February 27th

February 27, 2023

into town

My hands and feet were very cold when I got into bed last night, what with the temperture being below 10 and not having any heating. The forecast says it'll be warmer today and the sun is out when I walk over to 7-Eleven for a morning coffee and once it gets towards noon Debbie and I decide to enjoy the warmth and cycle into town. I've got a slightly different route in mind - one tracing the way I rode home last week from the riverside bike path.

Debbie is not working today as it's a four-day weekend to mark February 28th, which Taiwanese refer to as two-two-eight and the 228 Massacre. It was on that date back in 1947, a couple of years into the Chinese Nationlists' rule of the island, that things kicked off after a woman illegally selling cigarettes was struck by a policeman. A gathering crowd became too much to handle and shots were fired, with martial law soon declared. This lasted for nearly four decades, during which thousands of people 'disappeared'. The period is known as White Terror.

Yesterday, I was going to ride into town for lunch, but the front tyre on my commuter bike was flat and this morning I remember it never got sorted, and as I'm not in the mood to do it now I opt to wheel my yellow bike outside.

We cruise along for a few minutes to get to the nearest river and cross over a bridge, then make a couple of turns and reach the busy 113. It all seemed complicated on Google Maps, but it's easy enough, and once across the 113 it's not long before we get to the other river and join the cycle path that takes us north towards the town centre. There are people out also enjoying the sun, but not too many on bikes.

The path winds it's way beside the shallow river and we eventually take off our jackets as we're feeling too hot. It's hard to fathom the weather.

Debbie calls at a friend's house in town to deliver some invites to the ceramics exhibition I've organised and we then head to a coffee shop for a bite to eat. As it's a bit windy, we look for an indoor seat and find one at Louisa Coffee.

Sat near a window, I take a snap of the leather straps around my ankles that stop my jeans getting oil stained. The straps are from the old-fashioned toe clips, which I recall using when a teenager. Getting your foot out was always an issue.

Debbie often buys tins of coconut milk we use in curry from a shop in town as it's cheaper than supermarkets. It seems the place is run by Filipinos and mainly caters to what are called 'foreign workers'. We go there after looking round a nearby NET store and she gets two tins.

Hopefully the weather stays good. We have tomorrow free.

Today's ride: 16 km (10 miles)
Total: 2,378 km (1,477 miles)

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