Hey folks, sorry for the lack of updates this past week. I had a blast in Seoul, and made some new friends along the way. I got my Taiwan visa taken care of, which was the main goal of the trip, so now I can stay for up to 60 days in Taiwan before needing to leave the country, but more importantly, I can now apply for a student residency visa or a work visa, whereas I could not with my visa exemption entry waiver.
The first day in Seoul I had lunch with some former coworkers from AMD, and was treated to a very good traditional Korean lunch with fish, bulgolgi, soup and all the standard side dishes. One coworker was very impressed that I tried/ate everything, and liked it all, since most of the people they host from the US only like Korean BBQ and just pick at a few other items that are ordered for them. The rest of the day was spent exploring a few palaces and walking around Seoul, before heading back to the hostel for a group dinner with the owner and some other people staying there. If anyone reading this ever goes to Seoul, I highly recommend staying at the Backpackers Inside Hostel. Afterwards, we all went out to a club, where foreigners got in for free, but locals had to pay ₩10,000 (~$9USD), so we all chipped in some money to get the owner of the hostel in. We got back pretty late, but I got in 2hrs of sleep before heading to the DMZ in the morning.
After 2hrs of sleep, one of the other hostelers and I were picked up by a bus going to the DMZ, where we got to see the 3rd tunnel that the North Koreans dug from their side to try to get to Seoul, the area overlooking the border of North/South Korea, and an area near the "Freedom bridge" where captured POW's were exchanged between the North and South. It was definitely interesting, and the South Korean soldiers take their jobs very seriously, even going so far as to ask for my camera and delete a picture that I had snuck overlooking the border (it's forbidden). After getting back to the hostel around 3pm, I took a long nap until the evening, then went out to eat with more hostelers.
On Sunday, my new friend Britt (UT Law, '08) and I went to the GS Caltex vs Pink Spiders volleyball game to watch former UT player Destinee Hooker play. I, being the diehard fan I am, brought along my UT flag to wave in the stands and show support for Destinee. I had already emailed her on facebook letting her know that I would be in the stands, and she flashed a big smile and hook'em when she saw us waving the flag. We stood out wearing burnt orange, but I'm all for spreading UT love! I must say, that was probably some of the most fun I've had at a volleyball game, and I've been to my share of games, since I was in the UT Volleyband back in the day. Crazy cheers, announcers, and dances are all to be expected should you ever watch a professional volleyball game in Korea. After the game, we met Destinee and got our pictures taken with her and my flag. The flag is now residing in the hostel, greeting travelers while they relax in the common area.
The next days weren't too eventful, just getting the visa taken care of and exploring Seoul some more, and enjoying the great food the city had to offer. I was unsuccessful in finding the koala hat, but I have people on the lookout for me. On Tuesday night, I met up with the remaining AMD folks I missed on Friday, and again, enjoyed a great meal. Some of the people also know the folks in Taiwan, which can also help with my trying to get a job with AMD Taipei. Two people that I worked with frequently had to cancel at the last minute, but passed along some gifts that I will definitely be able to use on my trip to Thailand/Vietnam. They included a laptop bag, super absorbent towel, polo shirt, and an HDMI cable. All were AMD branded, except for the HDMI cable, which I thought was random :) I always did love working with the AMD Korea team the most.
I do wish I could have stayed a few extra days in Seoul, since it snowed a good inch the night before I left, and I would have loved to see all the palaces covered topped with snow. Until next time, I suppose. I'll wrap up this entry and start up on another entry later, but first, I'm headed out to a St. Patrick's day party tonight!
Showing posts with label food. Show all posts
Showing posts with label food. Show all posts
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Saturday, February 13, 2010
Gong Xi Fa Cai (Have a happy and prosperous new year!)
Happy Chinese New Year folks! The weather in Taiwan finally got cold, and I'm definitely enjoying the cooler temperatures. I've been out the last two nights meeting up with the few friends I have here in Taiwan for dinner, and in turn meeting more people out here that I can hang out with when I get bored.
On Thursday, I met up with my dad's friend's daughters whom I have known since I was a little kid. Our families used to hang out all the time before we moved to the states, but we've kept in touch over the years, especially when Facebook became available over here in Taiwan. Dinner that night was Japanese food, with about 10 courses (there is more to Japanese food besides sushi) and a pitcher of beer that I mostly drank since the girls usually only drink cocktails. I was stuffed, but I went out afterwards to a house party that my friend's boyfriend was hosting with some other people for CNY. They had a gift exchange similar to a white elephant, but without the stealing aspect. There was one other person there that didn't know anyone else except the person that brought them, so I talked with her for a little bit. I felt a bit mischievous, so I took the bag of extra condiments from the pizza that they ordered, and put it in another bag, and set it down next to the other gifts that they were being exchanged. We both got a kick out of it as a few people acted like they were reaching for it, but went for something else. The ruse was up when the participants were sorting through the remaining gifts and someone looked closer at the semi transparent bag and noticed the condiments.
