I am late on posting this, but since I don't share very often, I thought you might forgive me.

I went to Taiwan in January for 2 and a half weeks with my my mom, sister, two nephews and niece. I hadn’t been in 11 years.

Sounds: The rooster nearby would crow at all times of the day, the sound of the well running, my nephews and niece crying, firecrackers in the middle of the day for five days (for new years), loud siamese cats next door yowling constantly.

Smells: Incredible food everywhere you go. Tons of outdoor cafes/eateries and open air markets with piles of fresh vegetables/meat and prepared food for sale. Alleyways reek. At least there are less stray dogs than there used to be.

Sights: I'll let the pictures tell you. (Thanks to my sister for letting me use some of her pictures too). As hard as I tried and as many pictures as I took, there are many images in my head that I was not able to capture on my camera. Like all the different fashions amongst people and dogs. And the true craziness of Taipei.

My Taiwanese improved, and for the first time, I was mistaken for a native.

My temperature was taken every time I entered a government building. They have fancy devices that they just point at your head and it says the temperature.

The first several days were full of sickness for the kids. I escaped to the busy city of Taipei for a day. Then came four days where we rode a different train to a different city every day. Included in that was my cousin's wedding, a mini-vacation in the mountains, and new years. Then back to Taichung to cram in multiple trips to the night market and to eat certain foods.

Favorite foods eaten there: Mochi (with peanut or taro), taro ice cream, fresh dates, persimmons, clam soup, bubble tea, passion fruit smoothies, dim sum, pork buns, cactus fruit, all different soups, Taichung Bah-Wonh (a mochi textured bun w/pork, vegetables, and sauce), and roasted chestnuts from the market. It's funny, these are mostly foods I eat here anyway, I just ate them in excessive amounts there. Excess was key in all the meals there. Often there would be 2 or 3 different soups. Sometimes I would find myself with 3 cups full of tea, wine, and juice.

I could go on and on. The trip was awesome. I am excited about travelling again. I've taken a few weekend trips since I've been back. And I have several more small trips in the works for the next five months that will end with some major movement, and I'm not talking about bowels here. See pictures for toilets.

Two of my relatives own bidet toilets with fancy lighted buttons. Lots of toilets. Lots of non-stop action.

I need to shut up now.