johansvennung(臺灣)

On sunday we took it easy...first plan was to swim, pick up the ocmputer and watch a movie..in the end we more or less just watched movie...

We saw rainman and the bourne ultimatum...

I spent some time at plur...we were about to go to Gotheburg but it was rather empty there...

And as soon as we came the music were turned off...

The police are cheking for people who are under 18...however it seems like they r not blocking the exits when they come...so that younger people peacfully can escape...
I went home rather early...at 3-4 something...since I needed to go up early the day after (as usual when tai people arrange events...(if i can generalize a little).

Many tai people dont udnerstand the concept of "day before weekend day" meaning friday and saturday..., the days of the week when u eaily can stay up late sine u dont need to go up early the day after...
I remember a tai girl who wanted me to host classes at 21.00 every friday...for 1 hour...im like "who destroys a friday like that?but for them friday is like any other day (generalizing)
The same happend when i was going for a trip...it was suppose to be on january the 1st...but they didnt tell that we had to leave at 2 am...meaning we had to go to bed early...missing new years eve...(tai people r using the year system that changes between 31st of dec and 1st of jan, but they dont seem to celebrate it, compare to chinese new year). So just some days earlier when they told us about the cancallation of new years eve...we had to abor the trip...and inform them about our tradidions...
Anyway...forcing myself up early on saturday...we took the bus to taipei and from the main station we continued by a local bus to another place to play bowling...

We found another Marvin store in the middle of nowhere...interesting...

We bought some beers to drink while playing...
Unfortunettely we had to wait 3 hours for queuing at the bowling place since no one had reserved anything...
So we had to cancel the bowling idea...
after 2 hours discussion about what to do instead we decided to watch a movie...

There were not super many options...but we saw "rise of the planet of the apes"...it was ok...not top 100...

After that we had to wait for a promotion party of swedish match, same party as i have been to before...
We ate some coldstone icecream at taipei main station while waiting...

We hooked up with a lady who was looking for bald people...I gave her the number to my classmate...
Since i didnt feel like shaving my head...

After that we went t the club where the party was at...I didnt have my invitation cards...so we needed to wait for people to bring them for me...

We got giftes as usuall..glasses and some blinking bracelet... Absolut VBodka, swedish match etc were hosing...and people were served drinks. snus and cigaretts...

I bought snus to treat foreingers...however im not a big fan of nicotine, so i never tried...

They had entertainment...but as usual, it is not the party that makes a good night...it is the people u r there with...

Totally awesome!

Yesterday I was asked to tell people what to do in Taiwan.
Many students are in Taiwan only for the summer. So they want to optimize their visit here...

The restaurant that we went to had a new menu...but most fo their dishes were not available...due to this!?!

I had some appetizers...and pasta...(usually I have pizza her, but they always tend to be super small).

Later on that night we officially had some phonecalls...and also saw some picture...

Looking for flip flops as cheap as in kenting is hard...especially of u want my size... (size: 46, price: 100-150NT)
I spent alot of time looking for a pair...and now at NTHU i found them...

It was orange neon scotch bright...but they were cheap 120 NT...student price i guess...so now i dont need to walk around in shoes ot sandals....(often with sox a la north european style)

Some times at the 7-11 at campus there are alot of staff there...

4 people behind the desk...

And another person working in the stoff filling the shelves...
But barely any customers...

However...yesterday at 7-11 there were only 2 people in the staff there...but many customers...
I wonder who is responsible for the personnel administration at 7-11...

We have done the internship for almost a month already...time goes by fast...

It is kind of fun...even though we wont get payed...which is illegal...(everything not to make the classmate angry).

We get to try out many restaurants in the area...
And yesterday we went to a nice steak house...
I really hate it here in asia, (espcially Taiwan), when the restaurant have service charge...who dont they do it like in europe...make it easy for the customers, include tax and serice in the price...(just multiply the price by the charge), its not like every single tai walks around with a calculator in their pocket...
Besides service here often sux...!

This restaurant didnt charge any thing more than was said in the menu...
But the service was awesome...they even asked us how it tasted...like many restaurant staff at home use to do...
we got refill of most of the side dishes etc...

It was quite a contrast...to for example brass monkey...where they even have service charge for a single beer...that is not even filled to the top...
the steak was ok...for me it mostly always taste the same...

And dessert buffet was included...

We made some important phone calls to european companies...

After work was enjoyed at a hotel at Shilin night market...it was good.

There were many side dishes...i had a lasanga...not as good as the italian restaurant near my job...but it was ok...

There are always alot of people at the nighmarket at evening time...every day...

After that we took the bus back as usual...

I went swimming and unning and cycling this monday...

I eat for 2 or 3 people when exercising...it is easy to loos weight here in asia...harder to gain...you must b able to press the food.
Since my bike broke I ran downtown with my bike to fix it at the bike store...

They guys in the store knows me by now...

Some times they serve me for free...however I try to buy something new each time...yesterday I bought new tubes...
So now my bike is working again...
I ended they day by eating even more food...
Its a pity that the restaurants close so early here in taiwan...I always need to eat dinner at 7-11 or family mart...

