Hsinchu, Taiwan

I've been vegging hard - eating, sleeping, watching the presidential debates as well as the bundle of DVD's I'd bought in Hanoi for $1 a piece (shhh). I'm staying at my father's place in a small town in the countryside of Taiwan. I'd lived here for 3 years when I was around the formulative age of 4 - when my parents moved back here from the U.S. before they'd split up.

The other day, I biked along a winding road outside of town. When I was 5 or so, I'd taken this road with a friend as far as we'd dared to the next town. The next town seemed as far away as another planet back then. Today, it is a 7 kilometer ride along green mountains, a rocky river, a tunnel and rice fields. Not much has changed in all these years and you can still see farmers planting and working on their land.

I visited my uncle and mother (who happened to also be visiting Taiwan) at my grandparents old house in Hsinchu yesterday - which is a city about 30 minutes outside of my father's town. The city has changed so much - I walked along a newly built riverside commericial district with cafes, restaurants, shops and huge department stores looming overhead. Bands were performing at night to cheering groups of kids in public squares. Couples were having quiet conversations on benches along the river. Much of it could pass for parts of Tokyo with its modern architecture and girls wearing funky knee high socks and boys with the latest hair styles.

Saw an interesting quote from a friend's blog:

"When traveling there are 2 paths...
one of nostalgia for home
and one for the adventure which lies ahead"