Yehliu GeoPark & a few other stops

October 23, 2008

There is an excellent resource for expats here in Taipei called the Community Services Center. I found it a couple of weeks ago and marveled at all the things they have for us to do as well as all the things they've figured out...they've even written a book that they update every 2 years that I now swear by. Its my bible for living here and I consult it daily! I love sightseeing with Matt and Caitlin, but there is so much to do here that if I wait for the weekends alone I'd be missing so much. Besides, I need to get to all these places so I know where to bring our guests. So I signed Caitlin and I up for a trip to the northern coast of Taiwan, about an hour from here, to see the Pacific Ocean from this side of the world, the beaches of northern Taiwan and trek around the Yehliu GeoPark.

Yehliu GeoPark is a long cape in northern Taiwan formed by the Datum Mountain. It is surrounded by a very prosperous fishing village. Squid fishing to be exact. The cape itself reaches far into the sea. With the help of sea erosion and more recently weathering the rocks formed in this area 10-25 million years ago have turned into fantastic geological works of nature. The rocks themselves are rather intriguing taking on the shapes of candles, Cinderella's slipper, mushrooms, whales and the Queen of England herself!

So Caitlin and I packed our lunches and supplies into a backpack built to hold both toddler and "stuff" and we boared the bus to Yehliu at 9am. For those who know me well, you understand that getting us both out the door by 9am was a feat within itself! Caitlin had her own seat on the bus which made the commute extremely comfortable for both of us. I hate that car seats are not the norm here in Taiwan, but felt some assurance in knowing that size rules the roads in this country and we'd be a little safer on the bus (than in a cab). This bus also had seat belts so we were both strapped in for a change. She sat still on the bus with the help of some stickers and paper and snacks and songs...

The town of Yehliu boasts fish the way Taipei does dumplings. There are fish markets and stands every few steps. There are prepared-to-eat fish and fresh cut fish (should I say fillet?) and then the super fresh ones that are still swimming around. Y'all know me and fish - it really gave me the heebie geebies. Luckily, (and rather miraculously) it didn't smell like fish. After a short trek through the village we arrived at the geopark. The park was picturesque with the backdrop of the Pacific Ocean sporting the most crystal/mystical blue I've ever seen. The sandstone structures took center stage, but if you took a moment to look away you'd notice that they enveloped in rolling hills of lush greenery. Deep inside the green someone carved trails to hike or stone tables and chairs just sit and enjoy the view.

Being with a group has it's advantages and disadvantages. I think the disadvantage here was the agenda and time limitation. There was so much more to take in and I would have loved to take a ton of pictures of Caitlin, but I just didn't have enough hands or time. Speaking of hands, I have to mention that I was with the kindest group of strangers you'd ever meet. Our group spanned the globe and all were eager to help out in some way. They made me feel much more comfortable with my decision to "strike it out on my own."

Here's that beautiful Pacific Ocean

This is supposed to be Cinderella's slipper. I have a hard time with this one...

This is the Portrait of the Queen. Posing next to it is a British lady on our tour.

Girls on a hike!

From the geopark we moved onto another national park, but I didn't get to see any of it. Personal choice. Caitlin and I, as well as a few other travelers, found a shady spot and sprawled out for lunch. It was a well timed idea, but not an easy execution. As mentioned in previous blogs, Caitlin tends to attract a lot of attention. We seemed to do okay at the geopark because she was hard to spot on my back with the sun canopy over her. When we arrived at the next park she was no longer in the backpack AND there was a tour bus full of Taiwanese senior citizens who just wanted EVERYTHING to do with her. Thankfully, no cameras. However, the interest level grew too aggressive and she just couldn't eat (and neither could I) so we moved to another, more secluded, spot. I would absolutely hate to be a celebrity!

