My Scooter! It's a 125cc Yamaha...which sounds like it should be ok, but I am not so sure. It doesn't like starting, which is nearly as worrying as sometimes it doesn't like stopping (although new front pads seem to have helped a little in that department). It is possibly the coolest means of transport I have ever owned...and all for less than £400. Not sure what the orangey things are on each side, front & back, I've noticed these on all the scooters, but no one seems to use them. 

Old Scooters in Taiwan don't so much as die and go to "scooter heaven", rather they end up as planters, or mop driers or places to stick a sign...in some bizarre way they brighten up the place.

Here in Taichung most of the locals speak little to no English. Now I don't see that as a problem, it's good for my Chinese. However, with that in mind, it puzzles me why so many wear T-Shirts printed with various English slogans and phrases; with most of these phrases making no sense whatsoever. But! Look what I bought. Arthur Dent is alive and well in Taichung.

Heading up the stairs to the fourth floor at Uni on Friday, I found myself face to face with this little fellow. Not sure who was most surprised to see the other. But how cool, a preying mantis.

 I saw these two beetles on a tree. I think the markings are a warning and mean "stop taking our photo you stupid foreigner!" Isn't evolution amazing!

 There is a coastal wet land nature reserve about an hours scooter ride from home. I was walking on the sand, wandering what all the white specks were. Well, as you can see they are tiny crabs. I hope that in the bottom photo you can see that the mud flats are covered with them.

 This huge dragonfly 'buzzed' me while walking through the nature reserve.

The view from my balcony. And a frequent visitor, who also seems to enjoy the view 

(or maybe it's just the mosquitoes he's after)

One of the brilliant things you find in Taiwan are 'Tea Shops'. They are everywhere, the three shown in the pictures above are all on the same junction (right near my home). Not tea shops in any UK way, but rather little outlets, that serve all forms of hot, but mostly cold drinks. Popular amongst the drinks available are milk teas, iced fruit juices and smoothies. The Mr Wish drink is an iced Kiwi Fruit juice, and on a hot day it is the perfect thirst quencher.