The End Is The Beginning

Here you go guys. I'm now closing this blog as my time in Taipei and Taiwan has come to an end.

For further adventures of me, please redirect yourself to http://lifeaftergatech.blogspot.com/

A New Beginning?

I know I said this blog was coming to an end, but I've been toying with whether or not I want to return to my old blog or to start a new one.

After all, life is drastically different from when I first started my past blog. I was still in school and the tone of that blog is significantly different from how I feel now.

Still thinking about it. Will let you guys know with a new link in a couple of days.

Taiwan Tech Trek Personal Reflection Essay

I never signed up for this.

Okay, to be honest, I did sign up to be an educator at the Taipei Zoo as part of the Taiwan Tech Trek 2009 program. But I never signed up for the rest of it. I never expected to meet the people I did, to be immersed so deeply into the Taiwanese lifestyle and to have my heart broken.

First off, working at the zoo was everything I had imagined it to be. I had written in my application that I applied because I wanted to experience a different type of work style. Having spent six years studying Computer Science and Psychology, one can easily go insane while sitting in a cubicle for eight hours a day. That being said, I was just as surprised as everyone when TTT had accepted me as their newest educator at the Taipei Zoo.

Well, first came surprise. Then came panic. I was a recently graduated Master’s student in Computer Science and Psychology. What did I know about animals? What did I know about interacting with people and educating them? Worse yet, I was heading to a country to live for about two months without really being able to read Chinese. I could speak moderately well and even understand a little bit of Taiwanese, but reading Chinese? That was like if I wanted to decipher ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics.

Still, taking things on as they came was something I always prided myself on, and so, bravely marching towards what was inevitably my doom, I fly across the world to Taipei, Taiwan and participated in the Taiwan Tech Trek 2009 program.

Eight weeks and then the program is over. As I sit in my bedroom at home in the United States, I can’t help but feel a sense of loss. I sift through the things I had brought back from Taiwan and with each thing I pick up, with each photograph I look at; I can hear the sound of my heart breaking even more.

I can see a keychain, on one side, a picture of a cartoon monkey’s face. Flipping it over, I read the inscription. “For Matt, 2009, Taipei Zoo, Shawn”

Four of these were made, each one given to an educator intern by our supervisor Shawn towards the end of our internship.

The first day at the zoo, he asked the four of us interns, “Want to go feed some elephants?”

I was hooked in immediately. The zoo was a refreshing experience. From the jobs that were handed to us, learning about animals, learning about conservation, learning about the daily chores of each employee at the zoo, it was all eye-opening. Learning that things happened not only where the public could see it, but also behind the scenes caused me to have newfound respect for the zookeepers and all the others that dedicated their time to the zoo.

I could tell you about all the tourist things that I did in Taipei. But that wasn’t what made this summer special.

For a real look at Taiwanese life, I found a partner-in-crime in that of one of the other interns, a fellow educator at the zoo. What we did, the places we saw is what made this summer in Taipei unlike any other summer I’d spent in Taiwan.

Together, she and I explored beyond the influence of the other interns, not caught up in the partying that the interns often find themselves trapped in.

The two of us explored Taipei through many different points of view.

I can tell you how the elderly spend their evenings. I can show you the spots just hidden near鼎泰豐in a garden park where our elders gather to exercise, to dance to the music of the 1950s.

I can tell you how couples sit on the benches of parks, how they let the warm summer air drift all around them, cooling them while they shyly hold each others hands, watching people walk by, walk all around them.

I can tell you how long one needs to wait in line for breakfast at the place at the corner of Heping East Rd and Wenzhou St. I can tell you the line is always long, no matter what time of day, no matter the weather. I can tell you not to go on Sundays, for that is the one day they are closed. I can tell you that they’ve refused the news reporters coming to report on them, saying that they do not need the extra business.

I can tell you that no one ever goes to五分埔 on Mondays because that is the day they only sell wholesale, and that any other day would be a good day to go shopping. I can also tell you that if you do decide to go and your companion is a woman, be sure to allocate at least a good hour for just a single city block.

