Week #4: Our First Typhoon

I received a rather unpleasant wake up call this morning from the winds on the

forefront of Typhoon Fanapi banging on our windows. The powerful winds have continued

to whistle through the windows and sliding doors onto our patio area all morning, spraying

hard rain against the thin panes of glass. We had intended on jumping on a train yesterday to head to Kaoshiung (pronounced as if the K is a G), which is about an hour train ride south west of Chiayi and also happens to be the second biggest city in Taiwan. However, neither of us were particularly thrilled about the prospect of experiencing our first typhoon while traveling so we'll save that trip for a weekend with more ideal weather conditions.

Although our jobs continue to challenge our patience in terms of how unorganized the school is (at times), how little we have in the way of support with classes, and overall discipline with many of the classes (several of the kids are quite spoiled), we both feel that we have a pretty good handle on things. Each class, and even each individual student, has their own learning style and specific motivator(s), and it's taken an effort to discover these through trial and error. Emphasis on the error part. I have rarely felt as ridiculous as when I find myself in front of a class, feeling utterly incapable of trying to present material in a way that a confused student can find accessible. Keeping a class of tired (and very self-aware) teenagers interested in a story about Mud Volcanoes in Azerbaijan, which lacks any frame of reference for the students, while trying to encourage conversation, is about as close to impossible as I can imagine. I have found myself resorting to playing a lot of games to get the kids laughing and a little more comfortable with communicating, but you can only keep them speaking English for so long. One of my classes consists of four thirteen or fourteen year old boys who all tend to have a bit of an attitude and insist on chatting in Chinese all the time. I've told Sara a few times that I would love to pull a little "football coach" mentality with them and have them run until their too tired to chat, but unfortunately I don't think that's an option. Again, I feel obligated to send out an apology to all those teachers and coaches (and parents) to whom myself and my friends were infuriating at times. Your patience astonishes me. Please don't take these minor complaints as a message of overall frustration. We have certainly faced challenges so far but overall, our students are very intelligent, easily engaged, and quick to pick things up. I've found great pleasure in engaging in conversation with some of the higher level students, and it's hard to compare any other feeling to leaving a class with the knowledge that a lesson has sunk in for your students.

We continue to discover odd, hilarious, and beautiful things every day. For instance, we were at a nearby supermarket getting some groceries and other supplies (it's called Carrefour, but you can just think Meijer, minus any English), and I recieved an urgent call from nature. I hustled to find the nearest restroom and opened the stall door only to find this floor level toilet staring back up at me. I don't know if people don't go #2 in public restrooms here or if everyone simply has excellent balance, but I decided not to test my luck.

Another very interesting experience we have stumbled upon are the water refill stations. The tap water here in is unfit for consumption, so everyone simply purchases filtered jugs of water at the store. We had been doing this since we arrived, and although a five gallon jug is just over a dollar (American), it tends to add up. We were told to check out the refill station down the street from our apartment, so the other day we grabbed a few empty jugs and some coins and headed out. The refill station was indeed close to our apartment and literally looked like a small, coin operated gas station. There are three levels of purity, costing NT$5, 10, 15 each (less than 50 cents) for 5 gallons. We've been making trips ever since and certainly appreciate the extra money we've been saving.

It's hard to believe we've been here nearly a month now, and harder to believe that many of these very odd new experiences and sights are quickly becoming commonplace for us. I no longer laugh out loud when I see someone driving their scooter with their dog between their legs. I'm certainly growing accustomed to going out in public and not seeing any other foreigners. And I am getting used to deducing how to prepare food that is in a bag with zero English on it. Next up on our list of things to do: figure out how to pay bills, begin Chinese lessons, and make our first trip out of Chiayi. Until then, I hope you are all very happy and healthy, and I implore you to appreciate the overabundance of English cooking directions on your food!

The Female Perspective

For my first blog post, I would like to give you the Taiwan experience from the female perspective. Dave has covered a lot, however there are a few things that I think should be noted. First, I will share my feature presentation regarding the good, the bad, and the ugly sides of Taiwan as I have experienced it thus far. Then, so as not to end on a sad note, I will discuss the interesting differences that have stood out in my mind upon arriving here. Enjoy!

Now for my feature presentation...

Taiwan: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

The Good:

-The black tea is absolutely AMAZING!! Dave and I are completely hooked. Iced black tea has become a daily indulgence for both of us. And it's so cheap! Only 15 NT$ (which is about $0.50 US). If you come here, you must try it!

-The people are extremely kind. The other night upon the closing of Ghost Month, a family who was eating dinner outside their home invited us to join in their feast. We did not partake, but this just goes to show how welcoming the people here truly are.

-The children at our school are adorable. I must admit the first few days of teaching were dreadful. All of the kids were testing the limits to see what they could get away with under the new teachers. But once I laid down the law, they straightened right up. Everyday gets better and I've been able to appreciate their wonderful/different personalities more and more.

