Sunday, October 14, 2007
WE AREN'T IN TAIPEI ANYMORE!!!
Wow, the kids and I left taipei on June 11. School had been out for one day. We loved it there, we had a fab time, made wonderful friends and saw amazing thing. We learned alot about expats, I learned that people in other countries (especially those who have presidents spending their money on their wives jewels and a fear of china imposing war) have other things to do with their time.
So, we're home in Washington State, but not in Seattle proper. We bought a bit o house with a bit o'land. A bit. We've a shy acre where the kids can run free with fabulous neighbors. Both kids have a great new school and my job is so far, quite enjoyable! Paul is still trying to figure out how to get some adventure out of life. I'm thinking a survival course or something, but we'll have to figure that out.
It is nice to be home. I've got the same "wow, this is amazing" feeling that I had when we first moved to taiwan. Its opposites, but the same. We've had this great experience, so we're different, but nobody is patting the kids on the head and asking for their picture. And I'm not learning a new language (outside of "you want how much to prune a big fir tree?") I'm in love with our new bit of heaven, - the house needs some updating. But needs will be prioritized accordingly. Jessi has a pink room. Sam has a slide on his bed. Both were just silly today as we piled up the leaves as high as Sam. 
You know, I'm going to let this go.
I'll write more another day!
Peace, Steph
Sunday, April 15, 2007
little bit of catch up!
One more - Jessi and I got a girl's day out to Keelung island last month. Keelung was off limits for a while because of the position on the north tip of the island. It has been a military post since the Japanese had control over the island. Rumor has it that they dumped a number of poisonous snakes here when they left, but none were seen on the boardwalks! It was fab.
Jessi lost her first tooth. The tooth to her right is now at 45 degrees as well.
And the kids and Paul have had a few Jam sessions!
One more - Jessi and I got a girl's day out to Keelung island last month. Keelung was off limits for a while because of the position on the north tip of the island. It has been a military post since the Japanese had control over the island. Rumor has it that they dumped a number of poisonous snakes here when they left, but none were seen on the boardwalks! It was fab.
Jessi lost her first tooth. The tooth to her right is now at 45 degrees as well.
And the kids and Paul have had a few Jam sessions!
This is our second 3 day weekend with Paul this month. He is on 4 10's, which makes for 4 long days and 3 awesome days! Last weekend was a surprise outing to the beach..
the picture here is of the kids deciding they should learn to surf with a big ugly chunk of driftwood. OH - and on Monday Paul and I had a hiking date up a small bit of YangMing mtn to the cultural university (through the formosa Macaqs) for a quick lunch of donut and tea!
the picture here is of the kids deciding they should learn to surf with a big ugly chunk of driftwood. OH - and on Monday Paul and I had a hiking date up a small bit of YangMing mtn to the cultural university (through the formosa Macaqs) for a quick lunch of donut and tea!We just got in from Sun Moon Lake for this weekend. It was gorgeous. We did a trip with 12 other people through the community center here in taipei. It is a long drive for a two day trip, but I think we all thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.
Left Taipei at 8am Saturday morning. We rode the bus to the largest rest stop in Taiwan and then went on to a paper factory. The kids both made paper! It was great! The sheets that they make are amazing! SO, now we know how they make the beautiful paper with the flowers on the edges... ancient chinese secret! We saw handbags done in paper crochet, as well as hats and dolls clothes of lovely thick paper. We rode the bus a bit further to a lovely 9 story pagoda that Chian Kai shek had built for his mother, 
and did two short hikes before going to the small town to chow on breaded mushrooms, fresh strawberries, and a giant vegetable spring roll...more the shape of a quesedilla in the states! Our hotel was a B&B near the lake with some of the most amazing decor. It is called the full house B&B. 
The bedroom was nice. Unlike most of taipei, the house was primarily teak. The garden was gorgeously lit with candles and scented with lilies everywhere.
and did two short hikes before going to the small town to chow on breaded mushrooms, fresh strawberries, and a giant vegetable spring roll...more the shape of a quesedilla in the states! Our hotel was a B&B near the lake with some of the most amazing decor. It is called the full house B&B. 
The bedroom was nice. Unlike most of taipei, the house was primarily teak. The garden was gorgeously lit with candles and scented with lilies everywhere.
The lake is apparently quite a destination in taiwan. This was a quiet day. 
We went toward the temple at 10:30 off of a tour boat. (Jessi got a lovely little bracelet from the Tsoaist Temple curator for knowing what the chinese symbol for huluu shantiae fruit was -she'll tell you that I say it wrong and that it is a magical lucky fruit). 
