virg joined us unbeknown!
Cassy celebrated her birthday this week, so I’m very lazily going to copy part of an email she sent her parents this evening, which describes events very well……….
“I had a wonderful day, what with your phone call the evening before and then Denise and Susan rang (separately) on the Tuesday to wish me well. That evening, David lived up to (and surpassed) his reputation as a fantastic surprise-organiser: we went to the best restaurant in Taipei for an incredible dining experience that included amazing taste sensations as well as very attentive service and superb decor. He told me that I had to be ready at about 6:40 pm and that he was wearing a suit!! That gave me the cue to wear something approximate in formality so I wore my black dress and blue jacket (with newly-cleaned sapphire and diamond earrings -very sparkly). David was smoothly elegant in navy wool suit, charcoal linen shirt and navy silk tie. We were appropriately dressed to enter the Paris 1930 restaurant at The Landis Ritz Hotel downtown. Sumptuous silk-upholstered chairs, art deco sand-blasted glass screens between tables resplendent in white linen napery, Christofle silver, fine white china and crystal glasses greeted us. Our personal attendant, Allen Lee (the Captain of the Landis restaurant), gave us his undivided attention all evening, without intruding upon the intimate atmosphere. We each chose a set menu of seven courses and he reminded us of the exquisite composition/method of cooking of each one, as it arrived at our table. With the white plates providing a suitable canvas, the food comprised an edible work of art that indulged almost all of the senses simultaneously. Washed down with individually selected wines that the sommelier chose especially to complement the food (German riesling, French white burgundy and Italian shiraz) , the meal was a sensory delight. Towards the end of the evening, I was presented with a single long-stemmed rose and piece of birthday cake (with candle!) by the Captain. As I didn't want to spoil the perfection of the meal just consumed, I asked that the cake be packed to take home and we ate it the next day (delicious cheesecake!!). Some of the things we tasted were pigeon breast (from France), artichoke soup, mushroom consommé with broccoli puree, snail ravioli with garlic frog's leg, baked vegetable stack, scallops with balsamic sauce, baked cod with a tomato-based sauce wagyu beef (from Australia), asparagus risotto with curry sauce, lime sorbet sandwiched between coconut cakes and pecan icecream with wafers and toffee spears. Strong coffee and a plate of chocolate truffles completed the feast. David sure knows how to wow a girl!!
Not content with the previous night's shock tactics, David had planned a trip the next day down to Taipei 101, the tallest building in the world (until the Chinese go one better with their new tower). It has only recently opened so that you can go to the observation level on the 89th floor!! There's a bit more of the building above, but the public is only allowed as high as the observation level. We were whisked up in a lift (also the fastest in the world) so that the journey only took 30 seconds - long enough, however, for your ears to pop a couple of times!! It was quite a clear day, by Taipei standards, so the city lay spread before us, extending further than the eye could see - another reminder of the vastness of this metropolis. Slowly, we made our way around the floor, finding familiar landmarks and seeing many that were new to us, or unfamiliar due to the strange perspective of staring at them from such a height that the mountains looked like part of a model layout and the planes flying in near Yuanshan like remote-control toys. Apart from the vista, the other intriguing aspect of our visit was the huge counterweight, meant to stabilise the building in the event of typhoon or earthquake, that is able to be viewed by the public. There are several of these inside the building and usually they are not visible, but part of the appeal of 101 is that you can actually see the 550 tonne weight suspended by incredibly thick wire cables, designed to "swing" up to one and a half metres!!!!
The rest of the week was fairly quiet - reading, playing with Virg'n'Mary (who have discovered how to get on top of the wardrobes in their room, via the ladder propped up next to these cupboards. It's a whole new world for them!!) On Friday night, we had a lovely meal at Bird (Thai restaurant just down the road) with Ross, Ainsley and Ross's parents who were over here during Spring break for their second visit to this country. They had enjoyed the use of the Aubergino (car) and had also experienced great weather for their stay. Ross and Ains took them to some places that they hadn't been to before (sculpture park, pottery village), so we'll benefit too, hopefully, sometime when the surf is flat and the boys can tear themselves away from the beach!
Even though we're not really ready to go back to work (when are you????) we've had a great break and feel as though it was much longer than the week and a half that it encompassed.”
Well, that was the easiest blog I’ve ever written! As Cass said, we had a wonderful, lazy week and had a couple of other adventures as well. We went over to Chad and Cathy’s place on Thursday evening and Cassy had an extensive cuddle with tiny baby Ella (a month old, but only due about now) and we had a few drinks and a chat. I had to leave about 10pm and go to the hospital as I had injured my wrist skateboarding that afternoon (yes, again!) and it was starting to seize up. A hairline fracture of the wrist was found but I didn’t need a cast. After buying a neoprene wrist strapping yesterday, I even attempted a surf this morning, but with limited success! The ice pack has been working overtime and my wife is no doubt wondering when I will retire from these extreme sports!