-Our apartment building has a rooftop deck from which you can see the mountains in the very near distance. It's absolutely beautiful. It's also great for viewing sunsets. And as noted below, since there seem to be no electric driers, it's great for line drying our clothes.

The Bad:

-This humidity is killer! It's been really tough getting used to. Luckily the worst is over for now, and fall will bring much more temperate weather. I'm definitely missing the midwest fall colors and smells though. Especially since everyone on facebook is posting about the wonderful fall days they're having.

The Ugly:

-The stray dog and cat population is literally breaking my heart. On our first weekend here, we excitedly strolled over to the enormous park on the edge of the city only to be confronted by a stray puppy within minutes of entering the park. He was tiny, week, dirty, and obviously malnourished. I gave him some water, but had nothing more to share with him. Luckily for Dave we had not yet moved into our permanent apartment so I couldn't take him home with me. But mark my words if I could have, I would have taken him home in a second. I very reluctantly walked away from the puppy at Dave's urging and proceeded to cry my eyes out. It was just too much for my animal lover heart to handle. Then last weekend as we were walking home from the grocery store, there was an adult stray dog standing in the middle of a very busy intersection with his ears back and his tail between his legs. He was obviously terrified, but everyone that walked past him just walked by as if they didn't even see him. I was outraged! I desperately wanted to go help him, but Dave put the kabosh to that as we did not know the temperament of the stray population and I really can't afford to get bitten since we don't have our ARC card yet. Anyways, I made Dave stay and watch with me until he finally got out of the intersection and trotted down the street. I walked away from this situation in tears as well. I've decided I'm definitely going to start carrying dog treats with me for just such encounters. If I'd had treats I could have at least coerced the dog into crossing the street. I also would have had something to share with that stray puppy. The cat situation is not much better, however cats are at least more agile and independent. For some reason, they seem much more capable of caring for themselves. This doesn't make me ok with it by any means, but I'm at least comforted in knowing they have supreme hunting skills.

Now to lighten things up a bit...

The Different:

Here is a list of the things that are so different here than in the US that it is worth noting before they become the norm for us.

1. Garbage is picked up every day of the week, however there are no dumpsters. Every night the garbage truck drives around playing the same song over and over again, loud enough so that people in their homes/apartments can hear it and everyone comes out into the street and throws their trash in the truck as it slowly drives by. One could argue that your entire social life revolves around the garbage collection. (***see video at bottom***)

2. Urban Planning is nonexistent. There are beautiful mansions and expensive condos next door to run down shacks that look as though they are not fit for human habitation. It's quite interesting. I suppose it's kind of nice in the sense that there are no "bad" parts of town. Everywhere you go in the city is pretty much the same in terms of appearance and safety. And let me note, crime is extremely low here.

3. Apparently, staring at people is not considered rude. We get stared at constantly everywhere we go. Whether we are just walking down the street, are in a restaurant, or are grocery shopping, the people see so few foreigners here that they can't help but stare at us. Just the other night we were eating dinner at a restaurant we frequent (one of the few places with an English menu), and the two girls sitting behind us were giggling and "nonchalantly" taking pictures of us on their phones. We don't mind terribly, it's just very weird for us.

4. No matter how hot it is, almost everyone wears long sleeves (especially the women). I thought this was absolutely insane the first day we were here and we were sweating bullets in the lightest clothing we owned while everyone else was wearing long sleeves, and in some cases long pants. I asked our director that day if it was culturally ok for women to wear tank tops here as I had yet to see a single female revealing her shoulders and he said it was perfectly fine. Then I asked, "So why is everyone wearing long sleeves in this hot, humid weather?". He responded, "it's the same as people wearing a hat in the US." They do it to protect from sun exposure. I didn't say anything but my first thought was, "hasn't anyone heard of sunscreen over here?? This is madness!!" Anyways, I later found out that contrary to the tan standard of beauty in the US, the standard of beauty here is to be as pale as possible. The lighter the skin, the better. Therefore, rather than relying on sunscreen to protect them from the sun, they just completely cover their skin. I guess better safe than sorry. I, however, will not be joining the masses. It's just WAY to hot for this senorita!

5. Toilet paper does not get flushed down the toilet, it is always thrown in the garbage. It's really not as gross as you would think though because like I said in #1, the garbage goes out everyday. It's definitely been tough to get used to though.

6. There seems to be not a single electric clothes drier in the country. Every single apartment I've seen has a small outdoor area for drying clothes. Although I'm sure the wealthier population has them, the rest of us must line dry our clothes. This has resulted in some very stiff clothing, which is less than desirable when you put on a nice clean shirt. Oh how I miss the soft, wonderful smelling clothes that are fresh out of the dryer. We did however discover that our rooftop is a much more effective place to dry our clothes. They also come out minus the stiffness due to them flapping in the breeze.

