Of course you read them. Donāt pretend you donāt. You love me, and I love you, too. Letās not get too soppy about this. People will think weāre gay.
I first came backpacking through Asia in 1974, so pretty much what I expected: backwards, romantic, exotic. India still the Raj; SE Asia, like you were living in a Vietnam War movie.
Didnāt get to East Asia till the mid-80s. China was grim, ragged, and industrial. I lived in Beijing for two years- buses,bicycles, Mao jackets- it was just starting to change. HK was madly go-go.
Taiwan- āHey, I didnāt know Chinese people could smileā. Coming down from Taipei to Kaohsiung, looking at the sweatshops and waste heaps I thought resignedly āIāve got to survive and make money for six months hereā. Instead surprisingly comfortable living in an apartment in Kaohsiung (well, after China): easily available work, western bars, fun mixed crowds of foreigners (dregs mostly) and Taiwanese hipster outcasts. Moved to Taitung, thirty years later still here.
My wife to be picked me up in her grey Mitsubishi Lancer from Kaohsiung airport. Japan was my frame of reference upon arrivalā¦ First impression was they were loud on the plane and not dressed that well. Kaohsiung looked like a suburb of Tokyo except more chaos, scooters, and pollution, and the music was terrible. Late nite cable was trippy and artistic. Tried to watch a world cup match and a pivotal goal was interrupted by a PINKY commercial. The baseball was boring and the uniforms looked like NASCAR jerseys.
And lots of noise, the garbage trucks at 4 PM playing Mozart and megaphones with taped messages on repeat a little too loud that people seemed not to notice.