Did you know that we have been living in Taiwan for over a year now? We find that fact absolutely unbelievable. Thank goodness we have signed on for another year because there are still a ton of fun items on our Taiwan bucket list we have to check off before we even think about relocating.

To help us commence our second year of teaching English and doing random Taiwanese things, we had the special treat of hosting the Moore family. Dan’s mom, dad, brother and sister spent the first two weeks of August here, where we gave them an island tour, ate copious amounts of food, and lounged around playing cards and Scrabble. It was SO wonderful to see them, and we were quite impressed by their chopstick usage and scooter driving. They fit right in :-)

Tunnel Fun

Too much fun

Having them here was a great excuse for Dan and I to take some time off work and see a bit more of Taiwan as well. Our Moore family tour included Taipei, Hualien, and Kenting, with a quick stop in Beitou so Dan and I could run a half-marathon in preparation for the full marathon we’ll be running in November. We’ve been to Taipei and Hualien numerous times, so we were able to play tour guide at these locations (which hopefully we did successfully :-P); however, Kenting was a first for us. We had only heard wonderful things about the beautiful beaches of Kenting, including the surfing and scuba diving opportunities, so we were pretty excited to soak up the sun in the south of Taiwan. Unfortunately, it rained essentially the entire time we were there.  Go figure. At least we got some quality family time in, which was what we wanted anyway :-). And now we have another excuse to make the trek down to experience Kenting on a sunny weekend. When we do, we know exactly where we will be staying: the Bonjour Hostel. I don’t think I have ever stayed anywhere with owners as accommodating as those at the Bonjour (although the Sleeping Boot in Hualien is a close second).

Taipei is fun

Fun with the 101

Taroko is fun A Cruising Couple

Rain can be fun A Cruising Couple

Kenting is fun

Family is fun A Cruising Couple

First off, nothing about the Bonjour Hostel is hostel-ish. Rather, it’s a bed and breakfast run by Jimmy, Enya, and their family.  It’s pretty new and wonderfully decorated with comfortable rooms and lounging areas. It’s in a good location, but away from the hustle and bustle of downtown Kenting. And then, of course, there’s Jimmy and Enya. They were what made our experience truly incredible, going above and beyond all expectations.  Their attentiveness started when they met us at our taxis with umbrellas, continued a few hours later when they gifted us with a bottle of wine because the dinner we ordered from an outside restaurant was slow in arriving, and persisted to the end when they gave us a goodbye gift with local specialties from Kenting. Pretty amazing, right? Jimmy and Enya are an awesome couple with fantastic English, and a stay at the Bonjour Hostel is worth it just to meet and chat with them. So to all our fellow Taiwan friends, on your next trip to Kenting, take our advice and stay at the Bonjour. And then tell us about how awesome your experience was!

Bonjour is fun A Cruising Couple

puppies are fun

 

We felt extremely blessed to have the opportunity to spend two wonderful weeks with our family and share with them our life in Taiwan. It was sad to say goodbye, but luckily we will be seeing everyone again shortly as we will be coming home between December 21st and 31st to celebrate the holidays in North Carolina! See you all then!