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Published: August 7th 2007
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I have had a request for a blog so here is my attempt.
The past 2 weeks have gone by very fast and I am hoping the next 3 weeks go just as fast.
Last weekend I went with my group of friends to Green Island for our long vacation weekend. It was the last time we were together as a group as Mary left on Friday to go back to the states. And let me mention that it is not the same her with out her. We spent hours every night talking about everything and nothing, we went on all of our trips together and we were there for each other through everything, the good and bad. I hate saying goodbye, especially to the people you have spent the past year of your life with. We have been each others support system in a country so foreign to us. There is comfort when traveling in a group and we were able to feel more comfortable with our surroundings and ourselves.
My vision for Green Island was vastly different from what it turned out to be. I was picturing beaches for laying out and swimming. Instead I
was met with fantastic coral reefs, which provided incredible snorkling, and lots of sharp volcanic rock. So with my image of the weekend shattered, things were also not the best. Before even boarding the ferry I had a run in with a random piece of metal sticking out of the ground, so before even getting to the island I had a gashed and bruised toe. Only leading up to more injury fun. The ferry....well i guess it was good cause I was passed out from the seasickness pills so it felt like 2 min. Unfortunatly for Paul the sun on the ferry was too much and he was badly burnt for the rest of the weekend. Well we got there, we got a family van to drive around in and we checked into our hotel with a great view of the ocean in front. We had lunch then headed straight to go snorkling. To go snorkling here, we had to wear a wetsuit, a life jacket, boots, and have a guide with floaty rings. It was a different experience. This is when the next problem happened. Apparently Muoy's boots already had a hole in them and when she preceeded to
fall into a hole she cut her foot badly on the coral. The bleeding wouldnt stop so she had to go to the clinic and had to miss the snorkling.
The snorkling was by far the best I have seen yet. I was quite impressed with the reefs and fish. We even saw a nasty sea snake, thankfully it was deep below so I didnt think we were in too much trouble. After that fun we drove around the small island to check it out. Then we ate and went shopping (a necessity and requirement of any of my trips). The next day brought only more adventure and trips to the clinic. We had been to this look out point the day before and everyone wanted to climb to the bottom. Well Im not the biggest fan of hiking down random mountains in the jungle but what the heck. So we saw some people emerge from the jungle with fishing poles and we decided we had found our way down. There we paved steps alot of the way down. It took a while but we made it to the bottom and walked around on the volcanic rock a bit.
The water was so clear we could look into in and see all the fish in the reef going about their life, we didnt even need to snorkel. It was incredible. So we looked around and we were heading back when it got ugly. Note: do not wear WET Old Navy flip flops when walking on volcanic rock, the results are not pretty. At one point I slipped and thought I had caught myself with my hand being pierced by volcanic rock but then in slow motion my large butt came down on the rocks. I didnt know whether to laugh or cry, cause really it was funny. Jason helped me up and we inspected the damage. A few cuts and bruises quickly showed up the my bathing suit did not cover. What a sight for the Taiwanese! So we contiuned our climb up with the stupid flip flops. Mary and I were leading and we discovered no one had climbed in front of us in a little while so the creepy creatures had come out from hiding. Well we decided to sing very loud to try and scare the animals away. This was after a huge hairy crab chased
us with his huge pinchers.
We eventually made it to the top, about to die from heat, sweat, dirt and injuries. We were certainly a sight for other up there. We probably looked like we had been in the jungle for a week not a few hours. It was sad. So we packed in the van and we headed back to get cleaned up and ready for our BBQ dinner. After dinner we went to the hot springs. It is one of 3 salt water hot springs in the world, the other two being in Italy and Japan. It was enjoyable and relaxing. The next day we caught the ferry home, well back to Taitung anyways, then boarded the train for the 7 hour journey home. It was a crazy weekend, it was sad to go and say goodbye, but all good things must come to an end.
So I had a few days at school, including a Saturday school. Sunday I went to Taipei with Grace and Hannah. We went to the National Palace Museum, we saw the Terracotta Soldiers, and we went to the top of Taipei 101. It was so much fun and I
was able to see everything I have been wanting to. Its funny tho, cause the National Palace Museum has the best collection of artifacts from China. When some guy came to Taiwan he stole all these things and burried them in the mountains in Taiwan. Now they are on display here and China wants them back. But at the same time, Taiwan has an exhibit with Terracotta soldiers from China. What if Taiwan decides to keep these too???? The relation is quite strange. Thankfully I wont be here after the 2008 olympics, who knows what will happen then.
Taipei 101 was so great. I dont know why I waited so long to go there. Although it is a little pricey, it was well worth the view and the experience. I had a great time and I can now leave Taiwan saying I have done everything I wanted and I dont feel like I missed out on anything.
I have 4 days left of school this week, then the teachers and the students are done for summer. But not me. I have 5 days of summer camp next week, then they want me at school, doing nothing, the last week,
up til the day I leave. But I think I will use up my personal and sick days so I have time to pack.
I am home in 18 days!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Here are my pics from Green Island and Taipei 101.
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2068283&l=4530b&id=39101322
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2068796&l=c92ad&id=39101322
http://good-times.webshots.com/album/559511045KdNMbH?vhost=good-times
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Sarah
non-member comment
Excited
Rachel, I have really enjoyed reading all of your blog entries and e-mails this past year. What an amazing experience you have had. I know that it is hard to say goodbye, but I have to say, I am really looking foward to seeing you when you get back in town. I have missed you!