The Grade Threes that I help out with twice a week did a news cast today. Here are some of the highlights that I thought you all should know:
1. New York City is in the midst of a week long typhoon
2. Beethoven died yesterday while hailing down a taxi in Taipei after his concert. The drunk taxi driver accidentally hit him.
3. A new world famous recipe has been created where you add every ingredient known to man into a pot and boil it.
4. A man-eating plant has been discovered in Canada. A woman bought a seed from a poor person, planted it and discovered that it had grown and was eating her children the next morning.
Friday 29 February 2008
Thursday 28 February 2008
Finding Public Washrooms Day
Today was a national holiday, "Peace Memorial Day", for a reason I forget. Obviously something to do with remembering some sort of violent conflict. Since I have paid holidays, I would have preferred it to be on a Wednesday or Friday (my full days), but no such luck. Linda (see the post on rich friends) called last night and invited Michael and I out to eat with them today. We decided to meet at 4:30 at her house.
After doing all the household chores I normally save for Saturday, we decided to go out to explore the community. I had every intention of returning home before going to meet Linda, so I didn't take my cell phone or a set of extra clothes for Michael. As you can probably guess, we didn't end up going back home and I spent the day frantically trying to find public washrooms.
We walked down our 219 steps and turned the other way this time. We found a bunch of hole in the wall restaurants, a 7-11 (of course), a fruit/vegetable stand and a fresh meat stand. I'm pretty sure that only pork is ever sold at these open air (non-refridgerated) meat stands, so maybe I should just call them scary raw pork stands.
We then walked to the playground to let Michael play. He's very sociable and is always trying to play with the other children, but they all seem to be afraid of him, or are just plain mean, so we didn't stay very long. While Michael was playing, I discovered that I could see the raised MRT line through the trees down the hill. It didn't seem very far away, so I took Michael down the hill. Well, once we were at the MRT, Michael wanted to get on. And away we went.
We got off at the new SOGO (big Japanese owned department store) which they built right across the street from the old SOGO and explored every floor via the view from the escalators, which is the only part that Michael has any interest in. The basement had a nice food court, but it was packed solid, so we got lunch at the bakery. They had these cute little rectangular sandwiches, nine to a pack (three each of egg salad, ham, and cucumber/tomato). Each one could be eaten in two or three bites. Michael, however, doesn't eat like a normal person and had lots of fun trying to fit each entire sandwich into his mouth at once. He was the main attraction for all the people waiting to get into Ding Tai Fung (a famous Taiwan dumpling restaurant), with tomato juice spurting out of his mouth and bulging cheeks.
Found a public washroom, and then we got on another train line to the site of the lantern festival the other night. Robert and I had lived in that area and I wanted to see what had changed. We walked and walked some more with a stop at a toy store that sells high quality, very expensive toys, like Thomas trains. Michael played with their demonstration set for about forty-five minutes giving me plenty of time to examine every item in the store and have the saleslady show me how everything worked.
We stopped again for a rest and drink at a 7-11. Then I started to be on the lookout for another washroom. Nothing. Nothing. Nothing. We made another few stops to look in a few pet stores. Michael is convinced that he's getting a puppy for his birthday and he keeps on choosing one out whenever we walk by a pet store. They were very cute, but SO tiny. I'm sure they were nowhere near the age they were supposed to be before being able to leave their mother, and I felt quite sad seeing them in those little cages.
By this time we had been walking for quite awhile and I was getting a little frantic. There weren't even any children's clothing stores around for me to buy Michael extra clothes should he have an accident. We finally got to the alley that is a wet market (ie. fresh produce and meat) by day and night market by night (surprise, surprise). There were lots of great things to look at, but I had a one track mind, and finally found a sign pointing down this dark, narrow, smelly alley to washrooms. I hoped that no muggers were around and plunged into the darkness. It was gross, but Michael went and we ran out.
I looked at my watch to see how much time we had left to explore the market before heading to Linda's and was astonished to see that it was 4:25. I quickly hailed a taxi and looked through my purse for the guidebook Robert had made me that had her address written in Chinese. No guidebook. Oops, forgot it at home - along with everything else. So, I pull out my map, because I had completely forgotten the name of the street near her house. I find it and hope my Chinese is understandable as I tell the driver the intersection by her house. He must have understood, because we got there just fine, but he didn't trust me to know my numbers yet (a safe assumption), because he said "ninety" when we arrived. Now, the fare is prominently displayed in the cab, so I already knew what it was, but appreciated his effort all the same.
Arrived at Linda's ten minutes late. I had to carry Michael the last block because he was so tired, he kept tripping over his feet. Rang the bell. No answer. Waited a few minutes. Finally, Sara came out to let us in. Linda didn't even arrive until twenty-five minutes later. I needn't have worried about being late. Michael got his second wind and was totally hyper. I was hoping that he would still be quiet tired for the restaurant, but nope.
Linda decided to take us to the new SOGO. I didn't tell her that we were there just that morning. We had dinner in one of the fancy restaurants on the top floor, and Michael wasn't too bad. Harris wasn't feeling well, and Sara is always quiet, so Linda and I had to maintain the conversation.
We then went to the sixth floor where they had a bookstore. Michael found a few demonstration English books (most books are shrink wrapped so you can't read them in the store) and we read those for awhile and then said goodbye and went home. Michael really wanted to go back to Harris' house because he had an electric train set, and started to cry. Linda felt bad and promised to invite us over again soon. By the time we got on the train, he had forgotten all about it. Such is life with a three year old.
After doing all the household chores I normally save for Saturday, we decided to go out to explore the community. I had every intention of returning home before going to meet Linda, so I didn't take my cell phone or a set of extra clothes for Michael. As you can probably guess, we didn't end up going back home and I spent the day frantically trying to find public washrooms.
We walked down our 219 steps and turned the other way this time. We found a bunch of hole in the wall restaurants, a 7-11 (of course), a fruit/vegetable stand and a fresh meat stand. I'm pretty sure that only pork is ever sold at these open air (non-refridgerated) meat stands, so maybe I should just call them scary raw pork stands.
We then walked to the playground to let Michael play. He's very sociable and is always trying to play with the other children, but they all seem to be afraid of him, or are just plain mean, so we didn't stay very long. While Michael was playing, I discovered that I could see the raised MRT line through the trees down the hill. It didn't seem very far away, so I took Michael down the hill. Well, once we were at the MRT, Michael wanted to get on. And away we went.
We got off at the new SOGO (big Japanese owned department store) which they built right across the street from the old SOGO and explored every floor via the view from the escalators, which is the only part that Michael has any interest in. The basement had a nice food court, but it was packed solid, so we got lunch at the bakery. They had these cute little rectangular sandwiches, nine to a pack (three each of egg salad, ham, and cucumber/tomato). Each one could be eaten in two or three bites. Michael, however, doesn't eat like a normal person and had lots of fun trying to fit each entire sandwich into his mouth at once. He was the main attraction for all the people waiting to get into Ding Tai Fung (a famous Taiwan dumpling restaurant), with tomato juice spurting out of his mouth and bulging cheeks.
Found a public washroom, and then we got on another train line to the site of the lantern festival the other night. Robert and I had lived in that area and I wanted to see what had changed. We walked and walked some more with a stop at a toy store that sells high quality, very expensive toys, like Thomas trains. Michael played with their demonstration set for about forty-five minutes giving me plenty of time to examine every item in the store and have the saleslady show me how everything worked.
We stopped again for a rest and drink at a 7-11. Then I started to be on the lookout for another washroom. Nothing. Nothing. Nothing. We made another few stops to look in a few pet stores. Michael is convinced that he's getting a puppy for his birthday and he keeps on choosing one out whenever we walk by a pet store. They were very cute, but SO tiny. I'm sure they were nowhere near the age they were supposed to be before being able to leave their mother, and I felt quite sad seeing them in those little cages.
By this time we had been walking for quite awhile and I was getting a little frantic. There weren't even any children's clothing stores around for me to buy Michael extra clothes should he have an accident. We finally got to the alley that is a wet market (ie. fresh produce and meat) by day and night market by night (surprise, surprise). There were lots of great things to look at, but I had a one track mind, and finally found a sign pointing down this dark, narrow, smelly alley to washrooms. I hoped that no muggers were around and plunged into the darkness. It was gross, but Michael went and we ran out.
I looked at my watch to see how much time we had left to explore the market before heading to Linda's and was astonished to see that it was 4:25. I quickly hailed a taxi and looked through my purse for the guidebook Robert had made me that had her address written in Chinese. No guidebook. Oops, forgot it at home - along with everything else. So, I pull out my map, because I had completely forgotten the name of the street near her house. I find it and hope my Chinese is understandable as I tell the driver the intersection by her house. He must have understood, because we got there just fine, but he didn't trust me to know my numbers yet (a safe assumption), because he said "ninety" when we arrived. Now, the fare is prominently displayed in the cab, so I already knew what it was, but appreciated his effort all the same.
Arrived at Linda's ten minutes late. I had to carry Michael the last block because he was so tired, he kept tripping over his feet. Rang the bell. No answer. Waited a few minutes. Finally, Sara came out to let us in. Linda didn't even arrive until twenty-five minutes later. I needn't have worried about being late. Michael got his second wind and was totally hyper. I was hoping that he would still be quiet tired for the restaurant, but nope.
Linda decided to take us to the new SOGO. I didn't tell her that we were there just that morning. We had dinner in one of the fancy restaurants on the top floor, and Michael wasn't too bad. Harris wasn't feeling well, and Sara is always quiet, so Linda and I had to maintain the conversation.
We then went to the sixth floor where they had a bookstore. Michael found a few demonstration English books (most books are shrink wrapped so you can't read them in the store) and we read those for awhile and then said goodbye and went home. Michael really wanted to go back to Harris' house because he had an electric train set, and started to cry. Linda felt bad and promised to invite us over again soon. By the time we got on the train, he had forgotten all about it. Such is life with a three year old.
Tuesday 26 February 2008
Tutoring Annie
May has refused to allow me to pay any rent for my apartment. She says that it's very cheap, and that I'm like family. I even tried to sneak money to her by hiding it in a book I gave her as a gift, but she returned it by giving it to Michael and saying that if I still wanted to be her friend, I wouldn't try to give her money again. I didn't think this was fair as she always gave me money when she came to visit me in Canada and when I repeatedly tried to return it to her then, she always refused. Maybe I should have tried the "You can't be my friend anymore if you give me money" routine on her before, but I didn't know it was allowed. There are still many things I have to learn about Chinese culture.
