Non-sequitor

Working six days a week is frustrating. It's not a rough work week as most days I spend a mere 2-3 hours a day in "the office". The catch comes with attendance six days a week. It mitigates any activities or outings that may otherwise fill the time. With time I can hopefully dump a class or two and cram another in during the week, thereby cutting my schedule to a more customary five day week. It's a shame to be in a foreign country and unable to fully immerse yourself due to teaching English. Things have been looking up since the week from hell in December. Acquired a new bike, the weather has proved to be hit or miss, our journey for Chinese New Years has been finalized. Really looking forward to traveling about this island. The city deal is wearing thin especially in the face of my fellow workers, both of whom have traveled around China and Taiwan respectively in past weeks. This is an absolute sub-tropical island, it's a jungle (though we have come to refer to it lovingly as "concrete jungle")that given a month or two's time, so the joke goes, would completely render this island unrecongnizable from something in the South Pacific. I can't begin to explain the diversity of foliage; trees, shrubs, plants, flowers, most of which I've never seen.It's so hot so long, it rains consistently year-round, and there is a damp sponge of humidity that hazes daily. A perfect recipe for anything with roots.
Matthew visited last week after two weeks in India. It was, of course, nice to see and hear from him, especially his trip to India. The short of it goes something like "India,a country of spectacular culture and sights, but otherwise a dirty, crowded, sly, covert, nation of hucksters." Of course it wasn't exactly worded that way but I devised my own concise Encyclopedia Brittianica excerpt. Matt said everywhere he went he and his friend were constantly being bombarded with either beggers or "salesmen" trying to pawn their wares. Everything was a ploy, and even queing for a rickshaw(their form of taxi) was a daunting, confusing task. Unfortunate to hear, but I've heard similar things in the past. He did say the Taj Mahal was as spectacular as advised, and the temples and countryside were a world apart. Matt stayed for a few days and was back to Hong Kong.
Weather is quite intimidating, mid sixties most days, only spells trouble for the summer. The heat is quite unbearable according to some Westerners.
Looking into a trip to Japan or Boracay (a small, secluded, pristine island in the Philipines) in April when a friend comes from the States. Looking into going with Matt and his friend, would be quite the trip. As of now I'm still in flux but I have widdled my choices for travel, based on time and money. At the top are China, Japan, and Australia. I think I will make it to Japan and hopefully China. Supposing I leave in September I would like to swing (used lightly as it is still an 8hr flight) down to New Zealand and Australia. However these plans, as everything in my life tends to be, are hypothetical, merely speculative at best.

Taipei New Years

Taipei during New Years, took us a couple hours to get home. So many Taiwanese, everywhere, roughly 400K.