana just outside KL. The family owns a hilly spot of land where they planted 50 durian trees there about 35 years ago. During the one month durian season, the family members hike up to the property everyday to collect the durian. Malaysians harvest durian when it naturally falls from the tree, meaning it's nice and ripe. Don't accept durian any other way. This also means that Malaysian durian is difficult to transport and import, because in its finest form, it peaks just a day or two after falling from the tree. And I mean falling. When we were hanging at the during farm, we heard a "thunk" and then we saw a durian rolling downhill (think medieval castle protection!). At the base of the hill we collected the durian -- it was ready for eating. </span></div>
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<span style="text-align: left;">The brothers also taught us the technique for opening a durian. To avoid the spiked shells from cutting our delicate fingers, we wore a utility glove on one hand. In the other, we held a heavy iron cleaver. FYI: The durian sellers at the market make this look way too easy. Zack, Ana, and I mastered </span>(sort of) the technique with the help of our new friends. The farm also had sweet, delicious mangosteens, Violet's favorite tropical fruit. I put a picture of an open mangosteen below. The morning was really wonderful. And I can't thank our hosts enough. A deep, heartfelt thank you for bringing us to your farm and sharing your D24s. It is currently Ramadan, meaning that Malaysia's Muslim population is fasting from sunrise to sunset. Our generous hosts encouraged me and Zack to enjoy our durian breakfast even while they fasted. A truly cherished memory!</div>
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<span style="text-align: left;">Dear Zack: We miss you already. Over the last 6 months you have become a member of the family. We are all excited for your graduate school adventures in Vancouver and we're already looking forward to planning a visit out to see you in Canada -- we'll go camping. Keep staying game for anything that comes your way. XOXOXO</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiods7LDNYwlfauDvA8Xyb0tI7DuQ6XUB7MQuau89ndTbIxY5gg09okuHi63vTKtItzo9oQUk3IZFRJnrz6q-PQeVCsO2g2HUgjTr0mkDySdfrgiS2ZGLH7UR-dL-QnaeVawIFTgi-YPzOW/s1600/P7080899.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiods7LDNYwlfauDvA8Xyb0tI7DuQ6XUB7MQuau89ndTbIxY5gg09okuHi63vTKtItzo9oQUk3IZFRJnrz6q-PQeVCsO2g2HUgjTr0mkDySdfrgiS2ZGLH7UR-dL-QnaeVawIFTgi-YPzOW/s1600/P7080899.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">See the holes in the roof. They are from durians falling from the tree above!</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1aAvpdJ7oSw3IlysfL-DjCdoaGtmzVSitM8GwGYmcDOsTaQLLB12xBEtYggsgZbeo-jNupSHoofde8EmJvTR8eTBkVoZn3tZE-OWAAZ4E-MtwMOHY0eOZgWL0v4pjyXP5VeDgGXBRY0hF/s1600/IMG_2217.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1aAvpdJ7oSw3IlysfL-DjCdoaGtmzVSitM8GwGYmcDOsTaQLLB12xBEtYggsgZbeo-jNupSHoofde8EmJvTR8eTBkVoZn3tZE-OWAAZ4E-MtwMOHY0eOZgWL0v4pjyXP5VeDgGXBRY0hF/s1600/IMG_2217.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a>In other news, we recently learned that our two+ year Asian adventure will be cut short. Hopkins and the local Malaysian university here severed ties and we are heading back to Baltimore in August. It's been a difficult month of ups and downs, but ultimately we know that the decision to return to the States is best given the circumstances. It has also led to many unexpected goodbyes.<br />
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The children have thrived at Garden International School this year. They have learned many academic lessons (reading, writing, maths - that's British for math), but the lesson I value for them the most is resilience. This will follow with them in life. Violet now knows that an early struggle, socially or academically, is okay. She can rise up. Tyler's continued to gain confidence and has proven that his social nature transcends cultures and language. And both kids now LOVE football (soccer!). GIS has a wonderful tradition for "leavers" to have their uniform shirts signed by their classmates. Tyler's Year 1 (kindergarten) class was especially cute with this, as many of Tyler's friends had recently learned (or learnt, as they say in British) to write their names well. A huge and wonderful shout out to Violet and Tyler's GIS teachers. You two have made this an amazing year. Ms. Nicky and Ms. Vanila -- hugs and kisses -- and many, many thank yous.<br />
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There are goodbyes and there are "see you laters"... Camp WienerPohl officially closed as the Miller-Wiener family left Malaysia for China travels before heading to their next exotic locale -- New Jersey. Again, we've grown beyond friends. Robin, Ethan, A, and J -- we'll see you soon cruising up or down the NJ Turnpike. Love you all!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Airport selfie.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5d7m5mjTkwLQNsSo7DbMZRBP0oFR8yo-Q28J6gCrk3QI2A0YpOiHo2R9IHlQqHVSuZIZrmwdXEwHNLhH-BFWYRJdNHNm6RjtOu1xKSWzhf8N_V1Yt8iZ-AxZOINuBLMN1f_aPEzaBV0eq/s1600/P6290973.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; display: inline !important; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5d7m5mjTkwLQNsSo7DbMZRBP0oFR8yo-Q28J6gCrk3QI2A0YpOiHo2R9IHlQqHVSuZIZrmwdXEwHNLhH-BFWYRJdNHNm6RjtOu1xKSWzhf8N_V1Yt8iZ-AxZOINuBLMN1f_aPEzaBV0eq/s1600/P6290973.jpg" height="320" width="212" /></a>This post is from Brian... Last weekend was our good friend Toby's final one in KL. Although he grew up in New Jersey, he's made Seattle home for the last 10 years where he's an avid hiker, skier and mountaineer. He also lives for good coffee and microbrewed beer, so he's a real Seattle guy now! For his last hurrah in Malaysia it made absolute sense to go to Borneo to hike Mount Kinabalu. Since it was also nearing the end of Zack's time in Malaysia we decided to make it our final group trip together. With Low's Peak topping out at 4095 meters (13,435 feet), Mount Kinabalu is the highest mountain in Malaysia and one of the highest in South East Asia. It is not a technically challenging climb (i.e., Zack and I were not too far out of their league to attempt it) but it is fairly steep with a total altitude change of almost 2200 meters (7,300 feet) in less than 24 hours. There is also a dramatic temperature change from the base to the peak (about 90 degrees dropping to about 35 degrees).<br />
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Before going further, we need to give a huge THANK YOU to Monique and Dave, Ethan and Robin, and Nicole for watching Vi and Ty while we traveled. Thank you for being our village in KL. Without you guys the events that follow could never have happened!<br />
