January 1st

January 1, 2022

looking for a sofa

Debbie didn't come home till gone midnight and sleep wasn't great, so today's intended ride gets cancelled. Instead we decide to check out the wicker sofa that's been left outside a derelict house just 10 minutes away - along the 114 - and set off at lunch time.

My hopes are dashed when I shift a vinyl cushion the length of the sofa and see a hole in the seat the size of a thumb nail. Never mind.

We decide to head into town, going back the way we just rode on the 114, then carrying on. The road leads right through town and there's a wicker furniture shop on the far side - a place I've seen from the bus that I catch to my Thursday night class.

I lead Debbie down a few short side streets on a random search for something worth photographing, but we don't see anything save for a wooden stool right beside the 114, not very far from where we live.

Debbie prefers Chinese food and we head into the centre to have lunch in a place we sometimes go. In fact we were there a couple of weeks ago, when it wasn't too busy, but today it's full and we get the only table that's free.

Like yesterday's eating place, aesthetics don't come into play. There are utilitarian fold-able tables made of stainless steel and Terrazzo flooring at the front part of the place, while just near where we sit there's a section of the original floor tiles that would have been in a separate room, which look almost Edwardian in design. The internal walls have gone and bridging the two sections of floor is a bizarre mix of 6" tiles. It looks like the owner bought various oddments from a clearance sale with no more than half a dozen that match.

Debbie has a noodle soup while I have eight steamed dumplings and when we leave a round plastic clock on the wall says it's just gone 1:00.

Our jackets are off as the sun has come out and we follow the 114 through town. It bends in a strange way and it's a case of looking out for signs and it soon takes us through a busy market area. It's tempting to stop and buy some fruit, but we agree to do that on the way back.

The 114 is a busy road, which becomes wide with a meridian as we get to the north-west edge of town.

The wicker furniture shop is a narrow, but long unit - like most premises in Taiwan. The metal shutter is rolled up, but the shop isn't open, so we just peer through the window at a selection of chairs and a few sofas. One close to the front looks like the type we'd buy and Debbie calls the number on the large sign above us and has a brief chat with the owner. She says she'll get back to us later. She's out somewhere.

We cycle back to the street market lining a section of the 114 and Debbie selects 10 passion fruit that are NT$5 each. That's about US$1.50 for the 10. I often scoop the contents of a couple onto my breakfast cereal.

We ride a block from the 114 to get on the riverside bike path, then head down it as far as it goes to find the gate that blocks off the new section is now open. We zip down under a bridge and find that the path merges with a wide piece of pretty fresh tarmac.

There are a few young people riding on U-bikes on the path across the river. It looks like a narrow path with metal railings each side, while ours is an open road and it's unclear where it'll take us, but after a few minutes we get to where the road ends and a concrete path veers off and there's a derelict home. It's a single storey place and some of the walls have been knocked down and various window frames and all the doors have gone. Sections of the original tiled roof have collapsed, but it seems pretty safe, so I park my bike and venture inside.

Everything like furniture has gone. It's a bit of a maze and some rooms are very small - my guess these are the original ones. The house must have been added to over the years, when children - boys - grew up and got married.

I see a small window that's on what is now an internal wall and it's an original wooden one that slides open. It's in a very dark room. The two sections are about the size of A5 and can be lifted out, so that's what I do. The glass isn't broken, but they're pretty dusty. They just about fit in my rear pannier.

We decide to call it a day and go back along the path and agree to find a place to get a coffee.

Just along the 114 Debbie suggests calling in on a children's clothing shop she spots as it's closing down and things are on sale. We spend about 20 minutes rummaging around inside, but there's nothing I want to buy my grandsons. Debbie finds a pair of jeans she likes that are only NT$100 - that's about three US.

The usual Louisa Coffee in town is only five minutes' ride away and we opt to sit outside as it's much warmer today, with no wind.

Today's ride: 10 km (6 miles)
Total: 1,112 km (691 miles)

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