2008 Rotary 7690 Group Study Exchange (GSE)!

abby's final entries

noreply@blogger.com (AbIgail Eaton) — Sat, 19 Apr 2008 20:00:00 +0000

4/17 Our Final Day.

The last day of the trip was a free day. We were able to sleep in an extra hour and meet for breakfast at 9:30am. We spent the rest of the morning packing and getting everything prepared for a flight home. At about noon, some Rotarians had volunteered to pick us up for lunch. We kept it light and headed to a local place for some beef noodle soup. Next they wanted to show us a museum/temple nearby. The museum had a number of authentic Chinese relics of furniture. I was happy because I was able to snap a number of photos of pieces I liked.

We had asked earlier in the week how/where we might be able to find the brush paintings we had seen to buy. One of the Rotarians, Montessori, had a connection to an incredibly famous artist in Taiwan. We met him in his studio. He showed us some of his books of published art, and around the studio. Then he began to paint. Brush paintings don’t take a long time to complete. He made 5 unique and beautiful paintings during our visit as a gift to each of us. I was so amazed to watch him in action. It was truly one of the highlights from the trip.

A couple of team members were hoping to find a few more souvenirs before heading home, so the Rotarians took us to the community center where they had some more authentic items for sale. I had finished looking around the shop and walked into a gallery along with Rotarian Lesley.

In the Gallery, they had a much different style of brush painting display. As it turned out it was a show of one famous Chinese painter, who happened to be in the gallery signing books. I explained to Lesley that I thought his work was beautiful and it was exactly the style I had been looking for to buy. We were the only two in the gallery besides the artist so we went over to introduce ourselves. Lesley explained about why (the red-head) was in Taiwan and we complemented him on his work. He had a few practice brush paintings lying on the side of his table and Lesley was asking if he would sell any.

He was asking me (through Lesley’s translation) what I thought one of his paintings would be worth. Having no clue, he went on to tell us that in china he was ranked in the top 5 of artists, and that one of his small pieces of art would sell for at least 20000 NT about $660 US. It was clear that I would not be able to purchase any of his work, but he said because I was a visitor to his country he wanted to give me a special rate of 2000NT ($60) I explained with Lesley’s help that although I would love to get one I was nearly out of money since we would be heading back to the US the next day. I emptied out my wallet to show him small amount of money I had left. Only 200NT and some change (about $7 US). He laughed and told me that he wanted to make me something special for my small pittance.

He began to paint a beautiful character and signed it. It was amazing how quickly he was able to create his work. Once he finished, he told me that the character meant sincerity and that it was from his heart. We took a number of photos together. I was so honored to have something so special to remember my Taiwan trip. Just as we were finishing Pam and some of the other Rotarians came into the Gallery. The timing was perfect because we were able to have him make the entire team some artwork to take home. It was such a special experience I couldn’t have asked for a better way to spend my last day in Taiwan.

We headed back home for some final packing and were picked up for dinner and a send off party at about 7pm. The send off party was incredibly fun. We may have had a long trip, but no one seemed tired that evening. We headed for the popular KTV experience. KTV stands for Karaoke Television, and I wouldn’t have wanted to go out any other way. We had a private party room with food and drinks. We spent the night enjoying our friends for one last great evening. We danced and sang. I actually discovered I enjoy a little bit of karaoke and sang a lot more songs than I would have expected. Likely because we were with such good company, any fear of the spotlight vanished and we all just had fun!

After all of our good byes, it was time for a short sleep. We had to rise early to go to the airport - 3am! After a great trip we began our 23hour journey back to NC!

I think Phil Morris explained it best when he went on his friendship exchange to Taiwan “It was the hardest but most wonderful experience of my life”

This trip was such a wonderful opportunity. I really felt the generosity of the Taiwan people, I loved learning about the culture, seeing a bit about how my profession is handled in a different country and enjoyed making so many friends. As I have explained in all of my passages about all the events we experienced, I am sure it’s easy to see how busy we were. And despite having moments of exhaustion, I know will think back about the trip fondly and remember all the great things I learned and what an incredible and wonderful experience I had.

4-16-08 The team had another wonderful breakfast with Chris. The Rotarians picked us up, and we headed first to the International rice noodles factory. We toured the factory and learned a bit about how the noodles are made. PP Jason (the GSE in bound coordinator) and his wife Alice joined us for the visit. We also were joined by a new group of Rotarians with Allen and Nicole, both members of the Rotary e-club, as the main translators. Hsinchu is quite famous for these noodles. This particular factory is located near the coast. During the drying process, the noodles are actually set outside to dry in the wind and soak in some of the natural salts in the air.

We made a brief stop at the coastline. The coast here is also not fit for any swimming. We couldn’t really see the ocean because there was a great expanse of wetland due to low tide. We then went further down the coast to a clock tower with a great view from the top. The air was nice in the clock tower. While I took a nice rest, Denise and Kim got a brief Kung Fu lesson from Rotarian Frankie, the president of the E-club. It was a pretty entertaining sight to see.

After the Coast it was time for lunch. One of the other Rotarians with us owned a famous meatball shop. Hsinchu most famous dish is Rice noodles with pork meatballs. This was a DIY Meatball shop. They had the pork ready to be balled, and they showed us all the proper technique. I will not claim that any of us were successful in making a proper meatball, but after they fried and seasoned them, they tasted great.

As the trip was coming to a close, the hosts all new we might be up for a bit of relaxing. The treated the team to an Asian body and foot massage. Although, it was a bit rougher than any massage I had had in the US, I actually enjoyed getting all the kinks worked out. I felt like I could stand a bit straighter after it was all over.

It was dusk and we took a nice walk on the old streets of Hsinchu City. We walked to the old gate of the city. A couple hundred years ago there were four main gates to the city. Now only one is still intact. It was a large structure/ archway. The city uses the space now for community and music events.

We finish the evening out with dinner head for home.

4-15-08
Our first stop was to a bamboo factory. I loved this visit. We walked through the factory where they showed us how they color, prepare and weave bamboo blinds. In the showroom/gift shop they had a great number of bamboo souvenirs. I really enjoyed looking through the different object and purchased a few. The highlight was a gift from Jerry; He was so generous to give me a bamboo-covered notebook. I really think it’s a beautiful book that I know I will use a lot. I had Jerry sign the back so I know I will remember my trip every time and meeting him I put it to use!

Next, the group took us to a furniture store. The store made solid wood, artistic/yet functional, one-of-a-kind pieces. I really loved this tour. The owner’s family has been in the business for 3 generations. All of his brothers helped produce art and furniture to sell. I was also able to tour the shop where they made all the furniture. They had 20 employees that produced each of the unique pieces. I really enjoyed seeing this sort of small wood shop in action. It was the first visit where I could see the tools and the handwork that goes into creating such a unique piece.

After the shop, we headed for a restaurant one the Rotarian’s owned for lunch. This restaurant also had a tea museum. We went through a quick tour. We had seen a few tea museums at this point, however this one differed in the end. In order to make some of the fruit infused tea, we were shown how they pack the tea in this special fruit similar to a grapefruit. They would then pack it tight and dry it. They will keep the tea packed tight in this fruit for a couple of years collecting flavor before they use it for tea making.

Next, the convoy headed to a construction site of the biggest Buddha I have ever seen. The Buddha was built and they were working on the building construction of the temple and a large monastery for the local sect of Taoism. We were in a beautiful area of the mountains, and we took a short trip to a café where we were able to relax and be more social with our hosts. We had tea and coffee on lovely porch overlooking a lake. It was quite beautiful.

