Our first two days were spent visiting
Shirley’s sister, brother-in-law and nephew. Despite some language barriers and
age difference between the cousins, they always have a blast together.
No rush upon leaving the airport this morning at 6 am – we decided to take local transport (slow and cheap) instead of a taxi (fast
and expensive), as the relatives wouldn’t even be up yet. Two buses and a
scooter ride later, and we were in Longtan, a small town in northern Taiwan.
Said scooter ride. No helmet, no problem –
we didn’t see any 'bad parenting' police nearby. Clearly safety rules are already being
broken, and it's only day one !!
Congratulations and Happy New Year kids –
you got your red envelopes. Now hand them over – it’s part of the travel budget
now!
We discovered a great little bike path to
spend the afternoon enjoying the fresh(ish) air and get some activity in for
the kids – after 12 hours on a flight they really needed to let off some steam.
Despite its urbanization, there are pockets
of beauty in Taiwan, and the government has spent considerable time and
resources creating hundreds of kilometres of bike paths in and around the urban
areas. For the most part, these are flat
and well-marked.
Dad on a slightly undersized and somewhat
overused rental bike. I guess six-foot white guys aren’t the normal clientele
at the bike shop.
Going up to the temple in Daxi - temples
are seemingly everywhere in Taiwan, from grand structures perched on mountain
tops to tiny old temples crammed in side streets in the busiest part of the
city. Visiting any one of them you will find crowds of young and old, showing
just how much the traditional beliefs and rituals survive today.
We just walked around and observed – it’s
obvious we were not there to take part in the ‘bai bai’ rituals (prayers), but
nobody seems to mind.
Daxi is Shirley’s hometown and has been
famous for two things – dried tofu and beautiful women. After I snagged Shirley, they now have to
make a living solely off the tofu. Here’s mama and Owen enjoying the always
tasty snacks from the Daxi market stalls.
A little tired of the crowds in Daxi, and
with all of us having purchased helmets (not tempting fate on the first leg of
this trip!!), we headed up into the mountains for some cooler air – weather so
far has been perfect – 26 degrees, sunny and dry. We know we will hit the
humidity soon enough, so we’ll take this while we can.
Some of the nicest spots in Taiwan were for
years reserved as private retreats for the presidents and other big-wigs. Over
the past 20 years, recent governments have both opened these up for the ‘common
folk’ and at the same time turned them into memorials for those past leaders –
this quiet mountain side spot was a favourite for President Chiang Ching Guo, son
of the more famous Chiang Kai Shek.
Next stop.....Taipei
Lovely pictures! So glad your first days went well. Val and Jay moved into their new house y'day, so we're all busy!Much love, liz.
ReplyDeleteChris, I enjoy seeing scooters in action. Nice haircut too.
ReplyDeleteA good summer cut - it's pretty hot over on this side of the world, so the long hair (for me and Owen) had to go. We felt very 'local' when we had both kids on the same scooter (until we were passed by a family of four!)
DeleteBurnt my pancakes while reading your blog this morning! :) Keep 'em coming. Shirley, Gong Xi Fa Cai! Glad you guys are soaking up the festivities there. Owen and Annie, did you make out like bandits with those hongbao? :)
ReplyDelete