At the beginning of this year, I faced my last full-time semester of university. The semester took me through a rollercoaster of emotions as I grappled with the end of my identity as a student. Who would I be now? How would I fill my time? What was life really about if not getting good … Continue reading An Adventure in Alaska
Bogged Down by Beauty: The Appeal of Unaltered Nature
My family has a cottage in Georgian Bay, a small A-frame wooden cabin that I consider home. The cottage lies within a little cove, with the open waters of Lake Huron are somewhere far past the woods behind the property. Last summer, I went for a ride in a small seaplane - or lake-plane, in … Continue reading Bogged Down by Beauty: The Appeal of Unaltered Nature
Don’t Touch the Water
When there was life beneath the light What went on was out of sight. now Nothing moves, and nothing breathes And on the surface, no one sees. Image source: https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2019/11/harmful-algal-blooms-cost-economic-impact/ Photo taken by Serena Causton in Pointe au Baril โDonโt touch the water,โ my sister said as the boat creeped up to the dock. I … Continue reading Don’t Touch the Water
Orchid Island/ Lanyu – May, 2023
My experiences with flying fish, local festivals, environmental sampling, and visiting all the schools on Orchid Island!
Waterfall Trekking and Working Too Hard
Waterfall Trekking and Working Too Hard Iโm back! After a long blog hiatus, we are back. Still in Taiwan and thriving more than ever. In May and June, I was working full time in my internship, but I was also taking 6 courses online for my degree in Guelph. After a while I really … Continue reading Waterfall Trekking and Working Too Hard
Scuba Diving
Recently I was able to get certified in PADI Open Water Diving โ and my experience was like nothing Iโve ever done before! Hereโs my retelling of it for anyone whoโs curious. Also, check out my Youtube video of Diving at Orchid Island. The sun hid behind grey, menacing clouds; rain was coming, though I … Continue reading Scuba Diving
Back on the Streets of Taiwan
Iโm back! After three long years, Iโm back in Taiwan. It almost feels like a different life, as if instead of following the passage of time forward, I stepped out of my Canadian life and sideways into a Taiwanese one. The adventures began with a 12-hour layover in Turkey, during which I had originally … Continue reading Back on the Streets of Taiwan
10 Memorable Days in Taiwan
Recently I sat down to write about my Top 10 memories of this year. Most of them were from Taiwan, as life has really calmed down a lot since I returned due to Covid (crazy to have so much free time! I'm getting really good at the Ocarina). Suddenly the memories started flowing out of … Continue reading 10 Memorable Days in Taiwan
Healthcare in Taiwan
A particularly dramatic retelling of my experience in the Taiwanese healthcare system, accompanied by my thoughts. Sweat dripped down my forehead. The hum from the car engine grated on my ears, and even the brightness of the day pained me. When I closed my eyes, I could feel every bump in the road shaking my … Continue reading Healthcare in Taiwan
2nd Place in Mandarin Speech Competition!
https://youtu.be/wsiOY9mD-a0 In June, all the Inbound exchange students gathered in Hsinchu for a Chinese Speech Competition. I prepared for two weeks beforehand and won 2nd place (2nd only to Callie of course!! I have her to thank for it as she really helped me learn a lot of Chinese during those hours we spent in … Continue reading 2nd Place in Mandarin Speech Competition!
ๆฐๅนดๅฟซๆจ
Rotary New Years Trip ๆฐๅนดๅฟซๆจ!!! For New Years, at least 100 exchange students went to Taipei to see the fireworks off of Taipei 101. I remember rebounds telling about this trip when I was still in Canada, and it felt like a lifetime away. Now I can't believe it's already behind me!! Yesterday, we started … Continue reading ๆฐๅนดๅฟซๆจ
Hotpot and fancy shrimp restaurants (among other things)
Before you start reading, go watch my 4th Month in Taiwan video, and check out the bonus video of our trip to see the Christmas lights in Taipei. All my videos are available on my Youtube channel - click on the blue text to be taken to these videos. You can also look under the … Continue reading Hotpot and fancy shrimp restaurants (among other things)
Read Our Beaver Tales
What's a Beavertale, you ask? No, I'm not talking about the delicious Canadian dessert. District 7080 has Outbound exchange students write open letters home at 3 points in their year abroad. The letters, called "Beaver Tales", are posted on the District 7080 website. They act as a great memoir for us, an update for our … Continue reading Read Our Beaver Tales
ๆตท็,ๅฑฑ,ๅ้ฃ็ฉ ~ Mountains, oysters, and tying knots?
