Mushroom Monopolization

Yesterday, we went on an escapade to the Shinshe mountain in Taichung county. It's a scenic escape dotted with streams, herbs and flowers. According to the guide book, Shinshe is a place that "presents itself as lavender romance and aroma of mint."

Unfortunately, most of the flowers bloom only once a year (in November). But, even in its off season, the place held quite the charm.









Not only did we smell flowers and herbs, we tasted them too. At a little cafe nestled in the mountains, they served icecream in lavender, mint, rose and lemongrass flavors. Jake and I tried the rose and lemongrass (see picture below). I have never considered "rose" as a flavor, only a scent - so that was a first. We also tried rosemary tea ... very very strong...and fragrant. Though I have never sipped liquid air freshener, I suspect it'd be much the same.



Apparently, it is a custom to write down one's wish and tie it to a "wish tree" located on a hill next to the cafe. So, that's what we did.





(above picture) The three Taiwanese girls in the picture are students from Nan-Jeon who accompanied us on the trip. In this photo we were at the lavender cafe, having just finished declaring our wishes. From left to right: Sheryll, Cindy, Alice, Jake, and me.





(above) Alice tying her wish card.



After tying our wishes, we were told to ring the bell in the following photo -- to signal that our wishes had been presented.



We also visted Mushroom Village, which specializes in, you guessed it, mushrooms. According to the guide book, "Shinshe provides almost 60% productions of mushrooms in Taiwan." In the back of the store, there was a green house with rows and rows of mushroom plants. A flood of customers from a recently arrived tourbus flooded into the greenhouse with baskets and bags, ready to pick their share of fresh mushrooms.

In the front of the store, mushrooms were sold in every way possible. Dried mushrooms (of all types) were bagged in huge quantities. At the counter, workers offered freshly cooked mushrooms. I tried dried mushrooms, mushrooms on a stick, mushrooms in some-sort-of-mushroomy-sauce, battered mushrooms, mushroom tea and mushroom icecream. That's right, mushroom icecream. In looks, it resembled a chocolate fudge icecream bar. In taste, however, it resembled nothing of the sort.





In all, it was an interesting trip, though I suspect I'll be avoiding mushrooms in the near future.

Next week, we plan on an adventure to Kaohsiung -- so, you can expect even more photos.

Thanks for reading. :)

a jaunt to Tainan isn't a jaunt without bean jelly

A few days ago, Jake & I took a bus to Tainan City. We rented a scooter and drove all over the city, visiting a few historical places along the way. We thought the traffic in Sinying was insane; the streets of Tainan make Sinying's look tame!

Below is a picture of Jennifer and Moss (two Taiwanese friends who accompanied us on our trip).



Below is a picture of Tainan from the 13th floor of a shopping mall.



We visited the "Eternal Golden Castle," though I can't remember the Chinese name for it.



This is the entrance (above)







The Eternal Golden Castle was a battlefield historically, and so there were cannons everywhere like the one shown above.



Yep, that's Jake (note the hat)



A section of the "castle" grounds.

We also visited a large temple in Tainan. The detail inside and out was absolutely beautiful. As Jake noted afterwards, the place was also very peaceful.







The above picture is one of a girl praying.

Jennifer and Moss insisted we try a treat called "bean jelly." I ordered mine with the little red beads you see in the photo; I'm not sure what they're called, but they gave the jelly an interesting texture.





The picutre below is a statue by the Tainan harbor. It was beautiful in person (of a woman looking out to the sea).





Tainan was an incredible place to shop! There were loads of interesting things to see and smell. On one street, there was a cotton candy machine (only 10NT).



Jake in the process of fetching his cotton candy -- a feat that requires a good measure of skill.



Success!!

While in Tainan, we were lucky enough to visit the beach. Neither Jake nor I had seen the ocean in a very long time.





Below is a picture of a very loooong row of scooters -- they roamed the streets in packs!



moped madness!




We hope to explore the night market tonight. However, we were just informed that we may be experiencing a typhoon this evening ... typhoon = no market. Either way, there are sure to be photos for the next post.

Thanks for reading. Until next time.

Swan Lake, not so aptly named

Every time we drive to Sinying, we always see signs for some place called "Swan Lake." Well, the other day we decided to search it out. Now, I'm not sure what Jake had in mind, but I pictured a wide expanse of water dotted with the graceful bird of the lake's name. Well, we found the lake -- and though it was a charming place, there were no swans to be had.

(Below are some photos of the lake. I had wanted to include these in a slideshow for the sake of room, but apparently I'm not that technologically skilled).



Jake



Moi



Fountain in the middle of the lake







Building right next to lake.









Every few days or so, the road that leads to our apartment is dedicated to a morning market. Though not as large as the night markets (which take place every Saturday here), it is still a feast for the senses.



Jake (and hat)



Like Wal-Mart is to Americans, the Carrefour is to the Taiwanese (and the 2 Americans who will be residing in Taiwan for 4 months). I snuck my camera into the Carrefour and was able to snap off a few photos before one of the employees kindly gestured that cameras weren't allowed.



Yes, even in Taiwan the golden arch glows brightly.



I could be wrong, but I believe the stuff the middle may be kimchi.



A big mound of candy. Believe me, it was more impressive in person.


I had never seen green doughtnuts before.



We've visited the college we will be teaching at quite a few times since our arrival. Actually, it's where we obtain our free water supply. Since the tap water here in not drinkable, the campus has a few machines in each building that boil the tap water. Each machine offers two spouts -- one for hot water (about 100 degrees Celsius) and one for cooler water (at about 30-40 degrees Celsius).



Front entrance to the Nan-Jeon Institute of Technology.





The next photos are a random assortment.



This was taken at the Sinying stadium (mentioned in our previous post).



Also in Sinying.







This photo and the ones that follow are of flowers/plants in front of our apartment building.








Well, that's all for this post. Since Jake is long overdue, he'll most likely be writing the next blog.