Yesterday we got to go to Taroko National Park and hike the Shakadang Trail. The park’s elevation is from sea level to over 3000 meters. It was amazing to see how the river carved out the gorge that the trail ran along side. We stopped at one point to go down to the river and enjoy the cold water. This was a fun hike! I also got to see the fern that we ate the night before. For lunch I tried sea cucumber (not a fan) and finally had guava. It smells like an apple and has the texture of a pear, it was good. After lunch we headed back to Taipei and arrived to the dorm around 5pm. I wanted a hamburger and french fries so bad, so we asked our NTU friends where we could get one without having to go to McDonalds. They suggested Second Floor Café which is super close to the dorm, but they warned us that it is a very popular restaurant and we might have to wait for up to two hours to get seated. We got there around 5:30 and did not have to wait, we were so surprised. There was only one beef burger on the menu and it was called the Logo Burger. I had no idea what was on it because the menu was in Chinese, but I thought to myself: ‘who cares, as long as it has beef on it I want it!!’ So I ordered it and was the happiest person on the planet. It had a beef patty, slice of ham, fried shrimp, lettuce, tomato, red onion, pickle, and mayonnaise. IT WAS SO DELICIOUS!!! This is the first American meal I had since leaving the States.

Fern we ate for dinner on Thursday

Finally an American meal!

Today we set out on our 11 day trip down the west coast and into central Taiwan. We ate lunch at a restaurant where a wedding party was in full swing. The bride was beautiful! After lunch mis amigas y yo wanted to go across the street to get some fruit at the store. I have gotten used to the fact that I frequently shop at 7-11, Target (bakery), and street markets so I had no idea that they had normal grocery stores here. The place was amazing; it had cereal, oatmeal, pretty much all the things that I miss from home.

It took us almost all day to get to Meifeng Farm in Nantou County. It is beautiful here and the weather is amazing, it is so cool and there is no humidity. We just open the windows and the outside air is our AC! It is also super quiet here and it reminds me of the Ranch during deer season, except there is no cedar. We rested for about two hours and then went to go eat dinner near the hotel. Afterwards we had more free time and walked up to see the gardens. I found that they have a couple of lavender rows, radishes, pecan trees, and even a maze to get lost in. Tomorrow we will be hiking in the mountains and it’s going to be chilling, but I am excited!