8月5日--8月6日
I start my journey in Taipei, Taiwan.
Well, technically I started my journey at Tom Bradley International Terminal at LAX. It was a dizzying journey of roughly 12 to 13 hours that felt especially long, not forgetting to take in the fact that this would be the first time I have ever left the country, and the second time riding an airplane ever. It didn't really hit me waiting at LAX, and even on the airplane where flight attendants attended to me speaking in Mandarin, it still didn't hit me until I left the airport, like an overwhelming heat. And that wasn't even a simile, I literally felt an overwhelming heat when I left the airport.
Taiwan, like many other Asian countries in the region, experience a humidity one can only fathom in the United States.
Residing part time in Southern California and in Las Vegas, Nevada, I never really knew what humidity was. Even a good friend of mine, who hails from the dirty south (Texas, specifically) has stated that the humidity was something else.
I made sure to pack tank tops and shorts for my days to come.
Taipei, Day 1:
...to be completely honest, I spent most of day one succumbing to the throws of jet lag. After eating a baozi (包子) and drinking some juice (果汁) deliciously prepared by my friend's mom, and watching a couple of foreign television shows dubbed in Chinese, I took a 5 hour nap. I was lucky to have a friend in the Taipei area who was willing to house me for the following days, and for that I am forever grateful.
After I had awoken, I noticed I had the apartment to myself, and continued to watch foreign television shows dubbed in Chinese. I found this station that airs a combination of American and Korean television shows dubbed and subbed in Chinese, so I took that as an opportunity to practice my Mandarin.
At this time, my friend's mother had returned home with douhua (豆花), a type of bean curd pudding in sweetened soy milk with tapioca pearls (珍珠). I was both familiar with 包子 and 豆花 as I would eat it growing up in my house. I am 1st generation Filipino American, and what others call 包子, Filipinos would call siopao. We also have a dish similar to 豆花 called taho, consisting of silken tofu in a brown sugar syrup, also served with tapioca pearls. That being said, it was difficult to communicate with my friend's mom, as she would speak a combination of Mandarin and Taiwanese to me. This is problematic, in that I barely even speak Mandarin to begin with, let alone Taiwanese. Everyday is a learning experience, even when you don't manage to leave the house.
Next update will outline my first day out in Taipei!
~和平
I start my journey in Taipei, Taiwan.
Well, technically I started my journey at Tom Bradley International Terminal at LAX. It was a dizzying journey of roughly 12 to 13 hours that felt especially long, not forgetting to take in the fact that this would be the first time I have ever left the country, and the second time riding an airplane ever. It didn't really hit me waiting at LAX, and even on the airplane where flight attendants attended to me speaking in Mandarin, it still didn't hit me until I left the airport, like an overwhelming heat. And that wasn't even a simile, I literally felt an overwhelming heat when I left the airport.
Taiwan, like many other Asian countries in the region, experience a humidity one can only fathom in the United States.
Residing part time in Southern California and in Las Vegas, Nevada, I never really knew what humidity was. Even a good friend of mine, who hails from the dirty south (Texas, specifically) has stated that the humidity was something else.
I made sure to pack tank tops and shorts for my days to come.
Taipei, Day 1:
...to be completely honest, I spent most of day one succumbing to the throws of jet lag. After eating a baozi (包子) and drinking some juice (果汁) deliciously prepared by my friend's mom, and watching a couple of foreign television shows dubbed in Chinese, I took a 5 hour nap. I was lucky to have a friend in the Taipei area who was willing to house me for the following days, and for that I am forever grateful.
After I had awoken, I noticed I had the apartment to myself, and continued to watch foreign television shows dubbed in Chinese. I found this station that airs a combination of American and Korean television shows dubbed and subbed in Chinese, so I took that as an opportunity to practice my Mandarin.
At this time, my friend's mother had returned home with douhua (豆花), a type of bean curd pudding in sweetened soy milk with tapioca pearls (珍珠). I was both familiar with 包子 and 豆花 as I would eat it growing up in my house. I am 1st generation Filipino American, and what others call 包子, Filipinos would call siopao. We also have a dish similar to 豆花 called taho, consisting of silken tofu in a brown sugar syrup, also served with tapioca pearls. That being said, it was difficult to communicate with my friend's mom, as she would speak a combination of Mandarin and Taiwanese to me. This is problematic, in that I barely even speak Mandarin to begin with, let alone Taiwanese. Everyday is a learning experience, even when you don't manage to leave the house.
Next update will outline my first day out in Taipei!
~和平