Monday evening. Work was a nightmare. My first class wouldn't listed to a word I said and the second was the same. I also had a kid in that class who refused to do any work at the end because he couldn't find his eraser. After trying various methods to get him to do the work...after the class was over I might add...he eventually did it. Once I packed up his things I found the damn thing under his workbook.
So I was not in a good mood when I left work. So my original plan to get a bus and train to Chunghua was ruined because I would get there too late. But after scooting to Chunghua on my hire scooter I felt better, even though a stupid driver nearly knocked me down. grr.
Anyhoo. I got to Chunghua and headed to Jonny's to meet everyone who had joined for Zach's fair well. When he wanted to leave I drove him to his apartment on his scooter (which is now mine) and said goodbye.
It will be strange not having him around. He's been one of a few folks i've spent most weekends hanging out with. But I learned early on in my time here in Taiwan that goodbyes are part of life. You never know how long your friends are going to be around. Tis the expat life i'm afraid.
I'm never good at goodbyes. I find that other people get teary and I don't. I think because I've moved so much and it never feels real. I always feel like an observer at such things. Perhaps that's a defence mechanism, if so I like it, so I won't over analyse that :)
I then went back to the bar to hang out with the others for a while, had a good giggle then drove back to Nantou on my new scooter. I'll have to get a bus to Chunghua to retrieve the other one that I left there, then take that back to the scooter place in Taichung. Sounds like a lot of hassle but I don't mind. I needed a scooter these past couple of weeks, so it's worth a little extra effort.
On the way back to Nantou I was chased by a few dogs. It was on a dark road, I had to slow down because of a large bump in the road onto a bridge section (bad roads here) and a pack of dogs came out of the shadows and chased me. It certainly gave me a fright, but they were just having fun methinks.
I was happy to get back in and get to bed to sleep. I didn't get in until past 3am.
Monday 28 June 2010
Sunday 27 June 2010
Dinner and Taichung Improv
Saturday evening was spent with many folks. It was Zach's final weekend in Taiwan so it was marked by dinner at a place called Fingas. The food wasn't bad. After that we watched a Taichung Improv show. Which was pretty funny this time. I think because i've been to a few shows it can get all samey. But this one was great!
Renee was dragged up on stage.
An emotions game.
Zach was volunteered for the final game. Anthony, the chap in the background in the blue and white shirt, joined the game too.
Renee was dragged up on stage.
An emotions game.
Zach was volunteered for the final game. Anthony, the chap in the background in the blue and white shirt, joined the game too.
Taichung Jade market and Flower market
Saturday: I spent the morning/afternoon hanging out with Dave.
My noodles for breakfast :) I had honey tea, Dave had tomato honey tea. Which sounds really disgusting, but was actually tasty.
After breakfast and my wandering (I had a wander around the shopping area of 'little Europe'), Dave showed me the Jade market and flower market. It took all my willpower to not buy anything. The stalls were filled with all sorts. Here are a few photographs.
This plant always makes me think of dinosaurs :D
Family Cactus. haha.
My noodles for breakfast :) I had honey tea, Dave had tomato honey tea. Which sounds really disgusting, but was actually tasty.
After breakfast and my wandering (I had a wander around the shopping area of 'little Europe'), Dave showed me the Jade market and flower market. It took all my willpower to not buy anything. The stalls were filled with all sorts. Here are a few photographs.
This plant always makes me think of dinosaurs :D
Family Cactus. haha.
Monday 21 June 2010
Silence of the Cicada
Someone must be looking out for my sanity because i've not heard the cicada beetle for a bit. I was away at the weekend and upon coming back i've not heard it :) It's so nice to not hear that chirping/singing noise they make.
Silence is oh so sweet to my ears.
*fingers crossed* that it stays that way :)
Silence is oh so sweet to my ears.
*fingers crossed* that it stays that way :)
Some pics from the weekend
A blurry 'artistic' pic of me on the beach taking a picture of my footprint.
