Staying at Tunghai University

 During our time in Taichung, Taiwan, we are staying on the Tunghai University campus. Before our arrival I was told it's the most beautiful campus on planet Earth. Although I later found out that the professor who said this previously attended this university, I have found that it is indeed a very beauteous place. There are probably as many trees as there are students! There are large outdoor gardens and indoor plant life as well. Being here truly makes you feel “one with nature”.

Our first day here, we received a tour of the campus from a professor from Belgium. It was an incredibly peaceful tour. As we walked down a hill lined with trees, hearing about the history of the college, the environment was very calm and soothing. Part of the reason is because students living on campus are not allowed to own vehicles, so there was virtually no traffic on the streets. With so many buildings, paths, and railings surrounded by nature, the campus feels like a beautiful level out of Tony Hawk's Pro Skater. It would be awesome to skateboard here, if I was any good at skateboarding.

This university began as a Christian college. It has a huge, stunning chapel that was designed by I.M. Pei, the same architect who designed the Rock N' Roll Hall of Fame Museum in Cleveland, Ohio. This is awesome because I've been to the museum, and it's crazy to see another building (a real work of art) designed by the same man halfway around the world. I also found out that Richard Nixon attended the ground-breaking ceremony when this university began. Small world.

In the morning, we attended a lecture on the Taiwan financial market. We learned more about the Taiwan stock market, in which the eccentric professor described the Taiwanese participants as “shopping cart” buyers – saying that the average person regards stocks like sports in this country. It was an interesting lecture, informing us about Taiwan's GDP and reminding me that there are very intelligent professors all around the world.

In the afternoon, the university treated us to an excellent dinner which included some “American foods”, such as fries and chicken nuggets, as well as good Taiwanese food and great deserts like strawberries with pudding. We met some students from this university and exchanged stories of our school experiences. Although the students didn't seem as comfortable speaking English as some of the people we met in Taipei, we still shared a good many laughs.

There is a night market very close to our hotel with dozens of businesses and street vendors. I bought chicken hearts on a stick, which were covered in spices and were very delicious. I also bought some pig's blood cake, which was not so awesome. In fact, I tried feeding it to a dog and he wouldn't eat it! A few friends and I bought a basketball at the market and played a few games of 21 on the nearby basketball courts. Afterward, we found some pool tables in a building where students were practicing dance moves. It was a very fun night, one of our last in Taiwan. Overall, I have been very impressed with this beautiful, peaceful university and have been sleeping very well here.