Thursday 29 November 2012

三個月

WOAH!!! 3 months have past since I came here. That means I am half way through this journey. Mental! In some ways it feels like I've been here way longer, just because so much has happened. I'm still fascinated at how we just adapt to new surroundings! 

It's just insane, I first came here and every day was a challenge and just a tiring experience. It still is challenging, but not to the same degree. Now I can have small conversations with shopkeepers about what size feet I have. (I was in a shoe shop, I wasn't just randomly talking about my tiny feet on this occasion. Though it does sound a lot like something I would do.) And when I don't understand something, I just play the game of guess what was just said. Sometimes I win. I'm super interested to see how my Chinese fairs back in England. 

After my week of adventures. I am back at uni. With a new teacher. She refuses to speak any English in class, so it's a challenge, but amazingly I understand what's going on. So far so good! Actually quite enjoying it.

It's been raining a fair amount lately. When it does rain, it tends to rain all day long. But then the next day will be glorious weather. It's not been cold when it's raining, just a little damp. So a nice cuppa at home in the evening, always goes down well. Apparently acid rain can be a bit of a problem here. Which I was a little surprised at. Makes sense why everyone are so shocked that I never take an umbrella anywhere.

Scooting in the rain is interesting. I would love if someone could invent a detachable windscreen wiper for helmets!! And also, if you've had to park your scooter out in the rain and then ride it you end up with a wet bum. I was driving the car the other week, driving on the highway where the speed limit is 110 kph. So I got to thinking...goodness how fast is that. It doesn't feel fast but sounds like it is! Turns out it's just 70 mph...which was a little disappointing hehe! 

On my adventures I have seen so many beautiful flowers. I'm not really a flower person, but they have caught my eye...

one of my favourite little parks... 
no idea what it is but it looks interesting...
looks like a more sophisticated daisy to me...
Tune of the day Fun - Some Nights. I find myself singing it a lot when I'm riding my scooter recently. Then I suddenly realised I'm stopped at a traffic light and other people can hear me. But then I remember hardly anyone can understand English anyway...so I carry on belting it out. 

Saturday 24 November 2012

Abi's new favourite game...

So my new favourite game is...see how many times Abi can get lost. It's great fun. Set off on scooter, have a vague idea where you are going and proceed to lose yourself in the process. Why is this so fun I hear you ask? Because there is some stunning scenery to be seen here and if I didn't get lost I wouldn't find it. Although Shalu downtown is pretty built up, in between all that crazy chaos are some beautiful sights. Today riding up a hill, and we all know once you go up a hill you must come down the other side. Well from the top of the hill and riding down it I could see so far out across the countryside. GREENERY! I always knew I was a country bumpkin and not too much of a city girl...but when I saw the mountains and greenery it made me smile like the craziest cheshire cat ever. And then I just love when there is a small road between two rice fields...when you look out it's epic. And at only around £2 to fill up the tank, I don't mind getting lost. 

Ooh everyone uses the phrase 加油 here. It's kinda the same as our 'keep going'. It's a funny little phrase though, because translated literally it means add fuel. Which is kinda appropriate. Also asking 你吃過了嗎? (Have you eaten yet?) is to the Taiwanese and Chinese as to us starting a conversation commenting on the weather is. I stupidly never know what to say though...other than the obvious yes/no. I'm always left wondering after yes/no what more can be said...do you wanna know what I actually had?! I personally stick with the commenting on the weather. Keeping it British! 

My puppy has gone to her new home now. It's very odd not having her around. I have officially been converted to a dog person.

The children of Taiwan are beasts! In their cram schools they are the naughtiest things ever. I think possibly because they don't really want to be there but their parents make them go to learn English. My theory on Taiwanese kids, is they are cute until they are five and then they change! But the classes have about 20 kids, all at different levels, so it seems an impossible task to be able to entertain all of them! The Taiwanese teachers just smack the kids...doesn't seem to make much of a difference though. So I have come the conclusion that cram school teachers, are just glorified baby sitters! 

