Taiwan II, hanging out with Warwick and family

We met Warwick at our church in Urbana, IL in the late 1980s. At the time, he was an international student working on his PhD in agriculture. Somehow, David had kept up with him enough through the years to know of his current Taiwanese residence. A little email legwork last winter (N. hemisphere) put us back in touch with each other so that Tuesday afternoon, May 13, we were able to take the bullet train from Taipei down to Tainan, traveling up to 300 km/hour, to meet up with Warwick and Vicky, who generously took a day out of their busy schedules to show us around their Taiwanese stomping grounds.

Warwick and Vicky lived in their home country of Australia and then Kenya before moving to Taiwan just 2 years ago where Warwick now works at the World Vegetable Center. I'd never heard of such an organization before so it was interesting to learn what they're about. As I understand it, the Center's main mission is to maintain the genetic pool of vegetables and create new hybrids, which are used all over the world but especially in developing nations. It is effectively an agricultural research institution.

Wednesday, we piled into their family car, along with Warwick, Vicky and Anthea (their oldest daughter couldn't skip school that day), and drove about 2 hours north to the Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village, stopping by Sun Moon Lake on the way. The Village was a strange mix of displays on native Taiwanese culture and heart-stopping amusement park rides, all set on a large hill. At the top of the hill was the cultural section. We got to see reconstructions of huts some of the aboriginals would have lived in, and there was a museum with interesting displays on the aboriginal groups, of which there are so many I can't share specifics beyond the fact that Polynesian background figured in hugely. People in traditional dress wandered around the park. We saw a highly polished traditional dance show. As we wandered down the hill, we came across roller coasters and twirly rides and stalls selling pizza and fried chicken. All of us went on a flume ride, resulting in all of us getting soaking wet, which actually felt good on such a hot day. David and Ian braved a corkscrew-upside down roller coaster while the rest of us stood in the courtyard directly underneath the roller coaster, eating ice cream and craning our necks upward to watch its progress . (Somehow, I don't think that would be allowed in the USA.) Though the two parts of the park were very enjoyable, we never were able to wrap our minds around what conceptually tied them together. No worries; it was a lot of fun and very professionally done.

We also enjoyed getting to know Vicky and Anthea and commisserating with Warwick and Vicky about Australia. We sure shared some good laughs, as one is wont to do when hanging out with Aussies.

Deja Vu

Deja Vu #1 With the arrival of summer vacation this week, I have the sense that we're living the movie Groundhog Day. We keep having the same seasons over and over again: summer - fall - summer- fall - now summer again to be followed by yet another fall. Winter 09 is going to be a shock (a welcome one, I think) to our systems.

This 3rd summer vacation is sort of anti-climactic, really. I mean, the arrival of summer vacation is usually accompanied by a delicious feeling of indulgence as new freedoms and fun are embarked upon after months of hard work. However . . um. . . we haven't exactly been engaged in months of hard work recently. In fact, we've been engaged in some pretty fun adventures the last few months. More relaxation and fun just doesn't seem to be what we need right now. (note: David probably has a different take on this as he hit the ground running upon our return.) So, maybe it is alright that part of the cost of our sabbatical is that the kids are going to be spending some time this summer playing catch up; the girls are behind in math and all 3 kids are rusty with their musical instruments. Ian has even started private clarinet lessons in an effort to catch up with the other freshman band members for next fall.

DejaVu #2 Within a day or two of arriving home, we observed a wasp setting up a lovely little nest - right inside our mailbox. I don't know what it is about our mailboxes and creepy crawlies. We had a huntsman spider take up temporary residence in our Australian mailbox. Hmmmm..... I wonder which is more dangerous?

Deja Vu #3 Last February, David flew back to the USA for his work. On the long return flight from California to Australia, he told me how he was seated next to a morbidly obese man. This man was not just overweight or obese; he was of a size that we rarely see. It was an interesting situation for David; the guy was very nice and friendly. David chatted with him a bit. But the man just didn't fit in his airplane seat very well; his body was so large it came bulging under and over the arm rest, and there was no room for him to lower his tray table. He perched his meal trays on his belly.

