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An Account of a Year Living in Taiwan ROC
Tuesday, July 19, 2005
Formosan Exile
Chapter 49
Monday, March 07, 94
Medical System in Taiwan
If you ever go into a hospital in Taipei, you will get the impression that nearly everyone in the city is either sick or injured. The crowds are incredible! Rush-hour numbers of wheelchairs, jammed waiting areas with TVBS blaring out the latest catastrophe or skullduggery, IV poles and catheter bags by the dozen, here and there some poor guy stitched up like a football, or with a leg in a cast. Everyone is accompanied by one or more family members, and there is a loud buzz of people talking. How can all these people get to see a doctor in one day? Somehow, everyone does.
My dentist had noticed a small cyst in my mouth, and suggested I see an oral surgeon to get rid of it. I wrote, “I would like to see an oral surgeon” (我想要看一位口頭外科醫生, 請), in fluent Chinese, and set off for Wang Fang Hospital. Yeah right. The Chinese way of saying “illiterate” is “word blind” and that is precisely what I am without my handy-dandy babelfish translator. I saw an intern within an hour, and an oral surgeon three days later. The doctor’s English was difficult to understand, but he said I must have bitten myself a year or so ago (gnashing my teeth at work, no doubt), and that the cyst was over an artery and thus would bleed like be damned if he cut into it. He wanted to book me for surgery, under a general anesthetic, just to get rid of a tiny benign cyst! I was reading that Canadians are now going for “medical tourism”—coming overseas for surgery that has a months-or-years waiting list at home. Even if you don’t have Taiwan National Health Insurance, and have to pay the whole shot yourself, it’s remarkably inexpensive—and Canadian medicare will likely cover it.
Tuesday, March 08, 94
Some Good Karma Earned Today
I have learned many useful things, besides the value of patience and silence, from living in a very traditional Chinese society. Taipei seems to be very international and cosmopolitan, but that is just on the surface. One thing I learned is that, if you live long enough, many strange things will happen that you never would have expected to experience.
Today, for example, a fair maiden swooned in my arms, just like in a fairy tale. I was going down the escalator at Wang Fang Community MRT station, two steps behind a woman who suddenly sat down on the stairs. She sort of plopped down, as if she had lost her strength. I came down beside her and asked “xiaojie hao bu hao?” (woman good no good?) I was not discussing sexual orientation, that is actually the correct Chinese for “are you OK lady?” She assured me that she was, and I helped her to her feet. I started to walk up to where I was standing before, and all of sudden she fell back. I grabbed her, because she really would have hurt herself if she hit her head on the sharp edge of the escalator steps. I was off balance, and we both fell, with her on top of me. I did not get hurt because my backpack cushioned me, but we arrived at the bottom of the escalator in a tangle of arms and legs. The station staff ran up and looked after her, and thanked me profusely—at least I think that’s what they were saying. I have no idea what her problem was, maybe a petit mal seizure or something.
Wednesday, March 09, 94
“My” Construction Company, Nice Weather for a Change
I enjoyed my construction company class, more than any other. Their English is good enough for complex idioms, and even some fairly complicated jokes. It’s really nice to see their confidence increasing as the months go by.
It has sunshine-and-shirtsleeves for three days or so now. Such a refreshing change from the misery of last week! It is quite green and wooded around our digs, and every day is great-to-be-alive kind of experience. Lunch was good today—even though the hot-and-sour soup had cuttlefish and pork liver in it.
I hope we will be able to go to Keelung at least once more, before we have to go home.
Thursday, March 10, 94
Music to My Ears, Changes in Just Three Years
I prepared a list of discussion topics for my advanced conversation classes. One of them, a bright woman in her late twenties, asked me, “What’s feminism?” As tempted as I was to say “nothing with which you need concern yourself—just irrelevant western propaganda”, I did not do so.
I was astonished the other day, when I realized that we have been coming to Taiwan now for nearly four years—and that Lao-puo has lived here for almost three years of that time. We both have noticed some changes in Taipei—and not changes for the better. For example, it is very sad, with the popularity of western food, to see that more and more Chinese people are overweight. It is particularly sad to see so many fat little children. Despite the fact that people have such beautiful black hair, many women dye their hair to blonde or red or something. Some morons of either gender affect an outdated punk look, with purple hair and nose rings. (by the way, I have seen more than one albino over here—it must be wickedness for the poor souls in the strong sun. We have noticed that more children are ill mannered—usually the fat ones because they are spoiled. They run ahead of the adults and hog the seats on the train—one kid even elbowed me out of the road and took the second-to-last seat. He put his hand on the empty seat beside him, to save it for someone. “To hell with you, buster,” I said to myself as I sat on his hand. Generally speaking, our complaints are minor and it is very comfortable to be here.
