Monday 23 January–Friday 27 January Fulong Beach I hadn’t seen the ocean since landing in Taipei. My initial desire had been to train to a beach on the east coast with friends in the early hours of the Gregorian new year to see the first sunrise of 2023 emerge from the ocean, the same sun…Continue Reading Taiwan: Week seven
Taiwan: Week six
Monday 16 January–Sunday 22 January The final day of class Monday, 16 January, was my final day of class. I gave a final presentation on some differences between the US and New Zealand before saying 再見 (goodbye) to my teachers 許老師 and 林老師, and my classmates, Noah, Ashleigh, Takahiro, Nicole, Araceli, Daryll, Yung and Asuka for the last time. It was…Continue Reading Taiwan: Week six
101 Things to do in Taipei
Coming to Taipei during Lunar New Year’s is probably the best and worst time to come to Taipei. Because Lunar New Year’s is such a major celebration here, everything is closed! Trying to find a non-fast food meal is like Mission impossible! I also needed to find a suitcase to bring all my favourite snacks…Continue Reading 101 Things to do in Taipei
New Year, new post！
The final week of our exchange here in Tainan has arrived so quickly. To finish up our last week and a half, we continued our packed schedule. I managed to head to a new night market with my language buddy Ariel and her roommate in an effort to cram in all the foods I had…Continue Reading New Year, new post！
A rollercoaster of a week!
好久不见！ I believe Tainan was recently voted the world’s flattest city (by myself). However, this Saturday was full of ups and downs at the Janfusan Fancy world theme park in the Yunlin County area of Taiwan. Whilst a small mission to get onto the packed-full train to Douliu, then a Taxi to the park, before…Continue Reading A rollercoaster of a week!
忘不了。
忘不了, unforgettable. That is the one word I can think of to adequately describe this trip. Sure, there have been ups and downs, but it is an experience firmly etched into my memory. The uniqueness of this experience dawned on me more and more as the trip came closer to a close. Like an impending…Continue Reading 忘不了。
Taiwan: Week three
Monday 26 December–Sunday 1 January Visiting a tea house NCKU organised a trip to a picturesque tea house in Anping for us. The owner showed us the traditional method of serving tea to guests. The ritual welcomes a guest to your home and allows each participant to demonstrate their urbanity or lack thereof, as in…Continue Reading Taiwan: Week three
Taiwan update：20th January 2023
Kia ora whānau, My apologies for the late post; this trip has been incredibly busy! My experience under the 360 programme in Taiwan has been and continues to be jam-packed full of culture, study, and new experiences. It is hard to believe that it is nearly over! As it has been a while since my…Continue Reading Taiwan update：20th January 2023
Taiwan: Week four
Monday 2 January–Sunday 8 January Seal cutting NCKU organised an expert to show us to cut a traditional seal. Seal cutting is an ancient art first practised in China over three thousand years ago. We learnt how emperors and public officials commissioned artisans to carve intricate characters onto bone, bronze, pottery and stone. Leaders would…Continue Reading Taiwan: Week four
Taiwan: Week five
Monday 9 January–Sunday 15 January Boys’ picnic at Chimei Museum Park This week was a busy time in class, with many tests to complete. But the three guys on the trip, Charlie, Fin and I, managed to find time to get together with our language partners, Jerry, Craig and Sky, respectively, for a boys’ picnic….Continue Reading Taiwan: Week five