As we rode farther and farther south, the weather got better and better and I started to feel more like I was in Hawaii (although I've never been there), California, or even Europe. Was it the fresh air? Was is the blue sky? Was it the architecture? Whatever it was, sights like this unusual building really made me forget I was in Asia.
You might be wondering what this picture is doing here. Well, let me explain. See the truck? At one point, Joe decided to draft behind it. It seemed like a good idea, but after only about 100 meters, the truck pulled off the road, almost like the driver was telling Joe to get lost. Several minutes later, however, there he was again, passing us. So what did Joe do? He drafted behind the truck again, of course. And what did the driver do? He pulled off the road again, of course. I swear this back-and-forth went on for miles, even though I'm sure it had nothing to do with Joe's drafting. The whole thing reminded me of that 1971 movie with Dennis Weaver called "Duel." I know, I know: I'm nuts!
I was pretty excited when we reached the Tropic of Cancer marker. As far as I know, that was the farthest south I had ever been (to that point).
Here's what the actual Tropic of Cancer monument looks like.
Here's what else you might encounter in the bike/scooter lane.
The weather wasn't great when I took this picture, but the view was kind of cool.
Taiwan didn't turn out to be as "bike-friendly" as we heard it would be, but this guy certainly won points in our book. As soon as we pulled up at his restaurant, we started to look for something (e.g., wall, pillar, garage door) to lean our bikes against. Just then, out came the owner with these cool little "Giant" bike stands. Made in Taiwan. Once again, we picked the right place to eat!
As I mentioned earlier, the chopsticks in many restaurants in Taiwan are wrapped in plastic. The Taiwanese also like to use these little spoons (so it helps if you're an ambidextrous eater in this country), which are all-too-often of the disposable variety. Japan isn't all that progressive, either, when it comes to eco-friendliness.
Here is a picture of some omnipresent betel nuts, sitting in a metal bowl, waiting to be wrapped in leaves that are painted with some sort of white paste so that they can be sold. I'm not sure why, but all I could think of when I saw the white paste being spread onto the leaves was cream cheese being spread onto salami. Weird, huh?
Here's the finished product. All that's left is to put them in small bags and to sell them. (I really should have become more of an expert on betel nut production and use, but I didn't bother. Maybe next time. I have no idea, for instance, how much a bag costs, how long you can chew a nut until it's time for the next one, and how profitable a business selling the stuff is.)
When people chew on the stuff, they produce a red juice. And they spit that juice out. (Look, it's a fish!)
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