a little rest (休息一下）

it's been quite a while since i've written. since last time, i've finished my semester, gone back to america, and come back to taiwan to start school again. i've found that i feel much better after the break. i've also found that i experienced something like reverse culture shock in america.

i think it started on the plane from san francisco to houston. i was suddenly able to understand the people around me and my first thought was how obnoxious some of them were. i don't know why. they're probably not obnoxious, but i had grown accustomed to not understanding people around me, so maybe i felt they were being intrusive by speaking in a language i could understand.

the next point was how far apart everything is in america, especially houston. i think the nearest grocery store was a ten minute drive away. not practical to walk to at all. it was one mile from where i was staying to the entrance of the neighborhood, about a twenty minute walk. being in houston without a car was quite a contrast from the life i became used to in taipei.

finally i was surprised by how empty everything felt. even in san francisco on a saturday night, i felt like the roads were pretty empty. in neighborhoods i saw cars parked everywhere but no people.

it's interesting that i've only lived in taipei for six months but coming back to a place that has been my home for so long has seemed so alien. i'm not trying to complain about it. it's just strange.

all those things aside, it was really nice to see the people and places i've missed. six months doesn't seem that long while you're living it but things are happening all the time.