First day at NCCU

I'm here! I can't believe I'm actually here. The 13 hour plane ride to Taipei was much less eventful than the flight to Vancouver but it went by in a flash. In no time I was waiting for my luggage (mind you I almost had a fit as I was the very LAST person standing waiting) and out meeting my buddy Jack and his parents who kindly volunteered to pick me up at 6:00am in the morning.

They were very sweet - Jack had to translate for his parents who do not speak English. When we got outside Jack admitted to me that it was his first time hosting an exchange student and he wasn't sure how to "take care of me." Aww. I told him not to worry and that I am very easygoing. He took a deep breath and seemed to relax after that.

As we drove through Taipei I was surprised at how dirty and run down most of the buildings seemed. I expected a city that looked very clean and technologically advanced - something made of metal and lights. Instead, some parts of the city reminded me more of Cuba, just a lot bigger.

I was really interested in all of the big ornate temples I could see peaking out of the trees high in the mountains. Jack told me they were Buddhist temples and he agreed to take me to one some time soon.

Jack's parents had been driving all night from their families home in Southern Taiwan and wanted to go home and nap. We dropped them off at their apartment in the city which was in a crowed back ally behind a main street - far different from what I expected from a family driving a brand new Infinity and dressed in designer clothes. I gave them each a small tub of maple syrup which they appreciated, thanked them over again for picking me up and took off with Jack to NCCU.


We made it to the campus at about 7:30am and parked out front of my residence. This is me standing at the front gates which I've been told surround the dorms to keep the boys out. We were meeting Gerry (my other buddy) here to go for breakfast.


This is Jack (left) and Gerry (right) posing on the street in front of my dorm. To the left where the flowers are is a beautiful Zen-like garden that they told me all of the couples go to at night to make-out.


These are my three buddies - Gerry, Frances, and Jack - standing outside of the Alumni building right before we went for breakfast. They had all applied to be Exchange Buddies but had never met before either. We all hit it off.

I actually forgot to take pictures of breakfast (sorry, I will not forget tomorrow). I asked my buddies to order for me and it was quite good- a crepe with egg inside and a sweet sauce drizzled over top cut into bite sized pieces, a small piece of chicken with a tasty dry rub on it, and mushy white squares that my buddies believe to be made of rice and carrot. They had a hint of sweetness to them but this was my least favourite part of the meal. Frances also insisted I try the rice milk which is a Taiwanese specialty (I am beginning to realize that almost every meal here has some sort of specialty item involved). It was warm, thick and brown and had a hint of peanut flavour. I noticed that none of the others ordered it. Both Frances and Jack ate the same meal as me but Gerry ordered something else that was very interesting. It was a hamburger but the bun was made out of rice - a healthier choice. At first when I heard the Taiwanese like to eat hamburgers for breakfast I was not interested but now I am actually tempted to try it. My whole meal was only 50NTD which works out to just under $2 dollars Canadian. Can't beat that.


After breakfast we all went back to my dorm to unload my baggage. As I've already eluded to there are no men allowed in the female dorms (and vice versa). If you happen to need a male friend or family member to come in for a few minutes, they are required to wear this lovely baby blue vest that Jack is sporting in this picture. Looking forward to your visit Dav? ;)

I won't add a "before" picture of my dorm room just yet because I don't want to scare anyone. The first thing I needed to do was to go out and buy a mattress and bedding.


On our way to the car Frances stopped me to say that we needed a picture of all three of us in front of this very important building - the most important building on campus she said. When I asked her why it was so important she paused, looked at me blankly and said she didn't know.

Interestingly enough this "not-knowingness" became a common theme of the day. They would rave about a specialty food item or an important place but they would never know the reason behind its importance. On numerous occasions they would make me try a specialty food item but couldn't tell me what it was made of...Maybe they just didn't want to tell me I was eating snake penis.


This is us going up the escalator in the mall. They took me to Carrefour - a French department store - to get my bedding. Jack and Gerry insisted on towing my cart around which was very cute when you see what I had in my cart.


Just Frances and I out on the street in front of the University gates waiting for the guys to park.


Frances and I decided to give the guys a break so we went in and quickly set up my bed. Notice the Hello Kitty mattress? A very popular brand in Asia. It was the cheapest set I could find.


Frances told me that most Taiwanese students come to the dorms and are overjoyed with what they get. She also told me that most exchange students end up moving out. It is a cold room - much colder than outside - and it has a damp musky feeling to it too. I expect that will go away as the weather heats up.


So then it was time for lunch. We walked out the front gates to the road where there are hundreds of different restaurants to choose from. This is my dish - pork stir fry with onions, bean sprouts, egg, and rice. Frances had the beef, Gerry had the squid and Jack had a noodle soup. The food here is actually quite healthy. The portions are perfect and you can tell they do not cook with heavy oils and sauces. The meat is also always very thinly cut and very lean.

After lunch the jet lag started to kick in and I was getting very tired. We decided to do one short stroll around campus before nap time.


Gerry, Jack and I in front of the International Affairs building. Just over Gerry's shoulder to the left is the "old gym" which they all warned me not to go near. Apparently it is really grungy. When I asked about the "new gym" they said it was small, that it only has one treadmill, and that I would have to pay a fee to use it. Jack, who is on the NCCU swim team tried to encourage me to take up swimming.


They tried to cheer me up by showing me the outside race track. It's true, the weather out here is warm enough to run outside throughout the entire time I am here. They also showed me a beautiful running path that goes for 70km along the riverside that runs right through campus. There are also a series of small mountains and hiking trails to walk up which you can see in the distance.


Walking along the north side of campus right along the river. In the distance you can see the tall off-campus housing for the "wealthier students" as Frances says. The mountain in the distance has a gondola ride that goes right to the top. It has been out of order for a while due to safety concerns...but should be running again soon.


This is Jack posing with some of the campus in the background. As we walked along he gave me a piece of advice: "In Taiwan, all you have to watch out for is cars, motorbikes, and dog poo." He is right. The cars and motorbikes do whatever they want. I've almost been run over twice trying to cross the street. There are also a very large number of stray dogs running wild around the city. They seem friendly enough but you have to watch your feet as you walk along so as not to step in their waste.



Speaking of waste, guess what this is? This hole in the floor is one of the 3 communal toilets I share with the 10 other girls on my floor. Let's put aside the fact that there are only 3 toilets on my floor and that we have to bring our own toilet paper with us each time we have to go. But really, a hole in the floor? As a woman this is not an easy thing to use. That's all I really wanted to share about that but after this I forgot to use my camera.

I had a short nap and a bunch of us went out for dinner but I'll stop myself there because it is 11:00pm and I need my rest for tomorrow. Goodnight!