Surreal is very real

It's so crazy that after leaving Toronto an absolute mess (yes, I'm a crier) and falling asleep on a plane (and waking up, falling asleep, waking up, changing planes, wandering a couple of airports, falling asleep, eating some food, watching some movies, falling asleep, waking up)that I've arrived back in Taiwan. The taxi driver, Ms. Liao, picked me up at the airport and in broken English grabbed my excessive baggage, herded me to the car, filled my water bottle and plied me with snacks and noodle soup despite my protests that I wasn't hungry. She proudly told me that she still had the Canadian flag pin my mom and dad had given to her on their visit in 2009. She put on the English radio station and whisked me into the city. Listening to the radio station play all the same songs that are playing in Toronto it was hard to believe that I was back on the other side of the world. Everything looked the same as when I left 3 years ago, from the highway at least, and it was much less intimidating that my first arrival in 2006. When Ms. Liao dropped me off at my friend Ming's place, we hugged excitedly and it felt like no time had passed. Isn't it great to have that kind of relationship? I feel so lucky to have met such amazing people that Taiwan really does feel like a second home.