I had a new haircut, bought a bag and some clothes to adapt to city life again.
I felt out of place in taipei walking down 忠孝東路 in my backpacker's clothes and messy hair. I'm starting to miss walking down the street barefoot, wearing the same vang veng tubing singlet everyday and stopping to wash my hand by the stream or river that is flowing through town.
From rickety bangla bikes, to korean drama lady bikes, and then professional giant bikes and then a head-turing hummer.
Wouldn't you take a second look at this? Just like what it's written,
Like nothing else.
This random picture is worth a lot of effort. One day of cycling and one day of taking the bus and walking along the highway. Just to search for "一種我要的感覺". At least i found it.
菜粽里也沒有菜。
這到底是什麼世界啊！
But anyway the dumpling is really good even when there's only peanuts in it. It taste really yummy with a hint of some kind of veggie smell and the sauce on top with peanut powder.
I can't help but to complain again about the dumpling i had during 端午節. I was somewhere in the tibetan part of Szechuan when I bought a dumpling to celebrate 端午節 with a group of farangs. I wanted to have a dumpling even when i can't remember why did Qu yuan killed himself.
The very first bite, I have to bite off the tip of the dumpling. It doesn't matter what filling does it have, maybe a mushroom, chestnut, azuki beans, lumps of fat, meat or other fancy stuff. It's more of the anticipation than really finding what's inside.
One bite, two bite, three bites.
.........
Finally i saw the filling, it has 3 green beans sitting right in the middle of the dumpling. Tell me about disappointment.
The taiwanese are really cute people, it shows in their conversation, daily life and all of their products.
But this is so true!
After awhile, I don't like to answer some questions. I just had a really fun day with the locals at a place and they will ask if I will be coming back. It's strange that within a day or two, they are almost like the close friends you have back home. And if I stay for a week or so, I know almost everybody in the village and I start to feel like a part of them. Goodbyes are so hard, everybody come and wave goodbye and tell you that you must come back one day. I really want to spend more time with them, keep in contact and of course see them again in the future.
But sometimes, deep down I know that maybe I might never come back to this place again in the future, or even if I do, it will be very long time later. From the "Sure!" and "Of course!", gradually I started answering with "I"ll love to!" and most of the time the people never probe further.
There is always a silence that follows. Then they will continue cheerfully about where can we go when I come back again.
I think they too know that the tourist don't always come back after awhile, and they might never have a chance to leave the place in their entire life.
Goodbyes are the hardest when you know you might never meet again.
Sometimes it's nice to stand at the view point and just take a picture instead of climbing the mountain.
It's good to be alive.
How many more roads do I have to follow?
How many more mountains do I have to climb?
Over here, the sun never seem to set and I never seem to get to where I'm going...
加油，因為之後的路還很長。
日照金山！！
這就是傳說中的日照金山！！只有好人看得到，看到會落淚的日照金山！
Suddenly, the torturing long journey on the minivan is all worth it. Everything for this.
At this moment when it's there right in front of you, it looks so natural. Like a normal phenomenon that happens every single day. People really take things for granted so easily.
But apparently, it doesn't happen all the time. On my last day, I wanted to catch the sunrise again but to my dismay, there wasn't even a mountain in sight. No wonder people flock here and stay for days waiting for a glimpse of the magical sunrise.
How can a place be this beautiful?
Somehow everywhere else seems more beautiful than home. Not just the grass are greener, the sky is bluer and the clouds are whiter.
It's hard to leave. Everyone seem to stay longer than they planned. Maybe I was getting tired of moving everyday too but I'm getting a little too comfortable.
Baguette for breakfast, 3 fruit shakes a day, a dip in the pool in the hot afternoon or a herbal sauna in the evening, a movie at night, beer laos & fussball at utopia after that and of course a nice bed to sleep till noon. Why would anyone want to go anywhere else?
I sat down, I waited. And once i'm not ready they snap my picture. I think they want to capture my 最真實的一面. But it's true, they will probably find me walking around in Burma like this than pinning up my fringe.
10usd or 500baht? What do you think?
And despite the rumors, they do give change (if you ask nicely)
This is where I escape the big earthquake. Well, Bagan next time.
After awhile, everything seems possible. It doesn't matter what terrain, what kind of bike or even how bad is the weather.
If you want to get to a place enough, just keep cycling and you will reach there. Eventually.
I started out with 20km, then 40km, and sometimes ended up with 80km. Maybe i can buy a bike and ride all they way home. But of course it will be better with a real bike, those pretty bikes from mtvs and korean movies doesn't really work well when there's a slope in front (even the slightest one).
This is the day that I should have worn some flowery dress and a straw hat and act like I'm in some fancy korean drama. And maybe some flowers that I picked, my frappuccino in my basket and snapping pictures with a holga. At least I might feel better on the 13km of highway back to Chiang Rai.
Nope, this is not China. Obviously this place have strong chinese influences. I didn't know the KMT were in Thailand.
After awhile I felt like traveling is really good exercise. There will always be a temple or a vantage point that you MUST see. And of course it's on a mountain(or a "hill"). Monks must be really fit in the past.
No matter where you go, a flight of stairs awaits...
不到山頂非好漢？
我到了山頂在流汗! x_x|||
Now I understand something, it is so true that 頭沒那麼大就別戴那麼大頂帽子 (especially if you are riding a bicycle).
世界上最遙遠的距離不是生與死，而是menu上美食當前卻無法品嚐. Sore throat, cough and flu. The irritating trio.
"Fresh or fried spring rolls?"
I really want some spring rolls. So I settled for some fresh ones. Obviously it's the fried ones that are good. Like some guy said any thing deep fried taste good, frogs, insects, any kind of animal. And even if they deep fried the sole of your shoe, he bet it will still taste good.
It's strange. What I miss most is some decent Tom yam soup. And since eating leafy spring rolls are not getting me any better I had a bowl of Tom yam soup for dinner. Maybe a different strategy of 以毒攻毒 or is it really 自我安慰. I just want some Tom yam soup. 愛到飛蛾撲火是種墮落.
Sometimes my chinese sucks. Shouldn't speed read when you're not too good at it.
Savory pies are just so much nicer. Like the tuna and corn pie in Thailand.
蘿蔔派？
At the sight of the word 蘿 I assume it's carrot pie and rush in to buy. I only realize when i got back to the hotel. Even the words 我就喜歡 seems to come with a mocking laugh. It's really just pineapple from some pineapple tart but in a pie.
