The flight was long, but I was able to sleep surprisingly well. I was worried because the owner of the hostel I am staying at had told me that they do not check in people after 10PM. I wrote him an email and he said he'd stay up for me, but I didn't know what to think. By 9:30 PM, my luggage had still not come out and I was nervous. My taxi driver was a man in his 40s - a history buff, like my father. He was thrilled to I could speak Chinese and he spent the 40 minute drive telling me about the political/social/cultural differences between Taipei and Beijing. We got into history as well and he recounted to me how Chiang Kai-Shek was able to manipulate other great nationalist generals and make a grab to power. He also mentioned a bunch of American military persons (who's names I cannot remember) who he greatly admired for their helping of the nationalists during the civil war, as well as when Chiang Kai Shek and his army fled to Taiwan. He seemed shocked that these peoples names did not come up in our history classes back in the states. He kind of made me feel stupid... but I guess I (like so many of my fellow Americans) am the product of an education system that focuses predominantly on the western world. As when I was in China, it is quite humbling being here. I know absolutely nothing about living in this world and at every corner there is exciting new cultural/historical knowledge to explore. I feel like a know-nothing here... but it is a feeling that I absolute love!
I did make it in the hostel, but it was very scary checking in. The room is on the third floor of what looks like an abandoned garage. Very nice on the interior, but from the exterior you wouldn't even guess that there were people living inside. I would have guessed it was some kind of storage facility.
In the morning, I woke around 7AM (jetlag will do that to a 22 year old boy!) and went outside. The first thing I saw when I went outside was an army of motorbikes, bikes, and mopeds. I have never seen so many bikes in my life! The street out front of the hostel is narrow and long (about half the length of a standard city block). Yet the entire street was filled front to back, sidewalk to sidewalk with motorcycles - each driver shoulder to shoulder. With the changing of the stop light, I suddenly heard the sound of 200 + bikes accelerating... quite a site to behold for tired little me who had still not even had a morning cup of coffee!
I decided early on that I would walk the entire day, the point being that I wanted to familiarize myself with the city as much as possible before committing to an apartment. My first stop, however, was the immigration office. There is something about living on a tropical island that just makes people happier. When I arrived, I was expecting DMV style service, yet everyone there was smiling and super friendly. The lady who took my picture and I actually ended up having a really nice long conversation, which helped pass the time seeing as I had drawn ticket #680 and they were currently only serving #632.
Following my time at the office of immigration, I went to search for a phone. During my walk, I suddenly saw heavily armed guards standing in front of a very elegant looking corner building. Little had I known, I was coming up upon Taipei's equivalent of the White House! Why do I always live in capitals?
After finding my phone, I had set up 4 meetings with landlords to go and look at apartments. One South of campus, one east, one north, and one west... and I walked to each one... in flip flops! None of the following three, however, even compared to the first! Near Wanlong MRT, the apartment is both cheap, newly renovated, and in a quieter area! It is only a 15-20 minute walk from where my classes will be (or a 2 minute metro ride - which only costs 50 cents!). It is off in a small side ally, 5 minutes away from a busy street - just far enough to miss all of the crazy city noises! At the same time, some of Taipei's hottest and liveliest places are only 3 or 4 metro stops away. The other apartments were the same price, yet they were smaller, without kitchens, and only had twin beds (the first place had a queen size!). Needless to say, I jumped on the Wanlong apartment, which had only come on the market the day before I saw it. The landlords were thrilled. A cute elderly retired Taiwanese couple, I did feel like I connected well with them and they seemed to be really nice people. I will move in today and Rachel on the 1st of September!
My apartment search was over by 9 and a little after that I met up with a GW classmate, Christina. She has been in Taiwan all summer and has been to the island several times before this. We went jogging in DaAn park - one of the largest parks in Taipei. I admire her dedication - it is very hot, but she still goes jogging every night! Afterwards, we went to a tea shop - part of her post jog routine every night. She drinks an unsweetened green tea, I decided to order a lemon tea. We went and sat in a nearby park and she gave me a rundown on the city. It was so nice to see a familiar face. Keeping with the spirit of being healthy after our jog, I then bought some fried eggplant from a street vendor. For a 50 cent meal, it was absolutely delicious!
Oh yea... and somewhere in between all this I managed to take a tour of my new Alma Mater, which is also right across the street from the hostel I'm currently in. Picture time!
National Taiwan University (TaiDa or NTU) was founded in 1928 during the Japanese colonial era. NTU is Taiwan's most prestigious university and is among the best in Asia. More than half of Taiwan's presidents are alumni and the institution has produced multiple nobel laureates. So... what am I doing here? All I can say is that being a white guy who can speak Chinese definitely helped.
Various Academic Buildings:
The causeway to the library - which is absolutely gorgeous! (Note the palm trees)
Items of historical/cultural significance to the institution (I'll get back to you when I know for sure what they are/why they are significant):
Student Parking Lot - I'm considering painting my bike an obnoxiously hot pink... its probably the only way to be able to tell which is mine!
Yes, the school comes complete with a lake. It has a cute coffee shop with outdoor seating right next door. It is also filled with turtles. The school also has its own farm (not pictured) for the agricultural science students.
Track, tennis courts, basketball courts, gym... and much more!
... and of course, the surrounding area is incredibly lively with LOTS of FOOD!
Please excuse any typos. I have elected speed, over quality.
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