—Takes the reader through truly “local” highlights.

“I’ll sip; you try to keep up!”, a common expression said before drinking in the northwestern Taiwan town of Danshui, rings similar to the author’s approach to literature: “I’ll keep writing to my heart’s desire; you (the reader) try to keep up!” The first half of this book is a journal of the author’s time in Danshui. This section vividly narrates local folktales; offers up traditional descriptions of local specialties such as Huwei Sesame Oil, water spinach, and freshly picked persimmons; and otherwise guides the reader through the “ins and outs” of this historically important seaport town. The second half, covering the author’s stay in Taipei, takes the reader through truly “local” highlights such as sampans on the Jingmei River, Yangmingshan’s Balaka Highway, Zhuzihu’s japonica rice, George Mackay’s Mt. Guanyin, and Wugukeng.