Visual Journal: Taiwan On A Whim
Sony 35mm f/5.6, 1/4000s, ISO 200
Whew. Taiwan was a whirlwind of a week. Having never set foot in Asia before, one would think I’d have gone about this trip completely differently. I originally pictured my first Asia trip as a well thought-out, well-researched, and leisurely sojourn through a few different countries across a number of weeks, or even months.
Safe to say, things don’t usually work out how you plan them.
I’d been working on a side business with a team for a few months and, at the beginning of July, they all flew out to Taipei to meet with potential investors. I had stayed behind in Vancouver because I had a full-time job and didn't want to use the vacation days. Each passing day brought increasing feelings of anxiety about missing out as I saw on social media what they were getting to experience.
Finally, after a phone call with the team on the evening of Monday, July 17th, I decided to book a flight over. They had already made arrangements to leave on a road trip around the island in a couple days, so I had to get there ASAP to make it. The timestamp of my flight confirmation e-mail was July 17, 11:32pm. My outgoing flight from YVR to TPE? July 18, 11:10am.
Yup, you read that right. On a whim, I decided to fly across the world on less than half a day’s notice. I remember the internal voice asking myself, “Are you insane? What are you doing?”
5 Things I Learned On My Trip to Taiwan
1. This trip was easily the most spontaneous thing I’ve done in my life (so far). I packed a carry-on, forwent sleep, and headed to the airport early in the morning. I remember the influx of messages from friends and family: “What are you doing?!” and “Why are you going to Taiwan?”
I just thought it was funny at the time. I felt excited and liberated to do something so wild and beyond anyone’s expectations.
2. I didn’t even think about the logistics of the trip. There wasn’t any time. But once I stepped off that plane at the Taipei airport and the humidity hit me, I realized, “Shit. I don’t speak a lick of Mandarin and I’m on my own till I meet up with my team.”
I first struggled to get into the right line to get through customs. I didn't even notice the customs form I had to fill out. Of course, you have to write the address of where you're staying. I called the team and they only knew it in Mandarin characters (which of course I couldn't write).
I left the field blank and when it was finally my turn, the customs agent proceeded to start interrogating me in Mandarin. I embarrassingly had to stop her and ask her to speak English. She rolled her eyes. It happened once more for good measure once she realized the address field was blank and that she had to fill it out for me.
Unfortunately, that was a recurring theme throughout the week, as everyone I encountered assumed that I could speak the language. I’ve honestly never felt more ashamed to not be able to speak Chinese.
3. I knew Taiwan was going to be crazy hot. Even so, I still somehow underestimated how hot. It was consistently 35C+ every day I was there. I remember checking my weather app one day and it read, 'Feels Like: 48C.' Factor in that humidity and I was a recipe for a daily, sweaty mess.
I have never appreciated air conditioning and cold showers so much.
4. In Vancouver, I’d say the roads are roughly 75% cars, 20% cyclists, and 5% motorbikes. In Taiwan, it’s completely different. More than half the vehicles I saw were electric scooters or bikes. They’re parked on every single street, and I often saw mothers carrying 2-3 children on one scooter! Nuts.
We got to ride some electric scooters around the city in Taichung (another city on the western side of central Taiwan) and even though they top out at just 40 km/h, they’re so much fun to rip around.
5. I wasn’t aware of this before I left, but I happened to get there around the time the meetings were wrapping up. The first half of the trip was spent in Taipei, then we took a couple cars on a road trip around Taiwan.
In one week, I got to see the major cities such as Taipei, Taichung, Tainan, and Kaohsiung. Every city felt different from the last, and I’m grateful that I got a little taste of each before I returned home.
Here are a few snaps from my trip. You can see more here.
