Two BBQs, Two Mountains, Two Days and a Rubber Factory

Summary of this somewhat long post... sorry guys!

Bravo Burger, Yangmingshan National Park, BBQ at Guo Qing, BBQ at rubber factory, & hiking with a rope in hand

Rachelle and I decided we would try to get food at Bravo Burger off of the Zhongshan High School MRT stop. Last time we went with the group they had actually run out of burger patties for the night at 7:30pm or so. So this time we weren't quite sure if we would make it. We made it and the food was delicious. It is famous around Taipei, but I have noticed that just about everything here is famous on some sort of standard. I am not quite sure how the 'famous scale' works in Taipei, sometimes it seems like so and so's uncle's friend heard about this place. Despite the ambiguity with the famous scale, I have enjoyed many of the places and foods known to be 'famous'. Nonetheless I have the picture to prove that we made to Bravo Burger :).

The first mountain that we climbed was at Yangmingshan National Park (陽明山國家公園), it was really more of a hiking trail. The National Park is about an hour outside of Taipei and quite easy to get to. I highly recommend heading to Yangmingshan, because not only do you see nice vistas of the hills around Taipei, bamboo forests, a waterfall, but you also get a breath of fresh air. There are many signs reminding you of attacking cattle and telling you to drive safely on the walking path :). This was an easy half-day trip right before a yummy BBQ.

The first BBQ was one hosted at IYC/Guo Qing. I think the only thing I have to say is that it was the most dangerous BBQ I have ever been to. They would not let us take the grill outside and the security insisted that we do it inside! There were two big fans blowing all of the air outside, so none of the most was left, but I was more worried about the high temperature of the coals over the laminate flooring and wooden ceiling. We managed to safely cook everything and stuff our stomachs with goodies we found at the Taipei Costco. Almost everything in the store was an American import, but was much cheaper. I wish I had a membership in the USA, because I found out it would have been transferable.

BBQ in Taoyuan!

Taoyuan is the city where the main international airport is located and is about an hour out of Taipei. I was invited to a BBQ by my language exchange partner and Professor friend. The NTU Graduate Material Science Department and friends were having a BBQ outside of a rubber factory. The grounds were gorgeous with blossoming cherry trees, raspberries, palm trees and plenty of other lovely plants. The BBQ was very nice and I noticed some definite differences between a BBQ at home and this one. The food came out over a period of nearly three hours, so you had to make sure not to eat too much at one time. Another difference was that everyone was cooking and helping--I would have thought it would be difficult to get everyone to cook together so happily, but it worked. The last difference was cooking sweet potatoes underground. The sweet potatoes were amazing! They started a fire put the tin-foil-wrapped sweet potatoes in the clay soil for a half hour or so and then they were ready to enjoy :).

The next part of the day was a tremendously hard hike up a mountain, it might have been harder because I was so full with delicious eats! I figured since we would be hiking with two couples in their mid-50s (although they look much younger), we would be doing a hike like the one the day before. I was wrong, quite wrong indeed. We climbed a mountain, literally. There was a rope on either side to help us climb up the 45 degree incline. The slick clay soil, bulging tree roots and smooth rocks felt precarious at times, but we made it and only a couple steps, well minutes, behind the two older gentlemen in the group. One was even wearing sandals. I don't believe the difficulty stemmed from being out of shape, but to the fact that I rarely step up so high for so long. At the top of this mountain we were able to see Taipei in the distance and the city's water reservoir. The hike was nice, but after this very long weekend I was quite tired.

An Oolong Tea Garden

Berries and sweet potatoes!

The rubber factory where we had the splendid BBQ.

Taipei's city water resevoir and the two Taiwanese friends plus a stranger we ate and hiked with.

A restaurant we saw along our way up the trail and Rachelle and I after a good butt-kicking hiking. You can see we are holding onto the rope to keep our balance during the photograph.

