For our last evening together, we were taken to 安平老街 aka Anping Old Market, a less hectic day-time version of a night market that features the most traditional of traditional goodies. No transparent water orbs, no crowd of teenogerz huddled around a food order. Just the good ol’ fashioned snacks.
We followed in the steps of Michael and Jason, who knew where the yummy eats and the yummy treats were.
First stop: drinks.
Jason (muscle tee man; see above) took us to this old man’s cart for some wintermelon tea.
I was really never a fan of the wintermelon taste. It was never my go-to flavor. It was always in that section of fruit drinks on tea menus that my eyes skip over when ordering.
At this cart, I was forced to choose from variations of just that wintermelon taste.
But this old man was really supportive and encouraging of my transition.
He also moved too quickly; I verbally agreed to my drink order–a simple wintermelon tea with fresh milk–after he had already started making it.
I handed over 30 NTD (aka less than one measly US dollar) and claimed my still somewhat sketchy sipper skeptically.
As it turns out (duh), life proved me so wrong for judging a seasonal gourd by its cover.
This was perhaps the cleanest,
smoothest,
crispiest,
freshest
fruit taste I’ve ever
introduced to my mouth.
I know the color looks like it’s just a watered-down milk tea, but it was nothing of that sort.
The wintermelon tea itself is lighter in color, but hits that perfect sweet spot. Not too saturated with sugar and not too void of flavor.
I can’t 100% confirm this, but I don’t think the “fresh milk” was the same “fresh milk” as I know from back home. None of that 1% or 2% or fat-free/non-fat or whole milk. I’m actually thinking this version of “fresh milk” was the powdered mix everyone uses so universally here in Taiwan.
A good 90% of the Asian population got the short end of the stick not only in height ha ha but also in having the proper lactase to digest that silky lactose.
I was going to give out a big sarcastic ‘thank you’ to the infamous inhabitable weather Taiwan offers for cows to breed, but instead, I’m gonna dole out a genuine gracias of gratitude.
Not having easy access to cow juices spurred these Taiwanese ancestors to come up with some kind of passable substitute.
Powdered milk sounds worse than it actually is.
- It’s delicious.
- It’s easy access.
- It’s got a ten-year expiration date.
Best part? It’s lactose-free. That means no secret toots in the bathroom, no tummy gurgling during quiet bus rides, no cheek clenching when a bubble is about to slip out.
Anyway, I was just very happy with this purchase.
Up side: this was the best wintermelon milk tea I’ve ever had.
Down side: this was the best wintermelon milk tea I’ll probably ever have.
A few of us whose minds weren’t (unfortunately) blown away by this treasure went ahead and got this old-style drink.
This drink lady was just as nice and welcoming of fresh foreigners as the other drink man.
Taiwan, man.. warm weather, warmer people.
She introduced this old unique way of making cold drinks. No ice needed.
It was a really refreshing relief, as it was really hotter than satan’s armpits at high noon.
Proof of heat shown below.
Still sweating and in need of more sweets, we headed to a dou(4) hua(1) place aka some chilled smooth tofu (?) that just dissolves in your mouth.
Also, a side note.
I know there’s a whole world of research out there on the study of correlation between utensil design and food taste, whether it be due to chemicals or conductivity.
This may or may not be related, but there’s really something special about
- eating loo(3) ro(4) fan(4) aka chopped pork belly rice on a wax-coated light plastic spoon that is too small for the amount of rice I want to put in my mouth at one time and
- slurping these tofu desserts off a chilled thin & wide metal spoon.
Or it could be that those are the only utensils usually provided, so I’m conditioned to like it like that anyway.
Our group 15 family’s sweet tooth really couldn’t be satisfied. We had 5 minutes left before bus call time, so we spent two of them in a rush buying a u-cone ice cream.
First time I had this was at a truck in the 626 Night Market (which really shouldn’t even deserve to be called that tbh but it’s okay, I will take what I can get back home) and the ice cream was what we normally know ice cream to be.
The texture for this ice cream is more of my preferred type–it’s got more of a bite to it because it’s made of actual crushed ice base instead of cream. Think of it as a sweet sandy crunch.
We spent the last 3 minutes relaxing in the shade, listening to free live music.
And by free live music, I mean a group of grandpas karaoking in this shaded court.
As if we didn’t already eat/drink a lot already, we had this beauty for dinner.
This you(2) fan(4) aka oil rice (?) was so beautiful that I even had the balls to ask the server lady if we could have more than our allotted amount. She said “yes for extra money.”
Translation: “no.”
I was debating whether I should write about the following incident for a while, but ah fuk it why not.
On our way out of the restaurant, I spotted a boba milk tea still 80% full just sitting there by her lonesome at an empty table.
Still cold to the touch! How did I know?
Because I straight up snatched it up from the table. Why am I like this..
I flipped the straw upside down–sharp end up–so as to not drink straight from the original owner’s saliva end. Yummio balls but probably still tainted by stranger spit.
I think I passed it around to a couple other shocked and disgusted group members who may or may not have reluctantly taken a sip as well, and then put it back down on a different table on our way out.
A stupid exhilarating moment.
Then, as we’re filing out of the restaurant to the bus, I hear a shout from behind me–“Hey, where’s my boba?”
Oh, I skipped out of that place so fast. Squeezed my way through the congested doorway and tripped up the steps to the bus.
Seeing that it was our last night on the bus together, I went ahead and took some grainy group photos to end the day.
Aw (-‘:
Jocelyn Plays 