Saturday, June 26, 2010

6/26/2010


43. A last hoorah for this group! We made it through a great graduation program yesterday, which Frances, Gerald and the secretaries ran beautifully. And today was final checkout and we all celebrated our hard work by going to lunch. I am officially finished with my time at Berhan. I had a great time and am grateful for the experiences and memories I have to cherish.

6/25/2010


42. Check it out! I am wearing my blue belt! This is the Friday 2 hour Tae Kwon Doe crew. Our two coaches are standing both by me and Susan. We finished our last class with this elaborate photo shoot. Any we've had a great time learning from these people and I'm going to miss harassing those kids!

Thursday, June 24, 2010

6/24/2010


41. It's coming to an end! Today was our last rehearsal for our graduation ceremony because the big celebration is tomorrow. This is at the end of our kindergarten's class 'Follow the Leader' and 'Hoedown Throwdown' dance which I have had a ball teaching. Callie and I have loved teaching our little tikes and we've had some unforgettable memories. I'll miss these kids and my fantastic teaching partner!

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

6/23/2010


40. With Susan practically as good as new, we were treated to a 'goodbye' dinner from our language exchanges: Penny, Patty and Joe. They took us to Taichung to a decorative restaurant which features an old traditional town with many old relics and antiques. The food was fabulous as well! 

6/22/2010


39. Our last dinner at Lechees with most of our group (we're missing both Erins and Callie). This restaurant is inexpensive and a frequent stop for most English teachers as it is only a three minute walk for our home. I've now been here twice: once for the first week of teaching and once for the last week of teaching. Oh, and I've improved tenfold with the chopsticks since my first visit!

6/21/2010


38. Us English teachers have been practicing lately for our dance numbers for the upcoming graduation ceremony this Friday. Amy has been a good sport learning how to become 'tough' for her 'gangsta' roll in the hip hop dance.

Sunday, June 20, 2010

6/20/2010


37. Meet the Wuchuan 2nd branch Relief Society. We may be small in numbers but not small in strength. Serving in the presidency, these women have taught me so much about the gospel. Today was my last Sunday with them but it couldn't have ended better than our lesson on Jesus Christ. I will miss you sisters but I will always cherish you in my heart.

Saturday, June 19, 2010

6/19/2010


36. Apparently if you want to avoid the crowds, you shouldn't go to the Feng Yuan pool at 5PM on a Saturday night. For most of my time in Taiwan, I have spent two days a week swimming at this nice pool but it's never crowded like this during my lunch break.
My swimming has improved as I've been training for the Olympic triathlon. Some swims were doubled with a bike ride and some swims lasted 75 minutes long.

Friday, June 18, 2010

6/18/2010



35. One of the reasons I love Taiwan: Not too far (10 minutes) from the polluted crowded city, I can find the island's natural vegetation. This hike makes a 45 minute loop. First viewing the entire Feng Yuan valley, second weighted hula hoops near the summit, and third coming across this waterfall. 

Thursday, June 17, 2010

6/17/2010


34. I haven't been as focused on Tae Kwon Do as I was the previous months, but I was excited when my coaches told me I could test for my blue belt. Not being completely confident with all the forms, I did a decent job this evening as I tested with some other yellow belt kiddies (would have preferred Bai(2) Die(2)).

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

6/16/2010


33. After spending a great night with the Kuo family in Zhongli, we joined up with Nikki and her family in Taoyuan on my day off of work (Dragon Boat Festival). We went to her uncle's famous restaurant where we had delicious non-Taiwanese food and desserts. Then we toured the building where her mother owns one of the very few yogurt shops in Taiwan. We of course topped off our very full stomachs with this frozen treat served with fresh fruit and nuts.

6/15/2010


32. Despite the acrid smell, I am eating stinky tofu for the first time. I've been meaning (but not really wanting) to try it for five months now. Hmmm..what is it? Like seventy percent of what we perceive as taste actually comes from our sense of smell. I'm sure you can guess that I didn't love what I was ingesting.

6/14/2010


31. Susan's doing much better! Today was her second time hearing that she could be discharged, but to ensure she was stable Frances and the doctors decided she should stay. We spent her 6th and last night in the hospital together and we'll never return : )

6/13/2010


30. It's getting close to my last Sunday at the WuChuan 2nd Branch. While being one of the 35-40 members, I've grown spiritually in ways that I never  expected before coming to Taiwan. This branch wouldn't be the same without President and Sister Baclayon.

