"To go out with the setting sun on an empty beach is to truly embrace your solitude."

Kenting, Taiwan 

This weekend I headed south to Kenting with the 5 girls I worked with at the ShangAn campus AND 4 of the amazing Chinese staff; Glory, Patricia, ChiaChi, and Maureen. It took us a little over 3 hours to get to Kaohsiung (2nd largest city in Taiwan), and from there we took a taxi to our hotel in Kenting.

Saying the Chinese staff is amazing does not do justice for what I am implying, so I will give a few examples. First arriving in Taiwan I brought $700 U.S. dollars AKA $18,800 NT. Our first paycheck is not until August 8, so for 7 weeks I have lived in another country and done all of these amazing things off of that money, however I was down to my last $5oo NT ($15) when this trip was planned. Glory let me borrow the money I would need for Kenting and any of the activities I wanted to do! They also rented scooters through the hotel and offered to drive us so we were able to see multiple beaches, the night market, and have a few adult beverages.
 

We arrived at our adorable hotel called, Seeds of Heart. Like most things in Taiwan, it was brightly colored and had its cute decorations. We were right across from the ocean and of course we had a 7 Eleven next to us.

We scooted to a beach that was much less rocky than the one across from us. The waves were some of the biggest I have ever seen in all my travels to oceans.  All of the beaches were incredibly packed with people. The weekend we went was actually the last weekend most Taiwanese people would be allowed to go because of their belief in Ghost Month. 



Ghost month, also known as Hungry Ghost Festival begins on the 15th night of the 7th lunar month. Just as many other Taiwanese holidays and festivals, the time of the Ghost month is based off the lunar calendar.  The belief is that the realm of Heaven and Hell are opened and that ghosts and spirits from the lower realms come out to visit the living. Taiwanese will cook elaborate meals and set it out at empty seats to feed their dead ancestors, then they will have to eat all of the food that remains. The belief is based from Buddhism and is meant to help relieve any suffering from the ghosts. The festivals will be taken outside of the house, but many shops and markets will close to make room for the spirits. Chiachi and Maureen told us this and many other traditions / forbidden activities that happen during this month. Such as, not going to the beach. Going to the beach would be considered very dangerous because the lower realm spirits may try to take you.  

Back to the beach, we all played around in the water as we waited for our turn on the jet ski's and the "banana boat," which is basically tubing with multiple people. Michelle and I jumped onto a jet ski, he made sure we had a dead grip on his chest, then he took off. The waves were HUGE and we were jumping, diving, turning into them. I was screaming, laughing, smiling uncontrollably. I felt so alive! We were dropped off on the banana boat, a few minutes later Katie and Rhonda joined us and we took off on our next rush. Katie had a waterproof camera, which took some great photos, including some from when she flew off the back of the banana boat!

As we took the jet ski ride in, we were mortified to hear that two people had been swept out to sea by the waves. One was found quickly, placed on a stretcher and rushed to the ambulance. The other man unfortunately did not survive. 

Before we prepared for the night, we took some pictures of the sunset. It was quiet at this time, peaceful, and more beautiful then any photo could capture.

 

We scooted down to the night market which had a variety of games, shops, and food of all different assortments. We even passed a place that Glory called a "Lady Boy" club, which would be like a drag queen bar in America. For food, I tried a bit of everything. An 'authentic cooked' sweet sausage, shrimp that was so fresh I could taste the ocean, a fried Oreo, corn dog, and cheesy potatoes. I played a game with Maureen and Rhonda where we had to shoot darts at water balloons. The other girls played basketball or a 'shooting' range. I didn't have money to buy anything really, but there are some amazing market treasures down in Kenting.

Saturday we spent out last couple hours on a different beach. The waves were much more calm when we arrived, but they picked up by noon. We were able to swim for about 45 minutes, until the lifeguards had us stay near the shoreline. Good call on their part, because the waves would knock us over even on the shoreline!  Most of the Asian men were wearing speedos, which is a definite change from back home. I also saw three different couples wearing matching board shorts, too cute. We did all the things you should do on a beach, play in the sand, lay out, enjoy the shade of a beach umbrella, people watch, etc.  


 






We made it home around 10:30 P.M. after a delicious dinner in Kaohsiung and many embarrassing shared stories on the bus ride in. I am extremely grateful to have been put at the ShangAn campus and now the NanMen campus, because now I have a strong bond with ShangAn girls and soon to be NanMen. :-) Truly Blessed in so many ways!   

I will go back to Kenting not only for the beaches, the shopping, and the people. I still have to go to Kenting National Park where the southernmost tip of Taiwan, the Eluanbi Lighthouse, is located!

Fun Facts:

-Teaching kindergarten is actually illegal in Taiwan. Were told the owner of our school has great connections.

-Gas is 35 NT, which would be $1.17 a gallon in the states.

-Taiwanese believe that ice cream and other cold beverages shrink a woman's womb and make periods more painful. This is why they drink so many hot/warm beverages. 

-Two classes, different campuses, have had to cancel school for a week because two or more students have gotten the hand, foot, mouth disease.

- Taiwanese continue you to be fascinated with us foreigners. As a group we were asked to have a picture  taken five times. Two other times I was singled out and asked. The creepiest is when we we know their snapping photos, but they don't ask.
-Father's day is August 8. But NO mother's day, so they use the American Mother's Day in May.

-Dairy products are some of the most expensive food you can buy.
-The food goes bad quickly, but that's also because they are not loaded with preservatives.

-They use real sugar which is good, but they sweeten the oddest foods like mayo or peanut butter. 

 
First time I really got to see the stars in Taiwan. :-)  --Thanks for reading  -K