Hey everybody!

Sorry that it has been so long since my last post! I've been really busy recently with learning chinese, visiting places (museums, zoo, and such), and generally living in Taipei. A week or so ago I had a really great visit to the National Palace Museum. The museum features many Chinese art and history pieces made of bronze, paper, ivory, jade, gold and silver, and other materials. Some of the pieces were so intricate that it took decades for them to be completed! Also, Christmas is coming up and that is abundantly obvious in many of the shopping districts of Taipei. Many stores are filled with Christmas trees, garland, santas, just generally Christmas-y things. They also have really cheap santa hats (30 cents) that I am buying all of the exchange students at school for Christmas (shh! don't tell them!). Also, the Rotary is holding an overnight event over Christmas Eve and Christmas, so it will be really neat to spend Christmas with the other exchange students! Also, I want to wish a very special happy birthday to my brother Adam. He is officially 15 years old right now in Taiwan, but still 14 years old in America! Kind of mind-boggling, isn't it? Oh, this is a picture of (left to right) Maren from Germany, Samuel from Maryland, and Julia from France. Also, taking the picture is Caroline from France. This picture is taken in a park near my school where we like to go sometimes during our long lunch breaks (that is, when we are not breaking the school rules by eating in the library or talking to the school staff about politics, which talking about politics isn't breaking the rules just eating in the library). Anyways, I am having a really great time here, learning a lot, and learning to see the world in new ways. Bye bye!

大家好!

Sorry I haven't updated my blog in awhile! I've been doing a TON of things here in Taiwan! Over the past few weeks, the exchange students from district 3520 (my district) have been getting ready for a big coming-of-age ceremony that is taking place tomorrow. We have all been practicing traditional dances, such as the third prince dinan, the dragon dance, and the lion dance. Tomorrow we will perform for the ceremony. Also, I have been trying to get more focused on learning Chinese and trying to speak only Chinese with my friends >< 太難了!!! I'll try to post a blog post of just pictures here soon! I hope everything is going well back in the States, and if anyone wants to send me an email to know more about what I've been doing, feel free too!

Last Sunday was 10/10/10, the 100th anniversary of Taiwan, R.O.C. To celebrate, all of the YEP students wore their nationals flags and marched in the parade carrying the flag that was made up of all of the national flags representing all of the YEP student's countries sewn together. All of the YEP students from all over Taiwan were there, so it was a very exciting event!

Yesterday the Rotary District held an event in which every nationality that was represented sewed together their flags. The event made it on many local news channels, and my host dad says that he saw me in one of the clips! After that, some of the exchange students and people from my school went to the market at Danshui (淡水) and played games and ate food. It was really fun! There were a LOT of people there from the Interact club at NTCB (Interact club is like a branch of Rotary club in school) who all came just to hang out with the exchange students. There were so many people that we had to split up into four groups! All in all, it was a really fun day.

This past Thursday, the Chinese Opera teacher held a workshop in which she painted three of the exchange student's faces in the traditional Chinese style and dressed them up as if they were actually performing. The above picture is of the final product: an old man, a jester, and a beautiful woman. This past week has been pretty chaotic at school with homework, lessons, and being swarmed by new friends and classmates. I've been really busy, but it has been a lot of fun!

This is a picture of all of the exchange students (minus Ilvia who wasn't here when the picture was taken) that attend NTCB (National Taipei College of Business). This week has been a pretty crazy week. Classes are just starting to ramp up, so I've had lots of homework to do and pretests to take (though some of the homework is in English so it's pretty easy but time consuming). We just finished Chapter 1 in my Chinese class, so we have a big test Monday that is in all traditional Chinese characters... This week I went to a shopping mall called Myramar which has a gigantic Ferris Wheel attached to it! I went with some of the other exchange students from my school, as well as with some Taiwanese students from NTCB. We didn't ride on the Ferris Wheel, but we did get to eat delicious food in the food court. Then yesterday, Saturday, I went to a lot of different places. First, I went to Dazhi to eat lunch with one of my friends, then I went with some other friends from school to a Japanese school festival, and finally I went to a Rotary dinner with my family. Well, I should probably study for my Chinese test now. 再見!

