Survival Chinese?


This caused a bit of a chuckle ... not sure this Chinese is mandatory for foreigners in Taiwan. For the locals ... absolutely.

Thursday October 16th, 2008

I find myself sitting here wanting to post a blog even though I'm without words, without photos. Life has been a circle of much the same. My focus remains on saving money, exercise and Chinese.

It feels great to get back into studying after taking eight months off. I hired a new teacher and I'm really enjoying his teaching style. I've gained a lot of confidence in my ability. So much, in fact, that I've registered for a Chinese proficiency test which I'll be taking on November 1st. I'm a little nervous.

Halfway through October brings me a few months closer to my trip. I'm done with the research part. I have a lot of things to secure before I can make any final decisions. I should be able to book a ticket but I'm undecided about a departure date.

Things are falling into place ... as they should ...

Wednesday October 1st, 2008

October 1st ... wow. I had to post. Only because time flies. Life has been busy ... and fast. My birthday is in less than three months ... 33 ... I'm certainly not getting younger.

My friend, Jody, worded it very well after her birthday, stating that she was getting on to mid-thirties. If I look back on the year, it has been big. I think I am long past that feeling of being twenty something. Time passes and life becomes more defined. It's fascinating ... most days.

Another typhoon lingers. I'm not really up for another weekend of wind and rain. We had four typhoon holidays in the month of September. My pocketbook is thankful that three of them fell on weekends.

The temperature has dropped down to 25°. I've been wearing long sleeves and a jacket. I find myself wondering when it was that 25° weather became cold. I'm not looking forward to winter.

October puts me one month closer to my trip. I've been looking through Voyage.gc.ca. The website doesn't advise travel to India, Sri Lanka or Nepal. It presents a bit of a nervous feeling in my stomach. Curiosity seems to override it, however.

I suppose that is what has led me to where I am today. To be honest ... I wouldn't change a thing ...