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I'm just so happy to see my friends and fans in Taiwan, 'cause that's where I'm from.

Everybody told me that Taiwan is a very polite society and that people don't like gossip and scandals here. But they just pretend they don't like it. We have, by far, the biggest newspaper in Taiwan. They just buy it to read it at home.

When I was in Taiwan, we were there for about 8 months, and I was 11 at the time, so it was definitely a culture shock. But it was a really interesting time to be there. I didn't entirely realize how different it is from the States. I just accepted it because I was there and my parents needed to be there.

And it's difficult for the average American to understand why something like that could be so important and why a little small place like Taiwan would be so important to the PRC.

I think I've written about family and things in 'Taipei' which could be considered Asian culture.

It's very important for Taiwan to maintain its international contact.

In order for me to write a scene, it's very important for me to see and experience everything with my own eyes, so yes, I was able to visit some remarkable houses and destinations while I was in China.

I love my family, I love my relatives. One special request I have is for the media back in Taiwan to kind of give them their space because they can't even go to work without being bombarded and people following them.

One of my favorite vacation memories was the Thai foot massage and Internet access salons in Bangkok, followed up by my testing cellphone coverage while wading in Provincetown Harbor on Cape Cod.

Six months after that, I left Taiwan, first for Hong Kong and then for mainland China, where I spent another three months studying still more Chinese and generally kicking around the country.