and this little piggy went to market... in taipei!

! i leave in one month !

okay... i don't actually have my ticket yet, but i'm waiting for my visa and hoping that spring comes to iowa before i have to leave. it is raining right now, but cold enough to snow--and it's supposed to later this afternoon! *sigh* maybe the weather is just trying to make it easier for me to say goodbye to the midwest?

i'm looking forward to the hot, humid season of summer in taiwan. i honestly can't wait to feel sweaty!

i hope you will check my blog frequently and keep in touch with me while i'm gone... i promise to post as often as i can! i'd like to thank my tech-savvy friend, scott "scooter" sterner, for helping me set up this site!

my parting thoughts for the day come from www.iowapork.org.

• Compared to Iowa's 56,000 square miles and 3 million people, Taiwan has an area of 13,892 square miles and a population of 22 million people, with an annual population growth of 4%.
• Taiwan is the sixth largest importer of U.S. pork and pork variety meats. In 2003 their pork imports increased by 40%, with the U.S. and Canada each having a 49% market share for the year.
• 60% of the U.S. pork shipped to Taiwan originated from Iowa