So, when May asks me for a favour, I obviously can't refuse as I am deeply in her debt. She doesn't ask for much, and always gives me so much more in return. One thing she has asked me to do is tutor Annie once a week while I am here. Now, I don't agree with all the tutoring and extra academic classes that go on here, and I don't feel that I can really help Annie by meeting with her for an hour and a half once a week for three and a half months, but if it makes May feel that she is helping out her daughter a little more, than I don't see much harm in it.
On Tuesday afternoons/evenings, Annie doesn't have extra classes, so that's when we've set our lesson. I called her around 5pm and she came over. I had talked with her Grade 6 English teacher at my school and he told me that she needed a lot of help with reading strategies and applying her knowledge of sentence structure to her writing. He gave me their reader and told me that I could do one of the stories that she had missed last week due to a school trip.
At 5pm, I invited her over. Michael was really excited and then got really mad at me when he found out that I was keeping Annie all to myself. I invited him to read a book beside us while we worked, but he preferred to sulk in another room.
I soon found out the problem with Annie's reading. She can communicate just fine, but has the vocabulary of about a North American in Kindergarten. Now, kids in Canadian kindergartens can speak very well and can understand most of what is being said around them, but when it comes to words and subjects that pop up in grade six reading materials, it's just totally out of their league. And if they haven't developed any reading strategies, such as trying to guess at the meaning of the word given the context, or have no interest in the subject (the non-fiction piece we were reading was about a South Carolina blacksmith), it's basically a write-off. We struggled through three pages and then I gave up. I didn't want to discourage her. From now on, I think we'll stick to simpler books which don't contain unfamiliar words in every single sentence, and forget about grade six materials.
Then we moved on to pre-writing exercises. I found out that she and her friends write a journal everyday to each other (in Chinese) for fun where they write a half to a full page about things that have happened or other thoughts and feelings. I was pretty impressed, and felt that it shouldn't be too hard for her to find something to write about in English then. So I gave her the assignment to spend not more than half an hour writing about how crazily Michael behaves when she is around for next week. We discussed a few things that she could write and then I left it at that.
During our lesson, I asked her about where I should take my garbage. I had heard the garbage truck a few times (they blare the first two lines of "Fur Elise" over and over again - it's a good thing Beethoven's not buried in Taiwan or else I'm sure he would rise and find a way to put all those garbage trucks out of commission...) but wasn't sure about where or when to take it out. She called her father, who prompty came over from next door and took my garbage out for me. Then Annie took all my recycling. I had to run after them to see where they went so that I could do it by myself next time. Joseph (May's husband) also checked my meter because he had to report it. I hope they'll at least let me pay my utilities, but somehow I doubt I'll ever see a bill. I've got to figure out a way to repay them for all that they have done for me, but I'm a little short on ideas. Well, I still have another three and a half months to figure something out.
So, when May asks me for a favour, I obviously can't refuse as I am deeply in her debt. She doesn't ask for much, and always gives me so much more in return. One thing she has asked me to do is tutor Annie once a week while I am here. Now, I don't agree with all the tutoring and extra academic classes that go on here, and I don't feel that I can really help Annie by meeting with her for an hour and a half once a week for three and a half months, but if it makes May feel that she is helping out her daughter a little more, than I don't see much harm in it.
On Tuesday afternoons/evenings, Annie doesn't have extra classes, so that's when we've set our lesson. I called her around 5pm and she came over. I had talked with her Grade 6 English teacher at my school and he told me that she needed a lot of help with reading strategies and applying her knowledge of sentence structure to her writing. He gave me their reader and told me that I could do one of the stories that she had missed last week due to a school trip.
At 5pm, I invited her over. Michael was really excited and then got really mad at me when he found out that I was keeping Annie all to myself. I invited him to read a book beside us while we worked, but he preferred to sulk in another room.
I soon found out the problem with Annie's reading. She can communicate just fine, but has the vocabulary of about a North American in Kindergarten. Now, kids in Canadian kindergartens can speak very well and can understand most of what is being said around them, but when it comes to words and subjects that pop up in grade six reading materials, it's just totally out of their league. And if they haven't developed any reading strategies, such as trying to guess at the meaning of the word given the context, or have no interest in the subject (the non-fiction piece we were reading was about a South Carolina blacksmith), it's basically a write-off. We struggled through three pages and then I gave up. I didn't want to discourage her. From now on, I think we'll stick to simpler books which don't contain unfamiliar words in every single sentence, and forget about grade six materials.
Then we moved on to pre-writing exercises. I found out that she and her friends write a journal everyday to each other (in Chinese) for fun where they write a half to a full page about things that have happened or other thoughts and feelings. I was pretty impressed, and felt that it shouldn't be too hard for her to find something to write about in English then. So I gave her the assignment to spend not more than half an hour writing about how crazily Michael behaves when she is around for next week. We discussed a few things that she could write and then I left it at that.
During our lesson, I asked her about where I should take my garbage. I had heard the garbage truck a few times (they blare the first two lines of "Fur Elise" over and over again - it's a good thing Beethoven's not buried in Taiwan or else I'm sure he would rise and find a way to put all those garbage trucks out of commission...) but wasn't sure about where or when to take it out. She called her father, who prompty came over from next door and took my garbage out for me. Then Annie took all my recycling. I had to run after them to see where they went so that I could do it by myself next time. Joseph (May's husband) also checked my meter because he had to report it. I hope they'll at least let me pay my utilities, but somehow I doubt I'll ever see a bill. I've got to figure out a way to repay them for all that they have done for me, but I'm a little short on ideas. Well, I still have another three and a half months to figure something out.
Monday 25 February 2008
Rooftop Ferris Wheels
I decided to go to Miramar today. It had been built after Robert and I had left and all I knew about it was that it was a mall with a rooftop ferris wheel and merry-go-round. And that it was in the middle of nowhere but that there were free shuttle buses from the MRT. So, after school, Michael and I headed off.
Our apartment and the school are both located on the Brown MRT line (there are five different lines with at least two more being built), and as luck would have it, one of the two MRT stations with shuttles to Miramar was at the end of the brown line (about four stops away from the school). What I didn't know was that the shuttle bus only comes by less than once an hour to that station on weekdays. They had a schedule posted with the exact times that it was supposed to arrive. I looked at my watch and found we had a fifteen minute wait. Not too bad. If it had been any longer, I would have just abandoned our quest for the day.
I had no expectations, but in a city with millions of people, I expected some other shoppers. It was completely dead. The salespeople probably outnumbered the customers by five to one. At least. It was a very upscale mall, the kind where I just let Michael play on the escalators as it's all I can afford to do. Well, I did buy him some expensive gummy bears, and we did have some ice cream. I still can't believe how many treats he's getting here.
Then we found the rooftop ferris wheel. There were five people in line. I wasn't sure if I bought a ticket at the front of the line, or somewhere else, but the line didn't seem to be going anywhere even though the wheel was turning. Maybe they were doing a checkup round?
At this point Michael started dancing around, which means he needs to go to the bathroom, so we ran back inside and found the nearest washrooms, then went back. Afterwards, I realize that I'm supposed to buy tickets at the movie theatre box office, so we buy my ticket ($5 Cdn, Michael was free) and stand in line again. Then I figure out why the line isn't going anywhere. There are two separate line-ups. One for the "transparent" carriage (which had a clear floor, seats and sides), and one for the regular carriages where you just look out the windows). I think there was only one transparent carriage, so those people were waiting ten minutes (the length of time it took to go all the way around) times the number of people in front of them. I got out of that line and went to the other line. Well, it wasn't really a line as there were no people in it. The guy in charge just ushered us into the next carriage and we were on our way.
Michael enjoyed it, but then half way through, he started pouting. I asked him what was wrong, and he said that he wanted me to take a picture of him with a sad face. So here it is. You can see Taipei 101 in the background, and the reason why the ferris wheel isn't on the ground. With so many highrises around, you wouldn't be able to see anything.
Our apartment and the school are both located on the Brown MRT line (there are five different lines with at least two more being built), and as luck would have it, one of the two MRT stations with shuttles to Miramar was at the end of the brown line (about four stops away from the school). What I didn't know was that the shuttle bus only comes by less than once an hour to that station on weekdays. They had a schedule posted with the exact times that it was supposed to arrive. I looked at my watch and found we had a fifteen minute wait. Not too bad. If it had been any longer, I would have just abandoned our quest for the day.
I had no expectations, but in a city with millions of people, I expected some other shoppers. It was completely dead. The salespeople probably outnumbered the customers by five to one. At least. It was a very upscale mall, the kind where I just let Michael play on the escalators as it's all I can afford to do. Well, I did buy him some expensive gummy bears, and we did have some ice cream. I still can't believe how many treats he's getting here.
Then we found the rooftop ferris wheel. There were five people in line. I wasn't sure if I bought a ticket at the front of the line, or somewhere else, but the line didn't seem to be going anywhere even though the wheel was turning. Maybe they were doing a checkup round?
At this point Michael started dancing around, which means he needs to go to the bathroom, so we ran back inside and found the nearest washrooms, then went back. Afterwards, I realize that I'm supposed to buy tickets at the movie theatre box office, so we buy my ticket ($5 Cdn, Michael was free) and stand in line again. Then I figure out why the line isn't going anywhere. There are two separate line-ups. One for the "transparent" carriage (which had a clear floor, seats and sides), and one for the regular carriages where you just look out the windows). I think there was only one transparent carriage, so those people were waiting ten minutes (the length of time it took to go all the way around) times the number of people in front of them. I got out of that line and went to the other line. Well, it wasn't really a line as there were no people in it. The guy in charge just ushered us into the next carriage and we were on our way.
Michael enjoyed it, but then half way through, he started pouting. I asked him what was wrong, and he said that he wanted me to take a picture of him with a sad face. So here it is. You can see Taipei 101 in the background, and the reason why the ferris wheel isn't on the ground. With so many highrises around, you wouldn't be able to see anything.
Then he started doing his silly fake laugh and told me to take a picture of that. The indulgent mother that I am readily clicked away. As you can see, there are plenty of windows. I don't know why anyone would wait forever in line to see the rooftop below their feet. But, as my husband tells me, I am far from being just anyone.
Miramar didn't even have a food court. Needless to say, I will not be returning there again until Robert and Jeremy come to visit and have their ferris wheel ride. Luckily, the shuttle bus was just about to arrive when we got down to the ground level again, so we hopped on and went home.
