A Good Child

(This is a story)


Charlie was 7 years old, and was, according to most of people, a child.
But Charlie thought he was a bit bigger than a child.
He went to school everyday like all other children in the world.
One day, Mommy came to school to take him home.
"Have you been a good boy?" asked Mommy, holding Charlie's face in her hands.
"Define 'good'." Answered Charlie.
"Well, did you do anything wrong? Or have you made your teacher angry?" Mommy said.
"Hmm, I'm half good then." Charlie said to himself.
"What do you mean?" asked Mommy.
"I'm half good because I didn't do anything wrong but I did make my teacher angry." Charlie explained to his mom.
 "What did you do this time?" Mommy looked at him.
Charlie held out his fingers and started to count them out,
"First, I sang a song in the Math class. Don't ask me why, I just felt like it. Then, I answered the question Mrs Faikfox was asking Amy. I couldn't help it. Finally, I ran 200 meters when we were asked to run 100 meters." 
Mommy held Charlie's shoulders and sighed, "Oh, Charlie, why can't you be as good as others."
Charlie looked proud and said, "But, Mommy, can't you see, I am happy."

Mrs Faikfox came across the lawn and stood beside Mommy, "Mrs Iron, Charlie has been very naughty."
Mrs Iron nodded and said, "I know, Charlie had told me everything. I'm so sorry, Mrs Faikfox. I am very disappointed in him."
Mrs Faikfox turned to Charlie triumphantly and said, "Did you hear your mom, little boy?"
Charlie, who looked very grow-up at the moment, answered, "I'm glad that you include me in your conversation. However, you have to know that, I didn't choose her to be 'my mom'."
Both Mrs Faikfox and Mrs Iron stared at Charlie and seemed to lose their voice.
"You see, I remember I specifically asked for a mom who'd want me to be happy, not to be 'as good as others'." Charlie continued.
Last, Charlie looked into Mrs Iron's eyes and said, "I'm very disappointed at you, Ma'am." Then he walked away, left the two women where they were, and got on the car

 

Taiwanese Food 台灣小吃

TAIWANESE FOOD INTRODUCTION

A Name is Not My Name

(This is a story)

Someone was crying under the slide.
Why was the boy crying?
"I...I've lost my name." he sobbed.
Where had his name gone?

There was a ball next to him and had a name on it, Danny.
Could it be the boy's name?
"That is not my name. Why would I be named after a ball?" he said.
That sounded reasonable.

A bicycle was laying on the grass and had a name on it, Peter.
Maybe this was the boy's name.
"My name is not Peter. I don't look like a bicycle at all." he frowned.
That was true, he didn't look like one.

On the riverside, a name was written on a tree, SallylovesSam, in a heart shape.
This seemed to be lovely, the boy might like it.
"Does the heart shape come with the name? I like the idea." he smiled. "But, no."
A shape with a name, a really good idea.

Someone on the bridge was calling a name, Sorry.
The person sounded upset, it'd better not be the boy's name.
"Sorry? Why, I am not Sorry. Say you are sorry." he yelled.
Sorry.

A woman was calling her children, " Paully, Mandy, Andrew, Tom, come here at once."
Was the boy one of them?
"I don't steal people's name even when I've lost mine." he looked stern.
How honorable he was!

The boy was on the swing.
Had he forgotten he had lost his name?
"I think, maybe, a name is not my name." he said to himself.
And then, he jumped off the swing, he rolled down the lawn hill, and he ran around on the grass.

The boy was laughing and singing and spinning.
"Why are you so happy? Have you found your name?"
"It's easy, isn't it? My name is not a name!"
And a name couldn't be his name. Indeed!

Shelton and His Dreams

(This is a story)

Shelton was a special boy, but only he himself knew it.

He knew all the time that he shouldn't let others know how special he was,
otherwise it wouldn't be a secret anymore.

When his mom asked him to brush his teeth before bed, he did it.
So everyone thought he was a jolly good boy.

