Category: Expat Tales

“I’m moving abroad at an older age by myself, and I feel like I might be too old for such an adventure,” Emma said. That sentence got me thinking long and hard about age and how it relates to travel. My conclusion? It doesn’t matter one penny what age you are. If your heart tells you to travel, you must travel.

Back in college, a cup of ramen and a lemon-lime Gatorade was all I needed to survive the dreadful “Sunday Hangover,” which always showed up after a fun Saturday night. You beg forgiveness and offer your first born in exchange of the relief from the pounding in your head. In Taiwan, there’s no need to go to such extremes because the cure to your dilemma is right outside your door. That cure is food, delicious Taiwanese food. The food is so good it has magical healing powers. Just don’t quote me on that last promise.

Transitioning to the slow rhythmic flow of Taiwan’s lifestyle was confusing after living for a year in the balli balli (hurry, hurry) mindset of Korea. A place where people eat a breakfast of street food while speed walking to their morning jobs, push through crowds to get to their destination first, and have no concept of queuing because it’s considered too slow.

Another marvelous day has come and gone in 2015. March 8th marked International Women’s Day, and its significance isn’t lost on us females who are exploring the world on solo journeys. In honor of the beautiful day and celebration, I’d like to present some of the top fearless female bloggers who are out making a name for themselves as solo travelers. These women to me represent courage, ambition, and fearlessness.

So what makes Taiwan’s tea plantations so special? For one thing, the climate is perfect for growing tea. High mountains provide the cool temperatures needed. Combine that with high humidity and fertile soil, and the tea leaves have the exact conditions they need to grow slowly and develop their flavor.

After a while in your new country though, you start to realize little tips and tricks that make life easier. You know all the short cuts on the subway, and you can recognize a phony western food restaurant from a mile away. In Taiwan there are little truths to be had that all expats come across eventually.

It has been three and a half years of a journey since you sat there that day on your bed looking over everything you were packing to head off on your way to Bali. As you sit there looking over your whole life in a bag for the next year, the buzz of excitement mixed with anticipation and a healthy dash of fear swimming around in your stomach, you never could have foreseen the ups, downs, twists and turns, and general direction your year abroad would take.

My first Chinese New Year (Lunar New Year) in Taiwan has been exciting and confusing to say the least. From being gifted new exotic fruits by my landlord to being handed red envelopes at every bank I pop into, there’s a whirlwind of new customs and traditions I’m being exposed to daily.