Taiwan travel history-1

I have wanted to go to Taiwan for many years, and I started to have the idea when a classmate in college went to be an exchange student. In recent years, I have been involved in Taiwanese independent bands and have begun to learn about some social issues. I really want to go and take a look. It is not just a tourist check-in, but I want to understand what this island is like and how the people in it live. The COVID-19 has blocked the world for several years, but this year we finally have the opportunity to travel.

I was not in Taiwan for a long time, and every day was full of schedules. I only had time to sit down and write down some fragmentary records and fragments after I came back, so I created this series of travel notes. They are very personal records, a mixture of people and things seen and thoughts emanating from them. I will write slowly one by one. At the beginning, I just want to say sincerely, thank you Taiwan, you let me see different possibilities.

Day1 on the way

I took an early flight and opened the window when I first took off. I saw the orange morning light and a sky without any clouds. The street lights were still on, and the traffic had just woken up and flowed on the streets. After a while, I opened the window again, and the sun peeked out from one side. I was a little surprised. I wanted to see the sunrise on the plane, so I accidentally chose the right window seat. I couldn't help but hold up my phone and record a time-lapse. The sun slowly rose, and just when it was about to be fully exposed, a burst of clouds suddenly flew over, shining orange, like a fairyland that embodied the sun.

The plane quickly flew into the clouds, and my eyelids started to tremble, so I took a short nap. When I woke up, the plane was already landing. I carefully opened the window a crack. After my eyes adjusted to the strong light, I saw fluffy clouds, wanton and wanton. Floating in random shapes. Driving past this cloud, the Bay Area suddenly appeared in front of us. The sea water looks a bit gray from a distance, but up close, it is a color between green and blue. There were boats on the water and seaplanes gliding quickly by. A little lower, you can see the bridge, and the offshore is divided into small patches, probably for farming? The plane flew over the entire Bay Area, turned a big bend in the south of the Bay Area, and turned around to go north. At this time, the sun in the distance lit up, making the sea water blue. When it was about to land, the plane passed by a golf course on the seaside and a dock full of sailboats. No wonder so many people spend a lot of money to live in the Bay Area. Who doesn’t want to have the experience of playing golf on the seaside and sailing a sailboat?

After getting off the plane, in a sunny corridor of the airport, there were many paintings, abstract cities, tree branches, large and small birds, and arbitrary addition, subtraction, multiplication and division signs.

There is an exhibition called "To Survive on This Shore" at the airport. I passed by it when I was looking for food, and I only saw some huge photos of people. When I walked back and took a closer look, I realized that the people in the picture were all transgender. The author writes that this is because older transgender people are almost invisible in society, and the very few people who appear in public are also one-sided. So they found trans people of all races, ages and backgrounds, photographed them, recorded their stories, and made them visible.

There are several stories that make people feel sour after reading them. A little girl, Hank, was raised as the only "son" at home since she was a child. She didn't realize her gender until she was eleven or twelve years old. In the days before, she wore boys' clothes with pockets on the top. During Thanksgiving, her sisters and their mother were at home getting ready, and she and her father went hunting. Her father realized very early that this daughter was different from others, and he also enjoyed the experience of raising a "son". When others pointed at her, he just told them to mind their own business. He even told outsiders: "This one is not going to get married." Hank said that in the context of that era, his move was actually saying to others "she is queer." When Hank joined the army at the age of 21, her superiors commented on her as "beautiful but very masculine". She liked the life in the army, but was involved in the "gay investigation". In the end, they found nothing, but Hank left the army under pressure. Now she is 76 years old and has lived with her same-sex lover for more than 40 years.

What touches me most about their stories is that many people mentioned, "I'm still exploring." They are people in their 50s, 60s, and even 80s. They honestly say that they do not have the final answer and are still exploring. This is inexplicably reassuring. It is not necessary to have the final answer to survive as a human being. It is okay not to have the answer. .

After transferring to the airport, I returned to the boarding gate. I was about to board the plane. I was crowded with people, most of whom were Asian. I started to hear Chinese. It's amazing. I feel a little timid when I hear Chinese. It's like I know that I am an outsider in the English world and am used to it. But suddenly when I come to the Chinese world, I am no longer an outsider, but I don't seem to be an insider either. I don't know how to maintain myself. .

The flight to Taipei was long, I woke up and fell asleep again, and I had no idea what it would be like to go to a place with a Chinese environment but never set foot in. Maybe I will experience many moments that remind me that I am a passer-by, and there will be wonderful coincidences among them.

When we landed in the evening, we began to see the blue sky and white flags. The experience at Taipei Airport was very smooth. Just after I came out of the boarding gate, someone handed out flyers saying not to bring fresh fruits and meat to prevent swine fever. After turning a corner, someone took the flyer back, and a sign on the side read "Welcome to Taiwan." At the corner before customs, there is a short-term phone card and foreign exchange window. Phone card costs NT$500 for 10 days with unlimited traffic. The foreign exchange exchange window is opened by the bank. The lady is very nice. She checks the amount and explains the matters. She also patiently answered my stupid questions like "Can I find it at the vegetable market for 1,000 yuan?"

After passing customs, I went downstairs to find the checked box, dragged it to the MRT station, and got on the bus. The 29km journey was smooth. The carriage is very new, neat and clean, and there is a wireless charging area for mobile phones. I overheard people chatting on the bus and said that they were in Jersey and compared to Taipei, the subway in New York was much worse, dirty and chaotic. People on the other side said that there is no subway in the city where we live. I couldn’t help but nod my head inwardly. I really can’t complain enough about the bus and subway systems in North America.

Walking out of the MRT station, I breathed the outdoor air for the first time in 20+ hours. I was very moved. I went from a place where the mountains were covered with heavy snow to a warm night in the subtropics, with humid air, shops still open at night, and lights on. , motorcycles coming and going on the street, just walking around is a night intoxicated by the spring breeze. I couldn't help but take a deep breath, the long-lost smoke of fireworks, and the dusty memories of Asia began to resurrect.