some things just get better with age.

Like a good cheese, Broken Social Scene get better with age. It's my 3rd time seeing them (my first time seeing them indoors) and they most certainly proved themselves tonight. So much music, so much talent. I was proud to be a Canadian amongst a crowd of (equally enthusiastic and impressed) Taiwanese folk. Truly proving that good music knows no bounds. Hands down one of my favourite bands to see live!

love.

I can't get enough of these guys lately. This is one of my favourite tracks by them.

an east coast adventure.

Four of us headed to the east coast for the week-end. With Taroko National Park as our desired destination, the adventure began on trains, playing musical seats, sitting beside stinky men while enjoying the lovely recycled air! We arrived at 1:00am in Hualien. After the 4-5 hours of travel, we were sure happy to know that our hotel for the next couple of nights was so close to the train station. We checked into our hotel then went to a 7-11 where we got some snacks to enjoy in the park. We made friends with the sweetest street dog then headed to bed so that we would be somewhat well rested for the next day.

Since we arrived at night we really had no idea what Hualien would look like once we woke up. To our excitement, we awoke to the most wonderful and clear view of the mountains all around us. We knew at this point that the best was yet to come! (This was the view outside of our bathroom window. Not bad!).


We hopped on our scooters and we were off. After an hour or so we arrived at Taroko National Park. We took a quick break (for our bottoms, mostly!) and then we headed for the hills-- literally. Just breathtaking scenery. No words can describe the feeling of driving through the gorge. We spent about 4 hours exploring what we could, but you could definitely devote a few days to this park to really get a sense of its size and splendor.



It was the perfect week-end, despite the time spent on crowded and somewhat uncomfortable trains. I am certainly feeling a bit more refreshed, ready to finish my time in Taiwan with thoughts and memories of the beautiful east coast.

13 days!

I've been trying to play tourist lately, knowing that I'll be home SO soon and aware of the fact that this will likely be my last chance to see and do a lot of these things again.

Last week-end we ventured to Taipei to check out the National Palace Museum. Very rich with history, very neat to see up close rather than as a picture in my Taiwan guidebook. You could spend days here if you wanted to!

finally!

... some good, live music on this side of the world! One of my favourite bands just happens to be coming to Taipei 5 days before I head home. What a way to end a year! I am more than looking forward to seeing and hearing what Broken Social Scene has up their sleeves this time around. So, so, so very excited!

(This is one of my favourites from their new album. Here's to hoping I'll be hearing it live a week from tonight!).

... and that heat? it's up north, too!

I spent Saturday in Taipei with 4 other lovely ladies. The heat was hard enough to handle in Hsinchu (thankfully we at least have the wind here!) but as we got off of the bus in Taipei it hit us like a tonne of bricks. It was as though you could cut through it with a knife if you wanted to! Yuck. It was a long and hot day (these days are becoming much more common lately), but we had a great day in the capital city: buses, taxis, fabric markets, sushi, tea (to feed my addiction, of course), subways, night markets, and a falafel pita to end off the day... or rather, evening!

my first addiction.

Honey Green Tea... it's becoming a real problem.

catching up: field trip fun!

For three days, I travelled South with 10 middle-schoolers. It was a wonderful few days despite the relentless heat which subsequently led to another teacher's heat stroke. Yikes! I'll miss these kids dearly. Just such a sweet bunch... I really can't say enough.

a wonderful day with a wonderful friend!

When you live in a smog-filled city it's easy to forget that you are surrounded by stunning countryside. I spent Saturday afternoon on a scooter, driving through the mountains with a more than wonderful friend, on look-out for a giant, gold Buddha. Now I know what the saying "a picture is worth a thousand words" means.

a day off.

Last Wednesday, we were given a day off of work to enjoy the Dragon Boat Festival in Hsinchu. It was a truly traditional experience, one that I enjoyed as my time on this side of the world is winding down. The boats were beautiful, the spirit of the festival was loud and lively. I was there to cheer on the Talladega Dragons but found myself to be quite interested in cheering for the very handsome Japanese men's team, too...

confidence boost.

Yesterday, my students told me that I was smarter than 1 million books! A true compliment, even coming from 2nd graders...

a couple of palm trees on each side of my cheek...

I was in a Blind Melon kind of mood this morning. I put them on my iPod and walked. As I walked, I thought about my love for the band and my feeling of absolute heartbreak (even as a 10 year old girl), when I learned that Shannon Hoon had died. I remember watching Blind Melon perform on our VHS version of Woodstock '94 over, and over (my brother and I probably watched 'Soup' about a thousand times and memorized every bit of the performance). There is just something so raw about their music; there always will be this "something" for me. I believe Shannon Hoon to be one of the most talented songwriters and original singers to ever have lived, and if I could pick one musician (dead or alive) to spend a day with now, it would be him.

rain, rain go away!

