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An Account of a Year Living in Taiwan ROC
Tuesday, July 19, 2005
Formosan Exile
Chapter 48
Monday, February 28, 94
Peace Memorial Day passed by uneventfully. Who Wants to Go Out in the Rain Anyway?
Tuesday March 01, 94
All of a Sudden My Year is Almost Over
Today is momentous decision day. We have decided to come home a bit early. Our flight will be March 30. It would not have been any easier to think about leaving at the last minute—at the end of April. Our year (all eleven months of it) has been wonderful. I think, out of all the places I have lived, I would choose Taipei as my favourite. Oh sure, there’s plenty wrong with things here. We spend half the year complaining about the heat, and the other half complaining about the cold. October and April are the best months—or you might say the only good ones. The air quality would gag a moose sometimes, and the crowds and the noise are a bit grim. Chinese people in restaurants (large family groups) have a boisterous good time, and we have sometimes finished our meals with our ears ringing. I have not made as much progress with my Chinese as I would have liked. Mandarin is a beautiful language. It is musical to listen to, and the expressions are quite poetic. I can give the impression that I understand it, and I can get meals and transportation with very few problems. I can at least distinguish individual words when I hear conversations around me, and once in a while actually make an intelligent remark.
We need to come home early because of my dad’s recent illness. The situation could become labour-intensive.
Teaching English in Taiwan is hard “work”. I’ve had a wonderful year, despite the hardships.
Hardship and poverty. That’s the lot of an English teacher—hardship and poverty
Wednesday, March 02, 94
More Complaining about the Weather
The rain and cold is getting worse, not better. Get a load of this.
Taipei ( 03/02 16:30 )
Weather
Temp(oC)
POP
03/02 20~03/03 08
14~15
100%
03/03 08~03/03 20
9~14
100%
03/03 20~03/04 08
7~9
80%
It’s cold and damp and windy and nothing is heated and you can’t get warm to save your life. We should go to a hot pot restaurant, because there is a gas ring in the middle of the table. It is all-you-can-eat meats, fish, seafood, and vegetables. The bonus is that you can get warmed up during dinner. The food is cooked in a great pot in the middle of the table, and the pot is divided into two. On one side there is broth (very tasty) to boil your choice in. The other side (not for the faint of heart) is boiling pig’s blood, with hot peppers that could peel paint. It’s as much a social occasion as a meal to go to a hot pot establishment.
Thursday, March 03, 94
Cancellations
My only gripe with my employer, or at least the main one, is classes getting cancelled. Some of my one-on-one classes are with very senior people, and their workloads often require last-minute cancellations. For some reason, my company puts up with that—and expects the teachers to do so as well. My workload is getting pretty slack, because I cannot be assigned any new courses—they are three months long usually—and my current classes are ending one-one-by-one.
Friday, March 04, 94
Better Times, More Nonsense from the Mainlanders
The rain has finally stopped! To make the day even better, I have a new student for the next month. Her name is Jill, and she is a high school kid preparing for an English interview for university entrance next year.
Now we just have the cold to contend with. I go all day without taking my jacket off.
The big news story today, and for the next little while is the mainlanders’ new anti-secession law. It’s not as grim as it sounds:
On Friday the government announced a 12.6 percent increase in military spending -- its fourth double-digit increase in five years as it tries to back up threats to attack Taiwan.
It said it plans to spend 247.7 billion yuan (US$30 billion) on its military this year, though analysts say China's true spending is as much as several times the reported figure.
Wen said military modernization was key to "safeguarding national security and reunification" -- a reference to Taiwan.
There is no doubting the outcome of an attack. Some people think it would be over in hours. Others think it’s just intimidation. In any case, the issue is always in the background here, but people just go about their lives anyway. What else can they do?
Saturday, March 05, 94
Chinese Bangers
This was my usual busy day. I did three hours with the Kunyang boys this morning, and three and one half hours at Jeng lao-ban’s house. Jeng tai-tai laid on the usual wonderful lunch—vegetable snow peas with mushrooms, grilled pork, and rice sausages. I’ve never had a sausage made from rice before, but there is a first time for everything.
There was an earthquake last night—five in fact, and a final one mid-morning Sunday just for good measure—not so bad (nobody hurt and no damage) but enough for the noise and shaking to wake us up. The worst one was a magnitude 3 in Taipei City. An earthquake sounds a bit like a train coming as it builds, and the fear lies in wondering if it will get any worse. Everything in the house was shaking. Everything outside was groaning or mumbling—rather like my students whenever I say “Let’s do some grammar now”. The memory of the big (9-21) earthquake, in which 2000 people died, is still very fresh in people’s memories.
Sunday, March 06, 94
Dinner Out
We had dinner in Muzha with Chrissy last night—she knows all the good places to go. We walked there- about 2 km down Wang Fang Lu (past the golden Buddha on the hillside, and then along the riverbank. The weather reminded me of home—the cool air and the way Lao-puo was dressed (for bitter cold). The road takes us along the riverside, and we walked home on the other bank. Muzah is one of my favourite areas in Taipei. Tomorrow I must go to the doctor. There is even a dental section in Wang Fang Hospital, because Taiwan National Health insures teeth. I’ve never quite seen the point of having only doctors and hospitals covered by Canadian plans, with many people left to their own resources for teeth, medications, and glasses.