The last stop we made was at the most creepy, disgusting, run down, dirty, ghetto-ish place I have ever been in my life. However, it is home to the most popular and sacred temple in Taiwan (or so I'm told) and has a happening night life if you're in the market for a hooker or a bowl of snails. Yeah, nice place. I'll be sure to bring all my guests here! Seriously. We were here to see the sacred Temple of the Dog. As the story goes, zillions of years ago some fishermen went out to sea and never returned. One of the fisherman's had a dog that stayed behind. He waited and waited for his master to return and after days of waiting, the dog jumped into the ocean and died so that he could be reunited with his master in another life. So, they built a temple for him. It is common for worshipers to rub gold paper on the dogs nose. I'm not sure if this is for good luck or just a sign of worship. Either way, I rubbed my gold sheet of paper on the dog's nose. I felt lucky enough to get out of there unscathed.

Aside from seeing awesome wonders of nature, it was an empowering day. Empowering because I now know that both Caitlin and I are able to get through a little adventure together alone and won't have any hesitation about doing it again (which is a good thing because we're signed up for a few more trips already!). Oddly, it was also a day of reflection for me. Caitlin fell asleep in my arms on the bus ride home (it was naptime). As I gazed at her sweet, sleepy face I was so thankful to have these arms to hold her, a body capable enough to haul her around on my back, for people to open their hearts and help us and as always, the opportunity to be here to begin with. Creation, whether it be human or nature is a marvelous thing. I am blessed to be witness to it all.

Here is a link to all of my photos from our travels. Enjoy! http://picasaweb.google.com/taralheller/20081023TripToYehliuGeopark?authkey=IgnKW1xik2Q#

Oktoberfest!

October 19th
One of the last places on earth I'd ever expect to have any sort of German influence is Taiwan. Of course one of the last places I ever expected to be living is Taiwan so you see, strange things do happen. And then of course, strange is in the eye of the beholder. Howevery, I suppose that the idea of a German bakery is not so much strange as it is the last little bit of home I ever expected to find here. And I mean home home. Like the home where I grew up. Gazing through the window takes me back to my first job at Nussex Farm and their glorious German baked goods. All the same pastries greet me here only they are smaller and fancier. Perfect for trying a whole bunch at one time!!

From what I understand, Wendel's is a 4th generation German bakery that is very well known here in Tianmu. Matt and I stopped there for lunch when we were here on our survey trip in July. It's about a mile up the road from our house. Our friends, Adam & Sara, had never been to this area of town. They heard about Oktoberfest and found that to be excuse enough to get over here. So we got a hold of our favorite local babysitter and joined them. Thank goodness I thought up the babysitter idea! This was no place for Caitlin!! There were rows and rows of tables crammed under this tent. Everything was really crammed in there with little room to move. There were smokers (yuck!) flanking either side of us and it was very, very loud. Not to mention the fact that you just can't consume vast amounts of alcohol and chase your toddler around. Compared to our dear friends that went to the actual Oktoberfest in Germany this year, we really didn't drink much, but it was more beer than I've had in one sitting since college. Or maybe since I lost my shoe in the Schuylkill River in Manayunk one night. Ahhhh...those were the days.

Anyway, the evening was a funny mix of German/Asian fusion meets the eyes of a girl who just can't believe what she is seeing, hearing or eating. Based on what Matt has told me, Asians don't drink all that much alcohol. So I think a lot of the people there really didn't know what to make of all this. When the German band started to play, they asked everyone to link arms with their neighbor and sway and cheer to some beer drinking song. I think we were the only "swayers" in the tent. No one understood what we were doing! Language barrier. A few beers later our neighbors raised their glasses to us and started to sway along. Gambe! (That is my phonetic spelling for the Mandarin word "cheers.") So along the line of other funny things was the band playing many rounds of "Happy Birthday" to random people and a few locals chugging beer...they did about as well as I would. It wasn't a pretty sight - although there was this one skinny little thing that got up on stage and absolutely housed her beer! Rather impressive. We also noticed that the bakery had imported some actual Germans to work the tables. They dressed them up in lederhosen and other traditional garb. The Germans took the food/beverage orders and the local workers delivered the food. There seemed to be some confusion built into this system, but in the end we got our grub and all was well. Speaking of food...