I met a lot of foreigners on Saturday but I spent most of the night with these wonderful Taiwanese folks :D I had a lot of fun!
Eileen, me, and Denise
Me and Brandon
You can see my terrible 'tan' line. lol. More like burn line. Ouch!
There was a mirror on the ceiling of the elevator. It called out for a picture. haha.
Dave (my new roomie), Brandon with his camera, me, Denise and Vincent (A CT at my new branch).
I met a lot of foreigners on Saturday but I spent most of the night with these wonderful Taiwanese folks :D I had a lot of fun!
Eileen, me, and Denise
Me and Brandon
You can see my terrible 'tan' line. lol. More like burn line. Ouch!
There was a mirror on the ceiling of the elevator. It called out for a picture. haha.
Dave (my new roomie), Brandon with his camera, me, Denise and Vincent (A CT at my new branch).
Scootering, finding a flatmate, meeting new folks and party police
This past weekend was brilliant! First of all, on Friday I went into Taichung to get a hire scooter. Which was so good! It was amazing being able to drive myself around for a change. I have it to keep me going for a bit until I get Zach's scooter when he leaves.
On Saturday I taught my class and then headed to Taichung to meet my friend Dave for a coffee and catch up. We chatted about all sorts. We are both looking for a new apartment in Taichung around the same time so we've decided to find a flat together. He's a cool chap who has his head screwed on right. I think it will be fun sharing a place with him. He has loads of plants (is a horticulturist by trade originally but now teaches English), loves to cook and speaks Spanish. So i'm hoping I can learn from him :D I'd love to improve my Spanish...by remembering it. lol. Before I go to Spain to work. I would like to live in Spain at some point.
I met various friends of his over the course of the afternoon/evening and then ended up going to a party with them all. I met a foreign and Taiwanese teacher who work at the branch i'm being moved to. They were really cool. It seems that there is a great working atmosphere at my new place, so i'm looking forward to that.
The party was on the rooftop of a small department store. Department stores here are different to those in the UK. They are much better and posher. It was quiet to start with and then the police came to check people's ages. Then they decided to check every ones ID. It took them so long! But once they left the music started up again.
I danced a bit and had a great time! We took a break, a few of us went outside to see what was what down in the park. I suppose to get a breather from the 'party'. We witnessed a domestic in the park. It was awful! The man was dragging the girl across the ground and flinging her around. No one was interceding. Dave and a new friend Denise (Taiwanese) went to the local 7-11 to get them to call the police but they didn't care. Thankfully, by the time we were calling them, another group who were watching it all as well had already called the police. So they turned up and sorted things out. Or at least, stopped her from being treated the way she was. But as soon as the police arrived she ran for it. I would have ran towards the police. But it was around 2am so she may well have been drinking.
We headed back into the party after we saw that everything had calmed down and danced a bit more. I ended up staying at Dave's...well he is staying with a friend of his called Kyle...who had worked in Nantou before. Pretty cool. So I was just about getting to sleep towards 6am on the couch when Kyle came back with a bunch of people. He forgot that I was staying. But it was alright, I had good banter with the lads and chilled listening to music. They left just before 8am. So I had a long day. I slept for a few hours and got up around 2pm. I waited around until then to see if Dave and Kyle would get up. I figured they weren't so I snuck out and went to hang out with Renee and Geoff.
We chilled and watched some TV. Went to get ingredients for dinner. Zach joined for dinner. Renee cooked beef stroganoff for us. It was delicious. We also watched the 'goonies', I forgot how much I loved that film At about 10pm I decided to head home so I could get a decent nights sleep.
Zach and I left at the same time, which was good because it gave us the opportunity to chat. We stopped dating and things became a little weird for a bit, so it was nice to talk it over.
He leaves for Turkey next Tuesday, so this weekend is a good celebration and a see off for him. I'm looking forward to getting together with everyone to wish him well.
