A special day for mother - Yunlin 媽媽的故鄉-雲林

On the second day of the Lunar New Year it is the time for married woman to return to their natal home. We awoke early so that we could return to Yunlin, my mothers birthplace. We were invited, by my mother's brother and his wife, to a restaurant for lunch.

On the way to the Linnei Township in Yunlin County, wthe traffic was very heavy and the roads were jammed. So instead of taking about one and a half hours for the journey the time was doubled and took three hours for us to arrive at the restaurant. My mum's brother and his wife and their children were pleased to see me as we had not met for a long time. In the restaurant two tables had been set to accomadate the twenty guests expected.

The food took about fortyfive minutes to prepare but it is well worth the wait as it is really delicious. This is one of my favourite restaurants and the food is always excellent. After lunch we went to my uncle's home, where my mother grew up. The house has changed a lot but the rice fields, around the house, are still being farmed. For one hour we all chatted and time passed quickly as the talk was so entertaining.

We then went to the Gukeng Green Tunnel it is two kilometers long and mango trees, aged about fifty years, provide a green canopy over the road. This gives a nice shaded area and we strolled along, which was very relaxing, as we explored the food markets along our route. We also tasted some of the food, probably too much.Next was a drive to the Bed and Breakfast (B+B) on Huashan Mountain, which is 1304 metres high. The Huashan area is Taiwan's best-known coffee-growing region . After settling in at the B+B, we wnet out for a local dinner and watched the lights of the nearby towns and cities. We also saw firework displays from the mountain. The view was stunning. It was a clear night. My sister, Wan Yu, saw "The Seven Stars of the Northern Dipper" in the sky, then told us, it's the Dipper, it was the first time I had seen it and it was fantastic.