A new home in Guting
Thanks for the emails and positive thoughts.
I'm settling in to my new space, a room in an apartment off the Guting MRT. It's down a little alley that's kind of hidden. You need special instructions to find it. It's a bit spartan and "post -college" style but the room mates are nice and very friendly. Angelica especially has helped me settle in quickly. Taipei loves Ikea it seems. It was very urban feeling to go to Ikea in a taxi rather than driving. Then if you want to buy large pieces, they'll deliver them for a fee. I bought a warm down comforter and some sheets for my bed, I guess I love Ikea too. I've already vacuumed and mopped my floors, which seemed like they hadn't been cleaned since the early Cretaceous. Kinda grotty exterior but what was I expecting for $325/month?
The dogs Dodo and Percy are very friendly, and I've managed to get them to sit and lie down on command. So either I'm the dog whisperer or they speak really good English.
I had my first lesson today, with my teacher Liu Laoshi (sp?) She has been very kind and supportive of my non-language situation. We went over the basic consonants and vowels and started on tones.
One of her instructions was "smile when you say that- it puts the face muscles in the right position". I guess any language that forces one to smile while talking must be highly evolved.
My food allergies have been acting up. Hives every day unless I take my antihistamines, double doses.
I think it's the dyes and preservatives that they use which are very similar (or perhaps identical to the ones in Japan). I don't know if it's an immediate reaction, or an exposure issue, sort of "pre-primed" by my trip to Japan in 2006? Thankfully now I'm in a space where I can control what goes into my meals, so it
should subside. But the food is so delicious, it's hard to say no! I especially love the sushi at the MRT, it's deliciously fresh and costs $2.65 for a satisfying chirashi bento (See pics above).
Had a warm welcome from the roommates who made fried rice last nite. The kitchen is decently equipped, so I expect I shall start cooking soon.
Garbage pickup is a hoot. You wait to hear ice cream truck music, then gather the large bags of garbage and bins of compost and run down to the end of the alley. There are 3 trucks in a row- recycling, food scraps (pig feed/composting), trash. Everyone throws their stuff into the appropriate truck and trundles off home, while the music fades in the distance.