Before transferring onto the bus, we stopped at a pasta stand/restaurant to pick up some supper for later. I quickly chose the spicy chicken for me and the regular pasta and meat sauce for Mikey. Then as I looked more closely at the menu, I realized that everything seemed to be down twice, once under "Set Meal" (which was supposed to read "Entree" as the set meal cost an extra $2 Cdn) and once under "Grilled." Everything under "Grilled" cost an extra $0.75 Cdn. I had ordered my chicken from the "Grilled" side and Michael's spaghetti from the "Set Meal" side. I pondered and looked around for clues and finally figured out that grilled, actually meant baked. It's the same as the "set meal" (ie. entree), except they put cheese on top and melt it in the oven for a couple of minutes.
My mind now at ease, I proceeded to look around me and found a man sitting behind us just about to eat an apple. Now, I am pretty leary of buying apples here because they are fairly expensive and often soft. The kind of soft that happens when they are kept in temperatures that are too cold and then defrosted again. I like my apples crunchy. You can get crunchy apples here, I just don't know how to find them. Anyways, this man saw Michael staring at him, so he offers him the apple and Michael, of course, grabs it. Did I mention that these apples are also gigantic? So, Michael starts biting into this gigantic, soft apple, that I am sure has not been washed in any fashion, happy as can be. What am I supposed to do? Grab it out of his hand? So I smile, thank the man and was grateful that he didn't offer me one.
Michael only ate about an eighth of it and then decided he didn't like it after all, but by this time we had our supper in hand and were back at the bus stop, and out of sight, so I let him throw it out.
My spicy chicken pasta turned out to be rice, but it was still good. Who would have guessed that a pasta stand sold spicy spaghetti sauce with chicken on rice?
Sunday 24 February 2008
Church, Costco and Chinese Grandmothers
As luck would have it, the church that May goes to is right by ours and also starts at 11am, so last week, she gave us a ride. I wasn't sure if it was going to be a weekly ritual, so I waited around until 10:20, and then started walking towards the bus stop. About half way there, I hear my name being called out, and see May running down the street after us. Turns out we had a ride after all.
Michael is still refusing to go to Sunbeams. He would rather sit with me through Relief Society and then just go to singing/sharing time. This week, he almost had to sit on the floor, as some of the Chinese wards were having conference, and had taken out half the chairs from our room. So, a good dozen sisters sat on the floor at the back of the room. This was the first week that Michael didn't have an "accident" at church. Probably because he decided to sit in the very last row and knew that it wouldn't embarass me as much if he did.
May had invited us over to her brother's house for dinner, but beforehand, she needed to go to Costco and took us along. What a madhouse. Now I remembered why Robert and I never went on the weekend. You cannot move. The Costco here has a four level underground parkade. We couldn't even find a spot until B3, and then only because we saw someone pull out right in front of us. Annie was running around standing in the long line ups for samples, while I tried to prevent Michael from getting crushed. I was pretty glad to get out of there.
Michael is still refusing to go to Sunbeams. He would rather sit with me through Relief Society and then just go to singing/sharing time. This week, he almost had to sit on the floor, as some of the Chinese wards were having conference, and had taken out half the chairs from our room. So, a good dozen sisters sat on the floor at the back of the room. This was the first week that Michael didn't have an "accident" at church. Probably because he decided to sit in the very last row and knew that it wouldn't embarass me as much if he did.
May had invited us over to her brother's house for dinner, but beforehand, she needed to go to Costco and took us along. What a madhouse. Now I remembered why Robert and I never went on the weekend. You cannot move. The Costco here has a four level underground parkade. We couldn't even find a spot until B3, and then only because we saw someone pull out right in front of us. Annie was running around standing in the long line ups for samples, while I tried to prevent Michael from getting crushed. I was pretty glad to get out of there.
Then we returned to May's house where she divided up her Costco purchases between her family and her brother's. Their families are very close. Her mother lives with her brother, and they eat dinner there almost every night. Michael found a set of light-up devil's horns. I especially like the red eyes in the picture as well. He wanted to wear them all night, but we finally persuaded him to take them off to go to supper.
Then we had a Chinese grandmother fuss over us. She had made two vegetable dishes, a fish, some chicken, pork, and two soups. May said that it was very typical. She didn't cook more because we were coming. Plus she had cooked a separate Chinese medicinal soup for Annie. Luckily Michael ate a lot, so she was happy.
Michael then had fun playing (or banging) on their electric keyboard. I had to drag him off before we all went insane. Their apartment is quite small, and there wasn't much room to move around, so I was glad that May suggested we take Michael home to go to bed soon after. He was getting tired. It had been a long day.
Saturday 23 February 2008
Crazy Mikey and the Lantern Festival
It was another rainy day. I invited Annie (May's 12 year old daughter) over to play with Michael. She came over and Michael went absolutely crazy. Running around in circles, yelling nonsense words at the top of his voice, throwing his toys all over the place, you name it. She had no idea what to do. She tried talking with him a few times to calm him down, and eventually gave up. Then Annie's cousin Jerry (who's around 9) came over, so they just played with Michael's toys while Michael danced around them.
All that activity must have tired him out, because he then slept for three hours, and that's when I started this blog. All my entries have been backdated, including this one.
After Michael woke up, we went over to May's house to see if anyone wanted to come see the lanterns at Sun Yat Sen Memorial Hall. Every year for a week and a half around the Lantern Festival, they have huge display of Lanterns with the theme being this year's animal on the Chinese calendar. Well, it's the year of the rat. Rats don't have the greatest appeal, so many of the lanterns were based on cute mice rather than rats. Now, these are not hand held lanterns. They are large, lit-up sculptures, mounted on pedastals. It's kind of like watching a parade of rat floats, except they are stationary, and you're doing the walking.
Every half hour or so, they do an sound and lights show with the "main" lantern, shown below, which this year was a ball made up of 5000 various plastic rats. Yes, I'm still wondering why I decided to go out into the rain to see this...
It's usually packed with people, but I was hoping that the crowds wouldn't be so bad because it was raining slightly. How wrong I was. Michael started saying "I want to go home now," after seeing about an eighth of the lanterns. The poor little guy could only see a sea of legs and a sky of umbrellas, with a glimpse of some glowing things here and there. But, he was pushed on so quickly by the crowds that he could never make out what it was.
We did make the entire round with Annie and Ailsa (another teaching assistant at my school who had been visiting May when we went over), but didn't enjoy it very much. We stopped at a noodle and dumpling restaurant to pick up some supper for Michael and I, then got on the bus to go home. Well, at least we got something to eat out of it!
All that activity must have tired him out, because he then slept for three hours, and that's when I started this blog. All my entries have been backdated, including this one.
After Michael woke up, we went over to May's house to see if anyone wanted to come see the lanterns at Sun Yat Sen Memorial Hall. Every year for a week and a half around the Lantern Festival, they have huge display of Lanterns with the theme being this year's animal on the Chinese calendar. Well, it's the year of the rat. Rats don't have the greatest appeal, so many of the lanterns were based on cute mice rather than rats. Now, these are not hand held lanterns. They are large, lit-up sculptures, mounted on pedastals. It's kind of like watching a parade of rat floats, except they are stationary, and you're doing the walking.
Every half hour or so, they do an sound and lights show with the "main" lantern, shown below, which this year was a ball made up of 5000 various plastic rats. Yes, I'm still wondering why I decided to go out into the rain to see this...
It's usually packed with people, but I was hoping that the crowds wouldn't be so bad because it was raining slightly. How wrong I was. Michael started saying "I want to go home now," after seeing about an eighth of the lanterns. The poor little guy could only see a sea of legs and a sky of umbrellas, with a glimpse of some glowing things here and there. But, he was pushed on so quickly by the crowds that he could never make out what it was.
We did make the entire round with Annie and Ailsa (another teaching assistant at my school who had been visiting May when we went over), but didn't enjoy it very much. We stopped at a noodle and dumpling restaurant to pick up some supper for Michael and I, then got on the bus to go home. Well, at least we got something to eat out of it!
Thursday 21 February 2008
Mikey the Monkey
Well, he's not really. But, from the number of pictures people took of him at the zoo today, you'd think he was one of the animals on display.
Today was the first beautiful day we've had in Taiwan. Partly cloudy and 23 degrees. Perfect zoo weather. Took the MRT down to the zoo after lunch. Everyone at school was quite jealous.
The Taipei zoo is quite nice and very large. I still haven't seen the whole thing, and I've been there four times. Of course, I always seem to be in the African Animals area as that is what kids like most. So, I've seen that part four times. It costs less than $2 Canadian to get in, and Michael is free, so we should be going fairly often as soon as it stops raining. They have a little train with one stop near the entrance, and the other at the far end that costs about 15 cents, which is great, because then you can just walk back towards the entrance, and it's mostly downhill.
Now Michael had gone to the bathroom right before we left the school. But, even so, before we got on the train, I asked him if he wanted to go potty. "No, thank you." (He's so polite.) And what should happen once I've paid our fare and we're waiting in line, not even two minutes after asking him to go? "Uh, oh. Mommy, me wet." Well, I couldn't exactly change him there, so he waited in his wet pants (which were a navy blue, so I don't think anyone could tell) for the train. We took the train up, and then found the nearest bathroom, after watching a giant tortoise poke it's head out and move one leg (it was huge!).
Michael had told everyone at school that he was going to the zoo, and he was pretty excited about it, but I think the longest he ever stayed looking at one animal was maybe 10 seconds (and that's only when I got out the camera to take a picture of him). He really wanted to see the monkeys, but once we got there, he wanted to see the lions, then the elephants, then the giraffes. You get the idea. It was a pleasant walk anyways.
A white three year old boy with blue eyes sure does generate a lot of attention here. Especially among the late teen, early twenties female crowd. There were at least four that came up to us at the zoo asking for pictures with Michael, and I noticed a lot of others taking pictures without asking. Some other parents would nudge their kids close to Michael so that they could get him in their pictures as well. He'll be famous by the time we leave.
Michael was too tired to walk back to the entrance, so we took the zoo train again. We then decided to go to the zoo mall because I had heard about all the cool things that they had done to it. Well, they either hadn't started or they had already closed it down, because the only things that were open were a couple of souvenir shops, a McDonalds and one Chinese restaurant. Michael was begging for ice cream, so I dragged him down the long empty strip to where the TCBYs used to be. Gone. So all the way back to the other end to stand in the insanely long line at McDonalds. Then we got take out at the Chinese restaurant.
We were both exhausted by this point, but managed to make it to the bus stop. I knew that one of the buses that went to the zoo went right by our house, but when I looked at the bus route map (all in Chinese), it seemed to me that my house was at one end and the zoo was at the other. With many many stops all over in between. We waited about ten minutes, and then I just decided to take a taxi.
