Philip’s nephew, Matthew, and his girlfriend, Katie, came to Taiwan mentally and physically prepared for the adventures awaiting them. They tackled Taipei like pros, and based on her culinary tastes we’re all convinced that Katie is part Taiwanese.
Over the weekend, we headed south by high speed rail to the city of Chiayi. Chiayi is a small city that doesn’t pop up on most tourists’ radar except as a quick stopover from Taipei en route to the famous Alishan National Park. For me, though, a full day in Chiayi was needed in order to get my fix of turkey rice, grapefruit green tea, dinner at a sweet mom-and-pop restaurant and most importantly, a visit to the Museum of Ancient Taiwan Tiles.
First, lunch. After dropping off our bags at the cute Fun Time Hostel where we all shared a room with bunk beds, we headed to Dai Shi Turkey Rice (呆獅雞肉飯) for bowls of their delicious rice with shredded turkey meat and house sauce on top. Additions of tea egg, braised bean curd and pickled vegetables rounded out the meal, which left us all mighty satisfied.
Until we entertained guests recently it never even occurred to me that the separation of food and beverage in food establishments here would be considered strange. For example, if you go to a small hole-in-the-wall here, then usually only food is served. If you’re lucky, then they may have some water or hot tea available. Most people just carry around their own water bottle, which is really the way to go if you ask me. However, if you want a choice of beverages, then you head to one of thirty beverage vendors available in a one block radius either before or after your meal.
After our turkey rice my troops and I headed to Yuxiangwu (御香屋) for one of the most delicious beverages I’ve had in my entire life — grapefruit green tea (柚子綠茶). It may not sound super exciting, but the incredibly fragrant, almost incense-like, flavor of the green tea paired with the sweet and tangy grapefruit juice and pulp truly made for a taste revelation whose memory will most certainly trigger my salivary glands. After hearing me go on about this drink, a Taiwanese friend of mine told me the other day that I could have a private messenger service pick up a cup for me and deliver it to Taipei the same day for under 4USD. Wait…WHAT?!? The commitment to food and drink here makes me cry tears of joy. Philip, Matthew, Katie and Jules opted for the lemon black tea, which was also incredibly tasty, but if you find yourself in Chiayi, then I say go for the house special grapefruit green tea (stay tuned to see how it goes with the messenger service).
Now, the moment I’ve been waiting for, the Museum of Ancient Taiwan Tiles. My love for old tiles started 14 years ago on a trip to Portugal when I first set eyes on the gorgeous azulejo tiles. The multi-cultural influence, the geometric patterns, the shades of blue…they just did it for me. Fast forward nine years later in Taipei where I happened to spot some beautiful tiles under the eaves of an old home. Where did these tiles come from?? I never found out, but those tiles stayed in the back of my mind until we moved to Taiwan last summer. I did a bit more research this time and enquired at some antique shops in Taipei. Apparently, the tiles were manufactured in Japan between 1915-1935, copying the style of Majolica tiles in Europe and later adapting to the tastes of Asian countries. Since they were imported, only wealthy families could afford them and would embed them in the brickwork outside of their homes to display their wealth. Manufacturing of the tiles stopped in 1935 since Japan diverted most of its resources towards gearing up for its fight in the Pacific War of WWII. Recently, Taiwan has realized the importance of these artifacts and James Hsu, owner of the tiny private Museum of Ancient Taiwan Tiles, started visiting demolition sites of old buildings to preserve these beautiful tiles. I was cautioned not to purchase antique tiles, since they were most likely stolen by thieves, and buying tiles obtained by ill-gotten means would only encourage further looting. Luckily for me, though, Mr. Hsu has started reproducing some of the old designs.
After marveling at the beautiful patterns and colors of the original tiles I knew I needed to bring some of those reproductions home. Out of all the tiles for sale there was one that really caught my eye. Apparently, that was the one tile that wasn’t for sale. After some back and forth with two employees and eventually the manager I was told that that tile was the only one in the world, since they made that one just as a sample to try out a new color combination. I was certainly disappointed, but there were other lovely tiles, so we purchased those and were ready to head off to our next destination. All of a sudden, one of the employees rushed over and told me that they spoke to the owner over the phone. It turned out that the ‘manager’ was the owner’s father, and when he told his son how much I loved the tile, his son felt that if someone loved the tile that much, then they deserved to have it. My eyes definitely teared up, and I was so moved by their generosity and kindness. I am so happy to support an organization preserving one of Taiwan’s old art forms, and whenever we see the tile in our home in NY we will always be reminded of this special moment.
I was still on my post-tile high while being transported inside the butterfly conservatory at the National Chiayi University Insect Museum. Taiwan has an incredibly diverse population of butterflies, around 50 or so species are endemic to the island. When we arrived, the mostly rice paper wing and bluebottle butterflies were getting settled for bedtime and put on one last magical show for us before finding their resting spots.
One more stop for us before hitting those beds ourselves. We traveled to the next township north of us to enjoy a hearty dinner at Do Right (渡對). One of the joys of traveling for me is finding cozy and tasty places frequented by locals, so I can really immerse myself in that area’s culture and ambience. The owners were surprised to see foreigners and asked us how we even knew about the restaurant (the wonders of the B-side internet searches). They were so warm and friendly, creating an off-the-menu drink to accommodate us. We gobbled down all of the delicious food, but the real standout was the seafood veggie pancake, crispy with nary a trace of oiliness. Aaahhhh, what a glorious day!
