Cafe Des Artistes In Taichung Near Chung-Yo

With my wife still at the beautician, I left "5 Music" (the best selections of CD's in Taichung!) on San-Min Road Sec. 3, across from Chung-Yo Department Store, and turned left to find a place to sit and wait, have coffee, and look at my CD’s. Up the alley to the left I walked spotting a café called Café Des Artistes. 
 It was after lunch hour and the place was empty. I took a seat and the barista turned the air con on for me. I had just ordered coffee when my wife sent a text message that she was “here” at 5 Music. I texted her to come by and gave her the address of this mini art gallery. There are different rooms for private parties; even a room for electronic darts.

Cafe Des Artistes proprietor, a displaced Hong Konger and painter, soon arrived on the scene to welcome us. It turned out the café had been featured on TV for the  display of his playful large-eyed cartoonish paintings mimicking famous art, all subjects with a menu item such as sausages, on a stick held by Napoleon on a horse leading a charge of KMT soldiers. We chatted and were gave a tour of his four floor café/gallery with a glow-in-the-dark bathroom that revealed a secret under the clothes-clad characters when the light was out, and his rooftop art studio. 
     If you're in the neighborhood of Yi-Song Street or Taichung Park and want something more creative to be in than a hot line for overpriced coffee, check them out. I was so amused I purchased the mug of Napoleon riding a horse holding his sword high with a sausage on the tip.

Return to Big Snow Mountain

5-26-18 

      Big Snow Mountain is still there. The road has been mostly repaved and the rock slides that destroyed two passes removed, though a new slide was evidently pushed aside to make a passable lane. The road past the visitors’ center was open; it was closed when we went up with Amanda last time she was here. We went back to that little muddy lake. By 2:30 pm, we were tired and left for home. We got home at 5 pm. The hotel we had stayed oat a few years ago was closed and being renovated; it would have been a nicer trip for me if we could have stayed at a hotel up there overnight. Leona balked at making reservations at the 18%er Hotel (so called because retired government employees of the KMT era that stay there receive that much interest on their pensions) but we met the three-layer pork on rice proprietors (closing the shop yesterday for their daughter’s birthday trip) and he said he knows someone inside who can get us a discount when we do go. We should go overnight during the peak of the Perseid Meteor Shower between August 9-13^th. I trust Leona will agree.

     Here is a chronological recap of our day trip:

At 16 km road mark, there's a road off to a walk bridge over a stream.

At 26 km, just before the tunnel, there's a trail that goes 7 km
steeply around the mountain to the visitors center. 

 After an egg salad sandwich on pumpernickel, tuna salad on English muffin, salad with egg salad and kosher pickle, Doritos chips for lunch at the visitors center

At Big Snow Mountain

Brothers Z

5-6-18 5:44 am Sun. 

     For the good time I had last evening watching the baseball game with George, it was worth gaining weight, mostly liquid actually; three large cans of beer, and two pieces of KFC, one Mo's hot dog, save the bun. Since there are no plans to return to a ballgame yet, this weight gain isn't a habit. When I told George this was the social event of the month I wasn't joking, and there are three weeks to go. 

     I rode to the Intercontinental Park at 3:30 pm to make time to buy the promotional Dragonball Z jersey and cap but I waited around downstairs looking for it until I saw someone wearing it and asked where he'd gotten it; he said upstairs near third base. George wasn't there and hadn't answered my text message yet so I had a dilemma; how would I go up but give him his ticket when he arrived. It was 4:45 by then. At that rate, I may even miss the start of the game at 5:05. I went in, saw all the promotional items were gone; they couldn't have had more than one hundred from the people I saw wearing them. 

     George finally contacted me and I told him I'd be on the mall upstairs and would throw the ticket down to him; the lines at the entrance ware getting longer. He arrived at 5 pm. I threw down the ticket from the promenade and went to get food and find the seat in section B; it wasn't up the first base line but up the third base line contrary to the diagram on the website. George was there before me! Just in time for the first pitch for me to chart the game completely. The Brothers beat Uni-Lions 10-4. It was so much fun talking and drinking with George. As I said, worth gaining weight for!

     The ride to the ballpark was 90% on right-of-way bike paths; Han-Xi West Road and Highway 74 which had paths on both sidewalks under the elevated highway. I am looking forward to catching some more ball games either on the way home from Shengang class Wed. and Thurs.