I can tell you that in the evenings, locals gather to exercise around the國立國父紀念館. I can tell you that you can easily blend in, two foreign-born Taiwanese young adults lost in the sea of people that walk, run, stroll around this cultural icon. I can tell you that in the glow of Taipei 101 in the distance, old men still fly their kites, still let them soar as high as they can get them. Whether this was a competition of sorts or just a way of flying free in the sky, even they do not know.

I can tell you which bus drivers are friendly and which ones really do not care whether or not you get onto the bus. I can tell you how unreliable the Muzha MRT line is, how long an average ride from the Technology Building to the Taipei Zoo will take.

I can tell you where the teenagers and young adults go with each other on dates. I can show you the theaters of Miramar Entertainment Park. I can tell you the Ferris Wheel makes a full turn in seventeen minutes. Seventeen minutes in which it is only you and the other people in your gondola and the view of Taipei in the distance.
I can show you the shopping in Ximen, the places where you can grab good deals, the places where you can get ripped off just for speaking one word of English.

I can tell you where the cheap shirts can be bought in malls, then I can take you to the night markets and show you where you can buy them for half that price.

I can tell you which bars are the ones where locals go to, where they vacate them before the clock even strikes midnight, the places where one can go to have talks, to wonder how we ended up where we were, to question where we were headed in our future.

I can tell you about the wonders and marvels of convenience stores. Having a late night craving? No problem, head to the nearest corner and pick something up. More than likely, you’ll run into at least five others wanting something, regardless of what time of night.

I can tell you there are more treasures hidden in alleyways and side streets than anyone could ever possibly know. Whether it’s a famous poet’s house (near Wenzhou St.) or Japanese-style housing (Lishui St.) there are wondrous places to visit, so long as you know to look for them.

I can tell you that having experiences like this with another person changes you. It creates a bond that will remain with the two of you forever, regardless of what has happened or what will happen.

I can tell you the best place to fall in love. Whether it is with the city, the lifestyle, or another person, I can tell you the place where you can give your heart up. I can tell you how easy it is to get caught up in the surroundings, whether you are standing on the banks of the river in Bitan with the lights on the bridges shining brightly or in Danshui, riding bikes. I can tell you how easy it is to get caught in the beauty of all things Taipei, the beauty of the people you meet in your lifetime.

And now, as I sit here finishing up this personal reflection of my time spent in Taipei, I can tell you that my heart is breaking. I am missing Taipei and Taiwan. I am missing my internship at the zoo. I am missing the people I’ve become friends with, people I’ve gotten close with.

To say that Taiwan Tech Trek has been an impact on my life is the understatement of my life. Without this program, I would never have learned so much, yearned so much and experienced so much.

I may not have signed up for all of this, but I’m thankful I did.

It's Awfully Late But For Those Reading This Still...

in the rain

i'm walking slowly

there's a light

in your apartment

i don't know why

i ache for you

and its alright if

youre undecided

or if youre scared

that you might like it

or if its true

i ache for you

theres no rhyme

and theres no reason

youre the secret in the back of my skull

theres no logic

so please believe me

our love's confusing

but it never gets dull

its getting late

anticipation

and if we talk

communication

and then you'll know

i ache for you

Preview of the End

I feel that before I close this blog (and it will stop being written in as soon as I figure out a good ending to it), I need to tie up a few loose ends. That being said, expect one more giant post and then it's back to my old blog!

Words Cannot Express It Properly

Today was my last day of my internship at the Taipei Zoo.

I'll miss it and I will always look back upon this summer as one of my very best, with people that I would never trade away for anything in the world.

You guys were the best.

I already miss it.

Lemon Tree Suddenly Pops Up On Shuffle...

I'm sitting here in the boring room
It's just another rainy Sunday afternoon
I'm wasting my time, I got nothing to do
I'm hanging around, I'm waiting for you
But nothing ever happens and I wonder

How appropriate a song on this rainy Sunday afternoon...

Great moments in life come rarely. Cherish them when they do.

That was the hardest thing I've ever had to do.

Auntie Su! Auntie Su!

Bus ride to the MRT Technology Building Stop. NT$15

MRT Ride from Technology Building to meet up with Lisa then to SYS Memorial Station to try to get seats for all the people. NT$4

Waiting around for an hour at the Hang Ten for the other 12 people to show up. NT$0

All you can eat pizza and fried chicken for an hour and a half. NT$350

Looking at the photographs from the night. PRICELESS.

