who’s number 1?
i think the friendships i've made here in taipei are going to be good solid relationships for a long time to come. there isn't this whole attitude of "what can you do for me?" fouling up the air, and people are just willing to be friendly for the sake of being friendly.
it appears to me people here are way more down-to-earth and less self-servient than the people back in the states. people don't expect anything when they help you, and are more able to help themselves out when they are in need. no one here blames society for their troubles.
people here are a lot more trustworthy as well. a kid got off the bus without paying. so the bus driver drives up ten feet to catch up with the boy, and through the open door yells something at the boy - kinda like your father would do if you did something you weren't supposed to. the boy boards the bus, pays his fare and gets right off. that wouldn't happen in the states.
a lot of people from places like this come to the united states and are seen as not social. but i'm starting to realize the opposite: they're not shy, they're just afraid of having their friendliness seen as weakness and exploited. at least that's part of it.
day one
So, let me give you the backstory -
Last Halloween, a good friend of mine - Caroline Himmelman @chimmely - read my tarot. Just for fun. She told me, "you are going to soon take a trip that will change your life dramatically." This was months and months before I even contemplated going on a trip anywhere, let alone across the planet -
I've already met a bunch of the people in the building - most of them with roots in the US. One guy's an INSEAD graduate, starting a business here in Taipei; a girl with a diverse background from NY; and another girl from Sharon, Mass. Somehow, meeting people here seems to be easy, but maybe it can be chalked up to meeting English speakers in a non-English speaking society.
The apartment I'm living is pretty amazing. I'm on the 15th floor of a 18 story building - rooftop pool and an incredible view of the 4 animal mountain. The 101 is a stones throw away, and a night market is three minutes walking, tops. I've only had one proper meal, so the night market is definitely on the plate tonight.
Otherwise, I'm occupying my time by walking around in the 100+ degree heat, reading the books I've brought (currently, a book on the Alexander Technique, and Murakami's Wind-Up Bird Chronicle), and taking three showers a day. The best thing I've done so far was to learn to just accept the heat, rather than be disgusted by it.
First Saturday night out in Taipei - let's make it a good one.
PS - writing is hard, especially if you haven't done it in a while. Time to start flexing again.