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| Taipei 101 on NYE |
I can't believe it's been almost a year since I've moved to Seoul. I've been rewriting my cover letter and updating my resume over the past month to prepare for my next job. I am leaning towards teaching high school because that would mean I've taught all ages-- from kindergarten to adults-- so then I'll know what age group I will want to teach for my career. I'll keep you posted on the job hunt.
School is going well. I am taking another methods course alongside an Intercultural Communications course. I was offered a Graduate Assistantship for a class I took last semester that I received a perfect score in (cough), so that is giving me a second income of around $1,100 for the semester. So far it is going well... midterms are approaching quickly so I need to brace myself.
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| C.K. Memorial Hall |
Well, on to other things. My trip to Taiwan was good! I definitely over planned when you look at my previous post. I always tend to dream big, we know that. But I did get to see two things I really wanted to see, one being a must. When I arrived it was pretty hectic-- once again I was a foreigner at the extreme. I couldn't read or speak in the language. Much different than Korea... how I missed it. Taiwan was good, though. I definitely prefer Korean food and, in general, Korean culture. I'd definitely go back to sightsee in Taiwan because there is so much to see and the land is naturally beautiful-- one of the big differences I saw in comparison to Korea. The first day was spent getting acclimated because I got into the city a little late and because of the holiday, all of the buses were booked down to my first destination. So, I stayed in Taipei more than I had originally planned.
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| Buddha Statue in Taroko Gorge |
The second day was spent going around Taipei and seeing the National Memorial. It was very similar to structures in Beijing (not shocking, of course) but I could see some differences from Korea. I also went to a few temples, one being Longshan Temple, a temple that allows all people of all denominations use. It was awesome and one of my favorite parts of the trip.
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| Temple in Taroko Gorge |
On the second night I met up with some people, one being from work, and we watched the fireworks at Taipei 101, the world's second tallest building. It sounded like I was in the middle of a terrorist attack. ^^
The next day I woke up extremely early to head to the east coast of the island. There I went to Taroko Gorge, a series of mountains made of marble. It was beautiful even though the day was overcast. I saw some temples, buddha statues, the usual I suppose. It took about three or four hours to get through the entire tour-- I had paid some random taxi driver to drive me around. He spoke little English which was good because I was exhausted from traveling.
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| Longshan Temple |
After the gorge, I went to Quixingtan Beach. This was the ending scene of one of my favorite movies. It was absolutely beautiful and one of the reasons I booked my ticket to Taiwan. The waves are so rough that people are not allowed to swim, but it is still a big tourist attraction. The weather was overcast (which I preferred) and the mountains were beautiful-- they lined the entire beach.
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| This temple symbolized the stairway to heaven. |
Like I said, I would definitely go back to Taiwan if not to live but to sightsee. There was so much I didn't have to see and I was stupid to think I could see a lot in just four days. I think Taiwan should be one everyone's list of travels when and if they decide to travel SE Asia. I highly recommend it even if I barely saw anything I wanted and should have. There is always next time!
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| Qixingtan Beach |
Well, all that is left for me to do is finish up my contract. I have a wedding to go to in California in July which will put me home in that month... not sure the exact dates but I will be making visits then heading back to Korea after the wedding. Third year in Korea, here I come! I hope everyone is doing well and that you're taking care of yourselves. I know that the winter has been pretty harsh so I hope spring comes soon for you guys. The weather is getting warmer here-- 50 degrees now-- and I really should go outside and enjoy it. We'll see how much homework I get done. ^^ I wish you all the best!
