taiwan - day #2.

i have tried more things than i can name.  among them octopus and chicken butt.  and probably chicken feet by tomorrow.

we had a great day at the hospital.  the care here is quite different than it is in the united states.  the family is way more involved with care.  the nurses collaborate better with the physicians, and they seem more like a team than in america.  they do have different methods of doing things.  for instance, to prevent dvt - they don't use sequential compression devices.  the family comes in and massages the patient's legs and feet.  isn't that a novel idea?  the cost of healthcare would decrease significantly if we would just incorporate some of the things they do here into our care.  plus, that would make the family feel useful.  they also call all the older women ah-ma, or "grandma" and all the men ah-gong or "grandpa".  {i'm sure john will give me the proper spelling of these words next time we skype, but for now, that will do....}  they also don't use an ultrasound to insert central venous catheters.  they do it by feel.  i don't know if they ever do it by feel in the united states, but if they don't, kudos to taiwan - that takes skill.

some things i have learned about taiwan:
the garbage trucks sound like ice cream trucks
every once and a while you get a beautiful whiff of sewage aroma
they eat every part of every animal imaginable here
if you want someone to like you, tell them they have very good english.  {it will make their day!}
the dumplings here are absolutely incredible.  so are the drinks.

this was breakfast today.  and it was delicious.

this cart was very noisy.  the speakers were playing something in chinese, but obviously, i have no idea what they said.

i tried my first ice monster.  i am excited for when the mangos are in season so that i can really go to town!

best. dumpling. ever.

we got chinese massages.  the picture is out of focus but behind that smile of mine is searing pain in my leg, because he is smacking it.

chicken butt.  which i secretly kind of liked.