This past weekend we were invited to a barbecue at our friend Anne's house. She offered to show us around for the afternoon before the party. So we took her up on in and went scooter shopping. Jesse and Gloria (also from work) joined us for our afternoon around town. They were great help in translating and inspecting a number of scooters. We have narrowed our search down to two scooters...we're now waiting to hear back from the dealers as to what the "package" will be from each. There are a number of fees necessary for transferring the registration and plates, and some dealers will cover this cost. Also, they may include such things as helmets and locks. We shall see; hopefully we'll have a scooter by the end of the month!!!They also took us to what they call "Taiwan Coldstone." It's definitely not ice cream, however it was delicious. This cold treat is a bowl full of shaved ice with cream poured over it and topped with fresh fruit. Ours was topped with delicious mango and pineapple!! Yummy!
Finally, we arrived at Anne's beautiful house. Anne actually lives in a house, with a yard and all! It's very VERY rare for a family to have a house, but she has a generous uncle who gave her and her husband part of his garden/farm plot to build their home. They live next door to another uncle and the two homes are bordered on either side by gardens. We met Anne's children and extended family who all attended the Barbecue along with some other co-workers of ours.
While we enjoyed a large spread of delicious food for dinner, it was NOTHING like a Barbecue in the states. There were a variety of meats, vegetables, and tofu that were placed on the grill and smothered in Barbecue sauce - apparently this is why it is called a "Barbecue." Here are a few of the things we enjoyed...- pork
- chicken wings
- corn on the cob
- bamboo shoots
- clams
- shrimp
- tempura
- tofu
- Taiwan garlic sausages
- Taiwan eggplant
- pigs blood
The evening was spent with all gathered around the "grills" - small trays of charcoal with a grate on top. Everyone joined in with the "barbecuing" each adding more items to the grill and/or painting on a generous amount of barbecue sauce.
We had a wonderful time that evening - truly feeling as though we belong! What a great community to be a part of. We hope to have many more gatherings with these new friends.