After the time of rest, we headed to dinner back in the city. We had our meal at Rotarian Oil’s family restaurant. The Rotarians that came to join us were quite lively. It had been a long day, but I had fun with all the new people we had met. Rotarian David had such a great time in the day that he wanted to introduce us to his club members who were having a dinner at a nearby restaurant. We stopped in for a quick visit, and headed on home for some much needed rest.

4-14-08 Our Last Week
We would stay in Hsinchu City for the rest of the trip, but we switched homes to phase 2. The whole team stayed together in a Dorm Style house near the large Science Park. These were new/vacant Dorms that would be soon rented out to employees of the Park. Rotarian Eric and his wife Chris owned the house, and Chris was so kind and generous to take care of the team in any way we needed.

We began the day with breakfast at Chris’s house, just a few blocks away. Then we headed to the Science Park for a tour. They took us to one of the main buildings in the park and shared a presentation of information about the area. The Science Park is quite huge and is very important to Taiwan. I can’t remember the exact figure, but I was impressed with the percent the park contributed to the Nation’s GDP and employing nearly 150,000 people.

Next we headed to the district court house of Hsinchu. We met with a number of lawyers and judges who explained a bit about how the justice system works in Taiwan. There was a bit of a language barrier so we were unable to ask any in depth questions, but one of the main points I noted was the lack of jury by the people. Instead, depending on the severity of the case, there would be either one or three judges that would make the ruling.

For lunch we met Rotarian Foodie (named for her love of food) who had selected Friday’s for lunch. It was so odd to be eating American style food. Although it was wonderful for a bit of a tastes we recognize, I realized how much heavier American food is, and could hardly eat my meal! We finished off with a huge brownie Sundae. I needed a walk after that meal! Fortunately, the next place we visited was the Hsinchu Glass festival. We were able to walk around and tour many different buildings filled with glass arts.

For dinner we ate at another of Foodie’s favorite restaurants – Italian. It was quite delicious, and the company was great. I sat near Rotarian Jerry whose team would be taking around the following day. I enjoyed myself but by the end of the meal I got so full I actually missed the lighter Asian food!

4/12-13/08 District Conference -

The 3500 District conference is quite the event. I was amazed with how many of the families and friends we had met a long our journey attended the conference. I believe they told us over 3000 Rotarians were there. It was held in a large convention/sports center. There was a large stage on the front third of the floor level. The days were filled with many speeches and awards given to all the different clubs in the district. On the first night the real entertainment began in the evening. Nearly all the rotary clubs had prepared dances and songs to share. Group after group of rotary women and spouses came out to share what they had been preparing for weeks. The costumes were so elaborate, and I was amazed to see all the different styles and genres of dance they incorporated. After the main entertainment, we passed to the opposite side of the stage to join one of the biggest dinners I have ever been to. They had taken the remainder 2/3 of the facility to use as a dining room. Like the rest of the evening, the entertainment didn’t stop at dinnertime. The dinner began with all the servers wheeling out the food onto the stage. They presented the meal like a show; it reminded me a bit of the spectacle made at the beginning of the Food Network television show – The Iron Chef – complete with confetti fireworks! What a remarkable event!

The second day of the conference our team gave a presentation about our trip and district. We concluded the presentation with the song that the Roteract club had taught us the week prior. Everyone really seemed to enjoy it, especially the song!

After the presentation, some of the Rotary wives had invited us to participate in traditional tea ceremony and tea tasting. Archi’s wife (who had taken us to Taipei 101) – Betty, prepared the tea for us. She taught us all about the different types of tea and how to prepare, and savor a proper cup of Chinese tea. Betty was so kind and answered any question we had. She also was thoughtful in preparing an English version of the tea making process for each of us to take home. I know it will come in handy because I have picked up several bags of tea during my stay.

The conference was a lot of fun, filled with many chances to see our old friend, make even more new ones, and share stories of our journey. I was happy we had a chance to pass a long a few thank-you gifts to those who had made special impact on us.

4-11-08 Friday. Today was a day I had been looking forward to. We each had the chance to split off and spend an entire day learning more about our vocations. I was able to visit another furniture factory. I learned that the type of furniture I design (mass-produced wood furniture) is no longer produced in Taiwan. Instead, I was taken to a plant where they produce laminated office/storage/and kitchen furniture. I still found it quite interesting. I was able to see all the different hardware used in making ready-to assemble furniture. Also, they had a number of creative storage solutions I think might inspire some of my future work. Next we toured their showroom to see what the finished product looked like, and I was able to meet the designer of the collection. I was quite happy that we had time after the factory visit to see a few furniture shops. They took me to one that was quite large. It was filled with modern and contemporary furniture. There were so many styles and ideas I hadn’t seen before first-hand, so it was an exceptional opportunity to do some research!

At about 6:00 we all met back for dinner. This night was quite special as it was the day before the District conference. We were invited to join the Rotary President’s Dinner. I got in first and was immediately greeted by so many of the wonderful friends we had met earlier in our trip. It was so wonderful to reunite with everyone. I was actually surprised to realize how many friends we had made along the way. I felt quite popular having a kinship with so many people in all the different clubs.

The dinner was a lot of fun; the team had the chance to go around to each of the tables to toast all of our friends. It was wonderful to see them again.

Later that evening we met our new host family. Denise and I were with Mathew and his wife. Their family owned a building for a home. All of Mathew’s family could stay in one place, but each family member would still have their own space to raise their families. Denise and I were able to stay in one of the unoccupied living spaces. We stayed in this home during the entirety of the district conference.

4-10-08 The next morning I was picked up and met the team for the day’s adventure. The morning was incredibly special. We were all taken to Tou Feng Elementary school to see a performance by the band students. They were going to play some traditional Chinese music. The children were incredible. Many used string instruments I was unfamiliar with, but they gave a wonderful sound. I was also quite impressed with the fact that none had any sheet music. They played four relatively long and intricate songs all by memory! It was such a unique event. We learned that the band had won the second prize in the National Taiwan Competition. It was easy to see that they were an extremely talented group.

After a long farewell and photos with the students, it was time to head to our next destination, the famous Lion Head Mountain. When we arrived, we came to temple quite different than the other temples we had visited during our trip. We had to climb and weave through man made and natural caves to get to the main part of the temple. This area had 3 different temples for the different sects of the budhism, and also had a lodging area for people and monks to stay. We had to hike part of the mountain to get to each of the different temples. Next, we had a delicious vegetarian lunch back in main temple area. After, we had a bit of time to rest at a café on the mountain’s side. Next, the group headed further into the mountains to a local textile mill. Here they make their own string by weaving plant fibers and dye by hand. The owner showed us how to weave by hand using an old fashioned loom. Since we had been to a number of textile facilities on the trip, I found it quite interesting to see the weaving done by hand. She worked slowly enough for us all to see how the process is done, and I feel like I now understand how the same process worked in the large manufacturing facilities.

After the textile visit, we made one more stop to see Rotarian Johnny’s red brick houses. He was the designer and owner of these villa type vacation homes. The night ended with dinner. We ended a bit earlier and I was able to get to bed a bit earlier for some much needed rest.