When his dad asked him to eat up all the green vegetables, he did it.
So everyone would see him as a little good child.

But Shelton was special, and, on the top of all, only he himself knew it.

When the sun went down,
the lights went out,
everyone went to bed.
Shelton  went to himself.

He tiptoed to his mom's bedside,
and he gave her a dream.
Mommy was a little girl again.
It was Christmas, there were so many sweets,  pies, cupcakes, candy canes...
Mommy was so happy, and she couldn't take her eyes away from all those beautiful, colourful, wonderful delights.
Her eyes were glittering, her head was spinning, and her mouth was watering.
She was moving forward, towards all the beautiful things.
She was getting closer and closer to them every minute.
She was almost there.
They were going to be in her hands in just a few seconds, and then BANG.
Huge noises from her back forced her to turn.
Mommy's looked shocked.
Two enormous hands grabbed Mommy's arms and dragged her further and further away from the sweets.
Toothbrush and Toothpaste were on each side of her.
"Let me go, let go of me." screamed Mommy.
"No Mom. Go brush your teeth."

Shelton tiptoed to his dad's bedside and gave him a dream.
Daddy was a king again.
He was mighty and powerful.
There seemed to be a banquet in the palace, and it was food all over the table.
Roasted turkey, barbeque lamb, sausages, chicken pies,  pork skewer...
Daddy was so happy.
His heart was beating, his hands were shaking, and his sights were fixed and stern.
He was approaching to the table which is full of food.
He was reaching his hand out to those delicious meat.
The point of his finger was going to touch the crispy skin of the turkey, and then PUFF.
The turkey was now a huge lettuce.
Daddy touched the lamb, and it turned into a huge broccoli.
Sausages! No, cucumbers!
Chicken pies? No, cabbage soup!
Pork skewer! No, peas!
"No, no, no, my meat!" cried Daddy.
"Yes, Dad, finish the green vegetables."

Shelton tiptoed back to his bed, he must.
So he would be just the same as others, but was he?

Shelton was special, only he himself knew it, and only he could know it.

I and Myself

(This is a story)

Myself left me, and I was happy for her.

We had been arguing for all our life.
I wanted to be a good girl, a good daughter, so I listened to my parents and did what they wanted.
I had always known she is not happy.
I had a fight with myself on the day I decided to be whom my parents wanted me to be.
I abandoned myself.
I did it to her first.

We were both heartbroken.
I was a coward.
I couldn't find my voice and my strength.
I was content that myself had always been by my side and kept my consciousness for me.
But she was about to have enough of that, and I didn't notice that.
I didn't.

We were both lost.
I couldn't find my way ahead, and she couldn't find her way to be away from me.
I pulled, and pushed, and dragged her to follow my steps.
I was on the wrong way, and so was she.
I and myself were both heading the wrong way, and we both knew it.
We were lost.

And it came the day.
I woke up, and myself was not there anymore.
I saw not myself in the mirror.
I saw not myself in the reflection.
Myself had left me, finally.
I was down, but I felt happy for myself.
Myself was free, at least, finally.

Italy, umm.. DELICIOUS! 義大利，好吃!

What did you do in Italy? "Oh, I ate a lot."
Everybody suggested that we should eat a lot while we were in Italy.
Well, well, well, I was very obedient.e
But not all the food is nice, and I am very picky.

1. Ice cream, ice cream, what's good in you?
Why are you so good?
I've tried ice cream from a few different shops, and this one is especially great!
Although it is a chained brand, I like it the most.
Do you know which brand I am talking about?
It is the GROM!!
I would never forget the smooth texture of the ice cream.
There are so many flavours and they are just perfect!

