I started out writing at least daily and now it seems I’m so busy enjoying all Taiwan has to offer, I write a lot less frequently. Every day I find something else to marvel at. One interesting factoid: the Taiwanese can be a superstitious lot. They don’t like living on the fourth floor because the words for this floor sound like a word with a bad meaning. HINT: if you want to pay less for an apartment in a nice building, check out the 4th floor!
On Wednesday it was Luoshi (low-sure) Day, a day to celebrate and thank teachers! Several of us share the same Chinese teacher so we got together to get her a gift (lucky bamboo) and a card. The card was red and the envelope pale pink so I thought it would look nice to write her name in red ink on the envelope. Oh no, big faux pas! Writing someone’s name in red ink means you’re predicting their death. Say what? Who knew? (When folks here use a “chop” to stamp their name on a document, they use….yup, RED ink!) So, crisis averted; I used a black pen instead. Whew. Luoshi said it “made her heart happy” to get our gift. Awwwwww.
Luoshi is super patient and I like that she’s open to “alternate” teaching methods. For instance, one of my lessons was supposed to be about negotiating the price of a new car, something not likely to happen during my stay. Instead, I asked teacher to help me decipher all the junk mail I get. It’s colorful and looks interesting; ads for restaurants, real estate, foot massage places, retail store circulars. If I peruse them long enough, I can detect patterns and figure out a little of what is being said. It’s amazing how much you can learn about a culture by reviewing their junk mail!
On Saturday I met some friends at the local “bookstore”, Eslite. This place must be seen (and experienced) to be believed. 5, or is it 6, floors (only one and a half of which contain books) of the latest clothing, gadgets, accessories, paper products, music and movies, food, jewelry, cosmetics – and everything in between. I had a delicious fresh vegetarian lunch at a buffet that came to 88NT (less than 3.00) and included 5-grain rice and green tea. You can almost do all your shopping in one place!
Eslite Bookstore - and so much more!
Sunday, I planned to ride a gondola up a mountain to where the oolong tea Taiwan is famous for, is grown. The weather has been dicey – windy and rainy – this weekend; I hope they don’t cancel the ride.
Asia's best kept secret... 