For everything else, there's Masterca..oh wait. That's not supposed to go there.

In all seriousness, tonight was a lot of fun. Just hanging out with people I enjoy being with and having conversations that are intellectual, nerdy, and some just plain stupid is something that I really love when a group of people get together.

Snake Charmer?

Lisa says I'm quite the charmer to both guys and girls after I talked to Ange's boyfriend for the first time. She may be correct.

Water Falls

The boy looked around at his surroundings. He appeared to be on a boat, in the middle of a large body of water.

Ludicrous, he thought to himself. How he came into this situation, he had no idea.

The boat drifted lazily along. The skies were grey and cloudy, hinting at a coming storm. The heat and humidity was unbearable, the feeling one gets when the rain is about to fall, yet refuses to.

And still the boy sat in the boat, drifting wherever the wind took him.

Stupid, he thought to himself. Where was his oar? How did he manage to strand himself out here in the middle of nowhere? Why was he all alone in an empty boat, with not even an oar to help him navigate?

A bottle floated by him.

Interesting, he thought to himself. Where did the bottle come from?

He leaned over the edge of his boat, his hands gripping the sides tightly. He was afraid to fall in after all. He couldn't remember the last time he had been in the water.

His hand grasped the handle of the bottle, a little water kissing his hand. He gasped, the water was so cold, yet it was so refreshing.

Ahh! he thought to himself. Was this bottle worth it? He weighed it in his hand, the smoothness of the glass a comfort to his sweaty palms. There was a cork in it and upon closer examination, a message in the bottle.

He pulled the cork out. With a loud pop, a piece of paper drifted out of the bottle.

01001001 00100000 01100100 01101111 00100000 01101100 01101111 01110110 01100101 00100000 01111001 01101111 01110101 00101110

He blinked once. He blinked twice. The message was unreadable, a slew of numbers that made no sense.

He flipped the paper over. On the back there was a small message written in the corner. Simply put, it said

Enjoy what time you have in the water.

The boy thought about it. He had been afraid to touch the water for a while now, instead choosing to sit in his boat. Where it was safe. Where he couldn't get wet.

But he realized, the water had changed from when he had last been in it. It wasn't the hostile waters he had known earlier. It wasn't the whirlpools which had tossed and turned and spun him in circles till he was dizzy. It wasn't geysers that had shot him into the air and had him come crashing down violently.

Instead, these waters seemed gentle. Seemed calm. Looking at the storm clouds in the horizon, he knew that these waters wouldn't last. That soon, the storm clouds would come and force him back into the boat. He knew what kind of water was good now though...so, for the time being...

He jumped in.

Multicultural Experience!

Last night, I watched Transformers with an Australian (Lisa), an Austrian (Shushu), and a Thai/Brit (Wendy).

We all agreed, explosions and transforming robots are awesome no matter where you grow up.

=)

My Lucky Coin

I have a lucky coin.

Every morning, when I wake up, I ask myself if I still feel the same way like I did when I went to bed the previous night. Then, I flip the coin.

If the coin comes up heads, I still feel the same way.

If the coin ever comes up tails, I'll keep flipping the coin till it comes up heads.

So far though, the coin has always been heads.

For You I Would Watch A Million Music Clips...

When I usually do write, I try to write a lot. It's appropriate that I stumbled upon this quote (from someone else's blog). I shall sum the night up with this.

If I loved you less, I might be able to talk about it more.

-Jane Austen

Deliciousness

I know I've posted this in the past before...but it just seems so appropriate. "I would taste DELICIOUS."

Love and Logic

Having gotten into somewhat of a rant with Sue on Google Talk, I guess it's best to write down some thoughts that may be floating through my head.

It's always awkward when the factor of the human heart comes into play. I've noticed that people will say one thing, have all the signs point a certain way, yet, when faced with the inevitable situation where all the things will come into the open, choose a course of action that defies all explanation.

But such is the way of the heart. It defies explanations, no matter how often we spend time wondering, "What does the guy see in that girl?" or "How does a person like that actually end up in a relationship?"