Side point...Congratulations to Becca R and Dan who are getting married today! So exciting! 

Tuneage of the day belongs to The Black Keys - Set You Free. 


i like to laugh at the misspellings and bad translations of things...
shoulda used spell checker...

anyone else think i need new glasses...
but look i pull off the one armed glasses look so well...
that's my crazy cheshire cat smile in case you were wondering...

Monday 19 November 2012

I'm an alien, I'm a legal alien. I'm an English girl in Taiwan...

I have the week off from uni. A half term if you will. So I plan to make Abi Adventures. Today was a spiffing adventure. 

After a wonderful little lay in and leisurely getting up I went into Taizhong city. I needed to go to immigration to extend my visa. Which is way easier than imagined. I always think it's going to be really difficult and that they're gonna ask me lots of questions...but no as long as you have the right papers they just stamp you're passport and that's it. The only questions the chap asked me were why was I dressed so cute and is punk music still popular in the UK. Though I face a small quandary  My visa is extended until Feb 25th and can't be extended any further. But my flight back to the UK is March 1st. Oops! But I have a few options.
Option 1: Just pay a fine at the airport on my way home. It's about £25.
Option 2: Get it all over and done with in a few measly hours and fly to Hong Kong and back. When I land back in Taiwan I will have 90 days, taking me way past March 1st.
Option 3: Go on holiday! I have 3 weeks off of uni from the end of January, so I could easily go somewhere nearby for a week maybe...the Philippines, Korea, Japan, Thailand (all take no longer than 2 hours flight from here.)And again when I land in Taiwan 90 days visitor visa automatically. Hmmm! 
Option 4: Change to a student visa and commit to another 2 semesters. 
Option 3 is my most preferred! So one shall be having a sneaky look at cheap flights! Let's get another stamp in the passport! Hehe.

After all of that the fun Abi Adventure began. I went to a very random place for lunch. It was trying to be Western but not overly succeeding. But it was CLEAN and cheap. The staff were really cute. The girl brought me over my food and then also brought me over some little donut type things, just because. She made a smiley face with ketchup on it! How random but cute! As I was walking out an American chap walked in. It's really funny, there is a real sense of community between all the foreigners here. I guess it's just because we are all outsiders and all face the same difficulties and challenges in Taiwan, so that kinda unites us. It's not weird for stranger foreigners to just chat to each other. 

Then I went shopping. Yay! I got myself totally lost, but I had all the time in the world so I couldn't care less. Also I kinda anticipated I would probably would lose myself. Did I turn left at this 7/11...or was it that one...or that one...! They are everywhere so never try and remember where you came from by them! 

I honestly can't remember the last time I had a day where I had no time restraints, and could just do what I want whenever. I had a wonderful scoot around, amongst the buildings of Taizhong there are some beautiful parks around. And scooting when the sun is setting was gorgeous! Ah if only I could be so carefree more often! Though I have it pretty easy here as it is. I think I've had the most fun when I make my own adventures. It's great as I have no one else to rely on for speaking to shopkeepers, waiting staff, the guys at the gas station and all that jazz. I have to use my efforts of speaking Chinese, and well it's great for realizing how much you do or don't know. You kinda learn your survival Chinese pretty quick...how to order your coffee, how to ask the guy at the gas station to fill up the tank (here you don't pump the gas yourself, they have staff to do that for you...they honestly do have some very useless jobs here. Someone to pump your gas, someone to help you push the shopping trolley onto the escalator...in England we are hardcore and do it ourself!), all those things that you need to know to get by in your daily life. 

Onto the next adventure...

My song of the day is Sting - Englishman in New York. Just walking around the city today made me think of the song, it seems apt. But of course in my version I sing 'I'm an alien, I'm a legal alien. I'm an English girl in Taiwan.'

nice little park and greenery...

random kinda funky art where i had lunch.


funny little things the waitress gave me, so cute!

