Taiwan: HOME AWAY FROM HOME

Things I Love:
-Food!
-The beauty of this country
-The brand of Mandarin spoken here!
-Riding a scooter
-I can just park my bike right outside the train station, lock it up & get on the train!
-I don't have to pay for parking in this city
-"Quiet embience" of Douliu City
-The MRT Transit system in Taipei City/County (Super clean & efficient!)
-"Yo-Yo" card...add money onto my MRT or bus card in Taipei
-Fall weather...mild for me! It may be interesting to see how I fair in the winter here without a heater & a thick blanket!
-Fact that 85˚C is on the rise & giving Starbucks a run for its money!

Pet Peeves...
-A lot of smokers
-People who smoke on the train even when it's NOT allowed
-Betel Nut consumers who spit on the ground causing it to stain it red for a longtime!
-Crazy nut drivers! FREE for ALL TOLERANCE of poor driving!
-No such thing as personal space (P.S.) [my sister says the same goes for Japan!] E.g., people don't leave any room for you when lining up...they usually just stand pretty much beside you or RIGHT behind you.

DAILY LIVING:
1. People wear their scooter helmets backwards (what's the point???)
2. Children who pick their nose and eat it....better yet when you catch them, they pretend like nothing happened!
3. Stray dogs
4. You're actually allowed to bring in outside food to some movie theatres
5. Students bow and respectfully greet me.
6. Even when it's not really necessary, people (especially in the retail industry) say, "bao chien" - which means, "sorry".
7. Soup is a supplement to daily meals. When you order food, they usually ask if you want soup to go with it.
8. Once people meet you & converse for a few minutes, many (I notice women especially) proceed to ask, "are you married yet?" Oh brother...
9. The musical tune of the garbage truck collection.

ON THE RADAR SCREEN:
1. Xiao Liuchiu Island
2. Dapeng Bay National Scenic Area (sea kayaking)
3. Sun Moon Lake
4. Wulai/Beitou Hotsprings
5. Kaoshuing City
6. Taitung County
7. Penghu Islands
8. Kinmen Island
9. Lanyu Island
10. Matsu Island
11. Hualien (whitewater rafting)