Octoversary

We have bad memories. For the last year we've been going around telling people here that we've been dating for 8, going on 9 years. Last week, with our dating anniversary coming up we sat down and did the math and realized we'd only been dating 7 years, going on 8- d'oh! Those years really blend together when you're having fun. So, on Sunday we celebrated our octoversary, possibly for the second time.

We decided to do the classic "dinner and a movie" date. First we had supper at a nice Thai restaurant called Lacuz. Lacuz is a buffet restaurant, but instead of digging food out of bins at a buffet table you are given a menu and can order anything you like as many times as you like. This way everything is cooked fresh just for your table. It was pretty fun and we ordered at least a dozen dishes to try... some were good, some not so much, but I'd go back.

Next, we went to the Warner Village building to see a movie. Since we'd already seen Old Dogs, we had to choose a different film. We went with "The Men Who Stare At Goats", though I think the movie's Chinese name must sound really different because when I ordered the tickets the cashier asked me if I wanted to see it in 3D. Men Who Stare At Goats 3D? She clearly didn't understand what I said and assumed foreigner=Avatar. When we got into the theater we found ourselves sitting in the softest seats! This was the most comfortable I'd ever been while watching goat-themed cinema.

After the movie we decided to hike a mountain. Why not, right? I'd been to Elephant Mountain one afternoon a few months ago and I've really wanted to go back at night when the sky is all lit up with the lights of Taipei City. The hike only takes about 15 minutes but it's a steep, relentless climb full of stairs and we were really sweating by the time we got to the top. It's good that they leave the lights on all night in the trail, but it was still slightly creepy as we hiked up with the noise of critters coming from the bush and bats flying around the lights. All that was forgotten, though, when we got to the top and saw the awesome view. I can't think of a much more romantic place in Taipei City, especially with the sound of silly teenagers making bird noises from the boulder behind you all night :P

We brought wine!

After we hiked back down all those stairs (much easier than going up them!) we found ourselves arriving at a 24 hour McDonalds, remembered the lack of snacks in our apartment, and got some fast food before cabbing it back to Sinjhuang.

Like I said, we have bad memories: "What did we do on our last anniversary?", "What did you get me for Christmas last year?" or "What did we do for your birthday last year?" are questions that come up all the time. But... I think we'll remember this one. And if we don't, well- it's at least on this blog for reference.