Message from rfontana

[Anonymous]

I was very interested in touring Chuangtsun Vocational school. We hear so much about the rigorous academics of Taiwan; I wanted to see what the other tier of their two-tier system looks like. I was very impressed by the facilities here and the many accomplishments of the students. From the wonderful dance display, to the teacher quietly instructing two girls in the making of corsages, the school showed pride in its students and their accomplishments. I think I was only half-kidding when I asked if they were hiring.

Of course, this was after a full day of being treated like a rock star. At several points during the day, I thought, "No one is going to believe this!" Perhaps the zenith of this feeling came during lunch, when interspersed around us at the table were some pretty high ranking government officials and other VIPs. I chatted with the man next to me, who was from the Minister's office and who represented North America in some capacity, about endurance sports such as high mileage cycling (him) and running (me). We also discussed education in Taiwan and exchange programs. When I got home, I found an email from him awaiting me. He wanted me to check out a couple of websites for marathons in Taiwan. I know it's not the same, but it felt a little like Bill Clinton letting you know where you could take sax lessons. Amazing.