Fengjia Night Market and Street Scenes from Taichung

One night in Taichung, while my parents babysat for us while Lola slept, Michael and I went to the nearby Fengjia night market for a stroll.  Here are some of the typical street scenes.  It's completely normal for kitchens to be on the street or food carts to be on the sidewalk, connected to people's homes.  In this Taichung still reminds me of Hanoi.  Life is lived everywhere and anywhere there is space.  This means private and public lines are blurred, but it also feels so much more authentic and communal.

 Various intestines, fried tofu, seaweed, eggs and other crunchy parts, marinated in a soy sauce broth.

I know this is not for everyone, but believe me when I say plenty of people find these items delicious!  Yum!

Just look at the sheer number of people on foot, the number of motorbikes on the street, and the bewildering amount of bright lights and loud signs!

 

 

Shopping is also a huge part of night markets.  Here, a lot of really cute baby shoes.

We also took the opportunity to visit my dad's alma mater, Fengjia University, which is right in the heart of the night market.  It is a large oasis of peace, calm and quiet in a very bustling area.  We walked into the courtyard and gazed at the various trees, grassy courtyards, and buildings.  

It's hard to imagine that over 40 years ago my father was here, a young, skinny, single, bespectacled college student, studying textile engineering, riding his bicycle, having not yet met my mother, not yet set foot on an airplane (much less seen America)... When we asked him about the area during his university days, my dad said it was all rice fields!  I wonder, back then, as he studied and went to classes, if he had any inkling of what his future life would hold or what experiences lay awaiting for him. 

I am sure the campus did not look like it does now, but I was most impressed by the banyan trees.  With their huge trunks and graceful, lush umbrellas, they appeared so stately and majestic.

Finally, I would be remiss if I did not note that traffic during the day in Taichung is not much better than at night.  Having driven in so many countries, Michael remarked admiringly on this trip that Taichung had to be one of, if not the most, challenging cities he has ever driven.  There is an endless, steady stream of motorbikes and Vespas that come from in front of and behind your vehicle, enveloping you from the right and the left.  Streets (if they can even be called that) are very narrow and everyone encroaches on the road with their illegal parking and potted plants that stretch out beyond their property.  Some lanes are so tight that cars have to wait on either end in order to pass through one at a time.  Traffic lights, turning lanes and turn signals are a courtesy or an afterthought.  No one honks, but no one follows the rules either.

The mighty motorbike - ubiquitous in Taichung