The pork knuckle turned out to be a rotisseried portion of pig that simply fell off the bone when served. The meat was very tender and the mustard was every bit as good as I remembered the mustard being when I was in Germany. Mmmm. It was served as an appetizer along with the German cheese platter I decided I needed to have. Matt & I enjoyed bratwurst with mashed potatoes and sauerkraut. Also quite good. I finished off this culinary experience with a delicious piece of chocolate cake topped with gooey raspberry sauce and some sort of crunchy-crumbly stuff on top. It was the best chocolate experience I've had in Taiwan thus far. Can't say it pairs well with beer, but it was a great way to end the night. Matt topped off the eveing with a big soft "bretzel" which I swear is a pretzel spelled incorrectly. Either way, it was yummy.

Here is a link to our pictures from Oktoberfest. Enjoy!
http://picasaweb.google.com/taralheller/20081019Octoberfest?authkey=nOu2ArF-pjI#

CKS Memorial take 2, jade market, flower market & famous dumplings

October 18-19, 2008

Another weekend has passed without raindrops or typhoons or even toddler naps to dodge! While there is still about 6 weeks left in typhoon season, those wicked storms seem to have quieted down for the time being. The "fall" weather is still in the mid to high 80's, but the humidity is low and the tropical breeze helps keep us cool. We've been out and about making the most of this optimal weather. I hear we won't see much more of it until this time next year.

On Saturday we set off to the Chang Kai-Shek (CKS) Memorial again in hopes to see it sparkle in the sunshine. What a difference a few days make! The grounds were alive with the flutter of a carnival. There were floats, costumed dancers and drum lines. Of course we weren't there long before Caitlin's paparazzi arrived and it was through an English speaking photographer that I learned what we were witnesses was a carnival. I asked what the purpose of it was, but I don't think he knew. Anyhow, the festivities took place on the entrance grounds where there was absolutely no shade to be found, so we scooted off to the gardens where there was lots of tree cover to protect us from the heat. And far less paparazzi.

Video of the drum line (top) Video of Caitlin's paparazzi (bottom)

For an out-of-towner, or perhaps better stated, an out-of-countryer, I find so much wonder when I walk out our door. My eyes rest upon architecture that is just so uncommon and I find myself in a constant state of amazement as I take in all the layers and details and know that there are probably more delicate details too embedded into the culture for me to ever find alone. For example, Fung Shui is quite popular in Taiwan and it's not like they label it so you know why there's a pond here to perhaps drown your sorrows in and a mirror there to reflect good luck upon your family or that the building is facing east because your spirit rises in that direction...It truly is fascinating. Thankfully, the grandeur of these sights helps to relieve my disappointment in the simplicity of the gardens at the CKS Memorial. Given the popularity of the memorial I had envisioned gardens straight out of Longwood Gardens or the Duke Gardens or the Hershey Gardens. It's not like that at all. The gardens are well kept, but very low maintenance. There are very few flowers and no intricately carved bushes. No bonsai trees either. Still, there was much to be amazed by. I've included a link to our pictures from this outing. You'll see what I mean.

From CKS we moved onto the flower & jade markets. These two markets spring to life on the weekends. They are each about one very large city block in length and they are located under the Jianguo flyover (basically, a highway...or so I think). The flower market consists of hundreds of small booths staffed by growers from as far away as central Taiwan to sell their blooms. Everything from the simple cut sunflower to the exotic bonsai tree can be found as well as seeds, vases, compost, pots, garden tools and ornate wooden plant stands.

