Fall is Here

It seems that finally fall has come here- without the pomp and circumstance of leaves changing, cider drinking, pumpkin carving, and pie eating- but nonetheless- the cooler weather seems to have finally arrived this week. 
Myron and I have been very busy and this month seems to have passed us by in a blur of activity.  One weekend was spent with me grading the entirety of the weekend (though no matter how much I grade, there is still more to grade).  Other weekends, we have spent exploring more of what Kaohsiung has to offer.

We went on a short ferry ride to Cinjin Island- a small island right off of Kaohsiung.  Here, we rented bikes and rode around the island- stopping off to see the lighthouse, an old Matsu temple, and the beach. 
We also celebrated Canadian Thanksgiving at a bar here that serves largely western-style food.   I don't normally even really like Thanksgiving food, but I tell you what- turkey, gravy, and stuffing never tasted quite so good to me. 
Watching the Jon Stewart Daily Show (hooray for the rally, wish we could be there), it seems that the US is in the midst of elections and election ads.  Here in Taiwan, it is also election time- and the current mayor seems to have set up her campaign headquarters right where we live.  Here is a picture that we took a couple weekends ago, of a rally in the park right by where we live. 

Last weekend, we also got massages, which was a nice treat.   People told us that we needed to tell the women to use a light pressure, which we did.  I can't imagine what their normal pressure feels like-  we both felt like we had been beat up afterwards.  I still enjoyed it, though, and would go back.  I felt like she really got out a bunch of my knots and a bunch of lactic acid.

Perhaps the most exciting event of this last month, though, occurred last Sunday, when Kaohsiung celebrated the Kaohsiung Wannian Folklore Festival.   The government invited us (us being employees of KAS), free of charge,  on an afternoon and evening of festivities. 
The event was held at Lotus Lake, probably one of the more photographed areas of Koahsiung, as it is a lake with about 20 temples around it. 
We got a short tour of Lotus Lake, with a focus on the dragon/ lion temples.

At this festival, the fire lion is the mascot.  After we visited the temples, and learned more about the temples, we got to make a wish.  Everyone who attends the festival gets to make wishes, that the fire lion will make come true. 
Here Myron is  hanging up our wishes:

Next, we went on a boat ride around the lake

Then they treated us to a big traditional Chinese dinner. 
Finally, it was time for the big festival.  From the brochure they gave us, we found out that they make the fire lion from "a bamboo frame, wrapped in firecrackers" with a paper head.

The "burning of the fire lion is one of the religious rituals celebrating God of Medicine's birthday.  Legend has it writing your wishes on a piece of paper and burning it with the Fire Lion will bring good luck and make your dreams come true". 
We had front row seats for the burning of the fire dragon.  Before they burned the dragon, there were many presentations- all involving fire- such as boys throwing fire sticks and fire swords.  Though it was cool to be so close to the action, one gentlemen ended up getting burned.  One boy throwing the fire sword, set his hair on fire.  It was all a bit crazy, and yet awesome at the same time. 

The mayor showed up and I got to shake her hand- that was very exciting.  And then finally, it was time to burn the fire dragon and our wishes so that they could come true. 

The dragon went up in flames and fireworks went off.  It was a pyromaniacs dream come true!

The Hawaii of Taiwan over the Moon Festival

The Moon Festival in Taiwan is their fall celebration.  There is a folk tale that goes along with the celebration, concerning the lady in the moon.  My students tried to share the folk tale with me, but it appears as with so many folk tales, there are a variety of translations- the basic story is that a woman is married to a man, who has been given two pills, each of which offer eternal life.  This is where the story differs- some tell the story that the woman saved the day by taking both pills herself, because the man was a tyrant.  Instead of giving her everlasting life, however, since she took both pills, they allow her to fly to the moon for the rest of eternity.  Some tell the story that the woman was a deviant who stole both pills and thus, she ends up on the moon.  Somehow, rabbits also feature in the folktale and end up on the moon as well.
However, in practice, the moon festival actually ends up being a celebration of the end of the hot weather (though we have yet to see this), and to spend time BBQ-ing with family and friends. It is also a time to give each other moon-cakes (spherical cakes- in honor of the moon- filled with a wide-range of things, from red bean paste to eggs to ice cream).  In our case, it was vacation time.  HOORAY! 

