LAST DAYS in Taiwan

Pictured here is a cook from Tainan (the former capital of Taiwan)
making the Dan-Tsu noodles for which the city is famous.
Pictured also is a woman making the cookies (taste like fortune cookies but are cut into strip shapes) for which the city is also known.











On Thursday, upon our return from Thailand, Maren and I had our hair done for the last time; we look a bit different, but the massage was so worth it!! Then, on Friday, Maren and I went, (for my third but last trip there) out to Lotus Pond, where the beautiful lake is dotted with colorful architecture from Chinese influence; and of course, we walked into the dragon and out the tiger, to dispel all bad luck and gain good luck! And that night (Friday) we asked Janet to join us for dinner and gave her a little gift to thank her for all her help to us while we have been here.











Yesterday (Saturday), Ted, Maren and I were lucky to have a friend, Amber (a doctoral student at NSYSU), to give us a wonderful day's excursion in the former capital city of Taiwan, Tainan! It is a city famous for historical buildings from the Dutch occupation in the 1600's and the Japanese in the first half of the 20th century, etc! Plus, Maren's first husband Smokey (who died of Lou Gehrig's disease long ago) had served in the 1960's at the military base in Tainan, and Maren wanted to see where he had served. Cynthia also joined us while Muhua had to teach an all-day class. The five of us had so much fun!!
We saw several interesting historic buildings, like Confucius Temple (the first such one in Taiwan and also the first school in Taiwan, replete with learning tools such as measuring stones (pictured), steles, etc)), a shrine (called Koxinga's Shrine) to commemorate Cheng Chen-Kung, a famous warrior who helped kick out the Dutch, the Tainan Grand Matsu Temple (Matsu , a goddess of the Sea who is seen as a protectorate of fishermen), and the Museum of Taiwan Literary Achievements (where we also saw a painting of women playing Mah-Jongg!)!




Amber also took us to three different places for delicious Tainan foods: Dan-Tsu noodles in a tasty soup broth also filled with veggies and fish ; fried shrimp and fried oyster rolls; and a very light tofu in a caramel type sauce for dessert.
Then we drove out to the air base, where Maren could see the general area where Smokey served in the Marine Corps.
We ended the day back in Kaohsiung by having an absolutely delightful dinner at a campus located restaurant very near our villa, eating outdoors overlooking the harbor! The weather was delightful, with a warm and gentle breeze, and the food was some of the best we have had here: homemade squash soup seasoned exquisitely with spices (don't ask me which ones!), followed by the best salad ever (fruit, veggies and lettuce and tomatoes gently tossed with a yummy creamy dressing), entree (Ted opted for a small Hawaiian pizza, Maren for a smoked chicken sub, me for steamed chive dumplings).

I close my final blog from Taiwan with a photo of our spectacular view from both the cafe we ate at last night and our villa (which is just above the cafe, basically)! What a fantastic experience we have had here, and I know i will really miss the wonderful people of Kaohsiung and of Thailand when I return home. But I am now ready; it is time.

Hope the readers of this blog have enjoyed it as much as I have had in writing it!
Cheers!
Betty

Our last day in Northern Thailand was Tuesday, May 5th. Once again, Tthasanee and Jaroon did not disappoint. We visited a sunken temple ,the ruins of which have been discovered, fairly recently (1998?) right in the middle of Chiang Mai! Unfortunately, the excavation work has to stop for now, dues to land ownership issues. But to find ruins that date back to the 1700's in the heart of a busy city is rather amazing.



We next went to a place I personally had never heard of before: an elephant hospital! Here, they work with sick or injured elephants to help nurse them back to health, when they then release them into a protected neighboring jungle area! Here we saw one animal with a leg deformity that he had been born with that is now growing a tumor, and another elephant needing IV to bring down a high fever.








Then ,just a short walk down the path, we saw two mama elephants being nursed by their respective babies AND, incidentally, snatching any of the bananas we bought to feed them both, out of their babies' mouths to snarf down themselves! Hmmph!