The jade market is dubbed northern Taiwan's "mecca for jade lovers." It's set up exactly like the flower market and boasts some 900 or so sellers of the stone. According to the Discovery Channel's guidebook on Taipei, this jade market may be one of the largest in all of Asia. There is jade in all forms, statues, jewelry and au naturel. Antiques and contemporary-a little something for everyone can be found here. The downside...well, we don't happen to know all that much Mandarin. In addition, we really don't look Taiwanese either. it's really helpful if you speak the language and look Asian. I believe the prices the vendors typed into their calculators were jacked up for us western-looking folk, so ultimately, I walked away with nothing. I think I'll convince my new Taiwanese friend to come along with me someday and help negotiate.

While Matt & I were navigating our way in the markets under the highway, Caitlin took a 2 hour nap! This totally worked out in our favor because I'm sure she would have torn that jade market apart. All of the tables were right within her reach and there was little room to distance her grasp. She woke up shortly after we were out in the open again...on our way to get the most famous dumplings in Taiwan!

All about Din Tai Fung...

I'm not even going to try and restate the facts. This passage is straight out of Wikipedia. "Founder Bingyi Yang was born in Shanxi, China but moved to Taiwan in 1948 as a result of the Chinese civil war. After working 10 years at Heng Tai Fung, a cooking oil retailer, he found himself unemployed due the store's closing. Thus, he and his wife, Penmei Lai, founded Din Tai Fung (also a cooking oil retailer) in 1958. Around 1980, tinned cooking oil became prevalent, and business diminished drastically. In order to survive, Bingyi Yang and his wife began making and selling steamed buns, commonly known as dumplings to westerners, on the side. The buns/dumplings were so popular that the store stopped selling oil and became a full-fledged restaurant in the 1980s." In 1993, Din Tai Fung was named one of the best restaurants in the world by the New York Times.

And Tara says...

The New York Times was really onto something here. I really do not care for Asian food. It's not like anything we have in the US. In some ways I think it might be healthier over here, but then you factor in the common use of MSG and the fried you name it, it's fried and stuck on a stick (sort of like in the south, minus the fried Snickers bars). I really don't think it's all that much healthier. Overall, I don't like the smell of anything cooked here and I find most everything I eat unsatisfying and start craving my grandmother's macaroni and meatballs. Nothing like culinary satisfaction in good old Italian carbs! Mmmmm, I haven't had those in a while.

Din Tai Fung may have fooled me into thinking that they are the best and the healthiest dumpling establishment in Taiwan. First of all, they serve spinach. Spinach is something I can't seem to find here. Either that or I don't know what Taiwanese spinach looks like, because it sure doesn't resemble anything I would label as spinach. Whatever the case may be, this place serves spinach in all of it's crisp, bright green wonder sauteed in garlic. (You could probably win me over with anything sauteed in garlic.) For those of you nodding off over my obsession with spinach, hang on there's more. You might want to grab something caffeinated here...I'm about to get all long winded about food. I think in a former life I was a food critic. I should rename this blog to, "Tara eats her way through Taiwan." Okay, enough of that.

The dumplings...there are all different kinds of dumplings. We'll start with the different shapes. There are cute round ones that are about the size of a donut hole. They are stuffed and twisted at the top so they look more like a creamy white, dainty, sweet confection rather than a doughy meat and veggie filled salty wonder. Then there are crescent moon shaped dumplings that are equally as intricate in the folding of the dough at the seam. It's a fanned sort of twisting...hard to explain. You'll have to take a look at our pictures to really get the idea of what I'm trying to explain. These, too look pastry-like, but the dough is thinner and you can see the colors of the food stuffed inside. Then there are steamed buns which is a bigger, thicker, doughy-er bun-ish thing filled with saucy meats of your choice. They too are neatly twisted at the top and look like cakes. Then there are won-tons...most of you have seen these before. They are similar to those in the US, but the dough is less pasta-ish and quite thinner. I'm probably missing something here, but you get the idea. Onto the stuffing! Well, there's your choice of pork, shrimp, crab, mushrooms, spinach...you can even have "soup" in your dumplings! My memory is running short on the stuffings. They probably had more fish and therefore I skipped over it and didn't commit it to memory. We mostly ordered pork and veggie stuffings and then dipped our dumplings in one part soy sauce, 3 parts dark vinegar, fresh grated ginger and (of course) some oily hot pepper concoction. Pure salty heaven. The menu also has fried rice, all sorts of soups and steamed cakes, but unfortunately our stomachs could only hold so much. We stuffed ourselves silly and had a hard time sucking in our full bellies on the train ride home. Mmmmm.

