Lack of internet at home is taking its toll. Up is down, down is up. I can't feel my toes. My mouth tastes like cheese. I thought the TV was trying to kill me. My blog has been reduced to random observations:

* The Traditional Chinese characters are very similar to the Simplified ones used on the mainland. I thought it would be a much larger obstacle. Turns out I can pretty much still read the ones I know.

* HOWEVER, they say things really weird. I'm sure it's a local dialect thing, but I'm having to ask people to repeat themselves a lot. Then they try in English. Then I don't understand. Then I go into a fetal position until they walk away.

* Everyone is crazy polite here. There is no pushing or shoving, everyone uses crosswalks. Cars will stop for pedestrians on small roads.

* It is much cleaner than China. People wash their hands, and the air is clean. I can actually see some stars at night.

* There is "open" WiFi everywhere, but it all requires a subscription. Like Boingo in airports. This is the most annoying thing ever.

* Their sidewalks have lots of gaps and random steps in them. I've stumbled quite a few times, and have to get used to watch my footing more.

* Despite not being recognized as a sovereign nation by most of the world, they seem far more international than even the largest cities in China.  They have lots of English (as well as a Japanese and Arabic) channels on TV. CNN International is a million times better than regular CNN and I don't know why we don't have it.

* Their English is terrible. I guess that's good for me, but the attempts at English I see in Asia have been understandable but humorous. Here it's just... I don't know what they're trying to do. It's perfect in the subway or on other government run things, but in the private sector its an incomprehensible mess.

* My shower is just a nozzle hooked up to my sink, like in a camper. I don't know if this is widespread but it makes cleaning the bathroom crazy easy.

* It's low 60s here and people are acting like it's a snowpocolypse. They wear scarves and heavy coats, and think I'm crazy for not wearing at least a jacket.

* They love their receipts. I am tired of having useless paper in my pocket.

* Haggling is much less of a big deal here. Prices are clearly marked and I was given a discount without asking for one. I don't know what to do with myself.

* More scooters, less cars.

* They're bigger on street food than China is. Even the KFC is just a window open to the sidewalk with no seating.

* Garbage collection is daily at a set time, and you have to personally give it to the garbage man instead of leaving it. I guess this is to encourage you to waste less, but it's stupidly inconvenient. I am going to keep my eyes peeled for a dumpster.

* They are big on recycling, with various bins for various types of trash. I don't really know which bin some things go in, so I'm probably ruining somebody's day.

* Stores are much more 9-5ish than China. The only thing open late are 7-11s, but they are EVERYWHERE. Like, coffee shops in Seattle everywhere.

* The 7-11s have a loyalty card where you get a sticker each time you shop there. You turn in the stickers for little toys and drinks. I am totally in love with this.

<sigh> My kingdom for wifi.