4-9-08 we started off by visiting one of the largest denim manufacturers in the world. The factory was incredibly huge! It was quite interesting to see such a large operation in progress compared to many of the smaller textile facilities we had seen along the way. We had lunch with the owner of the company and headed to another factory visit in the afternoon. The afternoon factory was the Porite powder forging plant. Porite is also a grand operation with plants all around the world including the US. They make many of the parts used in everyday equipment. We were all impressed with the market shares each of the day’s factories had worldwide. After the factories, for a change of pace, and a bit of time to relax Rotary member, Milk, took us to his dairy farm. Dairy’s are a bit of a rarity on the island. I assume this is because of space, but we learned that the government would provide tax breaks if the Dairy would also function as a tourist attraction. The Dairy had a large dining facility where we were able to enjoy a nice cup of coffee (with fresh cream) along with a variety of dairy snacks! We then took a small tour of the facility. After passing many of the cows, we saw a large slide made of putting green grass. There were a few high school aged kids whisking down the hill on sleds. It looked like it would be a lot of fun, so we asked to join. Most of the team had their chance to go sliding.

After the Dairy it was time to head to a rotary meeting for dinner and a presentation. After the meeting they dropped us each off with out new host family. I stayed with a lovely couple. They didn’t speak a lot of English, but I was able to get by. They were quite interested to see photos from the US, and I was able to see many of their family and Taiwan.

Greetings from Osaka, Japan

noreply@blogger.com (Sam) — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 03:02:00 +0000

We've completed the first leg of our journey back home and are currently in Osaka, Japan. We had a late night last night (the Hsinchu clubs had a bon voyage party for us at a KTV (Karaoke TV) establishment. Then, we all caught a few winks of sleep before arising at 3:00AM in order to load up and head to the airport. We'll be back in GSO later today!

Abby's Diary

noreply@blogger.com (AbIgail Eaton) — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 15:11:00 +0000

sorry all, there has been a lack of internet, and even a lack of a three prong outlet to charge my comp, so my blogs are behind. We will soon be home though... just a few days more, so I think I will wait to write the remaining leg on the flight home... Regardless, the team is having fun, but missing home. we all look forward to seeing our friends and Family soon!

Hope you enjoy the blog...

11. 4-2-08 We began with the group to the CKS residence. The rotary club had invited a friend, Lisa, who spoke English well to translate. She was a wonderful resource as she was able to explain much of the history of Taiwan to us. When CKS was in power in Taiwan, he had statues of himself put all around the country. Lisa told us how usually there used to be a large Statue in front of most schools. The children would have to honor/kneel before the statue before going inside to learn. Eventually, after his reign, there came a time when the government decided to do away with all the statues. Instead of destroying them, they decided to bring them all to his memorial residence. There is a large park with statues as far as the eye can see. It was a very impressive sight.

Next we headed to a beautiful park. There was a coffee shop that had an outdoor patio looking over a large gorge. Unfortunately, it was still muggy weather so the beautiful setting was somewhat wasted. Through the clouds and fog, I was still able to snap a few pictures of the valley when the clouds cleared for a second. I could see all the way down to the river far below. For the moments I could see, it was a very impressive sight, such a shame we couldn’t see more! When it seemed the clouds were getting thicker, I headed in for some hot coffee. It was great on the cold day, and we enjoyed the scenery for a while before heading onto to lunch.

Later, we headed to lunch. It was a gorgeous restaurant, also near the mountains, so the view was lovely. This restaurant was known for its organic food. It was so fresh and wonderful. So far I have been very impressed with the food in Taiwan. And the social, family style of serving has been a great way to communicate and enjoy the fellowship of the Rotarians. This restaurant in particular had such wonderful food. It was incredibly fresh and full of flavor!

After lunch, we headed for Taipei to visit a psychologist for Kim’s vocation. It was interesting to see how psychiatric problems and general psychology is practiced in Taiwan. Apparently, it is not the norm for Taiwanese to talk to a psychologist about their problems. We learned that they would usually go see a fortuneteller instead. The practice we visited was quite new, and they were more like the pioneers of modern psychiatric treatment in Taiwan. The national health insurance does cover some of costs, but really does not cover in the way we would in the US. We hope that they will be successful!

We concluded the evening with another wonderful meal with the local clubs. And had a chance to walk around one of the department stores, and some of the local street venders. My home stay picked me up. They brought the children and I we had a Chinese/English lesson all the way home. I was teaching them some English, and they would point out various objects (i.e. bus, motorcycle, bank ect.) and teach me how to say them in mandarin. I don’t think I was able to retain a whole lot of the words, However, I have noticed a definite improvement in my ability to pronounce many of the words.

When I got home, I was able to head to bed early that night for some much needed rest!

12. 4-3-08 After a traditional Chinese breakfast – Maggie took me with her English-speaking friend to a street side restaurant. We had a fried steamed bread. Inside of one was a garlic spinach mix, and the other had meat and spices, to accompany it was a bowl of hot homemade soymilk. It was delicious! I learned that this restaurant, although nothing to really speak of when it comes to appearance, is well known for this breakfast item. It was quite crowded which I gather is a good sign!

We met the group and headed to an art museum showcasing a Taiwanese artist (I apologize because I do not have his name with me right now). The artist came from a rich family so he never needed to sell his paintings to make a living. After his death, all of the children gathered the paintings and put together a memorial museum for their father. The tour guide was wonderful, and happened to be the son of the artist! He was able to explain so much more of the detail of the paintings than a normal curator because he was such a close relation. At the end he explained that one of the portraits was actually his wife. She was working the front desk of the museum, and was gracious enough to pose with us all in front of her own painting. The art was impressive, and it was such an experience to meet the subject of the painting. Although she had aged a good deal since the portrait had been painted, it was obvious that she was the subject. It was a very special tour.

Next we headed to a nearby Buddhist temple. The artist we had just learned about also had helped build this temple. His son was able to go into great detail about how and why all the different paintings and carvings were there. This was a special temple because the artist had designed these columns with over 100 birds wrapping around. It is hard to imagine that these columns were made. The time and effort to get them to look right, I believe he said took several months for each column, and over 100 skilled workers carrying out the different aspects. I should point out that there were a good number of these special columns. My guess is at least 30.

We then walked the nearby old streets, for a little shopping. Several of us had been hoping to find some brush paintings on our trip to bring home, and we found a store that had some for sale. (Although I still on the lookout for a perfect one)

After lunch, we had a factory tour of some Automotive and motorcycle parts. The needle bearings for the crankshaft. Apparently this company makes some of the best quality needle bearing components in the world. The factory tour was very cool. Each needle bearing part was rather intricate, but each component was produced fast. There were a number of steps to build each part, and there were various components testing throughout the process. For a part that has to spin with the engine and last for a lifetime, Quality is key.

After our tour, we headed for a dinner and a rotary meeting. My new friend Chandra was there again. It was wonderful to see her again! After some more greetings, we were told there was a surprise for us in one of the dining rooms. Sam and Kim’s home stay, Sharon, who had spent the day with us, had a connection (her sister in law) To a master brush painter. Sharon knew how interested the team had been to get some of the art. She had set it up for her sister-in-law to meet us and demonstrate her art. I have never seen a brush painting done in person, so this was a very special event. I have always loved art, and really feel lucky to have gotten to see how it’s done first hand. She made each of us a fan. She completed and signed them while we attended our dinner and Rotary meeting. I will always cherish this one of a kind work and remember the generosity and kindness we have received everywhere we have been in Taiwan.