Last week-end we went on some sort of crazy jungle hike. The scenery was beautiful, the weather... not so much. Just clouds and rain in Taiwan right now (even a bit on the "chilly" side!). I shouldn't complain though, once the humidity arrives again, I'll have real reason to do so. Excited to be home-- excited to not find cockroaches in my room anymore-- 8 weeks!

saturday night love.

I grew up watching Saturday Night Live. I loved it when it was effortlessly funny, and I still watched it when it wasn't funny at all. It's just one of those Popular Culture staples that will likely always remain a part of my life. Having said this, I must admit that this season, too, had its ups and downs. I try to have patience with the show and I know that the waiting is well worth it when I see episodes like the one with Tina Fey as the host OR when I see skits like Garth & Kim and the SNL Digital Shorts.

Personally, I think that Kristen Wiig is a genius and that everything she does is so perfectly awkward and hilarious. I am hopeful for next season if she sticks around, and if Samberg keeps starring in these ridiculous shorts (this one just made me laugh SO much. I may be sick!):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pao46T_lafk

my ears are so happy.

thanks to:

1. Janelle Monae, The ArchAndroid
2. Robyn, Body Talk Pt. 1
3. The Gaslight Anthem, American Slang
4. Delorean, Subiza
5. Sleigh Bells, Treats
6. Sharon Jones & the Dap Kings, I Learned the Hard Way
7. Smokey Robinson, Greatest Hits
8. The Tough Alliance, New Chance

Sidenote: Janelle Monae may just be as out of this world as her alter-ego suggests. It's hard to believe talent like this! I haven't heard an album this good in a long time. Monae seems to be fearless and her latest album, incredibly diverse and refreshing to listen to (Sharon Jones, you're pretty darn good, too!).

it's a boy!

It's more than surreal to think/write about this, considering I missed out on every part of the process BUT, I am proud to say that I am an Auntie again! My brother Matt and his wonderful wife Amberley had their first babe: May 12th, at around 5:40am. A sweet little man was born, and shortly after he was named Duncan! Too cute. I am just so happy and excited for the Arnold's (Pugsley included!), and I can't wait to have my first Skype date with the whole family. Just one of those times you really wish it was easy and cheap to fly from one side of the world to the other...

I love you all SO much. Congratulations!

83 days...

...left with these guys, left in Taiwan (and not that I am counting or anything!). My feelings are becoming more mixed as the days go by.

my kind of equation.

Kate Nash + apples + sunshine = love.

a superhero kind of day.

Today, we rescued a kitten! It was quite the production (also known as, a "break and enter"), to get to this little thing but once we heard her desperate meow, we knew we must do whatever we had to do to save it. In about 2 hours, this 500g, gooky-eyed, black kitten went from total distress to total bliss: bathed and beautified, named and given a home. Welcome, Coco-- just the most precious thing. A very rewarding way to spend a Sunday afternoon, to say the least. I want to find another one tomorrow and keep it for myself. Not looking likely, but a girl can dream!

In the spirit of feeling a little bit like a hero today, I wanted to (finally!) watch Kick Ass. Totally worth the wait, totally not what I was expecting, but, a highly entertaining and action-packed movie nonetheless! I have to give it two superhero thumbs up!

homeade hair cut.

On Friday, I got my hair cut. I sacked up and said "let's do this!" because I desperately wanted my curls back. Well, the salon experience was something else. Really wonderful. Massages, long hair washes, the whole bit! They really take care of you at hair salons here... before the actual hair cutting begins, that is.

This is not my first time putting the fate of my hair in an Asian hairdresser's hands. When will I learn, I wonder? Maybe now. My hairdresser was 60% fascinated about my having curly hair and 40% frightened. Really, just SO nervous about what my hair would do (being curly and all), if he cut it too short. I tried to tell him over and over again that short was fine, just layer it, but to no avail. I left the salon with a sort of shorter version of my hair beforehand... curly on the top, straight on the ends: NOT a good look.

I let it go for a couple of days then realized I had had enough. At this point, I went into my roommate's room, got some scissors, consulted briefly then realized I didn't care whatsoever and that we should likely just start cutting before I could change my mind. I wish we had taken pictures of the process. Although things like this, you don't soon forget!

It definitely could use some refining, BUT it looks cute! It's short... really short! But my curls are back, fiiiinally.

(Sidenote: Sorry hair, I will never mistreat you like this again. It's been a rough year, next year will be better!).