After my trip description, you might be asking, "What is pinkery? And does it have anything to do with flamingos?" The dictionary of Lifan defines pinkery as "a supremely excellent state of being." It is further characterized by "a joyous sentation resulting from connecting to the purest essence of life, love and the Universe." I'm in search of pinkery because I'm a pig. In the chinese astrological calendar, my birth year is represented by the pig, sometimes called the "boar." (I won't be offended if you call me a "boar.") Pigs are nutourious for living the good life and lolly-gagging around, basking in the warmth of the sun and enjoying all of life's little delights. That's me. I'm a pig and proud of it!

My quest is to discover pinkery in all it shapes and sizes. I thought my quest would begin when I left for South America early in the new year, but perhaps it's beginning earlier. In less than 1 week, I will be whisked away from Las Vegas to Taipei via LAX on China Airlines. Returning to my "roots" makes me more anxious than trekking out to "the end of the world" on my own. Why? Good question. I'm sure the answers will reveal themselves. They always do.

Having been born in Taipei, I arrived in the United States when I was 2 years old. I've been an American-Asian girl traversing the line between very different cultures ever since. I haven't been back to Taiwan for over 10 years and really had no independent desire to go. My priorities were South America, Africa and Europe. Asia was last on my list, and still is. But since the opportunity has arisen, it's my priviledge to accept.

All the ties that once bound me to this "City of Sin" are steadily dissolving, or untying. It's time to go. Friends, however, are the hardest to leave behind. Friends make up the backbone in the body of our lives, giving us the support to move forward and pursue our wildest dreams. So, naturally I want to stay in touch. Sure, email is great. But sometimes you need the sound of a friendly voice. You need the ease of familiar conversation. So, today I went in search of the cheapest way to make phone calls from Taiwan.

I can call Taipei from Las Vegas for US$0.04 per minute with no connection fees with a phone card. It's a hard deal to beat. Most rates I've found are upwards from US$0.28, which is no good for me. I hate being rushed when I talk, especially by money concerns. My cousin, Rosemary used to live in Prague where she used a Call-Back system. So, did another friend who lived in Germany. Dial a US number, hang up and a computer will call you back. You enter the number you wish to dial and all charges are made to your credit card at the end of the month. I searched the internet for information and found a site called aitelephone.com. They charge US$0.11/minute! Just for good measure, I checked a few other sites that did not come close. So, now that I don't have to worry about keeping in touch...what's next?