I arrived in Taipei, and let me tell you, on this side of the world, they love their biometric scanning. Immigration took forever. From the airport, I needed to negotiate their subway system, which would prove to be similar to a lot of other ones in Asia. For single trips, one needs to purchase a plastic coin that contains an RF chip. You swipe the coin over the scanner, and it lets you in. When your ride is over, you deposit the plastic coin in a receptacle like a coin machine. The arms of the turn-style then let you out.
I arrived at night at the main train station in Taipei. Luckily, I was able to find my way to my hostel a few blocks away. I checked in, was shown to my joint room, and quickly dropped my bags and headed out to find some food. After finding an ATM by hook or by crook, I managed upon the fantastic Ningxia night market. 
This very pedestrian-friendly night market had everything a traveler could want, cheap food, cheap beer, and cheap entertainment. I settled on the dinner and a show of scallion pancakes, which was a marvel to watch in its own right. I realized that I was no longer in Kansas in that I had to resort to a primitive grunting and pointing as the cooks spoke no English. While the written language was in characters, the numbers were still Arabic, so at least I knew and would know what to pay. I enjoyed my sizzling hot scallion pancake and headed back for some much-needed sleep.
The next day, it rained all day. I decided to turn it into an Admin Day. After my included breakfast consisting of mostly starfruit and Asian pastries, I did some work and talked to some clients, before I headed out for lunch. I found a little sushi restaurant that had a line out the door. I got my box of food, sat in the stalls, and just marveled at everyone doing the same thing. On my way back, I noticed an interesting custom. Outside of pharmacies, they try to entice people to enter not with glossy spreads of people using their products, but rather the din of shrill recorded voices, yelling through loudspeakers. I went home, dried off, and promptly went to sleep. I awoke and decided that although this rainy day was a little piece of eternity dropped into my hands. But I knew what to do with it.
When you are traveling, even the most mundane thing, such as buying food, or doing 
laundry, becomes an adventure, something that takes you out of your comfort zone. As such, I decided to have the experience of going to the movies. As I knew an important chapter in the world’s shared cinematic story was soon to cease, I paid my money and saw Captain Marvel. I then got another scallion pancake and a meat skewer, returned to my bunk, anxiously awaiting my next day.
So today, I woke up, had brekkie of mostly starfruit, and headed out to take my bus tour of Taipei. After learning many facts about the city, I went to the National Palace Museum. This is an incredibly interesting place as it houses all the artwork the White Chinese were able to smuggle out of the country when the communists took control. It is so popular that millions of mainland Chinese come every year to see their history that survived the fiery destruction of Mao’s Cultural Revolution. There were even protestors there, exposing travelers to the many atrocities being committed by the People’s Republic of China. A protestor handed me a book on the evils of the Chinese Communist Party.
I look forward to reading but knew since I would be traveling to Communist countries, it would be best if I read it back home.
The next stop was Chiang Kai Shekʼs memorial, which was impressive. For the uninitiated, Chiang Kai Shek was the leader of the White Chinese against Mao’s Red. The decision to work together to expel the Japanese during World War II. While citizens of both camps suffered greatly during one war, that did not stop them from continuing another. When the Communists won in 1949, Chiang Kai Shek fled the 
mainland and set up a government in exile. His compound reminded me of the national mall. His memorial and museum were equally as impressive, much like the Lincoln Memorial. The massive seated statue stares out over visitors under a cerulean canopy. I saw the changing of the guards, walked around his museum, then hopped on the bus back to where I started to get on a bus to the Grand Hotel. It was incredibly beautiful. As everything 
appears to be bigger in Taiwan, it is the biggest Asian facade I have ever seen. The lobby was like something out of a movie, long flowing carpets, deep lacquered walls, with colorful flower and Asian motifs throughout. I got back and was not hungry today. For dinner, I bought a guava juice and an apple-pear. Then the shit hit the fan.
One of my major clients was having a problem with the city and the tax board. Thoughts of having to cut my trip short and heading back were swirling through my head as I tried to talk with him through the spotty internet provided by my place. As it was approaching the middle to the night here, I bid him adieu and told him I would help him to the best of my abilities.
So, for my last day in Taipei, I went to breakfast. My appetite had returned some, so I had my starfruit and some smiley-faced potatoes. I then set out for the Armed Forces Museum. 
While not quite American, Taiwan does indeed have a gun culture. I guess you have to when you could be invaded at any moment. The highlight there was an interactive display where you could shoot regular guns outfitted with lasers. I got bullseye after I switched the M4 to automatic. Another thing I learned was that the special forces here use bikes. A little ridiculous, but hey, what works works.
I then headed to the Presidential Palace where I got a private tour, mainly because the tour guide and myself were the only ones speaking English. I came back to the hostel to see if anything more happened overnight, but it did not. I took the MRT over to the Martyrʼs Shrine, more accurately, the National Revolutionary Martyr’ Shrine. Basically, it is for their war dead. Unfortunately, they are doing renovations so I was unable to actually go in the shrine to pay my respects. I did so by not taking any photographs.
Now, I wish this was the first instance I had seen it, but unfortunately not. When I traveled to Hawaii, standing upon the USS Arizona memorial solemnly watching the oil bubbling to the surface, like the phantom lives the young men interred in this their watery grave would never have, a cacophony of laughter erupted. I turned around, and there was a Japanese man taking pictures and laughing. His mirth did not go unnoticed. Neither did the gum wrapper he deposited on this sacred ground. As my father was getting ready to give him an up-close and personal tour of the submerged Arizona, a ranger picked up the wrapper, handed it back to the man, and asked him to be quiet in Japanese. Sadly, there was no such confrontation here. Men were mocking the changing of the guards, young women were giggling and listening to music while Instagramming. Considering a lot of the people buried here were the result of just such callousness, it was insult to injury.
I returned home. Since laundry is free here, I came back to throw my stuff in. I’m now just waiting for my clothes to dry. Tomorrow I leave Taiwan and head to Japan.
