Kimchi Pizza

I don't even know where to begin! This past few days have been full of new experiences, from eating a an egg and corn tortilla for breakfast to getting help from a complete stranger. I went to Taipei for the first time alone and also almost missed the last bus to MCU. I have strengthened my friendships and made new friends. I have had deep meaningful discussions with my supervisor and have learned more about Taiwanese culture than I could have expected. Boy, am I lucky!

Not to mention-- I am coming home to a new house! That is right. Joe has already moved all of our belonging and cleared-out the old apt. WOW. Talk about a crazy week. :)
I tried looking for a picture, but thankfully all of the listing websites have already deactivated the real state post. We will have to wait until Joe sends me a photo to see it ! It is a beautiful home in Irmo, South Carolina. This will help shorten Joe's long commute to work, which is/was 35 miles each way :)

As usual, go into more details regarding the highlight of my week.

The photo above is the breakfast my thoughtful roommate bought me earlier this week. She has been so good to me. We have a great time together! I will be honest, when she told me she was going to get my some food- I was worried! After I saw what was in the box- I was delighted! I love eggs, tortilla and corn... I knew this was a great idea! I am sure this is not called a tortilla here- but that's what I call it!

On Sunday, Lily took me to Yilan there we went to the National Center for Traditional Arts. This place was absolutely gorgeous. There was green everywhere, and shops, lots of shops. It was more than a museum it was a small city...seriously!
(Side note: I got a traditional Taiwanese dress tailored there- it will arrive in 2 weeks!)

We met up at the Taipei Main Station, for anyone who has been to there knows that meeting there may not be the best idea. Kudos to Lily for asking me first if I knew where I was going- which I thought I did. Until our meeting time came and I was still lost inside of the station. I called her and apologized and said- "Lily, I am lost." She quickly replies, get a Taiwanese person to talk to me, they can tell me where you are. I grab the first person I see and basically give her the phone- luckily people in Taiwan are too nice not to help!!! Within minutes of this friendly encounter, Lily shows up!

We took a bus to Yilan, and in the National Center for Traditional Arts we watched a performance. I am still not sure exactly what it was about- but the kids went crazy for it. I do understand that some of the characters are the mascot for Seven-eleven- you read it right- 7-11. Not only are they more common than people here but their mascots are idolized by the children. Check this video out!





There was a lot to do and see over there. I saw a number of cooking tools used many many years ago. I walked into the house of Chinese scholar- sorry I am terrible with names- and learned that Lily's grandmother still cooks on old oven. Which looks something like this:


The cooking bowl should fit inside the whole, so that the heat will be surrounding most of its surface area.

After that we had lunch- yummy Japanese lunch. I told Lily that I loved rice....so we had rice with our meal. Can you find it?




You probably guessed it- It is a rice omelet. Does life get any better? I love eggs and I love rice, but honestly I never ever thought of putting those two ingredients together. What a genius idea! This is something I will take back with me and incorporate into my life :) I never pass up a good meal! The breaded pork was delicious as well. And the tempura was sweet potatoes- for desert! I was very full after this meal.

Next we headed to Jiaosi- which does not have its own wiki page- I am sorry. This city has been famous for its hot springs and resorts since the Japanese colonization. Can you even call it a colonization? Well, we can talk about it later!
I took this picture because it gives you a glimpse at what the people here are like, and what they value.

Yes it was raining. Why didn't you think of keeping your umbrella open while you put your feet into the hot springs? I was so amazed at the amount of people that came out on a Sunday to play in these springs even though it was raining!!! Lily shared with me that people in Taiwan believe that bathing/swimming/relaxing in the hot springs is good for your health! I enjoyed sitting with Lily with our umbrellas open sitting on my Brazilian Havaianas (to not get my butt wet) and chatting about the teenagers standing fully clothed in the water! (Of course my shoes fell in the water, I am too clumsy. Surely you all expected that from me!)



Before we got to this hot springs- which was free by the way! The fancy resorts were full of young people, according to Lily which was why this place was filled with children and an older crowd. The young professional had their private hot springs in their bedrooms. WOW! Can I go too?
One more piece of information- traditional Japanese hot springs are enjoyed in your birthday suit and separated by gender. Anyone willing to give it try?Why not!


Back to my story- Lily saw these oysters and really wanted to have them. Lawrence I definitely thought of you when I saw how they steamed. It took a few seconds on this grill before they served it to us- mind you it only cost 100 NTD which is about 3 dollars.
Here is the proof that I ate it. I just could not pass up the opportunity to try something new- from a street vendor! This one was for Felipe and Lawrence. Hope you both enjoy it! It tasted fine, but then again, I will not crave it. I need to eat it at least ten more times before I can love it! Oh yea, I did like the spicy sauce you were supposed to eat with it.

Back to work! This is a typical day at work.


Totally not true! I promise I have many responsibilities- but I adore these people! They refer to themselves as "SHE." From left to right, Silence, Humor and Energy. From my perspective it is totally true! They are graduate students in Education and have been working very hard to complete their thesis. I have read their abstract and know their findings but unfortunately for me I cannot read Chinese... I guess I just have to believe them! :) They will be presenting in a conference this weekend and defending next week- only then we will be able to hang out after work! I can't wait!!! Almost forgot to tell you- we are eating seaweed chips/snack-from Korea. It is not a mustache guys. I swear! No comments on the taste.

More food!!! On Saturday I had great plans to go to Yangmingshan National Park and from the last post you know that it did not work out. Instead I took the train to Taipei and went to the Technology district only to find an open market- filled with food!


I found the green onion cakes again and could not pass it up. I love them!!!!! Another thing I will take back with me. Or at least try to replicate it!


Then I went to a mission to find the Miniature Museum of Taiwan! It was fun. I enjoyed walking in the city alone and just thinking about my experience thus far and what else I want to accomplish here.


Ikari Coffee, this restaurant/coffee shop was to appetizing to resist! It tasted just like it looks, unbelievably delicious. Oh oh oh... The small plastic cup next to the drink it not half-and-half like you might think. It is simple syrup. They are very smart- you see sugar does not dissolve very well in cold drinks to solve the problem that you instead! LOVED IT!
I have more to say, but I think I have reached the limit on the photos I can upload on this post! I will come back soon. I need to tell you all about my experience eating kimchi pizza.