Taiwan trip - 2007 (part deux) - the bike ride.

Bike Ride:

I found out that Zoe's cousin worked for a bike rental place along one of the many scenic bike paths near Feng Yuan.
(Hou Feng)

To the left is Zoe's friend Amanda (about to be married).


I did not know that their were so many well maintained paths, nor that biking was such a popular weekend recreation in that area. Wow. There were literally dozens of rental places along the 30K or so that we road. Weekends can get crowded. And since some places rent electric bikes and do not require the riders to know how to operate the dang things, it can be dangerous. I saw 3 accidents on our ride. If you see a woman in high heels with her feet up on a electric bike, watch out. Amazing.

Most of our route was along a closed railway route and passed byseveral decommissioned stations and stops. Most were well maintained and a couple even had old rail cars and rest area like amenities. We stopped at a few. We stopped to get fresh squeezed sugar cane juice at this one. 0 dan platform!! Yeah baby. Zoe took pics of the juice stand, but I have didn't get a copy yet.
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We saw a petting zoo type of place with all kinds of birds including peacocks, turkeys and more. Cool.
On the downside, we also saw a gocart track just off the path.
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We saw some family farms and a couple of old style homes ( 三合院 )
All along the route's we took there was a plethora of stands and cafe's selling all types of snacks and drinks.





Blue Ocean:
One of the more unique rest areas was a lot with some chairs and
table with a pristine classic VW bus refitted to be a coffee/tea stand.
I did not try the coffee, cause I was not in the mood, but it was spotlessly clean and under some shady trees. Looked worth a stop for tea coffee or little snacks.
Note the pooh bear in the passenger seat. I asked about it and the wife (husband wife team) told me he was the security guard.
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Here is the back view of the bus. I thought they did a nice job on the coffee bar. The wood work and the storage area looks nice.
Very clean design.
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Lunch in the Mountains:
OK. I am not putting this in the food section 'cause it was part of the ride, sort of. Just after the ride, Zoe's friend Amanda (who is getting married soon) wanted to take us for lunch in the mountains near the bike path.
I forgot the name of the place. It was her second choice, actually. The first choice was not open that day. Although Zoe is a strict vegetarian and I am like Samuel Jackson's character in pulp fiction (vegetarian by association), we had a good time at this beautiful yet not overtly vegetarian friendly restaurant. Their specialty is a stewed pork dish with lots of yummy fat on top. We loved the rice, which was packed with sweet potatoes. It was great getting together with Amanda. I am sorry I won't be there for the wedding. But, I am sure she will be happy even without my presence.
Well... That's it for this post. My next post will go over our day viewing the flowers blooming in Hsin She.
ADG

Taiwan trip - 2007

Well, as many of my friends know, I try to visit Taiwan at least once a year. Once again, I was able to make it.
I started out by going to what was possibly to worst organized martial arts competition ever. I will leave that for the end of this post. I will start with FOOD:
OK.. I have a soft spot for stinky tofu ( 臭豆腐 ). I got to sample a few places this time.
This place was in Da Ya area of Taichung. I thought it was really good and the cabbage was better than most places. Usually, I only like the shredded cucumber. I enjoyed this place but they informed me they were moving soon, so I can't give the address.

Next, I tried a soup I have not tried before. It was called Hong Shao Chou Dou Fu Tang ( 紅燒臭豆腐湯 ). You can get it with noodles, but I was not that hungry at the time. It was similar to beef noodle soup, but vegetarian.

I thought it would be like the Chou Chou Guo ( 臭臭鍋 ) that you see at many stands. But, it was a bit different. Anyway, it was good. Had some veggie chicken and veggie fish ball type thingies. A very nice snack. The owner says he gets his stinky tofu from a famous factory in Taipei.


This shop was in Taichung city near the science museum. It is located on Jian Hsing Lu ( 慈心園健康素食 - 台中市健行路 928-2 號 )


There is a vegetarian alley in Feng Yuan that Zoe's family goes to. It's the road along the railroad tracks a few blocks from the "SOGO" in Feng Yuan. There is a really good veggie restaurant there. I recommend the Hong Shao Mian (Veggie Beef Noodle Soup) or the Ma Jiang Mian. Both are really damn good. Ang their side dishes are really good too. Not photos from my camera, but I will try to get some from Zoe. She might be able to get the address as well.

There is a Chou Do Fu place right next to it which is pretty good too.
Also, when the season is right, there is a bbq corn stand on the corner which is very good and does NOT use pig oil on the corn! It's vegetarian. Many people may not realize that some corn stands use lard (pig oil) on the corn. Now, I am not a strict vegetarian like my wife, but I don't like to eat pork products or shell fish if I can avoid it.
Next on the food tour: Easy House Vegetarian Restaurant.
While a bit on the pricey side, this vegetarian eatery is impeccably clean. Even the bathroom is spotless. The food is not only veggie but healthy as well.



A set meal will cost you around NT$ 400, yet worth it for the occasional "nice meal" we all deserve. I had a Sesame Tofu Hot Pot. Pictured are the smoothie, salad and sides that come with the set meal.

And finally, for the food part of this posting session at least:
Japanese Food at my Aunt Winnie's favorite Japanese restaurant (forgot the name).




We had a very nice selection of grilled fish, steamed egg, bonito flake covered tofu, fried cabbage, Sushi hand rolls and more. It was a nice farewell lunch for me. Thanks to the family for this one.

I will add more about this trip soon. Visit again in a couple days for more.
Dan.

Halloween - revisited.

OK... I know Halloween is over, but I had to post these pictures of my Dad.
He is 88 years old now and was never very big on holiday festivities other than eating and watching sports.

Anyway, my sister got him a pirate outfit cause he was joking that he would dress up.
Here he is in his costume. Funny as ..... You know.