Shūdōfu in the news 臭豆腐

Why Compass Magazine continues to annoy me, even though it's free - in its January issue, there is an article on the hot spring resort of Kukuan (Guguan) 谷関, the opening paragraph of which states that:

"In the early 1900s, the Heiji Emperor was sight-seeing around Taiwan, visiting the island from Japan. When he came across the hot springs in Guguan, he hopped right in and sat for quite a while. After he returned to his home country, the emperor quickly fathered a son. Many people attributed this luck to the Guguan hot springs and the emperor's story spread like wildfire."

First of all, it's MEIJI 明治天皇 (Mutsuhito 睦仁), not "Heiji". And second of all, the story is just that, a story. Had the writer bothered to do a little research, they would have learned that the last of Emperor Meiji's 15 children was a daughter (not a son), who was born in 1897. Meiji's successor, Emperor Taishō 大正天皇 (Yoshihito 嘉仁) was scheduled to visit Taiwan in 1912 while he was still Crown Prince, but the trip was canceled when Meiji died. If I was able to find this out after just a few minutes of checking on Wikipedia and Google, then why couldn't have Compass' writer?

There's also a short article in the magazine about the experiences of a Japanese translator during the Asian Championship baseball tournament in T'aichung (Taijhong) 台中 a couple of months ago. It's all in English, except for the poor woman's name, which is written only in Chinese characters - 丸尾啓太. I went to the WWWJDIC website, and came up with "Maruo Keita". Again, if I could do it...

No wonder Compass is given away free of charge.

In a change of pace from the recent depressing news, the Daily Yomiuri ザ・デイリー読売 has an article today on Taiwan’s notorious Ch’outoufu (Choudoufu) 臭豆腐, aka “Stinky Tofu” (“The sweet stink of success”).

The story introduces us to Peng Tian-rong, a stinky tofu seller in Hsinchuang (Sinjhuang) 新荘, a city in T’aipei (Taibei) County 台北県. Business is good, but:

“…the distinctive odor of his chodoufu has seen him fall afoul of the authorities, who have ordered him to pay a fine of 100,000 New Taiwan dollars (about 350,000 yen) for polluting the air. The fine, equivalent to two months' wages for an ordinary worker, is the first ever imposed on chodoufu deemed too stinky. But Peng remains unbowed. The flap over the chodoufu he makes with a special recipe that gives his curd its pungent punch has brought in more customers than ever, all keen for a taste, and a whiff, of his law-breaking delicacy. Chodoufu's smell is similar to that of fermented nattō 納豆 soybeans, but is stronger because it is fried before being served. It is a popular snack in southern China and Taiwan that, the locals say, is best washed down with a beer.”

I can say from personal experience that stinky tofu does have a distinct “aroma” to it. Not everyone in Taiwan, it seems, appreciates the bouquet:

“In Taiwan, this smell is part and parcel of bustling entertainment districts, and steamed chodoufu is often served at banquets…But while customers were lapping up (Peng’s) chodoufu, the neighbors were less enamored with the constant stench pervading their premises, and their nostrils. They complained to the environment bureau of the Taipei (county) government, which last autumn determined that Peng's eateries were polluting the air and fined him. The bureau, which is tasked with dealing with foul odors emanating from factories, used a ‘scientific’ device to measure the offensive odor and declared that the stench exceeded acceptable levels.”

The article’s author, Toshinao Ishii, decides to sample some of the stinky tofu, despite his stated dislike for the smell:

“I gingerly put a piece in my mouth. The chodoufu gave off an aroma and had a light sweetness, but steam with an (indescribable) smell spread through my mouth, a flavor chodoufu lovers cannot resist.”

This is a very Japanese way of saying he couldn’t stand it. The article concludes thusly:

“(Peng’s) fine has become a badge of honor that is drawing more customers, some of them traveling from afar to sample his wares. Some businessmen have sensed an opportunity to cash in on the stink by selling air freshener to chodoufu vendors, saying authorities might crack down on restaurants selling the curd. But not everything has come up smelling like roses for Peng. Strangers, he said, often ask him if he has stepped in some dog droppings because of the way he smells.”

