I travel several weeks per year and I’ve stayed in Courtyard properties when finances required it. So let’s be frank, in general, at least in the US, Courtyard is a budget brand that is middle of the road at best.…
Oh Taipei, I missed you so…
I love my job, I really do. Not only to I work with some truly gifted, wonderfully kind and fun people, but my job affords me the ability to work completely from my home office as well travel world wide.…
The Month of Living Expatriately: Epilogue – Stranger in a Strange Land
After only a month of living in a completely foreign culture, a place where English is an afterthought (though fairly widely spoken among a good portion of the population) and 30+ hours of travel back “Home” to the United States,…
The Month of Living Expatriately: Part 5 – That Evening, She Wept
Wednesday started off melancholy for me. It was my last day in Taipei, my last day of work in the office at Taipei 101. My last night in the only other city in the world that feels like home. Tomorrow I would…
Review: Pacific Business Center Hotel, Taipei
Now that I’ve lived in this hotel for a month, I thought that on my last night in Taiwan, it would be a good idea to do a review. I’ve stayed in hotels all around the world, from cheap 1…
The Month of Living Expatriately: Part 4 – Weekend Shenanigans
Taipei can be a very busy city. The locals work hard from morning and often well into the night. It’s not uncommon to see businesses that westerners would expect to be closed by 6:00PM to remain open until nearly midnight.…
The Month of Living Expatriately: Part 3 – Xiaochi Fever
Ahhh, have I ever mentioned how much I love street food? In China and Taiwan, these delectable treats are called xiaochi. Loosely translated in English, it means snack foods. It’s something you can find at the hundreds of thousands of…
The Month of Living Expatriately: Part 2, The Acclimation Tango
Since I was to be living in Taipei for a month, getting acclimated quickly seemed like a good idea. I’d been to Taipei several times before, however given my short week trips I never had time to venture beyond Xinyi,…