DEPLOYING in 3...2...1...

OMG THE TIME HAS COME.

in about 1 hour, i will leave this drastically horrible place known as NMMBA, which has been my home for the past 7 weeks.

actually, it hasn't been that bad. except for the ignorant and frequently absent host mentor, my time here has been spectacular. my only regret is that i wish i was able to accomplish more in terms of my project and statistical evidence.

anyway, the current plan now is that we leave for taipei for the next 4 days, then swing down to hsinchu to visit the NCHC building there and go to some lake at Taipingshan, then end the program with a week long stay at NCHC in taichung.


::EDIT::

actually, due to the typhoon, it looks like the awesome hiking trip up to the mountains is canceled. roads are blocked off and parts of the mountain caved onto the road, so travel is definitely not safe at the moment.

on the other hand, i am at my uncle's place.. editing this at 3:23 am, and feeling like i'm being rude by being awake, even though i fell asleep at 7:30pm and woke up about an hour ago...

saw my grandmother for the first time in 5 years.. i can't say that i remember her all that well those years ago, but seeing her now makes me sad because she looks so frail, especially since she was diagnosed with a type of nervous disease. and also, i can't really understand her sometimes. D=

i can see taipei 101 from my uncle's place. really pretty, and big? i think i'm like 5-7 minutes away from it by motorcycle..

and back to sleep.

typhoon morakot

this past weekend (starting on friday), we were visited by a category 2 typhoon coming from the Philippines that decided to give Taiwan a little visit.

woooooweeeee, was that an amazing storm. needless to say, due to the severity of the storm, going to lab or anywhere else was deemed impossible as the moment i stepped out of the apartment, rain blew horizontally into my face. also, the wind power made it impossible to walk out into the rain without trying to combat the gales of wind threatening to knock me over.

because of this confinement, my friends and i spent the entire weekend in the apartment and watching various tv shows such as, chuck, planet earth, and the entire first season of true blood. we briefly took breaks on it when we decided to just run out randomly into the typhoon and walk around.

that was sooo amazing. it also helped that the first time that i went out in the weather, i was half drunk and tired at 6:30am. =P but the second time.. michael, jeff, and i decided to take a little stroll to the shore by the apartments. ohhh man, it was like... being constantly hit with small pebbles and not being able to walk anywhere because the wind prevent any forward motion. it was insane. when we finally reached the shore, my clothes were mostly drenched and my glasses hindered visibility. i took them off, looked at the water, and was amazed. the waves werent even blowing towards shore, but in a northern direction, where the eye of the storm was. epic.

so now, today, the typhoon finally passed. no more epic rainfall that floods our second floor apartment with water, no random brilliant flashes of lightning at different times of the night. it was fun while it lasted, and now i think i probably have to start working on my final presentation/paper that's due during the lab meeting on tuesday, ugh.

::EDIT::

just got to my uncle's place... and oh man, no wonder people were asking if i was alright. i saw the news just now, and it is absolutely devestating. hearing the statistics doesn't affect you as much as seeing video feed of the trauma that people are suffering through... makes me feel bad for enjoying the typhoon while (now, thankfully) being sheltered geographically while staying in the south.