Friday we had plans to visit the islands by motor scooter. We left early with me sitting/standing in front, Papa driving in the middle and mummy at the back (actually Papa said she was the one doing most of the driving from the 'back seat') Poor Papa, literally caught in the middle, between "faster... faster... go faster..." and
"WATCH out for that PEBBLE on the road....! " We survived, though and had a great time visiting the many sights on the islands. It gave us the freedom to see sights that are usually very hard to visit by local bus. We got to see 3 or 4 islands connected by bridges. One took us to a very interesting fort. The Shitai Fort, built in 1883 under the Manchu Dynasty, has many stone arched tunnels, which I enjoyed running in and out off. We also ate in one of the best seafood restaurants in all of Penghu. Finding it was a trifle difficult as we must have passed by 1/2 dozen times before we even realized it was a restaurant. Our guidebook said it was on a main highway and not far from the temple. Well let me tell you - Taiwan has loads and loads of temples, most of which have no English writings on them! When we did find the restaurant there were no big flashy signs or even an English name on it. Inside it looked even less likely, except that the walls were plastered with pictures of the owner in all kinds of handshaking, backslapping poses with presumably famous people. The trouble it took to get there was made up by the excellent quality of the food that was served. Definitely the best tasting fish I've ever tasted. After lunch we drove around for some more sight seeing. At one point, while looking for a lighthouse, Papa drove us all the way up a hill and landed us in the middle of some kind of military training ground! (Penghu is a lot closer to mainland China, therefore it's a very strategic point for Taiwan.) Just like in a James Bond movie we zoomed past the soldiers in their bunkers and camouflaged dugouts (a lot of them napping I noticed) and headed straight to the 2 rifle toting guards at an iron gateway. They must have been asleep as well cause we got quite the startled look as they hopped to attention on our arrival. Mummy commented that 'that's probably the most excitement they've had all day and will now have something to tell their wives over dinner.' Papa agreed saying "Guess what dear.. You'd never guess who dropped in at the office today.... 007.. and his wife and kid!"
After the military incident we decided to head home and on the way passed by the Old Tungliang Banyan tree. The tree is 300 years old and it has an interesting history. It's said that a seedling floated here from a sinking trading ship and was planted by the local people in front of a temple. It took root and now its many branches and roots create a vast canopy that provides shade from the sun. Here we too took refuge from the sun while we sampled some of the famous cactus and honey lemon ice creams of Penghu.
Sat Sept. 21 was the day of the Moon Festival, during which time the Chinese eat "moon cakes", light fireworks and gaze at the full moon. We hung around town spending a lot of time in-doors waiting for the festival to begin. We had to visit the clinic once more to get my wound looked at by the doctor; it was healing well. The doctor gave us gifts of a large parcel of moon cakes and his wife made me a small purse (we have experienced this sort of friendliness and hospitality very often in Taiwan). As it turns out, their son lives and works in Toronto and they visit him quite often. We thanked them, bid our farewells and said we shall meet up with them in TO some day. The festivities of the full moon were beginning as families were setting up small BBQ burners and stoves on the streets in front of their stores or houses. Firecrackers were going off everywhere and we attended an outdoor jazz concert.
Sunday Sept. 22 the folks decided against visiting some of the smaller islands and heading back to the mainland earlier than planned. We still had to climb a mountain, attend Confucius' birthday party, and stay again in a Buddhist temple (I didn't realize the folks had us on a religious pilgrimage - between the buddhist temple stays and the catholic hostels.. - all I want is a simple, non-denominational, 5-star Hilton! Is that too much to ask for...??). Since we had rented scooter for a couple of hours, we managed to get in a visit (and a swim for papa) at the white sandy beach of Chihli, before catching our 5pm boat to Putai. Now I know I said I was never getting on that boat again. But remember - I can also be bought...! So with my backpack full of 'goodies' and a dose of Gravol in my tummy. I stepped on the boat...
(to be continued!)