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Getting to Mount Kinabalu is in theory fairly straight forward. You hop a direct flight across the South China Sea from KL to Kota Kinabalu, the largest city in Sabah, Borneo. You then take a 90 minute taxi or bus ride to a lodge at the base of the mountain. After enjoying the beautiful sunset and a hearty dinner, you get a good night's sleep and then your guide picks you up early in the morning to take you to the entrance to the climb. Embarking from KL on Friday afternoon, we never suspected that the events of the evening would unfold into the most dangerous part of our journey. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We briefly thought about hitching a ride but we were <br />
pretty sure there was a horror movie that started like that...</td></tr>
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When we got to the Kota Kinabalu airport, we paid the dispatcher for our taxi and then stood on the curb as multiple cabbies argued over who was going to take us (think Bart and Lisa Simpson arguing about their love for Homer - "No, you love him more..."). Rows of nice minivan taxis kept swerving around us until finally an old beat-up Proton was the only car left. Zack is a linguist by training and has learned a fair bit of Bahasa Malaya (BM) in his 2 years in Malaysia. As we pulled out of the airport, Zack struck up a conversation with our driver, shouting above the din of the Linda Ronstadt tunes blaring from the radio. After about 30 seconds, Zack turned to us and said, "1. Our driver does not speak BM nor English, 2. I'm fairly certain he has no idea where we are going, and 3. I think this might be Judy Collins, not Linda Ronstadt." The first 2 statements turned out to be true; we are still waiting on a final ruling for the last one. After getting stuck in Friday evening rush hour traffic and asking multiple people for directions (via crazy, screaming cell calls on the driver's phone), we finally settled into a long drive along a steep, dark, winding mountain road. Everyone relaxed a little as the sun set, but then the rain began to fall and a think fog rolled in. Unfortunately, our driver relaxed a little too much and began to fall asleep at the wheel every 5 or 6 minutes. We had to literally take turns prodding him awake, although to be honest Zack bared most of the burden since he was in the front seat. After about the 3rd or 4th nap, we discovered yet another use for the ubiquitous tiger balm. Apparently if you smear a huge gob of it under your nose, it acts as a potent stimulant. Based on how much he used, I wonder if our driver is still awake 10 days after our trip!<br />
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As night fell, the fog thickened and it was hard to see more than about 20 meters in front of the car, except for the lights of the oncoming freight trucks. As we struggled to see road signs to get a sense of how much farther we had to go, all of a sudden the road went completely dark. Our headlights were out! Our driver yelled something unintelligible and frantically began pushing buttons and turning knobs but to no avail. Mary started shouting every possible English word for hazard lights that we've picked up during our Southeast Asia travels (blinkers, hazards, flashers, flippers, dippers, rapid opening and closing of fingers, etc.) until finally he was able to get them on. Unfortunately we were in a stretch of blind curves with no shoulders and no way to pull over to the side - we had to keep moving until we could find a place to pull off the road. Stopping meant getting rear ended. Thankfully, a Jeep driver behind us figured out what had happened. He turned on his brights and followed us closely from behind to try to light the road ahead. Even with his help it was slow-going and dangerous. At one point we had to go around a fallen tree which required us to cross to the other side of the road. After what seemed like an hour (but was probably more like 10 minutes) we reached a fork with a small roadside shop, pulled over to safety and jumped out of the cab faster than the geckos scatter in our kitchen when we turn on the light at 3 am. We can skip over the details of the next few hours, but when you see us next, ask for us to tell the story. It includes numerous attempts to get the headlights working by good samaritans who stopped to help, including the best Fonzie imitation we've seen in Malaysia (the guy literally banged on the headlights for 2 minutes hoping they would turn back on). We finally managed to reach the owner of our hotel via cell phone who drove 40 minutes down the mountain to pick us up. Kudos to Mile 36 Lodge (<a href="http://www.mile36lodge.com/">http://www.mile36lodge.com/</a>) for the lift, beautiful views, comfortable beds, and the late night cup of noodles (all the restaurants in the area were closed by the time we reached the hotel). Not exactly the carb loading we had planned for the hike, but totally hit the spot!<br />
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The next morning we were picked up by Amazing Borneo tours (<a href="http://www.amazing-borneo.com/">http://www.amazing-borneo.com/</a>) and drove to Mount Kinabalu Park to start the hike. Most people do the hike over 2 days, although it is possible to do it in one if you are crazy enough to try. We took the two day option. We started at Timpohon Gate (1866 meters elevation) with the goal of making it 6 kilometers to the Laban Rata lodge area (3272 meters) by mid-afternoon. The hike was steep but absolutely beautiful. It took us about 4.5 hours to get through the first day's work. Think of it as walking up very high stairs. Continuously. For 4 and a half hours. When we finally reached the Laban Rata lodge we had some time to relax before our orientation for the summit trek the following morning. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We were so tired by the end of the day 1 climb that we forgot to get the KM 6 pic!</td></tr>
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In addition to the summit climb, Mount Kinabalu also boasts the highest Via Ferrata in Asia and the second highest one in the world. Via ferratas ("iron trails") were created in the Dolomite mountains in Italy during World War II as a way to get troops through the mountains. They usually consist of a series of steel cables, bars and ladders that have been bolted into the rock face to allow less-experienced climbers a safe passage either up or down the mountain. Toby heard about the one at Kinabalu and convinced us all to sign up (<a href="http://www.theadrenalist.com/adventure/the-craziest-via-ferrata-routes-in-the-world/">http://www.theadrenalist.com/adventure/the-craziest-via-ferrata-routes-in-the-world/</a>)! In addition to our summit orientation we also had to get trained for the ferrata. This was no big deal for Mary and Toby who have a fair bit of climbing experience, but for Zack and I who have a hard enough time tying our shoes in the morning, the harness and carabiners warranted at least a few minutes practice.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At the peak!</td></tr>