Semi-Conductors and Hsin-Chu Technology Park

Wed. March 18th--I went to a the Hsin-Chu Science Park south of Taipei in Taiwan. I am fascinated by technology and always have been. I was dumbstruck by the collectiveness of the government and company policies so that all of these firms and the country may learn from each other. I have seen similar laboratories in the US, but none that made semi-conductors.

I took two pictures when I entered the primary building for this park. The first was of a metal mesh rice bowl and chop sticks and the second was of rice grains spread on the ground. I took the meaning of the two pictures collectively to mean sharing the resources, the rice spills out of an open bowl.

I think one of the most fascinating things was practical use of all the technology. They had a network of supercomputers monitoring some of the key environmental indicators in national parks all around the island. They also used the network of supercomputers to help some of the health problems here, such as mapping asthma and the factors from all patients in the national healthcare system to ensure the neediest get treatment first. After the hour bus ride home, I made it in time to my afternoon finance class.

Taichung and Sun Moon Lake

I spent this past weekend in Taichung and Sun Moon Lake which are both south of Taipei in the central area of Taiwan. There were eight of us in the group and I booked the hostel Friday night as the last of the group confirmed their attendance. None of us were fluent in Chinese, one was at least somewhat proficient. We woke up early Saturday to try to catch a bus. The first place told us we would have to wait another three hours, so we went to another company and were on our way. The bus takes approximately two and a half hours to reach Taichung. We had to transfer to another bus on the edge of the city and again to a city bus. Finally on the outskirts of the city we managed to find our hostel. I was a bit nervous as I was the one leading all of us on this journey. I was quickly dubbed the 'mom' of the group, one was the translator and two were the paparazzi (they had really nice cameras and documented the entire weekend, never have I felt so famous).

My buddy, who is assigned to me through the exchange program, is from Taichung and goes back every weekend. I contacted him and quickly met up with him at the main train station. We headed to one of the three night markets in the city and had a dinner I will never forget--it had to be one of the spiciest meals I have ever had. If ma is in front of la for a spicy dish, know that it will be extremely spicy. Almost all of us ordered the middle level of spiciness, but were crying as our lips swelled and reddened from the chili peppers and sauce in our noodles. The papaya milk seemed to reduce the heat a little bit.

After the unforgettable meal Andy met back up with us after his family dinner and we headed to the largest night market in Taichung, Feng Chia. The clothes definitely had a somewhat different style and were a little cheaper than Taipei. Taichung also has an area of town known as Little Europe, and it actually was different and more like Europe than the rest of town. Andy was so excited to have us try a bunch of different foods, some of which I know most would not of tried. All in all we tried rice and pig's blood on a stick covered with peanuts and cilantro, BBQ-ed shrimp on a stick with their shells still on, deep fried sweet potato balls, Chinese hot dog with wasabi sauce, a milk tea type of drink (still not quite sure what was used to replace the pearls, it was some type of seed but not passion fruit), and a couple other things. Andy took the group of us on his motorbike and in his brother's car to the highest viewing point of the city. We could see the Taiwan Strait in the distance and lights all around. I had no idea how vast the city actually was until we were perched so high above. We made it home safely to the hostel just in time to catch a couple hours of sleep and head to Sun Moon Lake in the morning.

Sun Moon Lake is in the Nantu region and quite easy to get to from Taichung. Andy met up with us in the morning out of concern of being able to buy tickets to get there. I am not quite sure when it was arranged that we would ride in two random cars and pay each $200 NTD ($6) to get there. It took us half as much time to reach the lake and about 20 minutes later of trying to refuse a 3 hour tour around the lake we were off. Sun Moon Lake is gorgeous and not used much for swimming or recreation and is only 33 km around. The Lonely Planet said that foreigners should not swim in the lake as Taiwanese do not know how to swim and may jump in and drown if they see you swimming... I'm not sure how true this is, nonetheless it is quite entertaining. After bumming around for a couple hours we found a bus to take us back to Taipei and a short five hours later we were home. Although the island is quite small, only 150 km or so wide, it takes a long time to get city to city unless you use the high speed rail. The trip was awesome and gave me a taste of what I had pictured Taiwan to really be like. Taipei is quite orderly and like most other big cities with a Rail Transport system.