This was the first time that I've taken a taxi without someone else there to give directions. I had my address written in Chinese, but most drivers don't recognize my street, although they know which community it's in because of the name (kind of like Calgary in that respect). I knew my house was fairly close by, just in the community across from the zoo (although they're separated by a river, which can only be crossed at certain points). I've also never approached my community from the zoo side so I had no idea how to get to my street. At one point I told the driver to go right, when he should have gone left, because I recognized the intersection. It was right by where the stairs come down, but I didn't feel like walking up 219 stairs. We got back eventually, and it cost a little more than I expected (around $5 Canadian), but we made it safe and sound.
I think in the future, I'll just take the MRT and bus. If a sunny future does await me... I'm getting really tired of the cold and rain.
Today was the first beautiful day we've had in Taiwan. Partly cloudy and 23 degrees. Perfect zoo weather. Took the MRT down to the zoo after lunch. Everyone at school was quite jealous.
The Taipei zoo is quite nice and very large. I still haven't seen the whole thing, and I've been there four times. Of course, I always seem to be in the African Animals area as that is what kids like most. So, I've seen that part four times. It costs less than $2 Canadian to get in, and Michael is free, so we should be going fairly often as soon as it stops raining. They have a little train with one stop near the entrance, and the other at the far end that costs about 15 cents, which is great, because then you can just walk back towards the entrance, and it's mostly downhill.
Now Michael had gone to the bathroom right before we left the school. But, even so, before we got on the train, I asked him if he wanted to go potty. "No, thank you." (He's so polite.) And what should happen once I've paid our fare and we're waiting in line, not even two minutes after asking him to go? "Uh, oh. Mommy, me wet." Well, I couldn't exactly change him there, so he waited in his wet pants (which were a navy blue, so I don't think anyone could tell) for the train. We took the train up, and then found the nearest bathroom, after watching a giant tortoise poke it's head out and move one leg (it was huge!).
Michael had told everyone at school that he was going to the zoo, and he was pretty excited about it, but I think the longest he ever stayed looking at one animal was maybe 10 seconds (and that's only when I got out the camera to take a picture of him). He really wanted to see the monkeys, but once we got there, he wanted to see the lions, then the elephants, then the giraffes. You get the idea. It was a pleasant walk anyways.
A white three year old boy with blue eyes sure does generate a lot of attention here. Especially among the late teen, early twenties female crowd. There were at least four that came up to us at the zoo asking for pictures with Michael, and I noticed a lot of others taking pictures without asking. Some other parents would nudge their kids close to Michael so that they could get him in their pictures as well. He'll be famous by the time we leave.
Michael was too tired to walk back to the entrance, so we took the zoo train again. We then decided to go to the zoo mall because I had heard about all the cool things that they had done to it. Well, they either hadn't started or they had already closed it down, because the only things that were open were a couple of souvenir shops, a McDonalds and one Chinese restaurant. Michael was begging for ice cream, so I dragged him down the long empty strip to where the TCBYs used to be. Gone. So all the way back to the other end to stand in the insanely long line at McDonalds. Then we got take out at the Chinese restaurant.
We were both exhausted by this point, but managed to make it to the bus stop. I knew that one of the buses that went to the zoo went right by our house, but when I looked at the bus route map (all in Chinese), it seemed to me that my house was at one end and the zoo was at the other. With many many stops all over in between. We waited about ten minutes, and then I just decided to take a taxi.
This was the first time that I've taken a taxi without someone else there to give directions. I had my address written in Chinese, but most drivers don't recognize my street, although they know which community it's in because of the name (kind of like Calgary in that respect). I knew my house was fairly close by, just in the community across from the zoo (although they're separated by a river, which can only be crossed at certain points). I've also never approached my community from the zoo side so I had no idea how to get to my street. At one point I told the driver to go right, when he should have gone left, because I recognized the intersection. It was right by where the stairs come down, but I didn't feel like walking up 219 stairs. We got back eventually, and it cost a little more than I expected (around $5 Canadian), but we made it safe and sound.
I think in the future, I'll just take the MRT and bus. If a sunny future does await me... I'm getting really tired of the cold and rain.
Tuesday 19 February 2008
Asia World Once More
Went back to Asia World (of IKEA fame) and the only embarrassing moment happened when a worker told Michael to stop pulling on some lever in an arcade. I had not bought any tokens as Michael can't play anything, but he enjoys pretending. He was just pretending too hard.
Bought Michael his ice cream. Tried out the fried beef noodles at the Thai place in the food court. When asked how spicy, I said "just a little," hoping that I would be able to share with Michael. No such luck. It made me wonder what the regular spiciness was, as it was pretty hot.
Steered clear of the demonstration lady in Toys 'R Us. Michael spent about twenty minutes in the baby section pressing all the buttons on the electronic toys and trying out all the little ride-on toys (that were tethered to the floor, so he couldn't go very far).
No fights in the IKEA ballpit today. We got take-out at the restaurant, and I think the man at the till was the manager who had come running over last week when Michael dropped our tray . I just hope he didn't recognize us.
All in all, pretty uneventful.
Bought Michael his ice cream. Tried out the fried beef noodles at the Thai place in the food court. When asked how spicy, I said "just a little," hoping that I would be able to share with Michael. No such luck. It made me wonder what the regular spiciness was, as it was pretty hot.
Steered clear of the demonstration lady in Toys 'R Us. Michael spent about twenty minutes in the baby section pressing all the buttons on the electronic toys and trying out all the little ride-on toys (that were tethered to the floor, so he couldn't go very far).
No fights in the IKEA ballpit today. We got take-out at the restaurant, and I think the man at the till was the manager who had come running over last week when Michael dropped our tray . I just hope he didn't recognize us.
All in all, pretty uneventful.
Monday 18 February 2008
Long Walks and Substitute Teaching
I unintentionally made Michael walk all the way from school to Taipei 101. Now Robert did this walk almost daily before, but I knew it was quite a ways, and I was planning to take the bus, but I walked the wrong way. By the time we reached the next bus stop, I knew it would only be two more stops until we had to get off, because for some unfathomable reason, there are very few buses that stop at Taipei's most famous landmark, and so we would have had to get off a few blocks before reaching it. So, we walked and walked and walked and walked.
We did stop at a computer market for my USB flash drive. It was less than $10 Canadian for 1GB.
There was a large book showcase going on at the Convention Centre right before Taipei 101, so there were lots of workers/volunteers walking around. Two of them saw Michael and insisted on each getting a picture with him. Michael was a little shy and kept on trying to hide behind my leg, so it took a few minutes before he would show his face for a picture. I'm sure that my leg also figured prominently in the pictures.
We went straight to the food court as I hadn't eaten lunch, but it was so large and crowded, that I just gave in to Michael when he saw the ice cream booth. Plus, I was still feeling a bit guilty for making him walk so far. He looked at the colours and said he wanted green ice cream. Now green here is usually green bean or green tea flavoured, neither of which I wanted, so I was happy to find a green apple as well. It was surprisingly good.
Then we shopped at Jason's Marketplace which is the best supermarket in Taipei to find foods that we're used to. They have kid's sized shopping carts, so Michael had a great time pushing it around, trying to knock over every display in the store. We found some yoghurt there (everywhere else just has sugar laden yoghurt drinks), and a few other things. As we go through milk fairly quickly (with Michael's breakfast cereal and hot chocolate every morning), I also bought 2 one litre containers of milk (they're the only size that will fit in my fridge door, and there's nowhere to put them upright in the rest of the fridge). Because I had so many things requiring refridgeration, I decided to go straight back to the school rather than walking around 101 as I had planned.
On our walk back (to the nearest bus stop this time - even if it was for only three stops), I found a "big dumpling" stand. They spread a thin layer of pork over a large wonton wrap (maybe it's a spring roll wrap?), then fold it all up and make a noodle soup with them. I ordered two of those, gave the woman too much exact change again, and then got on the bus.
Now I was holding a large shopping bag in one hand and two noodles in the other, which left no hand for Michael. A dangerous situation on any bus, but especially in Taipei. I don't know who designed them, but they are the lurchiest, bumpiest buses you will ever ride. Even when they're going on a flat straight road (which is what we were doing). I had Michael grab onto the nearest railing with both hands and hoped for the best. There were a few close calls in the five minutes we were on the bus, but we managed to get off unscathed (physically at least).
The after school Grade 5 teacher was sick, so they had asked me to substitute, which is why we were going back to the school. Michael didn't seem to mind going off with his friends after spending all afternoon with me, so I had a little time to prepare. I had a pretty good mental lesson plan all set, and then they arrived.
These kids were in my Grade 1 class my last year in Taiwan. Now they are all a lot bigger, but they act exactly the same. I was astounded. I thought they would have matured a little, but they are still the hyper, non-attentive kids they were four years ago. There goes the lesson plan. They concentrated as long as I turned everything into a game. I still felt like I was teaching Grade One.
We did stop at a computer market for my USB flash drive. It was less than $10 Canadian for 1GB.
There was a large book showcase going on at the Convention Centre right before Taipei 101, so there were lots of workers/volunteers walking around. Two of them saw Michael and insisted on each getting a picture with him. Michael was a little shy and kept on trying to hide behind my leg, so it took a few minutes before he would show his face for a picture. I'm sure that my leg also figured prominently in the pictures.
We went straight to the food court as I hadn't eaten lunch, but it was so large and crowded, that I just gave in to Michael when he saw the ice cream booth. Plus, I was still feeling a bit guilty for making him walk so far. He looked at the colours and said he wanted green ice cream. Now green here is usually green bean or green tea flavoured, neither of which I wanted, so I was happy to find a green apple as well. It was surprisingly good.
Then we shopped at Jason's Marketplace which is the best supermarket in Taipei to find foods that we're used to. They have kid's sized shopping carts, so Michael had a great time pushing it around, trying to knock over every display in the store. We found some yoghurt there (everywhere else just has sugar laden yoghurt drinks), and a few other things. As we go through milk fairly quickly (with Michael's breakfast cereal and hot chocolate every morning), I also bought 2 one litre containers of milk (they're the only size that will fit in my fridge door, and there's nowhere to put them upright in the rest of the fridge). Because I had so many things requiring refridgeration, I decided to go straight back to the school rather than walking around 101 as I had planned.
On our walk back (to the nearest bus stop this time - even if it was for only three stops), I found a "big dumpling" stand. They spread a thin layer of pork over a large wonton wrap (maybe it's a spring roll wrap?), then fold it all up and make a noodle soup with them. I ordered two of those, gave the woman too much exact change again, and then got on the bus.