The meeting went well, and Chandra was able to help translate our presentation. The club was quite engaged and asked a lot of questions. The fact that Kim is a licensed pilot has impressed most of the clubs. There are no small aircraft on the island, so to be a pilot for pleasure is unheard of. Many have been curious to know more.

We ended the night a bit earlier, and my host family thought it would be fun to take me to a night market. This night market was completely different then the one I got to go to in Tau Yuan. There were so many more people! It was much larger with so many different foods and games for the kids. I couldn’t believe how many little kids there were, as we had to push through so many people to make our way down the market. I would think it would be easy to get lost! I made sure to stay close to my family the entire time, but the sons (who had obviously been there before) would run ahead to their favorite shops. Pretty hard to imagine something like this in the US!

13. 4-4-08 Free Day!

The team had a free day. We decided it would be good to have a team gathering in the morning. We had a bit of prepping for a presentation they Rotarians had asked us to put together for the district conference. We were able to sort out some photos and get some e-mail done. Free (Pam’s host) had offered to let us use the office in his home for the gathering. Free, his wife, and his wife’s mother took us to a wonderful vegetarian restaurant and then to the natural Hot springs. The hot springs we not exactly how I had envisioned it. I have seen photos of hot springs in the US, and this different. There were 3 large community style pools. One very Hot, One Semi Hot, and One cold. We made our way to the very hot one. Which was very hot! I couldn’t stay in there too long, so I jumped into the cold pool to cool off. Which was freezing! We made our way to the medium pool, which was more like bath water… It too didn’t seem to be the right temp… Free decided enough with the soaking, and it was off to the spa section. Here it was room temp water that had extremely powerful jets to massage your back. I couldn’t take it for too long and headed back down to the others. We decided to check out where some stairs went, and finally we found the relaxing spot we were hoping for. They were a more private pool, with water temperature in between the very hot and medium hot. It was quite relaxing. I stayed in that pool for a while. Then joined the others who were sitting on some chairs under the heat lamps. It was so relaxing to sit under the lamps that I drifted off for a bit. The group had to wake me when it was time to leave. I had been so relaxed. After such a busy week, it was wonderful to get a chance to rest. I couldn’t believe how much energy the hot springs took out of me. I think the entire team was drained. Near by the hot springs was a tourist area with a long pedestrian bridge crossing the river. It was a really beautiful area. After we walked around a bit, we had dinner in a restaurant nearby. It had a wonderfully view of the mountains and surrounding area. I enjoyed the relaxing evening. We headed home, and off to sleep!

14. 4-5-08 Saturday, The sun was shining when we all got together. Finally after a week of rains, it was nice to have the sun back again. We headed for the mountains to Paradise Valley. It was a park/forest area privately owned. They had taken a huge amount of land and groomed a lovely forest. The paradise valley is especially known for its flowers and has an amazing garden planted year-round with whatever flowers were in season. We had a tour guide that explained that right now Callow Lilies are in full bloom. The park was beautiful, and we were able to go on a pretty good hike. After a stop for some refreshments (a drink made out of pine trees) we headed to higher viewing area to a tree that is over 100 years old. It was getting pretty hot so after that point we took the rest of the hike easy. It was really a treat to go to such a beautiful area, although it felt so different than hikes I would go on in the US because everything was perfectly planted and many of the waterfalls were man made.

After lunch, we were taken to see the Shihmen Dam and Reservoir. It is a huge dam that holds all of the local area’s drinking water. We first drove below the dam and could see how tall it was, then headed for the top. They had a path along the top of the dam where we could get out to take photos. The reservoir was quite lovely, and it we got to see so many local people out, enjoying the weekend.

Dinner was great. We ate at Denise’s host - Robert’s restaurant. The food and company were wonderful. We finished and I met my family. Maggie and Archi’s would be taking us around the next day so they had to drop the kids off at grandma and grandpa’s house not too far away. I got to meet much of Archi’s family who were all quite nice although they spoke no English so I couldn’t really communicate. His niece was amazed (I think by my red hair) and stared at me the whole time.

On the way home we stopped at a department store and I was able to buy a much-needed new suitcase. We have been given so many wonderful gifts, as well as purchasing souvenirs that the entire team’s luggage appears to be growing. I think we all have picked up an extra bag along the way!

15. 4-6-08 Sunday – Archi and Maggie’s Club had to switch up the schedule for us because of some conflicts, so we randomly decided to go on a hike on a nearby mountain. Maggie’s friend Joy came a long to serve as a translator for the day, and Robert’s daughter (who also spoke English well) came along too. As I mentioned in the last day’s entry, hiking is different here in Taiwan. The trail had so many people hiking; it was like a slow train up the mountain. And instead of just looking at nature and the beauty of the trees, there were shops selling nick knacks and food ect nearly the entire way! We stopped at a restaurant about half way up for some photos and a rest. Then headed on to the “temple” at the top of the mountain. We continued to follow the slow moving train of people all the way to the top. There were a few overlooks along the way that actually showed the Dam we had been to the day before. It was interesting to see it from a different angle so high above where we had just been. At the top, I was surprised to see a huge tent, with karaoke, food, and people. There was a make shift temple for prayer, but the real noise was happening near the Traditional Taiwanese puppet show. It reminded me of an amusement park, instead of a scenic area a top of a mountain. But it was a great experience nonetheless.

We headed down a different way, and passed different shops all the way down.

Next we went to a wonderful lunch where Sam got to choose the fish we were going to eat. The worker grabbed this 19lbs fish in the net, and Sam got to hold it to be sure it was the one we wanted. The fish was then cooked 15 different ways. Each dish was seemed better than the last, I guess Sam knows a good fish when he sees it.

After lunch, we headed to tour a tea mill and learn how different tea is made. When we arrived we were greeted with another Caucasian face. The owner's Daughter had married a Canadian, Steven, who was our “guide”. It was wonderful to hear his story and how he had adjusted to moving to Taiwan. He has lived here for 3 years. We drank several types of tea, and then Steven showed us around the farm. We all got a chance to pick tea leaves (although picking season really begins in a month) and then he walked us through the factory and process it took to make all the different teas. I have really been enjoying the tea in Taiwan, so I enjoyed getting to learn a lot more about it.

After the tour, we had dinner. Steven was able to join us, and shared many more funny stories about his times in Taiwan. We were surprised when the Rotary club we were with was kind enough to give the team some Tea from the tea mill we had just toured. I look forward to sharing this wonderful tea with all my friends in NC.

16. 4-7-08 - Monday- I had asked Maggie if she wouldn’t mind showing me how to do some Chinese cooking for breakfast. I have enjoyed much of the food quite a bit. I have been asking about recipes anytime I like something so hopefully I can try a few new dishes when I return to NC. Maggie’s breakfast was a simple meal preparation. We had rice porridge, and the night before we had gotten various jars of pickled bamboo, seasoned meat, fried gluten, and pickled cucumber from the store. I tried the rice with a little of each of the jarred items. The pickled cucumber was by far the best. Meanwhile, Maggie showed me how to steam sweet potatoes and also fry and egg pastry. The sweet potatoes were added into the rice porridge, sweetening it up quite a bit and giving it a great flavor. I also, really enjoyed the fried egg pastry.

