Tag: living abroad

I went exploring Xiaoliuqiu (小琉球) for Chinese New Year, a particularly beautiful part of Taiwan. A friend and I were planning to go for three days and our friends called us crazy, saying there wasn’t enough to do there for even two days – we definitely proved them wrong.

Our Taiwan bucketlist includes must-see things in Taiwan! Taiwan spans 395km from north to south and 144km from east to west. While it may just seem like a small island off the coast of mainland China, in actuality, it is brimming with attractions ranging from one of the tallest buildings in the world to some of the most beautiful mountain ranges in Asia.

Last week I brought you the first installment of my weekend away in Taroko National Park where you saw the beginning of my adventure. Here I bring you part 2 and the rest of my journey into this amazing National Park in Taiwan.

Despite all of the romanticism surrounding being a traveler, there’s one terribly heavy burden that travellers take on the moment they leave home to see the world: the fact that they’ll miss out on making memories back home.

Sitting on top of a large, smooth, sun-warmed rock positioned just above the clear blue water, tucked away in a private alcove down the river and off the beaten path from the Shakadang trail in Taroko National Park, I turn to my friend and say, “Life is happening right now.” From the rock pillow she has been resting on she turns and nods her head in relaxed agreeance.

When I arrived in Taiwan, I was speechless at its breathtaking beauty. Maybe it’s because I’m from a very flat farmland but the sight of mountains, ocean, and palm trees completely swept me away.

I bought a one-way ticket to Asia almost three years ago in search of adventure, fun, and happiness. Of the three things I was hoping to find while abroad, the only one I didn’t find was happiness.

All it takes it a little discipline (choose a writing schedule and stick to it), patience, and lots of ink to begin enjoying the habit of writing in a journal. Not sure where to start or what to write in your journal? Keep these 5 tips in mind and soon you’ll have a journal that will rival the memoirs of Eat, Pray, Love.