Journal 57: Welcome to My Special Place

If I would bring anyone to any place I want, I would bring my friend in the United States who used to say that “Taiwan is nothing but a small island” to Taiwan. I would like to show her that she is wrong. I would like to show her that Taiwan is not what she expected, an undeveloped little island without any trace of civilization. Taiwan is a place full of cultural diversity and enthusiasm. We definitely have a highly-developed society. Taiwan is known for its hard-working, sincere, enthusiastic, and welcoming people. Anyone who has been to Taiwan can surely testify that they have been helped warmly by local Taiwanese citizens. If she looks at the development of a country in another perspective, I can tell her that Taipei city is not much different from the important cities in the United States. Taipei city is surely a bustling city with commerce and social activities going on every day. Taiwan to many people is not just a small country, but a place where dreams get started, planned out, or achieved.  Me, myself thinks of Taiwan as a place of where the place connects. Because of the cultural diversity and tolerance of Taiwan, I then have the opportunity to learn and accept the different cultures and study at an American school where I can get to achieve my dream and goal of studying abroad.

Journal 56: Big Apple

I have always wanted to live in a metropolitan city that connects that can fulfill my wish of connecting to the world. Living in a global network for me is like experiencing different cultures at the same time. You can choose to whether assimilate with a particular culture or learn important life lessons and even establish your inclusiveness or tolerance of cultures and concept different than yours. I believe attending a university like New York University will educate me to become a well-rounded adult in many ways. First of all, the experience of a cross-cultural society is not one a person can encounter ever day. Living in a society like this enables me to have a broader sight of the view. Seeing the diversity of different people, cultures, and ways to handle situations can enable me to be more tolerant to different opinions and help me develop more diverse techniques to a variety of situations. In my opinion, learning is not just from a text book or in school. The environment is also important in which people absorb the information they experience every day subconsciously. Thus, interacting with exotic people is like reading different genres of books. Each book has a specific topic you can learn from and is important. Learning from these books can help you adapt to any environment you arrive fast. In conclusion, a cross-cultural society is like a bridge that leads me to a world of broader opportunities.

Journal 55: Public Interest

I think the public interest this quote is talking about is to seek materialistic success. The majority of college graduates these days tend to find jobs and careers based on how high is the salary or wage paid. Little of them ever think of their rue interests and specialty in which certain field. I do not think it is their fault that they think this way, but rather it is our society that changes them. The society today values economic ability and success more. It is as if our success is based wholly on how much money we make but not on how much self-actualization we really achieved. Many people then feel they have no passion for what they are doing, whether doing a research in a lb or typing in an office. Many people also start to lose the most basic human nature of sympathy for other people or the zeal to help out others. Due to the change of society, it seems that finding a job is easier for people who have better relationships with employers or friends who can get to the employer. Even though they have better skills for work, they sometimes couldn’t get recognized by employers because they have no portal for the employers to meet them. I think the quote is saying that only by restoring these righteous basic principles can we achieve the true meaning of a democratic society.