Poxin

Having traversed the cavernous hallways and back rooms of many high end hotels one becomes familiar with their inner workings. One unfortunate area of aquantince is the garbage. No matter how upscale the establishment the garbage bins have the distinct honor of housing the worst stench I have even come in contact with. This aroma of hundreds of pounds of decay is extremely unique to say the least and is able to permeate all the senses. Smell is bombarded, the air is thick, tear ducks attempt to cleanse and god forbid if you entered the room with your mouth open.
While walking the streets of Taipei this sensory bandit reared its unmistakable head. Our pace quickened and eyes widened as the aroma swirled around us attempting to take us prisoner. The smell dissipated and we initially dismissed this as the fragrance of the sewer. That was until we visited the Raohe night market. It was here that the realization hit that not only was the stench not the sewer system but it was in fact a Taiwanese street food called stinky tofu. Calling this stinky was being too kind. Rotting corpse or broken garbage disposal tofu were perhaps more fitting names. The idea that you didn't run away from this but instead put it in your mouth was astonishing. I had to try it. If by chance I ever fell face down in the hotels garbage bins I could survive having consumed its contents. It would be a test of sorts a training exercise. But alas Lina's stomach couldn't take the fragrance and we were forced to make a quick escape. Stinky tofu untested.Read more