We headed off to Penghu for some much needed R and R.  Penghu is an island off the coast of Taiwan and is described by Lonely Planet as the "Hawaii of Taiwan".  

Penghu is known for its temples, of which there are many.  The temples often have very elaborate designs.  I was particularly impressed with the carvings inside one temple, as seen below:

We spent a lot of time on Penghu's many beaches.   The beaches are pristine, and at least when we were here, largely unoccupied. You felt as if you had the whole beach to yourself.  One of the best parts of spending time at the beach was the shell hunting. Here is a picture of me- very sun-burned, with a piece of coral that Myron found.

We got around the island by renting scooters.  I must admit that it was very exhilarating, riding around on scooters.  Even though Myron is pictured here, I too had my own scooter. 

We stopped at an aquarium, which actually had some very impressive exhibits.  We both enjoyed the sea turtles the most.

 Penghu is also known for its various basalt formations, the most famous of which is found on Tong-pan island.  We took a boat over to this small island, where you can walk around a path to see the basalt formations. 

Overall, we enjoyed this island and found it to be a very beautiful and fun island to explore. 

We had a fun time and would certainly recommend a visit to Penghu by anyone visiting the Taiwan area. 

We were also very happy to celebrate our first moon festival and our first vacation.

Homesick

So, I haven't been writing in my blog and I am afraid that I have a confession to make- it is official- I am homesick.  Before we left for Taiwan, several people explained that when you move abroad there are different stages that you move between.  First, you start out in the honeymoon period, where everything seems wonderful, new, and exciting.  You feel like you are on vacation.   This lasted for me about the first 6- 7 weeks of our move here. 
Then, you head into more of a transitional period, where you start to miss things from home and question why people do the things that they do in this new country that you have moved to and you begin to miss the people, customs, and culture from home.  You feel overwhelmed.
I am afraid, folks, this is where I find myself.
I miss so many things from home- big and small.
Big things that I miss- the people- namely most of you who actually read this blog- I miss you.  I miss your sense of humor the most, and all of the fun things that we did during any given week- such as talking over a glass of good wine, coffee, or dinner, or catching the latest play at the DCPA, or getting a pedicure, or trying a new, fun activity. I miss being able to call you during the week, instead of just on the weekends.  I miss being able to talk through all the little events in our lives, instead of trying to summarize the big events when we do talk.  
I miss the change in seasons- big time.  I am typing this out on my patio and sweating.  Everything is still very green.  I know that I will appreciate still wearing tank tops and shorts in January, but I miss the leaves changing colors and the desire for hot cider and pumpkin carving and corn mazes and Halloween costumes.  I miss the crispness in the air during the fall. 
I miss dish washers and even more than that- I miss clothes dryers- oh, what a glorious invention!  Strangely, we only have a dish dryer and a clothes washer. 
I miss Starbuck's Chai tea lattes- so very, very, very much- I can 't even begin to explain just how much.
I miss really great Mexican food- and especially, most especially avocados.  What I wouldn't give for some good gaucamole, some really good nachos, and a margarita. 
It helps to know that this is only a phase, that this too will pass.  
It helps to know that others who move abroad have gone through the same experiences.
And it helps to know that soon enough, (okay- in like 8 months, but who's counting?) I will be drinking Starbuck's chai latte for breakfast, heading out on a hike in the beautiful Colorado Rockies, drinking wine on the porch of the Creekside Cellars, and then going out to dinner at any number of Mexican restaurants in the Denver area where I can eat gauc and drink margs. 
In the meantime, I will work on moving into the next phase of becoming more open and accepting of my new home.