Sunday 18 November 2012

A splattering of thoughts, makes a puddle full of rain...

I have quite decided Taiwanese kitchens are not designed for cooking. Besides the daily battle of wits to be had with the creatures of the kitchen...they just are not conducive to do anything in. I find it hilarious that in our kitchen we have the rickety stove to the right of the extractor hood, not under it - who would ever think of doing that! (Also it doesn't work anyway!) There are no worktops for chopping or preparing any sort of food...though in all honesty, even if there were I would still probably chop and prepare on the dining room table. I try to keep my time in the kitchen to a minimum! It saddens me...I used to love sitting on the worktop and kicking my feet like a small child back home. And of course cooking in it!! The kitchen back home was a rather sociable place. My housemate here also just seems to use the kitchen as a place to keep all manor of random things. So yes, it is easier to eat out in Taiwan. I refuse to be beaten though. I cook the strangest of meals here...talk about student food. My word...potato smilies, roasted veg and sausages was a step up for my cooking out here. Yes I did say potato smilies...haven't eaten them since I was a kid, but as I walked by them in Carrefour I thought I would give in to those little smiles. Taiwan are missing out, I find it really sad that kids have never baked fairy cakes or anything here. They don't have ovens so can't. I've not seen rice krispies...so it's not even like rice krispie cakes are an option either! :O I totally miss bread. The bread here is an epic fail. So I thought to myself, well I could try and make it in the little roasting box...or hey I could make flat breads on the stove. Genius idea I thought. Check t'internet for recipes. Awesome, I have all those ingredients. Ummmmmm...no scales. Curses! Re-think required! Back home I don't eat bread that often at all. Take the option away from me and I get all twitchy! Nutter!

In England we're always told not to talk with our mouth full. I just thought that was a kinda worldwide shared etiquette. Apparently not! I personally don't wanna see what your regurgitated breakfast, lunch or supper. But it's no big deal for the ol' Taiwanese. I find it really weird. Because every time someone does it, it really irks me. I guess it's because from our small years if we ever did speak with a mouthful of food we would immediately be told off for it. So I always feel like you should be told off for it. Plus I can't always understand Chinese at the best of times...how on earth can I understand it behind all that rice and tofu?! Isn't it stupid, we all eat food, it's something every single person has to do and yet we have different methods and etiquette about it! 

I have avoided the wee matter of the loos here...(no pun intended!) But I think it's time to release the cat amongst the pigeons! (I totally miss all the silly English sayings we use and the ones I make up!) Soooooo...normal toilets in your homes are fine and dandy, bog standard bog. Apart from the not flushing loo roll down, nope they just have a bin for that. I personally don't get it, it does flush down - it's not a plumbing issue like it used to be. So why it's this way, I will never know. BUT outside...ooh it's a scary world. Most places have squat toilets. Needless to say most of us Westerners try and avoid them. Though you do kinda face the fact that's how it is. The odd place will have a real toilet but they are few and far between. Or sometimes there will be one normal toilet and a bunch of squat toilets. So you are there hoping and praying that when you're at the front of the queue, that the next person to come out of a loo is coming out of the normal loo. In my opinion, you wanna have a squat loo that's fine...but my word the smell, someone clean the ruddy room!!!!!! Makes my stomach churn. Kinda wish I had a silly little mask that all these Taiwanese wear, just for the sole purpose of wearing for any time I have to walk past, go near, or even go in one! And you know with female loos there is ALWAYS a queue...so you have to wait there, enduring the smell, knowing the prospect that awaits...a cubicle with a door that probably doesn't lock, the grimiest cubicle you've ever seen, a stench that can strip your nostril hairs right off and misfires from those before you! I find it hilarious that back home, we can be really fussy about the state of the loo and sometimes we'll even refuse to use it. Because we know that there are much nicer ones elsewhere. Well if you refuse to go out and about in Taiwan...I strongly advise just staying at home! 