Now I was holding a large shopping bag in one hand and two noodles in the other, which left no hand for Michael. A dangerous situation on any bus, but especially in Taipei. I don't know who designed them, but they are the lurchiest, bumpiest buses you will ever ride. Even when they're going on a flat straight road (which is what we were doing). I had Michael grab onto the nearest railing with both hands and hoped for the best. There were a few close calls in the five minutes we were on the bus, but we managed to get off unscathed (physically at least).
The after school Grade 5 teacher was sick, so they had asked me to substitute, which is why we were going back to the school. Michael didn't seem to mind going off with his friends after spending all afternoon with me, so I had a little time to prepare. I had a pretty good mental lesson plan all set, and then they arrived.
These kids were in my Grade 1 class my last year in Taiwan. Now they are all a lot bigger, but they act exactly the same. I was astounded. I thought they would have matured a little, but they are still the hyper, non-attentive kids they were four years ago. There goes the lesson plan. They concentrated as long as I turned everything into a game. I still felt like I was teaching Grade One.
Sunday 17 February 2008
Scared of Sunbeams
Michael is refusing to go to his Sunbeam class. Since he had such a rough first week of school, I didn't want to force him, so I let him come to Relief Society with me to show him how "boring" it was. I wouldn't let him play with any of his toys (or else what would he play with during Sacrament meeting?) and told him he had to sit quietly. He whispered the entire time. When I told him he had to be quiet if he wanted to stay with me, he responded, "I am being quiet" in a voice the entire room could hear.
He allowed me to take him to singing/sharing time, but when I went upstairs to pick him up at the end, his Sunbeam teacher was outside holding him and he was bawling his eyes out. They said he was fine until the last three minutes and then just decided that he had had enough. His poor teacher is fairly short, and Michael is quite tall for his age, so she was barely holding him off the floor. It looked a little comical actually.
Michael decided that he wanted to sit in the very front row at church today. That means that everyone saw (and heard) him announce that he needed to go potty during the third speaker and all watched as we ran out (the only doors are at the back of the chapel). Then they all watched as I came back in to get his extra set of clothes because he didn't quite make it. Then again as we came back in to sit back down for the last two minutes. And yes, I did try to make him go right before the meeting, but he refused.
He allowed me to take him to singing/sharing time, but when I went upstairs to pick him up at the end, his Sunbeam teacher was outside holding him and he was bawling his eyes out. They said he was fine until the last three minutes and then just decided that he had had enough. His poor teacher is fairly short, and Michael is quite tall for his age, so she was barely holding him off the floor. It looked a little comical actually.
Michael decided that he wanted to sit in the very front row at church today. That means that everyone saw (and heard) him announce that he needed to go potty during the third speaker and all watched as we ran out (the only doors are at the back of the chapel). Then they all watched as I came back in to get his extra set of clothes because he didn't quite make it. Then again as we came back in to sit back down for the last two minutes. And yes, I did try to make him go right before the meeting, but he refused.
Saturday 16 February 2008
Taipei Main Station on a Saturday Night
We actually had a bit of sun this morning, so we decided to explore. Our apartment is on a hill, and all the stores are at the bottom of the hill. I figured there must be a quick way down the hill by foot, as I didn't want to walk along the long winding road. I was right, of course. (I'm always right - just ask my husband.) We found these stairs. They were a little steep for Michael, but doable. It felt like we were walking through a jungle because the foliage was so thick, we couldn't see anything but the stairs.
At the bottom, we found two convenience stores and the library. I was amazed to see a Slurpee machine in the 7-11, as when we were here four years ago, they didn't exist. In a place as hot as Taiwan, you'd think they'd be a bestseller.
Michael wanted to go in the library. We found the children's section, but there was not a single English book to be seen. So, I had to make up words for the books Michael wanted me to read. There were some surprising plot changes half way through as I realized that I had gotten the story completely wrong.
We walked further down the road and found the fire station, an elementary school, an outdoor public pool (with a children's pool with spouts and a waterslide), and a playground with some other kids.
Michael was really happy to be playing ouside. He was filthy by the end, so I decided it was time to go back home and clean up. We walked up 219 stairs. Yes, I counted.
Michael had an afternoon nap, so I decided to be really adventurous and go to the computer market near Taipei Main Station to get a USB Flash Drive so I wouldn't have to lug my laptop to school anymore. I forgot what a madhouse it is on the main MRT (Mass Rapid Transit) lines on Saturdays.
Hordes and hordes of people, all walking as fast as they can, all in different directions. I'm surprised we didn't get trampled. I thought I knew where the computer market was, but got completely turned around and lost and didn't get anywhere near it. I did buy Michael a Thomas puzzle. It's six blocks and therefore, six different puzzles. I figured it would keep him occupied at church. He can stack blocks or do the puzzles. It seems like everytime I go out with him, I either buy him a treat or a toy. He's going to have a rough time going back to Canada.
When we got out of the mall, we were in a cool area, kind of night marketish, with tonnes of little shops in the alleys. I wish I could have looked around more, but with Michael, it's impossible. So, I spent the entire time looking for something that I could feed Michael for supper. There were no food stands anywhere! I did find one that sold little turnover cakes (in unidentifiable character molds), and Michael liked those. Then I got him a drink at 7-11. The slurpee machine in there said "Coke" and "Strawberry" except that the strawberry one was orange. It still might have been strawberry. In Taiwan, you never know. I wasn't about to try it.
We finally found an alley with a whole bunch of hole in the wall food "restaurants". Michael tried to drag me in a noodle shop, but I had no idea what to order, so I found another stand where a dad and his kid were eating boiled dumplings, so I just pointed, ordered 10, then gave her two fifty coins. She gave me back the fifty plus another ten. Oops. I'm glad most people are so honest.
We braved the crowds again and came back home via two trains and a bus. Going anywhere with Michael is pretty exhausting, especially when there's nowhere to sit. I know there's a few buses that would have been much more convenient, but I had no idea where to find them.
At the bottom, we found two convenience stores and the library. I was amazed to see a Slurpee machine in the 7-11, as when we were here four years ago, they didn't exist. In a place as hot as Taiwan, you'd think they'd be a bestseller.
Michael wanted to go in the library. We found the children's section, but there was not a single English book to be seen. So, I had to make up words for the books Michael wanted me to read. There were some surprising plot changes half way through as I realized that I had gotten the story completely wrong.
We walked further down the road and found the fire station, an elementary school, an outdoor public pool (with a children's pool with spouts and a waterslide), and a playground with some other kids.
Michael was really happy to be playing ouside. He was filthy by the end, so I decided it was time to go back home and clean up. We walked up 219 stairs. Yes, I counted.Michael had an afternoon nap, so I decided to be really adventurous and go to the computer market near Taipei Main Station to get a USB Flash Drive so I wouldn't have to lug my laptop to school anymore. I forgot what a madhouse it is on the main MRT (Mass Rapid Transit) lines on Saturdays.
Hordes and hordes of people, all walking as fast as they can, all in different directions. I'm surprised we didn't get trampled. I thought I knew where the computer market was, but got completely turned around and lost and didn't get anywhere near it. I did buy Michael a Thomas puzzle. It's six blocks and therefore, six different puzzles. I figured it would keep him occupied at church. He can stack blocks or do the puzzles. It seems like everytime I go out with him, I either buy him a treat or a toy. He's going to have a rough time going back to Canada.
When we got out of the mall, we were in a cool area, kind of night marketish, with tonnes of little shops in the alleys. I wish I could have looked around more, but with Michael, it's impossible. So, I spent the entire time looking for something that I could feed Michael for supper. There were no food stands anywhere! I did find one that sold little turnover cakes (in unidentifiable character molds), and Michael liked those. Then I got him a drink at 7-11. The slurpee machine in there said "Coke" and "Strawberry" except that the strawberry one was orange. It still might have been strawberry. In Taiwan, you never know. I wasn't about to try it.
We finally found an alley with a whole bunch of hole in the wall food "restaurants". Michael tried to drag me in a noodle shop, but I had no idea what to order, so I found another stand where a dad and his kid were eating boiled dumplings, so I just pointed, ordered 10, then gave her two fifty coins. She gave me back the fifty plus another ten. Oops. I'm glad most people are so honest.
We braved the crowds again and came back home via two trains and a bus. Going anywhere with Michael is pretty exhausting, especially when there's nowhere to sit. I know there's a few buses that would have been much more convenient, but I had no idea where to find them.
Friday 15 February 2008
Jetlagged in Taipei
Well, we've been here for a week. Michael seems to be sleeping normal hours, but last night was the first that I've been able to sleep all night. The first four nights we were here, Michael and I were waking up around 2am and could not fall back asleep until around 6am. Needless to say, we weren't at our best throughout the days. But, hopefully it will get better soon.
More crying at school today. I can handle a good half hour of crying, but after two and a half hours, it starts to wear a little thin. I'm very glad it's Friday. Michael is doing better, although his teacher says he has a real problem cleaning up. He'd rather sit and cry than clean up his toys.
Another full day. During the afternoon break period, I took Michael out for a walk. We passed by this cake and coffee shop, so we decided to have afternoon tea (or in our case, hot chocolate). As I was about to order, I saw Michael squirming around, so I ran him to the bathroom. It was Michael's first experience with a squat toilet. Now, he just learned how to use urinals, and he's still not great at standing at a toilet bowl, so I won't get into too many details, but let's just say that I hope the next bathroom cleaning was sometime soon. Then he chose a chocolate cake from the display window which we ate in the shop. The hot chocolate we carried back to the school as it was still too hot for Michael.
We got a drive home tonight, which was nice. Hopefully it will be nice tomorrow so that we can go outside.
More crying at school today. I can handle a good half hour of crying, but after two and a half hours, it starts to wear a little thin. I'm very glad it's Friday. Michael is doing better, although his teacher says he has a real problem cleaning up. He'd rather sit and cry than clean up his toys.
Another full day. During the afternoon break period, I took Michael out for a walk. We passed by this cake and coffee shop, so we decided to have afternoon tea (or in our case, hot chocolate). As I was about to order, I saw Michael squirming around, so I ran him to the bathroom. It was Michael's first experience with a squat toilet. Now, he just learned how to use urinals, and he's still not great at standing at a toilet bowl, so I won't get into too many details, but let's just say that I hope the next bathroom cleaning was sometime soon. Then he chose a chocolate cake from the display window which we ate in the shop. The hot chocolate we carried back to the school as it was still too hot for Michael.
We got a drive home tonight, which was nice. Hopefully it will be nice tomorrow so that we can go outside.
Thursday 14 February 2008
Embarrassing Moments at IKEA
The second day of school was more of the first, except the boy who only cried the last half hour yesterday, cried the first two hours today. And some of my girls cried more than yesterday. It's still absolute chaos.
