A street scene in Taichung. | ||
April 12, 2026 
When the time came, we headed to the 茶自點 (Self-service Tea) Restaurant
to meet up with other family members.
We joined the others, including, after Mei-O, 佳真note佳真
was a pleasant surprise. We had no idea she was coming, and, having watched her grow up, were happy to see what a fine young
woman she turned out to be. , the daughter of Mei-O's deceased younger brother 銘順, and her boyfriend,
both down from Taipei to see us, then 王碧蘭 (銘順's widow), then Wenshuang and her husband 阿璋, and finally, Wenxin and
Meihui. It was a pretty good family gathering.
What's this? Mei-O and I, after eating a big all-you-can-eat buffet breakfast at the hotel this morning, weren't at all hungry,
so we didn't order anything at first. But when Mei-O went up to pay the bill (it was our treat), she saw a 薄荷巧克力冰沙
(a mint-chocolate shaved ice drink) being made, and, thinking it looked interesting, thought I might like one (it was only
NT$140, about $4.40). She suggested I try one, so I did. It was huge,
and pretty fancy! (Seeing it, I was hoping it would be kind of like a milkshake,
but no, it was just flavored shaved ice and not particularly good.) Since most of the others had ordered something for lunch,
we had to wait for everyone to finish, so I patiently sat and slowly sipped my minty, chocolaty, very cold, crushed ice.
When everyone was done, we went outside for a group picture (阿璋 took it), chatted a little, then said our goodbyes to 佳真
and 碧蘭 who we hadn't seen in nine years, and who we might not see again for a long time.
Mingqi had a plan for us this afternoon, so he and Zhiwei picked us up at the restaurant and off
we went, passing through several mountain tunnels on the way. We didn't
know where we were headed, but soon found ourselves at...
...the 梧棲漁港魚貨直銷中心 (Wuqi Fishing Harbor Direct-sale Seafood Market) at the Port
of Taichung on the west coast. We started out walking through the seafood market
where there was plenty to
seenoteZhiwei said the seafood market is much more interesting early
in the morning when all the fishing boats return with their catch. Loud, exciting, fast-paced auctions go on as buyers try to
get the best deals on fresh product. .
After leaving the market, we walked over to the docks where a lot of fishing boats
and even some pleasure boats were moored. I captured a video of a couple of the fishermen
heading out
to sea (1:16). Check out this interesting (and surprising)
sign we saw in several places around the docks.
Heading back to the car to begin our next seaside adventure, we first passed through this packed building. Snacks (how about
a bottle of sugar cane juice?) and meals could
be purchased here, and Zhiwei wanted to treat us to some 手工麻糬
(hand-made mochi). Mei-O had a peanut mochi, and I had a
coconut one, and both were really good, nice and squishy. | ||
