scooting around

Here I am on my moped!! 

The first pic is my current moped and was taken earlier this year. (I know; I need a better helmet.  I'm working on it.)  The one on the right was taken in 2003--me on my very first moped.  (That moped was stolen in the fall of 2004.)

Ok, confession time: When I take personality tests, I always check that I do not like adventures.  I do not consider myself an "adventure loving person."

When I confessed this to my friend (an American who also lives here in Taiwan) she was shocked.  She told me she thought I had a great sense of adventure.  Her reply included something along the lines of "you drive a moped in Taiwan--that is very adventuresome."

She got me to thinking. 

And, I think she is right. 

Adventure does make me smile (. . . most of the time).

Later, I came back to read my blog, and I saw the quote I had from Helen Keller in the description line: "Life is either a daring adventure or nothing."  :)

And, the other day I caught myself thinking that being a contestant on an Amazing Race type game would be a blast!

I guess I was embracing adventure without realizing it.

I guess that is another one of those crazy things that God has changed about who I am, and I didn't even realize it on a conscious level. 

I guess from now on I better check the "likes adventure" box when I take a personality test, huh?  :)

Charlotte, a fellow Taiwan-blogger, calls her blog "Always an Adventure."  I guess that truly is what life is--in Taiwan or anywhere! 

Yipee!!  Let's go!!
Hop on the back and I'll take you for a spin.

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Here is the answer to the question that prompted this post in the first place:
Q: Do you drive a scooter in Kaohsiung?
A: Well, yes.  I do drive in the city--which is crazy--but not unless I have to.  I live in Kaohsiung County--so when leaving my apartment, if I turn left I end up in Kaohsiung City after 30 minutes of riding but if I turn right I end up in a sea of rice and pineapple fields in less 3 minutes of riding.  Also, I walk to work--so I don't ride daily. 

AND--I got used to riding a moped while living in Meinong--which is major countryside with few stoplights and very light traffic.  The first time I rode in KH city--I was freaking out inside--it was a heart-pounding I-don't-know-if-I-am-going-to-live-to-tell-about-this kind of moment.  At first, I would hop off and let one of my student's "drive" as soon as we hit the "city" part.  Now, I am ok . . . well, on most days. 

So, my scooter riding adventures have been more-or-less a let-the-water-warm-while-the-frog-is-already-in-the-pot kind of acclimation.  Does that make sense?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Alright.  Now, I'm ready . . . where do you wanna go?  Vrroom.  Vrooom!! 

Comments

[eph2810]

Oh, I wish I had one of those. I keep asking my hubby to have one so I can get rid of the car, but he won't let me get one. He says it is to dangerous. Well, I am sure the traffic in Taiwan is much worse that here in the Metro Phoenix area - lol...
Oh, I thought about going on the Amazing Race many times (the only show I actually watch on TV), but I can't, because I don't have an American passport *sigh*...

[Laura]

That looks like such fun!

[amanda p. wu]

It is a lot of fun!! (Well, most of the time its fun--where there is tons of traffic it can be stressful.)

I am not sure I would drive one in the States. Even though traffic is crazy here--there is a special lane for mopeds and people are used to driving cars around them. In the USA, that is just not the case.

[Charlotte]

The Amazing Race is one of the few TV shows I really like. Your description of your first time driving in KH reminds me of when I first started riding a bike in the small countryside town I lived in last year... it could only be described as a series of near death experiences, and i'm sure that was MUCH milder than yours! A friend who used to live in Taichung commented once that riding a scooter there was "just like a video game except you only get one life"

[amanda p. wu]

"just like a video game except you only get one life."

That's too funny.

Now that you mention it, on my walks to and from school, I sometimes feel like that little frog who is trying to cross the street without getting smashed by a car.