Michael seemed to be doing better today (I only heard him cry once), and I picked him up right after lunch time to let him play in my empty classroom while I cleaned up. He enjoyed that. Then we took a bus to Asia World, a shopping centre with an IKEA, a Toys 'R Us and the best food court in Taipei.
We walked around the entire IKEA first, so that I knew where to pick up everything when I wanted it, then took the escalators to the seventh floor when Toys 'R Us is. I found out I had gotten completely ripped off on the Thomas chopsticks yesterday, as there was a whole array of Thomas dinnerware there for pretty good prices. I bought Michael a plastic Thomas bowl for his breakfast cereal and a Thomas cutlery set (fork, spoon and chopsticks) in a case for him to take to school with his lunches for the same price as those little chopsticks yesterday. Oh well. Now I know. Then the Chinese demonstration lady kept on trying to get me to buy this complicated puzzle toy for Michael that cost over $40 Canadian. Michael liked it, but it was way too advanced for him, and I wasn't about to pay that much for a puzzle, no matter how "educational" it was.
Then back to IKEA. Michael saw the ball pit and really wanted to go in. I noticed that all the parents had to show some form of ID, and I don't carry my passport around, so I wasn't sure if they would let him in with an Alberta driver's license. They did, probably because they didn't know how to say no in English, and Michael dove in.
Michael seemed to be doing better today (I only heard him cry once), and I picked him up right after lunch time to let him play in my empty classroom while I cleaned up. He enjoyed that. Then we took a bus to Asia World, a shopping centre with an IKEA, a Toys 'R Us and the best food court in Taipei.
We walked around the entire IKEA first, so that I knew where to pick up everything when I wanted it, then took the escalators to the seventh floor when Toys 'R Us is. I found out I had gotten completely ripped off on the Thomas chopsticks yesterday, as there was a whole array of Thomas dinnerware there for pretty good prices. I bought Michael a plastic Thomas bowl for his breakfast cereal and a Thomas cutlery set (fork, spoon and chopsticks) in a case for him to take to school with his lunches for the same price as those little chopsticks yesterday. Oh well. Now I know. Then the Chinese demonstration lady kept on trying to get me to buy this complicated puzzle toy for Michael that cost over $40 Canadian. Michael liked it, but it was way too advanced for him, and I wasn't about to pay that much for a puzzle, no matter how "educational" it was.
Then back to IKEA. Michael saw the ball pit and really wanted to go in. I noticed that all the parents had to show some form of ID, and I don't carry my passport around, so I wasn't sure if they would let him in with an Alberta driver's license. They did, probably because they didn't know how to say no in English, and Michael dove in.
As soon as he gets in, four Chinese kids start throwing balls at him. Let's all gang up on the white kid. Luckily, very few actually hit their mark and Michael starts throwing some back. The next thing I know, one boy comes right up to Michael and hits him on the face. Michael then tackles him, so the other boy is practically buried, and they both start bawling. I run over to the door and yell at Michael to get off the other kid, while the little boy's mother is right beside me yelling at her son to get up. Neither of us can get in. So the supervisor runs over and sorts them out. Michael mopes around for a bit, then tries to break every single rule in the place (climbing on things he's not supposed to, going down the stairs on his stomach, throwing balls out of the pit, etc...). The poor supervisor, who can't speak English, had to keep running over to redirect him.
Then he plops down in front of the big screen TV and starts watching Chinese cartoons. I did not bring him to IKEA for this, so after five minutes I got him out and we went to get something to eat. I had noticed a picture of a nice looking baked chicken leg with lemon herb sauce on the menu and decided to get that for us to share as Michael usually always eats baked chicken. However, when I got in line, I saw nothing that looked like a chicken leg. I did see a blob that could be chicken, and when I asked for the chicken leg, that is what I got. We also got the all you can drink glass. I noticed that the person in front of me was getting take-out, so I made a mental note to pick up something to take home for later.
Turns out the chicken leg was great. They had just completely deboned it, which was very convenient for me to cut up for Michael. It also came with Michael's favourite vegetable, broccoli, which he enjoyed. He asked for orange soda pop, so that is what we got. As we were eating, I noticed that people were talking about and pointing at Michael. The three people at the next table over were very interested in him and kept on smiling at him and trying to get his attention the whole time we were eating.
At the end of the meal, I showed Michael where we had to take our tray to put it away. Michael decided he wanted to do it himself. I grabbed the glass, and hoped that he would be able to balance the single plate and fork left on the tray. The fork was the first to go. As I bent down to pick it up, Michael looked down as well, and guess where the plate went... Into a hundred pieces all over the floor. As it was falling, you could hear this collective gasp from all over the cafeteria, as everyone was looking at Michael anyways. Anyone who wasn't, definitely started to when they heard the crash. The manager comes running over saying "It's OK, it's OK," while two cleaners come and clean everything up within a minute. Michael thinks he's in trouble and starts crying. Loud. I just wanted to disappear. So, I sit back down and try to calm down Michael. I decide against take-out as I just want to get out of there as quickly as possible. So, I take Michael to the bathroom and run out.
A minute later I hear "Excuse me, excuse me," and turn around. There is one of the men from the next table over that had been staring at us the whole time, and he had my umbrella which I had left hanging on the back of my chair. I hoped my face wasn't too red as I thanked him and whisked Michael away from Asia World and back on the bus as fast as he could go. If I didn't like Asia World so much, I would never go back again.
Wednesday 13 February 2008
Crying, Crying and More Crying
That's what happens when two and a half year olds are abandoned by their parents for the first time in a strange place, with a teacher who can't understand a word they're saying.
I'm exagerrating a little. The kid with "severe separation anxiety" only cried for fifteen minutes after his mother left. He's fine. However, I came to school to find a note on my door saying that I had a new student. This little boy cried for basically the entire two and a half hours. He cried so hard that he threw up. Twice. Another little boy was fine for the first two hours and then cried the last thirty minutes. I don't even know how many kids wet their pants. At least five. And four of my twelve kids are still in diapers, which needed changing.
Only one of my kids speaks any English beyond "Hello." So, trying to comfort them or reassure them that their parents would be coming back was a little futile. Luckily, at various points throughout the day, four other staff members came in to help. Good thing, because no one had any idea what we were doing.
Our basic schedule is: The kids arrive sometime between 8:30-9am. They take off their bags and jackets, and change into their indoor shoes. We have to go through their bag to see if they have a snack, or if they've brought anything that we need to be aware of (like extra diapers). From 9-9:30 we go to the recess room. Then they're all supposed to go potty and wash their hands before snack time (which is optional). Afterwards, they play in the class until group time at 11:10. At 11:25 we change their shoes, get their coats and bags on and take them to the front school door for pick-up.
Needless to say, everytime there was a transition, it was absolute chaos. We had no idea who was wearing what shoes, they had no idea how to line up to go anywhere, they can't go potty or wash hands by themselves, etc... Within two weeks, they'll be old pros, but today we spent most of the time running after one or another kid trying to escape, changing wet pants and comforting kids screaming for their parents. It didn't help that I could hear Michael screaming down the hall a few times as well.
I was pretty glad to see them go, but didn't think that it had gone all that badly, considering. But everyone else in the school seemed to feel that I would need reassurance because they all came up to me at some point and offered their condolences and asked if I was okay. I just laughed and said it had actually gone better than I expected. Maybe they were remembering my first day of school my first year here when I had burst into tears at lunch time (outside of my class of course) because I felt so incompetent amid the chaos.
As today is Wednesday, I had a full day at school, so I made sure that Michael wouldn't catch a glimpse of me when I went out to get lunch - the steamed dumplings that Robert and I have been missing for the past four years. Actually, it's not even the dumplings so much as the hot sauce they make. I love it.
Then I was off to assist the Kindergarten class. What a difference. They all speak fluent English, most can even read well in English, and they are completely independent. I felt kind of superfluous, but I hope that I'll be able to find a way to contribute somehow.
Michael was very happy to see me after that, and I took him on a walk to go buy milk at the nearby supermarket. Which no longer exists. So, we walked around the neighborhood so I could see what was still there and what wasn't (mostly what wasn't) and found two playgrounds for Michael to play on, so he was happy. I also found him some Thomas the Tank Engine chopsticks in a little case. They were a little pricey, but I couldn't resist. He wasn't very happy when I dropped him back in school after an hour and a half because it was time for me to assist the grade three class.
These grade threes were children that I had in my Nursery class my first year in Taiwan. It was amazing to see how much they've grown (and how little they've changed!). In this class, I basically just help the teacher correct the kids work every time they finish one of their practice pages. So, a little more helpful than in the Kindergarten class, but not by much. I'm glad I only do this twice a week.
Then back on the bus (this time in the dark!) to go to our "Taiwan house" as Michael calls it.
I'm exagerrating a little. The kid with "severe separation anxiety" only cried for fifteen minutes after his mother left. He's fine. However, I came to school to find a note on my door saying that I had a new student. This little boy cried for basically the entire two and a half hours. He cried so hard that he threw up. Twice. Another little boy was fine for the first two hours and then cried the last thirty minutes. I don't even know how many kids wet their pants. At least five. And four of my twelve kids are still in diapers, which needed changing.
Only one of my kids speaks any English beyond "Hello." So, trying to comfort them or reassure them that their parents would be coming back was a little futile. Luckily, at various points throughout the day, four other staff members came in to help. Good thing, because no one had any idea what we were doing.
Our basic schedule is: The kids arrive sometime between 8:30-9am. They take off their bags and jackets, and change into their indoor shoes. We have to go through their bag to see if they have a snack, or if they've brought anything that we need to be aware of (like extra diapers). From 9-9:30 we go to the recess room. Then they're all supposed to go potty and wash their hands before snack time (which is optional). Afterwards, they play in the class until group time at 11:10. At 11:25 we change their shoes, get their coats and bags on and take them to the front school door for pick-up.
Needless to say, everytime there was a transition, it was absolute chaos. We had no idea who was wearing what shoes, they had no idea how to line up to go anywhere, they can't go potty or wash hands by themselves, etc... Within two weeks, they'll be old pros, but today we spent most of the time running after one or another kid trying to escape, changing wet pants and comforting kids screaming for their parents. It didn't help that I could hear Michael screaming down the hall a few times as well.
I was pretty glad to see them go, but didn't think that it had gone all that badly, considering. But everyone else in the school seemed to feel that I would need reassurance because they all came up to me at some point and offered their condolences and asked if I was okay. I just laughed and said it had actually gone better than I expected. Maybe they were remembering my first day of school my first year here when I had burst into tears at lunch time (outside of my class of course) because I felt so incompetent amid the chaos.
