Yeah Yeah, blah blah blah

Hey guys, hope all is well.

Well, the weather is heating up quite a bit here.  Complete with gross humidity.

It's weird because it can be 85 degrees and still pour rain 2 inches.  It's quite a change from the desert of So Cal.  All in the way it goes I guess.  And still, look today- it's like only 60 degrees after at least 90 yesterday!  So strange.  Check out recent photos on my photo site at davidphoto.smugmug.com

I recently added a new album when I went down to the middle of the eastern coast of the island last weekend where my friend grew up.  Quite an awesome town and not as nutty as here in Taipei.  Kinda like the Fresno or Merced of Taiwan.  LOL.  Can someone please fucking comment here so I know whether to keep posting.   I miss you all dearly by the way.  

I'll be booking my flight in a week and a half for the states in the end of July and August!  I hope to see as many of you as I can.  I will spend a few days in the LBC (Hell Yeah!!!)  and the rest in San Diego!!!  

As far as my work, it's cool I guess.  To me, a job is a job.  If I could have all leisure time, you know I would eat that up!  Those of you who know me, know THIS!  Yeah, I'm a lazy bastard but that's life.  Most of my classes are cool.    The jury is still out on what I think of English teaching in Taiwan.  Sometimes it feels as if the "foreigners" are simply on display.  

Other than that, that's all for now.  Please, someone write or comment to me. 

PS-  Costco is here and my card works.  I love seeing all the American brands.  And Costco pizza!!!

Bye Bye friends.

Food

I've been meaning to post about this. The food in Taiwan. Let me start with 2 days ago. After work, James and I went to this place called On Tap in the city. It was a bar / food joint. So I guess a bar and grill. It's owned by an Irish guy and a guy from the states. I had been saying to James recently how I'd love a real hamburger with beef, and not some rice burger or pork burger, but real beef. He suggested this place. I was so excited! Oh boy! Western food! So we get there and sit down grab a drink and ask for menus. "Sorry the kitchen is closed today.". WTF!!! I've never been to a place that serves food and the kitchen is closed. Never! I think I felt a vein on my head pop out at this point. I was starving too, which is not a good thing with me! And I had been looking forward to it all day! So we had some french fries and some buffalo wings which they were able to cook. So you can cook this shit but your kitchen is closed? Um, okay. And the wings were awful. The fries were okay. On the way home we stopped at a night market and got some chicken nuggets. On a stick. Okay, I'm not a fan of night markets. I think the food at them can sometimes be classified as roadside horrors. So then last night we went to another place that is known for all burgers and Western style. That's all I really wanted. Just one. Not every day as, after all, I'm living in Asia so I can't expect that. Luckily this place was open as well as their kitchen! We wait half an hour for a table. The place was packed and the food smelled great! I was soooo excited!!! We finally get a table under the sub arctic overly cold and freezing for no reason A/C unit and order an appetizer and our burgers and some sodas. Yay! The menu was in English!!! The sodas came and they were flat. Okay, whatever. About 1/2 hour later the appetizer comes after James reminds them. It then comes 1 minute later. I'm thinking they forgot about it and left it on the counter. Great. Then 1 minute after the appetizer finally comes, so does our burger entrees! WTF!!! You are supposed to let the people finish the appetizer before you bring out the entree!!! I look at the burger that I ordered- a pepper burger that is claimed to be spicy in the menu. The bun is flat- maybe 1/4 inch thick and not fluffy but rather looks like it was slammed and squished in a book. The meat patty is paper thin with maybe one pepper in it, unlike the claim in the menu that "a pepper in every bite" is what you will experience. And to boot, the french fries were stale, and not even the kind of fries I ordered! I ordered cajun fries and got plain ones. At this point I am starving and ate the shitty meal anyway. The burger was pretty tasteless I found myself getting annoyed but what can I do. James' food didn't look much better and he didn't seem excited about it either. I thought I'd give the place one more chance and try a desert of upside down apple cobbler. I had no idea they had powdered apples. Disgusting. We then left after paying $810. I could have just lit my money on fire. It would have been easier. I'm really glad you don't tip for food and drink here in TW. On the plus side, food is generally cheaper here when you go with the native food. So basically, forget about getting decent western food in Taiwan. Although, only one place, the Brass Monkey, had decent food. But maybe that was just a good day at the place. TGI Fridays was okay, but not like back home. Pizza is okay but a fortune. And Taiwanese food in general, I don't like that much. I love noodles and beef and the dumplings though. But night market food, or stick food, is not my style and it's all bathed in oil so it's horrible for you. And hot pot restaurants where you cook the food in hot water at your table is kinda bland to me. It's funny, because in the states you can get food from anywhere! But here it's hard. I find it hard to eat sometimes and will just opt for noodles and beef or dumplings (which are awesome) or the trusty breakfast shop down the road here just because it's too much trouble to order something in English and not worth the final results after you order the food anyway. Or Subway- even then they fuck up Subway sometimes when you order there too. LOL. I'm sorry, but, I don't know why they say Taiwan has world renown food. I just don't see it. And night markets with their roadside horrors are always raved about. Why? And I've tried tons of different food here. Everything seems to be based on either pork, oil, or egg or some combination or all of them. Honestly, without a doubt, the states has the best food because you can get ANY type of food- at least in metro California areas (where I guess I was spoiled). I can't complain though as I have no right to complain other than here in LJ. LOL. :P It's just that I'm not used to many of the weird foods here. Many simply just don't taste good. Sorry. I'm sure it's the same thought when people from other countries come to the states too. Well, I'm off to go have a breakfast sandwich.