And what a send-off at the airport. The Thai do not just drop their guests off at the curb and say farewell; no. EVERYONE of our seven AFS friends from Chiang Mai came to the airport with us in a two-car caravan to send us on our way, but not without inundating us with lovely parting gifts. We were imposing on THEIR time and homes, and they give US gifts! What a send-off, with everybody hugging etc! A truly unforgettable experience with new friends, who we hope will come to Maine sometime in their lives (and ours!) They would be most welcome!














And the scenario was repeated when we arrived late at night back in Bangkok where Oi, Sue-Porn and Mr X all appeared to take us from the airport to the apt-hotel for our last night in Bangkok. Before we could say good night, they too showered us with gifts, including AFS shirts from both the Northern Thai and Bangkok gangs!! Wow. The hospitality of these people is over the top!("It is the Thai way" they kept saying when they would refuse our repeated offers to let us buy the meal, treat someone to a trinket, do our own laundry (! )TThasanee's nieces hand washed and ironed our clothes each night! We were allowed, finally, to leave a gratuity for them at the end!!
A fond, fond farewell to one of the warmest, most gracious people ever!

Teaching Three Classes in Thailand!!

On Saturday night, May 2nd, all of us were treated to a fabulous dinner cooked by Da at their lovely home very near Thasanee and Jaroon's. Nirut is seen pictured at the far left in the pink shirt; next to him is Thasanee (who could not be a more caring host to us!), then Gan, the son of Da and Nirut ,shown standing, then Ted at the head of the table, then Am is peeking in, then behind me is Da, a lovely, beautiful woman, then me, then Maren, and then Oye, Gan and Am's cousin and younger sister all at once! The meal was wonderful and so plentiful!! Sticky rice,pork, fried chicken, tropical fruits, vegetable wraps with steamed veggies (yummy) that Nerut kept preparing for us, etc, etc,etc. Plus, they bought us different types of Thai fruit wines as accompaniment!

Then, on Monday, May 4th, Thasannee's school had its orientation day for the freshmen (9 th graders) who came from all different middle schools and so did not necessarily know each other. Ted, Maren and I were on! (We had NO idea before Sunday night, when I was still feeling very queasy from some sort of "bug" I suffered on Sunday, that Thasanee had told her administrators that she was setting up her three Monday morning classes to be taught their English classes by native speakers!)

So, all three of us went into our teacher modes! Maren taught her three classes "You are My Sunshine,"and a tongue twister, "She sells seashells by the seashore!" Ted went into his professorial mode and broke his students into groups of three to role play some "Errors in Communication!" And I divided my classes into five teams of six or so students each, for a spelling bee contest, mainly using English words with "sh" or "ch" sounds, as that was one of Thasanee's goals for her students. In their feedback later, supposedly one student wrote, "We don't need Thai teachers anymore!" We think they liked the participatory nature of our teaching. Beforehand, we were so nervous, but once in front of the classroom, it was fun!

That evening, we went with both Thasanee and Jaroon, plus Da's whole family to a traditional Thai dinner accompanied by a show featuring traditional Thai dances and songs, with one part of the show focusing on native aboriginal peoples, and the other, showcasing students at Chiang Mai Drama School. If you can see the photos well enough, you can see in one of them how long the women's fingernails are, for the purpose of enhancing the gracefulness of their movements!!

Northern Thailand!

On Thursday, April 30th, we flew to Chiang Mai in northern Thailand, saying a fond farewell to Oi, Sue-Porn,Jum and Jiap! We were met at the airport by Thasanee, another AFS volunteer. Her full time job is teaching English literature and grammar at a secondary school that we will get to visit later in the week. She and her husband Jaroon, plus their two very close friends, Da (pictured)and Nirut and their two wonderful children, Gan (just finishing his third of his four years of college, training to be an engineer) and Am (pronounced "Ahm,"18, about to head to college, also interested in the sciences and excellent in speaking English; she was Kitty and Bob Boyd's AFS student two years ago and has fond memories of Boothbay Harbor!!), take us everywhere and are so generous with their time and help!! And driving us everywhere is another family friend, a young man (40?) named Chid who is very fun-loving, a great driver and clearly well loved by Thasanee et al!

