wedding photography singapore p01a

wedding photography singapore p01a

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A Taiwan Farmstay Part 3: Finding Takeshi Kaneshiro

After bidding farewell to Mr Hsu, we drove the car for about 45 minutes in search of another famous eatery as recommended by many guide books and Mr Hsu himself. Helmed by a couple in their 50s or 60s, it's a simple and modest Hakka rice noodle dish topped with minced pork. As usual, the noodles and the beancurd are very soft. The presentation was also top notch. 


Our itinerary was very flexible, and very much dependent on our mood and the weather. Seeing the rain clouds had drifted away, we decided to go to Chi Shang (池上) to cycle through the famed rice fields. 池上is located in a valley bordering Hualien and Taitung, and blessed with sunshine and good precipitation as well as clean mountain spring water. The rice it produces won it fame worldwide. Even though our family's brown rice supply is not from 池上, it's still from Taitung and the quality is superb!
Guided by sight and instinct, we parked the car at Da Bo Lake (大波池) and proceed to rent bicycles from an unmanned kiosk. (There was a number to call, and the staff came riding on her scooter 5 minutes later.)
Like many other places in Taiwan, cycling lanes are wide and clearly marked. Traffic there was very thin and the children were never in any danger, as we zipped our way through miles of picturesque landscapes. Autumn will be the best season to come for cycling, in terms of the weather.
 We took a break at an odd-looking building, not knowing what to make of it. There was a canal filled with water and mud cutting through the shelter. Maybe it's some form of irrigation? But since there were slabs that looked like seats, w, like all curious kids ought to be,  naturally proceeded to dip our feet into the mud.

Another cycling stop outside a mini grocery shop that sells drinks, ice-cream, and some agricultural products.

This is the famous 伯朗大道 (Brown Avenue?) that was made famous by a coffee ad some 20 years ago. Somewhere along this road is a tree whose rise to fame was more recent. Takeshi Kaneshiro starred in a TVC for EVA Air. In it, he was seen cycling on roads as seen and sipped water under a tree. Henceforth, that tree was named after him. The subequent deluge of tourists angered many farmers/residents because of pollution and congestion. There were cries within the community to chop down the said tree. EVA Air immediately flew in and adopted the tree, promising to take care of the cleanliness and the traffic in the area. As a result, 伯朗大道 is now closed to four-wheelers.

The famous tree. You can watch the TVC here:




The infamous duo on an obscure tree.







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