2/8/16
When you were younger, you probably had many dreams and goals (I used to dream I would travel across the world, be a travel writer and impress all my friends with life threatening adventures). However, as you mature, the reality of life also probably slapped your face a few times and told you to be realistic: work a job that may grow into a career if you are lucky, and save up as much as possible for retirement and medical emergencies. This is especially true for Asians born in Asia, whose parents drill all these “values” into their kids constantly (I know mine did. They also did slap my head quite a few times…). Being the middle child, I did what I was told most of the time, but also developed a rebellious streak along the way. Sadly, it was not until mid-30s when this rebellious phrase kicked into full gear. Instead of trying to climb the corporate ladder for money and recognition, I decided to give that all up, tapped into my meager savings (civil engineers are really not paid that well…), and ran away to South America for 6 months, and then to South East Asia for an additional 2 months. To fulfil my dream of being a travel writer, I also started this blog, and made a promise to write as often as I can. (Ok, all these sounds rather depressing: I just spent a lot of time and money on an ego booster for a semi-mid-life-crisis.) Of course, part of me dreamt that my blog would get famous, allowing me to generate enough income to sponsor my future travels, and I would be a nomad forever. Unfortunately for me and possibly fortunately for the world, the blog did generate some readers, but not at a scale where I can live off it. This means I have to go back to making a living in the real world, and end my trip.
On the last day I was in Taipei, I did the number one tourist activity: visit the National Palace Museum. Rated as one of the top museums in the world, it housed a massive amount of Chinese artifacts. The museum also has a very complex history. These items were originally housed in the Forbidden Cty Museum in Beijing. During the Civil War, the museum decided to send most of the items to Taiwan for safekeeping. Of course, China now demands these items to be sent back, a request Taiwan has steadily ignored (To be honest, if those items were left back in China after the communist takeover, they would have never survived the Cultural Revolution). It is also worth noting that only 22% of the artifacts reached their new home: the rest were lost, stolen or destroyed during the war (I am sure some very rich collectors have them in their home somewhere). That being said, the museum is pretty awesome (if you like museums, that is). There are numerous exhibits across all historical periods of China, with some really impressive works of art. I could have easily spent a whole day there, except one issue: the museum was extremely busy, and the visitors were not quite well-behaved. It maybe the first museum I visited that has staff walking holding signs telling visitors to be quiet. However, that was not enough: the noise level was definitely above and beyond normal, with loud chatting and screaming kids everywhere. After 2 hours, I had to get some fresh air, only to realize I had to wait in a line to re-enter: the building had reached its capacity. I decided not to wait, and just left to get to my second destination: a hike up Elephant Mountain. The hike was great, and I got to take lots of photos of Taipei 101.
It was during dinner that I finally had the reality check moment. After running around (or some may say: running away) for 10 months, my trip had finally ended. To tell the truth, I am not quite sure how I feel. On one hand, I really like traveling: the planning, budgeting, execution of plans, adventures and mishaps, and even the problems with hostels and roommates. On the other hand, I often felt like I am missing out on advancing my career, making money and saving for my retirement (if I live that long). Without a steady income, it is just not possible to keep vagabonding for an extended period of time (unless you have some nice inheritance or very understanding parents). Since my blog never hit it big (judging by the number of likes and re-blogs I received), I have to admit: I am not going to last as a travel writer (or at least, not one that can make a living off writing about travels). Who knows, maybe this is for the best: ending before I get too tired of backpacking, so I have the motivation to plan for another adventure down the road.
Finally (and if you managed to read this far on such a boring post), let me also say: thank you for reading and following my blog. I know the posts are not always good, and my humor tend to go down to the gutter most of the time. It is always great to see someone liking my post, and/or follow my blog (wordpress does a good job of notifying me about those). I hope you had a good time reading all my weird ideas and musings. I also promise: when I travel again (just maybe not as long), I will return to this blog and start again. Who knows, I may even pick up worse third grade jokes along the way and share it with everyone once again.