Taiwan has been in the news this week.

However, the tense geopolitical situation has not affected Greta’s appetite.

Greta admitted late last week that she is eating as much as she can before returning to the States. Some of her selections baffle me. Like 15 plates of sushi.

Or pasta with salmon and sea urchin sauce, finished off with a seaweed topping. She promises that it is much better then it sounds.

She saves room for dessert. I am astounded that she packed away all that food in one day. Unless she isn’t changing her clothes.

When she’s not eating, Greta has continued to travel. She enjoyed one last visit to the island.

She sent numerous pictures of this visit. These pictures confirm that she has seen more than the inside of restaurants.

She also enjoyed an evening out with her friend Hueying. Greta recounted the evening in simple sentences: They ate dinner. They went for a walk. Then they ate dinner again.

Apparently, Greta has turned into a Hobbit.

While riding the MRT, she was excited to see a poster for the Down Syndrome Foundation of Taiwan. Efforts for disability awareness reach across the globe.

She also took time for a nail appointment which took 3 hours. The nail technician had never welcomed a foreigner into the shop before. This resulted in the woman’s boyfriend stopping by to meet Greta, American foreigner in the flesh.

It also influenced the selection of background music: American rap. Perhaps she thought Greta would enjoy the music. Greta said it was somewhat humorous as the songs were particularly crass. But no one in the store had any idea what the words meant.

Greta returns home this weekend after flights from Taiwan to San Francisco. And then to Minneapolis. And finally to Chicago. I think this last picture shows that she’s missing home.

At least a little bit.