Baby, it's cold inside!

This month marks my completion of 2 years in Taiwan. I was going through my blog archives, starting from the beginning, and got a little nostalgic. In particular, I found my expectations of the weather prior to my arrival pretty interesting:

A new man

Maybe not a new man, but certain adaptations need to be made. Here are...

5 things I do in Taiwan that I never do in New York:

1. Sing- I now have 4 different classes that I teach every week and they use 4 different text books. However, every unit in all the books includes a song, and well, it's not going to teach itself.
2. Dance- I'm often told by my superiors that the kids will only show me 30% of what I show them. So if I dance like a maniac, maybe they will dance normally. See previous post.
3. Go clubbin'- As far as Friday and Saturday nights go, this is about the only thing for a foreigner to do in Taiwan. Rap, techno, and expensive cocktails are not my scene at all, but Taipei has loads of them and it's the best way to meet people that speak English.
4. Carry an umbrella- I honestly can't picture anyone I know from home that carries an umbrella. Living in the rainy valley of She-jersey, I've come to realize that umbrellas are a practical accessory. I own two.
5. Drive a scooter- I haven't actually bought one yet, but I will. They're cheap, small, efficient, and in Taiwan everybody has one so you don't risk the social embarrassment that would happen if you drove one in New York. I can probably tack "ride on the back of another grown man's scooter" on to this.
   

Of these five things, I think I will only continue to carry an umbrella when I go back to New York.

Happy New Year!

I know you're all jealous that by the time the ball dropped in NYC, 2009 was already a distant memory for me.

Speaking of jealousy, I bet you were panicked wondering where Ja Rule was on New Years. Don't worry, he was in Taipei performing at a club. And while I'm sure the fireworks you saw weren't shooting off of the shortest building in the world, they most certainly weren't off the tallest. Finally, just to make sure you are green with envy, did you and 20 other people rent out a private karaoke room at 4:00 in the morning? I'll take that silence as a "no."

Anyway... Happy New Year's everybody!!

Resolutions:
- take more pictures
- do more things that I can take pictures of
- swim more
- learn more Chinese
- call home more

I <3 Taiwan

After a lovely afternoon of hot springs in Xinbeitou and a delicious "Garlic Fry Pork" dinner in Taipei, I boarded the train home to Shijr. We were packed like sardines into the train car, and the young Taiwanese gentleman in front of me happened to be wearing the classic "I ♥ NY" T-shirt.

Mike and I decided that I should tell him I am from New York. The conversation went something like this:

[Train moves abruptly and the boy falls into me. I catch him.]

J(ohnny): It's a good thing you love New York or I wouldn't have caught you!
B(oy): [smiles]
J: [pointing to the boy's shirt] I like your shirt. I'm from New York. [pulls out driver's license and points to "New York."]
B: [smiles] New York is very good. [thumbs up]
J: Taiwan is very good too [thumbs up]. I wish I had an "I love Taiwan" shirt.
B:[smiles]

[I happened to not only be wearing a plain white tee, but I also had a neat little pen with, not one, but four colors! Mike created a masterpiece on my chest...]



In order to show my respect and appreciation, I diplomatically returned the cross-ocean compliment. Together, as ambassadors for our respective countries, we shook hands, posed for pictures, chatted for a little while, and pretty much exhausted his English vocabulary. He likes baseball, particularly the New York Yankees, but even more particularly Chen Ming Wan. He also liked my chest muscles (which I was thrusting forward for the picture).

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