The last week began just like any other week, except for the oral final on Thursday and the written final, closing ceremony, and banquet on Friday, where I said goodbye to all my classmates and teachers.
…And just like that, my 2 months in Taiwan have come to an end. Being in Taiwan, getting to be immersed in a totally different culture, has been an amazing experience, and I feel very privileged and grateful to have had this opportunity. While it was a lot of work, I enjoyed learning Chinese—I feel like my Chinese has really improved, especially my speaking ability. I also enjoyed going around and sightseeing all around Taiwan outside of class. As I look ahead to my return to Williams, there are so many things I’ll miss: everyone I interacted with, from my teachers, to classmates, to my host family; the really low cost of living; and of course, probably the most consistently delicious food I’ll eat for a long time (although I definitely won’t miss the weather!). All in all, it’ll be very hard to forget this summer, and I’m very glad that I chose to spend it the way I did.
Finally, for the sake of variety, allow me to share some of my “favorites” from my time in Taiwan:
- Favorite food: braised pork belly
- Favorite snack: Ho Tai So pineapple buns
- Favorite drink: bubble milk (bubble tea without the tea)
- Favorite restaurant: Ajito Ramen
- Favorite place: anywhere with AC
- Favorite thing to do: eavesdrop on other people’s conversations and see how much I can understand
- Favorite Taiwanese song: “The Moon Represents My Heart” by Teresa Tang
- Favorite memory: running into people randomly on the street
Until next time,
Jonathan Hartanto (何哲宁)
P.S. The reason I didn’t post this until now is because after the program ended, I actually spent a little more than a week sightseeing in Shanghai and Beijing (Nanjing road, the Bund, Forbidden City, Summer Palace, Great Wall, etc.) It was really fun! Very different from Taiwan.
P.P.S. Thank you for reading my blog; I hope you enjoyed!