My former roomy and friend Alex was among the first to return to Europe. We had a little dinner in his honor.
The usual sunset view on the top of my (new) dorm
In my last week in Taiwan Hugo, a Taiwanese friend from my Kant class, and his girlfriend took two of my friends, Lauren and Kiel, and me to the Keelong Fish market in the middle of the night. We met at three in the morning and drove through the mild night (still 26 degrees, which felt like heaven), listening to Taiwanese music and talking about Taiwanese culture among other things. There was a strange sense of community in the car, as if we were some runaway gangsters, sitting in the same car with the same purpose. We had the roads all to ourselves but when we arrived in the streets of old-town Keelong we were suddenly surrounded by hoards of people. There were, of course, fishers, women who were recording the sales and chefs who would buy their fish as fresh as possible. We were like alien elements in this, taking pictures, looking fascinated at the way people shouted and cut up fish. Hugo told us that a fisherman’s life was drastically different from a farmer’s life. Fishing is always a bit of a gamble. Much more so than farming, where you are certainly also dependent on the weather. In fishing you risk your life in a storm, and you never know how big your catch will be or whether you will catch anything at all. If they make a big catch, many will spend it on prostitutes and booze since only heaven knows how long you will be able to enjoy it. So all around the fish market there were hotels, which could be booked by the hour and many of the fishermen had a bottle of whiskey in their hand as their companion.
Fishermen fashion
Women record the prices
(very nutritious) fish eyes – yum!
Coral reef fish
Hugo and his girlfriend
Another interesting (and appalling) issue was the sale of coral-reef fish. Coral-reefs are an exceptional organism, which only grows extremely slow and is very sensitive to small changes in their environment, like see temperature, salination, etc. Fishing nets can destroy them easily and coral reefs live in perfect symbiosis with their fish population, so such a rich eco-system is easily destroyed when left unprotected. This is why in Taiwan, as in many other legislations, fishing in and around coral reefs is forbidden. Nonetheless, you find many of these fish at the market being sold at high prices.
After a tour around the market we took the car to the coast in Taiwan’s northeast, where we had a perfect view over Turtle Island. We were there around five, so we could watch the first golden sunlight in the sky until the sun finally rose like a backdrop behind the islands. The moment can neither be described by words nor by pictures. It was unforgettable.
We went to sleep in an elementary school yard along the coast before heading back to Taipei where we had a great brunch at the infamous ‘Diner’.
A few days later, on Wednesday, Kiel celebrated his birthday and it was time to say good-bye to Lauren and Bernise. I will miss you guys!
The last week I was busy packing and started organizing my life back home somewhat. I suppose I mentally left Taiwan before I left it physically. I know its about time to go home.
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