Friday, March 11, 94
Canadian Society
Tonight was the monthly social of the Canadian Society, at the Brass Monkey as usual. I don’t know if I mentioned it before, but some months ago Lao-puo won bottle draw. As the first winner she had her choice of three offerings, but she spurned the Crown Royal in favour of some poodle-piss white wine. This is the nearest will ever have, or will, come to divorce, I think. We both had to work until 8:30, and the place was jammed when we got there. The transportation was really good—the school is two blocks from Guting MRT Station, and it was just a matter of taking a train (choice of two) to Zhong Shan Station, bailing, and getting a bus across Nanjing Dong Lu to Fuxing Bei Lu, followed by a half-block walk. It is so easy to get around without a car in Taipei.
Saturday, March 12, 94
Getting Rained On, and Working, a Beautiful Gift
Today was a cold and blustery day (again), and I did nothing but work. It makes for a long day, to work 9-12 (no break) with the Kunyang boys, and then 3.5 hours in Neihu with Lao-ban, his daughter, and the neighbour little girl. It was too windy for my umbrella to work, and it was raining heavily. I caught a chill that turned into bronchitis. Probably we get lung infections so easily because of the air pollution.
Jeng Lao-ban gave me a lovely gift, a big bottle of Chinese rice wine. It’s in an earthenware crock, called a “hulu”. Evidently a hulu is an auspicious symbol, and miniatures can be found on many jade ornaments.
Lao-puo and I had a nice dinner, but was still full from lunch. I was too tired from work to do very much of anything. That is precisely the reason why I prefer to teach only adults—kids (and the need to be constantly animated) wear me out.
Sunday, March 13, 94
Seafood Feasting at the Wine Party
Lao-puo’s employer (and mine part time) had a teacher appreciation event in a local restaurant. They must really appreciate us, judging from the spread that was laid on. We had whole fish (done my favourite way), pickled octopus, raw tuna with wasabi, two different crab dishes, roll-ups with lobster and shrimp, and three kinds of seafood soup. I don’t think that Chinese food that good is available in Canada—at any price. For some reason it was called a wine party even though there was no “wining” except from me when I discovered the event was to be as dry as a bone. Chinese people don’t seem to drink very often—usually just at celebrations.
Chapter 49
Monday, March 07, 94
Medical System in Taiwan
If you ever go into a hospital in Taipei, you will get the impression that nearly everyone in the city is either sick or injured. The crowds are incredible! Rush-hour numbers of wheelchairs, jammed waiting areas with TVBS blaring out the latest catastrophe or skullduggery, IV poles and catheter bags by the dozen, here and there some poor guy stitched up like a football, or with a leg in a cast. Everyone is accompanied by one or more family members, and there is a loud buzz of people talking. How can all these people get to see a doctor in one day? Somehow, everyone does.
My dentist had noticed a small cyst in my mouth, and suggested I see an oral surgeon to get rid of it. I wrote, “I would like to see an oral surgeon” (我想要看一位口頭外科醫生, 請), in fluent Chinese, and set off for Wang Fang Hospital. Yeah right. The Chinese way of saying “illiterate” is “word blind” and that is precisely what I am without my handy-dandy babelfish translator. I saw an intern within an hour, and an oral surgeon three days later. The doctor’s English was difficult to understand, but he said I must have bitten myself a year or so ago (gnashing my teeth at work, no doubt), and that the cyst was over an artery and thus would bleed like be damned if he cut into it. He wanted to book me for surgery, under a general anesthetic, just to get rid of a tiny benign cyst! I was reading that Canadians are now going for “medical tourism”—coming overseas for surgery that has a months-or-years waiting list at home. Even if you don’t have Taiwan National Health Insurance, and have to pay the whole shot yourself, it’s remarkably inexpensive—and Canadian medicare will likely cover it.
Tuesday, March 08, 94
Some Good Karma Earned Today
I have learned many useful things, besides the value of patience and silence, from living in a very traditional Chinese society. Taipei seems to be very international and cosmopolitan, but that is just on the surface. One thing I learned is that, if you live long enough, many strange things will happen that you never would have expected to experience.
