Super-typhoon

This weekend we had a 'super-typhoon' according to the local news. I have only experienced one typhoon so far in Taiwan and I think it was a weak one. This one however, was a big one.

Taipei is located in a valley between mountains so usually doesn't get hit as hard as other cities in Taiwan. Friday night a typhoon day was declared. We crazy foreigners went out for dinner and drinks. The weather wasn't too bad yet, just hard rain but not windy. Saturday was a different story. It was also declared a typhoon day and most stores were closed. The weather was much worse. The rain was constantly hard and the wind was almost unbarable. A few brave souls ventured out to purchase food but mostly the streets were empty. We went down the street to pizza hut to get some dinner and that was an adventure itself. We did have one casualty however, my umbrella was killed. I laid her to rest in the apartment's communal garbage can.

Sunday was also declared a typhoon day but the weather was a little better. The wind had stopped but the rain did not. It started raining Friday and literally kept raining all weekend. I've never seen so much rain in my life. And it's hard rain too, not just a light drizzle. The most unfortunate thing was the typhoon came on a weekend so I won't miss any work.

These trees were uprooted just down the street from my place. On Saturday we saw a car with some dents where the trees I'm assuming fell on the car. The owner moved the car before I could get a picture.

As you can see trees were not the only things to be tossed around by the wind.

Pretty much any business with large windows tapes them up before the typhoon arrives.

Yours truly with my back up umbrella braving the 'super-typhoon' to get my coffee. Obviously enjoying every minute of it.

I think I need a new umbrella.

New girlfriend

I have a new girlfriend now and I thought I'd tell you a bit about her. Her name is Jessica. She's beautiful with a great curvy body. When I'm with her men stare. She's laid back and enjoys long trips around the island. I've only been with her for about a month but I love our time together. Here are a few pictures for you.

I took these pictures right outside my apartment and as I did I had a couple of locals staring and asking me questions. Of course I didn't understand. This bike is an anomoly, there are very few cruisers here. Most bikes are much smaller and more sporty. The downside to a big heavy bike like this is manuevering is a bit tougher. Here everyone on scooters and bikes weaves through traffic and drives between lanes. It's harder for me to do that but I'll gladly make that sacrifice.

She's a 1995 Kymco Zing 150cc. Riding up steep hills can be a little tough on the engine especially with a passenger. For a 13 year old bike she runs great and is in pretty good condition. I've only been on her a few times and only on weekends. Riding in Taipei is still a little scary to me and it's probably going to take me a while to get used to.

Impressions after 7 months

This post was supposed to be titled impressions after 6 months but for obvious reasons I changed it.

Things are going quite well and I've settled into a nice little life here. I've been trying to see as much as I can around Taipei and Taiwan. I went to Alishan mountain a few months ago and that was awesome. The scenery was amazing. A few weeks ago I went to Leofoo Amusement park and that was cool too. Not quite on par with Canada's Wonderland or other North American parks but it was fun. In between there were visits to rivers for BBQs and a mountain much closer to Taipei called Ya Ming mountain. There was a concert at a beach about 2 hours from Taipei called Fulong beach. The music was horrible but the beach itself was fun.

I am so far loving my time in Taiwan. The people seem very nice to me and patient with my lack of Chinese. A lot of them like talking to me in English so they can practice their English. Of course when I'm trying to practice my Chinese it can sometimes be frustrating but I find it enjoyable too. I'm enjoying the cheap food and variety of eating establishments. I hesitate to use the word restaurant because many eating establishments are nothing more than a kitchen or BBQ set up outside. Which brings me to the night markets. I find the food can be quite enjoyable as long as you don't mind standing or walking and eating. I've gotten used to that. However many places do not serve cold drinks and most do not serve alcohol. There are many times where I have had to walk out of a restaurant to purchase a drink at 7-11 or another convenience store and bring it into the restaurant. And most restaurants are nothing more than tables and stools. My favourite kind of restaurant is called a Taiwanese or quick fry restaurant. It is as it sounds. Just wooden tables and stools, most times plastic. The food is quick and tasty and there is a variety of dishes. There are bottles of beer in a fridge and you just keep picking up and drinking bottles until you are finished. At the end they tally up your empty bottles and add it to your food bill.