Coming from somewhat of a Psychology background, I have to say that this absolutely drives me nuts. Then again, with an engineer and scientist's background too, I too can see when we are driven, above all else, to accept our logic and try to make our heart understand what our mind has already reasoned out.

I don't know, haha. I've been guilty myself of falling for the absolute wrong type of woman, and I'm sure that I've also been the target of the "How does a guy like that end up with a woman like that?"

It would just be so much easier if it weren't for all the games we play, all the roles we lead, all the social structures set up so that we can't just tell someone what we're feeling at that particular moment about them. Then again...maybe it wouldn't.

There's no right and wrong in the world, only what our hearts dictate is right and what our hearts dictate is wrong.

Sometimes though, don't let logic prevail. You never know what you might miss out on!

Happy Birthday Lisa!

Lisa, it's your birthday! Happy birthday, Lisa! Funny...I think of the one Simpsons episode when I say that. You guys know the one? The one with Michael Jackson...(god, I'm old).

Lisa, you're absolutely right when you say that it doesn't matter how old you get, all that matters is what age you are inside! :D Here's to being young for a while and enjoying life!

And also to fruity drinks. And gumboots. And the outback. And roos! :D

Adventures with People!

I hope everyone's doing alright back in the United States!

Almost two complete weeks have passed since the internship at the Taipei Zoo started and I have to say, I've been hanging out with people a whole lot! (every night so far!)

Most of you guys reading this have Facebook, and since uploading photographs here in Taiwan take so freakin long, I'm going to just talk about the people but not provide photos. If you guys really care, you could zip on over to my profile, click on more photos of me and find out who these people are!

I'll start with people I hang out the most (outside of work! My coworkers will get their own special post!)

First off, there's Sue. Sue hails from Chile and France. This is how awesome she is. She's a photojournalist and very fun to hang out with. =) She speaks Spanish like whoooaa crazy fast hard to understand her lots of times but it's so cool to hear her speak. Haha, I also find it awesome that she's working at the radio internship here!

Stephanie is the first one I really talked to starting the Taiwan Tech Trek program. That is to say, when we all got onto the bus the first day, we sat next to each other. She's got the kind of attitude and happiness that is contagious, which I find to be very refreshing. She's got the whole nerdy but still fun to be around thing going for her. That and she laughs when she thinks of something funny inside her head. :D

Kelly is someone from Holmdel! I couldn't believe it when we had mutual friends, I was like...no way. Haha, it's cool having someone from Jersey in the group also (not counting Ange, since she wasn't in my orientation group). She's the one I usually start planning hangouts with and from there it spreads like wildfire!

Jed is the youngest of the group. He's a newbie in all things Taiwan, this being his first time here. He works with me at the Taipei Zoo, but he's in the nutrition group. It's funny because his title is research assistant and he has yet to touch/handle any of the zoo animals. Yeah, I'm always poking fun at him because of this.

Wendy is coming from the London School of Economics, which...once my sister heard about, fell in love with her. Wendy is awesome and for reasons I still can't quite understand, she cracks Stephanie up all the time. Wendy has this magical power thing I guess. Haha, she works at the same MRT stop that I take to get to work, so I occasionally will see her when I get off work as she's taking the stop to go home.

So far, our hanging out has been mostly food-related and shopping-related. Note to self, shopping with three girls when you're the only guy...it's interesting. Hitting up all the night markets for food and stuff is always awesome, especially with this group of people.

I have to say, I'm glad I met these people, I know Taiwan definitely wouldn't have been as much fun if I didn't know them.

Yesterday, I petted a tiger.

Yesterday, I petted a jaguar.

Yesterday, I held an orangutan's hand and it kissed it.

Yesterday, I saw a baby gibbon with his mother.

Yesterday, I touched a baby gibbon.

Orientation

I'm writing this Friday night here in Taipei, the first time I've actually spent more than an hour at my place before needing to go to bed in about two weeks.

Needless to say, it's been a crazy wild two weeks.

Real quick. The program I'm doing my internship at the Taipei Zoo is called Taiwan Tech Trek. Every year for the last four years, Taiwanese people from overseas have participated in this program, which seeks to educate those who were born elsewhere about what life is like working in Taiwan. Yes, they do indeed hope that some of us do stay afterwards...and I have heard stories of one or two people actually staying here to work after participating in this program.

