Pam Does Asia!

Where to begin! Seriously, I have no idea. I have always prided myself on packing in as much as I could into a vacation, but when my mom visited me in November, 2009, I think I really outdid myself. We both spent the entire vacation eating eating eating and traveling traveling traveling. Enough so that the latter outdid the former and we came away from the two weeks lighter than going into them. Well, there's no way to cover EVERYTHING we did in this fortnight, so it's best to hit the highlights!


After viewing some of the necessary components to Taiwan, like Taipei 101 and the golden mountains of Jioufen and Jinguashi, I decided it was time to introduce my mom to some of, not all of, the tea in China. After a day at the zoo seeing the pandas, we took a taxi up a mountain side into the Maokong Tea Houses. I took her to my favorite restaurant, Da Cha Hu, or Big Teapot, which boasts fine tea, excellent cuisine, and stunning views of downtown taipei from a mountainside.


We ordered a local brew, to compliment our foods. While we waited for our meals to arrive, I introduced my mom to the delicate art of pao cha, or brewing tea. After some sips of this intoxicating blend, our first course arrived- tea fried rice! An absolutely mindblowing combination of dried tea leaves and fried rice, this is something that has never been tasted before or since. The second course was some tofu braised nicely in a brown sauce. The tofu was simply terrific- it was like eating diced cream. A nice side order or greens grown in the restaurant's own yard before the main course- the San Bei Ji which translates to Three Cups Chicken. The chicken is served in a sizzling hot plate mixed with herbs, spices, tea, and more ingredients than I could pick out.


Our second culinary treat came just a few days later at a familiar yet special restaurant- Din Tai Fung. This was extra special because my uncle, who was living in Taichung at the time, came up with his wife Clare to join us for dinner. And what made it even more special was that we had reservations to dine with the owner of Din Tai Fung himself.


The evening was a smash! We all sat around the table wining and dining on scrumptious Xiao Long Bao, shrimp Xiao Mai, hot and sour soup, chicken soup, and so much more. The finest array of Chinese food in all of Asia, with the finest company in all the world. After, the owner invited my Uncle and his wife, along with my mother and me, back to his place for a digestif. We sat around the living room, eating imported hams and cookies from Japan, sweet delicious fruits from the mountains of Taiwan, and rich wine from the heart of Bordeaux.

The following day, I took my family to the national palace museum after a delicious greasy bread breakfast. We spent the morning and early afternoon browsing some of the finest examples of chinese art and literature in the world, kept safe during the communist revolution in China. But our time at the museum was short lived as my mother and I had a plane to catch to Honkey town!


That night, as a birthday gift to my mom, we boarded a plane and took off for three days to Hong Kong. We arrived late at night, so after getting in from the airport, we decided it was best to head straight to bed. The next day was an early rise as we took the Star Ferry from Kowloon to Central for some Dim Sum at my favorite little dim sum restaurant. A bit out of the way, but worth it. Then it was up the Peak Tram to the top of Victoria Peak. We were the on a particularly clear day, so all of Victoria Harbor and Kowloon was in fine view. We took a stroll around the mountain (about three kilometers) and then sat for a late afernoon drink on the lookout peak.


Then, it was back up to the flying wok at nighttime for some stunning views of the harbor at night. We took a taxi back down the mountain side, got over to the Kowloon side, and set up shop along the harbor to watch the Symphony of lights where they light up the buildings and synchronize them to music on the central side.


The following day, a little bird called out to us- Macau! Macau! So we hopped on the ferry and took a boat over to Macau for the day. Just our luck that we arrived at the same time as the Macau Grand Prix- it was a thrill to watch the high speed cars zooming through the narrow little streets in this old Portuguese settlement. (Speaking of which, a lot of the signage is still in Portugese and Chinese, with no English translation!)

Our first stop was a quick walk through the Grand Lisboa hotel and Casino to see the high rollers. Then it was onto the old portugese historic district, where it felt like I was transported back to my days in Europe. We ate tasty custard pastries and dined on spicy portugese cuisine.


The highlight was to see the ruins of St. Paul's cathedral and the old fort. From a distance, it looks like the cathedral still stands in all her beauty. But, as one approaches, one notices that only the front facade it left. Still, one can explore the ruins and even enter the old crypt!


After the fort and lunch, we decided it was time to head to Venice! That's right, we went to one of Macau's newest and most impressive casinos, the Venetian! Walking inside is like taking a trip to Italy. Golden idols, studded chandeliers, escalating spiral staircases- it was all too much! But the certainly outdid themselves with the indoor gondola rides with authentic gondaliers!