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After a surprisingly good buffet dinner, we settled down super early in our cozy bunk room shared with a couple Aussie dudes to get some rest before day 2. We got up at 1:45 am, had a quick breakfast at the lodge, and set out for the summit by headlamp at 2:40 am. We had to make it 2.7km and about 2000 meters in elevation before sunrise. While no one said it out loud, we weren't just racing the clock. We were also vying against all the other groups to get the best viewing spots for sunrise. On the hike to the summit, it is totally dark. We knew we were traversing barren granite rock faces, but we could only see the circle illuminated by our headlights. Occasionally we had to hold onto ropes to make sure we stayed safely away from the edge. We were blessed with perfect weather. Apart from the very top summit, there was little wind and no rain.<br />
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After we watched an incredible sunrise, we made our way down from the peak to the start of the ferrata. We took a short break to take off our thermal underwear (the peak was COLD!), and then we strapped on our harnesses, tied ourselves together in a line, and clipped into the ferrata safety cable. To be honest we did not know what to expect. From the pictures at the lodge it looked like we would be walking along steep ridge lines while using our carabiners as support. Nothing to it. After about 20 meters of doing exactly that, Toby (who we had unanimously elected as group captain and lead climber) said, "Holy sh_t!" and then dropped over the side of a ridge and began walking down the wall 1960s TV Batman style. For the next four hours we climbed down the granite rock face using ladders and metal hand holds, teetered across suspension bridges, jumped across small ravines and had an all-around exhilarating experience. Our guide, Ali, really helped me and Zack with the technically challenging parts of the course and made it an all around great time.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmAdXRSPxdqOmnFPD48T7twFv-J9jqo2x3N7fQnd9bBxgDiPP0VksmZ7X_A3Rczz1zSXT9HP8oDloVqoM1pvtJ4QSKBZS4APcOKDslNPydMDeWkLk454wUGzbbziID7VzvyaFSIJe8nUAM/s1600/P6290978.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmAdXRSPxdqOmnFPD48T7twFv-J9jqo2x3N7fQnd9bBxgDiPP0VksmZ7X_A3Rczz1zSXT9HP8oDloVqoM1pvtJ4QSKBZS4APcOKDslNPydMDeWkLk454wUGzbbziID7VzvyaFSIJe8nUAM/s1600/P6290978.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a>The via ferrata ended at the lodge with a much needed lunch of hard boiled eggs, Malaysian sausages (aka hot dogs) and mashed potatoes. We had an hour to pack up and used most of it trying not to move. The 6 km walk down to the base of the mountain was long and painful. Thank you Toby for forcing us to rent walking sticks which helped a lot on the descent. Once we reached the park entrance, Amazing Borneo tours had a small bus ready to bring us back to KK. This time we made the trip with no problems - at least we don't know of any problems since all 4 of us slept the entire way. On Toby's advice we booked a nice hotel for our last night in KK. I think the bellhops were a little surprised when we walked in carrying our dirty boots over our shoulders and looking as you might expect us to look after hiking for nearly 12 hours straight. Several hot showers (for each of us), a good night's sleep and a quick breakfast and we were back off to KL.<br />
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Thank you again to everyone who made this trip possible. The kids are asking us to please leave town again soon so that they can have another great weekend! Toby - we'd never have done this one on our own. Thank you for organizing the trip. Zack and Toby - you guys are great travel buds and amazing friends. We can't wait to meet up for our next trekking adventure somewhere in the Pacific Northwest!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tyler joins J and his friends for laser tag...</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">... while Aunt Nicole takes Violet for her first Thai massage!</td></tr>
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Maryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07097737124628100844noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3831558865310136613.post-56724935890078410102014-07-05T09:46:00.001+08:002015-01-13T10:55:51.547+08:00I Love My India<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyq7PRWOhXe9-DwM1MITi-XQQ-kGfORmDMCAoq4HNY8vkrTd_9t3hPa1W40Aq05p9AYWLwvocc3t5muZ7MtzCNyxGRh8Jn2XmoeldgQ2MjvjpAeXvMGaA7eNsOMiN4iI6Qr2yC8zBOVghW/s1600/P6190808.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyq7PRWOhXe9-DwM1MITi-XQQ-kGfORmDMCAoq4HNY8vkrTd_9t3hPa1W40Aq05p9AYWLwvocc3t5muZ7MtzCNyxGRh8Jn2XmoeldgQ2MjvjpAeXvMGaA7eNsOMiN4iI6Qr2yC8zBOVghW/s1600/P6190808.JPG" height="203" width="320" /></a>The final leg of our India trip: After hanging out with the tigers, we were back on the road for a three hour ride to Jaipur. Jaipur, the capital of Rajasthan, is known as "The Pink City" for its dusty rose colored buildings. To visit the main city sights, we entered the gates of the old city. It's striking to see how the modern traffic with buses, trucks, and taxis (plus the zig zagging motorbikes) all squeeze through the old gates. Inside the gates, in addition to the seemingly endless shopping heaven, are more palaces and attractions than we could see in one afternoon. I really wanted to do more shopping here (and in India in general), but I found the endless bargaining exhausting. Even just walking down the street, we'd hear the price on an item reduce to 80 percent of the original asking price just from walking away. I completely understand this is part of the market place culture, but it was well beyond the effort I wanted to spend for a table cloth or shirt or wood carving.<br />
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In town, we visited the City Palace, a sprawling complex built in the mid 18th century, which continues to house Jaipur's royal family. We did not tour the family's residence (a $$$$ attraction), but instead toured the older section of the palace which has been converted into a museum. The highlight for all was the most amazing collection of historic weapons. Our guide's natural gift for story telling and enthusiasm for the weaponry on display intrigued us all. Tyler especially liked the "hidden weapons" -- is it a hair clip or a knife? If it a sword or a pistol? It is a shield or a bow? The weapons were housed in the old queen's quarters in which the muraled walls and mirrored ceilings were equally as impressive!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Too sunny at the sun dial!</td></tr>