Well that's all I can think of for now. I hope you've enjoyed the female perspective :-) Until next time.... Love and miss you all!

-Sara

Week #1: Standing out a bit...

It is the first Saturday after having started work, and I have been woken up by the sound of very loud, incessant drumming outside, which is accompanied by what sounds like a lot of people chanting. It turns out there is a temple across the street from our apartment building, and apparently Saturdays are their day of worship, as there are several tents in the square in front of the temple and it's pretty obvious that the sounds are coming from there. Not the greatest of wake up calls, but I had wanted a good chunk of time to write about this week anyways, so I'm not too devastated.

After spending the first five days here in Taiwan living in a temporary apartment equipped with a bathroom, bed, tv, and a mini-fridge (think: college dorm room), we have finally moved into our permanent apartment. The couple whom we've replaced worked up until the day we started and thus didn't move out until our actual start date, which was Wednesday. Although the two of them were very informative about the myriad of details that come with our jobs, Sara and I have been incredibly overwhelmed all week. Each of us teach several different skill levels and ages throughout each day, with very little time in between to gather materials (aka different reading, writing, vocab, and spelling books per class). We've both ended up working several additional hours every day just due to attempting to plan out each of our individual classes. Our schedules are as follows:

Sara:

9:30-11:30 - Elephant Class (the youngest students)

Dave:

11:30-12 - Elephant Class (I get to read a very easy mini-book with them and then play games)

Lunch/Lesson Planning

S&D:

2-5 - ESL classes (ages ranging from 1st to 4th grade levels)

S&D:

5:05-6:05 - Pre-teen classes who go to regular Chinese school during the day

Dinner break

D:

6:40-8:40 - Generally teenagers who are continuing English education after regular school (read: not very excited about still being in school at this time of day)

Needless to say, this has been a bit of a crash course in teaching for both of us, but we got through it relatively unscathed and having learned a number of fun games (including several very fun card games). Many of the classes and students are very fun, easily engaged, and excited to learn, but as with any class, there are a few that are not happy to be at school and have been pushed through the system without truly processing the information and are in levels above their actually abilities. That being said, I will never jump to conclusions about a teacher's abilities again. I hereby send out an unheard apology to all teachers who seemed to have gotten flustered and easily frustrated by any of the classes I've been in in my life.

Enough about school. We are apparently not only receiving a crash course in teaching, but in Asian culture and navigating this entirely new world. Let me start by saying that the driving here is absolutely crazy. Nearly everyone has scooters, and although for the most part traffic lights are obeyed, most other rules that we're used to are apparently nonexistent. I don't know if it's our city in particular or a Taiwan thing, but it is far from being a pedestrian friendly city. We have every intention of joining the masses on scooters as soon as we get our first paycheck, if for nothing more than to avoid having to shimmy along parked cars and scooters to avoid being blown past (I may be exaggerating here a bit, but in actuality there aren't many sidewalks). When someone wants to park, they simply squeeze into any open area. Double parking is apparently a non-issue, and people regularly pull right up to the many little food and tea stands and order from their scooter. I've seen what looks like parking tickets on peoples cars, but for the most part it doesn't seem to be that much a deterrent.

The rumors that eating out is significantly less expensive than buying your own food at the grocery stores is true, although about 1 in 10 restaurants have English menus or good enough pictures to convey what we want, so we've had to stick to a few places we've already found. Like with jumping on the scooter bandwagon, we have every intention of learning some functional Chinese as quickly as possible to help deal with this. The people have been every bit as warm and inviting as we had heard, and even without knowing a lick of Chinese (aside from hello and thank you), we have managed a few successful interactions when necessary. We've tried some very interesting food so far, as well as having vastly improved our chopstick skills. Among our food sampling has been: fully BBQed/steamed fish (head and everything), hot-pots (a bit like a fondue, with tons of veggies, fish, rice, tofu, and what we concluded was breaded fish testicle - NOTE: WAS NOT EATEN)

Also spotted along the way have been several octopi, squid, frogs (with the heads removed), egg crepes, waffle sandwiches, and eggs being served with just about anything to make the meal a *breakfast*. We've both tried to adopt very open minds to trying stuff, although I don't see myself going for any testicles or headless frogs any time in the foreseeable future.

Our first week here has been overwhelming, exciting, odd, shocking, and enjoyable all at the same time, and we're both thrilled to see where the next year here will take us. For more pictures, feel free to check out my facebook page, including some great ones of Chia-Yi Park, which is just a ten minute walk from our apartment!I look forward to any feedback about our adventures! I will end on a bit of a fun video of our trip last weekend to the park (at the bottom of the page).