Stinky tofu is one of my wife’s favorite dishes, but it’s an acquired taste that I have been unable to obtain even after being in Taiwan for several years. I find it impossible to ignore the stench while trying to force it down my gullet. And what a stench it is! Just the other week at one of my workplaces, a staff member brought in a 臭豆腐弁当, and the smell permeated almost the entire floor of the building.

On a more serious note, the Japan Times ジャパンタイムズ ran an editorial today on Saturday's elections for the Taiwanese legislature ("Taiwan votes for change"). The column starts out by looking at things optimistically:

"The results could be good for Taiwan if all parties recognize the message in this ballot and adjust their policies accordingly. If, however, it is seen as just another swing in the political pendulum and another excuse for settling scores, then the KMT (Kuomintang/Guomindang) 中国国民党 will face the very same humiliation the next time it goes to the polls."

The editorial then analyzes why the Democratic Progressive Party 民主進歩党, under the chairmanship of President Chen Shui-bian (Chin Suihen) 陳水扁 took such a drubbing:

"The elections are in many ways a referendum on Mr. Chen's administration...The KMT campaign focused on the island's economic troubles, arguing that Mr. Chen's agenda aggravated Taiwan's ills — erecting barriers to trade with (China) was thought to be particularly damaging — and diverted government attention from matters of real significance to voters. The DPP was also hurt by several corruption scandals that involved members of Mr. Chen's family, and undermined the party's longtime claim that it was clean, unlike the KMT."

Next, the article looks toward the upcoming presidential elections:

"The question now is whether the DPP candidate in the March ballot, Mr. Frank Hsieh (Sha Chōtei) 謝長廷, can correct the party's image and tack back toward the center by the vote. Hardliners worried that Mr. Hsieh was not a true believer and tried to lock in their pro-independence platform to ensure that Mr. Hsieh would not be able to move back to the center. Last weekend's vote suggests staying the course would be political suicide but ideologues prefer purity to victory and are ready to give other reasons for the DPP shellacking in the poll."

And one of those reasons seems to be my homeland:

"One ready scapegoat is the United States. Pro-independence activists denounce U.S. President George W. Bush ジョージ・Ｗ．ブッシュ as ready to do China's bidding to ensure Beijing's support on other international issues, such as the denuclearization talks with North Korea or dealing with Iran. Washington's failure to back Taiwan's independence agenda is seen as a failure of will and a readiness to sell out an ally. In short they argue, Mr. Chen, the DPP and Taiwan as a whole have been the victims of U.S. perfidy."

The JT's editorial staff, however, is buying none of this:

"Many Taiwanese were unnerved by the negative U.S. reaction to Mr. Chen and his agenda. The downturn in relations between the island and its most important backer turned many voters against the DPP. But Mr. Chen only has himself to blame. He has pushed his pro-independence program knowing full well that it was alienating his biggest supporter. The backlash has now alienated voters as well."

The editorial concludes by saying:

"While the KMT was expected to best the DPP, the size of the victory was a surprise and represents a repudiation of the party...Indeed, the most important lesson from this election is the need to focus on governing, not politics. Had Mr. Chen made good on promises to improve the lives of Taiwanese and not been distracted by the virulence of politics as usual in Taipei, he would have left a far more positive legacy — for Taiwan and his party. Last weekend's vote is a warning to all of Taiwan's politicians to put their people first."

Even with a new, revamped legislature, I don't think this is going to happen anytime soon.