Moving swiftly on...

So the whole time I've been here (coming up for three months...say what! Half way, oh me, oh my!) it hasn't rained. I think twice there has been a feeble attempt of a drizzle and that's it! Well, these last 2 days that changed. It has rained solidly for 2 whole days. I love it! Yes call me crazy...but remember I am used to living in a country where rain is a daily occurrence pretty much. I love the sunny, hot weather here. But just the sound of the rain, randomly ending up with a huge raindrop landing on your nose...I have strangely missed it in a roundabout way. It's not cold bizarrely though...I mean I still wore a woolly hat, just because, but it's not actually been cold!

Tuneage of the day...mixing it up a bit Lindsey Stirling - Crystallize. She is a really talented violinist, but with a kinda dubstep ish twist. Truly amazing!   


extractor hood nowhere near the stove,random aluminum foil. welcome to the kitchen...

and i consider this a step up in what can be done in a taiwanese kitchen.that's some random food. ohhhhh! 
...

Tuesday 13 November 2012

One's mother tongue...

Lately I have been really understanding how much of a difference it makes learning things from your mother tongue and a different language. I'll have the same books in English and Chinese in front of me. Whilst I understand the words being said in the Chinese...it always has a deeper impression upon me in the English. In English I can read something which can evoke and stir up emotion. In another language I just don't experience that. Yes this could be because I'm not fluent, but I genuinely think that no matter how good you are at another language, you're mother tongue will always have the most impact on you. So I'm really appreciating how difficult it is for people that move to different countries! I have such respect for my friends that have been here for 3/4 years, even though at times they've found it tough! Sometimes I think languages are wonderfully fascinating...then other times I deem them to be a curse, just because it's so frustrating if you're unable to express yourself. It's like being a baby all over again. Wanting to tell you something, but just unable to communicate it out. 

All this being said, I'm finding myself thinking in part English, part Chinese. Sometimes a Chinese word just fits in my English sentence better! The other day I went into the kitchen...now, I always approach the kitchen with caution because I've been chased out by numerous creatures too many times! So now I turn the light on, wait a few seconds for the beasts to scuttle away and then gingerly tip toe in blissfully unaware of their existence  Such a fruitcake, I'm not scared of the bugs, just don't like being caught off guard by them! So the other day I do the usual kitchen entering routine...think to myself 'yes success, no bugs today!'. Then I look down! Eyes popped out of their sockets to see a HUGE army of ants! Naturally I run out singing to myself (yes singing) "很多bugs, 很多 bugs"...I then laugh at myself for speaking Chinglish! But I quite enjoying mixing up the two languages...probably won't go down so well when y'all are having a right nightmare trying to understand me when I'm back! Looking forward to not having a kitchen entering routine...count yourselves lucky if you can waltz into your kitchen without a care ;) 

My tune of the day is The Cranberries - Zombie. I have been reviving the songs of my youth.  

interesting beetle...I'm fine with him there as long as he doesn't move...
when he spread his wings I fled

Saturday 10 November 2012

It's the 10th...

Today is the day...I've hit two little ducks!! Not literally, I'm just 22! I spent my first few moments of being 22 drinking awful beer with some Western friends, playing card games and beatboxing (badly). A pretty good way to start off being 22 I think! I find turning older a really weird thing. Does anyone ever actually feel any different?! 

But an interesting thing with age in East Asia. Some people count their age differently here. (But not everyone, so it's super confusing!) Some count themselves as 1 year old the day they are born. So we say they are 20, they say they are 21. They just have no year zero...! 

Today is also the day my little cousin gets married. So congrats to Reu and Zara. Sorry I'm not there but have a lovely day!

I feel like there are different cycles and stages you go through living in a foreign country. I'm sure it's different for everyone. For me at least, it's gone a little something like this...First it's all very new and exciting. That soon wears off and you find the differences very weird and can't get your head around them. Then everything weird just annoys you. Then you come to the point of accepting the weirdness, embracing it and being ok with it. I guess it becomes normal as you see/experience it everyday. I'm not sure what the next stage is...I'll find out soon enough! 