It also means I get the scooter on Monday. In a week. So then i'll have my own (it's already in my name) and can have many mini-adventures :D
On Saturday I taught my class and then headed to Taichung to meet my friend Dave for a coffee and catch up. We chatted about all sorts. We are both looking for a new apartment in Taichung around the same time so we've decided to find a flat together. He's a cool chap who has his head screwed on right. I think it will be fun sharing a place with him. He has loads of plants (is a horticulturist by trade originally but now teaches English), loves to cook and speaks Spanish. So i'm hoping I can learn from him :D I'd love to improve my Spanish...by remembering it. lol. Before I go to Spain to work. I would like to live in Spain at some point.
I met various friends of his over the course of the afternoon/evening and then ended up going to a party with them all. I met a foreign and Taiwanese teacher who work at the branch i'm being moved to. They were really cool. It seems that there is a great working atmosphere at my new place, so i'm looking forward to that.
The party was on the rooftop of a small department store. Department stores here are different to those in the UK. They are much better and posher. It was quiet to start with and then the police came to check people's ages. Then they decided to check every ones ID. It took them so long! But once they left the music started up again.
I danced a bit and had a great time! We took a break, a few of us went outside to see what was what down in the park. I suppose to get a breather from the 'party'. We witnessed a domestic in the park. It was awful! The man was dragging the girl across the ground and flinging her around. No one was interceding. Dave and a new friend Denise (Taiwanese) went to the local 7-11 to get them to call the police but they didn't care. Thankfully, by the time we were calling them, another group who were watching it all as well had already called the police. So they turned up and sorted things out. Or at least, stopped her from being treated the way she was. But as soon as the police arrived she ran for it. I would have ran towards the police. But it was around 2am so she may well have been drinking.
We headed back into the party after we saw that everything had calmed down and danced a bit more. I ended up staying at Dave's...well he is staying with a friend of his called Kyle...who had worked in Nantou before. Pretty cool. So I was just about getting to sleep towards 6am on the couch when Kyle came back with a bunch of people. He forgot that I was staying. But it was alright, I had good banter with the lads and chilled listening to music. They left just before 8am. So I had a long day. I slept for a few hours and got up around 2pm. I waited around until then to see if Dave and Kyle would get up. I figured they weren't so I snuck out and went to hang out with Renee and Geoff.
We chilled and watched some TV. Went to get ingredients for dinner. Zach joined for dinner. Renee cooked beef stroganoff for us. It was delicious. We also watched the 'goonies', I forgot how much I loved that film At about 10pm I decided to head home so I could get a decent nights sleep.
Zach and I left at the same time, which was good because it gave us the opportunity to chat. We stopped dating and things became a little weird for a bit, so it was nice to talk it over.
He leaves for Turkey next Tuesday, so this weekend is a good celebration and a see off for him. I'm looking forward to getting together with everyone to wish him well.
It also means I get the scooter on Monday. In a week. So then i'll have my own (it's already in my name) and can have many mini-adventures :D
Wednesday 16 June 2010
Lukang on Dragon Boat Festival
So today is Dragon Boat Festival. So I jumped on a bus to Changhua, then one from there to Lukang and met Renee + Geoff. I had no idea there were races there and that was why the plan was to go to Lukang. haha. A nice surprise when I met them.
We wandered for a bit, checked out a couple of the famous spots that they hadn't seen then headed in search for the races. It took a while but we got there :)
Me being eaten by the tiger exit. Because it is the exit, you are not supposed to enter the temple again (you go in through the dragon). There was a little old man who got quite nervous that I was going backwards a little too far. Bless him.
Longshan temple
Sneaky shot of a nun
It was great to see, but we didn't stay too long (I couldn't watch for hours, that would be rather dull). It was good to watch and see which teams were keeping in time to the drum beat. There is a person in each boat who bangs a drum, on the beat you are supposed to paddle. Some had great rhythm, others must have been tired :)
My random 'hot dog' from a vendor with red sauce. I was hungry so I ate it.
