Taiwan, my homeland!

It's been over 5 years since I last visited Taiwan where I grew up as a child. So many fond memories came flooding back as soon as we stepped into the airport, and after Europe, I certainly had a bit of culture shock. I also found myself viewing my childhood homeland from different, adult lenses. What a great experience it was and I certainly hope to live here again someday and spend more time with my family.

This little tyke came to meet us at the airport. It was my first time meeting my two baby cousins! Here he is getting a piggy-back from my Grandma.

Our first breakfast in Taiwan 台灣, we of course went to get hot soy milk 豆槳 and some breaded goods 包子, 饅頭, and 油條

A traditional meat market, they also have cages of live chickens...you pick out the chicken that fancies you, and "chop", the vendor takes off its head and defeathers it so you have a fresh chicken to cook for your meal... I did not document this with photographs for good reason :)

One of the many temples in Taipei, I used to go with my great-grandmother when I was young to pray and burn incense in honor of our ancestors.

Hot pot or 火鍋 that my family prepared. Everyone sits together, and puts into the pot whichever side they want, be it meat, vegetables, eggs, noodles, etc. The food then cooks in the broth on the hot plate and everyone enjoys the different flavors and foods with a dipping sauce.

Chicken feet!! Yes, these are the feet of chicken. Simmered in a spicy soy sauce, one eats these by gnawing on the skin and cartilage, a lovely delicacy that is one of my mom's favorites!

Tea-leaf eggs or 茶葉蛋, these are eggs that simmer in a black tea leaf and soy broth and taste absolutely delicious. You crack open the shell to reveal a boiled egg that has been browned and flavored by the broth. These are sold all over the place in convenience stores, 7-11s, etc.

Mom and I went to visit the Taipei International Flora Exposition, Taiwan's first international expo that cost millions of dollars for the 6-month exhibit. It was absolutely phenomenal and I don't think I've ever seen/smelled so many wonderful flowers, what a breath of fresh air to have in the middle of bustling Taipei city

The expo was in the middle of several parks, one of which included traditional Chinese houses and architecture

Can't forget the public toilets! One squats down to use these, and hopes that it is clean and has a functional flush. An almost spotless one here!

Four generations of family! From left: me, my mom, my grandma, and my great-grandma. I am so lucky to have such strong women in my life.

More from Deutschland

A large part of Euro-trip was to have an educational and historical journey to learn more about our world and history and how things came to be. This of course included a sobering visit to a concentration camp, in Dachau. Dachau was actually classified as a work camp and, initially, prisoners who were "rehabilitated" were eligible for possible release. However, as the war ran longer, Dachau became a concentration and death camp.

The gate at the entrance to the camp bears the inscription "Arbeit Macht Frei" which translates to "Work brings freedom"

This memorial had a life-size poster timeline with informational details and pictures of the progression of the war and of Dachau from an intial work camp to an eventual extermination center. This photograph was particularly disturbing, showing malnourished prisoners

The ovens that the Nazis used to incinerate prisoners

We were in a very somber mood after our Dachau visit, and headed to Stuttgart next by train to visit a music friend from PYP that I hadn't seen in about 6 years. It was wonderful to catch up with her and her new husband and to see the sights of Stuttgart.

Fabian and Laurel. Such gracious hosts and wonderful company and conversation. Thank you!

Stuttgart is a famed industrial city known for producing Mercedes-Benz and Porsche cars. We of course visited the Mercedes museum. The whole time we were there, I was wishing for Grandpa to be there as I'm sure he would have been fascinated by the progression of cars and been able to explain all the mechanical aspects of what we were seeing.

Me breaking the rules and touching an older-model Mercedes

We discovered the good, rich food of Germany at Oktoberfest, and went on to find a new favorite dish: maultaschen. This is a traditional Swabian (Southern region of Germany) dish that is kind of like a dumpling filled with minced meat, spinach and herbs. Absolutely fantastic! Can't wait to try to make this at home, or better yet, find a restaurant that makes it. :)

Another favorite dish, spätzle, a type of noodle dish akin to a very cheesy and rich mac and cheese

Austria and Germany

Had a wonderful day trip to Salzburg, Austria where we got to tour Mozart's house and see his instruments, manuscripts, letters, and other artifacts from his lifetime. Definitely helped me to understand and appreciate his music a little more, hope to catch a concert at some point in Europe!

Salzach river with the Alps in the background. Salzburg is where "The Sound Of Music" movie was filmed...can't you just picture yourself roaming through these hills, singing "The hills are alive..."?

Our next stop was Munich, Germany for the 200th anniversary of Oktoberfest. Basically, imagine a larger than life carnival filled with ginormous tents, packed with picnic benches and many drunk people squeezed together from Germany and all over the world, wearing lederhosen and dirndyl outfits, chanting and singing and drinking and having an absolute blast.

Yes, our waiter carried 11 steins (large beer mugs) at once, no small feat. That's about 60 pounds of glass and beer (a liter in each stein); they do this all day and deliver steins every 5-10 minutes. Imagine the workout there!

Reunited with Kappa sisters at Oktoberfest.

We had an eventful 3 days with high school buddies as well and a nice mingling of groups. This was also about where Europe started to disregard my high metabolism.

Must eat high-caloric food while you're drinking. Some delicious Southern German food...imagine hearty holiday comfort food and this is about what we had for every meal

Inside of the Augustiner tent, one of the more famous breweries. Note the folk dressed in lederhosen (guy trouser outfits) and durndyls (female maiden outfits). Of course, you can see the band and singers at the front of the hall, and people standing up on benches to sing, sway, and clap to popular songs, many of which were older American hits

After all that food and beer and physical exertion from dancing, it seems like a great idea to go on one of the many carnival rides! You can only imagine how people felt when they got out of these rides ;P

Switzerland

My first impression of Switzerland was from the fabulous trains...an upgrade from what we were used to in Italy and Greece. The trains were more high-tech, roomier, had many more amenities like electrical outlets and were just so darn sleek! They also are very timely and we arrived into Interlaken right when we expected and found that the whole city (and country) was similar to their train system--clean, efficient, and beautiful.

Our train!

Having some Swiss Toblerone chocolates while on the train. Food (and everything else) was extremely expensive in Switzerland, so we opted to get groceries instead of eating out. Switzerland, not being in the European Union, has their own food regulation laws, thus the exceptional quality of their food. We had some of the best milk and cheese and fruits I've ever tasted.

My first time bungy-jumping! The Goldeneye bungee jump is on the Verzasca dam in Switzerland. Made famous by the Goldeneye James Bond movie, this jump is roughly 750 ft. and the second tallest in the world, and the tallest jump without a guide rope. I was under the weight limit by about 3 kilos, but went ahead and rounded up my weight so that I could do the jump. What a rush!!

View of the Verzasca dam that we jumped off of.

Scott flying!

We also went canyoning which required us to dress in wetsuits, and follow a guide as we trekked through the rocks and pools carved out by rivers flowing down the Alps. Never have I zoomed down natural rock slides head first nor jumped into 4-ft deep pools in sideways cannon balls. What an exhilarating 2 hours!

Switzerland is truly like something out of a picture book. Beautiful alps, grazing animals, charming cottages with red flower boxes under windows...

Here I am with my pack on, the Alps in the background, and a beautiful day for traveling!