When we came down from the temple, the masses were coming up! This is a good reason for me remaining a morning person!
We went toward the temple at 10:30 off of a tour boat. (Jessi got a lovely little bracelet from the Tsoaist Temple curator for knowing what the chinese symbol for huluu shantiae fruit was -she'll tell you that I say it wrong and that it is a magical lucky fruit). 
When we came down from the temple, the masses were coming up! This is a good reason for me remaining a morning person!Last, but not least. This is Sam after his classmate Moriko returned from visiting her grandparents in Japan. At 3, he thinks he needs to go to Japan to visit his friends. That said, he is sure he has lived there at some point as well!
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Yehliu last weekend.
We had Paul for a whole weekend. I went to a yoga workshop for 2.5 hours, Jessi put her bike upright and stopped and started - no training wheels. Paul says she went 30 feet on her own, but we aren't sure she wants to know that yet! Sam HAULED around the track on his fancy shmancy new bike, and oh... Paul and I went to Abba fever! It was fun. The expat women were dancing to the right of the stage and some man we don't know was dancing to the stage left. Best part: Louise and I opted not to dance but to giggle from the sidelines and hang out with the crowd. The woman next to me was a hoot, as she just kept giggling and dancing and then checking herself like she shouldn't be having that much fun. ANYWAY... the band asked for volunteers to sing on stage. One of the expat gang volunteered her group. So, before the masses of taiwanese, our friends got on stage with the solid-gold-dancers (not really, but it brought back memories - and I DID miss Lenore horribly through the whole show) and they sang. And it really was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I don't know if I'm glad I wasn't up there, or if I wish I were. They were great, and I'm really excited for them.
ANYWAY, on Sunday we got up and drove to the Northeast coast with the goal of reaching Yehliu. (Yea-lee-o). We've been told it is otherworldly. The shot to the left is elephant rock. Oh, and it is really cool. Sam just wanted to jump everwhere. It was sandstone, I think. And the wind was blowing, the waves were crashing, and the crowds were small. We saw the princesses slipper and queen Nefertiti. Can you see her in the center below? 
Waves crashed through holes that didn't 
seem to be there. Sam loved the nasty sea foam, and Jessi just enjoyed being out.
And then we ate. We've been told that the seafood is great. A woman told us that her restaurant (tsanting) had Yingwen men-u. It is amazing how many people everywhere we go speak some english! We didn't feel like sitting down and picking out the fish to be killed. Can't get our heads around that yet. So, we had pretzels and told them we could go to the market. So we had the juice from this fruit...(don't know what it isbut the fruit holding it is Paul :-).
And Jessi picked out a squid to be barbqued - 
see the tentacled things on the lower trays to the right - they barbque and add sesame and a bit o'some sauce! Sam sampled every dried whatsit in the market (including the deep fried seaweed), and only Paul felt a little queezy at the end of the trip.
We drove back over Yangmingshan (YangMing Mountain). It was SO lush and green. Calla Lily festival has begun, so we will try to get up there this weekend.
It was a GREAT weekend, whic made school difficult for all of us on Monday!
Love, Steph
We had Paul for a whole weekend. I went to a yoga workshop for 2.5 hours, Jessi put her bike upright and stopped and started - no training wheels. Paul says she went 30 feet on her own, but we aren't sure she wants to know that yet! Sam HAULED around the track on his fancy shmancy new bike, and oh... Paul and I went to Abba fever! It was fun. The expat women were dancing to the right of the stage and some man we don't know was dancing to the stage left. Best part: Louise and I opted not to dance but to giggle from the sidelines and hang out with the crowd. The woman next to me was a hoot, as she just kept giggling and dancing and then checking herself like she shouldn't be having that much fun. ANYWAY... the band asked for volunteers to sing on stage. One of the expat gang volunteered her group. So, before the masses of taiwanese, our friends got on stage with the solid-gold-dancers (not really, but it brought back memories - and I DID miss Lenore horribly through the whole show) and they sang. And it really was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I don't know if I'm glad I wasn't up there, or if I wish I were. They were great, and I'm really excited for them.
ANYWAY, on Sunday we got up and drove to the Northeast coast with the goal of reaching Yehliu. (Yea-lee-o). We've been told it is otherworldly. The shot to the left is elephant rock. Oh, and it is really cool. Sam just wanted to jump everwhere. It was sandstone, I think. And the wind was blowing, the waves were crashing, and the crowds were small. We saw the princesses slipper and queen Nefertiti. Can you see her in the center below? 
