Houli Roller

On a pleasant Saturday afternoon, what better way to help a sick little girl get over a spring cold than by having her get out in the fresh air? OK, this is central Taiwan, where "fresh" isn't the first adjective that immediately springs to mind when thinking about the atmosphere, but the weather wasn't too bad today - warm, but not hot, and skies that were actually blue. So, after lunch, we drove to the nearby town district of Hòu​lǐ 后里, one end of the 4.5 kilometer (2.8 miles)-long Houfong​ Bicycle Trail 后豐自行車綠廊. Amber came prepared with her Hello Kitty ハローキティ bike (still with training wheels attached) and Toys "R" Us helmet, but before hitting the trail, we crossed the road from the parking lot to check out some horses.

Ask many Taiwanese the first word that comes to mind when they think of Hòu​lǐ, and the answer will probably be "saxophones". But around these here parts, the town district is also known for its military stables 后里馬場. This afternoon, a number of horses were being put through their paces around an equestrian course, leaping over various vaults:

When Amber was very small, she was bitten on the finger by a horse during a music festival in Hòu​lǐ, and for the longest time afterward, she was terrified of the animals. Fortunately, she's since gotten over that fear:

Returning to her own four-wheeled steed, Amber set off on the bicycle trail, with Dad lagging behind on foot. Eventually, we came to the No. 9 Tunnel 九號隧道, which was built by the Japanese, and used by trains operating on the now defunct Old Mountain Line. Amber didn't cycle the entire 1.3 kilometers (0.8 miles), but she did venture inside for the first time:

Back outside, and posing for a photo...along with three young people doing what many Taiwanese youth seem to enjoy doing - taking a picture of themselves leaping into the air, which will no doubt later be posted to their Facebook pages:

Stopping for a sausage break on the ride back to the parking lot. Wherever people assemble in Taiwan, food, drink and souvenir vendors will also congregate:

Watching Amber on her bike this afternoon, I realized it's probably time to remove the training wheels, and let her attempt to master the art of cycling on two wheels. She's keen on the idea, but said she would like to practice in our apartment building courtyard first before going out on the bike paths again. Fair enough. 

加油!

Visatations

When the American Institute in Taiwan 美國在台協會 beckons, you answer. And when the AIT asks you to be at their offices at 7:45 on a Wednesday morning, you will do like us - go up the day before and give yourself a 24-hour trip to Taipei 台北. Pamela and I both went to work on Tuesday morning, while Amber attended her kindergarten as usual, but following lunch, the three of us went by taxi to the U-Bus 統聯客運 station in beautiful downtown Fēng​yuán 豐原, where we caught the 1:30 bus to the Taipei Bus Station 台北轉運站. Upon alighting, we made our way to the Taipei Metro 台北捷運, got on the subway and, four stops and one transfer later, got off at Dà​ān Station 大安站.

Amber makes her way along the concourse between the bus and MRT stations

From the subway, it was a short walk to the Dolamenco Hotel, our choice of accommodation for that fine Tuesday evening. The room was small, as was the bed - Amber ended up sleeping on a small sofa that night, which we pushed up against one side of the bed so that she wouldn't fall off. But the price (NT1980/$67) and the location (just a few minutes' walk from the AIT) couldn't be beat.

That evening we got back on the MRT to do what tourists do in Taipei, visit one of the city's large night markets. In our case, it was to Shì​lín Night Market 士林夜市. We rode the MRT at the peak of the evening rush hour, but having navigated Tōkyō's 東京 claustrophobia-inducing subway network for the better part of a decade, I find Taipei's system to be far less stressful. And to the local denizens credit, people gave up their seats so that a tired and sick little girl (Amber has been suffering from a cold these past few days) could sit down. In any event, it was only a short ride from Dà​ān to Jiàntán Station 剑潭站, the closest stop to the night market.

Now I don't claim to be an old Taipei hand, but back in 1999, and again in 2001, I paid visits to Shì​lín in the company of Japanese and American friends. The night market was in all its glory back then, at the center of a busy warren of narrow streets packed with clothing stands. It was dirty, noisy and odoriferous, and all the more fun and exciting because of it. However, soon after my second visit, the Taipei city government, in all its infinite wisdom, decided the market needed to be "improved" by relocating to a more modern structure. The result is an even more cramped site, made worse by its location in a basement. The atmosphere has been ruined as the crowds (including large tour groups made up of Chinese tourists) are herded like cattle into a more sterile, less inviting environment:

My dainty, coquettish wife, with her ever so sensitive and delicate sense of smell, insisted that we retreat back to street level, where we found a small eatery with better circulation. Pamela, who couldn't stand the lack of "fresh air" down in the basement, then proceeded to happily chow down a plate of stinky tofu 臭豆腐 (Amber and I had steak).