Howdy folks.  

Today is Saturday and it's quite warm but dry today.

I think, but am not sure yet, that I am heading over to Fulong Beach for a little relaxation today.

I've never been to it and it's the nearest beach to this part of Taiwan I heard.  I haven't been to the ocean since last month in Kaohsiung so yeah.

Went to the Ximen area last night, which is this trendy area with lots of shopping.  They gym happens to be located there too so that's why I was there.  There is another gym in downtown but this one is a little closer.  I really miss being able to walk across the street to the gym though.  Right now I have to transfer at least once on the fucking MRT and it's a pain in the ass. I'm sure it will be easier once I get a scooter though.  

This area gets insanely busy.  I'm so glad I don't live in this area!  It would drive me insane. Crowds are an issue here in Taiwan.  There is so many people you just want to scream sometimes!  LOL!

I've included some pics of the Ximen area in this post.  Hope all is well for everyone.  Happy LB Pride too as it's this weekend!  

The above is an MRT (subway station)

la la

Howdy all.  I haven't posted in a while.  

I forgot to upload those pics I promissed but maybe later.

So there was an earthquake in nearby China a few days ago but it was pretty far inland in mainland China.  I didn't feel anything on the tiny island of Taiwan but I heard other people did.   This coming weekend I should be going to the beach.  I'm looking forward to that as I haven't been to the beach since when I went down to Kaohsiung.

I've been given the go-ahead to take my vacation in late July or August so I'll be buying my plane ticket back to LAX next pay day.  Yay!  Hope I can see many of you.  I plan to stay in the LBC for a few days and the rest in SD.  The weather should be warm and nice.  I can't wait to see Bradley too as I miss my cat!

More later.  Bye bye.

Ni Hao

Howdy folks.

Sorry I haven't posted in a while.  Time just gets away from you and goes so fast.  I don't know if I'm the only one to think that but, yeah...

By the way, if you want, you can just subscribe to this blog in your browser and it will show you when I update- like by clicking the RSS feed button that should show somewhere in your address bar like this picture:

Anyway the weather has officially turned nasty.  But not all at once.  One day it is hot, real hot, and humid as fuck, and the next it's cold and rainy, and then the next it's just cold.  Just odd.  But all in all, it's giving way to a summer of hot and nasty humidity.  LOL.  Thank goodness for A/C!  Mine is on right now in my place and blowing at my face.  Hey, that's a rhym!  Rad!  

But I digress.

In a day or so, I will post some pics and update more.

I'm also getting a scooter soon.  Yep!  Lookout Taiwan, I'm getting a scooter.  So now I can be like every other a-hole on the road!  Rock on!

Later.

More to come soon.