Today after school, Maren (one of my classmates who is an exchange student from Germany) and I went to Ximen, which is a major market district in Taiwan. There you can buy all sorts of things like clothes, jewelry, food, shoes, posters, books, movies, etc. I bought a black and white checkered hat for only 200 NT (6 USD)! It's so close to the school that you can just walk there and not pay to take the MRT. Also, my classes were pretty fun. I have an awesome speech communication in English class! The teacher loves having me in the class because I can help the other students learn American English (she says I am an expert on English). Yesterday was a typhoon, so I couldn't really leave the house. So, I have really don't have anything to say about this weekend other than that I was lazy and watched tv all day! I'm having a really fun time in Taiwan!

This week was the first week of school at NTCB (National Taipei College of Business). My classes include Chinese instruction, English classes (communication and business English), P.E., and Japanese class (though I also want to take French, too). I've made a lot of friends with both the exchange students and the Taiwanese students. School has actually been a lot of fun!

Today is the first week of school at the National Taipei College of Business. In the morning I take Chinese language class, and in the afternoon I have gym and English class. I have already made a lot of friends and met a lot of nice teachers. In the morning I am going to kung fu club, so I have to get up at 6:30!

Golden Eastern Arborvitae

Today I went to the flower market with one of my classmates and bought some materials for a bonsai tree. This was the end result: a wind swept something-or-another tree (I really don't know what kind of tree it is, but it caught my eye and was only 5 USD). I wish I had taken a before picture, because it was basically a giant bush (I removed probably half of the branches and half of the root system).

Yesterday we went to Yilan (pronounced ee-lahn). This town is about maybe fourty-five minutes away from where we live in Taipei. We got an early start for Yilan at seven in the morning, but thankfully the first thing we did when we go there was eat dumplings (picture 4). After that, we headed off to a hot spring, but before we did that we stopped at a general store and I bought a traditional Taiwanese hat for about 3 USD (picture 3). At the hot springs, I got to see how hot the magma-warmed water actually was. At the actual spring itself (picture 2), you can see steam pouring out of the ground. The water was actually so hot that we were able to hard-boil eggs in it! After the hot springs, we were off to eat some delicious sweet pork and then go to a museum for Taiwanese Traditional Art. There we saw all sorts of cool things, including the traditional puppets (picture 1). All in all, it was a very cool day!

Today I went to the Eslite Bookstore, the biggest bookstore in all of Taiwan. I wanted to buy a book on bonsai, but most all of the books were in Chinese. After that, Justin and I burned some more paper money (we do this the 2nd and 16th of the lunar calendar, as well as on major holidays to honor the gods and ancestors and to bring good luck to the home and business). Then we went to the traditional market to buy some vegetables. It is kind of like a Farmer's Market, exept the meat and fish and vegetables are layed out on the street. Now I'm off to help Justin pack because he is leaving tomorrow early in the morning. 再見!

Today is the last day of July on the Chinese lunar calendar. July (on the lunar calendar) is known in Chinese as "gway oo ray" or "Ghost Month". According to tradition, this is the month that the deceased wander the earth. The ghosts you especially want to look out for are the ghosts of deceased ancestors that have not been properly honored. Due to Ghost Month, we have not been able to go into the ocean since I arrived because that is where the most ghosts reside. The last day of ghost month is especially important because this is the day when the most ghosts are out. Today, as is customary for many and most people in Taiwan, we left out food offerings for the ghosts with incense attached to them (as seen in the picture above). After that, we burned paper money, which isn't real money but paper stamped with silver and gold, origami flowers and gold coins, and pictures of clothing and other necessities that the ghosts need. This is different from the normal burning of paper money, which goes to deceased ancestors, because instead it goes to the gods of the Chinese folk religion as well as the ghosts that wander the earth. The best part, after the paper money is burned and the incense dies out, we got to eat the food! All in all it was a very interesting day.

Yesterday we went to the flower market. The market is located underneath the freeway and is filled with all sorts of beautiful things. Basically the garden section was every gardener's dream. There were beautiful pots, soil, seeds, watering cans, and an assortment of flowers to choose from. My favorite part of the market were the bonsai trees. They had every sort of tree you could imagine! I wish I could have bought one, but they are far to expensive. Maybe I will buy an unfinished one and grow it while I'm in Taiwan?