I ended the day by watching the latest indiana jones movie...
Most departmets at NCTU has access to a projector, during theo whole day except the GMBA...why is that...?

Yesterday I payed a short visit to the bank...to cach out money from the receipt I found in my room.

I got 200NT...

I was recovering this saturday...

It was north of Hsinchu...

They had fireworks in the sky...dont know what they were celebrating...

I had some house salad, and soup...

And a 16oz steak...

We wanted to sit inside...but the staff insited that we should sit outside...due to lack of creativity, about how to merge two 4 seat tables...

Then we ate dessert at some yoghurt bar...

I tried all flavours, and added some toppings...

Then we went to plur...

The guys in mic on the stage really knows how to ruin a good song...

I got my computer...pics will b uploaded later...

There is a financial crisis going on.
This is the second time this happends while im in Taiwan...

Even if the stock market slowly is on its way up again...I remember last time I was in taiwan and wrote my bachelor thesis in corporate finance...and didnt know about the crisis, since all news here in taiwan is in chinese...
It is a good time to invest right now

I did some business in Taipei today...
Some people calls it internship...but sometimes it feels really lame here...
In my case, with a class full of asians, the athmosphere is sometimes to fake the internship, it is not the experience they want, they want a document saying they did an internship...

Me and my spanish friend pablo spent he day, doing a market opportunity analysis of our home countries...
We met many interesting people there...
I also payed y computer...
so inconvenient...that they dont offer me any internet bank here...instead I always need to go to some office, and pay extra fees just to make a simple transaction...so D-country...
I was also kind of tired, perhaps due to, to much staying up late activities lately...

I had to regain energy, so I went to an all-you-can-eat pizzeria...

However the pizzas here in Taiwan are not supergood, so I ate for 15-20 minutes...then I took the bus back to Hsinchu...

...to descover that the MRT is fully packed with people even in Taipei...I who thougt ths only occurred in Tokyo...
I slept the whole bus trip back...and now im going to bed...

Yesterday I tried to take a shortcut in Hsinchu...

But the small road that was suppose to save me some minutes was blocked by tables and praying people...
Some strange and perhaps religous celebration was taking place...
so exotic...

Yesterday I went to the pool to swim...

First we were chillin out in the lab...

Then my friend got a hair cut...and then we went to swim...

After that I went to the green house

They didnt have kiwi to make a smoothie, but kiwi juice was ok...their didnt have any kind of fruit either...(of all their fruit drinks that was listed on their menu)...maybe this was low season for them...

then I went to a Swedish pizzeria with some classmates , my teacher and a fiend...

they had swedish products on their shelves...

I ordered a hawaii pizza as usual...

It was full in the pizzeria....

We met up some other guys to watch a movie later...we were suppose to see Annie Hall, by Woody Allen...it was not super good...

We were about so c terminator 2 or 4...but woody allen is usually kind of good...

After that I visited a new club in town...

It was a beach party...

They had some naked girl taking a shower on the stage...

The hosts destroyed the party by speaking chinese for 2 hours,interupting the music...

The dancefloor activity faded out after a while...

So we went to McDonalds...and then home

Today I went to Taipei...

I went to the running accosiation of taiwan...to sign up for a running competition...

And ate lunch at IKEA...

i bought some swedish items...
It is nice to see swedish food once in a while...

I ate meatballs and mashed potatoes as usual there...

I went to my new job in taipei as well...at a logistics company...

We have funny colleagues in the house...

We went to a place that looked like the imitation of the Arch of Triumph in paris...

My friend Pablo wanted to prepare for a spanish electaion later in november and tried to register for the election, but we came to later...the office had closed for the day...

So we went back to IKEA and bought swedish beers...

I found Herrljuna cider..., it comes from a city not far from my home town...so exotic...

Then we went to Ximen...

I found that they opened a Marvel comics store...almost like the DC comics store that I liked so much in Singapore...

It was similar stuff like inte the Bangkok DC comics store...mostly clothes...

We also stoped by Cospy...to eat...

I ate a hamburger as usual...

They also had alot of motorbikes parked in the area...which was cool...

I ended up with a giant Yegou nai cha...(cocnut milk tea) before I went back to Hsinchu...and to Gotheburg...

It was kind of empty in the club...we stayed mostly around the pool table...

It was we (using 1 table)...and some other people using another...thats all...

I met a dutch guy there, who I also met last time I was at Gotheburg...he is working at TSMC and installing a machinese to produce advances semiconductor circuits...

I checked the receipt for march and april today...

I had some receipts...i won totally 400NT this time...

Yesterday I went to a new taco bar downtown...

I ordered mashed potatoes and some borrita...with rice...not that mexican...but they said it was mexican rice...

I saw Mulan which is a chinese movie later that night...

I went for a short run this morning...
When I came back to take a shower there was not hot water...

I guess the domitory janitor left a note in chinese at the main entrance...
But no respect for foreingers...
I had to catch a bus to taipei...so the only way (except swimming in the cmapus pond), was to take a cold shower...