(I thought that this was very cool. This is a picture of a flower that seems to never stop flowering. The small buds in the middle are about to flower, and they start out yellow and turn to a hot pink when they are done maturing and about to fall off).

(This is an Assam Tea Plant. Tea is very important in Taiwan and was one of the primary export goods in the 20Th century. I thought I would take a picture to share with all of you.)

I had my haircut today in Gongguan and I am extremely happy with the result. I am going to go whitewater rafting and study this next weekend, which I am also very excited about. I will be sure to add an update about that as well.

Dinner with the Fun Squad in Taipei

After 4 weeks of being in Taiwan, I have been meeting a lot of local Taiwanese, especially through connections from people at home. I was introduced to group of Taiwanese through a family friend and invited out to dinner. This group has aptly been dubbed the 'fun squad'. We ate a fabulous family style dinner (it was amazing) at a restaurant near the Daan MRT stop on Fuxing Road. I learned a lot of Chinese and I hope I can pass the test the next time I see them (fish, chicken, rice, peanuts... I think I can remember them). The dinner came with a choice of mantou (steamed bun) or bai fei (white rice) and 10 dishes to adorn them with. There was beef and greens, spicy chicken and peanuts, seaweed soup, fish, two separate tofu dishes, boiled greens, fried dan (egg) and herbs and probably a couple I have forgotten. I am looking forward to meeting more of the APC fun squad.

Dorm Pictures

I know many people are quite curious about the dormitory and what the housing actually looks like. I really like my housing despite the flaws, because I think it is the main reason I have met so many really awesome people. It is quite hard to take pictures in such a small space, so I will have to add more later on. I think you can get the basic idea from the white washed walls, ceiling tiles, floor tiles, and college dorm appearance.

Guo Qing Dormitory/International Youth Center

Quick description: Two persons per room, with a shared floor bathroom and laundry facilities. Desk, bed, closet space, internet, electricity and water included. Prone to mosquitoes and chilly breezes, but quite social and filled with really amazing people. The building also houses a restaurant, convenience store, lounge, movie theater, and a Graduate Institute of Engineering. If you saw how small the building actually is, this might surprise you. 

The Largest Zoo in Asia--Taipei Zoo

Rachelle, Irene and I decided to venture to the end of the Muhza Line (brown line) to the zoo. We found out that it was the largest zoo in Asia and had to go, and of course there are pandas. These pandas are the same ones that China gave to Taiwan in a gesture of peace. Pandas mean might and bravery, and are highly regarded in Chinese culture. As you probably know, they are quite rare and endangered. 

I thought that the largest zoo in Asia would be quite large, but it felt more like the Como Zoo at home than the Minnesota Zoo. I had fun seeing all of the gorgeous vegetation and a couple animals I am pretty sure I had not seen before.

All in all, the zoo is quite cheap ($1.30 usd)  and convenient to visit, you can even use your easy card to pay. I recommend going there for a couple hours, not much longer is necessary and see the pandas. They are afterall the main attraction.

Pictures from Hualien and Yilan

Okay, I said I would post the pictures from the weekend trip and here they are.

  

  Traditional Dancing in Yilan at the Traditional Arts Center.

  The temple at Yilan at the T.A.C.

  The many choices for the small wooden shoes at Yilan.

  Carving a good luck charm on a wooden foot at Yilan.

  A temple to the workers that built the road through the Taroko Gorge in eastern Taiwan.

  Me on edge :).
  Lunch, family style.

   At the night market in Hualien, random Taiwanese posing for what was supposed to be a picture of the street.

