Asia is my Vegas

For plenty of people, Vegas is their escape from the drudgery of adult life. They go there often to eat, drink, play, and celebrate. 

Asia is my Vegas. 

I've just returned from my trip to Taipei yesterday, marking the fourth time I've visited an Asian city within a 12 month period (Hong Kong, Shanghai, Seoul, and Taipei). I simply love it in Asia, and like most people are wont to do on their 'Vegas trips', I go there mainly to eat, drink, play, and celebrate. Only flaw is the price of the plane ticket makes traveling to Asia significantly more expensive than heading to Vegas.

It's so worth it.

While I enjoy the diversity we get here in America, spending time amongst people who look like me and share the same culture and habits is also a treat. We all crave homogeneity on some level: it explains the cliques we form during high school lunch hour. in Asia there's a homey feeling that entirely different than the vibe in San Francisco. Even though I'm technically a tourist, I blend right in. At least I think so.

A city boy at heart, the urban density, the interconnectedness, and the supreme convenience of Asia is super attractive to me. It truly comes alive at night: the most memorable parts on these trips were walking through the city streets taking in the lights. 

All without an ounce of worry about getting mugged. That's a freedom we ironically don't have in America.

It'll rain in Taipei

Next week is Thanksgiving, and by the virtue working in higher education I am able to take the entire week off. I'll be off to Taipei, Taiwan for some much needed vacation time in my beloved Asia. The Google Travel app sent me a notification today alerting me to the weather conditions, and it is forecasted for rain the whole time. My travel good-luck charm appears to have finally deserted me. 

I thought November in Taiwan would be chill and sunny. I guess not. 

Amor fati, as stoics say. 

While I'm not thrilled for the rain, at least it isn't monsoon season (that's during the summer), so it'll just be periodic bursts throughout the day - entirely survivable, just have to purchase an umbrella upon touching down. Rain will force us indoors most of the time, which is just as well because for me the biggest reason to travel to Taipei is the fabulous food so we'll be doing lots of that. Instead of drinking plain water I plan to replace it completely with bubble tea. Even the most hole-in-the-wall tea spot in Taipei is on par with the best we can get in the States. 

Better bring the North Face jacket, though. Shoutout to whoever invented Gore-Tex.

These past years I've been listening to kpop almost exclusively, but in order to get in the mood for the Taiwan trip, I've momentarily dusted off the Chinese music playlists and got immediately taken back to the early 2000's. That's the magic of music: it can transport you back to any time period and let you relive the moments. In my case, that would be my late teenage years of much angst and lazy days. 

Hearing Chinese songs again made me realize I probably should brush up on my seldom-used mandarin. I would not be surprised if my first words towards a person at Taoyuan International Airport is in Korean.  

Excited.