Waves crashed through holes that didn't 
seem to be there. Sam loved the nasty sea foam, and Jessi just enjoyed being out.And then we ate. We've been told that the seafood is great. A woman told us that her restaurant (tsanting) had Yingwen men-u. It is amazing how many people everywhere we go speak some english! We didn't feel like sitting down and picking out the fish to be killed. Can't get our heads around that yet. So, we had pretzels and told them we could go to the market. So we had the juice from this fruit...(don't know what it isbut the fruit holding it is Paul :-).
And Jessi picked out a squid to be barbqued - 
see the tentacled things on the lower trays to the right - they barbque and add sesame and a bit o'some sauce! Sam sampled every dried whatsit in the market (including the deep fried seaweed), and only Paul felt a little queezy at the end of the trip.We drove back over Yangmingshan (YangMing Mountain). It was SO lush and green. Calla Lily festival has begun, so we will try to get up there this weekend.
It was a GREAT weekend, whic made school difficult for all of us on Monday!
Love, Steph
5 Cent Driftwood House dinner in Neihu
It has been THREE MONTHS. Sorry.
I'll go backwards. Today is Jessi's sixth birthday. SIX. She's almost 50 cm. We measured her today at 49 and a bit under 1/2 inches today. So today was the birthday dinner. We took her friend India
and our friends Louise and Alexander out to dinner with the family to a restaurant called the 5 cent driftwood house (Wu jiao Chwann Ban). It was spectacular. The food was good and the kids were amazed. Jessi has been admiring this building for a little less than a year. Here's my story. We drive by this place on the way to Costco (one of two in taipei!). It is a giant welded steel building with some large twisty shapes on it. To a number of grownups, it looks a bit hideous! On first passing, Jessi's lovely imagination introduced us to the two dancing women - not just giant twisty metal shapes, but women with big skirts and flowing hair. http://www.taiwanfun.com/north/taipei/dining/0608/0608Fivecent.htm for an obvious photo of the women (it is NOT that obvious from the road, really!) So I checked it out Monday and I was a bit teary-eyed, as I was sure she would think it was amazing and would never want to go back to chili's again. We had a great dinner. The band played some mozart. 
The white koi swam in the giant pond next to our table. The 3 year old boys danced hip-hop while the band played more classical tunes, and BOY did I get to practice my mandarin. Did ok! Jessi was smiling the whole time, and enjoyed her birthday, but was ever so Jessi when it comes to celebrating her birthday, as she very peacefully sat and soaked it all in. photos below:
It was taiwanese food. We had spicy chicken with soy beans and peanuts, fried rice with teeny tiny dried shrimps, squid pie (the kids loved it), pork with miso sauce, and a lovely shrimp and veg dish. Ooh, and the cake that Jessi picked out was full of ripe strawberries, whipped cream, and Jelloish pudding. One of the owners is an artist HsiehLi-Shiang. This is not the first of our other-worldly experiences this week. Check out the other entry tonight from Yehliu!
And daddy came too! 
He got to leave work EARLY today!!! Yippee daddy!
It has been THREE MONTHS. Sorry.
I'll go backwards. Today is Jessi's sixth birthday. SIX. She's almost 50 cm. We measured her today at 49 and a bit under 1/2 inches today. So today was the birthday dinner. We took her friend India
and our friends Louise and Alexander out to dinner with the family to a restaurant called the 5 cent driftwood house (Wu jiao Chwann Ban). It was spectacular. The food was good and the kids were amazed. Jessi has been admiring this building for a little less than a year. Here's my story. We drive by this place on the way to Costco (one of two in taipei!). It is a giant welded steel building with some large twisty shapes on it. To a number of grownups, it looks a bit hideous! On first passing, Jessi's lovely imagination introduced us to the two dancing women - not just giant twisty metal shapes, but women with big skirts and flowing hair. http://www.taiwanfun.com/north/taipei/dining/0608/0608Fivecent.htm for an obvious photo of the women (it is NOT that obvious from the road, really!) So I checked it out Monday and I was a bit teary-eyed, as I was sure she would think it was amazing and would never want to go back to chili's again. We had a great dinner. The band played some mozart. 
The white koi swam in the giant pond next to our table. The 3 year old boys danced hip-hop while the band played more classical tunes, and BOY did I get to practice my mandarin. Did ok! Jessi was smiling the whole time, and enjoyed her birthday, but was ever so Jessi when it comes to celebrating her birthday, as she very peacefully sat and soaked it all in. photos below:It was taiwanese food. We had spicy chicken with soy beans and peanuts, fried rice with teeny tiny dried shrimps, squid pie (the kids loved it), pork with miso sauce, and a lovely shrimp and veg dish. Ooh, and the cake that Jessi picked out was full of ripe strawberries, whipped cream, and Jelloish pudding. One of the owners is an artist HsiehLi-Shiang. This is not the first of our other-worldly experiences this week. Check out the other entry tonight from Yehliu!