My tune of the day is Ben Howard - Esmerelda. The man never ceases to amaze me! This song gave me tingles the first time I heard it...and still does now! Amazing!

Tuesday 6 November 2012

The masters of stationery...

I hereby crown Taiwan the king of stationery! I remember having a perusal in Paperchase before I came out here and noticing how a great majority of the stuff was 'Made in Taiwan'. Well yes, they really are the masters of stationery. Stickers galore (I think we all know how much I love stickers!), all sorts of stationery! It's fabulous! And it's so cheap! Importing stuff really does whack on a lot to the price of stuff!! I'm not sure why but I find stationery wonderful! All stationery lovers should unite in Taiwan.

Oh and on the point of 'Made in Taiwan'...I always imagined everything was made in factories. I think that's a fairly reasonable assumption. And yes, a lot of stuff is made in factories. But also a lot of stuff is just made by people in their homes. A lot of people seem to have their front room as a workshoppy kinda place. People just make stuff or sell stuff from their living room. I've seen all manor of things people sell from their living rooms...clothes, cosmetics, car/scooter parts, accessories and the list goes on. They either just sell it from their homes or sell it to other companies/shops. So now when I see something that says 'Made in Taiwan' I shall wonder whether it was made in a factory or just in persons home.

Today I had a real confidence boost regarding my Chinese. (I am by no means good, but compared to 2 months ago, I feel like it's a nice little bit of progress!) First, today I had a study with a Taiwanese lady, she is so lovely and so patient with me. I managed to speak to her in Chinese the whole time I was there with her. I am sure my tones were all over the place but she seemed to understand what I was trying to say! It was difficult at times and I didn't understand absolutely everything she said, but I muddled through nonetheless. Though hopefully in another 4 months I will have improved even more. And secondly, I went to Carrefour again today and well it was very exciting...today they were giving out samples of stuff. Because I'm a foreigner everyone seemed to stop me and ask if I wanted a sample...I reckon you could probably skip lunch and just go to Carrefour and make a lunch of all the samples hehe! Anyhow, as they stop me they spiel something out, in Chinese of course. I was really surprised how much I could understand. At the minute I feel like I can understand more than I can speak. But it's all steps in the right direction. It's just incredible how much your brain can absorb when you are immersed into something. 

I am now ready to truly embrace the roads of Taiwan! Vrooooooom! I bought a new helmet today. I have been using a spare one we had at the house, which is a little naff as it's just like a bicycle helmet...so if I did ever plummet to the ground (I don't plan to, but you never know!) it wouldn't be all that useful. But now I am completely ready for the madness that is Taiwan scooting! Bring it on! Hehe.

I don't have a tune of the day, I bring you a band of the day instead. They are a new discovery to me and I think they are amazing! Think White Stripes meets The Black Keys and out of that equation comes Little Hurricane. Check out their tracks Crocodile Tears and Give 'Em Hell. They are truly epic! Plus the female drummer CC gives me hope that female drummers can be good. (I also just love how she pulls off playing the drums in the cutest tea dresses!!) 


my wonderful assortment of stickers and stationery...all bought for a measly few pounds

bring it on Taiwan...me and my red helmet are ready for ya!

Sunday 4 November 2012

Carrefour has arrived!!!

We have a new supermarket here! It's called Carrefour and they sell real food!! It's massive and has a whole aisle dedicated to Western foods. You even get to see brands you've heard of before! :O And they also sell real brands of alcohol. I can't believe how excited I am about a supermarket. But it's those little things that can make such a big difference! I guess because everything in Asian life is soooo different, to be able to have a few little Western things can somehow keep you sane! 

And what's even more wonderful about this supermarket, is that I have to go past it on an almost daily basis, it's so close and super convenient. Costco is great but it is a good 30 minutes away. So all of my Western friends are very excited! (We celebrated with cake in fact!) 