It was time to bid goodbye to Maggie and Archi. They had been such a fun family to stay with. Although I couldn’t get into the deep conversations with them that I had in a couple of the previous homes, I really enjoyed getting to know them. We made the switch in the morning, to head with a new rotary club in Miaoli City about an hour drive southwest. We first headed to a textile factory that specialized in higher end fabric, mainly for unique/formal dresses. They had a few fabrics that could actually have worked for some furniture, although I imagine with it being a specialty factory it might be out of our price range to use any for my work.

After we had had lunch, we stopped at a local winery. We found out that Miaoli is known for its wonderful strawberries. We had passed many fields on the way to and from the textile plant. The winery made strawberry wine. The actual tour was not open, but we were able to go into the shop and have a taste and try some strawberry icecream.

After lunch we went to tour a mental hospital. Sam and Kim were able to see a little more about how Taiwan runs their type of vocations.

The whole team was able to stay at one home, for the next couple nights. Tony was our host and he was so wonderful. He couldn’t have been more generous, getting us anything we might need. We had a bit of a rest there, and then headed to dinner with Tony’s Rotary club. We had wonderful Japanese food. Tony’s club was great. Quite the rambunctionous crowd and full of energy. I hadn’t been feeling the best that day, but his club completely changed that. It was impossible not to enjoy everyone’s welcoming hospitality. We made many new friends that evening.

Back to Tony’s where the team had a chance to unwind and just hang out with each other. It was great to have us all together.

4-8-08 Tuesday – Breakfast with Tony was delicious, Pam and Denise had walked with him the day prior to the local bakery and were able to find some great breakfast breads to add to meal. We met with the other Rotarians, and one of the Highschool Rotary Exchange Student, Zack. He has been here for about 6 months and has 3 more to go. He spent the day with us.

First we headed for a resort/hotel/retirement community on of the Rotarians managed. He gave us a tour of the facitily and to the amusement area, similar to a miniaturized Disneyland. This was a place hard to describe… the pictures better explain.

Next, we headed to a wood carving museum. The area surrounding is well-known in Taiwn for the intricate word carving. The museum had many amzing items. After, we were able to head down some of the streets to shop and see all the various carvings for sale. After a nice lunch, it was back to a different street for more shopping. I had a fabulous time here because several of the shops had interesting furniture to see. One in particular was huge, and had so many different styles of furniture not really found in the US. I had a great opportunity to take photos and get some new ideas for future projects I could work on.

Later, we were taken to the historic railroad station. We walked the tracks for a bit taking the tour. Nearby, was a Haka style Tea shop we stopped in. Haka tea is different. We had a DIY experience of taking tea, a bunch of different types of seeds and nuts, and crushing them in a large motar and pestol bowl until a powder was formed. It took the entire team’s help. Eventually we had it crushed enough for the tea. We had it in 2 preparations- hot and cold. I loved the cold verstion and was even able to take the left over tea powder home. I cant wait to try it again, it was quite tasty!

For dinner, we headed to the Miaoli RC meeting. They had invited the local Roteract club (all students at the Nearby university) to come too. First, we gave our presentation during the meeting, and then we all headed to dinner at a nearby restaurant. Denise and I sat with a bunch of the Roteract members and had a great time. They taught us a Chinese song the group could sing for the upcoming district conference. It was a riot to be taught the song and then put to the test to sing it right away for the group. Fortunately, they all chimed in and helped us to sing it before calling it a night.

Some pics from our journey

noreply@blogger.com (Sam) — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 15:48:00 +0000

Hope everyone has enjoyed the blog thus far. Internet availability is hit and miss but we hope we've provided some useful information that chronicles our journey. It's late tonight and I need to get some rest, but I wanted to post a few pictures from our travels over the past week. We did some hiking in an area called Paradise Valley and the following day did a more strenuous hike up Shihmen (pronounced "Shee Muhn") mountain. More to come ...

Yingge Elementary School (Denise)

noreply@blogger.com (Denise) — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 15:50:00 +0000

Sorry for the delay! I’m glad to have an internet connection tonight!

Smiling faces and bright eyes greeted us as we entered Yingge Elementary School last week. We shouted “Ni hao!” and the children yelled back “Hello” without reservation. They giggled at our attempt to engage them with the mandarin language. They were curious about the group of strangers the decided to enter their school that warm afternoon. They stared…looked away…then stared again. The students were overcome with interest. It was time for recess when we arrived, so the students were free and uninhibited.

Our stop at Yingge Elementary School was a clear deviation from the schedule, but one that reminded me of how people are placed in our space (at precisely the right time) for a reason. The generosity that we had been shown by our Taiwanese friends prompted me to wonder what we could do as a service to a community that welcomed us so warmly. The idea of volunteering at a local school came to mind and I mentioned my interest to Pam and the rest of the team.

To my surprise, the lady sitting near me at lunch was a retired school teacher. She said she would be glad to give us a tour of her school and to allow us the opportunity to listen in on an English class lesson. The elementary school was minutes away and with a quick walk, we were able to work this visit into our plan for the day.

The children were excited and engaged during their lesson. They seemed anxious to share the English they had already learned. Their warm faces helped to remind me of the simple pleasures of life that we so often take for granted…like humility, relationships, laughter, soft breezes, and smiling faces.

Thanks Yingge!

abby's diary

noreply@blogger.com (AbIgail Eaton) — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 15:21:00 +0000

10. 4-01-08 we were switching houses in the morning, so we packed up and made the bag switch. The next group was a lot of fun. The club’s current president brought his son’s girlfriend, Chandra, a long for the trip. She is at one of the universities studying Education and English. She spoke English quite well and was a wonderful interpreter for the day. We started the day by heading to Yuan Ze University. UNCG (Denise works as the Assistant Director of the Exchange program at UNCG) has a partnership with this school. We were to meet with the President of the school and take a tour. The campus was nice. It was a smaller school so it didn’t take too long to trek the campus. Which was a good thing because it had been raining for the last few days and we were all tired of being wet!

After a few more activities, we headed to dinner with the new club. It was great to meet the new group we would be staying with for a while, and I had a lot of fun talking with Chandra as we were close to the same age.

After dinner I got to meet the host family I would spend the next week with. I welcomed the idea of getting to stay in one home without having to move!

Archi and Maggie are such a sweet couple. They don’t speak a lot of English so it has been a bit more difficult for communication, but they are so wonderful, and we can usually figure out what we are trying to say! They have three wonderful and lively children. They were a lot of fun when I arrived. The oldest son has been learning English is school, so his mother was trying to get him to talk to me a bit. After a bit of chatting (or at least trying to) it was time for bed. The highlight was that I had Internet access in the bedroom. It has been great to get to keep the blogs updated regularly. I know most of the other team members have been unable to get online.

abby's diary

noreply@blogger.com (AbIgail Eaton) — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 14:46:00 +0000

9. 3-30-08 We started our day in Tau Yuan County with a wonderful (and huge) breakfast cooked by Francis. She brought over dish after dish of traditional Chinese breakfast food to Balloon’s house. We headed to the Chang Kai Shek memorial museum for a short amount of time. We learned that he was the leader of Taiwan for quite sometime and implemented a lot of the infrastructure his son took over leadership after his death.

Next we went to the Dasi Town Hall. Dasi is a sister city of Kernersville NC. We came as representatives for Kernersville for a small presentation and gift exchange. Each of the GSE team members was presented with a hand painted toy top. Dasi is known for this toy. It was defiantly a very special present. We then headed to lunch with the mayor and some other representatives from Dasi. In the afternoon, we toured a historical home that has been surprisingly well maintained throughout the years. It is a traditional Chinese residence. I recently re-read the book The Good Earth and I fell like the house we toured was similar to what I had read about. It was great to get to put a mental image to the novel I loved.

