OK, so I'm not making an artistically-minded post about old photos of Formosa, nor am I blogging about the state of the Taiwan economy (I pay taxes; where's my voucher?*), but this is quite important matter itself. I'd say its existence is not only important, but truly vital to expat life in Taiwan.
I'm talking of course about Mom's Pies.
Nevermind that the van can be hard to track down, and that they give you some missionary Christian leaflet with every pie. It's really good pie.
Mom's Pies has a van that circles Taipei, hitting up all the spots where people are likely to want pie; the universities (we've seen it at Taida, Shida and Zhengda), AIT, Tianmu and a few other spots. The only regular stop I know is near Shida/Guting on Thursdays from 4:30-7pm.
They also have a call-in service (02-2627-5040 or 02-2627-2051) and they do deliver.
Did I mention that it's really good pie? It made my day on Thursday, which was otherwise a bit cool and gray, and involved a rather strange work schedule that made nothing convenient. They have all sorts of flavors, from apple, pumpkin and cherry cheesecake to red bean, green bean and purple yam. The only downside is that their outermost crust is a little hard...but the filling was so good - so thick you could pick it up and eat it like finger food - that I didn't mind.
Another thing that's vital to expat life, as I'm learning, is having an adorable pet. Here's Zhao Cai, who is as needy and affectionate as a dog, but can be left at home alone for longer periods:
*Just kidding. I only pay 10% taxes and Taiwan's been very good to me financially, once I stopped working for Kojen. I don't mind that I'm not getting a voucher. But then that's $3600 I'm not using on a ticket to Orchid Island or a hunk of jade.