And daddy came too! 
He got to leave work EARLY today!!! Yippee daddy!Wednesday, December 13, 2006
This place is great!
Our friend John came to visit tonight after work with Paul. We went to Chili's. Yeah, this is where we take our guests to show them taipei! ANYWAY. Here is my post. It was great to see John. We all enjoy his company.
AND... you can get a takeout margherita at chili's here!
All done. This is what I learned today.
Peace,
Steph
Our friend John came to visit tonight after work with Paul. We went to Chili's. Yeah, this is where we take our guests to show them taipei! ANYWAY. Here is my post. It was great to see John. We all enjoy his company.
AND... you can get a takeout margherita at chili's here!
All done. This is what I learned today.
Peace,
Steph
Tuesday, December 12, 2006
SABAH!
Wow. What an amazingly beautiful trip. We went on yet another visa reset trip. I'm going to miss these soon. Dec 2 weekend was 3 days in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah on the northern tip of Borneo Malaysia. We stayed in the Rasa Ria, which has a small Orang Utan reserve attached. We played on white sand beaches (stayed out of the water due to jelly fish warnings), ate seeing the sunset, swam and swam in their beautiful pools, and saw young orangs eating their lunch. Jessi loved the kids club and her new friend Ave from Melbourne.
Sam just loved rolling in the fine sand (rolling) and playing in the pool. Oh, and Jessi got to be a princess!I'd say the best part was watching my kids play in the pool with Paul. We had a date too, which was a bit wiggy as the hotel claims absolutely no responsibility for the person watching your kids. She was great though. I only checked on her once...
I did experience some strange feelings toward the end. We stayed in a shangri la. It was gorgeous, clean, and people were warm and friendly. The were people from everywhere... Hong Kong, Australia, Europe... us. And then on the drive home, I thought more about where we were driving through, saw a lot of huts on stilts with big mega malls going in 1/2 mile away. The airport was smallish and mossy and spoke with a voice that was roughish and not-bossy(sorry - the lorax modified). It was just a different world from that we'd spent the last 3 days in. The beaches
needed love, but the markets looked like fun! I'll have to learn more about all of these places we go to.This post will be mostly photos if I can manage it.
Sunday, November 26, 2006
Thanksgiving in Taipei!
We had TWO. The Westin Hotel was kind enough to through a Thanksgiving party for all of the 747 Freighter folks. I got to see an old friend from work, David. I'd NO idea he was working with my husband. Our second Thanksgiving was at our place. We did our own turkey, made stuffing, candied yams, roast potatoes and gravy and our guests brought some lovely salad, green beans, and homemade ice cream... and wine and corona! It was great fun. The company was wonderful, and the kids were pretty durn good. It was hard to imagine skiing and sledding as is our normal Thanksgiving tradition. I missed it alot this year. A bit o'sledding and a load o'snow makes Thanksgiving real. We are thankful for the friends and family we have here and at home, and for the opportunity to be here and know we can return home. SO, we went around the kids table.... India was thankful for school, Jessi was thankful for friends and dinner. I can't remember what Lulu and Andrew were thankful for, and Sam was thankful for diggers. This was the first Thanksgiving for most as our company were from the UK and Australia.
Today the kids and I set off for the Ketagalen cultural center in Beitou. Beitou is north of us and deeper into the mountain. It is also the beginning of a long stretch of hot springs resorts, so the beautiful stream that winds through the park is STEAMING!!! The cultural center was small but magnificent. It is amazing how alike some of our native american crafts are to the aboriginal Taiwanese crafts. I'd love to see a book comparing some of these native cultures. And then, they are so different!
Not much else, just thought I'd drop a line.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Monday, November 20, 2006
Here is where a blog is freaky. I did a search to find the Scottish ball in Taipei and found our blog! We are really posted!
I've figured out that my mood swings are currently coinciding with our travel opportunities. I think I'll plan all of them after February in one foul swoop. Mood swings are ok. I find a new way to deal with them every time. Last time I just turned 40, read a book about being an expat ("Raising Global nomads"), realized I was once again normal, and moved on. I think this slump will require a vacation and finishing my Christmas shopping!
