like riding a bike

It's been almost a week since I've arrived in Taipei, and I've been keeping busy. The glasses appointment went well (much less miscommunication than with the haircutter) and I now have my own Chinese hipster glasses! Jason arrived on Monday and we have been traveilng around Taiwan ever since. We spent Tuesday in Hua Lian, a city on the east coast of Taiwan, and Wednesday at nearby Taroko Gorge, an incredible national park with breathtaking mountains, river, sheer cliffs, tunnels, caves, you name it. Today we are in a hot springs resort in the tiny rural town of Zhiben, another coastal city. We've already enjoyed the hot springs and taken a bike ride around the area, and I'm taking advantage of the internet while Jason is taking his jet lag-induced nap.

Here are some things I've learned about myself and Taiwan so far:
1. My Chinese can improve dramatically if I'm thrown into a complete immersion situation. I still garble up my words, have a translation delay, mess up my tones, use bad grammar, and completely misunderstand people, but I can communicate with hotels and train station managers and taxi drivers and all sorts of people better than I expected. I feel like using it constantly has forced me to be more confident about my language. Before I arrived I was afraid I had forgotten everything I learned from studying abroad in Beijing and from my college Chinese classes, but I've realized that my listening comprehension has improved for good.

2. The Taiwanese people I've encountered so far are really courteous, polite, and helpful. Many of them know upon first interaction that I'm not from Taiwan, but they have not tried to take advantage of me or treated me like I'm wasting their time. Instead, they are patient, accommodating, and very helpful. I've gotten great directions, and taxi drivers who explain the city to me, 7-11 clerks who give me the best tea eggs in the pot, and hotel managers who open a store just so Jason and I can shop there.

3. Family generosity knows no bounds. I have a distant cousin named Yi Qing in Hua Lian who I've never met, but she insisted on treating me and Jason to dinner, and then she took Wednesday off work so she could serve as our personal tour guide to Taroko Gorge. She drove us there, prepared lunch for us (complete with hot tea and coffee and our own mugs), spent 4-5 hours telling us about the gorge and taking us down the trails and to see the major sights, brought us back to the city and treated us to dinner, and then dropped us off at the train station. All of this with no compensation and perhaps no chance for me to ever do the same for her in the United States. I loved getting to know Yi Qing and spending time with her, and am full of gratitude for how she and all of my relatives here in Taipei have created a sense of home for me.

4. It may be 50-60 degrees here and not a snowflake in sight, but it can still feel pretty cold! Most Taiwanese people I see are walking around with puffy down jackets and UGG boots. Taiwan is so hot most of the year that there are no heated buildings, and I have to layer up to sleep through the nights. It feels like Bay Area weather - chilly, humid, wet, and windy. So although I'm glad I'm avoiding the blizzards back in the States, the t-shirt and shorts I brought will have to wait until Thailand.

5. Lunar New Year here is like Christmas, Thanksgiving, and New Year's Eve all rolled into one. It's still about a month away but all the stores are playing New Year's music nonstop (much more upbeat with more cymbals, brass, and gongs than Christmas music, but it just makes it more inescapable) and selling New Year's candy, banners, and random paraphenalia. I think everyone gets 2 full weeks of vacation so that they can go see their families. There are gifts exchanged, and huge banquets, and lots of excitement and fireworks. I almost wish I could be here to experience it, but it's a logistical nightmare and I am grateful that I will be in NJ for Lunar New Year with my maternal grandma and cousins.

6. There's no way I can eat everything here! Sadly, my stomach and appetite has not been cooperating, mostly because of jet lag, but also because I probably overdid it in the first few days and ate too much fried street food. My family here constantly outeats me. In fact, around them I experience what my friends experience around me, which is a mixture of awe/nausea at how much they eat. I have found myself saying, "I'm sorry, I'm full", "What, you're ordering more?" and "But we just ate!" a shameful number of times. It's nice to know that there are others like me when it comes to inhaling food, but I am giving my stomach a break for now so I can catch up with my family next week.

7. Seems like riding a bike is something I only do in Asia nowadays. The last time I rode one before today was in Beijing. Today, since we're in such an isolated place without regular taxi service, Jason and I decided to bike our way into town. We rented 2 bikes for 4 hours for about $3 US dollars, adjusted the rickety things, and coasted down the hills and took in the lush mountain scenery. We shared the road with scooters, cars, and stray dogs and enjoyed the cool weather and the good exercise. I was afraid that I was going to be unsteady since it's been 4 years since I got on a bike, but well, you know how the cliche goes. 

Forgive me for the corny simile, but being here in Taiwan has felt like riding a bike. Like there was a way of being and inhabiting this world that I learned when I was here the first time that I thought I had forgoten or lost. But now that I am back, the language, skills, habits, and memories I thought I had forgotten have returned. They were just waiting for me to need them again.