I hate having to think of a title for these things

Last night all the groups went to eat at a fancy Japanese restaurant (which is in the same building as the hotel). It was the first time I had done anything like that. The tables are very low to the ground, but there's a pit underneath it for your legs. And the food was actually much better than I expected. I also heard a story about someone who ate a whole ball of Wasabi (which is pure horseradish, which they apparently serve at all japanese restaurants) and he went into cardiac arrest and died (because of how hot it was). That made me excited to try it. It was farily spicy, but the amount I had wasn't anywhere near as hot as I've had from other sauces.

This morning we went to the Cheng Family Temple (or something like that) which used to be a place where some dude worshipped his ancestors, then it became an academy, and now it's a museum. I got four paintins of a town, each one is from a different season. I'm going to hang the corresponding picture in my room during that season.

From there we went to a Tea shop where we got to sample tea and learn how to tell the difference between good teapots and bad ones. It was actually pretty interesting.

Now we're back at the hotel for the day. Tomorrow is our big shopping day (getting to shop on this little island with tons of souvenirs for extremely cheap prices) so that should be fun.

I've been sick off and on the past couple days, and I haven't cared a whole lot about typing out extremely long updates. Oh well, there hasn't been a whole lot going on anyway.

Also I love the comments. Can't wait to come home and see everyone. The first week back is going to be murder I'm sure, but I'm very much looking forward to getting back into the swing of things. And Minow, I accept your chocolate pie offer.



Me being brave and trying raw tuna at the Japanese Restaurant

Part of the roof from the temple. The artistry in that place is incredible.

They had a whole room of carvings like this in the temple. The cool thing is that they are all carved out of bone.

Me testing the teapot to make sure it's of good quality. I'm sure this skill will come in handy later in life.

Me gingerly sipping Chinese Tea. What a manly day I had.