Field Trip TW/TY - Zhanghe 2

On the ninth of July, it was planned that the students would go on a field trip to see courses offered at a junior high school in northern Taipei, and then a factory in Taoyuan. As you can imagine, there was a lot of time spent on the bus - it was very draining.

For this trip, I had to be up and ready to go at 7:30am. I didn't exactly get a good night's rest, but I didn't let that stop me. It was a wet day, and a bit chilly, but it was okay! I'm doing it for the children. Our first top was about 45 minutes away, close to Tamsui. The school looked really nice, I'm starting to get the feeling that they all do now. This school, though, had luscious greens, and lots of flora. One of the first things I saw there was a frog.

The court rd of the school was stunning, the photo above is just an example of how beautiful the school was.

During our time at the school we got to experience two of their classes. The first class was a graphics art class, and the second was a sort of survival class? In the first class, we each received a stamp holder, to which we would then create a stamp. We used a computer program to make a stamp with a picture of our choosing. I chose a picture of Disney's Pluto, because Disney is still fresh in my mind, and I love dogs. Besides Pluto was my Chinese name, 朱永強, I wanted to show them that I could "hang". Then they were printed, and put onto a stamp. I kept my stamp separate from the holder, because I thought Danny would appreciate the Thomas the Tank Engine holder much more than I. Once everything was completed, we were ushered up stairs to take part in what I think was a survival class. I think so because we were taught the different types of wood, and making stuff out of wood that you'd find/cut in the woods. I had a table to myself, filled with different sticks and branches, and decided to make a mini-tipi.

As you can see, all I was missing was a cloth/fabric to surround my tipi. Inside my tipi was a life form enjoying the shelter from the strong winds (from the fan), lounging on a sofa (branch). Like they say, you can take the boy out of Canada, but you can't take the Canada out of the boy.

After that was another hour+ bus ride to Taoyuan. I thought the next time I'd be there was when I was leaving Taiwan. I was wrong. The factory we went to had a lot of Thai influence, though I'm not really sure of the history/relationship (damn my inability to communicate in Mandarin). Before we explored the factory, we were brought to a little Thai restaurant on the grounds. In this restaurant we, the students and I, made Papaya Salad.

Interestingly, on the second floor of the restaurant was a mini-museum, I couldn't really understand, but there was an abundance of history in their.

After sampling some of our creations, we were shown the plantation of soap, the processes, and even got to sample/try washing some clothes. I would have took more photos, but my phone's battery was almost out. It was an interesting time, nonetheless.

After the hour+ bus ride back, I was set to meet Gida at Shilin Market in ximengding, the biggest night market in Taiwan. It was a bit sad, because it would be her last day in Taiwan. She even wrote me a card, to which I had found out before I arrived (reminder: send her a post card from Winnipeg). We met at the summer camp, and became quick friends, as we were the only two non-Taiwanese people there! It was my second time there, and being there was still lots of fun (I was there earlier in the week), going to night markets is something I'll never get sick of. The only bad part about being there was that it was raining. Ultimately, we did not find the bag that she wanted, but we still had. The night ended with getting a bubble tea, and we said our goodbyes.

It was a long and tiring day.
Love always,
JC(3.14)