As we boarded our long flight from Japan to Minneapolis, it was therefore with some interest that we spotted an incredibly obese man seated on THIS plane. We casually started checking row numbers, feeling pretty confident that he wouldn't be seated near us. What were the chances? Pretty quickly, our casual checks became wrought with a little anxiety as it became increasingly clear that yes, this man was seated in our row. . .seated right next to David, in fact. David was absolutely incredulous. What were the chances!! I managed not to laugh outloud and even volunteered to switch places with him, but he refused as he had a plan. Again, the man was very friendly and nice, but he just didn't fit in his seat. He bulged around the arm rest into David's seat and kept his arms crossed on his girth in an effort to fit in his space. Once we were allowed to walk around the cabin, David wasted no time finding a flight attendant and asking to be reseated, knowing from experience that it is basically impossible to sleep seated next to such a large person. Once asleep, their arms tend to slip off their bellies and into the laps of those on either side. The flight was pretty full, so when David was reseated, I stayed in my own seat which was 2 seats down from this over-sized gentleman. I was able to observe how he really did need 2 seats; David's move served not just his own comfort but that of this man's as well. There was maybe an inch or two between the man's body and the seat in front of him, so it was clear he could not use his own tray table for his meals. Indeed, he used David's. With David gone, he put the arm rest up and slept/sat with his shoulder and arm in David's seat; they extended about halfway across. I don't know what to think of this, but he didn't go to the restroom once during the 11+ hour flight (David thinks he wouldn't have fit in the bathroom) and had to be taken off the airplane in a wheelchair.

"What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there's nothing new under the sun." Ecclesiastes 1:9

Pepper's Glamour Shots

This is how Hannah kept busy on a recent rainy day. Pepper is such a good patient dog.

Taiwan, hanging out with Wan Ting (Anny)

I met Anny in January 2006 . We were paired together by ISI (International Students Inc.?). Anny had signed up for one-on-one Bible study with an American while I had signed up for one-on-one Bible study with an international student. For the following 1.5 years, we faithfully met Tuesday mornings for Bible Study and espresso drinks at various coffee shops in Ann Arbor. Slowly, our friendship expanded beyond the confines of coffee shops. She joined us for some family meals, even some holiday meals, and eventually became a regular on the Blaauwmobile's circuit to Knox church Sunday mornings. For our part, we got to go to the local Taiwanese club's Chinese New Year celebration, eat some of her awesome Asian cooking, and received nice gifts from her family in Taiwan. Anny moved to TX for work fall 07, so we were thrilled to be able to coordinate our travels to Asia with her travels to Taiwan this spring; we spent 5 interesting days in Taiwan.

Our time in Taiwan was marked by trains. That was our main mode of transportation. Fortunately, enough Taiwanese spoke enough English that David could actually obtain tickets without too much confusion.

Our hotel was in Taipei, not too far (50 minutes by train) from Anny's hometown of Tao Yuan, which was our first tourist stop. The main attraction: Anny's parents' home, which was quite spacious in a vertical fashion, with 3 floors and a kind of courtyard on the top with a small fish pond and a large collection of orchid plants. Anny's mother has a prolific hobby of raising orchids. After a large snack, we headed off (by car) to a park on the site of one of Chiang Kai Shek's summer homes. What was interesting about this park was that it held an immense collection of Chiang Kai Shek statues. With the advent of democracy in Taiwan, the statues were apparently removed from public places, like school buildings, to this park. Lunch was in a charming town called Daxi. I believe Daxi is known for its tofu, and I ate the best-tasting tofu I've ever had while there. We tasted samples from a couple street food stalls as well; the candied sweet potatoes were popular.

The next day, David spent the day at the National University of Taiwan while the kids and I went to the National Palace Museum in Taipei with Anny and Stefan. The museum was amazing. It has an incredibly large collection of Asian artifacts; we were told that Chiang Kai Shek took most of the Chinese treasures with him to Taiwan when he fled the mainland in 1949. In fact, the museum only has room to display 3% of their collection at one time; the rest is stored in caves in the mountains somewhere. The kids found the museum very interesting, though I think Ian was more interested in figuring out Chinese characters than seeing the items on display. Highlights: some extremely intricate carvings, a ship with 7? people carved on an olive pit and balls of ivory carved within balls of ivory. Our day concluded with a stop at The Modern Toilet, a funky restaurant that specializes in ice cream treats served in. . .well. . .toilet bowls. Miniature ones at least.

Our time in Taipei ended Tuesday morning with a trip to the paper museum where we got to make paper. Even more fascinating, we stopped by the paper store next door and watched some women making incredible pictures out of torn bits of tissue paper. Tuesday afternoon, we took the bullet train down south to Tainan to catch up with a friend we hadn't seen since grad school days, early 1990s. . .

More Singapore

Singapore Day 2: Walking and Sweating

Irene kindly picked us up at the hotel early in the morning and chauffeured us around for the day. We did a lot of walking outside in hot muggy weather. The zoo was the first stop. We were reminded that we were not in a western country when en route, a sizable wild monkey ran across the road in front of the car. Monkey roadkill would have been a novel sight - but was not to be this day. Highlights of the zoo were the white tigers and the orangutans. If I remember correctly, the white tigers, not albino, are a species that is extinct in the wild now. The orangutans are very popular with the Singaporeans; the zoo's mascot used to be an orangutan. There was a collection of about 5 orangutans sitting on the lower branches of a tree out of the enclosure for photo ops while we were there - for a fee, of course. They were happily munching on fruit.

