Random but Awesome

This post really has no theme to it. I thought I would just compile a few pictures that I have taken that are completely random. So enjoy! 

Yes this is real. No one seemed phased by this except the American girls. Need a closer look? See below.

You can see hooves and ribs!

A family's house

The woman who lived in this house prepared a pineapple for me on what looked like the nicest plate she owned. Her house was so humbling. The bathroom had one empty bucket and a second bucket full of brown water. This made up her shower. The kitchen was about the size of a half bathroom and had ants living out of the trash can. I was even taller than the most of the door ways (which is saying a lot!). The fork I ate off of was dirty and worn, but I could tell she had gone through a lot of effort to make such a treat for me. I ate the pineapple off of it with the utmost gratitude. The people here will stop at nothing to show you how much they care and appreciate you coming into their homes.

Pretty view. I loved the trees on either side of the road. So green!

Mango tree! They cover the mangos in those white little bags.

A beautiful temple

After providing some nursing care to the man living in this house, I was escorted to the sink where I would wash my hands and this is where I was led to. There was no soap either. Once again, very humbling situations.

The inside of an old traditional Chinese home.

Inside one of the temples. If you look closely you can see little stick looking things coming out the top. People go into the temple with a question, draw out one of the sticks and open the box that the stick corresponds to. After pulling out a pink slip of paper from the box, you read what it says and that is the answer to your question/prayer.

My nurse inside the temple. These bookmark looking pieces of paper each have wishes or things hoped for written by people who enter the temple. One wished for more money, while another hoped for their parents to move on to the next life because they had been sick for a long time.

This is how we do it. Little bit different than the States, huh?

Outside of a temple. No clue what the pillar says unfortunately.

At the night market. I felt so bad for this dog. It looks really sad. It just sits on that box as a way to bring customers to the food stand behind him. I thought it was interesting that the dog had a cup for water and a cup for tea. They love their tea here!

Cool looking tree

We went to a sword makers shop. The guy that makes the swords adds human bones to the fire. Phosphorus is then released from the bones, which makes the fire hotter and also makes the swords stronger. My teacher owns a couple of the sword makers knives and he said he has never had to sharpen them in the last three years.

All 7-11's have the most interesting food in them, accompanied with a strong wave of smells enough to stop you dead in your tracks. Sorry, but I will probably never try this one.

Getting caught in a rain storm

A train ticket. The only thing I can read on it is the date and time. My Chinese is coming along great!

Even the trains are packed!

This is called stinky fruit. Yes, it smells stinky.

All of the cars have lace coverings on the front and back seats.

A local Elementary school

Rain stops no one! Just throw on a poncho and you are good to go!

These are their garages

City lights at night

I always feel so bad for this fish every time we go eat here. He looks so lonely and also looks a little too big for his tank.

Everyone wears masks around here ALL THE TIME. Masks line the walls of some of the shops and they have quite the assortment.

Remember that massage I was telling you about? This is when it still felt good. (No that is not a pedicure either. It was a foot wash)

Pretty orchid!

A side street

Entrance to the baseball game

In case anyone has noticed, I once used to have bangs. This does not jive well in 90 degree weather and 90% humidity. Therefore, I will no longer have bangs for the month of May. I also will never be able to wear my hair down for the next month either. Buns and braids is about all you can do here. 

We are headed to the movie theater tonight to see the Avengers. The movie theaters here actually have popcorn and the movies are in English with Chinese subtitles. 

More adventures to come! Until next time... 

P.S. The trash trucks here sing. They play the same tune, one that is bound to be stuck in your head for the rest of the day, and drive slowly along the side of the street. Everyone runs out to the street and throws their trash bags into the back of the truck as it drives by. 

A Day in a Life

So much has happened since I last wrote! I have conquered the jet lag and many, many other foreign things. Let's start with the food, since that is the part I seem to struggle with the most. I came to Taiwan expecting every meal to be just like eating P. F. Chang's 24/7. Boy was I wrong! Our first morning in Tainan we were on our own for breakfast. My roommates and I headed out to a bakery kiddy-corner to our apartment (it was called 85 Degrees for anyone lives in Irvine). After selecting what I thought to be a "safe" pastry, topped with ham and pineapple, I began devouring my delectable treat. About halfway through, I discovered the hairy insides my food contained.

After feeling the fur slide down my throat, I decided to stop eating it. You think the story ends there, but it does not. Fast forward about 3 seconds after deciding to call it quits on the pastry: four girls just sitting innocently at a small wooden table when all of a sudden a fifth member decided to join in on our breakfast.