In the news ニュース

Monday’s online edition of the Daily Yomiuri ザ・デイリー読売 has two articles on the outcome of Saturday’s legislative elections in Taiwan. The first, “DPP facing daunting task/Taiwan party must rebuild for March presidential poll after defeat”, begins by stating:

“The landslide victory scored by Taiwan's opposition Kuomintang (Guomindang) 中国国民党 in a legislative election Saturday has dealt a stunning blow to President Chen Shui-bian's (Chin Suihen) 陳水扁 ruling Democratic Progress(ive) Party 民主進歩党, which is seeking to win the March 22 presidential election. Chen, who completes his second and final four-year term in May, announced his resignation as DPP chairman to take responsibility for the crushing defeat. The onus is now on DPP presidential candidate Hsieh Chang-ting (Sha Chōtei) 謝長廷, a former premier, to rebuild the party in the run-up to the presidential poll.”

The article also highlights the dangers Taiwan’s electorate has created for itself by concentrating so much power in the hands of a single political party, especially one with a long, anti-democratic history like that of the KMT:

“The Nationalist Party now has more than the 76 seats--two-thirds of the total--required to call a motion to dismiss a president. The party is therefore expected to dominate the legislature for the next four years. Furthermore, if the Kuomintang can persuade just four legislators from other parties to cooperate, it will have more than three-quarters of the seats, a position that will enable it to amend the Constitution.”

Welcome to a brave new world, Taiwan. The article itself is not written very well. For example, it refers to Kaohsiung (Gaosyong) 高雄県 and Yunlin 雲林県 counties as “prefectures”, and includes a paragraph about how Chen may do something to “provoke” China in a desperate attempt to turn the tables in time for the March 22 presidential election.

The other Taiwan-related piece in the Yomiuri is much better. “Taiwan opposition win bears close watching” is the headline of Monday’s editorial. Unlike the first article, this column is more optimistic about the DPP’s chances in the race for president:

“...we doubt this major victory (in the legislative elections) will be reflected in the presidential election. In Taiwan, a pendulum effect has been observed for years as the victorious party switches from election to election...The key to victory in the presidential election for the DPP is how much momentum the party can regain under the leadership of former Premier Hsieh Chang-ting, the party's presidential candidate, with party members and supporters' sense of crisis as leverage.”

The editorial also points out the risks, however, of the KMT having such a large legislative majority:

“...even if the DPP manages to maintain its hold on the presidency with a come-from-behind victory by Hsieh, its handling of the government will be unsure in the face of opposition control of the legislature. The Nationalist Party now has the right to propose a motion to remove the president as it obtained more than two-thirds of the legislative seats. If the party succeeds in winning the support of independents and controlling more than three-fourths of the seats, it would be possible to change the Constitution. If Ma Ying-jeou (Ba Eikyū) 馬英九, the Nationalists' presidential candidate and former party leader, wins the presidential race, the ruling party will totally dominate the administration, bringing back memories of the era when Taiwan was ruled by a Nationalist Party dictatorship.”

The Yomiuri, naturally, looks at all this from a Japanese perspective:

“We wonder what effects the election results will have on the future of Taiwan and the situation in East Asia, where China-Taiwan relations play a vital role. As such developments affect the area's security and economic matters, Japan needs to keep a close eye on the situation as it progresses...At the time of the presidential election, a referendum also will be held on whether the island should join the United Nations 国際連合 as Taiwan, an idea espoused by Chen. China has heightened its readiness against Taiwan as it sees the move as a step toward independence. As the United States and France also oppose the idea, the issue is gaining international attention. Japan declared it may not support the move if it changes the status quo in the relations between China and Taiwan. Given this, Japan should persuade Taiwan not to damage the area's stability.”

It’s interesting how the Yomiuri refers to Hsieh by his Chinese name, and not “Frank”, as most English-language media identify him.

Walking the cycling trail in Nisui 二水のサイクリングコースを散歩していた

As it turned out, the Kuomintang's (Guomindang) 中国国民党 victory in yesterday's legislative elections was even bigger than expected - the KMT came away with 81 of the 113 seats. Could this herald the first step in the march toward the creation of a Taiwan Special Administrative Region 台湾特別行政区? God, let's hope not.

