Putting on the Ritz

Any fears of Taichung we put to rest within a minute of driving through the city. Although Taichung is still a big city, it boasts cleaner air, better weather, and a more manageable amount of side allies and hidden mom and pop shops. Stepping off the bus felt like stepping into a beach side city. It was Thanksgiving morning, and I was hot enough to slip into a dress and head out to lunch with our branch followed by the eagerly anticipated apartment shopping.
Susanne, Shyra and I all squealed at the sight of our hotel room, and soon we were whisked off to a lunch with our branch managers and essentially our bosses. Lunch was held at a local spot that can only be described as Asian chic awesomeness. The walls were full of neon art, the ceiling full of vines and bird cages, and then the floor…. The floor had a series of coy ponds that connected various parts of the restaurants. I enjoyed a steamed fish lunch and mango tea that couldn’t have tasted any better. The conversation was primarily about our living arrangements and the layout of the city. Now I have met some nice people in my life, some incredibly giving and selfless people that still blow my mind when I talk to them, but the Taiwanese people that I have encountered so far in my short time have given a new impression on how you should treat others. Without them I would be cold and lonely in a ditch. They helped along every step of our journey (and still translate our bills and notices). On this day they asked us questions and did their best to find an apartment in a very big city that would suit out wants and needs.
Shyra and I had agreed to live with each other during the orientation, and we fell in love with the first apartment the group saw. There is the feeling of “I kind of like it” and “I could live here” and then there is the “I can’t imagine my life without this place.” The courtyard is a full of the classic Japanese architecture, coy ponds, and a pool that will be my second home during the summer months. The rest of the Taichung 10 slowly fell in love with their apartments, and by evening Shyra and I ran the apartment by the boys and then closed the deal. That night we all sat down for a dinner at Cream, a local place that uses enough cheese to be sponsored by Kraft. As we all shared what we were thankful for I realized that I was in Asia, completely at home with the people I sitting next to, and I was entirely happy. Any doubts on my decision to move over here were gone. We were all on our way to a year in Taichung Taiwan, and we were all ready in our own ways. Each person that is here is uniquely different. But, we do have some common threads- we packed up life and committed to a year teaching children. I always was super thankful for all the support from back home and the memories that I was blessed enough to have in my life throughout the last year. This was a big one- graduation, moving home from NZ, the internship of my dreams, living with Ashley, and letting go of my student lifestyle. So many people have allowed me into their lives and then invested in me… only working towards my best interest. I’m sure every person reading this fits into the above category. So thank you : )
So now on to move it. Just because this apartment fit into the “gotta have it” category, it wasn’t as clean as my rosy image in my head. Shyra and I were on the same page- clean this bad boy so we can decorate and make it our own. 10 hours later I found us navigating the streets of Taichung looking for a B & Q and Hola- 2 stores that offered hopes of decorating more than the Carrefour and connivance store down the road. Our adventures at Carrefour were nothing short of the feeling of groundhog day. The same three songs were played at deafening levels while I got lost down the same row time after time… after time. This adventure did help us pull together the finishing touched with wall art and a pair of sheets.
My bedroom is done in brown and orange and has ginkgo leaves on the wall. I did manage to put a series of book shelves together, but the true centerpiece of my room is the window overlooking the city. We are on floor 14 and aren’t surrounded by a series of other tall buildings. The ceilings are lower- about 6’5” and I do sleep on a hard Asian mattress that lays on the ground. We do have three bedrooms, and a kitchen with 2 burners, but no oven. I love waking up and walking out on our balcony to look over at the sharp outline of the Asian miles a few miles away.