My Taiwan Adventure

There didn't seem to be much point in posting yesterday as it passed in a kind of tired daze. The dermatologist was only in his office on Friday morning while I was busy proctoring exams at school. The soonest I can see him is tomorrow (Sunday) and I'll be on his doorstep early in the morning, though most of the hives are fading beyond recognition. It was suggested to me today a couple of times that it might be an allergic reaction to the WATER here. *raising her eyebrows*

I've been very careful to not drink tap water and have bought more than my fair share of bottled stuff. The school has a little store that sells it for only 10NT. I fill the bottle throughout the day from the fountains here at school, but am told that is safe water to drink. Last night though, I saw my landlord at the hostel filling the water cooler with tap water, and I noticed that it doesn't have time to boil if the hostel is full - because there are 16+ people and only 10 liters of water so the little machine is overworked. I made a note to only drink tea using the boiling side of the machine from now on.

Only one week more and I'll be happily ensconsed in my new living quarters. YAY! A place to settle down where I'm not forced to interact with anybody I don't choose to know. Hostellers are generally a nice sort but I find that I am reluctant to make friends with people who are just passing through. Is that wrong of me? I simply don't find myself wanting to spend a great deal of time at the hostel. Most of the days I spend at school and then in the evenings I write, tour about town for a bite to eat and stay at the internet cafe until I'm tired and head back to sleep. It doesn't make for a great quality of life, but I'm getting by fine for now.

Friday I was quite exhausted. Anti-histamines are a sort of sedative in addition to clearing up hives they make me wool-headed and sleepy. Luckily Thursday & Friday were exam days so I didn't have to be on top of my game dealing with students. Friday afternoon though I was so tired I immediately went back to the hostel to sleep after work and meeting up with an associate who is trying to help with my paperwork. I slept from 1 to 5 pm and then from 10pm to 10 am. My body is obviously working over-time trying to heal itself. I've come down with a head-cold and am taking the Echinlin that I brought from Calgary to keep that in-check. I am sad because I can not get up the energy to go hiking this weekend but I imagine because I live here now there will be other opportunities to do so. Of course that is all hinging on getting paperwork processed by the end of the month!

Today I managed to get to the SDA hospital for church service and the potluck. I was almost clear-headed for half an hour before the sleepiness struck me again. After potluck I was heading back to the hostel to sleep some more when I hit the protest parade. I'm sure it's international news and there I was, with my camera in-hand. So I took pictures, and thanks to the school's CD drive in the computer I've brought them to you.

So much of the march was impressive to me. I was amazed again by the sheer mass of people so peacefully but enthusiastically marching down the street. They could have easily overwhelmed any attempts at stopping them, yet they obeyed the traffic police who would stop them at the intersections for the traffic. Additionally they marched only about 6-10 across... only taking up half the street so cars and scooters could continue on their way. I think back to the only protests I've seen in Canada which consisted of a handful of people (maybe 100 or so) outside the Harry Hays building in Calgary and I have to laugh. I have no benchmark to draw a comparison. The closest thing I think Calgary may have seen recently is the "red mile" at last year's hockey playoffs. But that was much less controlled than this event. I dare say the Taiwanese people have a better handle on public protests than Calgarians.

So much of my life I wanted to be on the front lines of happening events and now it is a reality. It makes me marvel at the way the world works. While I am not being a reporter in the truest sense of the word, I am experiencing things that I thought I would never see. Taiwan is a nation in the midst of a defining event. I'm awed to be here right now. Teaching has opened doors to my adventure in life. I pray that I continue to remain safely participating in a part of history.

My sister once shared with me a Toastmaster's tape where a story was told and a question asked. I have taken it to heart in some ways. The story, as I remember it, was of a hundred year old person telling stories of their life experiences at their birthday. And the question was asked "what stories would you like to tell at your 100th birthday party?" It impressed me that stories of how much I WISHED I had done in life would not make much of a birthday tale. I am blessed so much that I am able to change that today. To quote the speaker (again as I remember it) "life is not for worrying, working and whining. It is for living, loving and laughing."

I am reminded today that while I am alone in Taipei I am not alone in spirit. Thank you all for your kind e-mails and commentary. Know that I do appreciate even the shortest of notes as it keeps me remembering how greatful I should be. I'll try not to whine so much about not hearing from you and getting accolades for my attempts at staying in touch. I know that being here and being reasonably healthy and not in the midst of great troubles should be enough. I hope you enjoy the following photos.

With great affection.
Greatfully,
T. Destiny in Taipei, Taiwan

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