I'm not a believer in omens, but it somehow seemed appropriate that the warm, sunny weather we had been having up until yesterday, became overcast, with rain at times, from this morning. Nevertheless, the Kaminoge family pressed ahead with our plan to visit the small town of Erhshui (Ershuei) 二水, in the southeastern corner of Changhua (Jhanghua) County 彰化県. Both "The Rough Guide to Taiwan" and "Lonely Planet Taiwan" recommend Erhshui as a destination due to its cycling course, and its position as the starting point for the scenic Chichi (Jiji) Line 集集線 branch railway. Our original plan was to have taken a train from Fengyuan (Fongyuan) 豊原 to Erhshui, and then rent some kind of tandem bike to use on the bicycle trail. In the end, however, logistical problems (namely, finding a parking spot in downtown Fengyuan for the day, and carrying a stroller on and off a train) led us to drive to Erhshui, and then walk a portion of the bikeway, rather than rent something that could be dangerous for Amber to ride on.

We began by parking our car near Erhshui Station. Following lunch in town, we walked to the start of the sightseeing bicycle route, passing a small train museum along the way.

The route is very easy to follow, and is well-signposted in English. However, it wasn't quite as beautiful as I had imagined it to be, judging by what I had read in both Taiwan guidebooks. The scenery did start to improve, though, the further on we walked. The trail parallels the train tracks for virtually its entire length, and trains were constantly going by at close range. Unfortunately, both my camera and my fingers were too slow to get any really good shots.

Pamela isn't much into walking or rainy weather, so she soon decided to retreat back to the car, leaving me to push Amber along in her stroller. Our daughter, on the other hand, really seemed to enjoy all the scenery.

And the scenery did pick up as we moved along. There were fields of cosmos コスモス and rapeseed アブラナ, and a number of well-preserved traditional houses. Still, I think the views are probably better appreciated from the seat of a moving bicycle than from a slow-moving gait.

The natural scenery was also nice. Amber was especially interested in some of the local insect life.

In the end, Amber and I walked/strolled for about 2 hours, going past the next stop on the Chichi Line, Yuanch'uan (Yuancyuan) 源泉 Station, and almost to the end of the route. It was getting late, however, and rather than walk all the way back to Erhshui, I called Pamela and asked her to pick us up at Yuanchuan. From there, we drove back home to Fengyuan.

Election Day 選挙の日

It's election day in Taiwan. Voting was held between 8am and 4pm for seats in the newly-revamped legislature 立法府, and ballot counting is already underway as I write this. My wife did her civic duty this afternoon at a local elementary school 小学校 in Shenkang (Shengang) 神岡, while my daughter and I took a walk through the school grounds. Today's online edition of the Daily Yomiuri ザ・デイリー読売 has an article on the elections depressingly entitled "Pro-China party leading Taiwan poll/Opposition Kuomintang may gain single-party majority in Saturday's election". The story begins by saying:

"Taiwan's opposition Nationalist Party 中国国民党...has maintained a lead over the ruling Democratic Progressive Party 民主進歩党 in the run-up to Saturday's legislative election, raising the possibility it could scoop a single-party majority in the 113-seat parliament. The poll is viewed as an indication of the mood of the electorate just ahead of the island's presidential election scheduled for March. By criticizing the government's economic policy missteps and corruption, the KMT (Kuomintang/Guomindang) tapped into voter discontent with DPP President Chen Shui-bian's (Chin Suihen) 陳水扁 eight-year rule. The DPP is facing a tough campaign even in its traditional strongholds in the southern part of the island."

The article also provides an explanation of the new look in this round of balloting:

"For this election, (Taiwan) has introduced a system that combines single-seat constituencies with proportional representation, with the number of seats to be contested almost halved to 113 from the previous 225. The DPP set its victory or defeat bar at 45 seats, a number that represents about half of the 89 seats won by the party in the previous legislative election in 2004. However, some observers expect the party will not even reach 40 seats."

