Tremors

In life, you can find yourself in some situations where your legs shake. In others, emotions can be so intense that you might think that the earth is rocking. I experienced one last Friday in which it was really shaking. A few minutes after 8:30pm, suddenly, a couple of strong shakes; another earthquake. It was shorter than others I have felt here, but with apparently more intense oscillations. And, for the first time, with some reaction from the locals. Not that much, mind you. Later I found out that it had been of a 5.5 magnitude. I guess that we can notice it better in our tall and narrow building, but I think it was the first one I registered since last year.

Reading again

I was going over my e-mail last Sunday when, for some reason I cannot remember, I started reading again, for a good while, messages from my family of the weeks before and after coming to Taiwan. It was not planned, I just found myself doing it; but it was interesting. To remember funny or good sentences of one or the other; or when they told me about the latest deed of the little one or how she was beginning to do her own things; insightful exchanges between my brothers; flat-out rants over any subject that inevitably made laugh, etc. I spent a long while laughing and smiling.

I also realized, reading what I had written, how much things change from the beginning and comparing to months later. There is a lot of uncertainty during the first days, everything is new, the personal mood is very variable. Little things sink you, others lift you up. A few months later, all is much more stable and you begin forgetting those feelings, and think that they never happened. The new reading of those messages helps me to see, as if I needed that, how well I feel right now.

I Remember You

When I walk from Shida to the campus of Taida, I must cross Roosevelt Rd, a wide avenue. I usually take one of the two underpasses that are between Keelung Rd and the main gate of Taida. There is also an elevated pass and some pedestrian crossings, but it is not really worth it to wait.

The first underpass is usually deserted —even if there were some girls sitting on the steps today—, barely decorated and recently painted again.

The other one, near the Gongguan night market is different. In fact, it has six exits from three arms that meet in the middle of the street, with fake decorative columns, posters about Taida or some map of the nearby streets. It is usually fairly crowded and with people selling different things: old books, flowers, necklaces or combs, etc. Many times, there is also an old man selling, well, I do not know what he is selling, but he has apparently been there for many years.

This afternoon when I walked down this pass, I heard a familiar music, though. I immediately recognized the accords of the Skid Row song, I Remember You. A young guy with looks half-way of punk and sleaze style and with his arms full of tattoos, was singing it. He had the guitar case open at his feet with some old records and similar things in it. His was, obviously, a personal cover of the song—it is not easy to sing it— but I did not mind. In a day full of nice songs, I walked back to my office humming the tune of that song I had not heard in such a long time, but I had always liked. And it got me thinking...

Aliens

As I think I mentioned before, Taipei is a very international city and it is not so strange to pass in the street some other weird guys like me: westerners. You can see that in the local people, because they do not waste much time in looking at you (very different from what I experienced in China), and even many little kids are so used to it that they do no seem to notice at all. The ones who do are very very funny, though. At the same time, it is not something that happens at every moment, which means that there is enough time lapse to realize it.

That is the most strange thing to me. Races are, basically, something that has to do with the outer looks, but we are so used to recognizing shapes, or colors, or people similar to the ones where we come from, that it is often amazing how easily I can spot, and how fast, a westerner amid the background of people on the streets. And they are typically the nordic/british type.

Then, something very funny happens (or sad, depending on your point of view), because reactions are usually one of these three ways:

• the guy who probably has been for a short time here and as soon as he discovers you, looks as if he was thinking, "one of my own". He cannot control his eyes, and probably smiles too much. Maybe that makes his day. Surprising.
  
  
• at the other end are the ones who see you and look away really fast, sometimes contorting their necks in a weird way. Or maybe they pretend they do not look at you, but you can tell they are watching.
  
  
• and, finally, the ones that look at you, for as long or as short a time as they do with anybody else, and keep on walking.
  

I think I am usually between a little bit in the second type and mostly on the third, all depending on the labels that I have for the people that seem to be of a particular way (there is a kind of tourist/expatriate that I'd rather not have anything to do with), but I do not have any problem returning the smile or nodding to somebody who is in the first type.

It is curious how sometimes I have caught myself thinking, "hey, another one of these people again", coming from the same kind of weird guy. We get used to almost everything.

Dou hua

I talked about dessert yesterday, but I did not go into details. This is what we had for dessert in the Danshui night market last Saturday, dou hua (豆花).

It is the kind of dessert that I discovered shortly after arriving to Taiwan and I certainly like them. This one is made from a specially soft kind of tofu; its texture and looks remind me of fresh cheese, but softer. In Taiwan, they use to serve it with peanuts, or beans, tapioca, etc, all mixed into a syrup of different possible tastes (ginger or almond?). It can be served warm or with ice (lots of ice). It is, obviously, sweet, but not too much for my taste. And it is more filling than it seems.

The ones in the picture were delicious.

Danshui

We had a wonderful Saturday this weekend, like last week. It seemed as if somebody had really worked hard to get us perfect weather. The Sun was burning and it was very warm, when we arrived to Danshui just before 4pm, but it was not too bad because we are still in April.

We then walked along the market that follows the river, in the direction of its mouth. As we expected, it was very crowded. With all the many shops, the things being sold in them, people performing on the street, it was the very definition of the mix of colors, sounds and smells.



With many different things on offer too. From panda bears, which you can find anywhere in Taipei these days,

to imported foreign machinery.


We then walked on until we reached a short pier, where we sat down for a while enjoyng the nice Sun, the sea breeze and the small waves in this mix of river and ocean.


Waiting for the sunset.


Later, excellent dinner, dessert and a walk along the bike path that follows the river bank, as far as the next MRT station. A true pleasure, to walk in the dark, with the smells, sounds and the better feelings of the night around us.

A really wonderful day.

Wow

And that is all I can say right now.

Renewals

A consequence of approaching the first year since I arrived to Taiwan is that I must renew the Alien Resident Certificate (ARC) before the end of this month. Yes, I have been in this island for more than eleven months already.

So, since I got the required documentation to do the paperwork from the front office, I went to the immigration office on Friday morning, early and ready for any queue, but it was almost empty. I think I waited more for the MRT than for my turn at the desk. In 5 or 10 minutes, and after paying NT1000, all was done. Now, I must wait for a week to get the new card. From what I have seen of it, because they had to explain to me that the re-entry permit is now in the card, it is very modern-looking. Another one.