On Friday night, I met up with an ex coworker from AMD for dinner and drinks. We met when he was still working in AMD Austin, then moved back to Taiwan to work at AMD, quit to start his own business, and finally got back into the high tech industry back in October only to be recruited by someone to go back to work at AMD. It's the job position that I was hopeful to get back in September, but he has more experience and is probably more qualified for the position than I am. Definitely no hard feelings, but we discussed my career and what options are available to me now, which is bringing me to an interesting crossroads again. I'm seriously considering scrapping the Shanghai part of my whole move and just staying in Taiwan, especially if I might have a job with AMD again. I already have a place lined up to stay thanks to my dad's friend, which would be really central to everything in Taipei. I've also looked at Mandarin language classes I could take in the evening while working, which is a huge plus considering the whole move was originally to relearn Mandarin anyways. The main factor in all this is of course the possibility of the job opening at AMD Taiwan, which I am being considered for, but have no idea when the headcount will open up, if it all. In the meantime, I have to leave Taiwan by March 5th due to my 30 day visa expiration, which means I need to plan a trip somewhere (Japan, HK, S. Korea, Australia?)
In the meantime, I'm still subject to lectures from my dad, as well as his accordion playing. I've started to develop a headache whenever he starts lecturing, which is not a good sign, but I'm just trying to make it to the end of the month. He's mentioned to me that before I got here, if he had trouble sleeping or woke up in the middle of the night, he would bust out his accordion and then go back to sleep. Thank god he isn't doing that now.
Oh! I almost forgot, I've discovered this delicious new snack in Taipei. Oh. My. God. The last few times I walked through the Taipei Main Station, this fragrant smell just overwhelmed the area, and for the life of me I couldn't figure out where it was coming from. My friend and I were walking through last night, so I stopped him and had him point it out for me. It's this bread that's baked with a coffee flavored cream on top, and is so delicious, that mere words would do it an injustice. Seriously, if you're ever here visiting, you MUST try this. I'm starting to crave it as much as I crave/miss Tex-Mex/BBQ/Cajun food/etc.
On Thursday, I met up with my dad's friend's daughters whom I have known since I was a little kid. Our families used to hang out all the time before we moved to the states, but we've kept in touch over the years, especially when Facebook became available over here in Taiwan. Dinner that night was Japanese food, with about 10 courses (there is more to Japanese food besides sushi) and a pitcher of beer that I mostly drank since the girls usually only drink cocktails. I was stuffed, but I went out afterwards to a house party that my friend's boyfriend was hosting with some other people for CNY. They had a gift exchange similar to a white elephant, but without the stealing aspect. There was one other person there that didn't know anyone else except the person that brought them, so I talked with her for a little bit. I felt a bit mischievous, so I took the bag of extra condiments from the pizza that they ordered, and put it in another bag, and set it down next to the other gifts that they were being exchanged. We both got a kick out of it as a few people acted like they were reaching for it, but went for something else. The ruse was up when the participants were sorting through the remaining gifts and someone looked closer at the semi transparent bag and noticed the condiments.
On Friday night, I met up with an ex coworker from AMD for dinner and drinks. We met when he was still working in AMD Austin, then moved back to Taiwan to work at AMD, quit to start his own business, and finally got back into the high tech industry back in October only to be recruited by someone to go back to work at AMD. It's the job position that I was hopeful to get back in September, but he has more experience and is probably more qualified for the position than I am. Definitely no hard feelings, but we discussed my career and what options are available to me now, which is bringing me to an interesting crossroads again. I'm seriously considering scrapping the Shanghai part of my whole move and just staying in Taiwan, especially if I might have a job with AMD again. I already have a place lined up to stay thanks to my dad's friend, which would be really central to everything in Taipei. I've also looked at Mandarin language classes I could take in the evening while working, which is a huge plus considering the whole move was originally to relearn Mandarin anyways. The main factor in all this is of course the possibility of the job opening at AMD Taiwan, which I am being considered for, but have no idea when the headcount will open up, if it all. In the meantime, I have to leave Taiwan by March 5th due to my 30 day visa expiration, which means I need to plan a trip somewhere (Japan, HK, S. Korea, Australia?)
In the meantime, I'm still subject to lectures from my dad, as well as his accordion playing. I've started to develop a headache whenever he starts lecturing, which is not a good sign, but I'm just trying to make it to the end of the month. He's mentioned to me that before I got here, if he had trouble sleeping or woke up in the middle of the night, he would bust out his accordion and then go back to sleep. Thank god he isn't doing that now.
Oh! I almost forgot, I've discovered this delicious new snack in Taipei. Oh. My. God. The last few times I walked through the Taipei Main Station, this fragrant smell just overwhelmed the area, and for the life of me I couldn't figure out where it was coming from. My friend and I were walking through last night, so I stopped him and had him point it out for me. It's this bread that's baked with a coffee flavored cream on top, and is so delicious, that mere words would do it an injustice. Seriously, if you're ever here visiting, you MUST try this. I'm starting to crave it as much as I crave/miss Tex-Mex/BBQ/Cajun food/etc.
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