2012-06-24 Sunday
     It's always difficult to cram dozens of names into one's head in a day, not to mention connecting the names and their majors with people's faces. Though I did not get to chance to talk to everyone today, I'll try my best to get to know all the fellows and memorize their names as soon as possible. :)
     After the orientation, even though I already had the concept of what BACT is last year since it was the very orientation held in Forestry and Resource Conservation Department building that made me apply for this summer program, having the orientation in full English still made me feel extremely excited about what we're going to do for the following days: learning and having lots of fun during the countless of trips, harvesting the crops in the paddy on our own, having a try on the blue dye, doing the handmade pottery...etc.. I truly cannot wait for the program to officially start on Monday.
     Due to the concern about the likely-to-rain weather, the itinerary is slightly changed. Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall was the first place we went for the afternoon Taipei tour. It was really a pity that the memorial was under reconstruction, so the stairs up to the statue was not open to public. After a lot of group photos in front of the memorial hall, we moved to National Taiwan Museum around Taipei Main Station on foot. Although I've lived in Taipei for 7 years, and have been in Taipei Main Station area for numerous times, it was seriously the first time I actually walked into the National Taiwan Museum. Lunch in Taipei Main Station was after the tour in the museum.
     Hope I'll get to know everyone in the scavenger hunt game tomorrow! :)

2012-06-25 Monday
     Frustrating as it was, I missed the opening ceremony, the opportunity of knowing all the speakers of BACT and taking a group photo. Luckily, I still made it to the scavenger hunt game: the item collection, broom spinning, two people three feet, water balloon, noun guessing parts. Being steamed under such humid and hot weather let us know how exactly the dim sum feels. It was also interesting to learn the similarities between NTU and A&M University during the scavenger hunt game from Shelby, for both have a school belt and the hearsay. Fu Garden has its say that if a student is in Fu Garden for skipping class, he/she will bump into an old man who will ask him/her to return to class, or otherwise he/she will be flunked; if couples have a date in Fu Garden, then they will for sure break up. While there is a saying regarding to an oak tree in A&M University, if boyfriends and girlfriends date underneath the oak tree, they are never going to get married, but if people propose there, their marriage will last for a lifetime.
     After finishing the exhausting walk around almost the whole campus, it's time to feed our starving stomachs up with delicious lunchboxes. Following the nap during lunch break time is the lecture pertaining to fauna of Taiwan by Dr. Yuan. It was truly amazing to learn how the history and location make Taiwan such a place full of beautiful species. The film produced by BBC is so well-made and is one of my favorite movies. Later on, the introduction of insects of Taiwan brought to us by Dr. Tsai stirred up my curiosity towards insects for that I have lost the love for them for a really long time. The video played in the end of the class reminded me of how much I love caterpillars and butterflies when I was in elementary school living in Tamshui, and of how much I enjoy observing the metamorphosis and even kept many kinds of the caterpillars as pets.