il Giardino Romantico

來南港工作了這幾年，很早就聽人家說有個地方下午來喝個茶，聊個天挺不錯的。不過一直到前一陣子自己才有機會親自去。那次是因為同事離職來這裡聚餐（是的，他有餐點。雖然小貴，上菜也有點慢，不過挺好吃的也頗有特色）不過因為是同事聚餐，就不方便拍照。這次是託了家人的福，因為提早掃墓，而離家人回中部的時間還有些距離，就想說來這裡殺殺時間。

I've worked at Nangang for more than three years now, and I've heard about a place where you could drink tea and chat with friends the entire afternoon... but I've only been here myself just recently. The first time was a farewell meal for a colleague. (Yes, they serve food, too. A bit steep, and a bit slow, but the food is quite tasty!). But seeing that was with a big group of colleagues, it was not an ideal chance for photo shooting. This time, the family had come to visit Taipei for the day for early tomb-sweeping. It was a while yet before they had to depart for Taichung. I thought of this place for us to kill some time.



這裡說好找也還好，但也不算難找。不過要有車就是了。因為他在山上，公車最後一站只到山腳下。從研究院路開往舊庄，在一直開，一直開（我沒開車所以不要問我開多久開多遠，我完全沒概念啊！）就會看到他在左手邊。轉進來後，第一個彎道就要停車了，因為再開上去還是得再走下來。

It's not hard to find, but it's not that easy to spot, either. It's in the mountains, so you'll have to drive. The bus only takes you to the foot of the hill. I don't drive, so don't ask me for how long you'll need to drive to here. I have no clue. All I know is that it's on the left hand side. And you'll need to park on the first entrance you see.



今年冬天雖然是暖冬，卻到了春天偶爾都還有寒意。不過此時牡丹花還是開了（雖然沒有維持很久，去年開得比較漂亮）

Although the winter had been generally warm, there were some quite chilly days in spring. Fortunately these flowers still blossomed. But last year's blossoms were much more impressive.



走上階梯就可抵達餐廳門口。

Walk up these steps to get to the restaurant/tea place.



若桌子中央插個傘，其實這天天氣還蠻適合做外面的。不過這戶外座位，來了兩次都還不知道到底要怎麼過去耶！

What a wonderful day to sit out, if they provided umbrellas. But even after two trips here, I still haven't figured out how to get there!



有不同的茶葉供你選擇。依照人數給你杯子。這樣的量其實我們四人剛剛好。

There are a few types of teas you can choose from. They'll give you cups according to the number of people in your group. This quantity was just right for the four of us.



這樣一小罐，喝個一兩個小時，四百塊，等於一人一百。也算是很不錯了。

This little container costs NT$400, about NT$100 each, which is quite good for about a couple of hours' chat.



錢爸錢媽都愛喝茶，所以我們也算是喝茶長大的。

My parents drink tea, so we kind of grew up drinking tea as well.



泡茶的工作當然是交給專業的錢爸。

My dad, is, of course, the most professional of us all. So he gets the honour of making the tea.



至於茶的品質，算不錯啦。只是我們平時喝的都是很特別的茶種，所以嘴難免會挑一些。

The quality isn't bad. It's just we've been spoiled by some very high quality teas... 



不過這天重要的是有家人的陪伴。

But the most important thing was being with the family.



茶葉罐子裡的茶葉長這樣。

This was what the tea looked like in the container.



泡完之後的茶葉。

And after...



錢爸準備倒第二次茶葉。

After you can't taste the tea anymore (usually after two or three times), you add new leaves (after taking out the wet leaves, of course.)



兩人甜蜜蜜唷～ （羞）

And there are my parents, I don't know what they were doing, but whatever it was, it' was cute!



接近傍晚這裡的光線會很美。

As the sun starts setting, the lighting makes the place even more beautiful. 



無論是要拍照還是只是純欣賞，景色都會很美。

Even if you're not into photography, even just looking, you'll see a different kind of beauty as you leave at dusk.



還會遇到新朋友。

You might even meet new friends.




即使是假日人也不算多。不過我知道這裡的確是偏僻的可以。但如果你跟我一樣不喜歡人擠人，又自己有車，不仿三兩好友來這裡泡茶聊天挺不錯的唷。

The place is rather quiet even though we were there on a Sunday. I realise the place is a bit distant, but if you don't like crowds, like me, you just might enjoy a quiet chat here over tea with a couple of good friends! 


檢視較大的地圖 

天仙念：這裡的茶凍很好吃！茶味濃，又不會過甜。大推！（可惜唯一有入境的照片是很模糊的背景...）