The KMT, smelling blood, has:

"...intensified its campaign in the central and southern parts of the island, where the so-called Taiwan natives, who commonly vote for the DPP, hold a majority, in an attempt to win the 57 seats needed to achieve a single-party majority."

In all likelihood, the KMT will gain an overwhelming majority in the new-look legislature, and the momentum may carry its presidential candidate, Ma Ying-jeou (Ba Eikyū) 馬英九, to victory in the presidential polls in March. If the voters of Taiwan want to put in power an authoritarian party with strong ties to gangsters 暴力団 that will work to end Taiwan's existence as an independent political entity, that's their business, and they can live with the consequences of their collective decision. However, at the first sign of a rollback in Taiwan's hard-earned democracy, and/or its deliverance into the clutches of the Chinese government (as long as the latter remains an authoritarian one-party dictatorship), I will take my family and get the hell out of Dodge.

Looking on the bright side of things, though, I did have the day off from work because of the election. In addition to going out to vote, we also stopped off at my in-laws' 姻せき home, where I took my daughter Amber to play at a nearby park. Here are some photographs I took while we were outside today:

I'm in love with this (what I'm guessing is an) old Japanese-era 日本統治時代 building. It sits on the property of a large supermarket called Mega that shut its doors a few months ago, so the fate of this building is probably doomed. I wish I could somehow raise the money to buy the structure and the land it sits on, and then restore it to its former glory, but unless I get lucky and win the lottery, that ain't gonna happen.

Amber sees what my Los Angeles Angels cap looks like on her grandmother おばあさん, and enjoys herself on a slide 滑り台 in the park.

I wrote about this building a long time ago, and received one of those cowardly anonymous comments that those who are not as confident in their views as they believe themselves to be like to leave on other people's blogs. In this case, it's a local outpost of Soka Gakkai International 創価学会. Back in October 2006 there was only one SG flag flying from the rooftop. Now there are about 11. It seems that both the political party and so-called "Buddhist" group I've really grown to despise over the years are unfortunately flourishing in Taiwan.

Finally, though, some good news. We have found a cat!

Pamela brought him home yesterday from a veterinarian 獣医 in T'aichung (Taijhong) 台中. He's six months old, and by coincidence, his birthday is the same date as our wedding anniversary. He's still feeling nervous about his new surroundings, and Amber has been a little too enthusiastic about the newest member of our family, but I'm sure he will quickly adjust. One thing we haven't settled on yet is his name. Pamela is calling him "Happy", from the Mandarin 中国語 words "Heip'i (Heipi)" 黒皮, or "Black skin". I, on the other hand, want to name him "Neko", which is the Japanese word for "cat" 猫. Amber, meanwhile, has been calling him "Cleo", because in her eyes, he looks like one of my parents' cats. Any suggestions are welcome!

Taiwan's Shinkansen in the news 台湾の新幹線

It's been one year since Taiwan's high speed rail network began operating, and the Daily Yomiuri has an article today on the milestone:

"The Taiwan High Speed Rail train, which started operating Jan. 5, 2007, connects Taipei 台北 in the north to Kaohsiung 高雄 in the south, and by the end of last year passenger numbers had exceeded 15.55 million."

Taiwan's venture into bullet trains has attracted some attention in Japan as this is the first time that Japan's shinkansen technology has been put into use outside the country (Japan also has its fair share of trainspotters). The article points out both the successes:

"...contrary to critics' expectations, there have been no major safety errors over the last year."

and the failures:

"...on a financial level, business is bad. Passenger numbers are about half the 110,000 to 120,000 customers needed each day to generate a profit. Potential patrons complain that the train's stations are too far from the city center and that fares are too high."