GROM 冰淇淋:
我最喜歡這間的冰淇淋，
雖然它是連鎖的店，
但是它們連鎖的很有道理!太好吃了!(鼓掌)
滑順的口感，多樣的口味，
好~想~念~。






2.Tiramisu 提拉米蘇
Another specialty of Italy would be Tiramisu.
Sometimes I felt outrageous that some restaurants get ready-made tiramisu from other places.
The soft cheese for a nice tiramisu is very important, fresh and creamy.
This Tiramisu was a surprise. I didn't expect much of it, but it turns our to be my number one.
Moreover, the hot chocolate  really gave me a shock in a good way.
It's not hot chocolate made out of from power but real chocolate, so full of flavour.

這是一間連鎖的Snack Bar,義大利到處都是Snack Bar,裡面買Panini(義大利的三明治)、酒、飲料、咖啡、點心、...等。這間的提拉米蘇真的好吃，大該是因為起司的量多，而不是用蛋糕或餅乾去充量的。令人驚喜的是它的熱巧克力，濃濃的巧克力，絕不是用巧克力粉跑出來的!







3. A pizza house in Lucca 在盧卡的披薩店
There is a small pizza house in the centre of Lucca.
There's only a few seats in the room and a big brick oven.
When I say a big brick oven, you have to imagine a beautiful rounded red tomato pizza being carried out from the oven. The heat and the smell filled the room.
So of course we ordered a piece  of pizza which is weighed to be calculate for the price.
And it is absolutely cheap.
The piece we ordered was less than 2 Euro.
They've also got Espresso. 80 cent for one! How lovely!

在盧卡巧遇的披薩店，小小的披薩店裡有個大大的窯爐，薄片的窯烤披薩，美味不用說，這麼一大片還不到兩歐，Espresso也是見過最便宜的 80 Cent。

       

I recommend here and here (Italy) 我推薦這裡那裡 (義大利)

I travelled to Italy with my friend in January 2014, 

and there are some places you shouldn't miss!

我在2014年一月的時候去了義大利，有些地方千萬別錯過喔!

1. Burano 彩色島

Burano is an island in Venice, Italy. 

All the houses on the island have their own distinctive colour. 

Not a single house repeats its colour.

The island itself is just lovely. 

It is really a nice place for taking photos and just have fun.

Burano是義大利威尼斯的一個小島，大家叫他彩色島，

因為島上的房子都有自己獨特的顏色，

彩色島真的很可愛，很適合拍照喔!

2. Lucca 盧卡

Lucca is a small town near Florence.

People normally have a one-day trip to Lucca and Pissa at the same time.

But my friend and I decided to go to only Lucca.

And Lucca is, from what I saw, very special.

The town is surrounded by ancient rock walls and keeps its medieval atmosphere.

One thing to mind you is that it is really easy to get lost or loose your direction in the town.

Don't worry, it's all very funny and fun, it's just the town is build in a circular way and you'll never get out of the circle, like a maze.

One thing surprised me was that Lucca seems to be a shopping town.

There are many shops and restaurants. 

We accidentally discovered a pizza house, and the food and price were both very satisfying.

Lucca 是一個在佛羅倫斯附近的小鎮，

小鎮還保留著中世紀的氣息，

整個小鎮都在城牆裡，

在Lucca很容易迷路，

因為整個城鎮是一圈一圈的不斷循環，

所以很容易迷失方向，

但其實還滿好笑的，

Lucca好像也是購物城，

好多店家和小餐館，

我和朋友還巧遇了一間便宜好吃的披薩店。

3. Piazzale Michelangelo 米開朗基羅廣場

Wanna have a nice view of Florence, then go to Piazzale Michelangelo.

Take bus 12 from the town centre. It's a pretty long way to go up there, I have to say.

But it's definitely worth it. 

The night view from up there was incredibly beautiful and breathtaking.

And I believe it would also be pretty if you are there during the daytime.

在米開朗基羅廣場你可以俯瞰整個佛羅倫斯市區，

從市區搭12號公車就會到了，

有點距離，不過很值得。

佛羅倫斯的夜景真的好美，

我想白天天氣好的話應該也很漂亮。

4.Vatican 梵蒂岡

Vatican is just next to Rome. 