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We were running fairly late in the evening, but we did get to slip into the Jantar Mantar just before closing. Built around 1720, Jaipur's Jantar ("instruments") Mantar ("calculating") houses one of the world's oldest, largest, and best preserved observatories. The grounds are home to crazy large sun dials - the larger of the two is still accurate within 2 seconds! A fascinating amount of astrological instruments complement the sundials. I'm not actually sure what most of the other instruments measure (our guide was moving fast...), but there was at least one device to tell the Earth's location around the sun and the celestial orbit. Again, not sure what that is, but it all seemed pretty amazing.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Right on time.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Outdoor seating area at the Jaipur hotel</td></tr>
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The Khandela Haveli, our hotel in Jaipur, was fantastic! (http://www.khandelahaveli.com/) A Haveli is a small palace (home to a ruling elite family). As Jaipur was the regional capital, there are many havelis in town and a number of them have been converted into boutique hotels. In addition to the delightful rooms, courtyard, and common spaces, we ate several meals at the Haveli. At our first lunch, we asked the chef for classic Rajasthani food. The curries were delicious -- and very different from what we'd eaten elsewhere. Rajasthani curries are thick with spices (not hot spices, but just lots of flavors), with more chunky veggies and little sauce. For dinner, the chef -- delighted that we were into the local dishes -- made up a couple other samplings. The food here was the best of our trip. I'm actually getting hungry writing this. Our hotel also had a local father and son team visit to perform a Kathputli (a Rajanstani puppet show) following dinner. The kids totally enjoyed the show and somehow we ended up coming home with three puppets. The father selling us the puppets assured us they were great quality with faces made from mango root wood. To prove the wood's quality, he grabbed the puppet we were thinking of buying and beat it repetitively on the ground. Good sales technique. I think it actually has a chance to survive the wrath of Tyler.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Boys that sold me a some paintings and chilled with the kids while we killed some time.</td></tr>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZyAKvKtRK5F64_vEYGH-vCwdwm1dKdeY6LG0X1NZ1zgOCdZCnekqZoddZbCOyRDj_0fGPfqVrqEIi_lssOpr5oWLx1v8v6voNviFIYpDq1oPIXI0vTGxoZKqJqde3KAfl635wXCBiUMEB/s1600/P6200780.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZyAKvKtRK5F64_vEYGH-vCwdwm1dKdeY6LG0X1NZ1zgOCdZCnekqZoddZbCOyRDj_0fGPfqVrqEIi_lssOpr5oWLx1v8v6voNviFIYpDq1oPIXI0vTGxoZKqJqde3KAfl635wXCBiUMEB/s1600/P6200780.JPG" height="220" width="320" /></a>A highlight of the Jaipur area is Amber Fort. The Fort was built over a long period with some medieval structures but with much of the palace erected in the 16th century. The capital was moved from Amber to Jaipur in 1727, after which the Amber structures remained as the royal family's vacation home until around 1940. Our guide at Amber Fort said that the capital was moved from Amber to Jaipur for several reasons, but one reason was likely the king's love for astronomy. Amber's setting in the rolling hills blocks the sun's rays in the morning and evening, so he needed flatter ground for his Janter Manter. With a location up a large hill, we opted to take an elephant ride up. At the top we joined up with an excellent guide, who has been giving Fort tours for 30 years. Sadly, he told us that his son was killed by an elephant 10 years ago. Following his son's death (one of several that year), the Jaipur government shut down the elephants. They brought in a veterinarian and elephant expert who, reviewing the herd, developed a set of strict regulations around the rides (e.g., no more than 2 people, no more than two rides in the summer, all rides must end by 11:00 am, fixed pricing). It's sad to think of people killed due to tourists wanting a lift to the Fort. But I was relieved to hear our guide reflect on the massive improvements to the animals' care and also for the people who train and care for the elephants. Throughout our India visit we picked up guides at nearly all our stops. These individuals absolutely enhanced our understanding and appreciation of the structures and provided interesting detail and stories. If you travel India, don't hesitate to pick up guides <u>inside</u> the historic sites. Just take a minute to arrange a fee upfront, so that you are not caught haggling as you try to leave. Jaipur had guide prices listed as 200 rupee for a one hour tour. No prices were listed elsewhere, but we tended to pay about 300 to 400 rupee.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSUgH04CtaxvTlW9WLW2mIMohfRkj5hfmkCef3I4arLmtZIpmYeCw5P2SJavzUld0kou2ek7aPL1yi-6IQdnTPQ3gbFyHTlmkjs9BD6m4fwYpCn8EAjMFASPjUZPxunLTS7LSEo1wck_hl/s1600/P6200804.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSUgH04CtaxvTlW9WLW2mIMohfRkj5hfmkCef3I4arLmtZIpmYeCw5P2SJavzUld0kou2ek7aPL1yi-6IQdnTPQ3gbFyHTlmkjs9BD6m4fwYpCn8EAjMFASPjUZPxunLTS7LSEo1wck_hl/s1600/P6200804.JPG" height="232" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kids at a truck stop somewhere in Rajasthan</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
After Amber Fort, the ride from Jaipur to Delhi ended up being incredibly long -- nearly 7 hours -- because earlier in the day a truck had taken out a bridge on the highway, so we ended up diverting through the back countryside.<br />
<br />
Now, I gotta be honest. We didn't love Delhi. It was melt your face off hot (about 115 degrees Fahrenheit), so the temples all seemed a bit lackluster through our sweat-stung eyes. We also stayed in the downtown market area. The area seemed bustling, if you were in the mood to explore. But on the backend of our trip, I was most looking for a nice hotel with a bar and pool... and bar. This would have been a cool neighborhood to introduce a visitor to India, but on day 10, it just felt exhausting. The hotel, while upscale for the area, was a wreck. Our first room on a lower floor had a ceiling tile fall in on Brian (basically a A/C was falling down) right after we'd settled into the room. The hotel staff moved us, but the only other room was on the top floor and it was HOT.<br />