 

This is NOT okay! A cockroach about three times the size of a "normal" Californian cockroach fell from the ceiling onto our table. Literally the biggest thing I have ever seen. So nasty. And this was only the beginning. Everything here tastes different. Even the ice cream. I have been very proud of myself for being so adventurous. In the fast four days I have tried chicken butt (this was by far my favorite), stinky tofu (I feel terrible for anyone who has to come across this. By far the WORST thing I have ever smelled and tasted), squid on a stick, snails that you have to suck out of a shell, nasty aged eggs, and so much more. I am not quite sure how I manage to stomach it all, but so far so good!

Here are some pictures of the various foods I have eaten and also that have been around town:

"Shwah Bing" (I have no idea how to spell anything so that is how you would say it if spelled phonetically. It is a dessert that consists of shaved ice, fruit, and sweetened condensed milk. Very delicious!)

I look like I am drunk, but I guess that's what you get for trying Chicken Butt. Seriously so good!

A lovely surprise that appeared when eating Cat Ear Soup

An extra large sweet potato

I still have no idea what this was and no it was not good

Rotten, I mean "aged" eggs. Enough said.

The head of a duck

Hearts! Guys, I am such a nerd, but all I wanted to do was dissect those things! If you look closely you can see the aorta!

This is real life! People eat this sort of thing.

Giant octopus

Chicken foot- they still have the nails on them! As Jim, my instructor, would say, "you use the nails to scrape the meat out of your teeth when you're finished". Once again, not okay.

Squid on stick! That's the name and it is no surprise when your order comes out looking like this.

Personally, I enjoy squid, so it wasn't too bad

The snails you suck out of the shell. They were slightly spicy.

 This begins a series of events titled "Stinky Tofu":

Before (I was pretty nervous to eat this. The smell was bad enough that it was hard to even get near the thing. I thought I was smiling for this picture, but guess not.)

During

After (Yes, I almost threw up)

Now that we have gotten that out of the way, lets move on to happier things. Monday through Wednesday we have clinicals, which means we are working in the hospital. For the first two weeks I am doing a community clinical rotation. My nurse and I go out into the community and visit the patients in their homes to provide nursing care. Mostly our days are filled with changing NG tubes, tracheostomy tubes, checking blood sugar levels, drawing labs, replacing urinary foley catheters, sight-seeing, food, food, and more food. These nurses LOVE to feed us. They are constantly buying who knows what and hoping we like it. I have never been so full as I am after these days.

Chi Mei Hospital is a Magnet hospital with about 1200 beds (and a 100 bed ER!)

These are some of the home health nurses that I have been privileged to work with (Jim, my instructor, and Haley, my classmate, are also featured)

I feel so honored to be allowed to go into these Taiwanese families homes and care for their loved ones. The generosity of this people astounds me. I have never met a more kindhearted, self-less group of people. You walk into their home and immediately they offer you a seat (usually a plastic stool), something to drink (anything from soda to tea), and usually some food to go along with it. I quietly observe from my small stool and watch how these families speak, touch, and treat their loved one in need. Caring for the elderly is such a large part of Taiwanese culture. The Taiwanese people make me want to be a better person and I learn so much from them everyday.

Changing an NG (Nasogastric) Tube (this is a tube that goes into your nose and down to your stomach and allows the patient to receive feedings through it)

The sweetest "a-gong" (grandfather in Chinese) I have ever met!

The sweetest "a-ma" (grandma in Chinese) I have ever met! The strawberries in the backyard are apparently a famous picture.

Another wonderful family! 

This is the car we travel in to go out in the city

After clinicals we usually go out and do something fun! The first night we went and got a shoulder and foot massage, and a foot wash. These massages do not feel good. I repeat, they do no feel good. They hurt! Instead of massaging muscles, I am pretty sure they are massaging bone. "Softer" in Chinese is one word that I quickly learned. Another night we went to a Lion's baseball game. We walked into the stadium as tourists and walked out celebrities. Literally. We were on the local news that night. American's are a big deal. Especially when there is a group of 12 white girls dancing to Lady Gaga on the jumbo tron. Good times!

Love the flags!

Ignore the nastiness that are trying to be bangs

Two of the doctors that have been hanging out with us

Tonight we went to my first night market. I like to think of these as a glorified swap meet. There is lots of food and shopping.

 After the night market, we survived a taxi ride home. Driving here is just straight up terrifying. Hopefully it is fixing more of my PTSD :)

Well guys, this is only a glimpse of everything that has been going on in the wonderful world of Taiwan. To recap, I love it all! I love being here, learning from the people, and having fun! Life is great!

Oh, and because this is about 93% of my daily views, I thought it should part of yours as well...

If I had to sum up Taiwan in one word, it would be M-O-P-E-D.