With that, it was time to say good-bye to Macau and head back to Hong Kong for some more fun. My mom and I had some great dinner and a few drinks before heading back to bed. The following day, we explored the 10,000 Buddah's Monastery and took an open aired bus tour of the city! Had some more dim sum, and then took a plane back to Taiwan for week two of our trip! That's right, that was all only in one week, and I skipped out on a lot of things like the night market in Keelung where my mom tried sugar cane juice and had her first baozi, or the historical searches through Sun Ya Sen and Chiang Kai Shek Memorial Halls, or even over to the ultra hip shopping district of Ximending!

Week two started with a high-speed train ride down to Taichung to meet with my Uncle Donnie and Clare. They picked us up bright and early at the train station and we took a car to one of the more attractive locations around Taiwan- Puli. Known for it's wistful mountains and sunny weather, this was not a day to disappoint.


We started our tour with an introduction to the an old fashioned winery where, sadly, they no longer produced wine. Some of the highlights included:

The Ten Commandments of Drinking (my personal favorite is number ten: "When feeling for another one means you are about to be drunk. Stop immediately."

The Drunk Simulator

After the brewery, we moved our way over to a paper factory where we learned the time honored tradition of paper making. Here, my mom got to make some of her own paper followed by producing a printing on the paper.


After that, it was over to the paper dome- a reinvented catholic church constructed entirely out of paper. It was a unique and leisurely afternoon at this "religious" site.


Returning back to Taichong, we had some delicious hot pot followed by a nice stroll around the city's night market.


Perhaps the best part of the evening was when my mom tried Chicken Butt, and actually enjoyed it!


The following morning, after a visit to the science museum, we hopped back on a train and were back in Taipei for dinner with Vivian (my cousin Yuhsin's sister) and her two daughters, Zoe and Lily. The dinner was just perfect.

However, we still had a full week of sightseeing ahead of us, with journeys to the Lin Family Garden, then up to Danshui along the pier, over to Yeliou to see the moon rocks, back to Din Tai fung for some lunch and shopping. However, I ensured that we set aside one day to visit the famous Taroko National Park.


We took a fast train down to Taroko and upon arriving, hired a taxi driver to tour us around the gorge. This ended up being an excellent option as it got us into the gorge quickly for a relatively good price. He took us to see some of the most spectacular sights along the trail, along with some unique stories about how he climbed the fascinating high trails or rocks that resembled King Kong or Jumping Fish. This was also a tremendous visit for me as some trails reopened that were originally closed that last few times I visited the park. This afforded me some fantastic views of mountains I had yet to witness.


After the Gorge, I took my mom into downtown Hualien to try some famous Bianshi, a type of wonton noodle mentioned before on my blog. I took her to the two best spots for this dish to compare and we unanimously agreed that the first, smaller shop was our favorite. While there, we met a nice couple who told us about a famous bakery to buy some great tasting tiramisu. So after a little shopping (we bought an engraved rock) we got some italian cake, boarded the train, and made our way back home.

Upon returning to Taiwan, we still had quite a bit of sightseeing to do. Our primary focus was on getting out to the moon rocks in Yeliou, where minus the gravity, is nothing short of an extra terrestrial experience.


After Yeliou, we also ensured a nice day trip to the aboriginal locations around Wulai, complete with Muaji, logging train rides, alpine gondola lifts, archery, and stunning waterfalls set among Taipei's rugged wilderness.

In the evening, we had a rather unique experience. I took my mom over to the Longshan Temple area where we explored the mysteries of snake alley. The temple itself was exotic and mysterious while the snake soup we dined on was equally exotic and mysterious. However, and I will agree with my mom on this, the soup itseld is putrid. I tried explaining that it wasn't the snake that tasted bad (as I have eaten snake before and quite enjoyed it) but rather the herbs the put into the broth.


After snake alley, it was a quick jump over to the Wisteria tea house where we joined a fine historic culture of Taiwanese cultural heroes as they performed the fine tea culture Taiwan is known for. This is a particularly important tea house as it is the location where former political dissidents met during Taiwan's White Terror.


The following morning, we had a day left of shopping to do. One of the items on our list was purchasing a new cage for Zeke. While at the pet shop, I got a strange call from a friend wondering where I was. I told her I was at the pet shop. Turns out she was on my balcony with a pot of Mash Potatoes (it seems like all my stories involve potatoes or women on my balcony). You see, I was to have a Thanksgiving Dinner on Sunday night, but she got the dates wrong and arrived a day early with her boyfriend.