Today Engrid took me to a second-hand market. For 200 NT, you can rent a table for the day and sell all sorts of stuff. There I bought a feng shui compass and a small jade carving for a grand total of 120 NT (4 USD)! Afterwards, we all went to go eat really spicy noodles.

Here are some pictures taken from the roof of the building I live in. Enjoy!

Here is a picture of me at one of the many temples in Taiwan. Today Justin and I went here so that I could get a glimpse of the religious practices of Taiwan. I only got a picture of the outside because I felt that it would be disrespectful to take a picture of the inside of the temple. Inside the temple there were tables upon tables filled with food (as an offering to the gods) as well as lots of incense and statues.

Yesterday, there was a big hurricane in Taipei, so I didn't get to do much outside or get any pictures. Engrid, her friend, Justin, and I went to a district filled with department stores and looked around at the different stores there. One of the stores was a tree-story bookstore! I found a copy of the book 1984 and picked it up for only 180 NT (about five or six dollars)! After that, we had a delicious dinner at home, and Engrid, Hank, Justin, and I taught each other card games. Not bad for a rainy day!

This is a picture of the entire family at the harbour in Keelung City. Isn't the ocean beautiful?

This building that is decked out in advertisements houses what is known as a cram school. These cram schools take place after the regular school day (from 7-10pm) and teach a variety of subjects, a popular one being English. Students go to these cram schools in order to study for important exams that will get them into a good college.

This is my room. It is clean, cozy, and comfortable. What more could you ask for?

Due to the request of my family (back in the USA), I will do my best to explain what this shrine, for lack of a better word, is. As you may or may not know, the main religions in Taiwan are Buddhism, Taoism, and Chinese folk religions. Usually, however, people and families will blend these religions together. After taking into account the blending of religions in Taiwan, over probably about 95 percent of people here on the island are some form of Buddhist/Taoist/Chinese folk religion religion. The family that I am in is primarily Taoists, with a smaller blend of Buddhism and Chinese folk religion. The shrine in their home is to honor their ancestors and their Gods. Every morning and evening, they perform a ritual know as "bi-bi". This involves replacing the water in the cups in front and the lighting of incense. Not every family does this in Taiwan, but many do. I will try to touch more on the religious practices of Taiwan in my later posts!

For my birthday dinner we went to eat steak at T.G.I Friday's. There, I recieved a happy birthday song in Chinese and English from the staff and ate a New York Strip. Afterwards, I was so tired from the busy day that I fell asleep at about nine o'clock!

Yesterday we went to the harbour in Keelung City. There we ate a lunch of mysterious foods that (I think) included squid, some sort of seaweed, whole shrimp, and fish skin. Afterwards, we visited the fish market. I have never seen so many fish in one place! There were sea snails, live octopi, clams, live puffer fish, just to name a few. As you can see in the picture, in order to get a fish out of the buckets, a person would just climb on top of the edges of the buckets to the fish. About three feet behind me as I took this picture was the harbour where the fish were caught!

Wow. I wish I would have taken my camera to the CostCo last night. I can't even begin to describe how overwhelming the store was. Imagine Sam's Club in Springfield with three stories and ten times as many people in it. I never imagined that there would be any warehouse stores in Taipei! Next time I will be sure to take my camera.

Today was orientation for new exchange students to Taiwan. At the orientation, we exchanged banners with the district president, as well as learned about the laws and rules of Taiwan and communication skills. The orientation lasted nine hours! The picture above is of all of the inbound students to Taiwan. Tonight we go to CostCo to go shopping and eat dinner.

Tonight for dinner we had sushi. The sushi goes around on a conveyor belt and you can select which one you want to eat. It was delicious!

This is a typical dessert in Taiwan. I can't remember it's name or much about it except for the fact that it is semi-sweet and made out of soy beans. It was certainly different from American dessert!

This is Hank, Fiona, Sam, Justin, and I at the night market last night. We ate all sort of delicious food! I had a combination of chicken and rice that tasted just like turkey.

