Taste of Taiwan

Anytime you visit a new place, sampling the local food is always one of the most exciting parts...at least, I think so. The Taiwanese love to snack and with a plethora of night markets, food isn't hard to find.  However, I was surprised to find so many food items unique to Taiwan. This is only a small list of some of the interesting food and drinks I encountered during my week here. 

Bubble Tea 

If you’re not familiar with the coined terms “bubble tea” or “boba’ or “pearl tea” this is one drink you can’t miss on the crowded streets of Taiwan. Just as much as you see people walking around Chicago holding a Starbucks cup, you’ll probably see more people walking or driving motorbikes around Taipei with a bubble tea in hand. This drink originated here in Taiwan in the 1980s and has since become popular throughout the world. I searched up and down numerous alleyways to find Chen San Ding, one of the most popular spots amongst locals. When I finally found it, the line was long and twisting around the corner. I didn't get a picture, but I was excited to see the guy whose face is on the cup working that night. 

The “bubbles” you see at the bottom are made from tapioca starch. The tapioca is made fresh here, cooked in brown sugar, and kept warm at all times. Once the pearls are in your drink, it is topped with fresh Taiwanese milk and ice. Technically, there is no “tea” actually involved; I felt a little deceived when I realized this. They also give you a wide straw to drink from that is big enough for the bubbles to fit through.

Stinky Tofu 

Yeah, this is pretty much exactly what it sounds like. You can’t say you’ve been to Taiwan without trying this world famous dish. Stinky tofu is made of large squares of fermented tofu fried in oil and then cut into four smaller pieces and served with a garnish of pickled cabbage. If you hold your nose then it tastes just like a plain ol’ piece of fried tofu with a crisp outside and soft center. But where’s the fun in that? Inhale and relish the stench! Any local will tell you that the smellier, the better.

Shaved Ice Mountain 

This is a traditional Taiwanese dessert. Basically, it's an oversized pile of shaved ice topped with various flavorings such as mango pieces, strawberries, and kiwis. However, there are numerous variations you can order with different toppings. Some are also drenched in condensed milk. It's kinda like an huge, advanced form of a snow cone. 

Peanut Ice Cream Roll Up

This was hands down my favorite food I tasted in Taiwan and the flavors work surprisingly well together. First, they shave a huge block of peanut brittle with a wooden thing and then put the shavings in an empty spring roll/crepe wrap. Then they add three scoops of ice cream: pineapple, taro root, and peanut (one of each). Finally, it's topped with a sprinkle of cilantro and wrapped up like a burrito. Yum!

Obnoxiously Tall Ice Cream Cone 

I really don’t know what else to call this. This concept is so funny to me because I’ve never seen anything like this before but I guess it's really not that crazy of an idea to make a few extra spins on the soft serve machine. However, I was a little disappointed to discover what Taiwanese call “ice cream” isn’t very rich and creamy. I would probably say it's closer to sherbet. Nonetheless, still a perfect treat for a hot September day. 

Iron Eggs 

I still think these are a bit strange-looking but they are a Taiwanese addictive delicacy, I’ve been told. It’s called the “iron egg” because these mini quail eggs are tough as nails. With a rubbery consistency, these chewy eggs are dyed black from soaking in soy sauce.  They are cooked for hours in soy sauce and then air-dried. The entire process is repeated over several days until the protein becomes tough and chewy. You might see a common trend here that Taiwanese love things with a chewy texture. Urban legend says you can play ping-pong with iron eggs.

Fried Quail Eggs 

This looked very odd to me at first, but these fried quail egg balls were pretty tasty. Honestly, I thought they tasted just like any other egg but in miniature form. I particularly liked watching the vendor crack the wee little eggs into the frying contraption. They only take about a minute to cook and then you’re served four on a stick – lovely.

Red Bean Cake or Cartwheel Pies

This iconic Taiwanese pastry is a hockey-puck shaped cake filled with warm, sweet red beans. They have an eggy batter enclosing a filling - either sweet red bean (most common), cream, or chopped turnip. They're then cooked in an iron griddle. I love the crunchy outside and soft inside. Very tasty.

Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/losinar

Turnip Cake

This dish is served in small cube form - made of shredded radish and plain rice flour. I preferred mine with some chili sauce and soy sauce. While this is a popular Asian food dish, specifically in Taiwan it is commonly eaten for breakfast. I give a thumbs up for turnip cake.  

