Mama needed some rest and relaxation, so when Ashley told me about a special stay-for-one-night-get-the-next-night-free deal in one of the swankiest hot spring resorts in Jiaoxi, one of the rural townships within Yilan county, I jumped on it quick. Yilan is located on the northeastern part of Taiwan, an hour drive from Taipei. The influence […]
Nature
A Day Hike along the Bihu Trail (碧湖步道)
Wait, Judy, aren’t you the one who keeps complaining about the heat, but then you go on a day hike?? Umm, yes, but our friends, the Roy’s, are a very active family so any outing with them will involve some form of exercise, usually hiking. Jules and I braced ourselves for the usual onslaught of […]
Heping Island Park (和平島海濱公園) and how we almost got sent back to quarantine.
I’ve been trying to get creative in finding ways to entertain Jules during the soft lockdown here in Taiwan during the oppressively hot summer. Hey, kids, we’re not allowed to have more than four people in our home, but we have unrestricted access to air-conditioned mass transportation. You say train car, I say living room. […]
Integrating Back into Society
After multiple loads of laundry, including all the sofa cushion covers, I felt ready to integrate back into society. We rang up our buddies, the Roy’s, from our days when we lived in Taiwan for a year and headed to our beloved Taiwan metro. In the metro, we were immediately struck by a sight we […]
Alishan National Forest (阿里山): Part I
I have wanted to visit Alishan National Forest, one of Taiwan’s top tourist spots, for many years now. The thought of hours driving along narrow, tortuous mountain roads with a child in tow, though, has usually been effective at laying that idea to rest. Jules has proven himself to be a hardy traveler this past […]
Giant Water Lilies at Shuangxi Park (雙溪公園大王蓮)
Oooohhh! That’s what Jules and I said when we spotted these beauties at Shuangxi Park, a 15 minute walk from our apartment. A veritable green sanctuary amidst the city chaos, I was sooo happy that these giant Victorian water lilies were still in bloom. However, given that they need very warm water temperatures to survive […]