UMBRELLAS, DUMPLINGS, AND SHOTS

NOTES FROM TAIWAN #7

June 5th, 2008

UMBRELLAS, DUMPLINGS, AND SHOTS

Today, despite the lovely chaos of the previous week, was the day I stumbled upon a semi-normal daily routine for the workweek. It is as follows:

    1) roll out of bed, feeling refreshed and ready to take on the day (and be taken on by it)

    2) shower, feeling like a giant as I slouch and twist, trying to stoop low enough for the shower head

    3) contacts and teeth, then play Coldplay's "Viva la Vida" (my new religion and also the official anthem for summer '08, kids) as I begin to dress

    4) turn on the Chinese MTV channel and watch Chinese music videos of sad people walk down the beach and staring out the window through the rain (if there is anything that will help me with my Chinese, it is this) as I finish dressing

    5) leave the cool, air-conditioned comfort of my cozy hotel room and enter the sweltering humid heat and big city noise of Taipei

    6) take the long, crowded bus ride to work

    7) spend the day working on a variety of different things

    8) leave work as the sun is setting, and take the crowded bus back the hotel

    9) meet up with a few people and spend the night exploring the city and eating delicious food

    10) unwind and catch up with a Beer in the Park

    11) come back to the air conditioned and maid-cleaned hotel room, CRASH from exhaustion, and then sleep like I've never slept before

On this particular day, as I exited the hotel, I was blasted by an unfamiliar, unforgiving ray of white. I cowered back into the shadows, seeing only black spots, baffled by this strange phenomenon. It took me a moment to realize what it was: the sun.

See, as hot as it becomes in Taipei city, one rarely sees the sun. The sun usually hides behind a gray sky of clouds and smog for most, if not all, of the the day. I hadn't really noticed it's absence until now. And to be honest, I had wished it would have stayed hidden, as its presence now made for a considerably hotter and sweaty trip to work.

It has been one week, and Taipei has not lost its lovely luster in the least. Every time I step onto the city's streets I feel as if I'm seeing it for the first time. I still marvel at the energy, life, and vitality it has that puts every other city to shame. I'm still shocked by the sheer quantity of food available on the streets, in the alleys, everywhere. I even appreciate things that probably drive the locals crazy. The long bus ride through rush hour that gives me time to collect my thoughts. The near-fatal incident that is crossing the street with or without the crossing signal. The countless ways to get run over by a moped, which at the end of the day make you wonder how you survived another day. Thing is, these things seem like the type of things that would drive a local Taipei inhabitant crazy. Just ask a LA local what they think of driving in LA, and you'll probably receive a flurry of curses as opposed to an opinion. But people here, at least in my foreign opinion, seem to accept the inconveniences and impatience that daily life can bring. The chose to go about their business without becoming bothered, flustered, or angry. I have never seen such patience in my life. It's incredibly refreshing to see drivers that don't even bat an eye when they're cut off on the road. Or people who board a crowded bus, excusing themselves as they pass by other people on their way to finding a place to stand, as opposed to scoffing at the crowd. Or people who don't get impatient and agitated as a confused foreigner tries to order a meal by stuttering and pointing (that foreigner would be me). In my opinion, it's one of the incredibly unique and charming aspects of life in Taiwan. I have yet to see anyone angry or frustrated. It does much to one's own mood to be surrounded by others who are always in good spirits.

I made my way to the bus stop amidst a sea of umbrellas. EVERYONE in Taipei owns, and carries, and umbrella. It's absolutely necessary in a climate such as Taiwan's. Most day's will begin either cloudy or fairly sunny (or at least bright, since the sun is elusive). But despite this fair-weather appearance, it will most likely rain. In fact, it rains almost every day here in Taipei, Taiwan. Sometimes a brief drizzle, sometimes cats and dogs. But almost always rain. And acid rain at that. Which is enough for a man such as myself, already worried about losing any more of my already thinning hair to such rain, to whip out the umbrella at the first drop of precipitation.

So why were so many people wielding umbrellas on this sunny morning? Well, for many Taiwanese women, the sun is as unwanted as the rain. In many Asian countries, Taiwan included, female beauty has come to be defined by the western standard. That is: big eyes, full lips, and most importantly fair skin. So even if the sun is just peaking out from the clouds/smog/haze, many Taiwanese women will open up the umbrella and hide under its shade. Many women use makeup that makes their skin seem fairer, and I've even seen advertisements for skin bleaching makeup on the sides of buses. The plastic industry is also booming in Asia, with some women going so far as to have eye-widening surgery. It is very unfortunate, considering how pretty many of the women here are, that they will go to such lengths just to look more Western and white.

Anyway, it was good to get a little sun on my naturally pale skin (except I wouldn't use my paleness as a standard of attractiveness).

