Today’s Chinese lesson went better than Monday’s, when both the GF and I felt rather stupid and beaten down. It made me very thankful that I was always quite good at school, as it was a taster of how deadly it is to be made to feel like an idiot and given no time or help to catch up. (This is not to impugn our teacher who is very good, but there is something of this baked into much formal education, and certainly at every school I’ve attended). But today was undoubtedly better.
Nevertheless, the GF was feeling rather down as it’s a difficult period at his work, and we decided to take an extended lunch break and went back to Beitou or, specifically, Xinbeitou. It was pleasant to be back especially after time spent in the centre of town; a relief to the eyes to see the green hills around and quiet, empty streets. We went first to the Japanese cafe where I can confirm the food remains very good, especially the standout cold tofu topped with wasabi, pickled radish and king oysters, but also the excellent fish cakes and the main course of a sort of chicken kiev (the GF’s grilled mackerel was also very good). We then went to our favourite cafe which was not as nice as those around Da’an but still a lovely open space, calm feeling and in a pretty old warehouse-y building. On the walk back I stopped at a small gallery from whence I had previously bought a cotton top and bought another in a different colour. A pleasant afternoon, though the GF was indeed quite downcast.
A little scattering of work has arrived in the last few days, which is a relief in these days of the coronavirus, though motication to actually do anything remains minimal. Such is the way.