After 6 days working as an interpreter for the Honduras U17 football team I found myself back in my sister's place. I was planning to leave Taipei and head for Keelung this Friday(17), but the idea was being postphoned by typhoon Sepat, the third that coincided with my journey. So I waited and waited till I finally got to leave the capital by the 21st.
By the 19th of august the sky was cleared of all ill temper, but my resolution was shaken. Well, not exactly resolution, but rather the willingness to keep cycling. Too much rest days and the unstable weather had taken its toll on me, it was just so meaningless, I didn't like leaving home just to stay in another house, I was suppose to be out there sweating and all that, and not watching the telly or surfing the net for days on end.
So by the 20th when the weather was clearer than ever, my thoughts, on the contrary, were overshadowed by the idea of hitting home. 12 days off the bike really had an enormous effect on me, I had somehow sank back into the sedentary hole from which I managed to escape some 14 days earlier. That was when you realized that you were not so strong psychologically as you liked to imagine.
My willingness to quit was doubled by the news that another atmospheric depression was forming some 2000km to the east of Taiwan and there was the low but possible probability that it might effect us. Therefore despite that the 20th was a glorious day for some jolly decent cycling, I stayed in Taipei, indecisive of what I should do.
Still, I couldn't quit just yet, the reason was simple - 177k was just so shameful. At least I had to make it to Ilan because the forecast said that for the next 3 days the weather seemed to be still quite good. However, that wasn't the real reason behind my reluctance to go home at this point, the real reason behind was that I couldn't go home like that! I didn't feel like going back, you know, it was just a feeling, I knew that I wasn't ready to go home, and even if I did I wouldn't be happy to settle down to concentrate on my dissertation, my mind would still linger on the trip and of what could have been.
I can't go home just yet, it wasn't the way to put an end to this. I had to keep going. I need to go to Ilan.
八月九號至二十號
在六天的隨團翻譯工作結束之後我再次回到我姐家。本來是想要兩天後（17號）繼續上路前往基隆，但是天公不作美，馬上又給我來了一個聖柏，這已是我這次環島所遇到的第三個颱風了。聖柏對我之後的旅程造成了決定性的影響，因為它把連接宜蘭和花蓮的蘇花公路給弄壞了。
到了19號時颱風已過而且天氣晴朗，但是我卻不想繼續騎了。太多時間待在同一個地方沒有進展再加上天氣不穩定好一天壞一天使我動身的意願動搖。照這樣騎下去的話一點意思也沒有，我不是因為要住別人家才離家的，我應該在太陽下騎車、前進，而不是在別人家當宅男。
20號，風和日麗，但我的心情卻烏雲密佈。天氣因素加上太多的休息使我佇足不前，我又安逸了下來，而這安逸又使我變得沒用了。這時你就會再次地了解到自己並不是像想像中的堅強。但這也是只有一個人時的優點：不管你喜不喜歡，你都被迫要面對它，沒有別人可以依靠。
連日無謂的休息加上預報說台灣東方海面2000公里處又有低氣壓形成，機會不大但有可能會變成另一道颱風侵襲台灣。所以縱使20日是外出愉悅騎車遊玩的良辰吉日，我卻待在家裡，猶豫不決。騎還是不騎？這就是問題所在。
但，不論如何我不能如此輕易地就打道回府。原因很簡單：177公里實在是讓先人蒙羞的少。就算蘇花斷了，我最少也要騎到宜蘭，因為氣象預報說之後三天應該會是好天氣。但其實里程數的多少並不是讓我繼續的真正原因，真正的原因是我不能這樣就回家！我並不想回家！這是一個fu的問題，我還沒準備好要回去。因為我知道即使我真的在台北就結束玩樂坐車回沙鹿，我也不會甘心就這樣坐下來寫論文，我並不想讓它就此結束，我全部的心思會繼續留在環島而不是課業上，我會坐立難安，我會不停地想那未完的旅程。這樣就回去一點意義（實質或非實質的）也沒有。
我不能這樣就回家，我會終結這次的旅行，但台北不是結束它的地方，時機未到。我必須繼續，我必須去宜蘭。
By the 19th of august the sky was cleared of all ill temper, but my resolution was shaken. Well, not exactly resolution, but rather the willingness to keep cycling. Too much rest days and the unstable weather had taken its toll on me, it was just so meaningless, I didn't like leaving home just to stay in another house, I was suppose to be out there sweating and all that, and not watching the telly or surfing the net for days on end.