After dinner, we took a stroll through the older part of the market, dominated by clothing stalls. Amber needed little encouragement to strike a pose:

By this point, it was starting to get late, and we had an early appointment at the AIT the following morning, so it was time to bid the moon and Venus "goodnight" and take the MRT back to Dà​ān.

The next day, we were done at the AIT by 9:30, and headed back to our hotel for a late breakfast before packing up and checking out.  After storing our bag in a locker somewhere in the bowels of Taipei Station 台北車站, it was back again on the MRT Tamsui Line 淡水線, this time to Yuánshān Station 圓山站. From the station's platform could be seen evidence that not all is sweetness and tolerance in Taiwan's religious scene:

I remembered this sign from Patrick Cowsill's blog. Erected by an organization called the True Enlightenment Education Foundation  正覺教育基金會, the slogan warns that:

Tibetan Buddhism is definitely not Buddhism; the lamas are not Buddhist monks or nuns

Another sign on the building read:

To avoid religious sexual abuse, please stay away from the lamas of Tibetan Buddhism

Putting the last sentence into a Google search led to this, er, "enlightening explanation".

Meanwhile, back in the real world, you might be wondering at this point why we had come to Yuánshān in the few hours that we had left in Taipei. To visit a couple of nearby historic temples, perhaps? Or to take a taxi to see a restored old house? Wrong on both counts. If your spouse is Taiwanese like mine is, there is a strong chance that you'll end up having the taxi driver drive you from the MRT station to the Taipei Expo Park 花博公園, the remnants of the Taipei International Flora Exposition. Pamela particularly wanted to see the Pavilion of Dreams 夢想館, described thusly in the Wikipedia entry:

The building showcases Taiwan's cutting-edge technology in addition to flowers. A 3.5-ton artificial flower hangs from the ceiling, responding to beats in music. In an exhibition room, flat screens showcase 3D images of flowers without the need to use special glasses...A wall of 3-meter-tall liquid crystal glass panels show lifelike projections of flowers in the wild.

As the name of this blog makes clear, I'm something of a curmudgeon. I found the New Age vibe to be a bit too much. There were other things I would've done in Taiwan's largest city than spend time pursuing my "dream flower", but Pamela seemed satisfied and Amber, free at her age of any pretensions, accepted the Pavilion of Dreams for what it was trying to do and enjoyed herself very much as a result. 

Mother and daughter outside in the Xīn​shēng Park Area 新生園區. In the background can be seen the Grand Hotel 圓山大飯店: 

 My "Dream Flower"

Taking a taxi from Xīn​shēng Park directly to Taipei Station turned out to be a little cheaper than returning by a cab to Yuánshān Station, and riding the MRT back to where our bag had been stored. Following a late lunch in one of the food courts on the second floor of the station, and a bit of window shopping in one of the underground malls beneath it, we found ourselves on the 4:00 Tze-Chiang 自強 limited express, and got back to Fēng​yuán on time, at 6:02 p.m., where I went straight to my evening job from the train station, while Amber and Pamela had dinner at the local MOS Burger モスバーガー before taking yet another taxi home (I walked back from school).

And that's how we spent 24 hours in Taipei, from late Tuesday afternoon to late Wednesday afternoon. Who knows? The next time I go to the AIT might be under somewhat different circumstances.

Somewhere between Bǎn​qiáo 板橋 and Táo​yuán 桃園

Factory Fodder

Highlights of our zhōu​mò:

Amber had a modeling session on Saturday that lasted into the afternoon. That evening, my wife decided we not only had to have steak, but that we had to eat it at the Taichung Steak House, the place to go...if you like dining on an industrial scale. The dining room was huge, and close to capacity, which unsurprisingly ruled out having any sort of quiet meal. And while there was a wide of variety of foods to choose from, all of it tasted bland - institutionalized cuisine in a giant canteen. Avoid it.

