A New Beginning

Five years, six months, and twenty days. The number representing the amount of time I made Japan my home. Add the ten months spent in Japan on my study abroad my total increases to roughly six years, four months and twenty days.

It still hasn't completely sunken in, that I am not returning to Japan to live, but I think I will continue to gradually warm up to the idea of starting something new, unknown and exciting, somewhere in Canada. 

Before making the transition back into Canadian society and to make the most of my remaining time in Asia, I have packed my bags and boarded a plane bound for the Republic of China, more commonly known as Táiwān.

Some information about the country courtesy of Táiwān Tourism Bureau's homepage

Area: 36,000 square kilometres
Population: 23 million
Language: Mandarin/Taiwanese/Hakka/Indigenous Languages


Just to add some perspective, New Brunswick, Canada has an area of roughly 73,000 square kilometres. Roughly double that of Táiwān. Yet the population is roughly thirty one times that of New Brunswick.

Although this is my third time visiting Táiwān, here are some first (or should I say third) time impressions:

-Life revolves around food.
-Things are fairly cheap (Makes sense coming from Japan)
-Taiwanese people seem to love things Japanese (Food, anime/manga, music… the list goes on)


To finish off my first blog post, I leave you with a picture of one of the most famous night markets in Taipei. Night markets are culinary must here in Táiwān, full of hawker stalls selling anything and everything. I haven't been daring enough to try everything, but I have had my fair share of sweets and snacks.

士林夜市

Shìlín Night Market