As today is Wednesday, I had a full day at school, so I made sure that Michael wouldn't catch a glimpse of me when I went out to get lunch - the steamed dumplings that Robert and I have been missing for the past four years. Actually, it's not even the dumplings so much as the hot sauce they make. I love it.
Then I was off to assist the Kindergarten class. What a difference. They all speak fluent English, most can even read well in English, and they are completely independent. I felt kind of superfluous, but I hope that I'll be able to find a way to contribute somehow.
Michael was very happy to see me after that, and I took him on a walk to go buy milk at the nearby supermarket. Which no longer exists. So, we walked around the neighborhood so I could see what was still there and what wasn't (mostly what wasn't) and found two playgrounds for Michael to play on, so he was happy. I also found him some Thomas the Tank Engine chopsticks in a little case. They were a little pricey, but I couldn't resist. He wasn't very happy when I dropped him back in school after an hour and a half because it was time for me to assist the grade three class.
These grade threes were children that I had in my Nursery class my first year in Taiwan. It was amazing to see how much they've grown (and how little they've changed!). In this class, I basically just help the teacher correct the kids work every time they finish one of their practice pages. So, a little more helpful than in the Kindergarten class, but not by much. I'm glad I only do this twice a week.
Then back on the bus (this time in the dark!) to go to our "Taiwan house" as Michael calls it.
Tuesday 12 February 2008
Chinese Parents
Today was parent visitation day, so the parents arrived with their children to meet me and look around the classroom. The first day of school starts tomorrow, but everything was set out as if it was a real school day.
I was pleasantly surprised to see that two of the children in my class are siblings of children that I had my last year in Taiwan, so I already knew the parents. All eleven children and their parents showed up, although three were more than half and hour late and missed the introductory spiel.
Then all the parents wanted to come up to me and tell me about their child. One mother said her son had "severe" separation anxiety. Another said that her son had a real problem with discipline and that she would like me to focus on that with him. Later, my teaching assistant told me that the same mother had told her that the boy's grandmother was constantly complaining about his behavior, so she was sending him to my school to correct it. I have a feeling the problem lies more with the grandmother than with the child, but we'll see. I also have a little half Italian, half Chinese girl whose father (the Italian) must not like Americans because he spent awhile blacking out the white lettering "American" on the girl's backpack. Our school is called "Happy Kids," but when I was here before, it was "Happy Kids American School" and the backpacks still have that on them. Good thing I'm Canadian, or he might pull his kid out!
Meanwhile, Michael was having a pretty rough first day of school. As the parents were leaving, his class was leaving the recess room and passing right by my door. He saw me and lost it. So, as I was saying goodbye, I was trying to calm down my screaming son and hand him off to his teacher. Despite this, I've heard that I've made a good first impression. I hope so, considering the parents are paying over $2000 Canadian for their kids to spend 2.5 hours a day with me for the next four months.
After the parents left, I realized that I had completely messed up the dates on the calendar that I had made for them last night. That's what happens when you're tired and working in the dark. So, I had to redo it, along with an apology and a few other items that I had forgotten to mention to them.
By 12:30, Michael and I were very ready to leave, which was fine, as that is when I finish on Tuesdays. I only work full days on Wednesdays and Fridays. I figured out the correct two buses to take home without any problem, and we spent a quiet day, mostly holed up in our bedroom as it was still cold and rainy.
I was pleasantly surprised to see that two of the children in my class are siblings of children that I had my last year in Taiwan, so I already knew the parents. All eleven children and their parents showed up, although three were more than half and hour late and missed the introductory spiel.
Then all the parents wanted to come up to me and tell me about their child. One mother said her son had "severe" separation anxiety. Another said that her son had a real problem with discipline and that she would like me to focus on that with him. Later, my teaching assistant told me that the same mother had told her that the boy's grandmother was constantly complaining about his behavior, so she was sending him to my school to correct it. I have a feeling the problem lies more with the grandmother than with the child, but we'll see. I also have a little half Italian, half Chinese girl whose father (the Italian) must not like Americans because he spent awhile blacking out the white lettering "American" on the girl's backpack. Our school is called "Happy Kids," but when I was here before, it was "Happy Kids American School" and the backpacks still have that on them. Good thing I'm Canadian, or he might pull his kid out!
Meanwhile, Michael was having a pretty rough first day of school. As the parents were leaving, his class was leaving the recess room and passing right by my door. He saw me and lost it. So, as I was saying goodbye, I was trying to calm down my screaming son and hand him off to his teacher. Despite this, I've heard that I've made a good first impression. I hope so, considering the parents are paying over $2000 Canadian for their kids to spend 2.5 hours a day with me for the next four months.
After the parents left, I realized that I had completely messed up the dates on the calendar that I had made for them last night. That's what happens when you're tired and working in the dark. So, I had to redo it, along with an apology and a few other items that I had forgotten to mention to them.
By 12:30, Michael and I were very ready to leave, which was fine, as that is when I finish on Tuesdays. I only work full days on Wednesdays and Fridays. I figured out the correct two buses to take home without any problem, and we spent a quiet day, mostly holed up in our bedroom as it was still cold and rainy.
Monday 11 February 2008
A Week's Work in a Day
Today I did what I used to have a whole week to to. Prepare my classroom and get all the first day's parent information ready to go for the first day of school, which is tomorrow. I was hoping that my teaching assistant would have done some preparation already as she had plenty of notice, and I was told that she had done a few things. Nope.
Luckily, I had the assistance of another teaching assistant as well, so the three of us took nine hours and got almost everything done. I had to completely change the classroom around and make major modifications to the decor as it had been used exclusively for elementary school aged children up until then. Poor Michael had to spend the whole day there, except for going out to dim sum (I got my favourite shrimp dumplings!) for lunch with my boss. He eventually fell asleep on the mats under the climber in the recess room.
In the evening, I had to do all the paperwork that I hadn't done at school, in the dark, on my laptop as Michael was sleeping. The computer in my apartment is all in Chinese and I wouldn't have been able to do the correct formatting. I could have taken the laptop out of the bedroom and turned on a light, but it was too cold. Now, I just have to lug my laptop to the school in order to print everything out as my wireless Internet card seems to cause my laptop to die everytime I put it in. At least I have Internet on the Chinese computer.
Luckily, I had the assistance of another teaching assistant as well, so the three of us took nine hours and got almost everything done. I had to completely change the classroom around and make major modifications to the decor as it had been used exclusively for elementary school aged children up until then. Poor Michael had to spend the whole day there, except for going out to dim sum (I got my favourite shrimp dumplings!) for lunch with my boss. He eventually fell asleep on the mats under the climber in the recess room.
In the evening, I had to do all the paperwork that I hadn't done at school, in the dark, on my laptop as Michael was sleeping. The computer in my apartment is all in Chinese and I wouldn't have been able to do the correct formatting. I could have taken the laptop out of the bedroom and turned on a light, but it was too cold. Now, I just have to lug my laptop to the school in order to print everything out as my wireless Internet card seems to cause my laptop to die everytime I put it in. At least I have Internet on the Chinese computer.
Sunday 10 February 2008
Geckos and Church
As church was at 11am, I decided to give Michael a bath in the morning. As I entered the bathroom, right by the shampoo was a small gecko. (I called it a lizard, but was later corrected.) What did I tell you about no doors or windows sealing here? Anyways, I called Michael in to see it before taking it outside. At first, I just tried to pick it up with my hand, but that didn't work (to say the least), so I got two clear plastic cups and tried to scoop it in. Well, they have pretty sticky feet, and it was quite a challenge. The poor little thing was so scared that it popped it's tail off. I guess it's a defence mechanism as a predator would go after the tail which started flopping around like crazy and spurting a little blood. It was kind of gross. I finally got gecko and tail outside and left him on our front courtyard wall. I haven't checked back because I'm too scared.
I have discovered that we have no hot water. We don't even have warm water. We have what could be described at best as lukewarm water. So, I have to get boiling water out of our hot water drinking machine to heat up Michael's bath. (I really need to buy a pot so I can boil water on the stove.) I then had a lukewarm shower. I hate cold showers. Then I had to mop up the bathroom before running back to our warm bedroom. Despite the mopping up, it still took over 24 hours for the bathroom to dry, even with the fan turned on. Michael has learned to wear slippers whenever going into the bathroom.
We got a ride to church in my boss' Audi. The chauffer was her husband though. Their church is very close to ours, so she offered us a ride. We arrived a little late, so I just brought Michael to Relief Society with me and then he went fine to Primary. The only people who are still there from four years ago are the Chiles and the Kunzs. And the Kunzs are leaving next month. So, there are a lot of new people to get to know.
At church, Michael learned the hard way about Chinese water "fountains." There are three taps, boiling, warm, and cold (meaning room temperature). Michael has always loved water fountains, so while I was in the bathroom, he decided to put his mouth under a tap and press the lever. He chose the red one. Bad idea. I come out running when I hear his cry and start giving him "cold" water as quickly as possible. I don't think he got much in his mouth because he was fine after a couple of minutes, but now he knows that red means "Stop."
As promised to Grandma, here is a picture of Mikey in front of the Taipei Temple, which is right beside the even larger stake centre where we go to church.
I have discovered that we have no hot water. We don't even have warm water. We have what could be described at best as lukewarm water. So, I have to get boiling water out of our hot water drinking machine to heat up Michael's bath. (I really need to buy a pot so I can boil water on the stove.) I then had a lukewarm shower. I hate cold showers. Then I had to mop up the bathroom before running back to our warm bedroom. Despite the mopping up, it still took over 24 hours for the bathroom to dry, even with the fan turned on. Michael has learned to wear slippers whenever going into the bathroom.
We got a ride to church in my boss' Audi. The chauffer was her husband though. Their church is very close to ours, so she offered us a ride. We arrived a little late, so I just brought Michael to Relief Society with me and then he went fine to Primary. The only people who are still there from four years ago are the Chiles and the Kunzs. And the Kunzs are leaving next month. So, there are a lot of new people to get to know.
At church, Michael learned the hard way about Chinese water "fountains." There are three taps, boiling, warm, and cold (meaning room temperature). Michael has always loved water fountains, so while I was in the bathroom, he decided to put his mouth under a tap and press the lever. He chose the red one. Bad idea. I come out running when I hear his cry and start giving him "cold" water as quickly as possible. I don't think he got much in his mouth because he was fine after a couple of minutes, but now he knows that red means "Stop."
As promised to Grandma, here is a picture of Mikey in front of the Taipei Temple, which is right beside the even larger stake centre where we go to church.