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On our Delhi sightseeing day, we ended up scrapping many of the major sites -- they just were not fun in 115 degree heat -- and we spent the day at the National Museum, which was impressive. The museum was fun for our technology-hungry kids since our foreigner tickets included audio guides. We finished off the day at the Mahatma Gandhi house, the home in which Gandhi spent the last 144 days of his life and the site of his assassination in 1948. Believe it or not, we even cancelled our final late afternoon market visit due to my bargaining fatigue and the oppressive heat. We instead asked for an earlier drop at the airport. But as my energy was feeling way low, our driver, Ashok, blasted his "farewell India" sound track on the car stereo. The final song he played, "I Love My India," totally rocked us out along the airport road. And while I was ready to get back home to KL and our cool 90 degree weather, the pulsing music made me completely agree -- I love my India!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our chariot amid the trucks</td></tr>
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Maryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07097737124628100844noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3831558865310136613.post-49534780411552509162014-06-22T22:44:00.001+08:002015-01-12T23:49:25.982+08:00Tigers and crocodiles in Agra and Rajasthan<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Over
the last few months, Violet and Tyler have each learned about the Taj Mahal in
school. Violet’s teacher, for a timeline project, asked her to write about an
event between 1600 and 1650. Foregoing the more obvious selection of the Mayflower’s
landing at Plymouth Rock, Violet stumbled upon the building of the Taj Mahal. Needing
to sketch the event, she was entranced with the symmetry and beauty of the
structure and selected this as her timeline entry. In Tyler’s primary curriculum
topic "Structures," he drew and reported on the Empire State Building, while his
good friend drew and discussed the Taj Mahal. Truth is, the kids knew way more
about the Taj Mahal than we did when deciding that our post-wedding time in
India needed to include a trip to the Taj.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<!--StartFragment--><span style="font-family: inherit;">With
seeing the Taj Mahal as an itinerary starting point, we were kinda locked into
spending our visit in north India because India is huge. It’s called the Indian
subCONTINENT for a reason! Trying to hit sights in both the north and south would
have meant a lot of flights. Starting in Delhi, the nearest major city to Agra, home to the Taj Mahal,
we put together a pretty standard north India itinerary to visit the “Golden
Triangle” highlights. With trusty TripAdvisor as a guide, I booked a car with a locally-owned small company, Ashok's Taxi Tours (http://www.i-love-my-india.co.in/). Ashok assured me that since it's the "ultra low season" prices were reduced and hotel bookings would be no problem. Why is it the ultra low season? It's hot. Right, hot is okay; we live in Malaysia. So I booked!</span><!--EndFragment--></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4qn8ljJBg0EJxwe2VJb1v5WR7XNw9hLaudTQkZDIWawgUYKUHZEpL9J74EuNbB_o2Qvt2cZmDBrCCCKdFsbAaXW7o9nUOarl9CHsYkGOLS62PkPAocSunvwfaeB6EPLxcIywkD12855lA/s1600/P6160782.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4qn8ljJBg0EJxwe2VJb1v5WR7XNw9hLaudTQkZDIWawgUYKUHZEpL9J74EuNbB_o2Qvt2cZmDBrCCCKdFsbAaXW7o9nUOarl9CHsYkGOLS62PkPAocSunvwfaeB6EPLxcIywkD12855lA/s1600/P6160782.JPG" height="220" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Pune to Delhi is a 2 hour flight. Before leaving Pune, we checked the weather in Delhi. 114 degrees. Excuse me? I thought there was a typo on weather.com? Not a typo. It was the final scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark hot (i.e., bad guys' faces melting off). That's why it's low season. Our trip started off on the right foot. As we were coming in for the landing into Delhi, the overhead speakers on our SpiceJet plane started playing "My Home Town," by Bruce Springsteen! Our lovely driver, Anil, met us as we departed the domestic
terminal in Delhi. With the temperature right around 110 degrees, Anil said that our plan was to see sights in the morning and evening and drive during the day (in the air conditioned car).</span></div>
<br />
As
we said in our last blog entry, driving from Mumbai to Pune was a wild ride,
but the drive from Delhi to Agra was no less a spectacle. First, the traffic in Delhi
is a nightmare. It took two hours to get out of Delhi (not even rush hour). Then
as we left town, the distances were magnified by the poor road conditions. Anil
said, “Anything you might see on a road, you’ll see on a road in India.” He wasn’t
kidding. Over the five hour drive we saw so many modes of transit. From ox
carts to horse carts. Buses and trucks so packed that more people were on top than inside. Auto-rickshaws stuffed with 16 people. Milk trucks
with huge jugs strung on the tailgate. A steamroller (not at a worksite, just cruising down the highway). We try to keep our blog
light, but I can’t neglect saying that on our way to Agra we also saw the
aftermath of a horrific accident. It appeared someone fell off a vehicle on the road and was hit by another car. It was time again to count our many, many blessings. We were inside a
car, buckled in, with a careful and attentive driver guiding us. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSJVLrWmGvLw7v9alFysS1IdGw8kn-FyyGH4odcIEUYqjapMumPWavhQogEax_I8pB7515HdN-QKSqDfzLzAo3r1h4y8xiSggD5rGuwkqE4DUHjiCFVlPia6NF5N1L6VueF483HJQ4O58r/s1600/P6190797.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSJVLrWmGvLw7v9alFysS1IdGw8kn-FyyGH4odcIEUYqjapMumPWavhQogEax_I8pB7515HdN-QKSqDfzLzAo3r1h4y8xiSggD5rGuwkqE4DUHjiCFVlPia6NF5N1L6VueF483HJQ4O58r/s1600/P6190797.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl2brkPrI_hU9BvdHmX8nCM3BZJBptw0KpeJBqEkiDzj8xTypbvCQbm4gR532cJl1fTRUJV3TQIsHoVxAMxmFpPQ-60XhyvUQlmaFrzSDTeqfiwfMHQD6cRLiD1z8JN-MBqbDGoN6L2Ceu/s1600/P6190790.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjl2brkPrI_hU9BvdHmX8nCM3BZJBptw0KpeJBqEkiDzj8xTypbvCQbm4gR532cJl1fTRUJV3TQIsHoVxAMxmFpPQ-60XhyvUQlmaFrzSDTeqfiwfMHQD6cRLiD1z8JN-MBqbDGoN6L2Ceu/s1600/P6190790.JPG" height="320" width="273" /></a></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCGCbIHW3wTvYSp9Dvjx-fqtiRGCICvm7d-8aU_1R-JtzVQBUxq_FKjijaG1LuJWCxyz0YtDpXTeTcKB6ELa8kmLqjSxowYyRfUpKEV7h63URQr8L1koYXWhxHkTSqLG-em8UQay11NmLu/s1600/P6190782.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCGCbIHW3wTvYSp9Dvjx-fqtiRGCICvm7d-8aU_1R-JtzVQBUxq_FKjijaG1LuJWCxyz0YtDpXTeTcKB6ELa8kmLqjSxowYyRfUpKEV7h63URQr8L1koYXWhxHkTSqLG-em8UQay11NmLu/s1600/P6190782.JPG" height="320" width="319" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I loved the decked-out trucks. See the black tassels hanging off the sides<br />