A local hawker center was our next stop. A hawker center is a large open air area with lots and lots of food stalls. Irene helped us order, and we enjoyed what I still remember as the best meal I ate during all our time in Asia! My favorite was a noodle dish with dumplings.

Chinatown was next. There was some great shopping at the market there, and the kids enjoyed some bubble tea. We briefly visited a Hindu temple. At our request, Irene took us into a low income apartment building so we could see what that was like. It looked like it was mainly populated by the elderly. Some of the apartment doors were open so we could peek in and see the rooms, which were quite small. Things generally seemed neat, though quite old and a bit run down.

The last stop of the day was at a stall selling . . . durian. Durian is a fruit, prickly and hard on the outside but oh so very mushy on the inside. Since it is quintessential Singaporean fare, we couldn't leave the country without trying it. (Well, actually we could have. . .) The taste was odd, not fresh and fruity but not too bad, actually. The biggest obstacle for me was the texture. The kids weren't thrilled; I think the girls never even tasted it. It didn't help that we knew beforehand that durian is banned on subways and in hotels due to its strong smell, which resembles rotten fish.

Irene told us some interesting things about Singapore while driving us around. For a while, Singapore was an undeveloped city in the country of Malaysia. The government, however, becoming increasingly concerned about Singapore's high Chinese population, expulsed the island city in 1963. This was a problem for the Singaporeans since they didn't have the resources for viability as an independent nation. Forced to turn to the resources of other nations, they figured out how to attract foreign investors, a practice which made them one of the most modern and industrialized countries in Asia today - and still an Asian financial hub, I believe.

For better or worse, the Singaporean government seems to have a strong say in citizens personal finances. There is a mandatory savings program; I think Irene said that 20% of one's salary is automatically put into a personal fund used mainly for retirement. And there are income level parameters, high and low, on the sorts of housing one is allowed to buy.

Yes, Singapore seemed generally clean and safe, but it didn't strike me as unusually so. Or maybe I just didn't pay attention. It has all the trappings and bustle of a big busy city and an interesting mixture of old and modern architecture. I did notice some large beautiful trees lining some streets, rain trees I think, and beautiful garden areas.

Home Again, Home Again, Jiggety Jig

I haven't posted for weeks. . . I wonder if anyone is still reading? Once we got to China, I couldn't get to my blog - or any other blogspot blogs for that matter. I think they're blocked by the Chinese government? Then, I took a week at home to get re-acclimated.

Yes, 29 flights in 6 months, and we're right back where we started!! We arrived home Sunday, May 25, around 6 pm. Upon arrival, I was feeling pretty carpy after 3 flights in a row, 23 hours straight of travelling (only about 18 of those were in the air) - and this on the heels of 2 flights and 1 taxi ride from Lijiang, China to Hong Kong the preceding day. A habit of insomnia on planes didn't help either. However, I wasn't feeling carpy enough to entirely miss the surreality of being back in a place that seemed like it belonged in a different life.

First impressions of being back in Ann Arbor, Michigan:
1. It is SO green and lush here! Vegetation is just sprouting everywhere out of control (especially the dandelions in our yard) - and the trees are tall. We basically live in a forest.
2. Awaking to the sound of songbirds Monday morning was so much more pleasant than waking to the squawking of cockatoos and crowing of wattle birds.
3. After picking up Peppa (Pepper's new more Aussie name) on Monday, I was struck by how she wags her tail nonstop. She must have some strong tail muscles. I'd forgotten about this.
4. We'd also forgotten about the bad Michigan roads. Lots of potholes and cracks.

I am feeling more human this week. Last week, I was tired and woozy off and on and at odd times. I think I'm done with crashing in the afternoons now.

We got back just in time for some members of our family to do more travelling. David has been to California and back already. Hannah went on her 3 day 6th grade trip to N. Michigan last week. They went out on Lake Michigan and collected and analyzed water samples, among other activities. Saturday, David is heading back to California for 7 days, and Monday, Ian is going on his 8th grade trip to Washington DC for 4 days. So, next week will be girls' week in our home! :-) (I think there may be a lot of chocolate.)

Personally, I'm planning on staying home as much as possible the next few months. Yes, this is home in a way Adelaide never was and never could be with such a short tenure. But there are bits of Adelaide that are stuck to me, fond memories that I relish. Toward preserving and sharing those memories, I will continue blogging here until everything I want to share is up. So, stay tuned, if you wish. . .