We then traveled to an orchid garden. The flowers were so beautiful. The group had a wonderful time learning about the different flowers, and taking many photographs.

We headed to dinner and then back home for some sleep.

Kim's Note

noreply@blogger.com (Pam Ray) — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 12:37:00 +0000

Da Ja How from Taiwan,

This has been the most incredible journey! I have been amazed by all of the beauty (the landscape, the arictecture, the ceramics, and the history). The food is new and flavorful. I didn't quite understand what Vivian and Ping meant by how good it would be (now I know). Although we have kept a tight schedule, everyday is filled with new and wonderful things. However, I have been most affected by the warmth and kindness of the people of Taiwan. I look forward to the rest of the journey.

Until then, Kim

Kim's Note

noreply@blogger.com (Pam Ray) — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 12:23:00 +0000

Da Ja How from Taiwan,

abby's diary

noreply@blogger.com (AbIgail Eaton) — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 13:52:00 +0000

7. 3-29-08, the group headed to the Lai Lai goose factory in the morning. Here they are most known for making goose down goods. We got to tour the factory, and see all the processes for the mass production of these types of goods. Then for lunch we headed to a restaurant known for cooking goose. I have never tried goose before. The restaurant didn’t have to look of a place that could make such wonderful food, but looks can be deceiving it was definitely delicious. One of my favorite meals to date. We visited a second textile factory after lunch. Here they made more micro fiber fabrics. It was interesting to see all the processes in weaving and the technique/machinery used to create the fuzzy part of fleece type fabrics. We were quite close to the coast and a fishery port, so the group took a side trip to see the sites. We climbed a large pedestrian bridge where we could see most of the port. The beach looked different than the beaches I am used to. Our hosts told us that more traditional types of beaches are located on the southern parts of Taiwan. The port also had a fist market. We all tried many random fish snacks. Some of the snacks we tried were wonderful, and other (namely the fish ball) left us making some not so good faces. It was a surprise each time we ate, because most of us had no clue what we were trying.

That evening we went to a different club’s anniversary party. They were celebrating their first year as a club. It was a smaller affair than the previous night’s anniversary. However, one of the highlights happened when all of the women in the club came out in beautiful authentic Chinese dresses. All were different, bright silks and each dress had a different design. They all came out in a line and worked their way around the different tables singing songs. It the was a very lovely presentation.

I made it home, and had one last night to share with Amy and her family. We exchanged gifts, and took many photos. I really enjoyed staying with them; it was hard to say good-bye despite only spending three nights with them!

8. We were changing homes again in the morning, so we all had to pack up our gear to move. After the bag switch we headed for our free day. Some of the members of the Northwest rotary club (the younger club) had volunteered to take us into the city of Taipei to see the sites. Coming into Taipei was exciting. The city has some similarities to a US city, although at the same time it is very different. It is hard to describe, but it was a great experience to drive around. First, we headed to the Chinese Palace Museum. It is one of the most famous sites to see in Taiwan, holding many of the art works/ artifacts from Mainland China. One of the rotary members, Kevin, was able to be our guide. He told us about many of the famous items in the museum. Some of the most note worthy were: a cabbage carved from jade, with a type of grasshopper on its leaves, there was also a natural piece of stone (I believe a brown jade) that looked just like a piece of meat, We saw a small gallery with traditional Chinese furniture from the Ming Dynasty, and we then toured an area of Ivory carvings. Some of the Ivory was so intricately cut that the museum provided a magnifying glass to see all the great detail. It is impossible to imagine that these items were made by hand, and also that they were made so long ago! I doubt that there would be anyone alive today with the skill to create such fine work.

After the museum, we headed to Taipei 101 currently the tallest building in the world. The lower floors have shopping. It had many of the hi-end stores we recognized in the US, such as Prada, Hermes, Polo, and many more special designer clothing stores I had never heard of. After a bit of touring, we took the fastest elevator in the world to the top of Taipei 101. It made it up 86 floors in less than 30 seconds! It was so fast it made all of our ears pop. The top of Taipei 101 is very impressive. It was a little foggy the day we went, but we were still able to see quite far. An audio guide gave us some insight to some of the buildings and areas of interest in view. The tour also included a part into the core of the building where you can see the world’s largest wind damper. This wind damper and center core are supposed to keep the building from falling over incase of extreme high winds.

The final part of the evening was incredible. Archi, one of the Rotarians of district 3500, treated us to a fine meal at the Panorama Restaurant 85th floor of Taipei 101. We had a private room with an incredible view of the city. There was a pretty large group with us there. Most of the Rotarians from earlier in the day and a number of friends we had met earlier in the week came to celebrate. The dinner was wonderful. The food was absolutely amazing, and we all had such a wonderful time. Archi and his wife, along with Paper and his wife, told us many stories of Chinese traditions and fun stories from their past. The young group kept us all entertained with jokes and we learned more about Taiwan’s younger generation. It was truly a wonderful evening that I am sure I will always remember.

The evening was over, and we met up with a van to take us to our new home stays in Tau Yuan County. Although the night’s darkness kept us from seeing too much during our drive, it was obvious that were no longer in a large city. Rotarian Balloon hosted us when we arrived for some tea, and then we split off to our various home stays shortly after. Pam and I both stayed with his neighbor, Francis. She was incredibly sweet, but she did not speak a lot of English, so communication was not too easy, however she had gone out of her way to make us feel comfortable. It was a quant little house, but very clean and tidy. It was nice to get to go to bed a little earlier than usual.

Abby's Diary 4

noreply@blogger.com (AbIgail Eaton) — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 00:02:00 +0000

6. The next day (3-28-08 – Friday) we headed by tour bus to the largest company in Taiwan known as Formosa Plastics. We toured a museum about the company. As it turns out, Formosa Plastics is one of the major driving forces in the Taiwan economy. They have made a variety of products throughout the years. Now, one of the largest areas of export would be the chips and inner workings for the popular LCD TVs and other new electronics.

We had a nice lunch and then headed to the Linkou Brewery where we learned about how Taiwanese wine was mad. At the end of the tour and we got a chance to taste a little bit of their product. It is a different taste than the wine I am used to drinking in America because the base is Rice wine mixed with grape juice instead of entirely of grapes.

In the evening, we went to one of the club’s 32nd anniversary dinner. It was quite the party. A good number of the Rotarians we had spent time with earlier in the week were there, so it was wonderful to get to see them again and say hello. After dinner, Karaoke was started. I have found that the Taiwanese are very into singing. The District Governor of D3500 convinced us (after a good bit of coaxing) to go up and sing. We had a few extra vocalists join in, and by the end I am sure everyone was having a good time. It was the end of the night and time to head to our various home stays.

I spent the remainder of the evening chatting with Amy’s family and finally getting a chance to catch up on some e-mail to friends and family back in the states.

abby's diary 3

noreply@blogger.com (AbIgail Eaton) — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 15:46:00 +0000

one more post before I go to bed!

5. We met the next day with a new Group of Rotarians. They had a wonderful day planned for us. We toured the area of Yingge known for its ceramics. I have always had a passion for art, especially ceramics, so I was very excited for the day. First, off to tour an Art ceramic factory. They explained to us what the techniques were needed to create all the different colors of glazes, and the special method used to create the beautiful Chinese ancient ceramic pieces. The tour concluded with a visit to the shop where the artist were hand painting their wares. The precision and skill needed to complete these works of art is hard to comprehend. It was wonderful to see it first hand.

