ELISA ENGLISH's Blog 英語園地

How do I put it in a subtle way, so it is less direct? I am never good at soften my tone. I will try to write it as objective as I can, but keep in mind that I am a human being. Being subjective is always a flaw of being human. Anyway, what I want to write is the phenomenon we saw in Taiwan during the month when we brought our kids back to visit their grandparents this year. The phenomenon we saw raised alarm and caused us to question whether we should shorten the length of our stay in Taiwan in the future. Deep down, we wanted our kids to see the best in Taiwan, the Taiwan which we felt so proud of and eagerly wanted to identify ourselves with. So when our kids started to confront us with the contradictions they saw. What could I tell them? A few black sheep! Did they fall for it? The disbelief in my son’s expression said it all. What else could I say? The disturbing phenomenon we saw was the lack of manners, morals and courtesy in the general public especially in the younger generation. I know. Some of you might be shocked at my discovery when most Taiwanese pride themselves in being courteous. However, the actions I saw contradicted with that notion. Was my memory playing a trick on me when these were still considered as good virtues? By the way, since the majority of our stay was in Taipei, I can’t intelligently assess if similar phenomenon happens outside of Taipei.

Maybe I shouldn’t have filled our kids with images of Taiwan based on our memories. Our good old memories, my nostalgic feeling …… I am just being unfair as I compared the past with the present. Time changes, so does the culture. Nothing stays stagnant. What once viewed as good virtue may now be considered as obsolete.

Hunting Crabby

On our first morning at Fort Lauderdale, my daughter woke up asking for her daddy.  I told her that he had left for work.  She was pretty upset and kept crying for her daddy.  We always have hard time trying to make her understand that she doesn’t always get what she needs and at the exact moment that she needs it.  Anyway, I was at my wit’s end.  In an attempt to distract her from crying, I asked if she wanted to go crabby hunting and cook it.  She liked the idea of cooking with me.  Occasionally, I would ask her to help me cook to sway her from attempting to get her daddy’s total attention on her when he is working with my son on the homework. 

Some interesting dining experiences on Fort Lauderdale Beach

These are some of the interesting dining experiences we had while vacationing on Fort Lauderdale Beach.  They represent how we felt but not necessarily the truth.  These restaurants are all located across the street facing the Atlantic Ocean.  By the way, all restaurants I mentioned below offer live music performances and are within walking distance of the Westin Hotel where we stayed.

Places where I call home – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Part II

As I mentioned earlier that I befriended a girl studying at Wharton School of Business, it goes without saying that UPenn was on my list of places to visit. 

Places where I call home – Downtown Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Part I -

My husband’s definition of a place where we can call home is much narrower than mine.  I thought of a home as a place where I have a deep emotional attachment.  My husband thought of a home as the country where one was born or the place where one calls the primary residence rather than a temporary accommodation.  I like my definition of a home.  I like the idea of having several places where I can call home. 

We are back from our ski vacation to Avon, Colorado.  The reason that we decided to go to Avon was an invitation from The Westin.  Both my husband and I are in the Starwood preferred guest program.  I got an invitation to book a $449 vacation package that includes 5 days’ and 4 nights’ accommodations at The Westin Riverfront Mountain Villas in Avon, Colorado and a $75 resort certificate with no string attached.  It was a deal hard to pass.  The regular nightly rate is $411 during spring break.  By the way, this is not the first time that we have accepted the invitation from the Starwood program.  We had stayed at The Westin Kierland Resort and Spa in Scottsdale and the Sheraton Vistana Resort Villas in Orlando.  The Westin Kierland Resort and Spa in Scottsdale is excellent.  I will write about that when I have time.  I would not recommend Sheraton Vistana Resort Villas in Orlando.  We were extremely disappointed at the quality of the Sheraton villa in Orlando.  The villas are old and outdated.  I would say that you probably won’t go wrong staying at The Westin.  However, with Sheraton hotels, you do have to do more research.  The quality of the Sheraton hotels varies.  The Sheraton Maui Resort and Spa at Kaanapali Beach is great.  We stayed at a honeymoon suite there with an oceanfront view.          

The invitation offered a one bedroom villa at The Westin Riverfront Mountain Villas in Avon, Colorado.  The room has a full size kitchen with refrigerator, microwave, traditional oven, coffee maker, dish washer and all the necessary china, cutlery, utensils, tableware and dinnerware.  There is also a stackable washer and dryer.  It has a dining area and a living room with a queen size sofa bed, an HDTV (most of the TV programs are HD), fireplace and a walkout balcony from the living room and the bedroom.  The bedroom has a safe and another HDTV.  One feature we really like is the ample closets throughout the room.  In addition, it has complimentary wireless high internet service.  There is one bathroom accessible from either the bedroom or the hallway.  It has a toilet, a shower room, a whirlpool bathtub, and double sink vanities.  It is spacious.  I love soaking in the hot tub.  It is so relaxing.  I did it twice a day while I was there. 

My traveling experience as a young single female – Part II:  New York City

This is part II of the series – My traveling experience as a young single female.  It talks about my first traveling experience to New York City, New York. 

My traveling experience as a young single female – Part I:  Los Angeles

Someone has asked about traveling as a young single female to LA and New York, which prompted me to start writing a series on my traveling experience as a young single female.  This is part I of the series.  It talks about my first traveling experience to Los Angeles, California.  This wasn’t the first time that I travelled alone.  I like traveling.  I will seize any traveling opportunity if I can.  I will talk about the other traveling experience later.