Tim and Dunx do Hakka country

This weekend the teaching staff (all 5 of us) were invited by the TA's (teaching assistants) on a trip to Sanyi. Always raring to see as much of the world as possible, I jumped at the chance and Tim ... well, Tim had nothing else on. So come Saturday morning we jumped on the back of my scooter to ride into school; however taiwan being taiwan - there was an almighty downfall on the way, and as it was only down the road, i didn't have my visor helmet nor shades; imagine a 30 litre bucket slowly being poured into your eyes! we pulled over for a bit... but we started our trip dripping.
Emma, Rita, Stella and Zoe were the only ones going so we all piled into the school landrover and headed through the drizzle to Sanyi... an aparently 'interesting' place.
The topic for the journey was 'true love' ... that and my hatred (not my words) of a 6 year old in my kindergarten class. We wont reveal his true ID; from here on he will be referred to as Yoyo. All i said was that ASBO trials in the States using radio triggered electric-shocks on youngsters had proved very successful
The TAs at our school are in close networks of friends; therefore getting any juicy gossip was a challenge an a half: still an hours trip; tim gave it his best shot... sad to say nothing worth printing!
We arrived in Sanyi in time for lunch; the sun had come out but it was still pleasantly cool.

The entire town had a whiff of minty pineness... at first i thought it was the trees lining the main road (a rarity in Taiwan) but i soon learnt that the town was famous for sculpting things from a special wood sent from China... the smell was a fragrant preservative used on the finished products. There were some massive pieces costing NT$600,000 that's 10,000 pounds!

We went into a small restaurant for lunch to sample the Hakkanese food... Tim soon learned an important lesson; perhaps the most important thing he'll ever learn in Taiwan; if you're gonna eat chillies - DON'T CHEW. It's the seeds that are hot. For a moment there, I thought we'd lost him...
Towards the end of our meal, a very merry gentleman approached our table. 'Here we go again' I thought thinking back to the near brawl at the Changhua fish restuarant when some drunk Taiwanese gent got jealous of 11 English blokes having lunch with 40-odd young local ladies...
Anyway: turns out this guy was really nice: he was welcoming Tim and me into Taiwan... then he vanished and returned with a large bottle of beer... "Taiwan beer" he says.. "good."
Me an' Tim are nodding and smiling "best beer! very good! yes"
"In the world!" he says, now pouring some into our glasses...
-now at this point I start thinking back to what i'd read in a lonely planet guide... if someone proposes a toast, you cannot serve him drink and it is highly offensive if you dont empty your glass in one.
""Gambe!" says the man; "Gambe" cheer me an Tim; that wasn't to bad i thought; another tai experience survived....
oh no... back he comes with another bottle and some ice; its better with ice- you see. I looked over to his table; he'd already had 9 bottles; so by 3 o clock in the afernoon; the world outside was looking a little more hazy than usual.

Soon after we were driving up the road to the highest railway station in taiwan; the most touristy spot i've seen yet. A winding hillside road of giftshops, cafes and street vendors.
Before long people were throwing food and drink samples at us. One kid; can't have been more than 8 kept on asking us to buy a tray of peanut doughballs: you should have seen his eyebrows... right little businessman; a list of special offers longer than his arm... i suggested taking him back in exchange for Yoyo...the kid was so skilled, i was forced to buy and eat chomp through 40 peanut doughballs on my own!

The station itself was a small plain building. I looked at the many visitors playing on the tracks and it dawned on me that no trains come to this station anymore... which surely takes away its claim to being the highest station in Taiwan... anyways it was a nice spot that wasn't muggy, had little traffic and was yet to be touched by the neon sign that has come to symbolise most of western taiwan.













We stopped in for some coffee and cake at a stupidly expensive - but charming - restaurant. I think i had possily the best tasting custard tart ever today... in fact now i think about it I really did put a lot of food away today: endless peanut doughballs, chocalate icecream, a custard tarte, traditional cake, chicken, fried shrimps, a bowl of rice, grilled veg, a bowl of noodles, and let's not forget my kickstart of porridge, bananas and peanut buttur on toast. But then I have grown to love food even more out here... even the cappacinos had love hearts on them today... fitting in with our true love theme for a day.

A truly lovely day!