I think that's enough blogging for tonight. Here's the link to our pictures from Saturday. Enjoy!

http://picasaweb.google.com/taralheller/20081018CKSMemorialFlowerMarketJadeMarketDumplings?authkey=OQ25DDlCMV4#

Chiang Kai-shek Memorial

October 14, 2008
As usual, first comes the history lesson...
You know, the one you've all been waiting for. Born on October 31, 1887 and died on April 5, 1975, (although Matt & I would like to argue with this "fact." The memorial said that he died in 1979. I even saw an award he received for his 90th birthday in 1977. Hmmm...). He served as Generalissimo (Chairman of the National Military Council) of the Nationalist Government of the Republic of China (ROC) from 1928 to 1948. When Sun Yat-sen died in 1925, Chiang took control of the Kuomintang (KMT). To end the Warlord era and unify China, Chiang led nationalist troops in the Northern Expedition. He became the overall leader of the ROC in 1928. Chiang led China in the Second Sino-Japanese War, during which the Nationalist Government's power severely weakened, but his prominence grew. During the civil war after the Japanese surrender in 1945, he attempted to eradicate the Chinese Communists but ultimately failed, forcing his KMT government to retreat to Taiwan, where he continued the struggle against the communist regime. Serving as the President of the Republic of China and Director-General of the KMT, Chiang died in 1975. Or 1979. Depends on who you believe, the ROC or non for profit Wikipedia? I'm with the ROC. Those folks wouldn't mess around with such an incredible historical figure.

We met our Raleigh friends, Brian and Chandra (the ones we met in Hong Kong), at the Hyatt in Taipei. Brian's assignment in mainland China has ended and he and his wife are traveling around before returning to the US. Being newcomers to Taiwan, it's still hard for us to decide what the most valuable, quick Taiwan experience is. Matt decided to take them to The Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial. I was very excited to see this, although my desire stems from my love of Chinese gardens and architecture, not the historical value or to pay homage to a leader. I think Matt has told me a dozen or so times the significance of CKS and still I needed to look him up in Wikipedia. Perhaps now I'll remember.

According to the guide books I've read, traditional, bold, arched, and architecturally exquisite Chinese gates front the grounds of this beautiful memorial. I, personally wouldn't know because for some reason we were dropped off at a side entrance and by the time we got to the front entrance it was pouring. I did get to walk through the gates on our way out, but really couldn't study them because I was dodging raindrops with Caitlin on my back and holding an umbrella. No time for fascination.

Built in 1980, it is set in a classic Chinese park and houses an imposing 25 ton bronze statue of the late leader (picture the Lincoln Memorial). Under the statue is a museum which features a chronological photographic synopses of his life as well as some of his possessions. It gives you a glimpse of the Nationalist view of 20th century Chinese history.

The gardens are supposed to be a hot spot for wedding photographs, strolls and everthing in between. I would loved to have stopped to stay a while, but it will have to wait for a dryer day.

Our visit to the Taipei Zoo

October 12, 2008
It was a rather clear, cool leisurely Sunday and we decided to take the Muzha line (that's the name of the railway) out to the Maokong Cable Car and take a look at Taipei from up in the sky. Matt and I tried to do this during our survey trip here back in July, but we went on a Monday and apparently a lot of domestic tourist attractions are closed on Mondays. We were really looking forward to it! We packed up and were on our way by 11am.