I brought a friend of mine from Toronto, Omar, to my favourite Taiwanese restaurant a couple of months ago and a funny thing happened. First off I'm sure it was the first time two foreigners went there without a local. We were treated like celebrities. After Omar left I went back with Kelsie and the owner had the entire menu translated into English. I can now order whatever I want all by myself. We're changing Taiwan for the better! And on that note I've gotten used to the fact I can read almost nothing when it comes to food or anything else I want to buy in a store. I rely heavily on hand gestures and body language.

I've also gotten used to my school and it's so called English teaching. We're not teaching English at all. The kids just learn to parrot everything we say. They don't learn how to speak English, they learn how to repeat English. The positive thing is I no longer worry about what to teach day to day, there's no point.

And now on to things that piss me off about Taiwan. I've already done a post about fashion so there's no need to repeat myself. One thing that really steams my whistle is the total lack of courtesy, politeness or respect for others the Taiwanese have. They don't care if they walk into you or cut in front of you in line or push you out of the way to get on the bus. I've had old ladies try to muscle me out of the way on the bus and walk into me on the street. I'm getting used to it but I still don't like it. There just seems to be a lack of civility in the way they interact with each other. And the best part is they avoid confrontation like the plague. So if they do something like bump into you and you even look at them angrily they will profusely apologyze. But only because they are deathly afraid of furthering the confrontation.

The other thing that really pisses me off is the total lack of service at restaurants and bars. Orders are often incorrect, late or forgotten altogether. Entrees never arrive together so you're either forced to start before the other person gets their's or you have to wait while your food gets cold. And it's the same with drinks. Drinks are often made incorrectly and usually take forever to come. I guess it's the lack of tips. Funny how someone's salary isn't enough to motivate them to do a good job, they need something on top for them to give you adequate service.

Plans are to visit other countries in the near future, including Thailand, Japan and Hong Kong. Also to tour around Taiwan a bit more and see the south part. I guess that's about it for now. Keep on the lookout for more updates.

Typhoon day

So today is my first Typhoon day. Taipei County and Taipei City both declared today to be a Typhoon day. That means it's a holiday for those areas.

Yesterday we went to the supermarket to stock up for the next day spent in the apartment. It was like one of those scenes from a movie about the impending apocalypse. The shelves weren't totally empty but they were definitely sparse. The lines at the checkout were very long also. We of course stocked up on the essentials: tonic water, chips, beer...oh and water of course. We also went to the video store and got a couple of movies. All the while it was pouring rain with gale force winds.

Typhoon day: today was the actual typhoon. I ventured out in the typhoon for more essentials: coffee and breakfast. Plus I had to go out in my first typhoon. Just about everything in my neighbourhood was closed, except for a couple of breakfast places, a coffee shop, convenience stores, and of course the internet cafes. The weather was great, more pouring rain and driving winds. It almost tore my umbrella to shreds but I survived.

The unfortunate part about all this is I only get paid for four hours of work when normally I work seven hours on Mondays. Ah well I'm getting paid for staying at home and watching movies all day.

I have now experienced my first typhoon. One more notch on the belt of Taiwanese experiences.

Artsy Fartsy pictures

Here is my attempt at being artistic, enjoy.

Alishan national park

Random tree

Some cool fountain looking thingy in another park

Lover's bridge in Danshui again

Fashion (continued)

Just wanted to mention something I forgot in my post about fashion. Roots is everywhere. Yes that Roots, as in the Canadian clothing store. I literally don't go a single day in Taiwan without seeing someone wearing something from Roots. I think it might be more popular here than in Canada.

I've actually seen two people with Maple Leaf sweat shirts on. They don't seem to sell any other team stuff but the Leafs, makes sense I guess, they are the only team that matters. Ahh there's that Toronto arrogance I miss so much...not really but it's just a little taste of home.

Anyway that's it for now.

PICTURES!!!

I have a lot more pics up on my facebook but here are a few.

Havin a little too much fun at the zoo.

Taiwan has the coolest bridges. This is Lover's Bridge in a tourist area on the ocean called Danshui.

I have developed this weird fascination with Taipei 101, I can't stop taking pictures of it.

This is Alishan mountain at sunrise.