I would like to ride the shinkansen one of these days, but as the story indicates, the stations are not very convenient. The closest bullet train stop to Fengyuan (Fongyuan) 豊原, for example, is in the small town of Wujih (Wurih) 烏日, outside the T'aichung (Taijhong) 台中 city limits. For us to go to T'aipei (Taibei), we would first have to take a train south to Wujih from Fengyuan, then transfer to a high-speed train for the trip north. There are shinkansen stations in Japan that are located out in the boonies, but for the most part, the connections by regular train and bus from such stops into the cities is smooth. This is most likely due to the fact that the bullet trains are part of the overall Japan Railways Group (JR). In Taiwan, the regular train service and the high speed rail are operated by separate companies in competition with each other: the Taiwan Railway Administration (TRA) 台湾鉄路管理局 for the former, and Taiwan High Speed Rail (THSR) 台湾高速鉄道 the latter. There is also the possibility that Taiwan just may be too compact for a shinkansen system to be profitable. Only time will tell.

Walking the Houfeng (Houfong) Bikeway 后豊サイクリングコース

Things have warmed up again after last week's cold snap. This, plus the continuing clear weather, and the fact that Amber has resumed her Monday water familiarization classes, led me to get out of the apartment this afternoon and go for a walk before my evening classes. Instead of heading to the familiar trails of Chung-cheng (Jhong-jheng) Park 中正公園, I opted to go for a stroll along the Houfeng Bikeway. Last October, Amber, Pamela and I rented a bicycle (if you could call it that!), and rode the 9-kilometer (5.6-mile) round-trip route in about 90 minutes http://kaminoge.livejournal.com/50023.html. Today, on foot, it took me about 2 hours to go from Fengyuan (Fongyuan) 豊原 to Houli 后里, and back to Fengyuan again. I was surprised at the number of cyclists out on a Monday afternoon, but it felt good to be out in the sunshine.

The start of the route is clearly signposted in English.

The "Iron Bridge Over Da-Jia Greek". I tried to make sense of the English wording on the sign, but you could say it was all Greek to me (rim shot).

Walking through Tunnel No. 9 wasn't as bad as I had expected. The lighting was decent, and I had the foresight to bring a flashlight along. It took about 20 minutes to walk from the tunnel entrance (just past the bridge) to the other end in Houli. Inside the tunnel are several pictures related to the train line that used to operate on this route. A couple of the displays had been taken from Japanese-language publications, and still had the Japanese captions beneath the photographs:

The wording under the photo on top reads セメント注入の準備（第九號隧道）or "Semento chūnyū no jumbi (Daikyūgō suidō)", which means "Preparation for cement injection (No. 9 Tunnel)", while the Japanese under the picture on the bottom says 抗門コンクリート施工中の第九號隧道北口 or "Kōmon konkuriito sekōchū no daikyūgō suidō kitaguchi", which can be translated into English as something like "Anti-gate concrete operations being carried out at the north entrance to the No. 9 Tunnel".

Emerging on the Houli side, I walked to the end of the trail. After a fruitless attempt at photographing trains going by on the newer west coast rail line, I retraced my steps back to Fengyuan, passing through the tunnel again, and crossing over the "Da-Jia Greek" via the iron bridge.

A paper mill 製糸工場 in the distant haze.

After returning to my scooter, I headed for home. On the way, I paused to take a couple of pictures of this Taoist temple 道観 called Taming Kung (Daming Gong) 大明宮. The only thing of note about this temple is that my mother-in-law 義理の母 often helps out here on auspicious days.

A walk through Miaotung (Miaodong) 廟東で歩いていた

Miaodong video 1

Miaodong video 2

I took these videos a few months ago, but only now just got around to posting them on my page at Veoh. Miaotung is a narrow street adjacent to Fengyuan's (Fongyuan) 豊原 main Matsu (Mazu) 媽祖 temple, and is full of small food stands. On weekday evenings and weekends, the street can be packed with people (Miaotung is probably Fengyuan's one and only claim to fame among the Taiwanese populace). The film quality isn't that good, and the images are shaky at times (I was holding the digital camera in the palm of my hand in a feeble attempt at surreptitious filming), but they do give you an idea of how crowded and noisy things can get in a small Taiwanese city (and this was taken before the evening dinner rush).