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September 2

So, here I am on my first solo trip to Taiwan. It is very exciting and I can’t wait to get away from it all. My flight was at 1:15 Sunday morning like most flights to Taiwan. After youth group, my family got ready to take me to the San Francisco international airport. I knew it was going to feel like a very long day so I prepped myself as much as possible for the jetlag that would ensue. At the airport, we had to wait in a very long line that snaked all around the airport check-in area. Not surprisingly, the wait was about an hour. After checking in, my family wished me safe journey and departed as I was left to get myself, safely, to Taiwan. It felt kind of odd walking to and waiting for the airplane alone, but it felt good to be on my own and independent. I amused myself by playing the games on my cell phone and listening to my CDs. Eventually the time came for passengers to board and I silently bid adieu to California.

On the airplane, I sat next to a window, which my dad said was the worst place possible to sit on the plane. Mainly because, you had to ask the people next to you to stand up so you could use the bathroom and that you couldn’t stretch your legs. Fortunately, I sat next to a child and his mother and the child didn’t take up that much room. The child, about two to three years old, I would guess, was adorable but seemed to be in a cranky mood when he first got on the plane.

They were Asian but seemed to be from Korea since they were talking in Korean. The ride was to be 13 hours long. Toward the beginning of the trip, I felt a little sick and I think it was because of the combination of mixed nuts and orange juice that led me to feel a bit sick in the stomach. I wouldn’t eat much of the airplane food anyway even if I was feeling great. The child sitting next to me seemed to be in a much better mood toward the end of the trip and starting bugging me a lot. One thing he constantly did was to get my attention, by tapping my arm, and then pointing out the airplane window as if there was something out there to see.

I arrived early in the morning in Taipei and I soon realized how incredibly humid and hot it felt in Taiwan. As soon as I stepped out of the terminal, all the nostalgia from past Taiwan excursions swept back into my mind. It was like recognizing a memory just by a specific scent. The good old olfactory glands going back to work! Getting through customs was easier than expected. I waited a little bit and soon, my uncle, whom I will call Uncle Heui, arrived. He brought along Da-Quan or Leon along who seemed a little out of it at the time and fell asleep as soon as we were in the car. Da-Quan is my second littlest cousin. He had noticeably changed. Mainly because, the last time I saw him, he was just a baby.
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