Coppertoning It In Taipei

So, once again, I found myself packing my bags, bidding tearful farewells to my friends, pulling out my passport and boarding pass and deplaning thousands of miles away in Taipei.

I had been to Taiwan before, so now I could consider myself a veteran. I knew where to go and what to do at the airport. I walked from my gate pulling my obscenely heavy carry-on bags past miles of hallways through the terminal that were covered in advertisements and I kept count of which ones I thought I could probably book while there. I went through customs, found my driver holding up my name in Chinese and English on a card. He put my bags in the trunk of his shiny, black Lincoln Towncar and we were off....back to the First Hotel.

I stared out the car window at the mystery and tumult that is Taipei and even though I had been in Miami just hours before, I felt myself start to get ready and excited for this new season in Asia. When I got to the hotel, I checked in and the people at the front desk actually remembered me from the last time I had been there. They were kind, courteous and all smiles as they told me where my room was, handed me my key and about 6 faxes from my booker asking if I had arrived yet and I was off to my little pad. The bellhop trudged up with all my accoutrements....poor guy, my suitcase was bigger than him...and as he left he told me I looked just like Britney Spears. Even though I should have been tremendously offended, I knew by the super happy grin on his face that he meant it to be the utmost accolade, so I tipped him well, closed the door and passed out on my rock hard mattress.

The next morning I made it to the agency, group hugs and reintroductions ensued and not a second too soon I was told that I needed to maybe try to make my skin less tanned. After almost 4 months in Miami there was no way I was about to look Geisha chic.....so I smiled, said "no problem" and hit the casting circuit with my manager and a couple of new girls that would become really great friends in no time. Taya, Olivia and Jen. Things were good already....and only to get better since my roommate from my first trip to Taipei, Laura, was to arrive the next day!