During the last week of ICLP, we had our final presentations. I was really nervous, but a lot of teachers helped me stay calm before I had to go up. After, Hannah and I went to eat at Kaochi and watched Along with the Gods 2. The next day after Kristina’s presentation, Hannah and I went to Songshan Eslite bookstore and had lunch with two classmates. We looked around and bought pineapple cakes from ChiaTe for our family and friends. The last two days of class were hard to study for, and in some classes we just chatted about our experience in Taiwan.
I remember the first couple weeks of Taiwan being really new and exciting. I loved going around the city with Kristina and Hannah, finding new places to eat and explore. I was really stressed once classes started because it took a while for me to convince the teachers to let me change classes, and a few weeks in I was already burnt out and wanted to go home. But once the program was about to end, I realized how much I like Taiwan. Every time I went to the Family Mart across school, the woman who works there would ask me how I’m doing or where my classmates are. When I went to Starbucks for only the third time at 6:30 a.m. to study for my midterms, the barista looked at me surprised and asked me why I was so early that day. And the owner of the boba shop near my house always said hi to me or asked me where Kristina was (haha) whenever we met around the neighborhood. This was something I didn’t experience in Beijing (my own fault).
And all of the friends I met in Taiwan are really nice too. I can’t wait to go back! I may even plan to go while I’m abroad in Japan this fall.
