Research Co-Op at 逢甲, Feng Chia University

Cooperative Research Semester

May 6, 2024 - August 1, 2024

This summer I have had the absolute joy of experiencing life in Taichung, Taiwan, for a total of three months: officially making this experience the longest period of time I have ever spent outside of the USA. Upon arrival in Taiwan, I was graciously met by countless of my peers, faculty, friends, and strangers all with open arms. On a typical weekday, I spent time in a computer laboratory with a group of 6 masters students, who took me into their program and shared with me the ropes of network configuration using Cisco Packet Tracer. Having no experience with hardware configuration, this was a great way for me to gain some experience in this area while having a lot of freedom to explore and learn at my own pace. I am happy to say I have extensively explored many network protocols such as RIP, OSPF, BGP, as well as successfully learned to explain and configure complex networks.

Alongside gaining so much valuable experience in networking, I have gained so much as a person from life in Taiwan. I am genuinely so impressed with the kindness of the general public in this country, something unlike that I have ever seen before. Taiwan is also an extremely safe country, which you cannot truly visualize until you have experienced it. Safe all hours of the night, with company or without. Store owners will leave signs saying "be right back!" in a completely unmanned shop or store, completely trusting customers and passerbys. Furthermore, people often went out of their way to offer assistance to me whenever it appeared I needed help or directions as an obvious foreigner. I made many friends especially with people who wanted to practice their English, and thankfully everyone was so willing to put up with my pronunciation as I slowly navigated the basics of mandarin! Chinese self-study was a complex challenge, but I am very proud of the progress I have made so far, and hope to continue my Mandarin journey at some point in the future.

One of the most amazing parts about living in Taiwan, I must add, was the night markets! I lived right across from Feng Chia campus, in one of the largest night markets in Taiwan: Feng Chia night market. The night markets of Taiwan are known for having amazing snacks and meals, being open late, and for being relatively inexpensive. Here I was able to find the most mind-blowing goodies such as tanghulu, fried dumplings, fresh fruits and juices, jewelry, clothing, toys, ice cream, waffles, churros, squid, sushi, just to name a few. There was even a stand for alligator BBQ! I cannot say I ever got tired of the night market despite being there every single day. I never had trouble finding something new and delicious to try, which is something I do not take for granted coming from Cincinnati.

Lastly, I must mention my professor, Chi-Shih Chao, who treated me with endless grace and kindness even before my arrival in Taiwan. Professor Chao was not only so welcoming but went out of his way to involve me in several school organizations such as FCU tennis and volleyball, but also arranged with the campus opportunities for me to learn Karate and Judo as he insisted those were passions of his that were important to experience in Taiwan. I absolutely loved getting to know Chi-Shih and it was so amazing to experience the love the professor holds for his family and students. I am so honored to have been welcomed and accepted in this way and have been treated with a hospitality I could never forget. Overall, I am so thankful that I made the decision to come to Taiwan, and that I was placed in Taichung. This will be a place to hold my heart for many years to come.