Not to throw the night away, and since I knew they had no plans, I invite them out with my mom and me. That night we dined at a great little hole in the wall that has no menus, they just bring a set dish of traditional Taiwanese food. After dinner, we took a stroll through the famed night market up in Shilin before we settled in for some Shrimp Fishing up in Tienmu.


Our last day pretty relaxing, strolls around the city, some shopping, some KTV singing, and finally preparations for Thanksgiving dinner. That night, we had about 50 guests arrive at my apartment, all with food in hand, to celebrate this wonderful holiday with my mom and me. The next day, it was an early flight home back to the old US of A, where a loving husband was waiting for her to tell the tales of her mysterious journey to Asia.

And this was only just a snap shot of Asia- it doesn't include stories about our bus rides, going to my Chinese school and meeting my Chinese Professor, eating beef noodles and meeting the owner of the best beef noodle shop in town, going to Sababa, visiting the school where I used to teach, shopping at the fashionable Wufenpu clothes market, trying delicious japanese cookies, the ten thousand buddhas monastery, and oh so much more!!!

From your loving mother and dutiful son mountains, Michael.

The River Tracer

On a cold summer's morning, on a car bound for nowhere,
I met up with my friends, we were all too tired to speak.
So we all took turns a-driving, up the mountain, in the jungle,
Till boredom overtook us, and I began to speak.

I said, "friends I've made a life, out of going river tracing,
And knowing how to get there, by the way the river glides.
And if you don't mind me saying, I can see you're not out tracing,
For a sip of your coffee, I'll give you some advice."

So they handed me a helmet, and life vest worth a-wearing,
Donned a wet suit, cause the river felt like ice.
And the river was deathly freezing, and my skin lost all complexion,
Said, "If you're gonna trace the river, boys, you gotta learn to trace it right."

You got to know when to step up, know when to jump down,
Know when to plow on through, or when to swim or run.
You never hike on dry land, when the river is a-callin',
There'll be time enough for hiking, when the tracing's done.

Well every tracer knows, that the secret to a good time,
Is lying in a waterway, and building up the oomph!
And then everyone stands up, except the person at the front,
And they go sliding down the water slide into the small lagoon.

You got to know when to turn right, know when to turn left,
Know when to jump off cliffs, or zip-line for fun.
You never say no to new stuff, like rappelling down a waterfall,
There'll be time to second guess yourself when the tracing's done.

And when we finished tracing, we went back to the cars,
Took off our wetsuits, and and piled them in a heap.
And somewhere in the jungle, the tracers had broke even,
Cause in the final stretch they found a source that they could keep.

You got to know when to go on (when to go on), know when to go home (when to go home),
Know when the source is found, or just another bend.
You got to go river tracing, with your bestest Taiwanese friends,
And have a lasting memory, at the journey's end.

Don't forget to check out our pictures from the trip: River Tracing in Yangmingshan!

From the gambling, river tracing, Kenny Rogers of Taiwan, Michael!

Oh, By The Way, I Went to Thailand Again

That’s right, in Sept- ember, I returned back to the land of smiles, a sort of encore trip if you will. It was only a weekend travel, but I packed quite a bit into that short weekend. My primary focus was on ancient temples and the Khmer ruins of times gone past. With really just a day to explore, I decided to narrow my journey to Ayuthaya, Thailand’s former capital and royal history.

I arrived late into Bangkok, and no other country in the world accommodates late comers better than Thailand. In getting off the plane, I changed my TW dollars into Thai Baht, but with such little to change, I went over to an ATM to take out some more. I double checked- the machine had the PLUS mark on it necessary for a withdrawal, but alas nothing came out. I tried again, and once more, nothing.

I decided that, once I arrived in the city, I would use an internet station and SKYPE call my bank to figure out what was going on. I got into town, found a computer and made the call. They informed me that I can only take out US$60 at a time. At these ATMs, they only have increments of 1000 Baht, or US$33. Well, 2000 Baht was too much at US$60, so I was stuck taking out US$33 at a time- puttin

g in and taking out the ATM card over and over again.

I finally got my money and went over to my hotel- the PS guesthouse. It was recommended to me by a friend and, despite being in the heart of the red light district and girly bars/ massage parlors, it’s actually a very nice place to stay. It’s one of the cheapest, but the rooms are clean and spacious. I would say it is a hidden gem in Bangkok, except that it’s always full. Last time I came to Bangkok about a year and a half ago, it was booked months in advance. This time around, I was able to get it for Friday night, but not Saturday night.

