Reflecting on Taipei, a year later

cheap and surprisingly delicious lattes at every 7-11 (mmm City Cafe)

riding our scooters fast through busy, vibrant downtown

every type of restaurant you could ever want at your fingertips... and the BEST Indian restaurants

the adventure of living in a big place.  Yes, i know that Taiwan isn't exactly a huge island, but it is much, much bigger than our island now.  

scooter day trips through the mountains and just seeing where we ended up 

our coworkers... couldn't have asked for better ones at Hsin Hu and Dahu!

20 minute exercise time every morning with the whole school before school started.  This was such a brilliant idea- it woke you up and got you energized for the day... especially needed on the days when we were drinking our coffee during exercise time.

"oh Taiwan... really?" moments

the excitement of learning and the accomplishment of speaking a new language.  I really miss hearing Mandarin Chinese in my ears everywhere I go.  It is such a beautiful language.

yoga classes in Taipei and carrying my mat on my scooter

the initial feeling of independence found in living overseas.  I still love this.

oh the shopping.  the cheap, wonderful shopping

our first few months in Taipei, everything was a curiosity and it was so fun!

cheap electricity

holing up inside of our apartment during most of the rainy week of Chinese New Year and watching 2 entire seasons of LOST

 all of the events that were constantly going on in Taiwan:  Lantern Festivals, Dragon Boat racing... there is never a dull moment

the enormous amount of gas money we saved while only riding scooters all year... although I would have given anything for a car when it was pouring rain on the way to work!

tall, misty, green, mysterious, breathtaking mountains

Taiwan is a gorgeous country and the people are incredibly kind and friendly.  We had the best experience there as English teachers for a little over a year.  If anyone is contemplating teaching there, we would love to answer any of your questions!

What would make my scooter even cooler???

     Brian

Bright City

It's hot in Saipan right now. I've developed a very clingy relationship with my air conditioner right now, although we (like most people in Saipan) only run it during the evenings because electricity is so expensive here. We've been taking the scooter out a lot to enjoy the cool ocean breeze on our faces. Here are some pictures of a recent scooter trip around the island, capturing some of the unique places and things we have here on Saipan.

Above is a fruit/veggie truck that is frequently parked on beach road. We've never bought fruit here, though, as we have a stand near our house where we always buy our produce and can speak Chinese with the owners.

Tiny apartment spotted in Garapan (the tourist district of Saipan)

Biggest souvenier shop in Garapan. At night, there are hula dancers and drummers that perform out in front.

Memorial day flags at American Memorial Park

I love this park

Countdown.... Saipan in 8 days!

Hello Everyone,

You all should check out the link on the post below to Brian's biking trip- the pictures are amazing and he had a great time.

Today was such a nice day: packing... lunch at an Indian restaurant in Taipei 101 (Indian food is my absolute favorite)... packing some more... then going for a swim/workout at Dahu Pool. I've been learning how to free-style swim and I've finally gotten to the point where I can make it a few times up and down the pool... it's a really big pool! I've found that I really love swimming, and I can't wait to get Scuba-diving certified when we get to Saipan. I can't wait to check out those beautiful coral reefs that people talk about there. I also want to get a really cheap little bike and do some cycling around the coast.

We received our itinerary for our flight next monday: We'll be leaving on Monday the 16th, flying to Manila (the Philippines), then to Guam, then on to Saipan. We'll officially arrive in Saipan on the 17th, and spend the next few days searching for housing, registering for my nursing classes, and getting to spend some time with our friends who live there. It's finally hit us that it's so soon and I'm starting to get really excited!

We're so grateful that we've had such a wonderful experience in Taiwan, and it's hard to leave the people here, but we're both ready for the challenge of a new place, new job, etc.

Below are some pictures for your viewing pleasure :) Rach

Thoughts on Leaving

Hello Everyone,

We've been trying to update our blog more often, and I'm actually starting to really enjoy it! Here's a plethora of thoughts right now:

- Today is my day off and I've been packing and packing. Something I really love about traveling/living overseas is that it keeps your possessions simple. When you move around a lot, you just can't have a lot of stuff, and it's a really good incentive to get rid of old clothes and things we don't really use. I've got a coworker who is my size and she is going to get lots of presents on Monday!

-Brian's work gave us free tickets to see Inception tomorrow, at the new theatre that opened in Taipei Main Station. We're going with all of his coworkers tomorrow night- can't wait I've heard its amazing

-Yesterday was our one year anniversary in Taiwan... and I celebrated by getting my foot ran over by a taxi! It was really painful, but thank goodness nothing was broken! Crazy. I was on my scooter at a stop light, and the taxi behind me (and to the right) just couldn't wait for the light to turn green. He drove up right beside me, and right over my four toes and half of my foot! AND, the entire time, he was beeping his horn at me, like I was in his way! Taipei taxi drivers are actually really dangerous, and when I told my friend Alex, he said the same thing happened to him awhile ago... guess it's pretty common around here!

- I only have 15 more official days at work... I'm actually really sad about it. This year, I've had just about the best team of co-workers that you can have. Hopefully, though, we can all visit each other sometime in the future- they are all from different, really cool places all around the world: Canada, New Zealand, London, and America.

- Brian is taking a weekend biking trip through the mountains of Taiwan next weekend, so get ready for some beautiful pictures pretty soon! And be sure to check out the video he put in the post below- it's really cool.

Rachel

Taiwan, by train

Here are some pictures of our recent trip around the island of Taiwan. We took the train around the entire perimeter, stopping along the way to visit various cities. We would stay for a day or two at each destination and spend the night in a cheap hotel or hostel. It was an awesome trip, and we got to experience all of Taiwan!

Haha oops you can't see our faces- up in the mountains of Taroko Gorge.

There is a scenic highway that runs all along the gorge, from the bottem to the top. It winds in and out of the mountain, so there are hundreds of amazing bridges and tunnels to see.

Taroko Gorge is on of the most beautiful places I've been to in Taiwan. You really could spend an entire week there, just exploring.

Brian and I up in the mountains- it started raining a bit the higher we climbed on our scooter

Brian getting ready to enter the park

Just arrived in Hualien- the train station is in the background

A cute Taiwanese family enjoying a bike ride

Brian looking cute on the beach

These people were collecting seaweed from the rocks to sell. The Taiwanese love to eat dried seaweed. I think it's gross.

Brian made this- the beach is one of his favorite places to be in Taiwan. We live so close to the ocean, we try to go as much as we can.

We went hiking in a National Forest in Kenting (the Southern most part of the Island), and found this tree. That day, we also saw wild monkeys in the forest!! They were really protective of their territory and babies, and were hissing at us if we got too close!

We took a scooter trip to the Southern Most Point of Taiwan- now we've been to both the North and South tips of the island.

Swimming in the ocean

Chillin on the train. We took the train around the entire perimeter of the Island. I spent my time on the train reading and drinking coffee.... perfection.

A giant rock formation in Kenting

We rented bicycles and rode along the coast in Taitung, Taiwan- a beautiful city on the East coast of Taiwan

Thai sculptures at a yummy restaurant in Kenting. Honestly, Brian and I eat Thai food in Taiwan at least once a week! We're addicted to curry.

Picking out our scooter for the day- the hotel we stayed at had a little scooter shop attached

sparklers on the beach at Kenting

Sandals anyone? This beach town had tons of cool surfing and swimming gear

In a temple in Hualien, near Taroko Gorge.

The pictures from the post below are also from our trip around the island... we took a LOT of pictures. :) enjoy