So by the 20th when the weather was clearer than ever, my thoughts, on the contrary, were overshadowed by the idea of hitting home. 12 days off the bike really had an enormous effect on me, I had somehow sank back into the sedentary hole from which I managed to escape some 14 days earlier. That was when you realized that you were not so strong psychologically as you liked to imagine.
My willingness to quit was doubled by the news that another atmospheric depression was forming some 2000km to the east of Taiwan and there was the low but possible probability that it might effect us. Therefore despite that the 20th was a glorious day for some jolly decent cycling, I stayed in Taipei, indecisive of what I should do.
Still, I couldn't quit just yet, the reason was simple - 177k was just so shameful. At least I had to make it to Ilan because the forecast said that for the next 3 days the weather seemed to be still quite good. However, that wasn't the real reason behind my reluctance to go home at this point, the real reason behind was that I couldn't go home like that! I didn't feel like going back, you know, it was just a feeling, I knew that I wasn't ready to go home, and even if I did I wouldn't be happy to settle down to concentrate on my dissertation, my mind would still linger on the trip and of what could have been.
I can't go home just yet, it wasn't the way to put an end to this. I had to keep going. I need to go to Ilan.
***
八月九號至二十號
在六天的隨團翻譯工作結束之後我再次回到我姐家。本來是想要兩天後（17號）繼續上路前往基隆，但是天公不作美，馬上又給我來了一個聖柏，這已是我這次環島所遇到的第三個颱風了。聖柏對我之後的旅程造成了決定性的影響，因為它把連接宜蘭和花蓮的蘇花公路給弄壞了。
到了19號時颱風已過而且天氣晴朗，但是我卻不想繼續騎了。太多時間待在同一個地方沒有進展再加上天氣不穩定好一天壞一天使我動身的意願動搖。照這樣騎下去的話一點意思也沒有，我不是因為要住別人家才離家的，我應該在太陽下騎車、前進，而不是在別人家當宅男。
20號，風和日麗，但我的心情卻烏雲密佈。天氣因素加上太多的休息使我佇足不前，我又安逸了下來，而這安逸又使我變得沒用了。這時你就會再次地了解到自己並不是像想像中的堅強。但這也是只有一個人時的優點：不管你喜不喜歡，你都被迫要面對它，沒有別人可以依靠。
連日無謂的休息加上預報說台灣東方海面2000公里處又有低氣壓形成，機會不大但有可能會變成另一道颱風侵襲台灣。所以縱使20日是外出愉悅騎車遊玩的良辰吉日，我卻待在家裡，猶豫不決。騎還是不騎？這就是問題所在。
但，不論如何我不能如此輕易地就打道回府。原因很簡單：177公里實在是讓先人蒙羞的少。就算蘇花斷了，我最少也要騎到宜蘭，因為氣象預報說之後三天應該會是好天氣。但其實里程數的多少並不是讓我繼續的真正原因，真正的原因是我不能這樣就回家！我並不想回家！這是一個fu的問題，我還沒準備好要回去。因為我知道即使我真的在台北就結束玩樂坐車回沙鹿，我也不會甘心就這樣坐下來寫論文，我並不想讓它就此結束，我全部的心思會繼續留在環島而不是課業上，我會坐立難安，我會不停地想那未完的旅程。這樣就回去一點意義（實質或非實質的）也沒有。
我不能這樣就回家，我會終結這次的旅行，但台北不是結束它的地方，時機未到。我必須繼續，我必須去宜蘭。
2 comments:
¡qué tiempo más asqueroso!
Keep on rocking the bicycle. Raining can`t stop you :-) go on....
greets from "also raining" switzerland
Oliver
hey good to see you mate! haven't heard from you for quite a long time, how'd you been? any new trips since you went back home?
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