After that we headed to find the sea, and a beach. We did so, thanks to Renee's logic thinking that the wind turbines would be facing towards the sea.
The beach itself was pretty nasty. It was covered in litter and various skeletons/decaying animals. One example was what we surmised was a pig. Yuck. (I would have taken a picture but it was making feel rather sick). It was pretty stinky. We found a part of the 'beach' that was clear of trash and did a bit of paddling. It was so nice being by the sea again. I definitely have to make a trip to the East of the Island that boasts the most beautiful beaches.
After chilling for a while, and getting covered in sand and dirt we headed out of Lukang. Renee and Geoff dropped me at the big Buddha in Changhua and they headed home to Taichung.
Manky trash being washed up
A rickety walkway to get onto the sand
A pic of my faint footprint
Renee and Geoff
I spent quite a while by myself doing some reflecting/relaxing. It was really nice having some time out to myself at a temple.
After that I met, Zach, Matt, Lynn and Sarah for dinner. I had Kung Bao Chicken that was quite tasty. I ate most of it. I've not been eating well recently due to a lack of appetite, but I do force food down. It wouldn't do to not have any energy.
At dinner Zach found a cockroach on his hand and jumped sky high. It was quite funny. But I still feel guilty about laughing. Unfortunately very large cockroaches are a part of life here in Taiwan.
I got an early bus back to Nantou, near to 9pm. So it was nice to get back in at a decent time.
A squid vendor
A famous temple in Changhua that only opens on one day a year.
My bad sunburn from being an idiot and forgetting to put sun block on. Eek.
We wandered for a bit, checked out a couple of the famous spots that they hadn't seen then headed in search for the races. It took a while but we got there :)
Me being eaten by the tiger exit. Because it is the exit, you are not supposed to enter the temple again (you go in through the dragon). There was a little old man who got quite nervous that I was going backwards a little too far. Bless him.
Longshan temple
Sneaky shot of a nun
It was great to see, but we didn't stay too long (I couldn't watch for hours, that would be rather dull). It was good to watch and see which teams were keeping in time to the drum beat. There is a person in each boat who bangs a drum, on the beat you are supposed to paddle. Some had great rhythm, others must have been tired :)
My random 'hot dog' from a vendor with red sauce. I was hungry so I ate it.
After that we headed to find the sea, and a beach. We did so, thanks to Renee's logic thinking that the wind turbines would be facing towards the sea.
The beach itself was pretty nasty. It was covered in litter and various skeletons/decaying animals. One example was what we surmised was a pig. Yuck. (I would have taken a picture but it was making feel rather sick). It was pretty stinky. We found a part of the 'beach' that was clear of trash and did a bit of paddling. It was so nice being by the sea again. I definitely have to make a trip to the East of the Island that boasts the most beautiful beaches.
After chilling for a while, and getting covered in sand and dirt we headed out of Lukang. Renee and Geoff dropped me at the big Buddha in Changhua and they headed home to Taichung.
Manky trash being washed up
A rickety walkway to get onto the sand
A pic of my faint footprint
Renee and Geoff
I spent quite a while by myself doing some reflecting/relaxing. It was really nice having some time out to myself at a temple.
After that I met, Zach, Matt, Lynn and Sarah for dinner. I had Kung Bao Chicken that was quite tasty. I ate most of it. I've not been eating well recently due to a lack of appetite, but I do force food down. It wouldn't do to not have any energy.
At dinner Zach found a cockroach on his hand and jumped sky high. It was quite funny. But I still feel guilty about laughing. Unfortunately very large cockroaches are a part of life here in Taiwan.
I got an early bus back to Nantou, near to 9pm. So it was nice to get back in at a decent time.
A squid vendor
A famous temple in Changhua that only opens on one day a year.
My bad sunburn from being an idiot and forgetting to put sun block on. Eek.
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