As I took my puppy out for a walk the other day I realised that the ol' saying of: the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. is true of every nation. In Western countries you usually have affluent areas. You associate with with a certain neighbourhood or village or something. Here, sometimes that is the case, but also you can have wealthy persons house right next to a scummy house. Just the wealthy person has had their house completely torn down and rebuilt with grey stone. (I don't know why for sure, but all wealthy peoples houses are grey. I am wondering if it has something to do with that it looks the same kinda material most of the temples have. Just my surmising though.) The wealthy person just has their home completely surrounded by wall, security gate, cameras and locks. Whilst the humble abode of most Taiwanese is pretty old and at least a few things are patch worked back together. Things break and people make do here, whereas back home most people have probably bought a new whatever before it has chance to break. Or if it breaks we buy a new whatever. I'm very much a make and mend kinda person, so I do find it refreshing being around that kind of mentality. 

But I do find it crazy how excessively elaborate a temple is here, to every last detail. Everything is carved, engraved or something else elaborate. But surrounding said temple are people living in houses that are falling apart and clearly just scraping by. It's just so extreme. I find it fascinating looking at the temples, but the justice behind the showy display whilst the neighbouring people are struggling to get by, that bothers me. But for now I guess that is just the way it is. These kind of problems of justice are bigger than us humans. 

Tune of the day...The Beatles - Eleanor Rigby. Just an awesome tune. And if you disagree that The Beatles are amazing, then you are wrong! Hehe. 


I got on a bit of a picture snapping spree. This was the journey of my walk. Contrasting scenes in the space of a few footsteps...


abandoned bus 142...?
one type of typical house in TW

living off the land. there are plenty of crops growing in most streets

a temple and surrounding it typical housing in TW. a tad extreme.

every corner of a temple is detailed eleaborately...

the grey stone used for temples...

right opposite the temple is this house...

and just down the way, this rich persons house.

Saturday 3 November 2012

Betel nut and Beer...

Chewing betel nut here, is to us like smoking is. It's common practice by many, and you know it's bad for you, but once addicted it's a habit that's hard to break. A lot of Taiwanese chew betel nut. Become addicted to it. Rot and turn their teeth black. Constantly have to spit from having far to much saliva slurring around in their cancerous mouths. Give themselves throat cancer. Filthy habit!

But Taiwan isn't really helping it's citizens kick the habit. No that would be preposterous! No instead they have these, what I can only really describe as a service station. Just a little shop on the main highways at various places. At these stores they sell betel nut, fags and other bits and bobs. All sounds pretty harmless, yes? Well to entice people to stop at these shops, they only employ young, 'attractive' girls and get them to wear the skimpiest of outfits and totally tart themselves up. The front of the store is a big window, so the girls are basically selling themselves. We spoke to one of these girls recently (I wasn't buying betel nut, just to clarify!) She was only 19! She said she studied to be a beautician but didn't know what she wanted to do, so was working this as a job until she figured it out. It was hard to take her seriously as she stood before us in her underwear with a short, little lace skirt on! But what I found even more appalling, was that in the store, they have a shrine to a  Buddhist deity. They're burning incense to appease the spirits. What?! Is that not a little hypocritical?! Also, this is right on the main road, not like you have to go to some seedy area, it's just right before your eyes...what kinda message is that giving little kids? 

There are soooo many reasons why this enrages me, but I'll save that little rant for another day!

On a less serious note, my puppy is so clever...but naughty. She has been moved to the third floor of the house. So she now has her own room, it's a long story. We put a make shift puppy guard at the stairs so she couldn't escape. Except she did escape! She has always refused to walk up/down steps before. But she somehow jumped over the guard, ran down the steps and knocked at my bedroom door. Soooo clever...but naughty. They do say pets are like their owners. Does that make me clever but naughty?! Hehe.

