No, She's Not Taiwanese

I've commented before on how as a foreigner learning Taiwanese (instead of Mandarin), the reactions I get from the Taiwanese people are varied, though also predictable. For example, a lot of people will guess right away that I am a missionary, because it is typically only the missionaries that make the extra effort to learn Taiwanese.

Another reaction that is common (if Eileen isn't present) is for the person to say, "Oh, your wife must be Taiwanese!" And, for the 153rd time I respond, "No, she's not. She's Canadian like me." They assume that the only reason a foreigner would learn Taiwanese is to be able to speak to his Taiwanese wife's relatives (especially grandparents).

I love all the special reactions I get when I speak Taiwanese. At the very least it elicits smiles and warms the heart, both mine, and hopefully that of the listener.

Taiwan Franklin Graham Festival

The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association has a great page detailing the recent Franklin Graham Festival in Taipei, Taiwan. Check it out here. In addition to giving glory to God for His love and mercy for the people of Taiwan, there are some excellent video shorts (like the one below) that will help give you a better picture of Taiwan's current spiritual need.

All At War

This past year I've had the pleasure to discover the music of "downhere". The band has released several albums, all of which are worthy of purchase and adding to your collection of quality Christian music. downhere often write from the perspective of that age old struggle between the spirit and the flesh, the temporal and the eternal, the now and the "not yet". Their music resonates with me as I have recently been thinking more about the reality of our eternal hope of heaven. I have often felt that believers (speaking for myself and the circle of friends I have been a part of) often do not live in the present with a sufficient hope and longing for the eternal life promised to us through Christ. This is understandable, as I know how the "fog of war" in this present life can distract us from the ultimate prize.

On their most recent album (Ending Is Beginning), downhere has a song entitled "All At War". Below are the words to the second verse and chorus:

I was born depraved, but created for the divine,
With death in my bones, in my heart eternal life,
I'd love for Eden, but I'd kill for Rome,
I'm native in a land that is not my home

It's justice and mercy the old dichotomies,
All along the frontlines of my heart in both doubt and belief
The sinner and saint, the old arch enemies,
All at war, in me

The words of this song speak deeply to me in these days when the Spirit has attuned me once again to the spiritual battle we are in. That battle is very prevalent and real in Taiwan, where idol worship has given Satan a stronghold. But that battle is also just as real in my own heart, as I struggle with temptations old and new. The apostle Paul longed to be free from that "body of death", and joyfully expressed the freedom that comes through Christ and the new Spirit He has placed within us (Romans 7-8).

There will be no retirement from war this side of heaven. But in the meantime, I have the assurance that there is only one winning side, and I'm on it. And I intend to stay there.

You Gotta Dress For The Weather

Fall weather has truly arrived here in Taiwan the past few days, with a wonderful cool front moving in to lower the temperatures. Last night the mercury dipped to 18 C, and today's high was 22 C. For a Canadian who grew up in northern Manitoba, now living in Taiwan, this brings more joy than I can express!

What I always find funny this time of year, when the first "cold snap" moves in, is to see the reaction of the Taiwanese. 22 C weather means all the Taiwanese on their motorcycles and scooters suddenly don their winter parkas, mitts and scarfs. For me, it means that for the first time in about 7 months I've finally felt comfortable without the aid of fans or air conditioning. I chuckle as I pull up alongside others at a stop light. They immediately look over to see what idiot is dumb enough to drive a scooter in such frigid temps, wearing only a T-shirt and summer shorts. Then they see my beard and foreign face and say, "Oh yeah. American!"

Fourth Annual Taichung Fun Fly

Taiwan is a fairly affluent society by world standards, and people here have various ways of spending their money on leisure and recreational activities. A popular one is RC craft (airplanes, helicopters, cars). A friend tipped us off to an RC event held this past weekend at Taichung city's old abandoned airport, just a few minutes from our house.

Besides the flying demonstrations, there were other exhibits and fun things to do. Check out the video at the end of this post of the guy with mad skills on the RC helicopter.

The chopper above came back in pieces, unfortunately.

A Bike Show, Dinner at Chili's, and a Smashed in Window

Well, today's blog title pretty much explains how our day went. The kids wanted to go out and do something fun today, so we went to a large department store where they have some kind of revolving exhibit on the 10th floor. This month's exhibit was on bicycles, and we all enjoyed looking at some of the newest innovative designs in cycling. After kicking around that department store for a while, we then walked over to another department store in the area that has a Chili's restaurant. Supper was good, and we even got a free dessert.

