Steamy Buns and Freezing Buns

This post will highlight two of the less than desirables of my experience thus far in Taiwan. The first is found in a little gathering of street vendors about a mile away called the night market. Although it is pretty easy to find with some simple instructions, a more dependable way to get there is to follow the scent of what Annie and I endearingly call (please pardon the language) “bum-cheek tofu”. The locals call it stinky tofu because it smells like rotting meat mixed with manure. It’s a fermented tofu that fills the air, cuts through your lungs, and destroys any thought you ever had of eating. (New diet idea: stinky tofu air fresheners?) I think I’ve developed an aversion to the smell because if I ever get a whiff, my stomach starts to turn. Add to the smell this lovely array of every part of the animal you never wanted to eat, and you got yourself a meal!

Luckily, despite the delicacies that I have yet to develop a taste for, there really are quite a few delicious dishes here in Taiwan. My favorite by far comes from a little street vendor in downtown Hualien. Our boss Yuling took us there on our first Saturday and we not only gobbled these up but have craved them every day since. I’ve had steamed dumplings before but this was my first time eating a Taiwanese steamed bun. This sticky Wonder Bread ball is full of meat or vegetables and somehow melts in your mouth. Pauline, we are saving one for you.

Scouts might relate a little better to the second less desirable than other people. Imagine a winter campout in a tin barn with 70% humidity and only a space heater the size of a postage stamp. That would pretty much sum up my sleeping situation here. Annie and I have been basically freezing since we’ve come. It’s that humid cold you always hear about, the type that literally cuts you to the bone. Warm herbal teas, seven layers of jackets, two pairs of socks, multiple pajama pants, and ski hats have really come in handy over these last few weeks. Needless to say, we are excited for the sun to come out (and yes, I do give you permission to send this post back to me when I am complaining about the sweltering heat in a couple of months).

Touching Down in Taiwan

Welcome to Taiwan!






Annie and I took off from Salt Lake City last Monday night at about 9:30pm. 27 hours, 9,755 miles, and 350 lbs of luggage later, we arrived at the front steps of our new home...not without our fair share of adventures on the way.



16 hours of flying was a completely new experience for me. It was claustrophobic and we were in darkness the entire time because we preceded the sun. Our 2 AM meal included raw tuna, every announcement was made in Chinese and broken English, and my Vietnamese neighbor told me about visiting her Hmong friends in Minnesota. The flight helped me sympathize a little more with the Jaredites and I had to restrain myself from the kissing the ground after landing.

Annie and I made an important realization too late as we eyed our 4 roller suitcases, 2 backpacks, 2 coats, and laptop case: we packed too much. We somehow made it through the airport to the Express Bus station. Despite the language barrier, we thought we bought a bus ticket to the Taipei Main Train Station. We were on cue to board when an angel dressed like a Taiwanese airport employee appeared, told us that it was the wrong bus, helped us get the right ticket, and then disappeared. I didn't even get a change to bray, "Shay Shay!" before he left.




Our faces were plastered to the side of the bus as we made our way through Taipei. We felt smack dab in the middle of an Asian movie and we loved it. At the Taipei train station, we met up with Yuling's friend Dennis who had the duty of getting us on the train to Hualien. He bought us tickets for the 10:00am train at less than a minute to 10:00am, so with panic in his voice, he ordered us to follow and took off down the station. We probably could've done that just fine if our jet-lagged, 5'4" legs weren't burdened down by 350 lbs of luggage. We chugged behind with sweat beads forming on our foreheads. I felt grateful that I didn't know any Chinese swearwords.



Annie and I miraculously made it on the train. Our relief was short-lived as we looked at the pile of luggage squished in the doorway of the moving train. We had no idea how we were going to move it down two cars to our assigned seats. I decided to buck up and go for it. Every Taiwanese eye was glued to the frizzy haired, grumbling American girl as she banged suitcase and backpack down the completely too narrow aisle. We gave up and decided to bag the whole 'sit in your assigned seat' thing. The nearest row suddenly became ours and we took up two extra seats with our luggage. The next two hours were a mix again of our plastered faces against the window, drowsing out with fatigue, going for a round of M&M's as a pick-me up and then starting the process again. We met several more angels on this leg that helped us know when we arrived.

Movie Clip: Train to Hualien

The train doors open, our luggage exploded onto the landed, and I'm sure I heard the faint sound of cheering Taiwanese as the train left us in the dust. I paused to take in my first impressions of this new place. The air smelled cool, moist, and clean. There was a heavy tranquility that floated in the breeze. A small Asian woman with a bun on the top of her head stood beside the train chanting a strange high pitched advertisement for her newspaper stand. A little red sign across the tracks read, "Welcome to Hualien" in English and Chinese.


Although we felt momentary relief at "finally arriving", the relief quickly vanished as we realized that we could not celebrate anything until our 4 roller suitcases, 2 backpacks, 2 coats, and laptop case were securely stowed away inside our apartment. On our way to the front of the station to meet our ride, we discovered that the escalator to the 30 step staircase in our way was broken...of course. Once again we volunteered to perform comic relief for Taiwanese spectators as we dragged our suitcases up each step and down the block.

We sat on a step in front of the train station as we waited for our ride. After a bit, a little white car pulled up and a short Taiwanese woman popped out announcing herself as our new boss Yuling. Her energy was evident as she stuffed me, Annie, and our luggage into her car and took off for the Owl Preschool. After two more very steep staircases and a ledge, Annie and I finally wheeled our suitcases into our new bedrooms, vowing in blood to NEVER again take more than a toothbrush and clean underwear on any future voyage.

Amy in Asia

Last fall I started having cravings to visit Asia. They were generally subtle yet pungent enough that I started asking my Asiaphile friends about possibilities. One high school buddy did some checking and let me know that he'd found me an opportunity to teach English at the same preschool where he'd worked a few years before. Everything fell miraculously into place and before I knew it, I'd quit my internship in Salt Lake, put a plane ticket on my Visa bill, and climbed on a plane bound for Taipei. Even though my Mandarin vocabulary begins and ends with the anything you'll find on a Chinese restaurant menu, this jump into adventure feels so right. My cousin Annelise decided to jump in with me and we've already made enough memories to last a life time.