About a half hour later we arrived at our destination, stepped off the train and came across this announcement (see photo above). Are you kidding me? Safety inspection? Now what? We can't just go home! Ah, what luck. The Taipei Zoo is right next door and there will never be a more perfect day to walk around a zoo than today. As a matter of fact, I don't think either of us ever broke a sweat the entire day. Now that's a happening in Taiwan!

The Taipei Zoo displays more than 1,000 animals in a large park with meager landscaping wide pathways to accommodate the crowds. It also includes several hiking trails, a shuttle train, connection to the gondola (the very attraction we thought we were going to see today), a water garden, nocturnal animal house, insectarium, children's theatre, children's zoo and lots of other attractions. Although there is no comparison, the zoo was designed by the same company that designed the San Diego Zoo.

The monkeys were Caitlin's favorite exhibit.

This is when we became an exhibit at the zoo!

It was a fun and unexpected experience! We hear that the zoo is going to be a bit more famous in the near future as they prepare to receive a panda bear as a gesture of good will from mainland China. We'll have to go back and see.

Here's a link to all of our pictures from our visit. In a way, when you've been to one zoo, you've been to them all. Our pictures tell a better story and show Caitlin's expressions best. Enjoy!

http://picasaweb.google.com/taralheller/20081012TaipeiZoo?authkey=jA9WGdkgaoc#

Everyday achievements

My Aunt Jane told me to do something scary each day. Taipei is such a safe, crime free city that I don't feel at all threatened in my daily "doings." I'm probably more of a hazard to myself than anyone else. Things are starting to become "normal." I've worked Caitlin into a bit of a morning routine of Cheerios, multy (that's milk in Caitlin's special English), and "talk to Mima." Yes, we do this all at the same time...it's the only way to keep her still on the video cam. Anyone who has talked to me not during mealtime knows of the chaos. Then we're off to playtime in either the park or the ACC depending on the weather. Oh, and speaking of weather - let me say that the month of October is an absolute blessing! There is a bit of relief from the fury of this closer to the equator relentless sun and even some clouds. Oh, I am so thankful for clouds. Clouds mean less overall sweat and perhaps a sweet rain to cool things down a teensy-tiny bit more. And the heavenly breeze...it only hits you when you're in certain directions. Between all the tall buildings and the mountains it can really pick up and cool you down - if you're in the right direction. Either way, it's more of a breeze than Raleigh, NC has to offer! So, I've achieved normal. Now what?

Well, I am pretty sure I conquered "Public Enemy Number 1."Public Enemy No. 1

Looks harmless and rather modern, doesn't it? Yeah, that's what we thought too. Matter of fact, this very stove and oven are two of the items high on the "what we need in an apartment list" (There's one of those lists again!) and since this apartment had both and a nice office, the deal was sealed. See, one would think that a stove and oven are common components to any kitchen, regardless of culture, but apparently that's just plain old wrong. VERY WRONG. Kitchens in foreign countries are peculiar places...I won't go into all the details of the 15 other apartments we toured. Just take my word for it. 4 burners on a stove and an oven are not common in Taiwan. When we arrived here in late August we found an added bonus - this oven was never used! It's brand new. Somehow I found that wildly exciting. And I hugged my Kitchen Aid mixer when I saw it for the 1st time in 6 weeks. What does that say about me? I suppose that's neither here nor there, but imagine just for a moment my visions of savory pizzas, decadent chocolate birthday cakes, juicy Thanksgiving turkey, chocolate chip cookies and roasted chickens so I can have both dinner and my own low sodium chicken broth (and not have to bother with this $5.00 per can business)...all this in a brand new oven! No one else's "funk" to burn away at 500 degrees. Now, very quickly wipe those images from your mind because I can't get the damn thing to light. Ugh. Gas. I don't know how to work a gas oven. I don't know how to work a gas stove. I am so afraid I'm going to blow up the entire building. Oh, how the balloon deflates. But, there's an upside...see if I lose the battle with the stove, I get to go out to eat. So, I win again and all is right in the world.

