What I miss about Victoria

There are a few things which I miss very much of Victoria.
Courteous and law abiding drivers - I have to learn how to drive all over again in Taiwan. Its not that people here are bad drivers, in fact, they are excellent drivers. But they do not have patience and they will go around you if you are slow to turn. And scooters simply ignore cars and car drivers must watch and yield for them. I'm getting used to it....At first it seems like chaos, but after a while, it becomes clear to me that everyone is in control, and logically speaking, there is no chaos in a controlled environment....
Maple syrup - wished I shipped a case of the God's nectar. I found a store here, but a tiny bottle sells for $15 Cdn.....
Golfing buddies - I miss you guys all.
My mom - knowing how lonely she is.
Tuesday nites - when the secret Asian men played music in Chinatown. I wished I could have come up with this name sooner, would have put some life into the band so that the guys will continue playing without me. I feel guilty being the one breaking up the band. I know now how Yoko Ono must have felt after being accused of being responsible for the break up of the Beatles.....
Here is one for old time sake.....http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GXJHhrPhGIE

Soup kitchen

Just before I left Canada, Sam sent me a recipe of vegetable soup. Here is the original content:

BASIC FAT-BURNING SOUP
Shopping List
1 or 2 cans of stewed tomatoes
3 large green onions
1 large can of fat-free beef or chichen broth
1 pkg. fat-free soup Mix
1 bunch celery
2 cans green beans [or fresh]
2 or 3 green bell peppers
2 lbs. carrots
Cut veggies in small to medium pieces. Add water to cover.Season with salt, pepper, parsley if desired, boullion, soup mix. Add necessary + optional vegetables and seasonings as desired. Bring to rapid boil - cook for 10 minutes, then reduce heat and simmer until veggies are tender. EAT this soup anytime you are hungry. EAT as much as you want, whenever you want. This soup will not add calories. The more you EAT the more weight you will lose. Fill a thermos in the morning and take to work.You may DRINK lots of water, [6-8 glasses a day], unsweetened juces, tea, coffee, cranberry juice. OPTIONAL ADDITIONS: Fresh mushrooms, zucchini squash, yellow onions, chopped garlic, chili flakes, cabbage, fresh green beans and tomatoes. The basic fat burning soup can be eaten any time you feel hungry -- eat as much as you wish. Remember the more you eat the more weight you will lose.

I started this soup four days ago, making a large pot everyday. I also add Chinese mushrooms, wood ears (type of fungus), and fresh bamboo shoots. Mushroom and fungus have excellent anti-oxidant properties and add flavor, while bamboo shoots have very high fiber content. These three extra ingredients add a very nice texture to an otherwise boring soup. I don't know how much weight I will lose because I still eat other stuff, but the soup definitely cuts down my appetite for carbs, and that should help in controlling my weight. One thing for sure if you want to try this soup: get some quality toilet paper, your bottom will apreciate it. Never in my life I have bowel movement four to five times a day......Fact is, it is a great tasting soup, even Frankie loves the soup, and she has had problems with constipation all her life. She now has beautiful bowel movements twice a day.......

Sam, if you are reading this, please have Irene make mom this soup and have her try it at least once. It may be very beneficial for her, as this soup is excellent for cleansing and lets face it, we all need more veggies.

To your health!

Sushi nite & hula girls

C'mon folks, this is a blog for families, don't even think about it....

This is Frankie's favorite restaurant: Sushi go around as she calls it. Pretty good salmon and tuna sashimi, also fresh shrimp, baby abalones, and salmon roes. Three of us are stuffed for about $15US, about 1/4 what it would cost in Victoria.

Its sleep over again for the girls, and they put on quite a show. Reminds me of the little hula girls in Hawaii. These girls love singing and dancing, and are not afraid to do it in front of total strangers. I've got an idea: think I'll bring them back to Victoria next summer and find them a spot down at the inner harbor. Could make a killing with american tourists.........perhaps Queenie will help with some choreography..........

Easy like Sunday morning

No tennis today, so I'm going to the markets to buy some fresh clams to make some clam & miso soup.....on my Hardly Davidson.

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A typical summer day here is a little cloud or light rain overnite, then brilliant sunshine in the morning and lasts all day. Day time temp is about 35 celcius and evening is about 30. Remember a few days ago when temp was over 40, and I said that something bad was going to happen, like a Typhoon? How do I know that? Because when I was a kid in HK, whenever it gets unbearably hot and humid but no rain for an extended period of time, some kind of storm will form and that will relieve the pressure being built up. Sometimes it is just a thunderstorm which passes quickly, but once in a while, we get these deadly typhoons and depending on where and how you live, it could mean death and disasters.

Easy rider

I got a new toy today. This is my "Hardly Davidson", a four year new low mileage Yamaha scooter. It has a 125cc engine, zero to 60 takes a lifetime but is great for around town. Including taxes, license and two years insurance: $1100US.

Helmets are compulsory here. It is awesome to feel the open road and cool breeze on a hot day. My international driver license is endorsed for a year here, same length as my Taiwan resident card, which is renewable after one year. I am now a Hong Kong Chinese with Canadian citizenship officially resident of Taiwan. It gets more complicated when I try to explain to locals in Mandarin. What frustrates me the most is that when I speak Mandarin to them, they reply in Taiwanese which I have no clue. So, instead of feeling stupid, I now just speak Cantonese to them and watch them scratching their heads......They know I'm speaking Chinese, just not sure what dialect. So, instead of me feeling stupid, they now feel inadequate........its pretty funny and a great ice breaker.

Btw, I finally met a person from Hong Kong. We were at a KTV and getting food at the buffett table, and I hear some guy speaking Cantonese to his boy. I turned around and said to him, that this was my first time hearing Cantonese in Hualien. Turned out he is a teacher at the same high school as Rebecca's brother, but people don't know he is from HK because he speaks perfect Mandarin. I have a long way to go.......

To the beach

Hualien has endless miles of coastline which stretches from south of Taipei all the way down to Taitung.

With such a beautiful setting, you would expect hotels and resorts, and condos dotting the beach front, exploiting the location and turning them into cash cows. But no, apart from a few B&Bs and small boutique hotels, big money is not here in Hualien. Tourism is not commercially promoted and this is what keeps Hualien "quaint".

Rebecca's aunt is visiting from Chiayi where heavy flooding continues. She is really enjoying the break, here playing on the beach with Frankie and Rebecca...in the background, we can hear "Gao Shan Qing". There is an open air karaoke on the beach front promenade, pretty neat...We can all sing our hearts out in a closed setting, but open air with hundreds of spectators? You've got to have balls!!!

It was such a perfect evening: temperature around the low 80s, a light breeze, and air is so fresh after the typhoon......I can handle this.....

To the market

Taiwan is quite traditional relative to Hong Kong and China.

Folks here still have a habit of going to the markets in the morning to shop for fresh veggies, seafood, and meats.

Of course, super markets are getting a big piece of the pie these days, and here is Frankie helping out........

Live chicken just like when we were kids........

and fresh fish......

Taiwanese call this the traditional markets and they open from early morning until noon. There are also "evening markets" which emphasize on cooked food for many who don't want to cook.