Daisha - part 2

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  Hsinchu, Taiwan
Friday, April 21, 2006

Which brings me to the people. If they do understand English(no, even if they don't) they are very friendly and helpful but to be very honest(and everyone that has been there knows itse true),especially if you're white. The Taiwanese can be very racist. In their way of doing business its all about relationships. You build up trust from other people and then the favours start and things get done. The most important realtionship to have is with the police. If you don't know anyone on the force you're screwed. But,if you do, you're free as a bird. The Chinese friends I did make there really crept deep into my heart and I will miss my Thursday night expiditions with Max&Cherry, my coffees/beers/dinners/movies/chats with Harvey(the most helpful person in the world), my dates with KC, my laughing and sharing in the classroom with Tina, my newly-found friendship with Katrina that was to be cut short by my leaving and of course my Chinese military boyfriend, Benjamin.

The work: teaching in Taiwan is an art form, doing it the way I did it, the art is trying to keep yourself entertained through the mindless hours of trying to teach 50 14-years olds how to count further than 100. As bad as those days at the junior high school could be just as good were the days at the cram school with my co-teacher Tina by my side. Classes no bigger than 13 kids, with help. What a dream. And then of course kindergarten,aaaahhhhh kindergarten. Denene defined kindergarten so beautifully: 'kindergarten and self respect has got nothing to do with each other'. Every day you walk in there and you are a clown, but you do get so much back - they're energy is contagious but the time you're out of there you're done...

All in all you get a lot back but that does depend where you teach. My advice, stay clear of junior high schools and Taiwan will be the place where you can really save a lot of money without having to work too hard. And before I get into trouble for that comment, there are teachers there, working at International schools and suchwho really have to put the time in. I was lucky, I worked all around, there was never much responsibility, basically just walki in for an hour of two each week and walk out. And if you're really lucky the kids start to like you and classes become fun.

Taiwanese culture:they are definitely different from us, in tradition, eating habits, religous beliefs(which they don't necessarily practise), sense of humour(they just don't get ours and i just don't know what their's are), family values and such but will never truly be able to explain it. When you get there and you start living among them you feel the difference, its all around you but I can never find the words.

Things I will remember about Taiwan:

Going around on a bike, I adored it (except maybe those cold winter morning on the way to Jhubei when you could physically feel the icy wind blowing right through you).

Bin-lan: a nut that gets chewed(by mostly the mountain people and curious foreigners who are usually sorry afterwards when their teeth are stained pink for a few days) and it makes a disgusting sauce in your mouth that many men like to spit out whilst driving and you have to keep an eye out as to not become their next target.

Mr Fun(and that he sure was): our local breakfast shop guy who retrieved my bike when it was stolen (I still believe he is in the Taiwanese Mafia). And I will always remember the day, after we had been there for six months and greeted talking to him every one of those days, when he came up to me and simply asked, 'what your name'. Guess in Taiwan names aren't really one of the requirements for friendship.

KTV; the kareoke bars where you get your own room for your party and buffet till 3am. Denene and I were not the biggest hits these nights...maybe Avril Lavigne was not the way to go.

Weekends away: It can be a beautiful country, if you know where to look.

Die 'duck' tannie (The duck lady): Our local chow fun(fried rice) woman who force fed us steamed duck with guts and all the first day we went there for lunch.

Sapia: Our chicken feet/nugget/heart/liver vendor from the phillipines - heaven only knows what she was doing in Jhudong.

Taipei: I loved it, but wouldn't wanna live there - too crowded and rushed. But always had the greatest times there, from theatre going to visits to the snake alley.

Friends: Although it took us a while to get going on this department the people that we did build relationship with are the kind that stay in your life.

Denene: I have never shared so much with one person, I survived my year because of this amazing woman, even though I knew this before this was just a confirmation, she truly is a friend for life.

OK, I may just go on forever so I'm stopping right now!

But leave you with this, while you're there you feel out of place,crazy,longing to go home but when you do end up leaving that's when you realise: You've fallen in love with that small island and it will be part of you forever.

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