Truly, you can only go out to eat so many times. Eating out of the house with Caitlin is an exercise in every way you can imagine. For the most part, it's just not worth it. Somehow the joys of eating out have withered away since our parenting journey began. I'd rather the civilized world not see that my daughter is on a fork strike, that she winds up wearing most of her food and that milk in a cup with a straw is just a disaster waiting to happen. Just for the record, I bring her sippy cup, but once she sees the straw its all over. And I bring a bib, Wet Ones, utensils - you name it, I've got it. None of these tools actually get me anything more than a cold dinner. I need to figure out how to work my kitchen.

The best piece of advice I've received to date is from my grandfather...take the pot/pan off the burner you're trying to light. Once it's lit, then put the pot/pan back on the stove. I tried it and it worked! Thanks, Pop. So, I've been pan frying everything we eat. No more dinner making tears and fits of rage. No more spare of the moment, "Honey, we're going out to eat tonight." No more defeat! I have mastered the stove. Soon, very soon I will master my kitchen once again.

The day came. Last Friday I lit the oven. Turns out the lighter thing that I'm supposed to stick into the oven to get it to light does not actually produce a flame. It just shoots out tiny sparks. I think it may officially be called an igniter not a lighter (like the one I use to light the grille in Raleigh). I thought that the "lighter" was broken and that's why I couldn't light the oven. Turns out I was doing everything wrong until Matt showed me what to do. Now, if I just knew what temperature I was setting it to we'd be in great shape. I guess I'll figure that out eventually.

My last and most greatest success to date happened today. I spoke Chinese to a cab driver and got myself home all on the 1st try! This may not seem like a big deal to anyone, but it's an immeasurably huge accomplishment for anyone who is living here and does not speak Chinese. Chinese is a tonal language. Every sound can be made at least 4 different ways through the pitch of your voice and each tone means something totally different. Usually I hop in a cab, say hello and hand the driver a piece of paper or a business card with my destination written in Chinese. This works like magic. Today I actually spoke my village name, street name, lane number and building number in Chinese and made it home! All my sounds were correct. Caitlin and I did a happy dance in our courtyard!

So that was my something scary today. Truly, I could have wound up anywhere, but I made it home safe and sound. Now I don't need my beat up piece of paper with my address anymore. Go me!!

IBM Sports Day!

Saturday, October 4th
Each year IBM Taiwan hosts "Sports Day" for all the employees and their families. The employees participate in the sporting events while the families cheer them on and eat local delicacies such as grilled squid on a stick. Now really, who wants to miss out on that? But seriously, this was a very nice event. Sports Day took place at National Taiwan University of Education (NTU). My family has dear friends who went to school there - what are the chances that I'd wind up in that very spot?! I am not sure where the students were that day, but the grounds were opened up to hundreds of IBMer's, vendors, a DJ, gamers, cheerleaders, etc. They were totally set up for fun!

This is the main logo for "Sports Day 2008." Each team had an animal mascot, color and gathering place. Matt's team was the panthers. They had gray shirts and hovered under orange tents to keep out of the sun. Some poor soul even dressed up in a big, woolly Pink Panther costume for a little while (this was no small task as it was at least 90 degrees out!). How's that for team spirit? Speaking of spirit, there was a cheerleading contest that was taken VERY seriously...costumes and 10+ hours of practice per week. There was definitely no shortage of spirit here.
You can see a couple of the different colored shirts here.

Matt & Adam, (Adam is the biggest guy in Taiwan and everyone wanted him on their team!), looking out onto some of the fun stuff for kids of all ages! Matt is already geared up in a pinny for his 1st event, tug of war.

Caitlin made a new friend!

Human foosball. I've never seen this before and found it hilarious!

Matt & Robert Parsons (fellow expat) leading the way to the team's 1st tug of war victory!

Everyone is all lined up and ready to go! Matt is number 19.