Good Thymes in Taiwan

I went to the Living Mall (a.k.a. the Core Pacific City or 京華城) the other day with a couple friends and discovered Thymes products all the way from Minneapolis. The Living Mall is an upscale mall with a quirky and modern architecture style. (Check wikipedia article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Core_Pacific_City). The display was quite nice and large. There were quite a few other bags and packaging that I had never seen, but it was all very nice.  For those who do not already know, I had worked for the Thymes for a few years off and on. I started in the lab and moved to accounting this last fall. Okay this is it for now on this topic!

Hualien, Yilan, Taroko, the Coast and shoe-making

Hi Everyone,

I know that this post has taken me a while to put together. This last week has been quite busy. I have finalized my courses and participated in a weekend trip for the management exchangers. Also, I went to Taipei 101 with Lani, a fellow-exchanger from my building, which is currently the tallest building in the world. I have yet to go up it, but I am waiting for a really nice, sunny and clear day. The area around Taipei 101 is very commercial. There are many up-scale designer stores, department stores, and things made specifically for tourists.

I am taking a number courses at the university, a few on economics and a few on business. The economics courses are the Indian Economy, the Market Development of Taiwan and China's Economic Transition. The business courses are Enterprise Risk Management and Futures and Options Markets (which will most likely be outdated by the time I am done). Also, I am taking a Chinese course through the CLD (Chinese Language Division) at NTU (National Taiwan University). I hope that the Chinese course gets a bit more difficult and that I am able to speak with people on the streets. I have a lot to learn, but I am able to do some very basic things already without assistance in Chinese.

I went on a weekend trip with the International Friendship Club at the CoM (College ofd Management). We went to the eastern side of Taiwan and drove down the coast to Hualien. The coast is gorgeous, lush mountains on one side and the pacific ocean on the other. On the way to Hualien we stopped for lunch, which consisted of pork, fish, seafood, rice, soup, boiled lettuce, tofu and fruit for desert. Also, we visited the Taroko National Park, which is a must-see for anyone who comes to Taiwan. I would like to return to Taroko and really spend some time hiking on a few of the trails. A temple was built to memorialize the workers who labored to build the road through the trecherous curves.

In Hualien, we stayed at a very nice hotel in the main part of the town. I had a real mattress, a down comforter, and four of us shared a clean bathroom. I expected the town to be less developed than Taipei in some way, but it was the same, just on a smaller scale. We went to the night market for dinner, and there were tons of things to try. I had octupus balls, dumplings, spicy stir-fry veggies, bubble tea, fried chicken, and really light flavored crackers (hard to explain). I have fallen in love with the night markets in Taiwan, it seems to be the heart of the nightlife as well as the traditional Taiwanese 'mall'. Anything you need or want you can find at the night markets. I slept amazingly that night, only to wake up for a wonderful breakfast buffet, consisting of toast with peanut butter, espresso, porridge, mini-crescents, scrambled eggs, juice and fruit.

We got on the bus again and headed for the DIY shoe making center. These shoes are similar to the ones that the Japanese wear. Following the DIY shoe making center we headed to the traditional arts center, which is a very large center that the Taiwanese constructed a decade or so ago to promote Chinese and Taiwanese culture. The center was pretty commercial and the museum was a weird mix of modern art and traditionally inspired everyday items. I was somewhat confused when I saw everyday items, and wasn't sure if we were actually in a museum at all. I still have not made it to the National Palace Museum in Taipei (which is supposedly the largest single collection of Chinese artifacts in all of Asia). After the traditional culture center, we headed back to Taipei.

The Time Since the Trip...

I bought a bicycle, which has been a blessing and a curse at the same time. The bicycle was cheap, because I was motivated enough to wake up at 4 am and go with my student volunteer to buy one. I was number 62 out of the nearly 400 people in line. I named my bicycle Betsy, but she has some problems with the chain. Also, I visited Taipei 101, but did not go up it quite yet. I have to go now, but will keep you updated with what I am up to. I plan on heading to Taichung this upcoming weekend and going to the Beitou hotsprings tomorrow. (I will add the pictures that go along with this post at a later date).

Ciao Ciao!!