Fortunately for me, a bottle of White Beer, courtesy of the North Taiwan Brewing company, was waiting patiently for my return home. Craft beers, especially local ones, aren't easy to find in this country, so if you should come across a bottle such as this one, don't avoid it:

Early in the afternoon on Sunday: First, it was lunch at the Taichung Fish Market, not to be confused with the fish market located next to the port in Wú​qī 梧棲. No, this Taichung Fish Market can be found next to the No. 1 Freeway in the city itself. The last time we went there was a few years ago, not long after it had first opened, and unsurprisingly the people there were packed in like sardines. This time, things were much quieter, so much so that many of the stalls in the center of the building have been replaced by a giant vegetarian restaurant...in the heart of a fish market. At least the seafood here was much better than what we had last night at the steak house, though even here I couldn't escape from the Taiwanese tendency to serve sushi 寿司 and sashimi 刺身 that is still half-frozen. For Amber, today was her first time to enjoy a Ramune ラムネ:

Mid-Sunday afternoon: Following lunch, we drove to Wù​fēng 霧峰, intent on "stepping back into history at (a) landmark Taiwan mansion" (as an article from last November in The Seattle Times described it). In other words, we were planning on visiting the Lin Family Mansion and Garden. Judging by the tone of that last sentence, you would be correct in assuming that things didn't quite go as planned. For some unknown reason, the mansion was shut. A sign posted at the side of the complex indicated that only people who were part of certain groups were allowed to tour the buildings, so we had to content ourselves with the outside of what was once the mansion of a powerful family in the Wù​fēng area:

My wife keeps knocking, but she can't get in

Camera in hand, Pamela took an interest in the details of the exteriors:

While the mansion may have been off-limits this afternoon, the gardens were open to all. Now a part of Míngtái High School  明台高中, touring the grounds meant the afternoon wasn't a waste of time after all:

The view from above a tomb. I'm sure the students of Míngtái High love studying next to a grave

Mother and daughter pose on a stage set in an artificial pond. Connected by bridge is a small house where members of the Lin family would apparently watch dances being performed.

This house across the street from the high school was apparently not part of the Lin Family complex. In other words, I was trespassing on private property when I took this picture.

Later that afternoon: We returned to Fēng​yuán 豐原 from Wù​fēng, but my wife wasn't ready to go home just yet. Taking a right onto Nányáng​ Road 南陽路, we found ourselves climbing Route 88, which took us to the other side of the mountain, and through villages we had never heard of, before eventually ending up in Shí​gāng 石岡. 

Following dinner and some shopping, it was 7:00 by the time we got home. If you can figure out how to get into the mansion, I'm sure the Lin complex would make for a very interesting excursion. Wikipedia has an informative article on the mansion and garden. Maybe next time I might actually do some research before heading out.

Saying yes and の

Taiwanese love to say, or at least write, "no" - as in the Japanese kana 仮名 syllable の, which is read as no. The words 筆柿の家 (bǐshì no jiā) refer to a stand selling persimmons in the Sintian 新田 area of Greater Taichung's 台中 Tán​zǐ District 潭子區.

Saying the English word "no" this evening was me, unfortunately, as in "I'm sorry, but there is no way I can go into work tonight." Not only is my cold not getting any better (my nose this evening is like a waterfall), but the doctor confirmed that the discomfort I'm feeling around my left eyeball and left upper row of teeth is the result of sinusitis. To add insult to injury, I'm also suffering from the effects of diarrhea. Yesterday's four-hour hike was apparently only a momentary blip of normality.

Not saying "no" is the National Palace Museum 故宮博物院, according to this Kyōdō News 共同通信社 article from today's Japan Times ジャパンタイムズ:

Taiwan's National Palace Museum is likely to lend Chinese antiquities for exhibition in Japan in 2014, Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou 馬英九 told visiting Diet 国会 members.

Ma told Takeo Hiranuma  平沼赳夫, head of the Japan-Republic of China Diet Members' Consultative Council, during a visit Monday at the Presidential Office that if all goes well he hopes the exhibition will take place at the Tōkyō National Museum 東京国立博物館.

Ma also thanked Hiranuma for keeping his promise to help push legislation to guarantee the return of the national treasures.

The Diet passed legislation last year to address Taiwan's concern that China could seek to have artifacts and artworks impounded if there were no such law.

Hiranuma later told Japanese media at Taipei Songshan Airport 臺北松山機場 that details of the exhibition are still being arranged, including the dates.

National Palace Museum director Chou Kung-shin 周功鑫 said last month that Diet members would come to Taiwan to discuss plans for the exhibition with her ahead of a visit by Masami Zeniya 銭谷真実, executive director of the Tōkyō National Museum. The date for Zeniya's visit has not yet been set...

...The exhibition in Japan will be the first of its kind in Asia.

The treasures have only been exhibited in four foreign countries — the United States, France, Germany and Austria — all of which enacted laws beforehand to guarantee their return to Taiwan after the exhibitions.

