Day 33 - The Pier 2 Art District In Kaohsuing, And Taking The Ferry To Qijin Island, The Long Walk South In Taiwan
Day 33 - The Pier 2 Art District In Kaohsuing, And Taking The Ferry To Qijin Island, The Long Walk South In Taiwan
Election Day in the United States is coming soon, and since we are overseas voters, we needed to vote via absentee ballots.
Voting is not just for selecting the president, it is also for many amendments to the Colorado constitution, some decisions about schools and local improvements, and whether some Colorado judges should stay in office or be replaced.
Making those decisions would take us some time, so in the morning we walked over to the Starbucks, where we sat for about two hours in order to vote.
After submitting our ballots online, we walked to see the Pier 2 area, which we had high hopes for, since its old brick buildings have been converted into an art center and studio spaces.
When we arrived at the Pier 2 area, we saw that most of the buildings were hosting an international Film Festival.
There was no art displayed in any of the buildings.
A small group of spaces had virtual exhibitions geared toward children, and young parents were taking photos of their kids with action figures.
Some of these open spaces were very crowded, even having a short line waiting to get in, and a retail space filled with tourist friendly knickknacks.
We did not stand in line to see them.
We did get into a museum which was empty when we arrived.
It had only one exhibit, a visual and auditory light show entitled “Mind Scape”.
It was a 30 minute immersive, colorful multi media film that was projected on the walls and floors around us, using 28 projectors situated all around the ceiling.
We were the only people in the room, and it was fun to watch this bright and positive mindscape that was meant to evoke memories and feelings from within, as well as thoughts about the future of humanity and of the world.
Interestingly, in the past few days as we walked, I have been listening to a scientific book about the future of humanity.
The book’s premise is that we must become an interplanetary civilization, if we are to survive as a human race in the ever-evolving galactic universe.
At first, the show made me feel like it was made for kids, and in order to enjoy it, I connected with my inner child and let her be there with me.
But then I got an overwhelming feeling while watching this show and listening to the music, that we live in such a beautiful world, especially when they displayed images of our beautiful deep ocean.
I remembered the feelings I get while diving and seeing the beautifully designed creatures that live undersea.
When the show was over, we walked over to a small plant based vegan restaurant nearby.
It was full of people and nearly out of most of their menu, but it was a very good restaurant indeed.
We shared a delicious mushroom burger, vegetable sushi and mashed potatoes with mushrooms.
The beetroot latte was already sold out, so we didn’t get to try their signature drink.
Right next to the restaurant, we saw a stream of people walking by, and went to investigate to see if it was a weekend market or event.
It was the ferry terminal that takes tourists to Qi Jin Island.
We decided to go.
It took only ten minutes to get there and we walked down the Qi Jin Old Street and visited the local temple.
The street was packed with tourists, who had come to eat local street foods.
There were dozens of stalls and eateries lining the street on both sides, and many people rented tricycles and rode around the island, waiting to watch the sunset.
We tried bright red, local ripe tomatoes, cut and served with soy, ginger and a little sugar.
I also drank an aloe vera juice with lemon and honey.
I love eating Aloe Vera whenever I can get it, and find that it helps my digestion.
We walked for a few kilometers south along a walkway by the beach, and saw some surfers in the water, wistfully waiting for a rideable wave.
A few standup paddle boarders were also in the water, but not many people were swimming.
The sunset was beautiful, and many people sat to watch it on the beach, in one of many seaside restaurants, or they walked to the lighthouse to watch it from there.
We returned to the mainland by way of a very busy ferry, and it changed my mind about returning to the island tomorrow in order to walk the length of it south along the coast.
It was clear to me that on the weekends, the place is too popular and not really a great idea to wait for an hour to get there and back.
Back in the city of Kaohsuing, we tried to find a small sewing kit.
We went to the Muji store, but they were sold out of sewing kits.
We tried a few different stores that might sell sewing kits, but couldn’t find any.
We gave up and went to the Starbucks to rest, eat our sweet potatoes and drink some tea.
By late evening, we walked back to the hotel and asked if they had a sewing kit.
The man at the front desk immediately handed me one.
We showered, did our laundry and I sewed the seam of Jules’s shorts, that needed a small repair.
With love,
Tali
Today’s Stats:
Steps - 17,360
Daily Distance - 11 km.
Total Distance To Date - 526 km