6/12/2010


29. Taking a break from the hospital, I walked down the street and attended our branch's talent show. I started the show off by playing the piano and singing Adele's song 'Hometown Glory'. It was the first time that I've deliberately sang and played the piano for an audience.

6/11/2010


28. Susan was told she would be discharged on Friday, but she relapsed before Frances arrived to pick her up. I went to the hospital that evening and stayed for the entire weekend as she started to improve.

6/10/2010


27. Thursday at lunchtime, we finally celebrated Whitney's birthday with her favorite Tiramisu cake. It was one of the few times we've been together in the middle of the day and we were all wishing Susan was with us.

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

6/9/2010


26. Susan was admitted to the Taichung hospital @2:30AM on this Wednesday morning. Whitney humbly spent her birthday thinking of Susan. At night, Whit let us have a small hospital party with cupcakes & ice cream and then she spent the night there.

Tuesday, June 8, 2010

6/8/2010


25. Meet Penny and Patty. These two sisters have met with Susan and I (almost) weekly for about 4 months to exchange languages. These patient girls know much more English than we know Chinese and they put up with our lack of studying. Tonight was our last class and we were sad our sick Susan couldn't come.

Monday, June 7, 2010

6/7/2010


24. I'm doing the one finger Taiwanese dimple smile (supposedly there are different picture hands for numbers 1-10, but most of us are only familiar with # 2 (peace sign)). I had my first Taiwanese dentist appointment which consisted of a through check of an aching tooth, x-rays and a really painful 10 minute cleaning all at the price of 100NT ($3).

Sunday, June 6, 2010

6/6/2010



23. I love these people. For many of us in the WuChuan 2nd branch, Mission President and Sister Hoer are the type of individuals that we all want to become. Their energy and focus for the gospel affects anyone that interacts with them. They are also easy going and adventure seekers (traveled through Antarctica, wow!) They will be leaving Taiwan very soon, but they will always be remembered.

Saturday, June 5, 2010

6/5/2010



22. It's World 'Moink' Ball Day today, didn't you know? Our dearest Meg's father, a professional pit master, holds a special day for his unique recipe of meatballs wrapped in bacon grilled with bbq sauce. He has people representing him and this recipe all over the world today. Here's to you Larry from us in Feng Yuan, Taiwan! (oh and by the way-they were delicious)

Friday, June 4, 2010

6/4/2010


21. It was a late night of KTV for us folks. Thanks Kelly, Charlene, Erin, Sunny, Whitney, Megan and Fenny for entertaining us all with a conglomeration of Chinese Ballads, Korean pop, American 90's radio tunes, and Japanese love songs. Definitely a night to remember.

Thursday, June 3, 2010

6/3/2010

20. It's my dear friend Lily Hu's 23rd birthday today. She came all the way down from Taipei to spend it with a group of us. We enjoyed sharing stories over drinks, homemade cupcakes and ice cream at 'Brandon's' tea house.

Wednesday, June 2, 2010

6/2/2010


19. Susan and I are surrendering some of our busy schedule today and more days to come so that we can plan for our big trip to southeast Asia. We depart in one month! (so far...nothing is really ready expect for our 4 flights, which we are just crossing our fingers to catch).

6/1/2010

18. In this picture, Amy and I are just about to embark on our snorkeling, boat trip and banana raft trip. We were surprised to find that our spandex outfits did not become the most humorous part of the expedition. We loved seeing the Taiwanese clutch onto their life jackets, a preserver, a life guard and each other just to go snorkeling in the 4 ft. deep water.

5/31/2010

17. Kenting, Taiwan reminds me of Hawaii- the dense green forests on one side and the sandy beaches on the other. Amy and I spent this Monday morning hiking through Sheding park where we came across numerous amounts of crabs and coral gorges (picture above).

5/30/2010

16. I have never seen so many scooters in my life before coming to Taiwan. All of the teachers have zipped around on these vehicles like the locals some time during their stay, except for me! As Amy and Brandon acted as my coaches, I learned how to 'scoot' around the ocean view roads of Kenting, Taiwan and loved every minute of it.

5/29/2010

15. It's ridiculous, my 5th month of living on this small island and I am touching the ocean for the first time in Chichin Island just off of Kaohsiung, Taiwan. Amy, Brandon and I were welcomed here by our new friend Christina whom showed us all the great things there are to do in her area.