Update on Life in Taiwan

Hi, All,

 

Sorry to be remiss in updating the blog...

 

On the whole, we are doing very well. It is different for us living in a large city, but it is a fairly easy city to negotiate. It is clean and safe and we even found two movie theatres. They show first run movies so last weekend we saw two fun films -- not great cinema, but very fun. "RED" and "Detective D." It was fun to be there with a local audience. "RED" was in English with Chinese sub-titles and "Detective D" was in Chinese with English subtitles. RED is quit clever and had some jokes that apparently did not translate well into Chinese, so Skip and I were the only ones laughing in the audience. For the Chinese language film, the Chinese in the audience would laugh and Skip and I didn't get it. It is difficult to translate humor cross-culturally.

 

I am enjoying teaching and working with the students at NTU. My teaching assistant is very helpful. It is the first time that I have had a teaching assistant in all the years that I've taught and it is great not to be xeroxing and emailing students. He takes care of all of that in addition to interpreting and coaching me on cultural issues. It has been fun and I hope a learning experience for both of us.

 

My students are enthusiastic and responsive and seem willing to do the work they are given. They are spontaneously asking questions so I am excited about that. We at times struggle to communicate about concepts such as translating "Hansen's disease" into Chinese, but there is a willingness to help each other so that we all learn together. I like that cooperation among students and between students and professor.

 

One student who is in my class from the Psychology Department has asked me to consult on Group Therapy. Students are developing a "Group Work Club" to develop group work skills beyond what is taught in class. It is open to psychology and social work students. So, I am going to meet with him about this. I enjoy group work and have fun teaching this so we will see what comes of that.

 

I suppose the most difficult thing for us is to be away from family and friends (Are you sure you don't want to take a little fall trip to Taiwan?) We miss seeing family and friends and talking with them. We have spoken to my Mom and Dad on a regular basis and I called and talked to my Dad after a recent outpatient procedure. They seem to be doing well. They are still counting the weeks until we return. If you have SKYPE give us a call. If you send us an email we can give you the details on how to do this. It is very inexpensive (about $0.02 per minute). 

 

Skip has been talking to people here about the "Green Machine." He toured the factory here and saw the production facility.  He is also waiting for a local English language class to be filled. He should be starting teaching English as a second language soon. 

 

It is currently rainy, but warm. We are experiencing the outer fringe of Typhoon Magi that hit the Phillipines pretty hard. Prior to that weather was breezy and pleasant. It is great to be out at night on a bike in the cool breezy air. Many people are out walking and riding on the campus, it is great!

 

That's it for us hope all is well with you!

 

Love,

 

Susan and Skip

Weather is getting cooler...

Hi, All,

We didn't believe our colleagues. They said the weather would get cooler and it has happened this week. Skip and I have moved to long pants and long sleeves -- our Taiwanese colleagues are wearing jackets. We are into a fairly regular routine -- having a teaching schedule seems to do that -- it gets your life organized. Because parks and local attractions are very busy on weekends, we have been working on the weekends and visiting sites at the beginning of the week.

On Monday we took the train from Taipei to Taroko National Park. It is a park with very high cliffs made mostly of marble. It is amazing. We stayed at a B&B just at the entrance of the park. Two former middle school teachers operate the B&B. Their daughter completed an MSW at NTU and is completing a Ph.D. at Washington University in St. Louis. It was a great place with views of the Pacific and the mountains. The B&B arranged an English speaking guide for us. He is also a retired middle school teacher. He was very knowledgeable about stories of the gorge from aboriginal times, Japanese occupation, and current situation with respect to the aboriginal people living within the park. We also had an opportunity to see a traditional grave yard that was on the beach in Hualein. Because of the strong currents, the ocean is very dangerous. It is also the side of the island that typhoons often hit so it is not so popular. After living in Hawai'i, it is so interesting to see the beach not being used for tourists. Also, the beach is made from -- yes you guessed it marble rocks. It reminded me of Lake Superior. I understand the rock hunting on the beach is very good.

It was very interesting to visit this area. While we were in the gorge on a high mountain meadow, we experienced a small earthquake. Because of the action of tectonic plates, the mountains in Taiwan are growing several inches each year. It is constantly moving and changing.

We continue to enjoy our time here, but wish we knew Mandarin. We are thankful to all the people who help us in English or interpret our "body language." Taroko pictures coming soon.