Moon"meat" Festival

Monday 27th
I'm about to meet my cousin so we can go down to my aunt's place and have a family gathering around a nice Taiwanese-style BBQ. It's been raining on and off for the past few days... what's new.
As I walked down the street of Taipei I can see smoke coming from different storefronts. Yes, even under the rain and cloudy night, people are still attached to their grilled meat. Although the full moon will not show up in the capital city the wet streets provide a fresh smell for celebration.

Around 11pm
I arrive in Hsinh Chu (新竹), supposedly Taiwan Silicon Valley, though during my several visits, I've never found anything that looked like Mountain View and its surroundings. One day I'll have to find out why it is Taiwan Silicon Valley.
My relatives are all busy around the fire as are all their neighbors and probably a lot of families on the island. Smokes everywhere, on the walkways, in the courtyards, on the beach, in the gardens and even on street roads. Pork, chicken, chicken feet, tofu, clams, oysters, mushrooms, young bamboo sticks... it's all you can eat... food sizzling on homemade, "quick & dirty" fashion BBQ grills. It's bonfire night on the far-eastern island.

But as bright as the moon can ever be, where's the mooncake? Traditionally, during the Mooncake Festical, you have to eat mooncakes. As for the few memories I have from about 20 years ago, this is what the celebration was all about. Actually you do see the mooncakes, they are actually sold everywhere prior to the festivities. You buy a lot and you offer them to your relatives, your coworkers, your clients, your friends, your teacher as a customary gesture. And they come with so many differents flavors it will take forever to taste them all. I heard that some are also made of gold and that they are edible... Aren't we nuts?!

It just seems that the BBQ has somehow taken over the mooncake. However the main idea hasn't really changed. It's still a good excuse to gather around, chat under a clear night, have random friends coming over for a mall piece of juicy grilled meat... taking a break from everyday life and just enjoying the food.

Tuesday 28th - evening
It's the actual holiday. We didn't succeed in BBQing everything from last night. So it's second round and the moon is watching us with its huge round face.

Picture from the past

Well, yeah, don't get too exited... I haven't got married yet.

One of my aunts had this picture for a long time. I know when I was young I used to attend weddings and be the little boy who helps holding the bride's dress. I still get blurred flashes of those events and in a way this picture is a vivid representation of a memory that has never been clear in my mind. It's like watching a baby picture of yourself but you have no recollection of that precise moment.

It's funny how you tend to forget a lot from you life. Nevertheless memories have a way to play funny tricks at you. It can be anything... a particular situation, a smell in the air, the color of the sky and the shape of the clouds, the taste of a food or just a word somebody says, and all of a sudden you're carried away, back to a piece of memory, a reminiscence. This tiny piece of memory brushes past your senses and blurs your mind but you just want to hold on to it for just one moment because it caught you by surprise, it triggered your curiosity and you know you won't keep it long enough to fully remember...

Natural Sound & Smell War

Madame de Rothschild, one of our French most prominent experts in good manners, would probably get a heart attack... Whether on the bus or on the street, from time to time, you happen to catch a burping sound or somebody (like the bus driver this evening) racks his nose and throat, and spits out the "oystery" substance... and all in a natural manner.

Some of our best "nez" (literally nose), those who designs the most wanted fragrances purchasable in any department stores around the world, would probably faint in the Taipei Metro at rush hour. Only few people use deodorants here. So my dear fellows who are still struggling to find a job in the dull western economy, there's a huge business opportunity here.

One can actually win the natural sound & smell war once and for all. "Uneducated", caught by the sudden smell of stinky tofu (a loved delicacy you can find in any nightmarket), you call for victory after throwing up all your guts. And this time all eyes on you, you won't go unnoticed.

I could probably go on and on with my disgusting verve but the one thing I learn when I lived in the US is that no matter where you live, there's no good in criticizing. Of course you come with a great load of values and references that are hard to forget and you just can't help comparing. At that time I realized that all I could talk about was in France it's like this or like that... up to the point where there weren't any to be made.

As each ice cream comes with different flavors so does each culture. BTW, this is not a Chinese proverb... My point is there's no standard when it comes to adjusting to a new life/culture. So leave your mind, including nose and ears open to take and taste whatever new flavors come to you.

Typhoon Killer & AC Queen

Meet my new buddies, Typhoon Killer & AC Queen. I bumped into them in the Tonghua Nightmarket. They were sort of bored in their cages. So I manage to get them out using a joystick and a 3-finger-metallic claw. I've never got so lucky and in 5 mins we became good friends.

Typhoon Killer just gets into a killing mood during Typhoon weather. He wasn't here when the first one came and scared the hell out of Taipei inhabitants. But he made sure the latest one, Songda, avoided Taiwan and went away to blow on sushis.

AC Queen, she's like me. She can't stand the heat and humidity so she just spends day in day out in a cool place eating 小 龍 包 (one of my favorite food).

It's still raining like crazy today. Some friends said it sounded like the Iguasu Falls. My place got flooded again. I guess I should get used to it or tell Typhoon Killer and AC Queen to take care of the landlord.

Rain is pouring

I'm writing my first post as the rain is pouring outside. Can't hear much. Hope my room doesn't get flooded again.

My new life has just started. Getting back to Taiwan and to my roots... sounds like a joyful homecoming event but I feel more like a stranger than anywhere else. I do look local but I can't even read a menu so I've been eating at 2 particular spots near my place and in each place I only know one dish. Fortunately I can vary my eating habits because I go out with cousins from time to time. Eating is a critical social topic that takes a real part in your daily life. You can basically eat all the time and find all types of foods anywhere. There are apparently 3000 7-Eleven all over the country (in France, they would be our "arabe du coin") and they are open 24/7. Right around my place, there are 4 of them within a 2-min walking distance. Eating... such a big topic that I think it'll take me a whole year to develop.

...Rain is still pouring... I'll probably get something to eat...