Noisy new year.....

Here in Taiwan, Chinese new year is very festive as everywhere we go, we see incense burning and lots of firecrackers during the day, and fireworks light up the sky at night. Firecrackers were banned in Hong Kong after the 1967 riot, so my only childhood memory of playing with firecrackers was when I was Frankie's age. Needless to say, it was the highlight of the new year for us kids, it was a blast! Its a strange feeling to experience that again, it brings back a lot of memories which have been buried or suppressed over the years. Memories I have forgotten totally, some good and some bad.

Rebecca and Frankie spent ten days at her aunt's house in Chiayi on the west coast, which is about six hours train ride from Hualien. They are now home as we spent a quiet new year together. Most businesses are closed for three days but due to the economic downturn of the past two years, many of them stay open all thru the holidays, trying to cash in on the extra business generated from tourists. Holidays and long weekends are popular time for folks from Taipei flooding into Hualien looking for some fresh air, peace and quiet. The B&Bs are sold out and the restaurants which are open have line ups. Owners are happy, no holiday pay and no overtime here........A typical non clerical worker here in Taiwan works six days a week and 12 hours a day. Some service industry personnels such as barbers and hairdressers work 14 hours a day with two days off a month, yes, a month. There is no tipping except for some five star establishments, and the average wage is 15000 to 20000NT a month, which is $500 to $700 Cdn. Rebecca's brother, a high school teacher, earns 50000NT a month, which is $1700 Cdn. Canadian teachers make three times that.

It ain't so quiet these past few days as firecrackers and powerful fireworks fill the air with thick smell of gun powder and the noise of a battlefield. Our neighbors next door was playing with fireworks tonite, and they are more like mini missiles than Roman candles. In Canada, they would be arrested for messing around with explosives so close to buildings.........Good thing most buildings are steel and concrete here.