You can easily get there by tube or walking across the Tiber River.

There are many interesting things in Vatican. 

The fist thing that caught my eye was their post-box.

"Why, it is really something, don't you think?" Don't you?

Of course you shouldn't miss St. Peter's Basilica (San Pietro Basilica).

The architecture and statues outside in the square and inside the basilica, 

everything is so impressive that you want to use your heart to remember every detail.

But they are at the same time so enormous that you can't take everything in one go.

最喜歡梵蒂岡的郵筒了，明亮的黃色，真可愛。

聖彼得大教堂是一定要花時間細細品味的，

不管是它的廣場，還是裏頭的雕刻，

每一眼都讓人驚奇，

想要努力把震撼的感覺記在心裡，卻無法將感動留住。

Be careful in Italy! 在義大利要小心!

I travelled to Italy in January 2014.
Some things happened and I shouldn't have made the mistakes.
我在2014年一月的時候去了義大利。
在義大利旅行時有些事情要注意。

1. Stamps 郵票
I bought some stamps in a shop where they also sale postcards.
The stamps for posting to Asia cost 2 Euro each, and they are fake.
Two days later, I bought some stamps in a post office.
It was official and CHEAPER!
我在賣明信片的地方買了一些寄亞洲的郵票，一張要兩歐，而且他們是假的。
後來我在郵局買的郵票還比較便宜。

 The three blue ones are the fake stamps. Don't buy them!
就是那些藍色的郵票，絕對不要買，因為寄不到。

2. Pickpockets 扒手
You might have already been warmed that there are many pickpockets in Italy.
And "luckily" me and my friend were chosen to be a target.
At the Termini station, 3 teenage girls and one lady with a baby in her arms followed us into the tube cart. They surrounded us and made a closed space around us. I could hear my backpack being zipped down. They couldn't get anything from us. We were approaching to the next station and the girls were  getting off the train, but one girl, around 14-15 ears old, shouted at me and gave me a punch on my arm. I felt sad for them. They were so young and they were in their own country. I would treat people who travel to my country as nice as I can be. It is a sense of pride. I want people to see the best of my country, Taiwan.
很多人都會告訴你去義大利玩要小心扒手，而我和我朋友就很幸運的被選中了，三個小女生和一個抱著娃娃的婦人尾隨我們上了捷運，我可以感覺到有人在開我的後背包(裡面沒有重要東西)，我朋友被擋住，到達下一站的時候，一個小女孩還往我手臂打了一拳。


3. Currency Exchange 換錢
If you can exchange enough money before travelling, then do so and always prepare more than enough. I made a really stupid mistake, but it is a very important experience. I needed to exchange more euro in Italy and I had some Pounds notes, so I went to an exchange desk and was ripped off. The rate was outrageously low, the fee was ridiculously high , and I was absolutely out of my mind that I didn't check the receipt but signed my name. And I regretted so much but couldn't do anything to make things right. The commission fee was around 9 Euro for one exchange.
出國前最好把錢換多一點，比你預估的多，誠心的建議你。 我在義大利的時候需要換錢，我拿英鎊直接兌換，匯率很低、手續費高，而且我又很不小心，總而言之不要那現金去換，會損失一大筆錢。

No matter how upset I was, I needed another exchange (I have to remind you once again, always prepare more than enough). This time a found an ATM which is called Euronet. I used my HSBC debit visa card to withdraw euro and the commission fee is  0 ZERO! Amazing!
Although the lesson is expensive, I am glad that I can share it with you.
因為太過愚昧，所以需要再換一次錢，這次我用我的HSBC Visa Debit card在Euronet的提款機領錢，結果，手續費是零!皆大歡喜!
雖然這次的教訓有點貴，但是學到了很重要的一課，就算要換錢也不要用現金，用卡。用卡的話，手續費是你辦卡的銀行訂定的，比較低。再來就是，出國前能多換一點現金就多換一點，否則玩的時候還要擔心去哪換錢。