Within seven minutes the bus came to another stop and opened its doors. This time as I got off the bus I could smell a very familiar smell . . . salty air. The weather was a little cloudy as it was heading into evening hours. As we got off the bus we headed straight onto the ferry, which would take us across the harbor to Chichin Island. Chichin Island is a popular island across from downtown Kaohsiung that is full of shops, fresh seafood, and the beach along the South China Sea and Taiwan Straight. Additionally, there is a hill you can climb which overlooks both bodies of water, the harbor, and the city of Kaohsiung.
As the ferry doors lifted up, the smell of exhaust raised into the air as the sound of the rumbling engines turned on and sloshing water was propelled behind the double deck ferry (of course I was on the top deck). The ferry came out of the cannel it was docked in and moved into the maze of Kaohsiung harbor. With cargo ships entering and leaving, ferries heading to various destinations, and local fishermen returning from a hard days work, it was as if it was a water highway. Once in the harbor, the skyline of Kaohsiung appeared in plain site along the water’s edge, with Sky 85 piercing the grayish, bluish, and purple sky. To the other side, Chichin Island was in close proximity with the a warm colored sky (red, orange, yellow) creating a backdrop the hill’s peak (with a lighthouse on top) marking the entrance/exit to the harbor.
Soon the ferry came to a stop as it bumped into the wooden pilings and dropped its metal door onto the concrete dock. Exiting the ferry, we walked onto the island and immediately could smell the mixture of cooked seafood aromas. From quail eggs, fried soft shell crab, fish balls, sea snails, to barbeque squid, the streets were filled with venders offering you to buy their dish. Some stands had tanks of swimming fish, oysters, live lobster, and even eels! As you can image, I was overwhelmed with all the delicious smells and site of fresh seafood. Not know where to begin, I turned to my study companion and just said, “let me know if there is something you think I should try.” Everyone seemed to be attracted to the bbq squid, so it was an automatic magnetic force to my senses. We walked over and each ordered one. It is a whole squid that they put spices on, throw on the grill (w/ a stick), squirt some sauce on it and hand it to you for NT$50 (which is not event $2). Are you kidding, calamari on a stick for less than $2!
With our squid on stick in hand, we walked to the end of the street to the beach. We picked a seat right on the beach, facing the Taiwan Strait. With the view of cargo ships anchored out in the distance, Taiwanese attempting to surf the thigh high swell (could have been cargo wake for all I know - haha), and our toes in the sand, we took our first bite out of our food – starting with the tentacles. It was excellent! I mean it wasn’t like I have never had squid before, we just give it a fancy name, fry it in some batter, and serve it with cocktail sauce.
After we finished, I had to put my feet in the Taiwan Strait, so I took off my shoes and walked to the waters edge, took a few photos with some of my new friends, and then headed back to the street to check out some other possible foods to grab. I am sure you can guess that I did indeed treat myself to more. I had fried quail eggs, a big soft shell crab, and a refreshing cup of blended papaya milk (papaya, milk, and ice blended). That being said, there is one thing that is quite interesting in Taiwan . . . finding a trashcan is like finding Waldo. I find this comical because when you actually do find a trashcan, there are 5 different ones that specify what type of trash you put in it. It isn’t just recycle and trash…oh no. There is a trashcan for food, paper, bottles, plastic, glass, and other trash. By this point it was getting close to returning to the bus (it drove over across the bridge while we were enjoying our festivities). There was still one problem; I needed to throw away my trash! 
All of the sudden I heard the most relieving sound! It was the sound of music from an ice cream truck, however, I was not excited at the fact that it was an ice cream truck coming; no it was the garbage truck coming! Yes, I said “garbage truck.” In Taiwan, they have a different philosophy when it comes to trash. The trash truck plays this music (identical to ice cream truck music) and when it comes around, you come out and throw your trash in the truck . . . compared to putting your trash at the end of the driveway. The nice thing though is that it comes around everyday. Always, I walked up to the truck and threw my trash in the truck. I never thought I would feel excited to throw trash in a garbage truck before, haha. That being said, every day you can hear that music around town, which is funny because it gives a melody in the air at random times of the day. Anyways, with my mission complete, we got onto the bus and made our way back to campus. During the ride we sang karaoke (I will post about karaoke in my next post) as the sun began to set and as our first excursion came to a close.
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