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Either "WTF?" or "What YOU looking at?"
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Intrepid explorers Amy and Pete, styl'n
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Guide would pull us right over the top (too close)
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Amy, me, and the largest marine reptile
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I was too close to get the whole pic
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Shit, he saw me....
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My favorite pic
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Guide kept trying to get me to make some sort of sign, but I failed
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We were delivered from the beach hanging on the back of scooters
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Turkey rice - Chiayi
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NPMS One of the medallions on the dragon's back
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NPMS: Lobby
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NPMS: entry courtyard and the moving dragon
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NPMS: bridge walkway
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NPMS: approaching the collection
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Alishan, maybe Mary remembers what this is
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On our way up the mountain
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Just being silly
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The old trees are numbered, maybe this is #28?
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It is a good hideout
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High mountain tea bushes
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High mountain tea bushes
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Wood sculpture in front of the Alishan Train Station
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The view in the morning from the train station
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Yep, lots of people waiting to board the train
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On the way, bundled up and excited
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Going up the mountain
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The trees!
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The paths
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We are colorful undergrowth
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A male Collared Bush-Robin (less than 5" long, endemic to Taiwan)
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Two Sisters Pond
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It is simply beautiful here
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Kathi and I get lunch. Note the bamboo plate at the far end of the counter, that is the edible memory I mentioned
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Shouzhen Temple: shrine of the Supreme Emperor of the Dark Heaven...
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Cypresses don't grow just anywhere
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Three-generation tree
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Only 6 people at a time across the suspension bridge
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Description of tree number 28
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Tree #28
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Group photo
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Panorama
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Why it is sometimes better to be gnarly
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Nice shot Chau-Wen!
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Worker-bee trains
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Bill's idea of a group photo. Love it!
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Female power in front of the Thousand Year Cypress
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Thousand Year Cypress (11 m circumference, actually about 2000 years old)
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Waiting to cross the tracks for our return trip
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One of my favorite pictures of Kathi
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Getting off the train
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An emptier train station
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We did not get to cross the larger suspension bridge
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This is what everyone stood in line to buy. Savory on the left, sweet on the right
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Song of the Forest Installation
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View out of the tower
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The others at their Japanese dinner
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Hinoki Village Bungalow
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Hinoki Village Bungalow
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Song of the Forest and the woven tunnel by Wen-Chih Wang
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Breakfast at Sun Moon Lake
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Yen's Tea
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Deborah looking very chic in her tea picking garb
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Just an ussie for posterity
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Rows of tea plants
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Tomato supervising Mary
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We take a break in the fields
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The souvenir tea plant. The top two leaves are the ones to be used.
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Stopping to see the local god's temple on the way back
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What do you mean, we roll the tea?
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Tomato preparing teas while we work
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Man, it smells so good!
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This tray has been judged finished
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We hand these back and the teas will be roasted and the final product delivered to our hotel
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More tea sampling after the hard work of rolling is done
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First course at Wei Lu Zhu Tea
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I can't wait to dig in
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Our lunch table
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Upstairs at our tea ceremony class
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View of the surrounding tea plantations
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We learn to brew. Note the hot water cauldron in the center
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I think my tea is Oriental Beauty
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It is tricky to ladle hot water into these tiny cups
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Dessert
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Bill outside the Tea House
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A walk is called for after copious amounts of food and tea
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Country path around the tea house
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Chiayi: statue of Pitcher Wu Ming-chieh, player in the team that came in second in Japan in 1931
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The tofu pudding shop. Looks empty now, but was bustling when I came back later
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Looking for Chiayi's specialty: Turkey rice
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Too many choices
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Hanging out in Chau-wen's room
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Looking for new growth
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Chau-Wen tries to fill his basket
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Chiayi: never-ending amount of food to try
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Amy ladling the hot water into the brew cup
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Bill wearing the apron that says: Old Tea
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No one mentioned aprons!
