Planes, Trains, and Automobiles!

I've tried out all sorts of fun types of transportation in Asia. I would name them but I don't actually know most of their names. Er...like planes, trains, the back of a bicycle, tuk-tuks in Thailand, some truck like vehicle with two parallel seats in Thailand and in China, buses, smelly buses, small boats that have broken down, and now finally a motorcycle! Or should I say scooter? I am not really sure what it is. Anyhow, my college cousin owns one and so I got to ride in back and it's quite fun. I thought I was going to fly off first, but then I got used to it. It's nice being able to look all around you. And it's fun to hang out in the intersection with all the other bikers because bikers in Taiwan are fun to examine. Some fit entire families on their scooters (thought you don't see this as much as before). Some are white! Some wear thongs. Most own the same raincoat.

On campus you can't ride motorcycles so we switched to his bicycle there to meet up with his girlfriend. Apparently it's more common to stand on these two bars attached to the middle of the back wheel than to sit on back. I found this slippery and scary and without necessarily any quick escape route. I thought my balance would affect the rider more but my cousin says it doesn't seem to matter, but maybe it's just his skill. Of course right after this we see his girlfriend so he slammed on the brakes and I screamed. Turns out jumping off is pretty easy.