It all started when I decided I needed a new meditation altar. We had been introduced to Howard Brewer and Faye Angevine, both long-time residents of Taiwan (more than 30 years) and owners of BaiWin Antiques, among other business concerns. They are extremely friendly, welcoming and helpful – especially so towards new expat arrivals. Within minutes of making their acquaintance, they were sharing wine while dispensing stories and lots of much-needed advice. I will never forget as I raised my glass of Argentinian Cabernet for a toast and Howard said, with a twinkle in his eye, “Welcome to the Magic Rock.” As time goes on, I become more certain that this volcanic island is like nowhere on earth.

As you can see from their website, BaiWin Antiques is stuffed to the rafters with fine art and beautiful furniture, all of which are authentic despite the onslought of cheap knock-offs and reproductions flooding the market from mainland China (according to Faye). So while we were enjoying their wine  and hospitality, I saw a piece that would be perfect as my new meditation altar here on the Magic Rock.

I immediately snapped a photo on my handy iPhone and told Faye I wanted her to hold it for me while I secured buy-in from Becky as she was not present and is in charge of money (the only reason we have any), furniture and home decoration – as her taste is infinitely more subtle and superior to mine. Becky loved it as much as I did so I let Faye know she had made a sale (hopefully the profit covered the cost of the wine I drank).

We stopped by their shop to pay for the altar and arrange delivery when Faye happened to ask, “Is there anything else we can  help you with to get you more settled here in Taipei?” I mentioned that we were thinking of getting a used car as renting one had made us realize how being more mobile would make it much more convenient to go places as a family on weekends and holidays (see previous post) and Faye said, “I know a guy, let me make a call.” Fluent in Mandarin, Faye jabbered on her phone for a few minutes then hung up. “My friend has some options available, do you have some time now to take a look?”

She then drove us to a nearby Chrysler/Jeep dealership and on the way told us that Mr. Jien who ran the place was her friend, had sold her the two company vehicles for their shop, also provided service and would certainly give us a good deal. Well Mr. Jien had a 2002 Chrysler Voyager that only had 60,000 miles on it and was willing to part with it for about 20% above what we had agreed on as a budget. We held firm on our amount so Faye asked Mr. Jien if he would sell it for less. He asked if we were good friends of hers and she said yes. So he sold us the Chrysler for exactly what we wanted to spend. Within two days the minivan was ours.

Our landlord, Mr. Lin, offered us an available outdoor parking space for just a $100/month increase in rent and then made the space larger (which involved removing a planter and pouring no small amount of concrete) when he saw that it was a van.

The vehicle is in great shape. It has a sonar device in the rear bumper that detects objects behind when in reverse and beeps like a lunatic when you get too close. While it doesn’t have bluetooth for our iPhones, it does have a mysterious technology input in the center console we have yet to understand.

With a removable third row seat and rooftop luggage rack, this will indeed be the perfect vehicle for touring when family (this means you, Barnetts) comes to visit. Room for two kids, two dogs, four adults and luggage on the roof means we can certainly roll on the Magic Rock.

Sorry for the lack of posts lately. Hope you enjoyed this one and remember that we love and miss you all…

–The Klars Afar