I have really gotten lucky in Taiwan. Everyone here has been incredibly pleasant and nice to be around. This is especially true of my customers here. They are genuinely, quality people and a joy to work with. The other night, the supervisor of this factory asked us out to dinner with him. This is a big deal to Chinese people. They take eating and business quite seriously, so a business dinner is always something to make a fuss about. I always worry about them for two reasons.

The first reason is that they often turn out to be a "dog and pony" show with everyone looking over everyone elses' shoulder and trying to impress and outdo. Fortunately, that was not the case tonight. The second reason I worry is "gambei". This is the Chinese word for cheers. It literally means "empty cup". And they mean precisely what they say. First you say it, then you do it. I always order beer because if I got anything stronger like wine they would have me three sheets to the wind before I knew what happenned.

Out host took us to a seafood restaurant which is a real treat. Being near the sea, the Taiwanese eat a lot of sundry fish and shellfish. The cool thing is the photo on the right. There are no menus. You go in and the fish is sitting there, on ice, waiting for you to select it. The Chinese are very particular about food and they insist on everything being fresh. This is the best way to ensure the customer gets what they want. You pick your fish out so you can't say later on that it wasn't what you expected. Pretty good, huh?

Taiwan is known throughout Asia as having very good food. In many restaurants in Japan, China, the Phillipines, etc you will see dishes called "Taiwanese Pork" or "Taiwanese Beef". The name has the implication of fine dining in this part of the world. Well, I can say that the reputation is well-founded. Taiwanese food is outstanding. I haven't had a bad meal since I arrived here.

I doubt you've ever seen the meat on the left before so you'll probably have a hard time figuring out what it is. I'll tell you. It is crocodile. (That's right... CROCODILE) I can finally say I've eaten a crocodile. Prepared in Taiwanese style, they sauteed it and served it with ginger and garlic. It is honestly quite tasty. I reminds me a lot of pork, but it is much leaner. In fact, I don't think I saw any fat at all in the meat. The skin is quite tough, so you don't eat it. I would definitely recommend this dish to anyone and would have it again in a heartbeat. It was very good.