the tropics of Taiwan, if you can call it that

Day 1:
Took a train to Hualien. First we stopped at "Taiwan's Grand Canyon," as my dad called it. I'm not much of one for scenery, except for beaches. But even those get old. So in the sweltering heat, I wasn't all that impressed by rocky cliffs with holes in them. Then we stopped at a temple commemorating those who had died while building the tunnel. Kevin and I made a futile attempt to reach the high temple but it was only stairs after stairs after more stairs. That night we went out for wonton soup. Apparently Hualien is famous for its mochi, so we stocked up on a ridiculous amount of that - in sesame, taro, red bean, green bean, etc. Then mango shave ice. And do hua. The parents then got way overexcited for duck heads, coupled with a couple of beers. That night we stayed at Farglory hotel, with a gorgeous ocean view that I failed to take advantage of. I played Scrabble with the boys, only to lose to Kevin.

Day 2:
The next morning we woke for a buffet breakfast at the hotel. Left soon after to stop at a Buddhist temple, 8 arches bridge, etc. Then we waited in the sweltering heat for what felt like hours to board the bus to Green Island. It was so hot and sticky that the paint on my wooden necklace started melting onto my neck, and the chain started to rust. The boatride was rocky - got seasick for the first time. Probably doesn't help that I actually am sick (how long is this illness going to last? I've had a cough since before I came to Taiwan last Monday... and now it's Wednesday. Good grief.) After arriving at the island, we rode mopeds to the hotel. Ahhhh the hotel. Where do I begin. I mean, hotels are possibly my favorite things about vacationing - I love the whole concept of messing up a room and having it be perfect the next time you come back. Free toiletries? That also presses my buttons in all the right places. This "hotel" - if you could call it that - had what might as well not have been a weak fan. No functional AC. Cleanliness was in doubt. The sink was in the shower (yeah this confused me too.) Motel 6 status, no joke. And this is a girl who loves me my 5 star hotels. God, that was painful. In the afternoon my dad took me to a track to teach me to ride. No lie - I'm disastrous at the moped. I mean, I suppose considering I have no balance on a bike already, a moped would be more difficult. But hey, I'm improving. By the next trip, I'll be able to do it. I have faith. For dinner we went to a BBQ place. Not exactly quality food here either and I think it gave Sherry's mom diarrhea. We gave George beer though and his mom asked him "You get a sunburn?!" I could have sworn the next day too that he had a hangover. Drove my dad home and ran into incoming traffic. Almost hit a girl and a kid. Oops. Tried to watch Anchorman but passed out early on.

Day 3:

We woke up at the crack of dawn - no, more like at 4:00, so that we could catch the crack of dawn. We rode out to the hot springs - one of three locations in the world in which the springs bubble up from below the sea. My dad kept saying, "But how many opportunities will you have in your life to see the sunrise from one of only THREE locations?" Guess he sucked me in. It was nice, riding with the sea to our right side and the moon's reflection sparkling up. The springs were warm but not exactly hot, and the clouds blocked the sun for the better part of the sunrise. We got tiny peeks at it every once in awhile. Still an experience. Passed out at the hotel after that. We went snorkeling - in full on wet suits (compolete with matching boots). Saw a lot of fish at first but after about 10 minutes it was like, same old, and the bobbing of the ocean started making me feel kind of seasick. Had lunch at the hotel - some nasty seafood. Eh. We went for an afternoon ride around the island - took about 30 minutes with a couple stops in between. Finally - boat back to Taiwan, and train back to Taipei (4.5 hour ride). Luckily I had Kevin to entertain/to entertain me all the while. Good discussions.

I am SO tired. I'm at work and suffering. It's nice that I can just go online and have my fun but I literally am about to pass out from exhaustion. My cough keeps me awake all the time at night which means I'm always tired throughout the day. Arghhhhhhhhhh.