and garland on the front. Many also had elaborate scenes printed on the rear.<br />
All the permits and signs are also hand painted. I kinda want to deck out my car like this.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoBs4y8rZmrAHZ7vNvkPnA0Kuc0P7GKeHwCQxmjvbMVZ-clZOxrHkmV1rxuSiQQKhGrJbEHBboxF3GgbSTuCE7F6tkFsHbBxR1ouI-KIMIegakHESCdvZSjSWnCEdnRSrGmBWdgW4zWDK-/s1600/P6190780.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoBs4y8rZmrAHZ7vNvkPnA0Kuc0P7GKeHwCQxmjvbMVZ-clZOxrHkmV1rxuSiQQKhGrJbEHBboxF3GgbSTuCE7F6tkFsHbBxR1ouI-KIMIegakHESCdvZSjSWnCEdnRSrGmBWdgW4zWDK-/s1600/P6190780.JPG" height="153" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Village traffic calming roadblock</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Climbing and jumping off the Fort Agra walls</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Approaching
Arga, we stopped by the Ackbar mausoleum, the resting place of the grandfather of Shan Jahan (the ruler who built the Taj Mahal). The structure was beautiful but the coolest part
of this place was its 300-year-old herd of African antelope wandering the
grounds. We continued on to Agra. The evening of our arrival, we visited the
Agra Fort. We were fortunate to pick up a wonderful guide who walked us through
the vast structure. The huge red stone walls surround a 16<sup>th</sup> century
palace -- the pictures here don't show the scale of the walls at all. The kids latched onto one fact about the fort – the fort had both a wet
moat with crocodiles and a dry moat with tigers – and peppered our guide with
questions about the advantages and disadvantages of the tiger/crocodile dual defense system. Tyler was particularly struck by the pre-battle strategy of depriving the tigers of food so they would be extra hungry and aggressive for foreign invader meat! Agra Fort looks out over the Taj Mahal, so we saw the sunset on the Taj as the Fort closed for the evening. It was our first real glimpse of one of the most incredible structures we've ever seen.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Early to bed and early to rise for our sunrise Taj Mahal tour. We met our guide who provided us the context and history of the Taj Mahal. The Taj Mahal, built by Shah Jahan as a mausoleum to his third wife, Mumtaz Mahal, is a structure of symmetry and beauty. The kids were totally impressed with the structure's optical illusions, like the four-sided pillars that looked eight-sided from a distance and the script that seemed condensed at the bottom from far away, but up-close looked in correct scale. Put your worries to rest, the Taj Mahal of glowing white marble with decorative inlay is as beautiful and magnificent in person as it seems from photographs. The scale and placement over the river makes the building seemingly float in the sky. The ultra low season paid off here as we had no lines and wandered around the complex enjoying the calm.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">After seeing the Taj, we were in for another long car ride. The ride length was much worse since Brian came down with "Delhi Belly." It is a common occurrence in India, so common in fact that most reviews on TripAdvisor talked about the bathroom facilities at hotels in case you came down with "The Revenge." TripAdvisor unfortunately did not rate the roadside bathrooms on the northern state highways. As the ciprofloxacin, immodium, peptobismol, ibuprofen and oral rehydration salts from our ziplock bag mobile pharmacy worked their magic, we drove into the Indian state of Rajasthan, in India's far northwest. Driving along, we were treated to a picture of life in rural India as we watched the landscape change from pasture to all out desert. Drying cow paddies rested on stucco-decorated mud huts to be later used for fuel. Miles and miles of brick factories sent trucks, tractors, and ox carts filled to the brim with bricks out along the roadway. The scene soon gave way to arid farmlands as ox carts were replaced by camel carts. The many areas we past were a flurry of activity with villagers preparing for the upcoming monsoon season. All along the way people loaded hay into gigantic burlap sacks that hung over the sides of flat bed trucks. As the landscape changed, women's attire shifted to bright orange saffron saris, worn over the head mostly for sun protection. </span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Is it a truck stuffed with hay?</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The same truck from the front!<span style="text-align: left;"> </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Stopping for cows crossing the road.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Rajasthan is home to Ranthambore National Park, the largest tiger reserve in India, and our destination for this leg of the trip. (http://www.ranthamborenationalpark.com/) There’s not a lot in this little town
outside a strip of hotels and the park. Lacking in places to eat, most hotels provide full board. The park is closed from June 30 until
November 1 because monsoons make the park roads impassable, so we were
catching the tail end of the season. This has the advantage of uncrowded jeep
tours and great prices on hotels. But it is a bit odd staying and eating in a
giant hotel with no other guests. Brian was worried it was going to be a hot weather version of The Shining (especially when we learned that the hotel was no longer selling liquor for the season).</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our first sign of a tiger - a massive paw print in the mud.