December 6, 2008

We started the day with breakfast at the hotel and then decided to take a walk and explore the neighborhood.  We found our way to a beautiful Temple that is pretty famous here in Taipei.  Being a weekend, it was very crowded with many people standing in line waiting for their blessings.  Incense was in abundance!  We didn’t have our guide with us, so we didn’t have a real understanding of everything going on.  The temple itself is a very traditional looking Chinese building in the middle of a very modern downtown area.  It looked oddly out of place.

We noticed in our exploring that there is a 7-11 on most corners.  I have never seen so many in my life.  It reminded us of Starbucks in Seattle and Vancouver.  There is not much in this area for Amelia to do.  We had heard there was a park behind the hotel, but it turned out to be an area the size of the hotel room with a bench.  Trust me, the hotel room isn’t very big!

Fion picked us up this afternoon, and we made our way to a market area.  They had a huge handicraft market, flower market, and jade market all connected.  The flowers were incredible and very inexpensive.  You could by orchids for $3 and poinsettias for 50 cents.  It was neat looking at the handicrafts, as a considerable amount of talent is showcased there.  The downside was it was very large and very crowded: not a great combination with Amelia, and it became overwhelming for us as well.  We left without doing any damage to the wallet.  Oh well, it was fun to see.

We had every intention of coming back to the room and getting ready for dinner.  Amelia had fallen asleep in the car, and let’s just say waking her up wasn’t pretty after her nap.  We opted for Domino's in the room.  (Nick you would have been happy!)  I can’t believe I’m in Tapei eating pizza.  What’s wrong with us?

I do have to say that the crowds and SMELLS remind me so much of mainland China.  All in all, we had a good day.  Two more days until we pick up Alayna--we can’t wait!

 

Outside the Temple

Tom, Amelia, and Grandma

People Waiting for their Blessings

Outside the Hotel

We're happy to be in Taipei

Look at the traffic stopped at the light infront of the jade market.

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