And onto an even better topic...BEER! Last night, my favourite Western friends took me to a bar! Bar type place, hard to describe it. Anyway, it was this German themed restaurant/beer house. And the beer was gooooooood! I forget how quintessential beer or a good ale is to my British life. (Not that I'm an alcoholic, but who can deny that on a sunny day, you don't want to go to a beer garden?! It's sunny here a lot and my nearest good beer place is this one...30 minutes away!) The beer comes in a 1000cc (1.75 pint) glass tankard...two hands were required to pick it up! :) The staff had the most wicked uniform ever...proper lederhosen. The cutest black shorts with embroidered braces...I'm not gonna lie, I was jealous and wanted the outfit for myself! Hehe, I could try and pull it off :P Oh and they also wore a cute hat with a feather! Every so often we would forget we were in Taiwan, until a Taiwanese drunk girl would randomly scream. Asians, really cannot hold their booze like Westerners. But it's funny watching them try to be Western. It's just always great to do slightly Western things with a twist! Top night!

A song I am absolutely in love with at the moment is Lotte Kestner - Falling Snow. Such a beautiful voice! Check her out!


check out the lederhosen...i want them! i want them!

hello 1000cc dunkel beer...

Thursday 1 November 2012

兩個月

2 months down! I still have days where I hate it here and days where I love it. But I'm pretty sure that's true of wherever we are, and it's not actually the place, it's the people around you and your accomplishments that make the days. The days I hate it here, tend to be the days where I'm particularly stared at! The other day there was this guy staring at me, he covered his mouth and whispered to his friends something as he stared. I know I'm technically an alien, but I'm an English alien...not an outer space alien. I do know that when you do that, you're talking about what you're staring at...me! Seriously, just be a little more coy!

I find the Chinese language a really blunt one. In English you have a choice as to whether you want to say something politely or bluntly. And you're only ever really blunt with your dearest, who you know well enough to be able to that without them taking too much offence. But in Chinese, it all seems very blunt to me. So a lot of the time to me things come over as rude in Chinese, but I think that's just the nature of the language. There is no other way of saying it! 

The electricity worries me. Every so often I'll hear a random crack, fizzle or hissing from the plug sockets. I fear it shall all explode one day. 

There is a resident lizard living in the kitchen. I'm all fine with lizards outside, but I'm not so keen on them being in the kitchen! If you keep your place clean you don't to get too many bugs though! You can't leave your dishes to wash them later...because later they will be covered in ants and all manor of strange bugs. (Beth and Vic, I'm gonna be a whizz at doing dishes IMMEDIATELY when I get back!)The Taiwanese don't seem to fussed about sharing their homes and restaurants with bugs though. I guess we become complacent when we see the same things every day. I however am not so keen on sharing with bugs!

It's still pretty hot here. Every few days it gets cooler and a tad windy. But is only really cold when you're riding the scooter on a windy evening! 

I learnt something kinda interesting the other day. A lot of the time you see little kids walking around with no shoes on outside. But it's not because the parents can't afford shoes or anything like that. It's intentional. We met a wealthy chap and his kids were running around with no shoes. The Taiwanese do this to kinda build up the kids immunity. I see the logic, but I also foresee tetanus along with that! In the UK we can often be a little too cleanliness minded, kill all the germs. But some bacteria IS good for you. I don't think I would force kids to go around with no shoes. Play in the garden with no shoes yeah, but walk around everywhere with no shoes...especially in Taiwan, where a rat will randomly scuttle out of nowhere! I certainly wouldn't want to walk around bare foot but it was interesting to hear out the Taiwan logic on the matter. (Taiwan isn't ready for Abi logic hehe!)

2 months has gone pretty quick and a lot has happened in 2 months. Crazy!


Tuneage of the day: Daughter - Landfill.

interesting little den like thing on my walk to uni...

my baby...it's gonna be so weird when she goes to live with my friend
 at the end of the month! (at least  I can still go over to play.)