</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">We went on two rides in Gypsy jeeps which sit six guests, plus a guide and a driver. The reserve is divided into ten regions into which the park rangers randomly assign each tour group. Our first visit was in Region 1. From the onset, everyone set up low expectations. It’s not prime tiger-spotting weather. The rain the night before made the tigers not need to go to the waterhole to drink. Plus it was relatively cool (like 95 degrees), so the tigers did not need to swim to cool down. The rain also made the tigers harder to track since there was less dust to look for tracks. The rocky, arid landscape was beautiful. The pre-monsoon rains were just adding touches of green to the landscape. The park is known for its many birds, most notably the peacock, the national bird of India. Our guide called the peacocks “tiger cupcakes” (looks nice, but not so filling). One nice part of visiting with the approaching rainy season is that the peacocks were in full dancing glory. During the dry season they lose their feathers and just kinda hang out. But with the approaching rainy season, there is love on the peacocks' minds. The feathers grow in and they start putting on a rhythmic circular dance, with a distinct mating call. We also saw male spotted deer fighting for the affections of a doe, several antelopes, and other types of deer. Right as we were giving up the tiger search, we heard from another car that there was a sleeping tiger by the road right at the border of Region 1 and 6. We went into high gear – racing through the jungle to find the tiger. Tyler loved going fast in the open jeep -- up and down the rocky hills. He was definitely airborne a few times. Here’s a picture of the three year old male we found. You most definitely appreciate his massive scale from up that close and how amazing is the tiger's </span>camouflage<span style="font-family: inherit;">! Our second safari took us to Region 5. We were fortunate to also see a tiger on this visit, but this time a bit more in the distance. This region has a beautiful watering hole in which we saw all the grazing animals as well as some crocodiles. The kids were pleased to have seen in the wild both animal occupants of the Agra Fort moat.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Two male peacocks showing off with dances!</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">The next day we left Ranthambore and headed to Jaipur, the capital of Rajasthan. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Leaving you with a picture of Violet trying to take the Taj Mahal home with us.</span></div>
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Maryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07097737124628100844noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3831558865310136613.post-74429094551204507542014-06-18T17:16:00.001+08:002015-01-12T20:44:29.701+08:00Pooja's Big Fat Indian Wedding!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<!--StartFragment-->So
excited! So excited! We're in India!!! I've had a long-time India crush. It
started somewhere in high school with my first dip of naan into palak paneer,
which I loved and only later learned that paneer is cheese. The crush grew when wearing a sari for the first time for a friend’s wedding 10 years ago (still can't
believe Courtney squeezed me into her blouse!). And here we are -- in India!<!--EndFragment-->
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<!--StartFragment-->A few months ago, a friend invited us to her wedding. Pooja works with
Brian in Baltimore, but decided to return home to Pune, India for her
wedding. After squealing (yeah, I'm not a squealer -- it just came out), I
started planning the trip. Flying from KL to Mumbai is only a 4 1/2 hour
ride, so the trip is totally doable. It’s like living in Baltimore and going
out to California for a wedding, except you need a visa. Our living in Kuala
Lumpur also made wedding prep logistics relatively easy. Kuala Lumpur has a
substantial Indian population, so shopping for wedding attire consisted of a
trip down to the Brickfields section of town. A big - HUGE - thank you to our
friend, Abhi, for spending several hours shopping with us while we labored over
wedding clothing selections. Well, we labored - the kids played hide and seek in the enormous fabric shop. Abhi steered us to the right outfits (the dude can
totally pick out an awesome sari) and away from not so great options (like strongly
advising Brian to just wear slacks and not buy traditional pants). In the end,
we each purchased two outfits. I bought a blue silk sari and a purple and gold beaded
langa (skirt with a fitted top). While saris are worn in many styles, they are
traditionally a long single piece of fabric wrapped around the waist with
pleats gathered in the front. Over a cropped blouse, the remainder of fabric is
pleated and worn over the left shoulder or up over the head. After selecting a sari,
I visited a tailor to get my sari blouse made. This was also an experience
since the tailor had limited English, although he was clear in advising me to
go with the "sexy back" blouse style. Here I make a confession. I
also asked the tailor to pre-sew my sari bottom. The tailor takes the sari and
sews in the bottom pleats to a petticoat making it absurdly simple to put on.<!--EndFragment-->
<br />
<br />
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<!--StartFragment-->Our India trip is divided into two parts, several days of wedding
celebrations in Pune and then a tour in the northern part of the country. Since
we are relaxing in the hotel tonight with all the amazing wedding experiences
wrapped up, Brian and I figured we'd write a blog post about this portion of
the trip.<!--EndFragment-->
<br />
<br />
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<!--StartFragment-->We like to say that everything is an adventure and getting to Pune was certainly no exception. The flight from KL to Mumbai (Bombay) was relatively uneventful, although Brian did have an easy, “Excuse me sir, are you a doctor?” experience. The adventure really started after our arrival in Mumbai. Pooja
kindly arranged a driver to pick us up at our 11:00 pm arrival at the Mumbai
airport and drive us to Pune. Leaving the airport around midnight, Mumbai was
still a rage of activity with crazy traffic and people up walking the streets.
It also offered a glimpse at the often-discussed extreme poverty in Mumbai as
every overpass housed people seeking shelter while they
slept on the streets. Brian asked the driver how long it would take to get to Pune,
and we were shocked when he said we'd be driving 3 to 4 hours. We somehow
thought it was about a 1 1/2 hour drive. The drive was surreal. It was single
handedly the craziest driving experience we've ever had. I made a poor assumption that
driving at night would be free of traffic. Wrong. It was prime truck transit
time for bringing goods out of Mumbai and up over the hills. I read that India
driving is "sound, spectacle, and experience" – I agree. On a
winding, four-lane highway (kind of), our driver skillfully threaded our car between
passing trucks. For hours. We’d be driving down a highway and then suddenly come to a
full stop to go over speed bumps (on a highway?). Throw in some livestock and dogs to dodge, not to mention an occasional curiously placed barrier, and it was like the best video game car race ever. The trucks themselves were painted with
vibrant colors, lots of shining chrome, and large signs saying, “Please honk.”
And honk we did. With every passing car or truck we’d let out a string of honks.
