A plane fell from the sky in Pakistan, it’ll be a sad Eid. Two survivors, which feels miraculous: one who returned to consciousness and groped towards a light and leapt off the plane wing before the fires reached him, the other flung out, still strapped into his seat, to emerge only with a broken bone […]
The sadness of a bad meal
I had a good Spanish lesson this morning, in which I practiced trying to use particular grammatical structures, trying to force them into my brain. It was a tiring lesson, so it must have been working. The GF and I then went off to Serenity, the only restaurant that feels like dining out in the […]
Golden horse
On Saturday we left, just as the crowds arrived. We took our bags and went to I-Thao for lunch, wanting to try indigenous food. What had been a deserted town was now packed, though still far from capacity, as people arrived for the weekend. This was only Taiwanese tourists, as there are none from overseas […]
Other side of the lake
The next morning, after a good breakfast, we got a drop to the Wenwu (civil / military) temple, thinking that Friday would be a good day to go since this was one of the most popular spots and would be sure to be thronged on a weekend, even in this time of coronavirus. For me, […]
Sun Moon Lake
As expected, my plan to stay to myself whilst at Sun Moon Lake failed. On Thursday we left at around lunchtime, taking bento boxes with us to eat on the train. I had Spanish in the morning – a good lesson and I’m enjoying the book – so it was an early start for me, […]
Day in two halves
Yesterday, Sunday, was a day in two halves. The first was a highly successful trip to a new farmer’s market, about 20 minutes walk away, with excellent and varied produce. It will be a regular stop, I think. I had some lovely drinks there as well – it was another hot day: first a watermelon […]
Far north
Saturday morning began with a very long overdue chat with an old university friend who, like everyone else I know, is in lockdown. She is an academic at a well-known US university, and it was interesting to hear how they, and her students, have been dealing with it all. This is one of those friends […]
Strange folks
Last night the GF and I went off to the soba place again for dinner. First I went shopping in Zhongshan, and bought myself a linen skirt I had admired before, and a top suitable for hiking in (or, more correctly, yoga in). I also bought a bubble tea and sat waiting for the GF […]
Out of place
Startled to receive the following rather kawai message from a morose Finn regarding a cafe excursion: I osowan!
Still in seclusion
Another day in seclusion. This morning I had my Spanish class, which went quite well – a bit of reading (Primero estaba el mar by Tomás González), some conversation about dogs in prams. A brief chat with the GF last night which was pleasant, and the start of the third of The Wire which remains […]