Chapter 48
Monday, February 28, 94
Peace Memorial Day passed by uneventfully. Who Wants to Go Out in the Rain Anyway?
Tuesday March 01, 94
All of a Sudden My Year is Almost Over
Today is momentous decision day. We have decided to come home a bit early. Our flight will be March 30. It would not have been any easier to think about leaving at the last minute—at the end of April. Our year (all eleven months of it) has been wonderful. I think, out of all the places I have lived, I would choose Taipei as my favourite. Oh sure, there’s plenty wrong with things here. We spend half the year complaining about the heat, and the other half complaining about the cold. October and April are the best months—or you might say the only good ones. The air quality would gag a moose sometimes, and the crowds and the noise are a bit grim. Chinese people in restaurants (large family groups) have a boisterous good time, and we have sometimes finished our meals with our ears ringing. I have not made as much progress with my Chinese as I would have liked. Mandarin is a beautiful language. It is musical to listen to, and the expressions are quite poetic. I can give the impression that I understand it, and I can get meals and transportation with very few problems. I can at least distinguish individual words when I hear conversations around me, and once in a while actually make an intelligent remark.
We need to come home early because of my dad’s recent illness. The situation could become labour-intensive.
Teaching English in Taiwan is hard “work”. I’ve had a wonderful year, despite the hardships.
Hardship and poverty. That’s the lot of an English teacher—hardship and poverty
Wednesday, March 02, 94
More Complaining about the Weather
The rain and cold is getting worse, not better. Get a load of this.
Taipei ( 03/02 16:30 )
Weather
Temp(oC)
POP
03/02 20~03/03 08
14~15
100%
03/03 08~03/03 20
9~14
100%
03/03 20~03/04 08
7~9
80%
It’s cold and damp and windy and nothing is heated and you can’t get warm to save your life. We should go to a hot pot restaurant, because there is a gas ring in the middle of the table. It is all-you-can-eat meats, fish, seafood, and vegetables. The bonus is that you can get warmed up during dinner. The food is cooked in a great pot in the middle of the table, and the pot is divided into two. On one side there is broth (very tasty) to boil your choice in. The other side (not for the faint of heart) is boiling pig’s blood, with hot peppers that could peel paint. It’s as much a social occasion as a meal to go to a hot pot establishment.
Thursday, March 03, 94
Cancellations
My only gripe with my employer, or at least the main one, is classes getting cancelled. Some of my one-on-one classes are with very senior people, and their workloads often require last-minute cancellations. For some reason, my company puts up with that—and expects the teachers to do so as well. My workload is getting pretty slack, because I cannot be assigned any new courses—they are three months long usually—and my current classes are ending one-one-by-one.
Friday, March 04, 94
Better Times, More Nonsense from the Mainlanders
The rain has finally stopped! To make the day even better, I have a new student for the next month. Her name is Jill, and she is a high school kid preparing for an English interview for university entrance next year.
Now we just have the cold to contend with. I go all day without taking my jacket off.
The big news story today, and for the next little while is the mainlanders’ new anti-secession law. It’s not as grim as it sounds:
On Friday the government announced a 12.6 percent increase in military spending -- its fourth double-digit increase in five years as it tries to back up threats to attack Taiwan.
It said it plans to spend 247.7 billion yuan (US$30 billion) on its military this year, though analysts say China's true spending is as much as several times the reported figure.
Wen said military modernization was key to "safeguarding national security and reunification" -- a reference to Taiwan.
There is no doubting the outcome of an attack. Some people think it would be over in hours. Others think it’s just intimidation. In any case, the issue is always in the background here, but people just go about their lives anyway. What else can they do?
Saturday, March 05, 94
Chinese Bangers
This was my usual busy day. I did three hours with the Kunyang boys this morning, and three and one half hours at Jeng lao-ban’s house. Jeng tai-tai laid on the usual wonderful lunch—vegetable snow peas with mushrooms, grilled pork, and rice sausages. I’ve never had a sausage made from rice before, but there is a first time for everything.
There was an earthquake last night—five in fact, and a final one mid-morning Sunday just for good measure—not so bad (nobody hurt and no damage) but enough for the noise and shaking to wake us up. The worst one was a magnitude 3 in Taipei City. An earthquake sounds a bit like a train coming as it builds, and the fear lies in wondering if it will get any worse. Everything in the house was shaking. Everything outside was groaning or mumbling—rather like my students whenever I say “Let’s do some grammar now”. The memory of the big (9-21) earthquake, in which 2000 people died, is still very fresh in people’s memories.
Sunday, March 06, 94
Dinner Out
We had dinner in Muzha with Chrissy last night—she knows all the good places to go. We walked there- about 2 km down Wang Fang Lu (past the golden Buddha on the hillside, and then along the riverbank. The weather reminded me of home—the cool air and the way Lao-puo was dressed (for bitter cold). The road takes us along the riverside, and we walked home on the other bank. Muzah is one of my favourite areas in Taipei. Tomorrow I must go to the doctor. There is even a dental section in Wang Fang Hospital, because Taiwan National Health insures teeth. I’ve never quite seen the point of having only doctors and hospitals covered by Canadian plans, with many people left to their own resources for teeth, medications, and glasses.
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