I've been in Taiwan for three days, and it's time to stop putting off writing a journal entry. The trip has been very exciting so far. I've eaten new things, seen new sights, and met many new people.
First things first, the plane rides were almost too long to bear. The 14 hour flight to Hong Kong almost claimed my legs. Thankfully, everyone's luggage survived the trip, except for Thomas' skateboard which stayed in Hong Kong.
The first day we toured Kaohsiung after moving into our 4-star hotel. We walked pretty much all day, except for a few train rides. the museum we were going to was closed, so we just walked around the city until we were exhausted.
We saw a few interesting things: pop singers, the dragon boat river, and the British consulate (which overlooked the ocean).
The next day, we met our groups and moved into our dorms. Stuff, Mandy, and Charity were there, but Min was home for Mother's Day. I gave them Auburn key chains and they gave me metal chopsticks and a spoon.
After they helped me move into the dorm, we had an opening meeting with Tin-Man and Frank. Then we all headed to the cafeteria. I then proceeded to make a fool of myself by ordering noodles, which are next to impossible to eat with chopsticks.
Soon after the fork, the pictures, laughter, and shame, it was time to head to the market for some essential shopping. Americans were in taxis, and Taiwan students were on scooters (lucky). I only bought some detergent and hangers, but got to spend some more time with my group.
Stuff knows some English, but he says that Min knows more. We left the market and went our seperate ways.
At night, we headed to the 7-11 with Tin-Man to celebrate my 22nd birthday. I had a Taiwan Beer and Tin-Man bought birthday cupcakes. That was pretty much it... On to Sunday!
Sunday, we met at "4 trees" and headed off to Tainan. We took a taxi to the train station, then had a 45 minute train ride.
Tainan is a really beautiful city. After going to a multi-story shopping mall (which only seemed to sell women's clothing...), we hit up a sushi restaurant. I ordered chicken kabobs and at
e sushi for the first time. I'm getting better at using chopsticks...
We then proceeded to the location of two temples (the temple of the sea gods and literature god). The gardens surrounding the temple were beautiful, complete with koi ponds and waterfalls.
Leaving the temples, we came upon a rock band performing in a park. Their equipment was malfunctioning (plus the crowd was paying more attention to us than the band), so we boarded the bus to Tin-Man's in-law's house. The nicest girls were on the bus, they gave us all Mentos!
Two kids followed us all the way to the house, where we taught them high-five's and they asked me if I played basketball.
We headed to the day market, where some bought stinky tofu and I bought Sweet Potato Fries, which were delicious. The locals are nicer here...
After eating the big meal that Tin-Man's wife had prepared, I had another birthday cake! It
was cold cake, with fruit on top.
We then called taxi's and headed back to Shu-Te University. Tomorrow is the opening ceremony and Min will be there, along with the rest of my group. Man, that was a lot to cover....
First things first, the plane rides were almost too long to bear. The 14 hour flight to Hong Kong almost claimed my legs. Thankfully, everyone's luggage survived the trip, except for Thomas' skateboard which stayed in Hong Kong.
The first day we toured Kaohsiung after moving into our 4-star hotel. We walked pretty much all day, except for a few train rides. the museum we were going to was closed, so we just walked around the city until we were exhausted.
We saw a few interesting things: pop singers, the dragon boat river, and the British consulate (which overlooked the ocean).
The next day, we met our groups and moved into our dorms. Stuff, Mandy, and Charity were there, but Min was home for Mother's Day. I gave them Auburn key chains and they gave me metal chopsticks and a spoon.
After they helped me move into the dorm, we had an opening meeting with Tin-Man and Frank. Then we all headed to the cafeteria. I then proceeded to make a fool of myself by ordering noodles, which are next to impossible to eat with chopsticks.
Soon after the fork, the pictures, laughter, and shame, it was time to head to the market for some essential shopping. Americans were in taxis, and Taiwan students were on scooters (lucky). I only bought some detergent and hangers, but got to spend some more time with my group.
Stuff knows some English, but he says that Min knows more. We left the market and went our seperate ways.
At night, we headed to the 7-11 with Tin-Man to celebrate my 22nd birthday. I had a Taiwan Beer and Tin-Man bought birthday cupcakes. That was pretty much it... On to Sunday!
Sunday, we met at "4 trees" and headed off to Tainan. We took a taxi to the train station, then had a 45 minute train ride.
Tainan is a really beautiful city. After going to a multi-story shopping mall (which only seemed to sell women's clothing...), we hit up a sushi restaurant. I ordered chicken kabobs and at
e sushi for the first time. I'm getting better at using chopsticks...We then proceeded to the location of two temples (the temple of the sea gods and literature god). The gardens surrounding the temple were beautiful, complete with koi ponds and waterfalls.
Leaving the temples, we came upon a rock band performing in a park. Their equipment was malfunctioning (plus the crowd was paying more attention to us than the band), so we boarded the bus to Tin-Man's in-law's house. The nicest girls were on the bus, they gave us all Mentos!
Two kids followed us all the way to the house, where we taught them high-five's and they asked me if I played basketball.
We headed to the day market, where some bought stinky tofu and I bought Sweet Potato Fries, which were delicious. The locals are nicer here...
After eating the big meal that Tin-Man's wife had prepared, I had another birthday cake! It
was cold cake, with fruit on top.We then called taxi's and headed back to Shu-Te University. Tomorrow is the opening ceremony and Min will be there, along with the rest of my group. Man, that was a lot to cover....
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