Pigs Blood Cake

I know what you're probably thinking. Any food with the word "blood" in it doesn't really sound too appetizing to me either. This is a hot, spicy snack that can be found at any night market in Taiwan. The “cake” is made from sticky rice and hot pig’s blood, then cut into a rectangular shape and served on a stick.  I can't believe Alan actually convinced me to taste this. I had a tiny, tiny bite of his and while I actually really liked the spicy flavor, I was not a fan of the rubbery, chewy texture. I'll probably pass on the pigs blood cake next time.

'Lil America 

While this is nothing special to Taiwan, I couldn't resist writing about this. While wandering around the Gongguan night market, I found this little gem stand called "Welcome to Lil' America." This food vendor serves: deep fried Oreos, deep fried Twinkies, deep fried Snickers, deep fried bananas, deep fried truffles, and funnel cakes. Sounds about right.

Which dish would you like to try?

Neo Hao from Taiwan!

Childlike Wonder

Do you remember when you were five years old and you would go out to eat with your parents? Usually, your parents would read you the menu and give you your options, then you’d pick what you wanted and they’d place the order for you when the waitress came back. That’s exactly how it's been  here in Taiwan. I completely feel like a five year old again. I can’t read or understand anything, only have the most rudimentary sense of how things work, and everything I do just seems like a series of guesses where I hope for the best.

But it hasn’t been as bad as it might sound. I find that this situation creates a childlike wonder in me. For example, I wandered around the grocery store for two hours trying to decipher what things were was based on the pictures on the packages. It felt like a game to me. I'm currently writing this post from a coffee shop and I don't really mind that I'm completely ignorant to what everyone around me is chatting about. It's much less distracting! 

Before coming to Taiwan, I assumed that traveling here would be similar to Southeast Asia where tourism is heavily geared towards Westerners. Well, I was totally wrong. Almost all of the visitors are either from mainland China or Japan. In fact, in my five days in Taiwan I have only spotted less than ten other Westerners. Therefore, English is not really spoken here…at all. Everyone speaks Chinese to me and I just awkwardly smile and shake my head yes or no depending on what I think they're saying. When I go out to eat, all the menus look like the picture below. I’ve been trying to look up more words and phrases to say but Mandarin Chinese definitely isn’t the easiest language in the world to speak. The phonetics are so different that most of the words I don’t even know how to make my mouth make those sounds.

During my first two days here, my friend Alan took me around and helped me get set up with everything. He taught me how to use the public transportation system, ordered my food for me, and basically served as my personal translator. I’m so grateful that I had him to help me. However, on my third day here, Alan had to go back to work so I was on my own. It was time for me to grow up.

So how did I manage to get around Taiwan without my personal translator by my side? Well, this was the solution I came up with. I asked Alan to teach me how to say four different phrases in Chinese and practiced them over and over and over again until they were memorized.

1. I do not speak Chinese.
2. Do you speak English? 
3. Do you have an English menu?
4. How do I get to _____?

And surprisingly, I was totally fine.  I was able to explore and do everything I wanted to do with limited communication and a little charades. Taiwan is an incredibly safe country and the people are very polite. The most difficult part of each day was ordering food. One day, I went to McDonald's, said to the cashier in Chinese “Do you have an English menu?” and she shook her head “No.” No English menu at McDonalds? Really? I still find that hard to believe. I tried the same scenario at about six other food stands/restaurants and always left defeated. Will I ever eat? The only English menu I’ve found so far was at Subway. Therefore, I decided that if I wanted to eat, I would have to limit myself to food places that had food I could point to – either in person or on a picture. And boy, I’ve managed to eat some of the most interesting food this way. Stay tuned for another post to hear more about the Taiwanese food delicacies I’ve tried!

Have you ever been in a situation like this? How did it make you feel?

The Crappiest Meal I've Ever Had

If you know me, you know I’m a sucker for anything I consider a "unique experience." When I was in high school I watched a show on the Travel Channel called the Top 10 Most Bizarre Restaurants in the World. I specifically remember liking this bathroom-themed restaurant and telling my mom at dinner that night how I wanted to go there one day. She said it sounded weird but I thought it looked fun. I honestly completely forgot that this place until I was walking down the street in Taipei, Taiwan and stumbled upon it. So of course, I had to go.

