Four Furry (Taiwanese) Friends

It was a rainy morning during our trip to Sanxiantai.  We were busy looking for a nice spot to shoot, and waiting for the sun to shine when we met four furry friends by the bay.

We saw these four crazy dogs chasing around two other tourists, whom we thought were their owners.  Apparently, they were just chasing them, and when they saw us decided to chase us instead.

There were three brown ones (a father and two pups) and a big black one.  The black one was playful and friendly, one pup was as playful, while the other pup was seemingly slow-headed.  The brown mother seemed not to care much, but just wanted to hang out.

They looked healthy and well-fed, but had no collars and were obviously strays.

The four dogs followed us the whole morning.  They literally followed us everywhere!  One of the pups (the slow one) even tried to jump between slippery rocks to reach us and almost drowned!  Luckily, he was able to rock climb.  Silly fella.

Tired Pups

We crossed the Sanxiantai and trekked the other side.  The path was fantastic!  There was a wooden pathway which made the walk much much easier.  There was a small rest area in the middle, where there are benches in which you could rest.

We would stop every now and then to rest because it is a long walk.  We had but a few biscuits and cake bars for our morning trip, and we shared some with our eager beavers (harhar), and they happily devoured what little we were able to share to them.

I thought they would leave us after getting the food that they wanted.  I thought wrong.

They continued following us, only stopping to rest when we do.  We tried hiding from them and leaving them behind, but they would always find a way to catch up.

Me and my exhausted face

We found this amusing, and a bit comforting, knowing we have four friends to alert and protect us in case we encounter harm.

The nice wooden path finally ended, and we had to trek a rocky path before being able to reach the continuation of the pathway.

Our dogs got a little distracted when they caught a bird.  We thought they'd be staying to feast on their catch, but we were surprised to see them running to catch up.

The trail resumed once we reached the mountainous part.  There was a horribly horribly long stairs that led to a lighthouse at the top.  We climbed, but were exhausted and worn out from the long walk.

We were so worn out when we reached the top that we had to stay there and rest for quite some time.  The four dogs were still there and did not leave us.  I honestly felt safe with them around.  At least I know snakes won't dare attack my large pack. :)

We were so struck by the thought that they followed us all the way to another island, and all the way up a mountain.  They didn't seem to be after us for food, because we didn't have any ourselves.  They were just there.

These dogs, even though we've only known each other for a few hours, treated us and saw us as friends.

We couldn't resist taking a picture after that leg-shattering climb.  Mr. Brown dog did not seem to mind posing for the camera.

The four dogs continued following us down.  The silly pup even injured himself when he jumped from a rock (again)!  Good thing it was nothing a tough pup like him could handle.  But he was limping for some time because of that.

The walk back

The dogs were pleasant companions.  They made that long walk tolerable.  They loved running around, and jumping around the rocks.  Plus they were very easy to approach and pet.

Damn it, I knew I shouldn't, but I fell in love with them. :(

We knew that those few hours were fleeting and would be over soon, but we adored the little rascals and their funny antics, and our hearts were warmed by their waggling tails.

On our walk back, we came across a group of Japanese tourists.  The pups and the black dog became distracted and were gone in a flash, and made us wonder if these dogs really followed tourists around.

We thought that was the end of it.  I felt sad I wasn't able to say goodbye to my pups, but realized they were probably being fed by those tourists and they do deserve a nice meal after that climb.

However when we turned around, the big brown dog was still there, walking behind us.  My heart melted as he followed us back to Sanxiantai bridge, until we reached the park on the other side.

We promised the doggie we'd give him a nice snack if he followed us back to the food kiosks---which he did.

On our walk back, other tourists would call him out, but he ignored them, and followed only us.

"Now this is loyalty!" I thought.  I loved the other three, but I fell in love with this old dog the most.

I knew I had to say goodbye soon, because the morning was over and we're late for our trip back.  So we went to the snack area, had some snacks and gave some to Mr. Brown Dog.  He seemed content with whatever we give him, unlike other dogs who would go crazy when there's food.

He rested, and we packed our bags.  My heart broke into a thousand little pieces as we left him there.  With all those tourists eating there, I'm sure he'll be fat by the afternoon.  It was a good place to leave him, even though I didn't want to.

I almost cried as we left Taitung that day.  It felt like I was leaving home.

I miss my Taiwanese dogs.



xoxo, BVG