We then headed to the Yingge Ceramics Museum; the tour went through some basic intro to pottery and techniques, as well as, a history to the ceramics specific to the area. Just after the tour, outside the museum, is when my camera was either lost/stolen. We had headed to the next place, went to take a photo right away and it was gone. The Rotarians were so wonderful about it all. They immediately took me back to the museum to look and again after lunch when we thought we might have figured out where it could have fallen. No luck :-( The saddest part was that I hadn’t had time to upload my photos from the previous days. I am sure in the end; with all of my teammates photos I will be able to make up for most photos I have lost.

Back to a brighter note, the lunch restaurant was lovely. Because it was located on the streets of all the ceramic markets, all the dishes and wall art were unique and beautiful. It made for wonderful ambience. Later, we got to take a tour of a local elementary school. Most of the children were just getting out for recess, and had no inhibitions to coming by and saying Hello to us. I guess it is not every day that a group of 5 Americans walk by their classrooms. The principle showed gave us a tour of the school and in one of their English classes. The teacher was very animated, and the children were all engaged in learning more about the English language. This visit definitely cheered me up after my camera loss.

Next, we visited a few of the ceramic shops, and then we got to try to make some pottery ourselves! One of the shops had a functioning art studio in the back. We all grabbed and apron, and each of us got to make a few pieces of pottery on the ceramic wheel. I was delighted because I have had some experience in ceramics. The rest of the team was eager to learn. I was able to help translate some of the instructor’s directions, and by the end of the session the group had a number of good pieces. We all decided to have some mandarin characters etched into our wares as mementos for our trip. It will take a bit of time for firing and completion of our works of art. I look forward to seeing the finished product.

The final part of the night was dinner with the North West club of TauYuan. This club happens to have the youngest members per capita in the district. I believe they said the average age was 32 yrs. Many have traveled to the United States for school or fun. We spent much of the dinner trading stories of travel and experiences. They held their Rotary meeting after the meal, which gave us another opportunity to give our presentation. We spent the majority of the time remaining answering questions many of the members had.

The night was coming to a close and it was time to go home with our new host families. Each team member would stay three evenings with their family. Amy was my hostess. She works as a VP of a furniture manufacturing facility located in China. I enjoyed hearing about her experiences, and learned that she had come to High Point NC a few years back for market. She had a daughter still living at home just a year younger than I, and two sons away at school. We had quite a good time talking and exchanging facts about our countries. Fortunately, Amy and her daughter spoke English well, so communication was easy.

This trip is so amazing. I feel like I am learning so much more about the culture by staying with all the different families. The exchange of knowledge, and the new friends I am making on this trip, I am sure will benefit me in the future.

abby's diary 2

noreply@blogger.com (AbIgail Eaton) — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 14:17:00 +0000

I am getting behind on so many days because we have been going non stop, but here is another recap of how our trip is going.
I hope you enjoy - Abby

4. Day 2 of action began with a trip to one of the privately owned hospital in Tau Yuan city. This was Sam’s vocational visit, however I was quite interested due to my recent hospital experiences in America last year. The healthcare system is completely different in Taiwan compared to the US. They have National healthcare, and all(as far as I am aware) the hospitals4. Day 2 of action began with a trip to one of the privately owned hospital. This was Sam’s vocational visit, however I was quite interested due to my recent hospital experiences in America last year. The healthcare system is completely different in Taiwan compared to the US. They have National healthcare, and all the hospitals(as far as I am aware) are privately owned. They make most of their profit by offering many elective healthcare options, spa, medical tourism, and VIP service for those patients wanting a more elevated living situation during their hospital stay. It seems to be a system with definite benefits, although as any system I am sure there are flaws. Sam got to come away with some new ideas; I hope they will help him in his hospital administration at Wake.

Next, we had lunch one of the Rotary meetings and gave a presentation. we were then off to a furniture factory after lunch. My vocational visit was nice, the company produced office furniture. We got to tour the facility and although unfortunately the type of processing there would not likely be the same used to produce the furniture I design. I still feel like I came away learning more about how furniture moves down the line. It was also great to see some of the CNC machines in action because previously, I had only seen the machines in books. Overall, I would say it was beneficial.

I will explain the next part of the trip by first letting you know about a couple of the Rotarians that have taken the time to show us around. AG Steel, and AG Just have been with us nearly every day and night. AG Steel is one of the group’s most loved Rotarians, He is an older fellow that really doesn’t speak English, but is so incredibly sweet. Despite the language barrier, we can usually tell what he is trying to say through his smile and body language. I think the group would agree that we all think of him as our Taiwanese Grandfather. His Partner in Crime is AG Just. He too is another grandfather of Taiwan. I really feel so lucky to have had them both there to share each day. They always put a smiles on our faces. Especially when it comes to socializing… As I mentioned in my previous post, "Ho Talla!" was the phrase Kim confused with "cheers" the first evening, when it really means "Bottoms up". It has been the running joke to yell "Ho Talla!" whenever they come by.

After the Furniture factory we got to take a trip to AG Steel’s Mattress factory. I have never seen how a mattress is actually made, but it was incredibly interesting. This was also beneficial to me because I have been interested how products are manufactured. He owns 2 different factories, one to make the Mattress, and one to make the coil centers. It was easy to see that he enjoyed showing us what he did, and took a lot of pride in his business. It was a great experience. Plus, he also had an adjacent furniture showroom. I came across several new design ideas I hope to implement when I get back to work. PP Steel then took us to a restaurant he owns, well known for their fish dishes. It was such a fun dinner. AG Steel, and AG Just were showing us quite the good time, and many friends stopped by to have to share in the fun.

After dinner, the groups headed back to their various home stays. I had one more night with the livelier couple. Instead of heading back to home to go to bed, I met some of their girl friends, and they took me to the Tau Yaun Night market. The two girls were a lot of fun and it was nice to have some professional haggler’s with me. They helped me talk down the price for anything I was interested in. By midnight I was home, and stayed up a while longer chatting with my host family. It may have been a couple of busy days, and late nights, but it was quite a good time and I am so happy I got to experience it all!

Thanks, PDG Archi

noreply@blogger.com (Sam) — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 01:37:00 +0000

On behalf of the GSE Team from 7690, Thank you Archi for a wonderful dinner and fellowship last night. We ate at Panorama 85, at the top of Taipei 101, currently the tallest building in the world. The view was incredible of Taipei City and the surrounding area. We had great food and enjoyed the company of our Taiwanese friends from Taoyuan Northwest Rotary Club. We will post pictures soon. Thank you again to all of our Taiwanese friends who have made our journey thus far a great experience.

Abby, Pam, Sam, Kim and Denise

Pictures

noreply@blogger.com (Sam) — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 14:50:00 +0000

I am attempting to post a couple of pictures from our time in Pinglin (tea country). We had the fish at lunch (very tasty) and we're toasting the chef at dinner.

Abby's diary 1

noreply@blogger.com (AbIgail Eaton) — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 16:09:00 +0000

I have been trying to keep up with all of our fun on the computer... but as you will see soon, we have been kept so busy that it is hard to keep up with all the action. I am at least 2 days behind! I though I would share my account of our day to day activities. Sadly my camera was lost/stolen on Thurs, so I have no photos to add, but I am sure others will be able to fill in the gaps on photos I may have lost.

