Hiking

When black clouds gather inside my head, a way out is to meet some friends around a table and spend some time to see if the conversation, jokes or serious stuff manage to cheer me up and I end up walking out with a lively step and flying again over my worries. Besides, if they also ask me if I want to go hiking on the following day, the best thing to do is to say yes.

So, Saturday morning, I met with some other post-docs met at the Taipei Main Station, took the MRT to Beitou, then a taxi to Zhuzihu (Bamboo Lake, even if there is no lake and few bamboo trees) to hike in the Yangmingshan National Park, north of Taipei.

As I have probably said more than once, Taipei is surrounded by mountains, around 1000 m high, and Yangmingshan is supposed to be one of the more beautiful places. I had wanted to go for months, but I only did it for the first time yesterday. It was a wonderful sunny day, as many of previous ones,

which meant that it was very hot and the Sun was bound to burn you.

After a good meal, and under the naked Sun —I could almost hear the prototypical old man complaining about the time we were setting off, but the company was like that—, we took the trail that lead to Xiaoyoukeng

made of stones and/or steps, going up, gently in some parts, steeply in others. The initial part of the trail was flanked by a thick forest of different kinds of trees, bamboo trees among them,

traversed by many different sounds, butterflies of many colors (and oh so beautiful)


colourful fireflies


and full of plants with odd leaves.


Once we were up there, the landscape had changed from the initial forest, to pine trees to a kind of tall grassland without any trees, and later we could see the fumaroles at the feet of Qixingshan, while we recovered from the walk (listening to Abba, by the way)


Some of us climbed up Qixingshan (the 7 star mountain), of 1120 m, the tallest mountain of northern Taiwan. I really enjoyed it, pushing myself up the very steep steps that took us there. We found several fumaroles more on our way up, and were subjected to the changing wind and Sun, sweating a lot.

We could see Taipei at our feet on some parts of the trail, even if the air was not so clear as we would have wished.

At the top, we had a magnificent view of the North-East coast to reward our effort —I could even see Yehliu— with a very clear sky and that great feeling that comes from reaching the summit, it does not matter how small.


We climbed down on the other side of the mountain, where there were similar or even steeper slopes, even if they were short, and we managed to catch the last bus to Taipei.

One of the postdocs asked me later, while we had dinner, what was the goal of hiking, to get tired?. I do not know, but for me, it is that mix of walking in nature, reach a beautiful place and stress my body with exercise, which on some day, and while I am still healthy, it is the best thing to do. A clean body, a clean spirit.

Buff

A day late, of course. What seemed that was coming, which was very probable to happen, but I never ever wanted, has finally happened. Now, I will have to breathe deeply a lot and see what we can do. It won't be easy. Buff!


At least, I could listen to "Waterloo" & "Dancing Queen" up in the mountain today, which is always a reason to be happy.

Leaving

It is really amazing how fast two weeks and a half go by. I arrived with a list of things to do, or to sort out, people to see, places to see again; but now that I am about to leave, I could not do it all. In any case, I leave glad because I could do most of the work I planned to do, I had enough time to see my family, and I could some friends. About sorting some other things out, well, I will leave it for another moment, as usual.

Right now, with my bags already packed and about to leave for the airport, I feel a little sorrow because I am leaving mixed with the anticipation of going back to Taiwan. It took me three days to get used to the Catalan life and now I wonder how I will feel in Taiwan. The question I ask myself as I travel around the globe.

The next post will be from there.

Reading

During these last few days that I have been in Barcelona, when I go to the Physics building with the metro —to do some work—, I have recovered an old hobby of mine that I used to do during my degree and, particularly, while I was doing my PhD: reading a book in the metro. Since I left the city, I could not do it neither in Columbus, where I took a bus at the beginning to go to work, and afterwards I rode my bicycle; nor in Madrid, where I had to drive; nor in Taipei, where I walk to my office. The result is, after spending a few minutes lost inside a parallel universe, that I can catch up to some of the pile of books pending to read. This time, I had even help from a long flight from East Asia.

I must find some time to visit a couple of bookstores before I leave and see if I can get some more books in Catalan to bring back to Taiwan.

Tesla

Saint John's Eve. Night festival for some, with firecrackers and rockets. For us two, Tesla at Razzmatazz. I had seen them before when I was in America, and we witnessed another great gig last Tuesday. This time, in company of my brother. We have been listening to their songs for years; very emotional.


I know what I will be listening to in the near future.

Back in old Europe

A long flight, not uncomfortable, and fairly uneventful —apart from a rollercoaster-like fall due to turbulence in the first leg of the trip that left most of us breathless. Upon arrival, worrying health news in the family that, fortunately, seem to have turned to nothing today after the cause has been found. And at the same time, great joy seeing the two babies, grown up and doing their stuff. There are some smiles, toothless still, that really wash away all the worries in the world. All together a day of reunion with my brothers, around some tables, as it should be.

One day in Barcelona already; one day back in Europe and I am not used to seeing so many westerners in the street yet. My first impression, in the plane or here already, was not too positive. Cultural shock?, it could be. I am too used maybe to being in Taiwan. It has a gentler side. It was called Formosa for a reason. And it is for a reason that I am missing a little beautiful thing too.

First day, then, and I have already done some work. Happy about that , too.

Tourists

Most of the visitors that we had around here since more than a week ago have left today. Due to an international conference that took place in Taipei, organized by the ASIAA, a lot of people from Barcelona landed in Taiwan two weekends ago. I do not know why so many came, but I took them around the city a few days, because as a local I know more how this is.


But then, between doing a little sightseeing on the weekend, attending the talks in the morning and the afternoon during all week, meeting people to go for dinner and, maybe, having a beer afterwards, my life has been too chaotic for several days. So much that I forgot to update this blog or I was too tired to write anything late at night (or in the middle of a talk).

As I was saying, all have left today, except a student with whom I will try to do some work during these three days that we have left. Maybe I can still go back to the good old times. But I am not complaining. I got something from the talks and the following discussions; and the long conversations with some of my collaborators have given us some new ideas to try and a more accurate planning on the (lots of) work that we must do in the next two or three months.

Back to the right track, then.

Sanctuary

And one day you wake up.

And you know what you must do.

Look for the CD where you stored the files. Copy them to the laptop. Load the song into the player

... and wait for the guitar to play the first accords

....

The sparkle in your eyes
Keeps me alive

She Sells Sanctuary

(Wolf child dixit)