Over the past three days (it is now Saturday May 2nd), we have shopped (at silk stores, silver stores, teak warehouses, ), ridden elephants at the Mae Tang Elephant farm (an hour long totally fun and totally bumpy, not so comfortable ride!), floated down a very calm river on bamboo rafts (very delightful,though hot), ridden in ox-drawn carts, had a fabulous Thai picnic in a beautiful agricultural preserve, hiked to the top of two stupas (one for the queen, one for the king), hiked to a spectacular waterfall, and so on! We are having a ball and being treated royally!

Wednesday, April 29th, in Bangkok!

Today, we were once again met by Oi, again dressed beautifully, (as we put on our skirts again, for respect for the temples and palaces we visit). To our deloght, Sue-Porn joined us as well! We went first to the Vimanmek Mansion, located in the so-called Dusit Palace complex. This mansion is billed as the world's largest teakwood building in the world! As much a work of art as a national treasure, it is three stories high, has huge staircases (some elegant and wide; others, more narrow and circular), octagonal rooms (with appropriately shaped Oriental rugs to match) and occasionally lattice walls. It truly is magnificent, and security to enter was stricter than any airport I have ever been to! We could not carry ANYTHING in with us, including shoes (which we must take off at every palace and temple) but also your purse, your camera, etc! It was built in 1868 by order of King Rama V and moved to its present site in 1910. Rama V lived there from 1901 to 1906, along with his four wives (his four queens), each of whom had a separate suite of rooms , each in a different color: mauve, green, pale blue, creme. Today, it is used for special occasions by the present King Bhumboi Adulyadej (Rama IX). It otherwise serves as a museum for some of the furniture, china, and gifts to Thai kings over the years.

We next went to an amazing place, next to the Vimanmek teakwood mansion, called the Abhisek Dusit Throne Hall. Here on display are absolutely gorgeous items made by local farmers and other less well-off citizens, to supplement their income, by order of the present queen, Queen Sirikit, who wants to provide ways for the poorer people of their country to supplement their income. Her decree founded the SUPPORT foundation, and besides providing an income for poor farmers, it also preserves Thai folk arts, including weaving, basketry, embroidery, plus more decorative crafts such as silverware, gold nielloware and damascene. It is an important goal of the current queen to preserve Thai culture and traditions and handicrafts. The items on display include gorgeous hand woven textiles and sculptures of brilliant gold leaf, intricate detail, and the iridescent green of beetle wings on items such as sampans and howdahs (carriage seats for the royalties to sit upon when riding an elephant,etc) and stupas, etc. Absolutely amazing work! And a way for the citizens to earn some money as well. The building itself is a one-story design decorated with intricate fretwork known as the "floral design" with colored glass and stucco motifs. We could only take pictures at this entire Dusit complex of the lovely grounds.

After a quick lunch (Thai version of fast food), we picked up Jiap who was able to get the afternoon off to join us, and Oi, Sue-Porn, Jiap, Maren and I set forth by car to Ayutthaya, site of ruins from 1350 to 1748, when different Thai Kings, from Ramathibodi 1 (1350) to King Sam Phraya (1448) ruled. It has the remains of pagoda ruins and a chapel and a monastery, which it became in 1448. When Ayutthaya was sacked by invading Burmese in 1767, the gold that had covered a very revered Buddha image was taken. During the reign of King Rama I (1782-1809), he ordered the inner core of the Buddha image that remained transferred to a different temple, where it is placed in a special "chedi" (pagoda style) built for the purpose.