But we arrived in Pune unharmed. Our driver, hopped up on adrenaline and strong
tea, bid us farewell and jumped back in the car for his trip back to Mumbai.<!--EndFragment-->
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<!--StartFragment-->Our invitation to Pooja's wedding activities extended over three days. On Friday after some last minute shopping (Violet needed bangles!),
we joined Pooja and her family at the Mehndi Ceremony. This is the ceremony in
which the bride is adorned with henna designs on her hands and feet. The women
at the celebration can also be hennaed up, so of course we joined in. A bit of
a break from tradition, Pooja's fiancé, Akshay, also attended the Mehndi to
spend some time and meet Pooja's family and friends. We were so glad to meet
him.<!--EndFragment-->
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE1Y_Tj29XJC6iefbJK8GPWKb4DHbHLll0Xku1GtfLwjyoYGSOWqH9SxL75jskMee5wHIZEvxt7vQCIpO4Lq7TtBrFiY61Ruk2_SCOgRI3lOBKNl_jguVje9-Ni0HKA0P1zBCK3Cf1qxT_/s1600/P6130638.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiE1Y_Tj29XJC6iefbJK8GPWKb4DHbHLll0Xku1GtfLwjyoYGSOWqH9SxL75jskMee5wHIZEvxt7vQCIpO4Lq7TtBrFiY61Ruk2_SCOgRI3lOBKNl_jguVje9-Ni0HKA0P1zBCK3Cf1qxT_/s1600/P6130638.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">While it is mostly women getting the mehndi designs, Tyler wanted a "tattoo" too!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<!--StartFragment-->Saturday morning was the Puja Ceremony for Pooja. This is a religious
ceremony for only the bride and her family to prepare the bride for marriage.
We felt so honored to be invited to attend. We joined the family for a
delicious lunch in Pooja’s family home in which it is traditional to serve
five sweets. Of course, Violet totally enjoyed this meal! Food crosses culture
in so many ways. Just as Brian’s mom overfeeds our friends with Italian food,
Pooja’s mother and aunties kept refilling our plates until I thought I’d pop all
the beading on my shirt from being stuffed with deliciousness! We had to announce that we were having seconds (and thirds) so they would actually believe that we had eaten.<!--EndFragment--><br />
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<!--StartFragment-->After returning to the hotel to relax and research dinner options, we
found that a new brewpub recently opened a few minutes ride from the hotel. To
get around town, we flagged down an auto-rickshaw (just called an
"auto"), India's version of Cambodia's tuk-tuk or Philippines’
tricycle. The autos even have meters, which didn’t stop the drivers from trying
to haggle with us as tourists. Traffic in Pune was nowhere near as crazy as
driving to Pune, but was still filled with noisy honking. From an auto you see,
hear, smell, and just feel a place in a different way than in a car. I really
enjoyed these rides. Returning to our hotel we caught some World Cup action at
the hotel bar.<!--EndFragment-->
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<!--StartFragment--><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRd0hDsmpS814QhwMruzJQeUCI_yU9UDlUTf3JLGiVTp2_27aobuqLun4kndy2byOjgZqbe3yyoQm3I6y_T0sVbaBun0MZM8PIdoNmM3o7Nwu0aZBt2Y2-2sARQCoC09NQjlkiVWIyz5xc/s1600/P6150725.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRd0hDsmpS814QhwMruzJQeUCI_yU9UDlUTf3JLGiVTp2_27aobuqLun4kndy2byOjgZqbe3yyoQm3I6y_T0sVbaBun0MZM8PIdoNmM3o7Nwu0aZBt2Y2-2sARQCoC09NQjlkiVWIyz5xc/s1600/P6150725.jpg" height="320" style="cursor: move;" width="240" /></a>Then it was wedding day! The invitation said it was an 11:40 am start, but
Pooja explained to us that the family actually arrives at 8:30 am to start the
rituals. Again, we were honored to be counted among family. Pooja and her
mother were super kind and gave us each a wedding outfit. Several months ago,
Pooja asked for our measurements. From getting my blouse made, I had an indiscernible
string of 15 numbers, no labels -- just numbers, that I emailed to Pooja. She gave
these to her tailor who said that yes, these numbers totally meant something to
him. Yep, they must have because the blouse fit amazingly well! However, I panicked
when realizing that this sari wasn't pre-sewn. Yikes! How the heck was I
supposed to dress myself for the wedding? Answer: YouTube. Thank you “Good
Indian Girl” for the easy-to-follow sari how-to videos. And also a thank you to
one of the family that pinned me in place after arriving at the wedding.<!--EndFragment-->
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<!--StartFragment-->The wedding was beautiful! The ladies’ saris were a sea of rich and
vibrant colors threaded with golds. Pooja’s family made sure we were well fed
and also narrated the ceremony, teaching us the significance of the many rituals.
Tyler particularly liked the tradition where Pooja’s male cousins gave Akshay’s
ear a good pulling – just a way of saying be good to Pooja, 'cause the guys have
her back! Congratulations, Pooja and Akshay. And thank you, Pooja for inviting us to your wedding and arranging for all our travel. And a huge thank you to your mother, sister,
brother-in-law, and all the many, many family that embraced us and fed us and
made us feel at home.<!--EndFragment-->
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<!--StartFragment-->Already, India is all the color, sound, and vibrancy that I imagined. And I
can’t help but love a place in which you get decked out in a blue and gold silk dress and a ton of bling then slip on your flip flops. My kind of dress up. Now off to Delhi to begin
our tour of north India.<!--EndFragment-->
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTldMbnyhlfaHS-XTsUfIsKVJM_ftDKGfIG-yqSeBC8CpVxTnthxedJOU-YznevjxK6sbLg1Dy-F-PxzZzvuI5csmf9pTmkrTaGxsxf-nc6-tRrPGaPmyf0FM-ga8XCABL3he4uRS8vvlL/s1600/P6150773.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTldMbnyhlfaHS-XTsUfIsKVJM_ftDKGfIG-yqSeBC8CpVxTnthxedJOU-YznevjxK6sbLg1Dy-F-PxzZzvuI5csmf9pTmkrTaGxsxf-nc6-tRrPGaPmyf0FM-ga8XCABL3he4uRS8vvlL/s1600/P6150773.JPG" height="260" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pooja's family photo. Check out the blond in the bottom right!</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
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<br /></div>
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Maryhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07097737124628100844noreply@blogger.com0