Nevertheless, I got my room, went out for a quick drink at a nice relaxed bar, not a go-go bar, and then hit the sack. I was up early the next day, got a bite to eat, and then was on the bus out to Ayuthaya. I don’t really remember the 2-3 hour ride as I slept most of the way. I do, however, remember arriving in the town. At first glance it seemed like a regular, normal little town that really didn’t have much to offer a temple seeker. However, this charmed city is the mecca of ancient Khmer ruins.

It was about lunch time when I arrived, so I took a tuk-tuk to a floating restaurant along the riverside. The air was warm and the river drifted along silently. Every now and again, a boat drove by, bouncing the restaurant up and down as I sat there, blissfully eating my sweet and sour Chicken.

The tuk-tuk driver that brought me to the restaurant also offered to take me around to see the popular sights in Ayuthaya. The price he was offering was fair. The price that he quoted to take me to the restaurant was correct and he did so without problem. He also had a little notebook of native English speaker’s comments recommending the tour. So, going against everything I heard about tuk-tuk scams, I decided to go along. It was an excellent decision.

The first stop was to one of the more recognizable Wats in Ayuthaya. Still functioning with Monks in residence, I got a first hand glimpse into the ancient lifestyles of the divinity. The steps were monstrously high, with sagging brick walls concaving in on each side. At the top of the Wat stood a deep well, caged in, at about 30 to 40 feet. A light lit up this otherwise dark abyss, revealing hundreds, if not thousands, of wished upon coins.

What fascinated me most of all, however, was not this central well, but actually the practice on the walls and statues. Inside the apex of this Wat were carefully carved statues. For a small donation, you were given a little square of gold paper, no more than 4 cm by 4 cm. The idea was to peel off this gold paper from it’s waxy backing and then apply it to the statues and walls. A centuries old work in progress, the temple walls and statues were slowly changing into gold, as little gold tissue papers lit up the mysterious alter of the Wat.

After that, it was off to the elephant farm, where, as I am sure you can guess, I rode an elephant. I got my own elephant and we used him to tour some of the surround temples of the remaining Wat Maheyong in fields and jungle. A primitive and remote way to explore the ruins around the area. The most exciting part, however, was when the guide hopped off and invited me to sit upon the elephant’s neck. Swinging side to side and having no where to faithfully hold on in order to secure my grip, it often times felt like a struggle just to stay on this magnificent beast. Before long, however, I started to get the hang of the trolloping and swaggering, and suddenly the adventure wasn’t a struggle to see if I could hold on, but rather a test to see how fast we could make the elephant go. In the end, not so fast.

Following the elephant trek, we proceeded to one of the most sacred spots in all of Ayuthaya. Wat Phra Mahahat, built by King Borom Rachathirat in the 1300s, In Thai culture, it is very special when the historical relics become entwined with the natural elements. Nowhere is this more pronounced, so I have heard, than in Cambodia’s Angkor Wat. However, Ayuthaya has a bit of this to share with the public as well, with a special relic- the head of Buddha wrapped lovingly and exotically among the vines and roots of a local tree. This enveloped head rests among a more elaborate and complex collection of temples and ruins.

Next stop was a large and reclining Buddha. It was large…and reclining. Enough said. However, I did manage to pick up a nice, US$3 hand made hammock while I was there, which is now a corner piece on my balcony in Taipei.

Our final visit was to the holiest of holies, the royalist of royals, the ground zero of the Kingdom- Wat Phra Si Sanphet. To put it another way, of all the Charlie Browns in the world, this was the Charlie Browniest.

This site, now housing a new giant golden Buddha (the original, 16 meters high with a 250kg covering of gold, was melted down by the invading Burmese) served as the King’s Palace in the good old days. The Wats and temples still stand, presenting the onlooker with some exquisite examples of traditional royal scenery.

It wasn’t before long that the rain poured in, signaling it was time to return to Bangkok. I took the tuk-tuk ride back to the town center where I hopped on a bus, returning to my hotel. I booked a second night at a place down the road, went out for dinner at my beloved Cabbages and Condoms for their scrumptious chicken, and then called it a night.

I was up early the next morning and made my way over to Soi Ban Baht where I purchased the most plain looking monks bowl I could find. In terms of craftsmanship, it was not a spectacle to behold. But when struck, it made the most melodious ring, far more pleasing to the ear than any of the other monk bowls available. So I bought this 50 year old monk bowl antique and it now sits squarely in my living room, collecting change and alms for my next adventure.

From your temple seeking archeologist of land of smiles, Michael.