Before we begin, head over to Youtube to see my 3rd Month in Taiwan video by clicking on the blue text! ไธๆๆ๏ผๆๅๅปๆตทๆค! ๆๅๆพ็ก่ ฃๅ่ค่ ฃ! ๅพๅฅฝ็ฉ! ๆๆพไบไธ้ป้ป๏ผๆฒๆๅพๅค๏ผ่ๆไธๅพ็ดฏไบ! ไนๅพ๏ผๅจๆตท็๏ผๆๅ็็ค็ก่ ฃ๏ผๅๅๅพๅคๆตท้ฎฎใๆๅๅ ฑ้ฃฝไบ๏ผไนๅพๆๅๅปๅ็ซ้ๅๅๅพๅคๆตท้ฎฎๅพๅฅฝๅ! ่ๅญๅพ่นใ Last week, my family and my counselor Tom's family all went to the beach in Changhua to scavenge for clams and oysters. To get there, we rode in … Continue reading ๆตท็,ๅฑฑ,ๅ้ฃ็ฉ ~ Mountains, oysters, and tying knots?
Challenges in Chinese
Before we begin, click here to see my 2nd Month in Taiwan video! Hello again! The last two weeks have been jam-packed, literally. Since Taiwan celebrated its birthday with a holiday this Thursday, in order to have a four-day weekend, everyone had to go to work or school last Saturday. It was clear nobody wanted … Continue reading Challenges in Chinese
Living vs. Adjusting
I took the train by myself today!!!!! ๆไปๅคฉๅฎ็จๅปๅ่ป!!!!! I spent the day at Chinese classes with the other exchange students, where we had our first dance class - the instructor tried to teach the girls how to be sexy and the boys how to be โpowerfulโ. Almost all of us have no experience dancing, and … Continue reading Living vs. Adjusting
2ๅคฉ๏ผ2็ฌๅฑฑ๏ผ3็็ ๅฅถ่ถ
2 days, 2 mountains, 3 bubble teas! I think this is my fifth blog post in Taiwanโ which means Iโve been here for a little over a month. Itโs scary to think about how quickly time passes (head over to Youtube to see my 1 Month in Taiwan video) - click on the blue text … Continue reading 2ๅคฉ๏ผ2็ฌๅฑฑ๏ผ3็็ ๅฅถ่ถ
Mishaps with Mandarin
This weekโs special: I lock my host mom and I out of the house!! Everyday, I hear my favourite type of music through the walls of my house: angry piano music. I asked my mom about it, and she said our neighbor plays piano very well. We went over to say hi, and as I … Continue reading Mishaps with Mandarin
Lost on the Streets of Toufen
I left last off weekโs post on Friday, which was going to be my first day of school. Luckily for me, there was a change of plans, and I didnโt have to go!! I debated between trying to be a great exchange student, and asking to go, or staying home and catching up on sleep. … Continue reading Lost on the Streets of Toufen
Alone on the Streets of Toufen
Am I back again, already? Time flies. My second week gave me more time to relax than the first. Saturday, however, was full of excitement! I spent the whole day at our Inbound Orientation, which was held in a banquet hall and hosted by District 3501 (my district) and 3502. With both districts, there was … Continue reading Alone on the Streets of Toufen
The First Week
Ahh!! I canโt believe Iโm finally here. Iโm no longer an outbound, preparing to go โ this is the real deal. So far, I have been in Taiwan for 4 days. Each day is so full that I havenโt even had time to unpack. (Well, I couldโve unpacked on the first day I got here, … Continue reading The First Week
Advice from Exchange Students
Here you can find general advice other exchange students have given to me. I hope this helps! In Preparation For Exchange Study the language of your host country as much as possible!!!Write down your goals for exchange. Then write a letter to yourself outlining those goals and what you hope to achieve on exchange. Have … Continue reading Advice from Exchange Students
A Taste of Taiwan
(Written April 16th 2019) My first taste of Taiwanese culture! There's a WhatsApp group chat for outbounds going to Taiwan for 2019-2020. There are people from all over the world in it. Today, a Canadian - the one who told me about the group chat, actually - got an email! The first connections from the … Continue reading A Taste of Taiwan
France Reflection โ One Year Later