We had a nice dinner with Oi, Jiap and Sue-Porn, after which we went to Jiap's lovely home to see her mango trees )she shared a delicious mango with us at breakfast!!) and then went to pick up Ted at the airport. A great day, and tomorrow we fly to Chiang Mai in northern Thailand, where we will be greeted by another AFS host, a couple, Tthasanee and Jaroon, who know Bob and Kitty Boyd as well!

Thailand Trip!

Greetings from Thailand!

We have now been in Thailand for five days! On Monday April 27th,

Maren and I flew from Taiwan to Bangkok, leaving the professor to work on preparing for his Tuesday and Wednesday classes at National Sun Yat-Sen University! We were greeted by Oi, a wonderfully kind, elegantly dressed and phenomenally well organized AFS worker, and her handsome husband Mr X at the airport! We went to the residence apartment where we will stay and went to bed!

On Day 2, April 28th, we proceeded to sightsee some of Bangkok's most beautiful sights. The first was a short tram ride around the center of town, followed by visiting the magnificent Grand Palace. Unfortunately, I accidentally deleted all the photos of our first day and a half in the city, so I await a disc from one of Oi's AFS volunteers, Sue-Porn , a lovely tiny Thai gal (who has two grown children: absolutely impossible to believe!)who accompanied us both of our days in Bangkok and was terrific at snapping photos!

The Grand Palace is a dazzling architectural complex, containing temples (wats), royal living quarters of the past kings, governmental offices, and ,most importantly to Thai culture, the Emerald Buddha.; the Emerald Buddha is made of jade but so-called emerald because of its rich color. It is regarded as the most sacred Buddhist temple in Thailand. The Emerald Buddha sits atop an 11 meter tall gilded altar,pfrotected by a nine-tiered umbrella. Though small in size, it is highly revered.

The palace itself is reserved for major ceremonial functions,though in the past, kings did reside there.

We also toured the Temple of the Reclining Buddha, which has an enormous, totally gilded reclining Buddha , 46 meters long and 15 meters high (translate, someone?). It is made of cement brick but is totally covered in gold leaf! The soles of its feet are inlaid with beautiful mother-of-pearl!

Hardly stopping to breathe, we went to yet another temple, the Temple of the Dawn, again ornately brilliant in gold, shaped like a huge stupa and surrounded, in fact, by four smaller stupas (conical shaped structures that in the former times might have housed Buddha statues,etc). We declined to climb all the way to the top, and were quite content by then (late afternoon) to enjoy the views of Bangkok from the second level. This temple is known for its 70 meter high pagoda decorated with mosaics of Chinese porcelain. The workmanship and artistry of these temples are really fantastic.

We ended this first day's sightseeing with a visit to the temple known as Wat Pho, the temple of a past king, King Rama II (Current king is Rama IX). \While there, we even enjoyed a 45 minute Thai foot massage! Wow! It as good but ,for me, too hard. I was wincing at times with the pressure applied. But , my feet and legs feel fine now!

As if all that amazing touring was not enough to give us a feel for this city with its astonishingly ornate and beautiful architecture, we were royally treated by another wonderful AFS family, Jum, her husband Chang, and their two teenaged children, Gret (son, aged 15?) and Gift (daughter, aged 17?) to a fabulous dinner cruise along the Chai Phraya River (also known as the River of Kings)which gracefully snakes from the north of Thailand and ends in Bangkok. It is considered to be a major source of Thai history, as we saw along its banks, many of the palaces and temples we had visited during the day, all of which date to different eras. Additionally, we sailed right under the Memorial Bridge, which is a "double-leaf bascule" steel structure, built on the occasion of King Rama VII's celebrating the city's 150th anniversary. Joining us were Oi, her husband Mr X, Sue-Porn, plus another friendly and very busy AFS worker named Jiap, whom we also loved!

We retired to the nearby apartment residential hotel for a welcome, air-conditioned sleep.