Today, for example, a fair maiden swooned in my arms, just like in a fairy tale. I was going down the escalator at Wang Fang Community MRT station, two steps behind a woman who suddenly sat down on the stairs. She sort of plopped down, as if she had lost her strength. I came down beside her and asked “xiaojie hao bu hao?” (woman good no good?) I was not discussing sexual orientation, that is actually the correct Chinese for “are you OK lady?” She assured me that she was, and I helped her to her feet. I started to walk up to where I was standing before, and all of sudden she fell back. I grabbed her, because she really would have hurt herself if she hit her head on the sharp edge of the escalator steps. I was off balance, and we both fell, with her on top of me. I did not get hurt because my backpack cushioned me, but we arrived at the bottom of the escalator in a tangle of arms and legs. The station staff ran up and looked after her, and thanked me profusely—at least I think that’s what they were saying. I have no idea what her problem was, maybe a petit mal seizure or something.
Wednesday, March 09, 94
“My” Construction Company, Nice Weather for a Change
I enjoyed my construction company class, more than any other. Their English is good enough for complex idioms, and even some fairly complicated jokes. It’s really nice to see their confidence increasing as the months go by.
It has sunshine-and-shirtsleeves for three days or so now. Such a refreshing change from the misery of last week! It is quite green and wooded around our digs, and every day is great-to-be-alive kind of experience. Lunch was good today—even though the hot-and-sour soup had cuttlefish and pork liver in it.
I hope we will be able to go to Keelung at least once more, before we have to go home.
Thursday, March 10, 94
Music to My Ears, Changes in Just Three Years
I prepared a list of discussion topics for my advanced conversation classes. One of them, a bright woman in her late twenties, asked me, “What’s feminism?” As tempted as I was to say “nothing with which you need concern yourself—just irrelevant western propaganda”, I did not do so.
I was astonished the other day, when I realized that we have been coming to Taiwan now for nearly four years—and that Lao-puo has lived here for almost three years of that time. We both have noticed some changes in Taipei—and not changes for the better. For example, it is very sad, with the popularity of western food, to see that more and more Chinese people are overweight. It is particularly sad to see so many fat little children. Despite the fact that people have such beautiful black hair, many women dye their hair to blonde or red or something. Some morons of either gender affect an outdated punk look, with purple hair and nose rings. (by the way, I have seen more than one albino over here—it must be wickedness for the poor souls in the strong sun. We have noticed that more children are ill mannered—usually the fat ones because they are spoiled. They run ahead of the adults and hog the seats on the train—one kid even elbowed me out of the road and took the second-to-last seat. He put his hand on the empty seat beside him, to save it for someone. “To hell with you, buster,” I said to myself as I sat on his hand. Generally speaking, our complaints are minor and it is very comfortable to be here.
Friday, March 11, 94
Canadian Society
Tonight was the monthly social of the Canadian Society, at the Brass Monkey as usual. I don’t know if I mentioned it before, but some months ago Lao-puo won bottle draw. As the first winner she had her choice of three offerings, but she spurned the Crown Royal in favour of some poodle-piss white wine. This is the nearest will ever have, or will, come to divorce, I think. We both had to work until 8:30, and the place was jammed when we got there. The transportation was really good—the school is two blocks from Guting MRT Station, and it was just a matter of taking a train (choice of two) to Zhong Shan Station, bailing, and getting a bus across Nanjing Dong Lu to Fuxing Bei Lu, followed by a half-block walk. It is so easy to get around without a car in Taipei.
Saturday, March 12, 94
Getting Rained On, and Working, a Beautiful Gift
Today was a cold and blustery day (again), and I did nothing but work. It makes for a long day, to work 9-12 (no break) with the Kunyang boys, and then 3.5 hours in Neihu with Lao-ban, his daughter, and the neighbour little girl. It was too windy for my umbrella to work, and it was raining heavily. I caught a chill that turned into bronchitis. Probably we get lung infections so easily because of the air pollution.
Jeng Lao-ban gave me a lovely gift, a big bottle of Chinese rice wine. It’s in an earthenware crock, called a “hulu”. Evidently a hulu is an auspicious symbol, and miniatures can be found on many jade ornaments.
Lao-puo and I had a nice dinner, but was still full from lunch. I was too tired from work to do very much of anything. That is precisely the reason why I prefer to teach only adults—kids (and the need to be constantly animated) wear me out.
Sunday, March 13, 94
Seafood Feasting at the Wine Party
Lao-puo’s employer (and mine part time) had a teacher appreciation event in a local restaurant. They must really appreciate us, judging from the spread that was laid on. We had whole fish (done my favourite way), pickled octopus, raw tuna with wasabi, two different crab dishes, roll-ups with lobster and shrimp, and three kinds of seafood soup. I don’t think that Chinese food that good is available in Canada—at any price. For some reason it was called a wine party even though there was no “wining” except from me when I discovered the event was to be as dry as a bone. Chinese people don’t seem to drink very often—usually just at celebrations.
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