Here’s what we did this weekend:
1) On Saturday night, Jill and I, along with a bunch of fellow teachers, attended a professional baseball game at the nearby Chengching Lake Stadium. Lots of fun.
The La New Bears bested the Lions by a scoreline of 12-2. I had high hopes for the concession options, but I was disappointed. Not only was the food–some tough chicken legs and slimy noodles and mediocre popcorn–nothing to write home about, but amazingly, they didn’t even sell beer in the stadium. Simply unacceptable.
My sinking spirits, however, were quickly lifted when I caught my first ever foul ball at a pro game. The guy at bat, a right-hander, hit a liner into our section, above the first base line. It came right to me. It was hit well but I stood up and it was right at eye level; I cradled it into my fingertips and it was never in danger of careening out of my grasp. It was a beautiful moment.
Also, the group of us–about 7 or 8 white folks amid a sea of Asians–were featured on the jumbotron during the game. I took a bunch of photos of the night and I’m hoping they turn out well. One of them is a shot of me and the Bears’ mascot, a guy in a grizzly costume. I towered over him. He was not a large grizzly. (At least not compared to me, that is.)
The game was much like a AA or AAA game back in the US–decent but not top-flight level of play in a tidy but not crowded stadium. Here’s more info on baseball in Taiwan, and here’re the current standings. (And interestingly, there’re even some Americans playing here.)
2) Today, Jill and I visited Takao Hill–what the ex-pats call Monkey Mountain–on the outskirts of Kaohsiung. The place is true to its name: in the course of a couple hours of hiking, we saw probably 50 of the critters. And one even got frisky with me. We walked past it and as soon as we took our eyes off of it, it lunged at my backpack, grabbing my butt in the process. It took me by surprise; I yelped, it let go, and it scampered away.
3) After our hike, we had lunch at a place called Teresa’s Spanish/Latin American restaurant. It was excellent. Savory tacos, tasty empanadas, and delectable arroz con chorizo. And best of all, Jill and I had an interesting conversation with the owner, Teresa, a woman from La Paz, Bolivia, who’s lived in Taiwan for 23 years. She was really friendly (and loved hearing that my brother lives in her hometown), and speaking Spanish with her and eating her food was a pleasant reminder of last year in Ecuador.
Post a Comment