Saturday 9 February 2008
Rich Friends
This afternoon, I met up Linda and her two children, Sara and Harris, whom I used to tutor. Harris had also been in my class the first year we were in Taiwan. It was quite a shock to see them four years older. Linda has always spoiled us, and yesterday was no different. She gave Michael many of Harris' old toys (which Michael loves), and gave me a Gucci watch (she assured me she has lots and won't miss it at all) as well as a Chinese jacket that she designed herself (she used to be a wedding gown fashion designer) and had made for me. Of course, she also gave Michael a red packet. I felt bad that I didn't have anything for her kids. She wanted to give us more stuff, but there wasn't enough room in the taxi to bring it back, so it has to wait for next time.She then took us to Taipei 101 (one of the tallest buildings in the world) to eat at a fancy Thai restaurant because she knows I love Thai food. Of course, she ordered way to much and insisted that I take all the leftovers home. She then took a taxi back with us to make sure our apartment was liveable before saying goodbye. Sometimes it's nice to be spoiled.
Our Apartment
Pictures will have to come later as the weather is so dreary that it will make our apartment seem bleak indeed.
We are on the ground level of a high-rise apartment complex at the south end of the city. Our apartment is huge, and so the only wall that we share with another tenant is the ceiling (does that count as a wall?). It's very quiet, which is a big change from the last apartment we lived in while in downtown Taipei.
Apartments are never heated here, only air conditioned (using window box air conditioners), which makes sense, I guess. But, it had been around 10 degrees outside for the past week, so our apartment was pretty cold. The little oil space heater that my boss gave me couldn't even begin to heat our apartment, so I just set it in our bedroom with the door closed, so that at least one room would be warm. And when we're in the rest of the apartment, we wear our jackets and wrap ourselves in blankets.
We also have a little dehumidifier, which I need to empty every 24 hours or less of the two litres of water that it collects. Again, I have it solely in the bedroom, as having it in the main area would be pointless. It's a little humid here...
The apartment has the regular Taiwan doors and windows that never close properly or seal shut. I have stuffed washcloths in the gaps around our window air conditioner in our room to keep out insects (and keep in the warmth). The big venting pipe above our stove goes out the kitchen window. It is round, the window is rectangular. There is nothing around the pipe, and the gaps are much too big for washcloths! I would have to stuff entire towels in there if I wanted it sealed. I haven't bothered. We're only here for four months.
The bathroom is very Taiwanese. All tile floor and walls, plastic ceiling, drain in the middle of the floor, and no shower rod, let alone a curtain around the bathtub and shower. At least it's not a squat toilet, and it does have a bathtub for Michael. I bought a mop the very first day because I knew that after every shower, I would have to mop the entire bathroom up. At least it keeps things clean!
I have a little fridge (the same model that I had in my dorm in Quebec City), a microwave, a toaster over and two gas elements on my stove. Outside in my walled back courtyard (yes, I also have a front courtyard) are my small washer and dryer (for which I am very thankful).
My former teaching assistant, May, is also my neighbour. We're separated by a hallway. She's the one who found this apartment and set it all up for me. She's lending me one of her computers, and even gave me a headset with microphone and webcam so that I can talk to Robert.
Hopefully, it will warm up soon, because it can get pretty chilly in here!
We are on the ground level of a high-rise apartment complex at the south end of the city. Our apartment is huge, and so the only wall that we share with another tenant is the ceiling (does that count as a wall?). It's very quiet, which is a big change from the last apartment we lived in while in downtown Taipei.
Apartments are never heated here, only air conditioned (using window box air conditioners), which makes sense, I guess. But, it had been around 10 degrees outside for the past week, so our apartment was pretty cold. The little oil space heater that my boss gave me couldn't even begin to heat our apartment, so I just set it in our bedroom with the door closed, so that at least one room would be warm. And when we're in the rest of the apartment, we wear our jackets and wrap ourselves in blankets.
We also have a little dehumidifier, which I need to empty every 24 hours or less of the two litres of water that it collects. Again, I have it solely in the bedroom, as having it in the main area would be pointless. It's a little humid here...
The apartment has the regular Taiwan doors and windows that never close properly or seal shut. I have stuffed washcloths in the gaps around our window air conditioner in our room to keep out insects (and keep in the warmth). The big venting pipe above our stove goes out the kitchen window. It is round, the window is rectangular. There is nothing around the pipe, and the gaps are much too big for washcloths! I would have to stuff entire towels in there if I wanted it sealed. I haven't bothered. We're only here for four months.
The bathroom is very Taiwanese. All tile floor and walls, plastic ceiling, drain in the middle of the floor, and no shower rod, let alone a curtain around the bathtub and shower. At least it's not a squat toilet, and it does have a bathtub for Michael. I bought a mop the very first day because I knew that after every shower, I would have to mop the entire bathroom up. At least it keeps things clean!
I have a little fridge (the same model that I had in my dorm in Quebec City), a microwave, a toaster over and two gas elements on my stove. Outside in my walled back courtyard (yes, I also have a front courtyard) are my small washer and dryer (for which I am very thankful).
My former teaching assistant, May, is also my neighbour. We're separated by a hallway. She's the one who found this apartment and set it all up for me. She's lending me one of her computers, and even gave me a headset with microphone and webcam so that I can talk to Robert.
Hopefully, it will warm up soon, because it can get pretty chilly in here!
Friday 8 February 2008
The Little Prince
Here's my little prince looking perfectly at home in my boss' Mercedes. She had sent her driver to pick us up for our 5:45am arrival, the morning after Chinese New Year. So we were chauffered to our apartment in style. We were also chauffered around for the rest of the day, as I had the use of the Mercedes and driver to pick up everything that we would need for our apartment.The first stop: Costco. A little piece of home in a foreign land. It's the only place to buy a decent brick of cheese in the whole city. So, we stocked up on cheese, apple juice and canned tomatoes (Michael's favourite snack), as well as a big container of liquid Tide (a necessity with a toilet training three year old) along with a few other necessities. Costco is also the only place to get a decent hot dog, which Michael enjoyed. I told the driver to just sit somewhere and wait for us, as I felt kind of silly having a "helper" push my cart around for me.
Next stop was the local supermarket where I got smaller things and cleaning supplies. Michael was pretty tired of shopping by this point, so we just went back to our apartment and set things up for the rest of the day.
Thursday 7 February 2008
18 Hours on a Plane with a 3 Year Old
Well, maybe not quite 18 hours. But including the 3 hour stopover in Vancouver, it was.
Michael and Jeremy got super excited going up and down all the escalators and elevators at the Calgary airport before we said our farewells. Michael enjoyed his first plane ride to Vancouver, especially being able to watch Thomas and Bob the Builder on demand and eating both our snacks.
By the time we reached Vancouver at 10:30pm, Michael was pretty tired and was tripping over his feet during the very long walk to the international terminal. Luckily, there were a few moving sidewalks, which he loved, although he landed flat on his face after trying to get off the first one.
As our gate was almost at the end of the terminal, I found a nice, secluded spot for Michael to lie down and sleep, where I thought I would still be able to hear announcements. Silly me. I did hear the first one, telling me that I had to switch our boarding passes. I ran over there, hoping to do it quickly so that I could get back to Michael. No such luck. So I watched and waited for the line to shorten. No such luck.
Finally, I went up to a grandfatherly type Chinese man and asked if he spoke English. "Little," was the reply. So, using many hand gestures, I asked him to watch Michael while I stood in line. There were five people ahead of me. The first person took ten minutes. The next seemed to be taking as long. So, I put on my most desperate, pleading face and asked the white man next in line if he would switch places with me, as my son was being watched over by a stranger far down the terminal. He sighed, but agreed willingly. It took me about three minutes to change my boarding pass, and then I ran back to Michael and did the multiple "Thank you"s to the Chinese man.
Until he boarded his own plane, the Chinese man kept on coming over to me, practicing his limited English, at one point showing me some official documents, and generally trying to be friendly. But, honestly, I had no idea what he was saying 75% of the time.
The next announcement I heard was "All passengers for flight BR009 should now be on board." What!?! That was my plane, and I hadn't heard any boarding calls. Michael was fast asleep, we had his backpack, my large purse, both our jackets and Michaels rain boots strewn around us, and we needed to get on the plane NOW? I hurriedly woke up Michael, shoved his boots on and dragged him to the gate. He was not impressed and was fairly wailing by the time we got there. Then he started coughing so hard I thought he was going to be sick (he was just getting over a cold).
Our seats were in the middle section of the second last row of the massive plane. By the middle of the plane, I had to stop as I was sure he was going to throw up everywhere and asked for a sick bag, which sent four stewardesses flying around trying to find one. We finally got to our seats and found that there was no one assigned to the seat beside Michael. The kind Chinese gentleman at the other end of the middle section suggested (using hand gestures) that Michael lie down across the empty seat, which he did and promptly fell back asleep, despite the same 30 second long, loud Chinese New Years music segment blaring until we took off.
Michael slept fitfully for about nine hours, waking up once for a fairly major nosebleed. We were right by the bathrooms, and it was the middle of the night, so at least we didn't have to wait in line, but Michael hates nosebleeds, and I hate airplane bathrooms which can barely accomodate one adult, let alone an adult trying to hold the bleeding nose of a crying 3 year old. I'm glad that he slept for so long, despite the fact that I couldn't because he was taking up his two seats, and most of mine as well.
As I was awake anyways, I watched a movie in English with the volume turned up so loud that I was sure I was causing permanent damage, but could still only hear about half the dialogue over the engine noise. Then, I decided to just watch foreign films with English subtitles so that I didn't even have to put on the earphones. So, I watched a cheesy Chinese Film "My DNA Says I Love You" (the title says it all), and a French comedy about three sets of parents who are trying to get their kids (in the tweens) under control by acting like kids themselves. The "Mirror Effect" according to the shrink of the movie. I'm sure it wouldn't actually work in reality, but it was entertaining nevertheless. I tried dozing between all of them and got a few minutes sleep in here and there.
Michael was pretty disappointed in the four kids TV selections (all Chinese, only one cartoon) so we spent the rest of the ride going through all the activities I had in my purse. He was also pretty disappointed in breakfast. As we were the last ones served, they were out of the western breakfasts, and only had congee with chinese vegetables left. He ate a bite of a bun and that was about it.
We were both pretty glad to arrive in Taipei after that.
Oh, and in case anyone else ever thinks to bring a Rubbermaid drinking box on a plane, thinking that it will avoid spills and mess, take it from me. Don't. All the pressure changes cause the juice to spurt out everywhere, even when I left it open. Next time I'll know to just bring a few straws.
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