When we got back to the car, which we had parked just on the side of the street between the two department stores, we discovered someone had smashed in the passenger window and rifled through our glove box, etc. They were probably looking for the portable GPS (as they could see the holder on the dash) but they didn't get it, as I had slipped it into my pocket before we left the car earlier that afternoon. They did, however, find my iPod in the center armrest pocket. I was only upset about this for a few seconds, as fortunately it was an old iPod that had served me well. My new iPod was safely at home.

This was not the first time our car had been broken into, although it was the first time it happened in Taiwan. Back in Canada someone vandalized our van by smashing in the back window. There was nothing of real value worth stealing that time, so I'm not sure if theft was the motive or just senseless vandalism. On another occasion a portable CD player was stolen out of the same van, but no other damage was done as we had forgotten to lock the doors that night, so it was a free invitation, so to speak.

Nevertheless, Adam and Paige were somewhat upset to see the smashed window and to have their innocent psyches confronted with the fact that there are people in this world who don't hesitate to damage and/or steal another person's property. Although I was sufficiently "irked" at the theft myself, I am hoping my somewhat calm reaction to it helped the kids to understand that our joy does not rest in our possessions. In any case, we all had a good laugh on the way home as our solemn mood was broken by Erin bursting out into a praise song at one point! At the time I thought she maybe didn't understand what had actually just happened, but later at bedtime when we talked about it some more, and prayed for the person(s) that broke into our car, it was clear that Erin understood exactly what had happened.

So, we let it roll.... It's not the first time someone has stolen something from me/us, and, unfortunately, pretty sure it won't be the last time. I might be a little choosier next time where I decide to park the car (it was in an isolated area), and I'll be sure not to leave anything in the car that would hint at hidden goodies. But beyond that, we thank God for every day He gives us of safe, family fun, like going to bike shows and having supper at Chili's.

Getting Meds in Taiwan

One of the things a western foreigner must adjust to when living in Taiwan is how the medical system works, specifically when it comes to doctor visits and getting prescription medication.

Walk-in clinics abound in Taiwan, as do both traditional Chinese and Western medicine pharmacies. In any major city one doesn't need to go too far to find either. The doctors (i.e. General/Family Practitioners) that work in these clinics usually speak a fairly good level of English (being highly educated folk), however, some doctors are not as reliable as others. Several years ago some American missionary friends of ours took their daughter to a doctor to see about getting a prescription for her allergies. The doctor prescribed a certain medication for her. Before giving it to her however, they decided to do some research on it on the internet. Turns out the medication in question was some kind of psychotropic drug. Needless to say they didn't have her take the drug.

That brings me to my first point - you can never be too sure what you are getting when a doctor prescribes medication for you in Taiwan! I know the doctors intentions are not in question, but they do not offer a whole lot of information as to what they are actually prescribing. The foreigner should always research the drug on the internet. Typically when a clinic dispenses medication, they put the pills in little packages (one package for each dose - see picture for reference). It is often difficult for the foreigner to know exactly what he/she is taking, as the package does not contain any drug information. You do get a receipt, which probably has the names of the drugs on it, but I have a hard enough time reading drug information in English, let alone Chinese.

Another interesting thing that doctors do here is that when prescribing antibiotics they only prescribe 3 days' worth. Now, everything I have learned in Canada about antibiotics is that you must take at least 7 to 10 days worth in order to be effective. This also prevents the bacteria from developing a resistance to the drug before it is completely eradicated. What the doctors here will tell you is to take 3 days' worth and then come back to see them to see if the drug is working. If it is, they will give you the remaining 5-7 days' worth. If not, they prescribe a different antibiotic for another 3 days. I guess there is some wisdom in that, but it does make for multiple trips to the clinic whereas in Canada they give you the whole 7-10 days' worth from the start.

The final thing I'll mention here is that in Taiwan you do not necessarily need (is that redundant?) a prescription to buy antibiotics in Taiwan. One can walk into a local pharmacy and ask for 250 mg. of erythromycin, for example, and walk out with it, no questions asked. You couldn't do that in Canada. This leads to the (perhaps ethical) question of whether an individual should "self medicate", but it can be convenient if you know for certain the antibiotic in question is the one that you need. Saves you one step in the process.

So, sick person beware, the medication game in Taiwan is different from what the westerner may be used to. Once you learn the system, though, you shouldn't run into too many problems.