This is me with the famous drink of Taiwan, Pearl Milk Tea (yi bei zhen zhu nai cha). At first, I didn't really find it all that delicious, but now I do! If you ever get the chance to try it, be sure not to pass it up. In Taibei, it costs $30 NT. That is less than a US dollar!

Today's lunch was pizza. To the right is your normal, everyday, American pepperoni pizza. To the left, however, is the most popular pizza of Taiwan: octopus pizza. It is a delicious blend of sweet, salty, and chewy elements.

After we ate dinner, Engrid, Hank, and Justin, and I went to a twenty-four hour book store. I think it is the biggest bookstore that I've ever been in in my life! The picture is of Engrid, Hank, and I standing outside of the store. Inside the book store they had English language learning materials that consisted of great American and British novels, as well as famous American speeched and the U.S Declaration of Independence and Constitution. What a way to learn English!

This is a picture of Justin and I eating my first dinner in Taiwan. We had some sort of pork and soup stuffed dumplings, shrimp soup, fried rice, and tea. The restaurant is actually located in the bottom of a department store/subway station!

Well, I made it! Here is the welcoming party that was waiting for me at the airport. The plane arrived on time and everything went well at customs. In the picture is Engrid, Justin, Michael (Engrid and Justin's uncle), and myself. After I got home I got a few hours of sleep, some delicious lunch (chicken and rice) and hung out with Hank and Justin discussing the culture of Taiwan!

Well, the day finally came. I woke up, dawned my rotary apparel, and headed for the airport. The picture is of me standing in front of not the airplane I boarded, but the airplane next to the one I boarded. I'm publishing this blog post from LAX right now, so everyone back home who is reading this, I've gotten this far! Thanks to everyone who made this trip possible! I can't wait to get into Taipei!

Every first weekend of August is our family reunion. This is a time for family all around the country and world to gather together and meet one another. Friday before the reunion, my family hosts a fish fry for all of the family to attend. This is a picture of my grandpa frying fish. It is so much fun for my cousins, aunts, uncles, and grandparents to get together!

凡是八月我的家庭集合在我的家。我們吃魚肉。我的祖父在燒魚肉。我的家很好玩。

Fourth of July

The 4th of July is America's Independence Day. It's the day in 1776 that our founding fathers signed the Declaration of Independence from Great Britain. Typically, the 4th is a time for family to get together. Activities on this day include cook-outs, swimming, and my personal favorite, fireworks! The picture above is of a fireworks show that is held every year by the City of Jacksonville. Happy 4th!

Today is Memorial Day, a day to honor the soldiers who have served and lost their lives for the United States. Today I went to a ceremony and played with the band to honor these soldiers. Unfortunately, it started raining halfway through the ceremony and the entire band had to seek shelter. Typically on Memorial Day, there are ceremonies to honor fallen soldiers and it is a time for families to get together and celebrate.

Graduation at last! Yesterday was the commencement ceremony. I finally got my diploma and am on my way to bigger and better places! The above picture is the of the chaos that ensued after the ceremony was over. Everyone sprayed each other with silly string! I'm definitely glad to be moving on from high school but at the same time I'm sad to be leaving a place where I have spent my last four years. Happy graduation class of 2010!

This is my sister in her graduation dress. She bought it just to wear to my graduation. Isn't she so nice!

Yesterday was Baccalaureate, which is a religious service to honor high school graduate. The picture is of my sister and me in the front of our house, me wearing my graduation regalia. Today everyone (for the most part) is frantically getting ready for my graduation party tomorrow. Tonight is graduation. I'll be sure to upload pictures!

This is my sister Morgan making spaghetti. She insisted that I put her on my blog, so here she is. In the picture she is making spaghetti, a typical dinner dish in America.

This is me at the Jacksonville High School awards ceremony this past Tuesday shaking hands with Principal McGuiles. So far I have received:

Quincy Jones Musicianship Award

President's Volunteer Award

Kiwanis Certificate of Academic Excellence

Illinois State Scholar

Top 10% of Class

President's Award for Educational Excellence

Things keep showing up in the mail, so who knows if this is all of it or not!