After relaxing in the coolness of the mountain air, a welcome respite from the sweltering heat of the city s streets, we headed for Shi-lin night market, perhaps the oldest and largest night market in Taipei. After cooking it for a few minutes, one withdraws the pig s blood from the hotpot and rolls it first in hot chili sauce and then in crushed peanuts. After I had eaten enough for a king, my new friends insisted that I try numerous foods from the outdoor stalls, including Ji-pi or chicken butt roasted on a skewer with sesame seeds and a brown sauce. Once I became accustomed to the constant crowds and salesmen pushing their products over ear-splitting megaphones, night markets became my favorite tasting grounds for new foods and a distinctive aspect of Chinese life. It is precisely the juxtaposition of Taipei s cosmopolitanism and traditional venues that makes it such an appealing place for the visitor and native alike.
Norm visits a community temple in Taipei.
Norm with his new friends and the hotpot. He also spent this summer revising his manuscript, Illict Bureaucrats, for publication with Stanford University Press. Professor Reed will be on leave this coming Spring semester. The book is scheduled to come out this November. The West has long exhibited a particular fascination with the samurai or warrior culture of Japan.