The greatest dumplings in the entire world? The most delicious pizza outside Italy? (and beating a lot inside from our experience!) The tastiest and least expensive craft beer ever? The most bizarre wibble wobbling bird that has become our talisman mascot?
All these Taiwan classics were on call this week as we delved back into our Asian life, our Antipodean adventure done and dusted, yet not forgotten, our minds now fully consumed with academic affairs and the minutia of running a classroom and household successfully.
Cass couldn't wait to get back to the incomparable Din Tai Feng. Pretenders come and go in this city and country, yet none can match the peerless service and taste sensations that steam out from the kitchen in precise increments, the wait staff whisking off the top bamboo cookers to reveal the exquisitely crafted xiaolongbao. You can plop one straight into the sliced ginger, soy and vinegar mix, and directly into your mouth for a fresh taste explosion: somehow piping but never scalding, a brilliant feat of clever cooking and even cleverer timing.
We also couldn't wait to get back to Pizzeria Oggi, where the offerings were equally sublime both in construction, ingredients and taste. Neither one of these restaurants has ever disappointed, which is not a bad record considering the number of times we have visited.
Uli's supplied Wal and me with some new versions of blonde craft beers from the Yangminshan mountain-based North Taiwan Brewing Co. These slipped down our parched throats like oysters shucked from a shell and the salty sausages with sauerkraut and potatoes on the side were as hearty and satisfying as ever.
" The Moop" even made appearances on our way to school for three days in a row! We look upon this camouflaged rarity as our personal mascot and a sign of good days ahead: he's hard to spot as he only wobbles his neck periodically, often standing stock still for great lengths of time. We decided that despite our enervating days and exhausted evenings, things must be alright in our little Taipei world!
I'll segue just briefly from that into our exhausted stocks: we are sleeping long and working hard....this start of school caper is like getting knocked down by a freight train head on, throwing up an arm and hanging on for dear life, scrambling up on the engine after an indeterminate period, pretending to take control of the runaway juggernaut, and steering it along the tracks. We're still getting dragged along at this point!!
Photos: see text above for explanation!