Here's us. We hiked this weekend. It is cooling off here in Taipei. Sam wore his coat outside over his shorts today! I still sweated going to pick up Jessi at school today, but I was hauling a 14 lb frozen turkey and about the same weight in potatoes! Jessi's class is making Thanksgiving dinner for all of the parents on Wednesday. We'll be on Holiday in Taipei, but Taipei will not be on Holiday. We've decided to go to the zoo! Jessi won't have soccer practice or girlscouts! Ahhh. Soccer photo opportunity:
Oh - we had halloween here. It was great. There is a section of AIT (American Institute of Taipei) houses up on top of Yangmingshan (Yang Ming Mountain) with nice wide streets and big yards. We visited Jessi's friend Veronica up there and did a pretty traditional trick or treat. It was good for me! Sam was a pirate and Jessi was a cat. Oh, and then Sam was a fireman and Jessi was a fairy... They both had a great time. There were fake bats and real bats, so Sam has decided that they are all Veronica's pets!
We went up the mountain yesterday after a slow morning. Slow morning: go to scottish ball and saturday night and realize that a snug fitting bodice is a bad thing when there is a lot of food and drink. Get up Sunday morning and play around the house. THEN, when Paul finally gets up, the family goes to lunch at Wendell's (German bakery - neither Paul nor the kids had been there before) Sam got a sponge bob platter (Weinershnitzel) and Jessi got the pinocchio (german sausage and mash). Paul and I thought Weinershnitzel was a sort of sausage. SO, today we learned that it is actually a pork fritter. Still tasty. Please note: we parked in a red zone, but "hey, everybody does it!". Heh. So we hang out and look at the monstrous ginger bread house in the bakery till I get antsy again and we start to walk. We roam the alleys happily as you do when you have no solid plans, and then I looked up to see flashing lights. And my car was being slowly lifted into the air. I run. I say "dui bu chi" "wo de qi che". He says "hoa". And they put down my car and leave. Me, being a firm believer in karma and also being not-so-bright sometimes. I say "ticket?" and do my sign language for writing on paper. The nice policeman waves his hand and walks away. The tow truck driver - he was not so pleased.
So, we drove up the mountain for a short hike in the fog. Apparently, if we continue forward on this hike, we can see water buffalo! One and then bedtime.
Love to all,
I've figured out that my mood swings are currently coinciding with our travel opportunities. I think I'll plan all of them after February in one foul swoop. Mood swings are ok. I find a new way to deal with them every time. Last time I just turned 40, read a book about being an expat ("Raising Global nomads"), realized I was once again normal, and moved on. I think this slump will require a vacation and finishing my Christmas shopping!
Here's us. We hiked this weekend. It is cooling off here in Taipei. Sam wore his coat outside over his shorts today! I still sweated going to pick up Jessi at school today, but I was hauling a 14 lb frozen turkey and about the same weight in potatoes! Jessi's class is making Thanksgiving dinner for all of the parents on Wednesday. We'll be on Holiday in Taipei, but Taipei will not be on Holiday. We've decided to go to the zoo! Jessi won't have soccer practice or girlscouts! Ahhh. Soccer photo opportunity:
Oh - we had halloween here. It was great. There is a section of AIT (American Institute of Taipei) houses up on top of Yangmingshan (Yang Ming Mountain) with nice wide streets and big yards. We visited Jessi's friend Veronica up there and did a pretty traditional trick or treat. It was good for me! Sam was a pirate and Jessi was a cat. Oh, and then Sam was a fireman and Jessi was a fairy... They both had a great time. There were fake bats and real bats, so Sam has decided that they are all Veronica's pets!
We went up the mountain yesterday after a slow morning. Slow morning: go to scottish ball and saturday night and realize that a snug fitting bodice is a bad thing when there is a lot of food and drink. Get up Sunday morning and play around the house. THEN, when Paul finally gets up, the family goes to lunch at Wendell's (German bakery - neither Paul nor the kids had been there before) Sam got a sponge bob platter (Weinershnitzel) and Jessi got the pinocchio (german sausage and mash). Paul and I thought Weinershnitzel was a sort of sausage. SO, today we learned that it is actually a pork fritter. Still tasty. Please note: we parked in a red zone, but "hey, everybody does it!". Heh. So we hang out and look at the monstrous ginger bread house in the bakery till I get antsy again and we start to walk. We roam the alleys happily as you do when you have no solid plans, and then I looked up to see flashing lights. And my car was being slowly lifted into the air. I run. I say "dui bu chi" "wo de qi che". He says "hoa". And they put down my car and leave. Me, being a firm believer in karma and also being not-so-bright sometimes. I say "ticket?" and do my sign language for writing on paper. The nice policeman waves his hand and walks away. The tow truck driver - he was not so pleased.
So, we drove up the mountain for a short hike in the fog. Apparently, if we continue forward on this hike, we can see water buffalo! One and then bedtime.
Love to all,
