I seem to have settled into a comfortable routine in Taizhong.  I get up in the morning and meditate peacefully for half an hour then head out for a coffee and Taiwan Times newspaper with Taiwanese breakfast.  They know me now, so my inability to make a sensible selection on the menu no longer matters.  The streets are quiet in the mornings, temperature around 21 degrees, cloudy with sunny periods.  Return to the hostel for some study.
There are usually other guests here - from Singapore, Korea, Japan, Malaysia, China, Hong Kong, Germany and of course Taiwan.  Makes for interesting conversations.  I have my course from 1 - 4.  There are four other students (France, Belgium, Korea and Estonia) and a variety of teachers.  Its quite intense, but we ARE learning Mandarin (slowly).
After class I go to the park with a 7/11 coffee and relax.  There's a deep feeling of peace.  I stroll through the wilderness of the world with its sunshine, wind, traffic noise and people; I'm not really strongly attracted or repelled by any of it.  There are frequent fluctuations, but the predominant reaction is a kind of benign curiosity.  Possible this is the fruit of overloading my brain with Mandarin.  The neural pathways retract, reduce mental activity, take a break.
In the evening  we have a choice of dining options.  Subway, Taoist Vegetarian, Hamburgers or a Taiwanese economic meal.  You take your pick.  My communication skills are improving, but even so I often have someone Taiwanese to interpret.  Its healthy, easy and cheap.
Last night I ventured out to the Taizhong Toastmasters, founded in 1984.  Wasn't sure if I could find it.  The address is Wenxin Road sec.2 no.598 B1.  My taxi driver looked doubtful.  After some tension, in the end we made it with time to spare and they were expecting me.  (Thank you internet)  Very friendly people (mostly Taiwanese, all speaking English) having fun working on building self confidence and improving their presentation skills.  Just like any other Toastmasters anywhere.  These are definitely the kind of people I like to meet.  So I'm hoping to join them on an excursion to Sun Moon Lake on the weekend...Like me they are interested in the challenges of crossing the cultural fault line between the Chinese and English speaking worlds.  The possibilities arise of forming new attachments.
So its probably time to move on.  Monday I head for Tainan.