This is Kirsten, Matt's assistant. She loves to hang out with Caitlin and is sooo much of a help to us!

Come on guys, pull!!!

Wooo-hooo! They won! Matt also participated in dodge ball, but quickly found that the rules of the game in Taiwan are totally different than those in the US. He really didn't get a lot of playing time...maybe next year (if they let him back on the team!).

Other fun, neat stuff...

Caitlin & I arrived after the festivities were in full swing. We weren't really sure what kind of an event this would be so we hung at home until Matt gave us the final go-ahead. Should I bring the stroller or not? Do I need food, water, etc. or are there supplies on site? Now that we've been on excursions where we were super prepared or not at all, sometimes it's best to send one of us out to assess the situation ahead of time. Stroller - check. Snacks and drinks for Caitlin - check. We hailed a cab and were on our way.

Paparazzi. Despite all the activities going on around us, as soon as we arrived on site Caitlin had become the new center of attention. There were people and cameras everywhere...almost unable to escape it without the rescue of a fellow expat. It's flattering and very strange all at the same time. Luckily, Caitlin doesn't seem to care all that much. She doesn't sit still for pictures, but these people were determined to get a good one so they pressed on. We should start charging a small fee for these Kodak moments. I can't imagine how many random people have pictures of our little girl...I guess that's okay until we see her on a billboard somewhere in Taiwan.

Concessions. Well, they're not what you'd find in the US. There were dumplings (not sure what was in them, but pork is most common), grilled squid on a stick, fried mushrooms (they just can't touch the ones at the little league games in Kennet Square, PA...and the shrooms were totally different), fried stinky tofu on a stick, fried squid balls on a stick, cotton candy, pop corn, sausage on a rice & bean bun with some sort of sweet sauce, fresh grape tomatoes and some sort of apple/pear thing all sliced up, a whole bunch of stuff we couldn't figure out and fruit juice. We tried the fruit juice and with a stroke of luck we wound up with passion fruit juice and something lemony with probably a prune floating around, but it looked like a turd to me. Caitlin just loved the passion fruit juice. Her outfit enjoyed it too!

Making friends. Caitlin met up with this little girl who didn't speak English. They played with a ball, held hands and ran around on the field together. It was very sweet. Caitlin tried to share her snacks with her, but the girl didn't know what they were. I told Kirsten what they were and she translated for us. The little girl accepted the snacks and would then run off to ask her mother if she could have them. It was funny. I was so busy keeping Caitlin safe on a stool that I didn't really notice if she ever ate them. I wonder if raisins, Goldfish and animal crackers are familiar flavors for kids on this side of the world?

Sights & sounds. Sometimes I feel like I'm in an alternative universe when I'm out and about in Taipei. I can't understand what people are saying. I usually can't read the expressions on their faces either. People here are not quite as animated as those in the US. So I usually pay attention to what Caitlin has to say (and she is always saying something) or I fall deep into my head and tune everything out. Here we are at this huge social event. There's loud American dance music - although they only play the same 4 songs over and over and over again. Above the music-well noise better suits it-is someone speaking in Chinese. We have no clue what they are saying. She could be keeping the teams updated on everyone's score or where the next event is going to be, or what the next event is going to be or what is going on...or screaming FIRE for all we know. This goes on, nonstop for hours. If you stop ignoring it for a little while it sounds so bizarre and then you realize that the fact that you are where you are is a little bizarre so it's best just keep on ignoring it. Every once in a while it's funny to step back and take it all in, then shake your head and smile.

Teamwork. Matt's team won the entire competition! They also won a participation award! Go grey panthers!

Yes, he ate squid on a stick.

Swing Time!

Caitlin's 1st Ride on a Big Girl Swing!

It was finally under 85 degrees here and cool enough to go to the park during the daytime!

Mommy taught me how to swing on a big girl swing all by myself! It's so much fun to feel the wind on my face.

Weeeeee!!!