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Visiting those who have passed away was the more enjoyable part. Their urns are kept in what can best be described as lockers in one of the buildings of a huge and colorful Buddhist temple.

There are also some tombs outside, but I was told those were more expensive and not necessarily better as they might be damaged during typhoons:

Some more temple pictures:

As to the relatives who were still very much alive, they live in what a friend of mine described as "a garage": Just imagine a standard width garage with a TV on one of the long sides, some furniture which looks like it was rescued from the trash on the opposite side, ugly plastic items all over the place and a bunch of calenders on the wall (in lieu of pictures) and you've got a popular Taiwanese living room design. Thinking they couldn't afford anything better, I didn't take any pictures. It wasn't until we took a walk around the neighborhood that I learned that most houses belonged to them and that they were richer than I'll likely ever be. Here's a picture of their outdoor collection of "stuff that might still be good for something":

Come on, I generally don't like shopping, either, but I think this goes a bit too far. Middle way, anyone?

Oh well, at least we got some veggies from their yet undeveloped plot of land out of the visit. Quite tasty, actually.

I'll write more about the great food in Taiwan soon.