Perhaps this blog is something I should have started three years ago when I moved to Taiwan, instead of now, when I am getting ready to leave. Actually, my husband and I did have a blog set up thanks to our friend Shawn, but we never really got into updating it with photos and insights in our new life. Between our busy schedules and exploring our new surroundings, finding the time and energy to blog about it never really happened. But there is a lot I want to say about Taiwan, what I have done here, and what my perspective on life here is. This will be the main focus of the blog for the next two months, but I am sure I will often refer back to and reflect on my time here once I am again in the US.
As for the general theme of the blog, well, I want to document my transition back into American society. After three years of being in Asia, not only have I changed but my country has as well. As I'm sure most of you American readers are aware, the US has been undergoing a drastic transformation, which doesn't seem to be coming to a conclusion anytime soon. And I have really been "out of the loop", as they say.
Will I find my life in the US to be much different than it was before I came to Taiwan? How will my experiences here change the way I look at things there? Will I find a good job? Can I even afford to live in the US? How will I adjust to American culture, after being removed from it for so long? Will I still have things in common with my old friends?
These are just some of the questions that I ask myself as I prepare for the big move, and I hope that my experiences in finding out the answers to them are interesting ones. With that being said, I'm sure I will approach some controversial social and political issues on this blog. I hope the readers will weigh in with their thoughts, and that good, mature discussions will ensue.
Who knows, maybe moving back home will prove to be more challenging and noteworthy than moving to Asia...
Allane
June 5, 2011
