3rd uncle in law picked me up in his 6 seater Toyota hatchback. I sat in the very last row. I'm actually most comfortable there. Most people don't like to sit in the last row because they somehow feel left out. But I like it because this way I don't have to turn my head around to talk to anyone or to see them. I could see everyone from the back and I can speak loud without a problem. Plus usually it's empty and so I have space to lay down and stretch out. We were out for an outing to central east Taiwan to a national park called Xue Ba.
On the way there we stopped by a rest stop. The rest stops in Taiwan is posh. I love it. The food is good and there are great snacks. I think Taiwan aside from Japan is a great snack country. I haven't been to Korea so I can't figure them in. The rest stop is very comfortable and luxurious in my opinion. The gift snack shop is one of the best attractions. In Taiwan, there is a custom that you don't show up to anyone's house empty handed. So from the packaging to actual product of snack hand goods are pretty good.
Both the 3rd and 4th uncle in laws had good sense of humor and I laughed the entire way. We arrived in the park and walked around the visitors center. The weather there was misty and foggy so we decided it would be best to just hang out at the visitor center. In this center we stepped into the movie room to watch the film on the park trails, mountain peaks, wildlife and fauna. This park alone houses 60 percent of the worlds butterfly species.
I would like to backpack and camp in the national parks in Taiwan. This would have to be a separate trip with all my gear with me. I would just have a great time hiking and looking at butterflies, birds, flowers, trees. Taiwan has one of the vast varieties of butterflies in the world. Plus backpacking isn't that hot of sport here. There are enough people who do it but not enough to ruin the pristine wildlife. I am looking forward to spotting a live phoenix tail butterfly myself.
I remember when I was very young, I went on a butterfly outing with extended families and we caught butterflies in nets. Well, I put my butterflies in a bag somehow and forgot about them. So the suffocated and died. I was very sad when I remembered and found all of them dead. I was very little. What do I know? Not knowing many things and being very forgetful is a toddler child trait. I totally forgot to release them after ooo-ah...... I still feel terrible about it.
After walking around the outskirts of the visitor's center we went walking down a tofu street, another tourist attraction. Our goal was to just snack a bit because it wasn't lunch or dinner but snack time. And we had planned to soak in the nearby hot spring. But,.....we ended up eating the whole way. I had mochi, cake, spicy stewed tofu, fried tofu, and out of this world fruits, etc... I can't remember, I lost track after awhile. I was stuffed.
We went to a hot spring resort hoping to just soak and not stay over night.
When they arrived they found out that it cost 3,000 yuan to stay over night in this resort for basic setup. 3rd aunty's children had given them this place as a weekend resort getaway and they had a great time. How did it go. Well, they found it the studio setup for the place was 3,000 yuan and they only had 2,500 yuan of cash, they were short. They had to go into town and search for an ATM. They ended up having instant noodles for dinner because they didn't have enough money for dinner. They're at this posh resort and they didn't have money for dinner. Fortunately the instant noodles in Taiwan are really delicious. I'd eat it every day if it wasn't bad for you with msg and preservatives and load of sodium and fat to give a triple bypass. Well, they called their kids on this entire escapade and the kids talked it over and said they'd pitch in and set them up with the top suite at 6,000 yuan if they'd be willing to allow themselves to get pampered. It was funny.
This place is known for herbal bath. And herbal bath here in Taiwan means Chinese Medicine Herbal bath. It's not like rose petals with mint or something. No, it's like brown or black in color and smells like Traditional Chinese Medicine. The bath tub for the hotspring in the basic cheapest room was small and only enough for 2 people to squat in. It was 500 per room for the hour. The tub itself really lacked comfort in all our opinions. It was hot spring peak season time and there was no room for negotiations because business was booming. We decided to not soak there. I can't remember why. I think partly it was too expensive for an hour soak and the basic set up was not as good for the price we were given or something. I don't really know exactly. I just know the negotiations took awhile.
On the ride back the conversations in the car was on the stories of my parents. In summery, my mother to everyone is everyone's mom and my father is a generous and fun person. We went to SiLin district for dinner and at YiYuan where 3rd uncle and his wife and 2nd aunty and her husband joined us. Then we went over to 4th aunty's place for tea and talks were attempted for an all aunties sleep over. But that didn't happen, my mom was out of the picture back in US. So Chan Chan decided to call my mom and pretend he was a police officer who was charging her with not being present at a party. It was hilarious. I think it was like 6:30am in US.
