Found this in Tainan...

Tainan Skate Trip 1

Homer - riding the curve (this spot isn't that great actually)

This weekend is a Chinese Holiday called Peace Day giving us tuesday off of work. Some friends from Naili (Homer and Michael and his family) come down to skate. Taking the train in took extra long because there was a 6.1 earthquake on the way in. (Photo: Michael - fs 180 at full speed)

We rented scooters for the day driving around looking for spots to skate. Key to this is to find the schools. (Michael - wall ride)

After a long day of skateboarding we went to Taiwan's biggest night market. When you combine biggest with holiday weekend, you get a whole lot of people.

All the hotels were booked. We ended up getting a great deal on one for only about $10 each, however there is a price you pay for not paying much of a price. (The smell, the size, the cleanness, the neighbors, the safety, etc.)

Rainy Days in Taichung

It has been raining the past few days in Taichung, so we went out at the slightest chance of a good skate session. (Photos of me by A-Young).

After skating through puddles to skate the stairs above, the rain began to pick up, so we went underground.

Commercial - Go Pro Cam on Car

I played the roll of a skateboarder.

Taiwan Wedding

One of our students, Joseph, fell in love with an American girl. Her church from Missouri works with his church in Taiwan, doing ministry together in both countries. They ended up having a wedding in Taiwan and then off to America to have another one.

As they walked down the isle they sang to each other. Joanna has been learning Chinese and sang beautifully in both languages.

Ryan and Echo aren't that into weddings. zzzzzz

Please Click on the Image below to enlarge it...

Most of the things at the wedding were not super Taiwanese, it was a good mixture of both cultures.

However you will quickly notice in Taiwan that the average person doesn't care about presentation. The whole time during the wedding the professional photographer among others would stand right in front about 2ft or less from the couple to take a picture.

When they were about to do the kiss, almost 15 people got out of their seats and crowded the couple obstructing the view from anyone sitting in their sits from the "kiss

The other main cultural difference was before the kiss, as the choir sang two long songs, the groom slowly rolled up the brides vale. Slowly rolling it up until the last song was over to give her the kiss.

At Taiwanese weddings the bride will change her dress 3-5,6,7 times during the reception. I am not sure the reason for this, but it seems like a lot of work.

Skateboarding in Yingga

Anthony Homer Ulsa - fs Noseslide

Michael Mcdonald - Wallride Nollie out

Michael Mcdonald - fs flip

Pingxi Sky Lantern Festival - 平溪

I am not sure of the exact story, but they started launching sky lanterns in Pingxi, because it was a secluded area. It began to have lots of crime after Han had settled there. So they would launch sky lanterns to either let people know there was a bandit attack, or it was to let people know that they were safe. This event eventually became a large scale festival when the coal mines closed in the late twentieth century and the villagers need a new income.

I headed up to Pingxi (平溪) saturday around 1pm with Jacob. When we first arrived in Taipei, we got off the bus, took the escalator down two stories, when I suddenly realized I didn't have my wallet. I quickly remembered where I left it on the bus. I ran back up to the 3rd floor to retrieve it from the bus which had already left. I talked to the guy at the front desk telling him my problem. With no response he waved his arm and started to go down the escalators, he then brought me to the ticket booth. I realized then, he didn't understand any English, and I also realized that none of their employers understood English. Which was fine, because I could practice struggling through my Chinese vocabulary to explain the problem. After a clueless dialogue, back and forth they had found the wallet and I could retrieve it when it returned back to the city in a few hours.

After I received my wallet, Jake and I headed out a little later then we planned. We hopped on the MRT (Taiwan Subway) and after a transfer made it to the bus which then took us to Pingxi. When we arrived there was thousands of people. We walked down a road shoulder to shoulder, 10 people wide for a long distance.

Jake and I bought one of our own after watching thousands of other people send their own up. ($3US). 

The whole night kinda felt like this...



...but without the girl

Homer's Birthday Skate

More Skateboarding

Here is another recent video Michael posted. The footage is from mid Dec. I have 2 tricks in the video I start at 0:32

Skateboarding in Naili

This video is made by Homer. I probably skate with these guys once every 1 or 2 months. Most of this footage is from Nov. I beleive.

Year of the Dragon

Down the road from my house at off of 文心 road at Forest park is a big light display for the Year of the Dragon. On over corner of the park is a different colored dragon. There is lots of food and other activities to do there also. There was lots of people crowding the park, but surprisingly it all ended at 10pm.

Moltres?

Teaching English