Modern Toilet is a restaurant with a toilet theme. Imagine a roomful of people slurping noodles out of toilet bowls, and you get the idea. Everything is based on items from the bathroom. The tile-covered walls are adorned with showerheads, while plungers hang from the ceiling along with fecal shaped lights. Everyone sits on a stylish acrylic toilet (lid down of course) and the tables are either sinks or bathtubs covered with glass tops. Rolls of toilet paper hang next your table instead of napkins. My dinner was served in a toilet seat while my drink came in a cute miniature urinal.  Finally, a turd-shaped swirl of soft-serve ice cream arrived for dessert atop a dish that looks like an Asian squat toilet. If that’s not novelty, then I don’t know what is.

 

Overall, the food was good and the restaurant was crowded. The most ironic part of my dining experience was that despite the fact that the restaurant was filled with over 100 toilet seats as chairs, the actual bathroom didn’t even have a western toilet. Instead, it had a squat toilet. Really? I guess they used them all for the décor…

So what do you think: weird or fun?

The 411

Hi everyone! Thanks for your interest in following along on my journey.  Since I’ve received a lot of questions, I wanted to write a post with some general information about what I’m doing and where I’m headed.

I’m on my way to Thailand to live and work as an English teacher for a year. I’m not sure why, but there seems to be a lot of confusion about this. So just to clarify, I’ll be teaching in Thailand. Not Taiwan (wrong Asian country), not Tanzania (wrong continent), or any other place that starts with a T you might have it confused with. When I first arrive, I’ll be living on the island of Phuket (pronounced Poo-ket) for three weeks while I take a 120 hour TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) course and earn my TESOL certification. You might be more familiar with the term TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) but the terms are basically interchangeable. However, since the word "foreign" is considered politically incorrect by some, TESOL is becoming more widely used. 

As you can see from the picture, Thailand is right in the heart of Southeast Asia. I personally think it is somewhat of an oddly shaped country.

Unfortunately, I have not received my exact placement yet so I do not know what school I’ll be working at or what age I’ll be teaching. However, I should be receiving this information in the next few weeks and will keep you posted. I do know that I will mostly likely be living near Bangkok and will have my own apartment. The month of October is a break from school so I will officially begin working in November at the start of their second semester. 

However, just to confuse you even more...I am currently writing you from Taiwan. After stopping in LA for a few days to visit my friends Coley and Erik, I made another stopover in Taipei, Taiwan to visit my friend Alan who lives here. If you're not familiar, Taiwan is an island country officially named the Republic of China (R.O.C) but more commonly called Taiwan. In the picture, you can see it is the green island off the east coast of China. It is a very interesting country and I can’t wait to write more about my experience here this week. Finally, I’ll be heading to my final destination (Thailand) this weekend. 

Please feel free to leave comments and questions on any of my posts or contact me directly through the contact page. Don't be shy; I’d love to hear from you! 

Why Mai Pen Rai?

I’m sure you're wondering why I titled my blog Mai Pen Rai. What does it mean?

“Mai Pen Rai” (pronounced My Pin Rye) is a Thai expression that is elusive in it’s meaning but can be understood in English to mean any of the following:  no worries, it’s okay, it doesn’t matter, no problem, don’t worry about it, it is what it is, don’t sweat the small stuff, life goes on, there’s no use crying over spilled milk….you get the picture. You will often hear this expression when something goes wrong or someone looses their cool.

From my experience traveling in Thailand last year, I found Thai people to be incredibly generous and friendly. They are also very laid back, do not get easily agitated or angry, and are always smiling.  I quickly discovered that “Mai Pen Rai” isn’t just a commonly spoken phrase, but rather a philosophy of life. I believe this lifestyle is grounded in Thailand’s interpretation and connection to Buddhism, which teaches that it’s not worth it to dwell on something you cannot change, because your dwelling still won’t change the situation.

Being able to handle difficult situations, not fretting over trifling things, and an all-pervading cheerfulness are the trademarks of Mai Pen Rai. I find this attitude to be one of the greatest definers of the Thai character and one I admire most.  I definitely think I need a little “Mai Pen Rai” in my life.

While I anticipate that living and working in Thailand will bring many new challenges, with the right attitude I think I can handle anything. Here’s to a year of “Mai Pen Rai!”