My Story

You came here cause you want to know who I am. Let’s start with the basics. My name is Benny. Grew up in Jacksonville, FL. I’m 31 years old, look like I’m 25, and feel like I’m 21. And I don’t really have a mustache like that.

What do you do for a living?

Currently I don’t have a job. I’m on a hiatus. It’s by choice and it’s great but I know that’s not forever. I did have a job coming out of college working in the family restaurant. Worked there and helped manage it for 7-8 years before being burnt out, dreading the days I had to work, and listening to customers complain about the dumbest things. It wasn’t for me anymore. I needed a change.

What did you do?

So I decided to get away. Far away. Decided to go to Taipei, Taiwan to study Chinese. My parents are Taiwanese but growing up we spoke mostly English, so my Chinese sucked. I had been many times growing up but for short periods of time. After graduating from the University of Florida, I kept dreaming about wanting to go study Chinese but kept putting it off because I was working. After ending a long term relationship and needing to do something before I went nuts from work, I arrived in Taipei at the end of May 2007.

Life in Taipei

Originally, I decided to stay for three months only. I liked it so I decided to stay another three months. Then it turned into a year and a half. Loved it all. My Chinese improved. Met great friends. Enjoyed the best food in the world. Learned more about myself. Gained great life experiences. The bad parts such as the hot humid weather and the pollution I can overlook for the positives.

So Now What?

All good things have to come to an end, so I am going back to Jacksonville in Jan-Feb 2009. My plane ticket to go back expires so I need to use it.

But before that, I decided to come to Sydney and stay for 2 months to stay with my girlfriend. I feel pretty lucky to be able to do that. It’s pretty different from Taipei. Beautiful city. Great place to visit. It’s just a stop before I go back to Taipei and then back to Jacksonville.

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