woo! so the flight and all that wasn’t really too big of a deal. but got off the plane around 5, baggage collected at 5:30, picked up by my aunt around 5:40. we then drove from taoyuan (airport) to taipei to pick up my mom and get some coffee and sandwiches, which sadly, i do not have pictures of. then we went to my grandma’s house and took her to the hospital. because of my cough…i started scaring people shitless. so i had to put on a face mask and sit in a corner. i do not have a picture of this either, much to zachary’s chagrin. anyway…we just ate a quick dinner and my mom and i went to my uncle’s apartment in xindian (where i am now, right outside taipei) and slept. hahaha. so first day, not so exciting. OH! DRIVING PICTURES.
nothing big.
people on mopeds:
a) always outnumber those in cars.
b) do not fear death.
c) do not give a FUCK if they’re in your way.
in essence, their attitude can be summed up in three words, “deal with it.”
me gusta. scary though.
also, a tip for driving in taipei, those nice dotted white and yellow lines you know as “lanes.” while they do exist, they essentially mean nothing. if you’re driving in a lane and expect everyone to stay in their respective lanes and nicely signal that they want to switch into your lane. well…
youmustbenewhere.jpeg
day two…we left around 9 to go to my other uncle’s apartment. WOO! SUBWAYS HERE ARE FUN AS EFFFFFFFFFFFF. and clean. so clean. here’s a picture of…the deserted subway, usually a lot more crowded.
yes. anyway, then we went shopping and decided to have a seafood night! here are some DELICIOUS shrimp that i ate raw later on that night.
yummy! we also bought a bunch of fruit, including a case of passion fruit. oh my goodness. SO delicious. very very sweet. i ate like. 7.
thennnn, we went to go meet my aunt from my dad’s side (the two uncles before were my mom’s brothers, the grandma = my dad’s mom, the aunt = my dad’s sister) and her husband, who then took us to go eat dinner at some upscale japanese restaurant. it seems like…everyone we know here has connections…
oh. i forgot. i also went to taipei 101 that day. i’m too lazy to put up pictures now though ahahaha.
then yesterday we went to a VERY old street in hu kou, it’s literally called hu kou lao jie (lao jie = old street). people there were so sweet, and the street dogs, omg. T_T anyway, we went to a glass store. OMG.
and the cute little street dog!
and then we went hiking in the mountains around a resort called, “the one.”
lawl. and then we went out, ate dinner. came home. so tired.
and today, we’re taking a break, which is day five. xD
sometime this week, i will be getting a haircut, and next monday, PHOTOSHOOT.
Upstream Love River-04 (by ??? Chi?,It-lîn)
I finished with packing in about 1 hour when I really got down to it. I actually just threw some clothes into a pile, shut down my laptop and put it into its bag, then called it a day. I probably forgot something, but whatever, you can buy anything where I’m headed. Time to sleep, and then I’ll go ahead and destroy my butt miles above ground.
(for the person who asked about what to bring to taiwan)
1. Tissues. You seriously want to have tissues with you at all times. Convenience stores in Taiwan will sell them in tiny packages that are slightly bigger than the size of a credit card for cheap. They are handy for wiping your hands after eating in a night market. Some public restrooms don’t have toilet paper, so it’s smart to have tissues with you.
2. Umbrella. Take one with you wherever you go!!! Even when it’s sunny outside, your umbrella can double as a parasol! Nobody in the US uses parasols so you’ll think it’s weird that people in Taiwan hate the sun but girls here don’t want to be tanned so even when it’s blazing outside, they will wear long sleeves to cover up their skin. Using an umbrella to block the sunlight will make you sweat less. Taiwan weather is also a bit unpredictable. You seriously never know when it’s going to rain.
3. Sunscreen. Sunscreen. Sunscreen.
4. Handkerchief. Who even uses handkerchiefs anymore? PEOPLE IN ASIA. Good for wiping that nasty sweat trickling down from your forehead.
5. Deodorant. For reasons unknown, stick deodorant is incredibly hard to find in stores. They mostly sell spray deodorants but if you can’t read mandarin, you might confuse spray deodorants with shaving cream.. so it’s best to bring some from the U.S. I recommend non-aluminum based deodorants.. aluminum based deodorants create ugly yellow stains on your clothing!!!
6. Mosquito Repellant. I recommend the OFF brand. Mosquitoes are the most annoying insect on earth. They love foreign blood. Spray on after you shower, when you going outside, and before you go to bed. If you don’t use a mosquito repellant, you will have over four mosquito bites in one day. Tea tree oil is a good alternative that can repel insects and treat mosquito bites.
7. Comfortable shoes for walking long distances. I wouldn’t bring my favorite shoes to Taiwan. The roads here are filthy. It’s best you bring a sneaker you don’t care about getting dirty and comfy flip flops.
8. Surgery Masks if you are sensitive to pollution and pollens. It’s not unusual to see people wear these in Taiwan.
9. Water bottle. Keep a water bottle with you so you use the water to wash your hands. If you go eat at the night market, your own hands will end up sticky and gross.
10. Comb and compact mirror. Keep these in your purse.
11. A small plastic bag. Always have one with you so you can have some place to store your trash until you find a trash can. It’s illegal to litter and you can be fined heavily.
Hope this helps!