Typhoon Times

Exiting the train station in Wanhua, I put my rain cape over myself and my backpack, swapped into my sandals because there was no way my feet were staying dry, and marched through the wet and windy streets. Taiwan has a lot of nigh time activitiy becuase it is warm and safe all night, but the streets were empty of cars, motorbikes, and people. The occasional ambulance or bus came by, with bright lights flaring. The night was quiet except for the sound of the rain and wind, and the rhythmic slapping sound of a huge adversiting banner than had come partially detached from a large buidling. We would hear that smacking sound for the next 48 hours.

I got into SJ's place and had some soup and fell the F asleep.

The next morning, we went on an outing with Thollie in a break in the rain. The rain came in waves, with a few minutes to an hour of very heavy downpour, then less percepitation. Then the wind would pick back up and the rain would start again.

The whole space had a spooky, battneed down quality. I was glad to be someplace familiar.

Also we had tons of snacks! We had many snack feasts, enjoyed some LA Dodgers themed beer, made tacos and pancakes, played cards, and generally just rested up. With a roof over your head, a friend, food, and a dehumidifier, things can feel very cozy. I wish the same for evryone in the world.

Morning after, the storm had passed and the sky was heavy and grey. There was a lot of distruction throughout the city and the island. The city of YuLi had been hit hard. I feel grateful I got to go there in calm weather and wonder about how the storm looked and felt as it crossed that wide river basin.

As a low-effort outing, I went to the Natural History museum, starting with an exhibit about the cricket species and the practice of keeping insects as pets.

Crickets

Upstairs, i walked through an exhibit showcasing items that were important in the settling/colonization of the island by the portugese, dutch and chinese. Most of these items are replicas. I overheard some austrailian tourists complaining that they weren't the original artifacts- but most of the originals are in the countries that did the colonizing! Duh!

Therre were beautiful displays showing aspects of the cultural history and then some impressive taxidermy of the animals of the island.

I spent time in the garden outside. These pictures really do not show the architecture at play here, the red pagoda was set inside this square shaped pond, and the whole space had this symmetry to it...I loved it.

I debated going into the museum of postal history, but decided to take a break to eat first. This is where I made my most dramatic/rediculous mistake of the trip. At the small restaurant, I ordered a bowl of beef noodle soup (no mistakes there). I thought I was ordering individual dumplings of three different flavors to be a side dish, but I actually ordered 10 dumplings each of 3 flavors. I was overwhelmed by dumplings.

26 dumplings in a carryout bag by my side, I went to the next museum on my way back to SJ's house. I think this was called the Museum of Memory but I need to double check that name. Basically, this museum, housed in an old house that used to be a social club, described the oppressive practices of the Japanese colonization, and then the violence and further oppression that came as the Japanese pulled out of the country and as Chinese Nationalists fleeing communism came to take power. During this time, there was a lot of confusion, corruption, and enforcemnt of draconian laws about behavior. For example, people were required to speak only Mandarin in public and to avoid certain Japanese dressing styles- even though those had been the social norms in the very recent past, and many people didn't have the resources to learn/use Mandarin or dress in the now-required style.

In an evocative way, the museum memorialized the terror and the lives lost as people tried to unionze, keep their property and lifestyles, and just maintain their soverighnty. I was moved to tears, especially thinking about how this pattern repeats itself all over the world, over and over again.

After weeping and then eating some dumplings, I went to a theater museum that was more like an institute for fine arts. The main building was closed to install an exhibit but I got to wander through one gallery and see some modern scroll paintings, as well as lots of debris from the typhoon. I wanted to go into the botanical gardens that was next door but it was closed to clean up the storm damage.

That night, SJ and the dog and I took a long walk through quiet streets with brightly lit buildings. I got a set of earrings and immediately lost one. We celebrated the joys of loving cake. Eventually we made it to the pet store that sold the specific dog food they desired, then walked home.