I had to admit, I entered the program nervous and scared. It had been a while since I was introduced to that many new people at the same time and the idea that I would be living and hanging out with the same group of people for four whole days (including nights) made me more than a little nervous.

Needless to say, I had a bunch of fun, meeting Taiwanese people from all places! There were people from Canada, Argentina, Chile, and of course, America!

I would post photos, but unfortunately my internet here in Taiwan is really slow...but you can see photographs of people and what I've been doing on Facebook! People should be posting their photos up.

I hope all of you at home are doing good. I miss you all!

Quick review of my First Days

1. Fed the elephants

2. Saw a baby giraffe

3. All around ROCKED OUT.

Tom's World. I'm addicted.

Seven-Eleven Madness 1: Lychee Slurpee

So, I was challenged by Andrew Yang to get a different item from Seven-Eleven every time I visited while I was staying in Taiwan. I won't be doing that everyday, but those who have been to Taiwan or any Asian country know how awesome the convinience stores are there.

Different flavors of things are considered different items...so, Andrew, here we go!

Lychee Slurpee

That's right, a slurpee with the flavor of lychee. Delicious delicious icy coolness!

Back from the South

After four days in the southern part of Taiwan (ooo, ahh, Cape No. 7), I am back in Taipei with too many photos to post. Haha...so I'll start organizing them now and hopefully they'll be up on Facebook or something soon!

That being said, I'm very tired of hiking and very tired of seeing temples (cool at first, but after the first ten they all start looking the same... -.-)

Nerdiness, Waterfalls, and Keeping Your Head Out of the Toilet

First off, for those who are extremely nerdy, be jealous. I went to the Computex Taipei Int'l Information Technology Show.

That's me and Greg Yen (who happened to be in Taiwan for a while and we overlapped two days!) We nerded about and went to booths like Microsoft, Intel, NVidia, and Sandisk. Got some cool swag.

My sister, Greg, and I also went to eat at one of the strangest restaurants I've been to in a while. Located in Shilin...well, a picture is worth a thousand words.

Modern Toilet (yes, that's the name of the restaurant) was very interesting. Next time, I'll go and have a meal there instead of the ridiculously large shaved ice urinal plates! (only 100NT btw, roughly 3 bucks)

The following day, a big chunk of family (grandmother, uncle, 3 cousins, aunt, greataunt, parents, sister, dad's cousin, dad's cousin's wife) all went on a hike. It was about an hour hike into the mountains and we were rewarded at the end with this!

Okay, unfortunately for me, my time on the internet is running out so this post is short (I have the only laptop that can pick up the wireless that the whole family is leeching).

I will write more later! And hopefully more in detail!

Oh My Goddess!

In the past two days, my sister and I have watched 20 episodes of How I Met Your Mother. For those of you who watch the show (GINGER!! :D), you know how awesome and addicting that show can be. We’ve been watching the show as a way to get over our jetlag (that’s why we spent 9-12PM watching it Friday evening), but seeing as I am up at 6AM Saturday morning, I’m thinking EPIC FAIL.

We went to Longshan Temple (or Lungshan Temple, 龍山寺) the afternoon we landed in Taipei.

Quick history lesson/geography lesson/Taiwanese facts about Longshan Temple!

Located in the district of Manka of Taipei, it was founded in 1738 and dedicated to the Buddhist Goddess of Mercy. It was rebuilt in 1919 and completed in 1924.

Longshan Temple always keeps it nature as a Buddhist temple, but also houses many deities of Taoism, showing the tolerant mentality of the Taiwanese people.

It is well known that the statue of Kuan-in (Goddess of Mercy) in the temple survived the bombing from the Allied aircrafts on June 8, 1945. The whole main hall and a part of the right annex were burned out during the air raid, but the statue of Kuan-in remained completely intact. Crazy, seeing as it’s made of wood and the whole temple was practically burnt to the ground.

One more thing, my dad’s grandfather helped work on the rebuilding of the temple and one of the pillars was actually carved by him.

On the way there...

I got on the plane at JFK International Airport in New York City. We made a quick stopover in Anchorage, Alaska.

Contrary to my belief, Sarah Palin was not there to greet us and also make sure no Russians were sneaking in.