Happy Resurrection Day!

     HAPPY EASTER

     Everyone!!!

I took this picture of the flowers on Friday afternoon when Mountain Man (the school administrator) brought Gem and I to the nearby mountain (I forget it's name) to go hiking.

Here are a few more pictures from the hike before I get into Easter.

The view of the city was beautiful!

Mountain Man called it a hike, but it turned out to be a half mile climb up some stairs with a park/garden at the top.

Even though it wasn't the type of hike I expected, it was still very beautiful.

a gazebo/observation deck

View from the top!

This door reminds me of something from the Hobbit.

I took a lot of photos, but I though these seven were probably the best and most interesting.

Then we went out for dinner...

                               This is a giant dumpling with meat and a sweet sauce on top.

                                  Notice the spoon to aid my limited chopsticks abilities.

Broth with pork meatballs.

    Now on to Easter!!!

I got an Easter package from my family.

I was just a little bit excited to I opened it. Can you tell?

The Granola they sent was sooo much better than a chocolate bunny!

One of my third grade teachers gave me an Easter present.

So sweet of her!

Easter Sunday.

I'm wearing my bracelet and thinking of you Liz!

I made myself pancakes and applesauce for brunch.

Notice that I'm using a spoon to flip the pancakes in the absence of a spatula.

Now that takes talent! Haha.

I'm to lazy to write any more for now...

~ He is Risen! ~

Happy Birthday, Mom!

                   Here are just a few things I really admire and appreciate in my amazing mother.

faithful friend

 superb cook

 musician 

 adventurist

A great Sunday school teacher

The list goes on and on, but I don't want to make you all feel too bad that she's my mother, not yours, so I'll stop at that.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MOM

Love you and hope you have an amazing day!

One Month Anniversary!

     Exactly one month ago today, exhausted from 15 hours on a plane and sick from airline food, I stepped into Taiwan for the first time.
     So far it has been one amazing and crazy adventure. From chasing buses, mixing up my Chinese and saying "your welcome" instead of "I'm sorry, trying stinky tofu, and lying awake late at night twice now, thinking the creaking noises in my room were mice or rats!

The Taiwanese flag.

My school lunch: sticky rice, curry with potatoes, carrot and onion mix, cooked lettuce (I think), and cucumber soup. 

Some pretty flowering trees at school.

Some of my 1st graders being studious.

the gazebo and fish pond at the front of the school were I like to spend time in between classes.

Me and one of my amazing 1st graders.

Another shot of the school

Some of my 3rd graders plants. They look sooo cool!

At the gazebo

Most of the stairs at the schools have English phrases on them for the students to learn.

My adorable 1st graders at recess.

Ben on the tire swing.

Ivy comes and gives me hugs whenever she sees me.

Everyone in Taiwan recycles. Every time I want to throw something away I have to figure out which bin to put it in, as I can't read the Chinese characters. Paper, plastic, and garbage.

Hard at work, well, most of them that least!

Sherry, who drives me back to the apartment on Thursdays, bought me a Chinese dessert. It's sweet tea sauce, chocolate, egg, and vanilla pudding, and tapioca balls. I know it sounds really odd, but it tasted good.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY TO ME!!!!

1 month completed

4 more to go!

Nantou

Friday, after my last class Gem and I caught a train to Taichung City where we parted ways for the weekend. She to go to a team leaders meeting and I to go spend the weekend with the Nantou Team, which is the team Josie was on.    

Natalie and Riana from the team met me in Taichung City were we

 got Subway for dinner, then headed  to Nantou.

Ying Pan Elementary where the team lives.

We went to the breakfast stand near the school Saturday morning.

Josie was quite insistent that I order her favorite breakfast: "Bacon Dom Bing."

It was DELISH along with some milk tea.

                 

I attended my first real sports day at Ying Pan.

Here are some pictures from it.

                                   
To start of the events some important people gave long speeches in Chinese.
Then, there were some performances, Above, some people dancing in huge costumes.
Does anyone else find them a bit disturbing, or is it just me?


                                   

Chinese Yo-yo

They are sooo good!

~

They also had some games for the students and a tug of war which I participated in.

Of course my team lost both times.  :-(

                                 

In the afternoon we went on a a bike ride to a park and played basketball.

I actually made a basket! So proud of myself. ; )

~

These are some trees at the park, they are sooo cool!

Some people were selling and flying kites.

The rice fields and foothills (look closely) behind Ying Pan Elementary.

It's hard to admit, but in truth, Nantou is more beautiful than Da Ja.

~

Also, I've never gotten sunburned in March before!

In the evening, we rode the bikes to a cute little restaurant.

Tim, Nick, Caroline, Riane, and I.

Sadly, they ran out of dumplings at the restaurant (hum...who was it again that ordered TWENTY!)

Anyway, we rode another mile or two to McDonald's to finish our meal.

I got a kiwi yogurt drink from a stand nearby. YUM!

Sunday morning, Riane and I went to church together and hung out 

while we waited for my train.

Just me, my sunburn, and my milk tea.

That's right folks, I took the train and the bus by myself for the first time!

Round of applause!

Four junior high kids kept me entertained for the fifty minutes I had to wait for the bus. They were all too shy to come talk to me, but had no problem giving each other ideas of what they could say to me in English. I was only standing a few feet away and couldn't help but overhear.

 "Go ask her if she knows how to speak Chinese." 

"Say, my name is..."

One of them either spit or threw an ice cube at my shoe and the other three all exclaimed in Chinese this time. "Say you're sorry!" The fact that I could understand something they said in Chinese was worth it, even though he never got around to apologizing.

  ~

Overview: It was really fun getting to see where Josie lived for the two years she was in Taiwan, travel, and meet new friends and others :-(   just kidding! (About the others, that is)

~

Time to get back to the grind!  

HAPPY PALM SUNDAY, everyone!!!