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The tea shoppe
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Dessert Served with the tea we brewed
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Taichung: my breakfast
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Taichung The National Theater (pano from Chau-Wen)
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Outdoor Amphitheater
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Theater and the surrounding buildings
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From 2019: view of the park in front of Theater
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From 2019: view of roof of theater
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Inside the theater with Helldoggy
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Lunch in Ita Thao
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National Taichung Theater exterior
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2019 Panorama of interior
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2019 Close up of facade
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Our bus in front of National Taichung Theater
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Wen Wu Temple: Main entrance
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Wen Wu Temple detail
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Hi Amy!
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Wen Wu Temple
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Wen Wu Temple grounds: mushrooms are supersized here
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Wen Wu Temple: 1999 quake aftermath
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Wen Wu Temple: stacked turtles signifying the endurance of generations
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Wen Wu Temple: Mary, Amy, Deborah and me
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Pete and Bill are planning their ride
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When Wu Temple: Lisa and Deborah with the Love god?
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Pete and Bill on their ride, happy to be away from the madding crowd
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Part of the trail
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Can't get enough of this view
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On the ferry to Xuanguang Pier
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Our first ride
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Looking out from Shuishe Pier
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Sampling vinegars in Ita Thao
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Amy and I with the "Love God"?
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Wen Wu Temple: detail of the dragon carvings
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Checking out our bikes
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View from Xiangshan visitor center
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View from Xiangshan visitor center
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Chau-wen records us viewing the view
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The deep soaking tub inside our room
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Xiangshan visitor center
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Part of the bike path
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Lisa captures the afternoon sun
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Panorama: we walk our bikes across this section
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Hi Amy!
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Sun Moon Lake Manhole Cover
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Shishe: Walking back to our hotel
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The walk to the hotel is lined with these beautiful mini ponds
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Deborah braves the tapioca
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Millet wine and tea jelly: I finish mine and Deborah's
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The food is here!
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Shuishe: Not sure what to make of this hotel
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I opted for pork knuckles instead of hot pot. OMG the bamboo shoots were amazing!!!
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Ita Thao: Pete and Bill have no problems finding a place to eat
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Communal Gardens in Taipei
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On the door of the bus: Shun (part of my father's name)
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Standing in the plaza with the pond in the front
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The Ancestor Hall and communal court
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The altar
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From Mary of the Lin Clan kitchen
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As the walls disintegrate, you see the construction better
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Picture on the left is of my grandmother, last matriarch
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The room I was born - 2026 condition
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In front of the Ancestor Hall
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In Shengxing village: typical Hakka meal
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Walking to look at the Longteng Bridge Piers
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Longteng Bridge Piers remains
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Longteng Bridge pier remains
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The how-to manual for Leicha
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Fengchia night market: probably the best scallion pancakes ever!
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Waiting, see the line forming behind us?
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So good.
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Wait, was that a hot dog?
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Fengchia night market
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Fengchia night market
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View of the neighborhood from Chau-Wen's window
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Kent takes us on a shortcut through some interesting malls
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Tainan Fengchia Night market
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Leicha demo
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The clan home in 2019
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Deborah working hard to grind the seeds
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My birth room in 2019 with the roof intact
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Landscape as we climb to Sanyi
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Miaoli Clan Home Plan
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TPE Terminal 2: see the full-size pic of their idol
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Taipei 101 at dawn
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Yehliu Geo Park
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The renegades in Zone 3 at Yehliu
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Sand dollar fossils
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Shifen: Pete's message to the cosmos
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Shifen: Kathi and I before releasing our lantern
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Shifen: the inside of the lantern
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Shifen: Pete's release
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Shifen: group pic
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at Shifen
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Shifen: group pic by Chau-Wen
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Jiufen: narrow, wet streets
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Jiufen: view from A-mei Teahouse
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A-Mei Teahouse with the snacks
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Jiufen: rain, lanterns and umbrellas
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Jiufen: Pete says, too many people
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Jiufen: view of the Keelung Islet and Yehliu way in the mist
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Shifen waterfall
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Great lighting: task, ambiance etc
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Before bedtime: lobster salad appetizer
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Stretching my legs mid-flight
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Morning breakfast: porridge, salted eggs, brown sugar steamed bun
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Amy, Kathi and Chau-Wen climb Elephant Mountain
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Waiting at the gate at Seatac
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The constellations!
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