The Ideal Store of Starbucks

#2024-0917A

Located at 289 Fengping Road, Section 3, Shoufeng Township, Hualien County (花蓮縣壽豐鄉豐坪路三段289號), the "Ideal Store of Starbucks" (星巴克‧花蓮理想門市) is set within a picturesque European-style landscape, featuring a peaceful lake, many bald-cypress trees, and an eye-catching store building (see photos).

Jean and I, along with our son and two grandchildren, visited this beautiful spot today on the Mid-Autumn Festival. As you'll see in the photos below, you can imagine just how much we enjoyed this short trip from Hualien City. It was truly a wonderful experience for all of us, spending such a lovely day together in such a scenic place! (Note: Some of the photos were taken by James and by John, who is also nicknamed Shine, using either my or Jean's camera phones.)

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相關文章 (See also)：

1)  星巴克．花蓮理想門市     (2024)

2)  雲山水 (photos, part one)     (2022)

3)  墾夢莊園（新光兆豐農場）     (2023)

4)  老夫妻與海 (The Old Couple and the Sea)     (2023)

Night Stroll (夜遊)

#2024-0711

Jean and I asked our grandkids if they would like to take a night stroll on the nearby hillside. Both of them were excited to join us as we walked up the slope. Together, we enjoyed the countless lights beautifully flashing in the basin-like areas of Wufeng, Dali, and Wuri Districts.

Oh, what a fantastic, dream-like night stroll! It reminds me of a piece I composed a few days ago: "Night Stroll on Zhongxin Ridge" (夜遊中心壠). If you’d like, click to read the lines I jotted down on the late evening of July 4th.

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相關文章 (See also)：

1)  An Outing: 偷得浮生半日閒     (2021)

2)  Tokyo Skytree (東京晴空塔)     (2023)

3)  Summer Time at Wufeng     (2023)

4)  九族文化村 (Part Two)     (2023)

5)  《夜遊中心壠》     (2024)

砂卡礑步道 (Shakadang Trail)

#2024-0213

Today marks the 4th day of the lunar New Year (大年初四).

Accompanied by my two grandsons, my son, and his wife, I embarked on an exploration of Shakadang Trail in Hualien. (Jean opted to stay at home, citing the size of our car as a reason, suggesting it would be more comfortable for us to go without her.)

Here are some snapshots from our excursion today. The first picture captures the facade of a Seven-11 convenience store, where we procured our "simple lunch" to enjoy later at Taroko Visitor Center.

Subsequent images document our journey as we made our way to Wujianwu (五間屋), showcasing the beauty of the Liwu River (立霧溪) and Shakadang River (砂卡礑溪), not to mention the other sights we encountered along the trail. Personally, I was drawn to the peculiar rock formations, the mysterious blue hues of the Shakadang River, and the long branch of an Indian laurel (榕樹) -- it was the longest horizontally growing branch I'd ever seen. But above all, what truly made this experience special was sharing it with my adorable grandsons -- James and John, affectionately known as Little Bee and Little Shine.

Have you ever considered visiting Shakadang Trail? Perhaps you've already traversed its paths multiple times. If so, what aspects of the hike left the strongest impression on you?

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相關文章 (See also)：

1)  布洛灣 (Buluowan)     (2023)

2)  Where to Go for the Celebration?     (2023)

3)  墾夢莊園（新光兆豐農場）     (2023)