We Ate Taiwan

98年 3月 3日 – Beef Noodles

蛋餅 (dànbǐng, "egg pancake") is for breakfast. This is something Monica will occasionally make at home. It is an egg, scrambled with chopsticks on a griddle and covered with a rice wrapper that looks a bit like a eggroll wrapper before it's fried. The wrap and egg are rolled up over meat (usually bacon) and sliced. The woman at the food stand we visit recognizes Monica from when she was a regular customer. As they chat, I watch the professional at work. She is a dànbǐng machine. Slices of the rolled egg and bacon are deposited into paper containers similar to burger boxes. We take our food and hot milk tea back home. It's feels like a Saturday morning at our apartment in New York.

The jet lag is passing, as is my cold and the eye infection. I am still getting sleepy in the early evening and having trouble staying asleep after 5:30am, but it's an improvement. I'm passing fluid like a faucet. I have to pee every 90 minutes. Not sure if it's the highly humid environment or all the tea I've been drinking.

After 早餐 (zǎocān, "morning food, breakfast"), we walk to Zhōngshān Girls High School, Monica's old high school. It's a bit strange for me because she visits with former teachers and coaches (Monica played volleyball) and I can't really join the conversation. We sit in low chairs in the P.E. teacher's office and continuously drink tea and eat a little bit of brown sugar cake. One of the first things they ask is when we will get married.

Another of Monica's old classmates, a woman who works at a nearby post office, comes to visit as well. We walk around the school for a while, taking pictures and looking for more of Monica's former teachers. We run into one of them. She playfully scolds me for not learning Chinese.

After making plans to meet with Monica's friends again next week, we walk the short distance to the Miniatures Museum of Taiwan. This sort of thing doesn't appeal to everyone, but I have always loved models (not necessarily making them, but certainly looking at them). Recently, as a result of the CSI episodes about the "miniature killer", I have renewed my interest in the craft. The museum is... small. However, the miniatures they have in their collection are amazing. The detail is a little difficult to believe. Almost all the miniatures are houses or interiors/interior scenes, but there are also some complete structures with both inside and outside detail, several fairy-tale themed miniatures, a few automobiles, displays of miniature figures and parts – and then there is my favorite: a whole section devoted to castle-themed LEGOs, including several huge battle scenes. They have a complete collection of the original castle sets and several original constructions that include LEGO bricks I have never seen before.

Lunch is 牛肉麵 (niúròumiàn, "beef noodles") with Monica's parents at what is supposed to be the best place in Taiwan for beef noodles. Like any establishment worth its noodle, the dining area is small, packed full and infused with the smell of good things. Monica orders spicy beef noodles for me. Her father has the standard variety. Her mother has something that looks similar but lighter and probably less spicy. Monica chooses noodle soup with a pork chop cooked schnitzel-style and a pork intestine casserole with rice and sweet potato. Yes, I even tried the intestine. It wasn't too bad.

The niúròumiàn are heavenly. The establishment's rep is safe with me. My nose runs and my lips tingle and I am once again a very happy eater. On the way back home, we stop for something to drink. I opt for a Coke with tapioca pearls. Another unique experience.

Still going strong – finally showing some recovery from the jet lag – Monica and I walk to the Guang Hua electronics market. This is actually something like an open air market or fair occupying a 4 story building – four floors packed with tiny laptops, brand new PSPs (I didn't know until now that there was a new one) Wiis, games, books, cameras, hard drives, flash drives, mobile phones, phone accessories, bulk electronic equipment, and anything else you might plug into the wall. Prices range from typical to excellent. Monica becomes lost in a sea of cute Japanese headphones – styles you cannot find in the United States. I come close to purchasing a camera but ultimately resist. Our feet sore from standing and minds exhausted from the overstimulation, we make a quick pass of the jade market across the street which we discover is closing up for the evening. Rain begins to fall and we rush home for dinner.

I won't forget the name of this restaurant: 喫飯 (chīfàn, literally "eat rice"). As I am becoming accustomed to, the menu is all in Chinese. It would take me forever to figure it out. Monica helps me order fried cod fish. The other dishes at our table: pork liver, chinese broccoli, another vegetable called "dragon's whiskers", clams with Chinese basil (wonderful stuff that Chinese basil), miso soup with fish head, and (my personal favorite during this meal) fried squid. I try everything except the fish head in the miso. Another quality meal. Now, at almost 10pm, I am starting to fade out. Monica also looks like her low-battery light is flashing. Tomorrow, our true trip agenda begins.

Previous Day / Next Day

Journal Entries

• 98年 3月 1日 – Arrival
• 98年 3月 2日 – First Outings
• 98年 3月 3日 – Beef Noodles
• 98年 3月 4日 – Dànshuǐ
• 98年 3月 5日 – College
• 98年 3月 6日 – Yángmíngshān
• 98年 3月 7日 – Sightseeing
• 98年 3月 8日 – Běitóu
• 98年 3月 9日 – Shìlín
• 98年 3月 10日 – Huālián
• 98年 3月 11日 – Taroko Gorge
• 98年 3月 12日 – 101
• 98年 3月 13日 – A Taste of Home
• 98年 3月 14日 – Return Trip

About My Trip

In 2009, my girlfriend and I visited her home country of Taiwan. During our two week vacation, I wrote daily notes of my experiences and together we took over a thousand photos. Those notes and photos have been compiled into this interactive travel journal.