Mid-Autumn Kebabs and Beerfests

As cool fall temperatures, bring me relief from a constant sheen of sweat the adorns my brow, I embrace the coming of my favourite season in Taiwan. The temperatures are cooler and the air becomes less humid by the day as the rains recede from short intense downpours to the occasional day of familiar West-coast-drizzle. 

I had a great summer in Taipei filled with pool parties and fun, and a bit of work as well. I was lucky to have a few days off work in July which gave me the opportunity to travel to one of Taiwan's isolated island communities, Penghu. Flying domestically in Taiwan allowed me to, for the first time, depart from Taipei's, downtown located, Songshan Airport. 

The convenience of a centrally located airport is amazing, I was able to leave work at 6:40 and arrive at the distant island of Penghu before 8:30. I had planned to do a great deal of sightseeing in addition to beach lounging during my visit to the small group of islands; however, to my misfortune my vacation coincided with the coming of a typhoon to Taiwan.

Cactus fruit ice-cream, a local specialty.

My first, of just two days in Penghu was wet, extremely wet. The poncho I purchased at 7-11 wasn't enough to prevent the rain that ran down my neck from drenching me from head to toe. I did my best to persevere and see the sight as well as I was able. The typhoon persisted for the entire first day and became very intense in the early evening. The intense rains and wind were enough to bring down a flight that was attempting to land in Penghu, killing over 40 people. Following the incident, I received a torrent of emails and messages, concerning my safety, which made me grateful to know that so many people care about me.

As is typical after a typhoon passes, my second day in Penghu was nothing but blue skies. I hurriedly explored the downtown sights of Penghu's biggest city before renting a bike to explore more of the island. I reached a beautiful beach in the afternoon and was able to spend some time enjoying the warmth and sunshine before my evening flight back to Taipei.

The summer heat didn't destroy me in Taipei, though there were days of discomfort. The weekend pool parties were always a welcome event on hot summer days.  One of the Chinese Lunar calandar's most important festivals, the Mid-Autumn Festival arrived at the beginning of September.

Traditionally, the holiday focuses on having a large feast with family, much alike North American Thanksgivings; however, recently in Taiwan, outdoor bbq's have become the norm, and throughout the holiday weekend the island is engulfed with the pleasant smell of charcoal and roasting meat.

In September, as the heat and humidity continued to envelope Taiwan, I had the opportunity to join my parents for a vacation in Istanbul, Turkey. Having visited Istanbul last summer, I knew it was a gorgeous city and I was excited to visit again, but more than anything I was excited to share the experience with my parents. 

A stopover in Shanghai.

Nearly 24 hours of travel and a brief stopover that allowed me to enter Shanghai, briefly, brought me back to Istanbul and reunited me with my parents. The following week was filled with days of sightseeing and nights of great food accompanied by a great deal of average beer.

Turkish Coffee

Medicine for the jetlag

Dad purchasing his first simit (Turkish bagel).

Evil eyes.

The line to enter Hagia Sofia.

Free mussel pilaf!

Cats are everywhere!

Roma boy chasing pigeons in Taksim Square.

Istiklal is Istanbul's longest pedestrian shopping street.

Ferry-ride to the Prices' Islands

Horse carriage is the only transportation on the Prices' Islands. 

Rooftop drinks at one of the highest bars in the city. 

Great craft beer in at a local brew-pub.

Local food-truck serving up meatball sandwiches.

Canadian craft-beer with local cheese and figs.

I thoroughly enjoyed the time I was able to spend with my parents as well as the many sights and experiences we had together.

The icing on the already delicious cake, of my vacation was that I had arranged for a brief, 2-day stopover in Munich to coincide with the first two days of Oktoberfest. Throughout my many trips to Germany and Munich, Oktoberfest has always eluded me. Timing and money had prevented me from attending the renowned beer event that I had been aware of since my Childhood. I recall the memories of an around-the-world kindergarten play in which I was to play a German and was honored as one of only three students in my class to have a spoken line. My line was, "To dance zee polka is what I like best, especially at zee Oktoberfest."

Whether that play had profound effect on my life, or fate merely intervened, I do not know; however, my reasons for learning to speak German remain unclear as does my motivation to attend the Oktoberfest. Needless to say, attending the Oktoberfest was the fulfillment of a long held dream.

However, getting to Munich was not to be as easy as I had hoped......

I made it to the airport, but it wasn't easy.   After running to the bus in Taksim, the central square of the city,  and barely making it in time, I sat drenched in sweat in the bus. After we were on the highway, I checked my flight itinerary and realized that I had idiotically assumed that my flight was from Ataturk airport, while really it was from Gokcen, the airport on the opposite side of the city. I hurried off the bus when we finally reached Ataturk and spared no time hopping in the nearest taxi for what would be an hour long taxi ride to the other airport. I made it, and I probably should’ve felt more frustrated and angry but I was just so relieved to have made it there, that I was ecstatic despite the monetary loss.

The Oktoberfest far-exceeded my expectations. Through, much stress I managed to book a reasonably priced room on the outskirts of the city, but within 20 minute train commute. I ventured into the city early on the first day of the fest, to secure my place in the beer tent of my choice. After exploring a few of the tents, I found the one I had been looking for; the Hacker-Pschorr, Himmel der Bayern tent. The tent is decorated with a clear blue sky where the sun is always shining, much in contrast to the stormy weather outside.

People actually pre-drink for the all-day drinking festival.

Despite being in the tent nearly 2 hours before the first beers were served, I was unable to find a seat at a table. Promptly at 12 noon the traditional cannon fired announcing the start of Oktoberfest and the tapping of the first kegs. Once the beer started flowing, everyone became a great deal friendlier and I joined a group of New Zealanders at their table.

 Unfortunately, the 6% may have gotten the better of me and the latter part of the afternoon remains unclear. What I do know is that the Oktoberfest was spectacular and I would happily jump at the opportunity to go again.

An entire cow being spit-roasted.

After another day of exploring the Oktoberfest grounds, I departed for Taipei the following evening, and after another day of travel I was back at work; exhausted but very, very, happy.

When I arrived back in Taiwan I was grateful that the summer heat had finally relented and I could finally start to enjoy my favourite season in Taiwan. October is an exciting month as it includes the best holiday of the year, Halloween!