Drawn by the prospect of delicious food, friendly people and beautiful scenery, Vietnam exceeded our expectations in all three areas. Our trip began in the northern part of Vietnam in its capital, Hanoi, where we stayed in the Old Quarter. First, lunch. We sat down with locals at Banh Cuon Gia Truyen and feasted on […]
Strawberry picking in Neihu (內湖)
Wait, did I just say strawberry picking in January?? As it turns out, peak strawberry season in Taiwan runs from December to April. If we were to wait until June or July, as we would in New York, then I’m afraid the poor strawberries would be mostly dead or begging to be killed due to […]
Treasure Hill Artist Village (寶藏巖)
This enchanting hodge podge of private residences, artist studios, cafes and temple really was a treasure. Back in the late 40s, this housing community was built to accommodate military veterans, specifically members of the Kuomintang (KMT), who had fled China. Its location was chosen strategically, next to a river for easy transport of goods […]
Bitan Lake (碧潭湖)
Happy New Year! Philip had to leave LA a couple days before us for work, so Jules and I boarded a somewhat empty plane back to Taipei on New Year’s Eve. The captain led us all in a countdown to 2018 somewhere over the Pacific. Part of me smiled inside knowing that our new year […]
Christmas in Los Angeles
The original plan was to spend the Christmas holiday in Australia. Then, we found out that my brother, Howard, and his wife, Jungha, were expecting their first baby girl at the end of November. Hello, tinsel on palm trees. We received one of our Christmas gifts early this year — Philip had Christmas off on […]
Maokong (貓空）
Jules’ eyes almost popped out of his head when I told him we were going to 貓空 (Maokong) today, since it literally translates to ‘cat sky.’ Visions of cats suspended mid-air — images both enchanting and slightly disturbing — had Jules all in a tizzy. Philip was off earning our livelihood, so Jules and I […]
Hanging around town
My laptop of 5 1/2 years finally died. Until I find a replacement my posts will be short on text and more visually weighted. Traveling is exhilarating but exhausting, so we’ve been hanging around town lately, exploring new sights closer to home. Here are some shots from the Huashan 1914 Creative Park ( 華山1914文化創意產業園區), a […]
A Birthday Weekend in Taichung (台中): Part II
Although it would have been nice to sleep in on a Sunday morning, we set our alarm to make sure we would beat the crowds at the Miyahara Eye Clinic (宫原眼科). My friends, this is no ordinary eye clinic. In fact, this “eye clinic” houses 62 flavors of ice cream and some of the most […]
A Birthday Weekend in Taichung (台中): Part I
For my birthday this year, I knew it had to involve three things: my favorite guys, delicious food and a spectacular hike. Check, check and double check! It’s rare that Philip is around for my birthday due to his work schedule, so we felt very lucky this year. Our travel bags are usually half-packed these […]
Houtong Cat Village (猴硐貓村)
That’s right, another cat post! I am an animal person. Period. However, I do have a special spot in my heart for cats. So, when I found out from my godfather that there is an entire cat village in Taiwan, well, you know where we were all headed the next day. Houtong Cat Village in […]