Enjoy!

Trip to Taiwan

Mar 22 – Apr 18

1. We arrived at the airport around midnight. Greeted by over 20 people. They had made us a huge sign, and a lot of smiling faces. I was so surprised that so many people came to greet us. It was definitely a wonderful way to be welcomed! They brought us to the hotel, and by that time I was so exhausted that I went right to bed.

2. We had the first day off to rest and get used to the time change. It was well needed as my internal clock was all off. We did take a small tour over to the big department stores. And got to try our first lunch of street noodles. They were delicious. That night there was a reception dinner for us at the hotel. Many of the presidents of the rotary clubs we were going to be visiting came. It was nice to have more time to get to talk to everyone. I really felt welcomed. The hospitality here is exceptional. After dinner, we got our first opportunity to give our presentation. They all really seemed to like it, which was good news as we weren’t sure it would pass the language barrier.

3. Our first full day was a whirlwind. We met our first house hosts in the morning to exchange our luggage. Then it was off to the Tao Yuan government buildings. They told us of their future plans of expansion and ways they hope to modernize. We got to see a few videos about how healthcare works and take a tour of the facilities.

Then we left to go to the tea museum in Ping ling. Once in the town, we tried some local food “country”. Everything was delicious, my favorite meal by far at this point. We followed the motorcade of cars on to a local teahouse, where we learned how to brew green tea, both hot and cold. Jason, our GSE host, was gracious enough to get us all a bag a cold brew green to enjoy back at home. I don’t normal like tea, but here it is delicious. Next we headed to the Tea museum where our guide was very excited to tell us all about the history of tea. He didn’t speak English, but his expressions were so grand that we could usually follow what he was trying to say without knowing the language. Also we have been lucky to have at least one or two people in the group that speak enough English to make a general translation.

For dinner we drove deeper into the mountains to a tiny restaurant at the bottom of a valley. We had time before dinner, so we walked to the stream to skip rocks and all took a nice walk to see the beauty of the mountains. I think it will be hard to top the natural beauty of the mountains. And we could see where all sorts of teas were planted.

We ate a fabulous and huge meal, the plate after plate after plate of amazing and also surprising food. I now have eaten whole little fish. Head, bones and all it took some coaxing but eventually the entire team tried it. And it turned out to be all right. I actually had a couple more! Then when we thought the food was done they brought out some more desserts and food! I soon learned this will be typical of my Taiwan dinners, so I will no longer have any seconds, because there is sure to be more food to come! I learned (thanks to Kim) that HO Talla! Means “bottoms up” in mandarin. And pretty much everyone has to shoot the rest of his or her drinks. Tonight it was rice wine, and after enough shots, and some with the owner of the restaurant, we were pushed to sing karaoke. It took some coaxing, and almost forcing, but we got up on stage as a team to sing the YMCA. Although our singing was awful, we definitely had audience support because by the middle of it, it seemed the whole restaurant was participating.

And you would think it would be the end of the night… but NO! Our hosts had another treat in store for us. Wish lanterns. We each got a paper lantern to right our wish on and had to decorate it with all the wishes we wanted. Then they help us to light each, and after they filled up like a hot air balloon, we sent them into the sky. They were so beautiful. Sadly my first attempt to let one go, turn into a fiasco as the lantern suddenly caught fire and burned like a big fireball. (They were just Pam’s wishes, so nothing too bad was lost!)

After all this fun and next experiences, it was time to head back to our host families. And while the rest of the team settled into more mellow families, I was taken to one of the Rotarians TV stores. They had made their own little welcome party for me! I was so exhausted at first, it had been a long day, but it was so exciting to talk to all the new people that it was definitely worth the lack of sleep. They were all excited tot talk to me, and I found out later, that many had never seen a real red head before, so they were extra interested. I was lucky to have a couple girls there that spoke great English, so they were able to translate for the evening. It was almost 1:30 AM at this point… and after a lot of back and forth, I was able to finally make it into bed. Phew!
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I will try my best to continue this diary style blog, for both my records of the trip, and for you all to share. Hopefully I can have some more time to write before I forget it all!

noreply@blogger.com (Pam Ray) — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 22:06:00 +0000

Denise celebrated her 28th birthday with noodles for lunch and
birthday cake and singing "Happy Birthday" by district 3500 in the evening.

Our Welcome

noreply@blogger.com (AbIgail Eaton) — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 01:12:00 +0000

I agree, the reception couldnt have been warmer last night. I couldnt believe how many came to greet us, especially since it was after midnight when we arrived! I look forward to the trip, and I can tell already this will be an experience I will always cherish!

Thank you so much to all who have helped in putting this trip together!

Abby

Our GSE Team has arrived in Taiwan!

noreply@blogger.com (Sam) — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 17:11:00 +0000

Greetings from Taiwan! After a 17+ hr flight, we are glad to be here in Taiwan. We were welcomed by District 3500 at the airport with much fanfare! There were lots of pictures taken and we will post those soon. Right now, it's 1:15am Monday ... so, we need to go get some shuteye. But, on behalf of our group, I wanted to let everyone know we made it safely. Thanks for the sendoff today from PTI. We look forward to sharing more with you in the days and weeks ahead.

Kernersville Rotary Send-Off

noreply@blogger.com (RBlakemore) — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 13:22:00 +0000

Rotary District 7690
GSE Team to Taiwan (pres. by Team Leader Pam Ray)

	L-R Pam Ray, Abby Eaton, Sam Seifert, Dave McKoy (DG) Denise Bellamy, Kim Herzing

Congresswoman Virginia Foxx briefs GSE team

noreply@blogger.com (Pam Ray) — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 23:20:00 +0000

On 2-04-08, Congresswoman Virginia Foxx briefed the GSE team on US relations with Taiwan

Sam's first blog entry

noreply@blogger.com (Sam) — Sun, 27 Jan 2008 16:46:00 +0000

Well, it's been an extremely busy stretch of months. I welcomed the birth of my daughter, Kate, in November and she is just absolutely amazing! And, I am also preparing for our journey to Taiwan in March. This will be my first trip to the Far East and I am excited about the opportunity to experience such a totally different culture. The language barrier should prove to be a formidable challenge and the food will be interesting to say the least. But, we have a solid team in place (me, Pam, Abby, Denise and Kim) and we'll surely learn a lot, be better people because of this experience, and will make our Rotary District proud.

Taiwan, Here I come

noreply@blogger.com (Denise) — Sat, 26 Jan 2008 17:02:00 +0000

I really can’t believe how fast time has flown. It seems like yesterday when I found out about this amazing opportunity and nervously interviewed in hopes of being selected. As a study abroad advisor, I have been living vicariously through the excitement of my students. From the initial planning to their return from a semester abroad, I have enjoyed sharing the journey from the office.

BUT NOW IT’S MY TURN!!! :)

I can’t wait to see how our journey will unfold.

First Post from Abby

noreply@blogger.com (AbIgail Eaton) — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 15:50:00 +0000

My first post! Looking forward to my adventures in Taiwan!

GSE Preparations

noreply@blogger.com (RBlakemore) — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 17:37:00 +0000

(L-R Pam Ray, Denise Bellamy, Sam Seifert, Abby Eaton, Kim Herzing)

GSE preparations for the March 2008 trip to Taiwan have included studying with UNCG graduate students from Taiwan.