(Written February 15th, 2019) One year ago today I left for France. Two years before that I decided I wanted to be an exchange student, and one year after that, the dream finally seemed to be within reach. Before I left, I had a lot of misconceptions about what exchange life would be like. I … Continue reading France Reflection โ One Year Later
The First Interview
This story took place on November 7th, 2018 (Side note: I went back into my emails after writing this to check that I had the right date. It was. I guess important dates just stick with you.) It was the day of my first interview with the Rotary. I was so, so nervous. I had … Continue reading The First Interview
Welcome to my blog!
Hi there! Thanks for joining me. I am a Rotary Youth Exchange student from Canada to Taiwan for the 2019-2020 year. I also went on exchange with ISE Ontario to Quimper, France, for 3 months in 2018. Here, you can find all the updates about my exchange, as well as information about exchange if you're … Continue reading Welcome to my blog!
I Can Do It! Another Step Closer to Learning Chinese
Sitting at the computer, procrastinating on an English paper, I picked up my phone. I scrolled aimlessly through social media and started texting an Inbound who is in Taiwan for the 2018-2019 year. Her name is Laura. She's Canadian too, from District 7090, and lives only a few hours away from me (in Canada, not … Continue reading I Can Do It! Another Step Closer to Learning Chinese
The Power of Teamwork
You see it everywhere: outside, on the sidewalk, tiny little ants walk in a line, carrying breadcrumbs back to their nest. Bees buzz around the flowers, intent on gathering nectar to take back to their hive. You even see it in the skyscrapers rising up into the clouds, the organized roads and streets that take … Continue reading The Power of Teamwork
How can we understand nature? The Art of Interpretation
Who am I to interpret nature through art? Well, I am a human. People are all about connection - every individual human has an innate yearning to connect to others. In my opinion, interpreting nature through art is simply another bid for connection. We have an innate desire to share our interpretation with others in … Continue reading How can we understand nature? The Art of Interpretation
What is nature, really?
As I delve further into my work exploring cultural ecosystems, I wanted to write out some short essays on what Iโve learned so far. Just to make sure Iโve learned something. In this post, Iโll consider what it means to interpret nature and the value of having guided experiences in nature. Since so much of … Continue reading What is nature, really?
Can Corals Carry On?
Below is a creative essay I wrote, inspired by my scuba diving experiences, discussing the fate of coral reefs in our changing world. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=goJiDk7vqUY The sun hid behind grey, menacing clouds; rain was coming, though I could tell, not for a while. A cool, fast breeze whirled past me, and I lurched back and forth … Continue reading Can Corals Carry On?
Work a job you love…
You know what they say! This summer I was lucky enough to land a job reading and analyzing science fiction. Truly a dream come true. Alongside a professor at my university, and part of a larger project called Manufactured Ecosystems I analyze how emerging technologies may affect the deliverance of cultural ecosystem services by finding … Continue reading Work a job you love…
Travel is not necessarily the *best* way to get out of your comfort zone
September 2023 โWeโve landed in Vancouver, itโs 8:33 am on the local time zone and 16 degrees Celsius,โ the pilot announced over the intercom. I peered out the window, looking at the grey tarmac and flashing lights around the plane. I had yearned for this moment for weeks, and now that it was here, … Continue reading Travel is not necessarily the *best* way to get out of your comfort zone
Serena Around the World 