Dragons & Beardogs & Squid..Oh My!

My first Taiwanese holiday - Dragon Boat Festival. It was this past Sunday and oh what a day.

My friends Pat, Alex, Mike, and I decided to make our way to the Dragon Boat Races in the Dazhi neighborhood. Unfortunately, there is no MRT that goes there so we went to the closest one and walked it. It was a nice walk along the river but it took us nearly an hour to get there and we were worried about missing the races.

Alas, we were finally approaching the race scene on the Keelung River (on the wrong side of course). Just as we got there, it started to drizzle. 30 seconds later that drizzle turned into a downpour and the races began. Weather fit for a dragon I guess. Good times indeed.

We started going over the bridge and watched the next race from a bird's eye view. We finally made our way to the proper crowd section and watched the remaining races from there.

The races themselves were alright because once they passed your area it was tough to tell who was in first and who was in last (and the finish line area was mobbed). But the event was a really cool experience. And the boats do really look like dragons. Scary!

At the conclusion of the races, we found ourselves relaxing at a nearby fountain. Suddenly, a small bear ran past us. Ok, so it wasn't a bear. But it was some sort of beardog and the way it ran was hysterical. Check out Picasa for more proof.

After the beardog incident (there was a liondog too!), we made our way back to the tent area behind where the dragon boat races were. I assumed I could get a cool souvenir there. Maybe a mini dragon boat or something. Nope. Nothing. There were plenty of vendors but no one was selling anything like that. I was disappointed.

That is, of course, until I found an even better souvenir: squid-on-a-stick. You read that correctly, squid-on-a-stick. Its exactly that. The guy grills up a whole squid, splits it open so its flat, puts a marinade and some sesame seeds on it, and that's it. And the diagnosis? Delicious. Pat had one too and thought the same thing. The best $60 NT (less than $2 US) I've spent so far. I need to find more of that stuff.