We Ate Taiwan

98年 3月 5日 – College

Sleeping in feels wonderful. Monica and I wake to a beautiful warm morning. Since we are on the roof of the building, there is a lot of light. Flowers are blooming in the garden outside the window. This is as good an urban environment as I can ask for.

Breakfast is one of my favorite things: sticky rice with meat and veggies wrapped in lotus leaf and steamed. It's slightly different from the style I am used to but no less delicious.

Today Monica and I will be meeting one of her former college professors and touring her old college. The weather is beautiful (for a change) so we decide to walk part of the way there and then take a bus the rest of the distance. When Monica was a student, she simply took a bus, transferring once with a total trip duration of roughly 45 minutes. We will walk to the transfer point.

Our walk takes us past Taiwan National University, or "TaiDa", which is the country's top university. It is also the school her brother went to. As with Taiwan Normal, the school is flanked by student-focused businesses: shoe stores, copy shops, fast food joints (including a 24-hour McDonalds), coffee shops, and a gym. We even see a Mexican restaurant. A glance at the menu suggests that it is not very authentic by my standards.

It is still early (before 11am). Many of the clothing stores and some of the food stands and restaurants have not yet opened. In the window of most places we see workers preparing for the day.

The density of stores increases as we approach an area called Gong Guan. We are still near TaiDa so the foot traffic is mostly students. Shops are everywhere. Clothing, glasses, jewelry, shoes, and more food. Monica is still not having any luck finding shoes. We are a little hungry after our walk so we stop in a bakery for a snack. There are beautiful cakes, breads, and pastries all ready to go. The place is a little like Au Bon Pain but cheaper and without a sandwich bar. Everything appears pre-made. Monica picks up a mini-custard. I choose a spongy egg bread roll topped with strawberry jam and coconut flakes. Each is about 60 cents.

A 20 minute bus ride takes us to National Cheng Chi University. I am told that it is primarily a liberal arts college with no real science department (those are at TaiDa) and as a result the school enrollment is overwhelmingly female. As we get off the bus, we pass places where Monica used to have breakfast and lunch. We make our way to the school's main entrance and wait for Ray.

Ray, a retired English professor, is an aging former Catholic missionary who came to Taiwan back in the 1960's. A resident for several decades, he speaks fluent Taiwanese (the indigenous language that is not necessarily related to either Mandarin or Cantonese) and half decent Mandarin. He married a Taiwanese wife and has four children, one of them now a teacher here at Cheng Chi. He has the amiable character I often associate with Catholics and the easy vibe of an aging hippie. He would fit right in with the Council of Elders of Zion.

Ray takes us around the campus in his car, partly for my benefit and also so Monica can see the old places and more recent changes. The university is built up against a hill, so students must walk up and down a significant way to get to some dorms, classes, and other facilities. There is a shuttle bus that goes up and down, but it doesn't seem to be able to keep up with the demand.

The view from the top is pretty good. There is a small river that our bus crossed on the way in, and the river is bordered by a startlingly green and flat park that seems just a little out of place. There is a jogging path and a few ball fields that stand out in sharp contrast with the brown urban surroundings. Taipei 101 sticks out from behind another hill.

The university name means "political". Ray tells me that the school was established by the KMT when they retreated from the mainland. Over the years the focus of the institution changed. Now "Cheng Chi" is just a name. The university seems to have been taken over by 7-Eleven (as with every other place in Taipei) and there are 5 stores on campus. Overall, I am surprised by the influence of American businesses, culture, and fashion. Stores play hip-hop songs that Monica has on her iPod. Starbucks and 7-Eleven are everywhere. Kids wear t-shirts from Victoria's Secret, Abercrombie and Fitch, various western universities, and various American sports teams. American baseball and basketball appear to be the top choices among the youth. I have seen photos of Yao, Kobe, and Dwight Howard. Gilbert Arenas' shoe line is in every shoe store. I even saw a store display with Dwight Howard's All-Star jersey.

Ray takes us to a western-style restaurant on campus for lunch. We sit for several hours (the staff politely cleaning around us) as Ray shows us old photographs of Monica and other students that he has taught over the years as well as pictures of his youngest daughter's wedding (which took place recently). We also discuss my impressions of Taiwan and life in general. Ray likes to follow the lives of his students, seeing where they go, documenting their progress in a parental fashion. In a way he reminds me of one of my own teachers, a salty greybeard fro0m my 10th grade year who was a strongly paternal presence in our school.

NCCU is a nice campus, owing to its topographical features and its arts focus. However, it is not really near anything. So after lunch and some photos with Ray, there isn't much to see. We walk around briefly and then pack into a very crowded bus back to Gong Guan for another night market adventure.

This market is a place that Monica is very familiar with, having frequented during her college years. In the alleys behind the main street we walked earlier in the day are all manner of food stalls, restaurants, and stores. Monica's mission this evening is (again) shoes, so we go into every shoe store we can find, about 8 or 10 total. Even I try on a few pairs to replace the uncomfortable pair of Ecco trail shoes I brought with me, but nothing seems quite right. In between shoe stores we pass several Thai and Vietnamese restaurants. Monica tells me there are a growing number of Thai and Vietnamese immigrants in Taiwan, and these places have popped up as a result.

But Thai and Vietnamese are not on our menu this evening. Somewhere in the maze of alleys we can smell stinky tofu, and that is where we are going. After some hunting we find the place that Monica remembers from years ago. The food: very thin, slightly reddish rice noodles in a broth with oyster meat along with a plate of deep fried stinky tofu and spicy pickled cabbage. Stinky tofu is literally stinky, having been fermented in something uniquely foul. Fried, the odor is mitigated. The result is a small loaf of tofu with great texture and a subtle aftertaste that reminds me of the smell of zoo cages – not exactly what I crave in my food. I try some, but it's not my favorite thing. Likewise, the noodles are "okay". but are not as good as the others I've had on this trip. The pickled cabbage is excellent, but that's not the point of this meal.

Our day began warm and sunny. By the time we arrived at NCCU, it was hot. After our long lunch, it was quite comfortable outside. When we returned to Gong Guan, dark clouds had covered Taipei. As we finish the stinky tofu it has started to pour and the sky is occasionally punctuated by lightning. Still, I'd like to try a little more food before we leave. Monica's night market wisdom dictates that you need to find the longest line of people. At the end of that line will be something good. So, not to far down from the stink of tofu is a long line of hungry patrons waiting for fried chicken. At this small stand dark meat chicken is pounded flat, battered, deep fried, covered with coconut flakes, and buried in a cabbage slaw with mayo. I'm sure there's cilantro in there somewhere. Monica and I wait in line for what seems like 10 minutes but is probably more like five. However, we only have one small umbrella and I'm getting soaked by wind-driven rain. The food turns out to be worth a little discomfort. For about 2 USD, I am treated to some excellent and unusual fried chicken. Apparently, this vendor is somewhat famous within this night market.

Monica and I make one additional stop for traditional Taiwanese sausage (a bit fatty for my taste), but then the weather gets the best of us. I'm damp from the waist down and we are both cold and tired, so we catch a cab home.

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.