Over hill, over dale

I haven't blogged in a while because, well, I haven't felt like it lately. Part of the reason is due to the effects of a bad cold that I've yet to shake off. But even more so is the personal strain I've been under of late, which combined with my less-than-stellar health condition to make for an especially miserable weekend this past Saturday and Sunday. Which is probably why it was imperative to get out of the apartment this afternoon and do something before my mind snaps. That something was to head for the hills of Dà​kēng 大坑 after work. That in itself isn't unusual, for I often go hiking in that area on Tuesday afternoons. What was different about today was the route I took. Instead of the usual ascend-one-trail-descend-another routine, I went out all out this afternoon. Parking my scooter at the trailhead for the No. 2, I walked along the road for about 15 minutes to where the No. 1 Trail starts. Upon climbing the No. 1, I proceeded to walk the entire length of the ridgetop, descending via the No. 4 Trail, from where it was a long walk back to my parked scooter. It took about four hours to do (well, three hours and fifty-five minutes, to be exact), but for those 235 minutes all cares, troubles and worries were forgotten, and everything seemed right with the universe. Part of the reason for doing all this was to get my flabby body into some sort of fighting shape for my trip next month to Hiroshima 広島, where I plan to do some hiking and long-distance cycling. But mostly it was to get away from everybody and everything, and for nearly 4 hours, the mission was accomplished.

Despite the warm, sometimes sunny, weather, views were non-existent as a result of the haze.

Lots of lizards were out and about this afternoon.

Two hikers examine the "Taiwan 5 Leaves Giant Pine" 巨木臺灣五葉松. The man in the white shirt was smoking a cigarette, the second hiker I saw this afternoon enjoying a fine tobacco product. The thinner the air, the smoother the smoke.

 Tibetan Buddhist prayer flags, a common sight in Taiwan.

All afternoon I had been wondering if I was going to see any monkeys. As I was reaching the end of the No. 4 Trail, I finally encountered a lone Taiwanese macaque 台灣獼猴. Believe it or not, I thought it was a cat at first. A poodle passing by didn't even notice the presence of the macaque next to the staircase, which just goes to show that as dogs go, poodles are one of the more useless breeds.

Today's route. Next time I may do everything in reverse.

Play ball!

Street sign in Fēng​yuán 豐原

Yesterday was March 11, the one-year anniversary of the triple disaster - earthquake, tsunami and nuclear meltdown - that affected Japan's northeast region 東日本大震災. A number of media outlets ran stories on how the country and its people have been coping one year on, and there have been endless repeat showings of the many video recordings of the waves and the havoc they caused. In the midst of all these remembrances and commemorations, the Daily Yomiuri ザ・デイリー読売 ran a short story yesterday on a charity baseball game Saturday played between all-star squads from Japan and Taiwan:

On the eve of a day sure to bring back a lot of painful memories, the members of Samurai Japan made it their mission to offer a little bit of relief, if only temporarily.

Tōhoku 東北地方 native Kenta Kurihara 栗原健太 came through with the biggest hit of the night, a two-run homer in the third inning, and Tōhoku Rakuten Golden Eagles 東北楽天ゴールデンイーグルス ace Masahiro Tanaka 田中将大 got the win, as Japan routed Taiwan 9-2 in a charity game in front of a crowd of 35,505 on Saturday at Tōkyō Dome 東京ドーム.

"I was able to swing the bat the way I wanted," said Kurihara, who hails from Yamagata Prefecture 山形県 and is the star slugger for the Hiroshima Carp 広島東洋カープ. "For me, who is from Tōhoku, this game means more. I am happy I was able to have a good result."

The game was held on the eve of the one-year anniversary of the Great East Japan Earthquake, which devastated a large swath of northeastern Japan, as a way to help aid ongoing relief efforts.

A total of 12,000 tickets were given to residents from disaster-stricken areas and a portion of the proceeds will be donated to disaster relief.

"In a charity game like this, or in a pennant race, I hope to be able to show some courage by playing well," said Chūnichi Dragons 中日ドラゴンズ pitcher Kazuki Yoshimi 吉見一起, who tossed a pair of scoreless innings for Japan.

The Taiwanese team consisted of an All-Star squad from the Chinese Professional Baseball League 中華職業棒球大聯盟, led by CPBL MVP and home run leader Lín Hóng-yù 林泓育. The game marked the first time NPB has invited the CPBL, which began in 1990, to Japan for an exhibition.

Prior to the game, Japanese players' union head and Hanshin Tigers 阪神タイガース star Takahiro Arai 新井貴浩 urged everyone to continue to do their part to help the relief efforts and popular vocalist Masayuki Suzuki 鈴木雅之 sang a poignant rendition of "Kimigayo" 君が代 (the Japanese national anthem).

