A quiet spot in a large temple complex in Neihu, north of Taipei

When I lived in Taiwan in the late 1990s, I used to zoom around somewhat recklessly on a Yamaha 135cc two-stroke motorcycle. One day, I went hurtling through the winding roads of the hills of Neihu, not far from where this photograph was taken. I came around a blind corner, and felt an impact and a sudden exhalation. I saw the road and then the sky and then the road again, in a series of disconnected snapshots which only later I understood as meaning I was somersaulting over the front of a car. Then I was on my side with an in insect’s eye view of the tarmac. My glasses had gone, and I rolled over to look up and became blurrily aware of a group of bald, robed women standing anxiously over me. I had hit a Toyota being driven by a group of Buddhist nuns. They were speaking agitated Chinese, discussing who should try to speak in English to the foreigner. I assured them I could understand them, and they were quickly on their mobile phones summoning help.

I lay on the road thinking that I just needed a moment to get my breath back, and then I could straighten the bike and ride home. I sat up and briefly saw blood and abrasions, before starting to pass out and giving myself up to the circumstances and those around me.

The nuns had called an ambulance, but before it arrived they commandeered a van to take us to hospital. By this time I had recovered my sense of presence, but was in extreme pain from a leg injury. I suppose I was in shock because my body wanted to cry, except I come from a culture where such behaviour is not acceptable among men, so instead I sat blinking grimly with my jaw clenched. One of the nuns, the youngest, an apprentice, with knee-length robes and still with her long hair, put her open hand over my leg and projected her qi onto the injuries. Immediately, I felt calm and the pain eased.

I cracked the bone near my ankle, ended up with a below-the-knee cast, and spent a couple more weeks in Taipei before flying home.

The Taiwanese can be the nicest people on earth at the best of times, but hop around Taipei on crutches, and they start crossing the street and rushing up to you to ask if you need any help. Table service at McDonalds and your Big Mac meal for free? It happens in Taipei for foreigners on crutches.