Year of Horse

The six days Chinese New Year holidays came to an end today. The beginning of the Year of Horse was peaceful and blissful. As I shall start teaching the basic Korean language at Taipei City Library every Saturday morning, from 10:00 till 11:30 from March, I spent most of the new year holidays studying and refreshing the Korean I’ve learned in the past six years. 

On New Year Eve, there was a small dinner gathering of three at Brother Jimmy’s place, including me, my husband, and his older brother.

On New Year Day, Brother Jimmy and I met at the ShanDao Temple at 10 o'clock to pay tribute to my late parents. Then we walked to ChengHuang Temple downtown to pray for the good fortune. We had oldie and goodie simple lunch at a 40 year old eatery near the temple. After lunch, we said goodbye and went separately in different directions.

On the Second Day, I arrived at the WuGu Rehabilitation Center before 10 o’clock, Brother Jimmy was waiting for me at the bus stop with three of the residents. Four of us returned to the center together to meet up with other residents. I played “Five in a Row” with one resident. She was very good at it and taught me how to play the game skillfully. We left the center at 10:30, a total of 18, took Bus 899 to Luzhou, stayed at the local family mart till 2:00 in the afternoon, because we didn’t have a reservation till 2:30 at the Noble Family Steak House. The restaurant was crowded with people, nowadays, Taiwanese people enjoy family gatherings by eating out.

On the Third Day, I stayed home in the morning, and went to the gym in the afternoon.

On the Fourth Day, I prepared lunch for 9 WuGu residents at Brother Jimmy’s place. We played table games, storytelling, and chorus singing after lunch. Jimmy prepared redbean riceball soup for dessert.

On the Fifth Day, I stayed home in the morning, and went to the gym in the afternoon. 

Venture to Egypt (Rewrite)

Habibi Toastmasters and Friends.

In January, I ventured to Egypt for the first time. Why Egypt? The Pyramids of Giza? River Cruise on the Nile? Red Sea Resort? I had them all. On top of that, I ran into a sudden sandstorm, all outdoor group activities were cancelled. What? It took me almost 20 hours to fly from Taipei to Cairo, with 6 hour time difference!  

We are Toastmasters, we thrive on difficulties. In the sand storm, "Taxi, please take me to the Hotel Old Cataract Aswan". There I saw the luxurious colonial-era hotel opened in January 1900 and famed Agatha Christie wrote her popular detective story “Death on the Nile” in 1933. Then I visited the main bazaar with goods of the past and of the present, bought palm dates, spice herb tea, and I smoked shisha, the water pipe, for the first time. Yes, Toastmasters turn adversity into opportunity. The sandstorm opened my contest speech!

The Pyramids of Giza, on many people's bucket list, so were on mine. Three grandiose pyramids of King Khufu, his son, and his grandson. Humble King Khufu built the biggest pyramid 4,500 years ago, but left no paintings, no statues of himself for people to remember. I saw the humility of humanity. 

River Cruise on the Nile from Aswan to Luxor, four days and three nights. We hopped on and off the river cruise to visit magnificent temples and tombs. Being a party animal, I was busier knowing international passengers than seeing the breathtaking Nile River landscape. I made friends with 5 Russians, 4 Tunisians, more than two dozens Spanish, 40 plus Chinese, 2 Koreans, 1 English, Irish, French, and Colombian, not to mention the Egyptian staff on board.

Red Sea Resort at Hurghada, three days and two nights, according to the Bible, the place where the sun shone on the earth only once, Where? Yes! God parted for Moses, the Red Sea. At the Red Sea Resort, all you can eat buffet, all you can drink alcohol with a non muslim hand band, free ice cream by the sunny pool side, disco at night. It was a paradise to escape the cold in the winter.  

Riding the Land Cruiser at the world biggest Sahara Desert was thrilling. The driver looked very much like Omar Sarif in the movie of Lawrence of Arabia. No sooner had he asked, "speed up or slow down", than he stepped on the gas pedal, we all shouted, "woo" in unison, while flying over the bumpy desert rock. 

At a Bedouin Arab tribe, I met a petite woman fully covered in black veil and robe, surrounded by many of her young kids. She invited me for tea sitting by the fire on the sand. She was so dark and small, I couldn't forget her sweet smile. In her, I saw my distant evolutionary ancestors from Africa. In her, I saw the legacy of humanity.

The world is a big classroom. The more people we meet, the more places we visit, the more challenges we face, the more we learn about ourselves! Fellow Toastmasters, Go explore Egypt with your very own eyes. Share your Toastmasters spirit with Egyptians, young and old, men and women. Yes, Habibi Toastmasters in Egypt, I shall return! Contest Chair!

TMM Reading Group

Eight people, including two guests, participated in the Toastmaster Magazine Reading group dim sum gathering from 11:15 till 12:45 at Brother Hotel today. As the Chinese New Year is approaching, the Brother Hotel was crowded with gourmets and food lovers. The meal time was tightly restricted to one and a half hours, only less and no more. We decided upon a new time slot for our weekly TMM reading from March, every Monday evening, from 9 o'clock till 10 o'clock.  

After the meal, I grabbed the opportunity to rehearse my contest speech at the waiting area in front of the elevator. I am very grateful to our group members for their time and immediate visual response. As soon as I arrived home, I rewrote my contest speech.