A better writer than myself could probably wax poetic on the symbolism of this game - of how baseball and life itself both start anew in the spring, and of how a love of the American national pastime is also shared by both Japan and Taiwan, therefore making the baseball diamond an appropriate place for two cultures to come together in a shared cause. So I won't. Instead, I'll let the last paragraph of the article stand on its own, without comment:

The Taiwanese team took the field following the game and bowed to the Japanese supporters then to their own, receiving a standing ovation in the process.

 A stall at the Féngjiǎ Night Market 逢甲夜市

In the aftermath of the disasters in Tōhoku, many people in Taiwan donated generously to help the victims there (as did we, at my daughter's insistence). I was here in Taiwan when the horrors unfolded, and like many Taiwanese, I watched it all live on TV. I was indirectly affected by what happened - one of my former students from Yokkaichi 四日市 in Japan had to be rescued from a building near Sendai Airport 仙台空港, losing his car to the tsunami (though fortunately he was unhurt), while I had to cancel my plans to visit the Tōhoku area in the summer of 2011 (one of the stops I had planned to make on that trip was to the island of Kinkazan 金華山, itself largely spared, but accessible only by train and ferry from Ishinomaki 石巻 and Ayukawa 鮎川, two of the worst-hit towns by the tsunami), going to Okinawa 沖縄 instead. I was intending on trying again this summer, but a sudden change in plans will have me traveling to Hiroshima 広島 and some of its surrounding area next month instead.

Féngjiǎ

It's remarkable how well the Japanese people as a whole have endured the events of a year ago - a testament to the spirit of the society. I, on the other hand, am finding myself at home this morning, unable to cope with something as simple as the common cold and a headache. I'm not worthy.

Craftiness

 How my daughter must look to a fish

It isn't a common sight here in Taiwan, and thus had to be checked out. On our way into downtown Taichung 台中 early this afternoon to have lunch, my wife noticed a small sign reading 手工啤酒, Chinese for "craft beer", and an arrow indicating a right turn past a small hardware store. Needless to say, this had to be checked out, and a quick change in our lunch plans was in order. The microbrew in question is brewed by a company called Malt Crystal Biotechnology Co., Ltd. (hardly a mouthwatering name for a brewery)...

...and I had a glass of their "Pure Bavarian Beer":

Though a bit light-tasting for my liking, it went well with the beef-and-rice dish I had for lunch, and it goes without saying that this beer was far better than anything you can find on most Taiwanese supermarket and convenience store shelves. The restaurant's location on a semi-desolate stretch of Jūngōng Road 軍功路 (between Dōng​shān 東山路 and Tài​yuán Roads 太原路) probably helps to explain why microbrews still make up an infinitesimal segment of the Taiwanese beer market.

Suitably fortified with the proper balance of hops and yeast, it was time to dive into the hordes descending upon Taichung's newest addition to the department store scene, the Top City Far Eastern Department Store on Zhōng​gǎng Road 中港路:

Despite the rain, or more likely because of it, the place was packed. There was a long line of cars waiting to descend into Top City's underground garages, so we chose to park nearby in a lot for a flat fee of NT150 ($5.10). To be honest, the store was little different from its next-door neighbor, Shinkong Mitsukoshi 歡迎光臨新光三越百貨, with the exception of two restaurant floors on the 11th and 12th floors. The sanitized recreation of a postwar Taiwan had many people taking pictures:

Other highlights of Top City included the view of Taichung from the 14th floor...:

...while Amber got a kick out of the fish video installation on the 10th floor. Waving your arms around and pretending to throw food would bring the "fish" closer to you (that's Amber waving at the shark swimming away):

Like all good department stores, Top City has a gourmet supermarket in its basement, and it's in these places that my will almost always breaks down:

On the left is yet another Made in Taiwan craft beer, the White Beer from North Taiwan Brewing; in the middle is an Old Foghorn Barley Wine Style Ale, courtesy of San Francisco's Anchor Brewing Company; while the one on the right is a Belgian Amber Ale, Montagnarde. My daughter insisted I get the last one, for reasons which should be obvious. Alas, the onset of a cold will prevent me from enjoying these brews for a couple of days, at least.

Things are starting to look up in the local beer market, though when your most popular beer is Taiwan Beer 台灣啤酒, up is the only direction in which to move. It's going to be a long, uphill struggle, and my advice to the local microbrewers would include not using words like "biotechnology" in your brewery's name; making sure your product is available in more centrally-located dining and drinking establishments; and including locations other than those in Singapore on your website for visitors looking to see where they could enjoy one of your fine brews. 

I'm just sayin'...