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Jennifer Chu & Carlyn Tan
12A, Bilingual Dept.
Have you ever heard of hitchhiking?
It's definitely a daring adventure, one that Chopin and Kinga are
undertaking in order to see and experience the whole world. Kinga
and Chopin started hitchhiking almost four years ago; their first
destination was the cosmopolitan city of New York. From there, they
have visited most of North America, South America, and the smallest
continent, Australia. Now, they are touring Asia, stopping over
in Taiwan to earn some money and revive the feeling of having a
daily routine. Although they have a tentative idea of what they
want to see, Kinga and Chopin never make travel plans.
To many people hitchhiking may seem a dangerous way of traveling.
However, Kinga and Chopin are far from scared every time they stick
out their thumbs. They believe that people who give them rides stop
for good reasons. All they need is faith and a thumb, and they're
ready to go experience the world. Of course, other necessities include
backpacks and sleeping bags. Everything else, they can obtain along
their journey. Food is not a problem since Kinga and Chopin are
both strict vegetarians; they can go for weeks on a fruit diet.
These two Polish professional hitchhikers believe that working
and talking to the people are the best ways to know a culture, much
like hitchhiking is the best way to see a country. When asked about
their opinion of Taiwan from their experience as kindergarten teachers
here, the two smiled and said that they are quite fascinated with
the Chinese language and the temples. Although there are certain
aspects of the culture that bother them, they still conclude that
the Chinese culture is beautiful and colorful.
Q: Where
do you want to go next?
A: We don't plan, because plans are for architects. We hope to hitchhike
onto a ferry to Japan and then hitchhike on land from there. We
want to go to all of the places in Asia.
Q: What
is your favorite place in Taiwan?
A: We like a village that is about an hour away from Alishan. The
Aboriginal people there were very friendly but very shy at first.
We stayed in that village for a couple of days. It was especially
welcoming because there was a Polish Catholic priest living there!
Q: Have
you always wanted to hitchhike?
A: (Kinga) I went on my first hitchhiking trip when I was only one
year old: my parents hitchhiked to travel around Poland. When I
was 18, I went on my first hitchhiking trip by myself. When Chopin
and I met, we both wanted to travel the world, and we decided to
hitchhike the world together. It is safer to hitchhike as a couple,
too.
Q: What
is your favorite food in Taiwan?
A: Durian!
We had a great time interviewing
Kinga and Chopin. Although most of us had been traveling by more
conventional means, we saw an alternative to seeing the world through
Kinga and Chopin. If you are interested, you can visit their website
at http://www.geocities.com/kingachopin/.
(Editor's note: Hitchhiking is not for everyone.
It may not be safe for those who are not ready for it. It is one
of many different ways people choose to see the world.)
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