We began Day Seven with a morning walk for coffee and stroll through the grounds at the Kaohsiung Fine Arts Museum. When we got back to the house we all piled into the car for a short drive to Meinong, a small village a bit north of Kaohsiung popular for their bamboo umbrellas. The village was super cute! We had lunch there and bought a few souvenirs and then headed a bit west to Chishan, May's childhood home and where her parents still live.
While in Chishan, May's mom took us all down the street to a neighbor's house. Her neighbor runs a barbershop on the ground floor of her home (it is typical for the ground floor to be a storefront and the upper floors to be living quarters; May's parents run a fabric store on their ground floor) and Mike wanted to get a shave.
While Chad translated, the whole family (minus May's dad, who was minding the store) watched Mike get a shave. This was Mike's first professional shave and, though he was intimidated by the straight razor at his throat, he did wind up finding it quite relaxing.
After Mike's shave we all walked around Chishan to experience the best stinky tofu (a Taiwan delicacy and in no way a misnomer) the island has to offer plus some very delicious banana ice cream type dessert, which is famous across the island but originated in Chishan.
On the way back to Kaohsiung we stopped at Fo Guang Shan Monastery. This place was amazing! We'd never seen anything like it. The buddha was HUGE! Plus, the monastery was beautiful! There was something so peaceful about roaming these grounds, with monks going about their daily lives, surrounded by such beauty. It was truly a wonderful experience.
Once we got back to Chad & May's we headed out on our own for some dinner and another attempt at locating a bar for a nightcap. After an amazing dinner at a neighborhood restaurant we found a bar, Fun K-Town, just across the street. We were the only people in there for a while which allowed us plenty of time to chat with our bartender (pictured below). A student at the language school, she spoke Mandarin, English, and French (and probably other languages as well), she practiced her English with us (which was very good) and we practiced our Mandarin and French with her (which was poor to awful).
It was truly an amazing end to a fantastic day and one of the best Christmas experiences we've had since moving to Seattle. We really enjoyed ourselves and we're grateful to Chad & May, and May's family, for sharing their Christmas with us.
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