Adventures with Jessie

There are 177 canals in Venice and 417 bridges. I feel like I could walk around all day to the different districts and not get bored at all. Venice is beautiful!!

“Venice is like eating an entire box of chocolate liqueurs in one go.” ― Truman Capote

feelin’ some type of way...

Some days I wish I could go back in life. Not to change anything, but to feel a few things twice. 

Not the most aesthetic photo, but it is the first picture I took when I got off the train and arrived in Venice. A beautiful day, a beautiful memory. 

Woke up at 5:30 AM to watch the sunrise with my friends. We watched the sun glow over Venice. You can see the silhouette of Campanile di San Marco in front of the sun 🌞 One of the most peaceful mornings of my life. 

Longshan Temple was built in 1738 and is one of the oldest temples in Taiwan. You won't be able to find old temples like this in China, because the Cultural Revolution destroyed many religious establishments.

Enjoy a romantic stroll along the natural streams of Beitou! 

If you visit Treasure Hill, you can still see ruins of military veterans’ settlements from when the Kuomintang came to Taiwan. I believe this was a little kitchen. Sometimes history seems to have taken place so far in the past and other times it seems so recent. 

"Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated." ― Confucius 

Definitely one of the most haunting places I have ever been to. This place was a prison that housed political dissidents of the White Terror period. It wasn't closed until 1991. It’s mind-blowing to think about how democracy is relatively new in Taiwan. We shouldn’t ever take democracy for granted! 

Part of the memorial showcased some letters and stories of families that were affected by Taiwan’s political repression during the White Terror. Interesting related article here: https://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/04/world/asia/taiwan-white-terror-executions.html

Good old classic Taiwanese Lu Rou Fan (滷肉飯) or Braised pork on rice. Simple but delicious. Definitely one of those foods I could never get tired of! 

Small, free museum that delves into hot spring culture and the Japanese colonial era. The building is a well-preserved bathhouse built in 1913 under Japanese rule and was the largest bathhouse in East Asia at the time. 

“Water is fluid, soft, and yielding. But water will wear away rock, which is rigid and cannot yield. As a rule, whatever is fluid, soft, and yielding will overcome whatever is rigid and hard. This is another paradox: what is soft is strong.” 

― Lao Tzu

Fort San Domingo was owned by the Spanish, Dutch, the Qing Dynasty Chinese government, and finally became the British trade consulate. After the United Kingdom broke off diplomatic ties with Taiwan, the Former British Consular Residence became a museum

One of my mom’s favorite hiking trails!