At work, I was part of my first Infine meeting, which went very well. Cedric ran most of the meeting, with Melody, Ya-Yi, and I discussing the projects we were working on (Ta-Ting was out of the office on a trip to London). Cedric spent a lot of time discussing the goals of the company and why a certain decision was better than another. He likes to share his knowledge, which I've come to call, Cedric's Words of Wisdom, as much as possible. It's clear that he really wants his employees to learn as much as possible, instead of just requiring them to serve the company. He takes the time to explain his decision making, as well as his ultimate goal for the company. He started Infine with Ya-Ting just five years ago, when he arrived in Taiwan not knowing how to speak Mandarin. The company is still very small, with just four regular employees plus interns, but it does very well for itself and has been involved in a variety of art & culture projects, including concerts, dance performances, art shows, and the annual Taiwanese European Film Festival, which I will be helping to coordinate this summer. It's admirable to see someone who is so passionate and invested in his company and his hopes for its futures, and who wants to share this enthusiasm with his employees. I think I will learn much about running a small business by the end of the summer, as he has been explaining every aspect of what he does to me. Today he shared a lot of his business knowledge, as well as the profits and risks of performance art (dancing) versus physical art (painting), and why physical art is more profitable and thus a large part of the company's future. Interesting stuff.

We checked another "must-do" off our lists tonight: Din Tai Fung. Din Tai Fung is a world famous dumpling restaurants, and one of Taiwan's top attractions. It is famous for it's heaven-sent dumplings, of course, and has been named on of the top 10 restaurants IN THE WORLD on numerous occasions. As we, the seven Fellows and Jeanie and Chris who works Becky at the Indiana office, entered the restaurant, we passed by a room that was sectioned off by panes of glass, where the chefs created the dumplings of joy. It looked a bit like a crack factory, with white, powdery flower covering every inch of the kitchen, as the chefs, covered by white masks, did their thing. They were almost mechanical in their precision and grace as they kneaded dough. It was quite impressive.

Minutes after we seated ourselves, the dumplings began to arrive. They came in groups of eight, perfectly aligned inside the wooden dumpling plates. We ate and ate as the bowls piled higher and higher into towers, become shrines to our hunger. While the dumpling meal wasn't exactly what I would call a life changing experience, I have never quite eaten a food like it. The texture of the dough is almost like cloth, the right blend of sturdy and fragile, chewy and soft. It was like we weren't eating food, but instead little pockets of happiness and joy.

Also at dinner I received my first call on my borrowed cell phone. JS, one of the NTU students lent me here phone to use for my time in Taiwan. I had found it almost impossible to use, considering the menu options were in badly translated Chinese, and because of the maddening autotext which I couldn't figure out how to turn off, I had to input everyone's names in code. The closest I could get to my boss's name, Cedric, was Cedar, as in the tree. Ya-Yi and Ya-Yun were substituted by Yeah and Yes. Only names like Ben were safe from theautotext's manipulation. Anyway, as my ears heard my phones ring for the first time, I picked up on a familiar tune

Imagine me and you, I do

I think about you day and night, it's only right

To think about the girl you love and hold her tight

So happy together

My phone, at one time owned by a Taiwanese teenager, came equipped with The Turtles's "Happy Together" as it's default ringtone. And this isn't the most random ringtone I've heard either. On the bus the other day, a man's cell phone rang to the tune of "NOEL". I've actually heardalot of Christmas music since being in Taiwan, particularly in the night markets. Nothing says irony quite like hearing Bing Crosby's "White Christmas" as I walk down a crowded night market in the 90 degree humid heat of Taipei, Taiwan. When I asked several of the NTU students about the popularity of American music in Taiwan, they informed me that it was very popular, although much of the time they don't know what the words of the song mean. I instantly got an image of a club full of young Taiwanese, singing along to Lil John & The Eastside Boyz's "Get Low" and not knowing what the lyrics meant. America's cultural contribution to the world. *cringe*

As the hundredth dumpling was killed, a mysterious liqueur was brought to the table. Shot glasses were distributed. And with a resounding cheers and applause (and drawing stares from most of the restaurants patrons), we knocked back our first round of shots in Taiwan. It was a good feeling, celebrating having survived our first week in Taiwan, most of our first full week at work, becoming such a tight-knit group in such a short time, and sharing a slew of new experiences that only hinted at the months to come.

We left Din Tai Fung (I felt more like I waddled, considering the battle in my stomach taking place between the dumplings and the mysterious liquor), and wandered around the Sogo area for a while. We ended up running into a Taiwanese celebrity on our stroll. I have no idea what here name was or what she was in/ what she sang, but she was purty. She pointed us in the direction of a good place to get drinks. It definitely seemed like the place a celebrity would hang out. Black paint and silver mirrors covered the walls, loud modern music blasted over the speakers, and the drinks were expensive (even by US standards). But hey, we were hanging out in the bar that Taiwanese celebrities hung out in, so it didn't matter. Unfortunately we were the only ones in the bar. Thursdays must not be big party nights in Taiwan.

Bellies full of dumplings and booze, we made the journey back to the hotel, and had what would be the last Beer in the Park of the week. We drooled over the prospect of the weekend, waiting for us after one more long day of work. Bets were taken on who would make the biggest fool of themselves, and boasts of sturdy livers were made. Upon retiring to my room, I proceeded to turn on the tv, find the news channel with a cute news anchor, and attempted to get caught up on the news happenings of Taiwan. A little out of it after the exhaustion of the weeks (and helped along by the drinks of the night), it took me half an hour to realize that I was watching news in a language I didn't understand. I had thought that I held the weekends in high regard at school. But know I truly realized how precious the weekend was to hard workin' folk. News off. Lights out.

Up next: POST-ITS AND TITANIC LOVE TOOLS