Saturday, we went out to a tourist town, Ying ge, that is well know for its pottery. As we don't have a car, we decided to take the train. The train is not like the MRT is many ways. For example, there are no easy to read diagrams and almost everything is written in characters. You don't see many Westerners. But with a little luck, we found a very pleasant man who spoke some English and was taking the train in the same direction. He told us when it was our stop and we got off. Of course, we exited from the train station in the wrong direction so the guidebook wasn't too helpful. Then an older woman, who didn't act like she was too pleasant saw us. She grabbed a young couple and told them that they would help her help us. They asked where we wanted to go and then the old woman set off. She never spoke directly to us, looked at us or smiled but took us directly to our destination. Then she and the young couple disappeared in their separate directions.

Ying ge has a lovely pottery and arts district. You can buy all sorts of dishes and pottery and art items. We wandered around for several hours and then went into the Arts Cafe for a cup of coffee. We sat out on the second floor balcony listening to street musicians and watching the crowds go by. It was a great way to spend the afternoon.

Of course, we bought a few things. Who could resist! We got some square dishes and some of the matching pieces. We bought some toys. Then I told Mark that I wanted to but the dragon picture/sculpture that we had seen. He, of course wanted to buy the fish instead. So we wandered back to the store and bought it. The picture/sculpture that I had seen as a dragon, Mark saw as a fish. We liked the same piece of art.

Then back to the train with our treasures and back to Taipei. We were the only Westerners we saw the entire day. What a shame. It was a great place to explore.