Chapter 19 -- Weekend in Hualien

then&there

Chapter 19 -- Weekend in Hualien

In the wonderful world of home-exchanging we prepare the house for strangers to live in for a few days or weeks and expect the same from our exchangees, strangers we’ve never met.  Sometimes cars are exchanged in the deal.  Spousal exchanges are not encouraged.

We arrived in the east coast city of Hualien in November 2019 knowing that our exchangees would not be vacating their home to accommodate us --- instead they would be hosting us as their guests.  What seemed like a setback was in fact a blessing and made for a much more memorable and enjoyable stay, especially since the father Sean was fluent in English.  Sean’s family included his wife Beville, three daughters, and his mother, the latter being about my advanced age.

By rail we rode east from Taipei then south down the vertiginous east coast of Taiwan, arriving in Hualien two and a half hours later.  Hualien is the major city on Taiwan’s east (Pacific) coast.  We were met by Sean and daughter Lizzie and Immediately whisked to a nearby favorite restaurant that specialized in oyster omelets, a Hualien specialty, followed by a visit to another restaurant that specialized in roast goose, another favoured dish.   Local knowledge was advantageous for this movable feast.

We were weekend guests so Sean packed in a lot of activity for the short time.  The next morning we were into our best duds (shoes instead of sandals, jeans rather than shorts) and were off to a local childrens’ music recital that included daughter Bella who performed flawlessly on the viola.   But the star of the show was nine year-old Zen Zi Gui, a virtuoso playing the piano superbly and effortlessly.  Sean later said “He has a professional soul and is sure to become a concert pianist.”  We couldn’t agree more --- all the kids were competent on their chosen instruments but this kid shone incandescently.

Hualien is a modest-sized city of about a quarter million in a mountainous county which sees a slight population decline each year due to its relative isolation and lack of economic opportunity.  Despite the decline the county of Hualien is considered by the national happiness index to be the happiest place to live in Taiwan due to “work-life balance, living conditions, education, environmental quality, and the performance of the local government.”  The county is just north of the Tropic of Cancer with warm winter days in the mid-twenties Celsius during November.

The influence of the half-century of Japanese occupation pervades the national psyche, the occupation ending with the termination of WWII in 1945.  The Taiwanese appear to enjoy a kinship with Japanese culture, the influence of the occupation surprisingly untinged by negativity.  Throughout Hualien County the aboriginal cultures are well preserved with their populations amounting to more than a quarter of the overall county population.

Besides being our tour guide for the city of Hualien, Sean wanted to show us some of the local county attractions, particularly the famed Taroko Gorge.  After a Sunday breakfast of dragon fruit, savoury pancakes, and a sweet potato bun, all washed down with endless lattes, Sean took us on a day trip north to Taroko National Park.  We parked in the Swallow Gorge area, then walked beside the road peering down into a most impressive canyon as very slow-moving traffic crawled past us, angling for better parking spots.  Frustratingly the limits of my wide-angle camera lens couldn’t shoe-horn in the verticality of the Gorge in this spectacular setting as the Liwu River gurgled far below.  From dozens of visits Sean knows the Gorge intimately, insisting on certain segments to be walked rather than driven.  A couple of the promenades, including the Tunnel of Nine Turns, were now in complete shadow which made for easier photography without the hassle of contrasting light.

The sun was sinking as we drove east from the Gorge and south back to the city.   In the next couple of hours Sean and his wife Beville prepped a Taiwanese feast that included squid salad, fried fish, a tofu/peanut/greens dish, more veg, and rice, all washed down with local beer.  The feast celebrated the finale of our whirlwind tour of Hualien, our experiences there greatly eased by the hospitality of our new Taiwanese friend.  In subsequent weeks we’d be seeing more of this Taiwanese hospitality elsewhere.

A fast food eatery in Hualien specializes in omelets featuring the local oysters, the chef working non-stop to feed his ravenous clientele.

Sean preps his daughter Bella’s hair prior to her viola recital at the local school. Another dozen and a half kids, age nine to twelve, performed on varied instruments during the recital.

A pianist accompanies Bella during her recital.

The ensemble at Ming Yi Elementary belts out a finale on varied instruments.

Bella heads home to complete her homework, a school friend at her side.

Traffic hums along a main street in downtown Hualien.

Neighbourhood scarecrows hope to scare off local pests from
feasting on their edibles.

Sean’s oldest daughter Victoria spent Saturday at her track meet at Ci Ji High school. On display were not just the athletics but the mingling of adolescent hormones.

Gang Tian Gong temple is visited by a contingent of Daoist advocates.

Young sisters and their parents visit the Pine Garden in Hualien.

Driftwood sculptures inhabit Pine Forest park, a former Japanese military office surrounded by a pine forest.

Sculptures adorn the harbour promenade in Hualien.

A Coast Guard vessel patrols the harbour in Hualien.

The Chen family supper table welcomes their guests.

Feet are bared at the front door, footwear added to the family inventory.

The Chen family home is on Jielin 9^th Street in an area blanketed in greenery and hemmed in by local mountains.

Baseball is popular throughout Taiwan, certainly in the Hualien area.

On the way from Hualien to Taroko Gorge is a shop selling a particular lemonade, perhaps the best lemonade ever tasted as guaranteed by our host.

The Liwu River emerges from Taroko Gorge, flowing eastward to the Pacific Ocean.

Marble walls confine the Liwu River.

Several caves face the canyon. The marble walls are resistant to erosion but are eventually worn down into bizarre geomorphic sculptures.

7Eleven shops are everywhere throughout Taiwan. Thankfully in this tropical climate these shops sell beer to slake one’s parched throat.

A large unit within a three-story row residence houses the Chen family in a quiet neighbourhood.

Ten year-old twins Lizzie and Bella share a chuckle at the supper table.

Sean’s mother was seen occasionally in the residence but mostly kept to herself.

Our final meal with the family is displayed on the supper table.