Tag Taiwan
The view in front of me is the same as every day at this time: in the distance a jumbled row of apartment buildings; in the middle distance, a deserted parking lot; in the foreground, an unused train platform, weeds sprouting from the the cracks and a pedestrian walkway suspended above it. The sky is a pale, listless blue, intermingled white and grey clouds scuding across it. The light from the setting sun, filtered through a light drizzle, steeps the world in a strange yellow hue and fills the air with a vague sense of foreboding. Foreboding of what, I … Read the rest
When I woke up this morning, I felt like going out to do something, but at the same time didn’t really have any plans for where to go. So me and Yini took it easy for a little while, then took the lazy mans option, and drove out in the car instead of with the motorbike. We headed east towards the mountains with a semi clear goal in our minds but no map. We followed road signs in roughly the right direction but took a wrong turn somewhere and ended going more or less the wrong way. Luckily we found … Read the rest
This weekend, me and Yini have done a real land travel journey, the most interesting part of which was the journey itself, not so much the destination. The destination was Erlin and Yini’s parents house. I’ve been there several times before and though it’s nice, I kind of know what to expect by now. Yini’s mom will make lots of food for me, her dad will serve me tea and discuss some topic which is simple enough for my level of Chinese, and her nephews will use me as a sort of toy.
Like I said, getting there was more … Read the rest
Now, I do not condone people pulling up their smartphones and filming the scene of an accident rather than helping the victim (this is a real problem, look it up). However, I do understand people engaging in disaster tourism, such as the people going to see the wreck of the Costa Concordia; destruction is exciting, like an action movie, the problem is that real disasters often entail real loss of life. When there are no people involved however (Mythbusters blowing something up, an abandoned house deteriorating and so on), I enjoy a bit of destruction as much as the net … Read the rest
I’m on a motorcycle, not a scooter this time but a proper one, with manual gearbox and all. I’m sitting upright on the loaf of bread saddle, bright green gas tank up front, gripped between my thighs for stability. I come to a part of the road where the vegetation on the side gives way and you get a view out over the fields. As I do, the orange glow of the setting sun lights up my face and I can see the world in front of me in splendid colors. At that moment, and for one moment only, I … Read the rest
I have driven up to the north coast of Taiwan several times the last few months, each time thinking to myself “wow, the coast road her is nice, I must drive it one day”. That one day turned into this weekend, and drive became ride a scooter. Starting Friday afternoon, I picked Yini up at Taoyuan train station. We rode through Taoyuan county, passing Anders street in the outskirts of Taipei and up into the mountains. Normally, it is pretty stressful to ride on the mountain road in the dark, but these were surprisingly easy. We stopped by in the … Read the rest
My brother has been studying in Hong Kong for a few months now and, having some time left by, he came to visit last weekend. Naturally me and Yini wanted to show him around a bit, so we went for a couple of rather long drives, both on Saturday and Sunday. During our little outings we kept stopping here and there to check out some interesting sights. We started with a gigantic Buddha statue by a lake in the Hsinchu mountains. The Buddha is part of the temple complex of a Buddhist organisation called Universal Family. We were shown around … Read the rest
Spring in Taiwan happens to be the season for two things, namely Tong flowers, the Taiwanese counterpart to Japanese sakura, and fireflies. Despite a slight drizzle, me, Yini and our friend Kai decided to go out hunting for both. We started by driving north east until white blotches among the green of the mountains told us tong trees were abundant. We got out of the car and walked around for a bit, finding the ground littered with white blossoms.
A couple of the flowers 
They are everywhere 
Someone had made a heart, I’m not romantic enough
Having strolled around for … Read the rest
Umbrellas in our hands to shield us against the rain, we walk down a small dirt road in the dark. Save for a few burst from the flashlight to make sure we don’t veer off into the undergrowth, it is near perfect dark. A deep, blueish grey mist hangs over the mountain, the beam from the flashlight spreads a diffuse white glow around us. Against this misty background, the profiles of trees rise up from the shadowy undergrowth, black shapes on a dark background. Among all these half visible shadows are dazzling lights, hundreds of small, florescent dots, lighting up … Read the rest
We follow a small mountain road until we reach a fork, I take the left, which seems to be the main road, but my girlfriend points out it might be wrong, so I back up and turn right. We are now faced with a muddy, broken piece of road undergoing repairs. Gingerly I inch the car forward and, like a little donkey it takes us past without a hitch. It seems this short stretch of roadworks has transported us off the relative comfort of Taiwanese roads to a more remote area a South American jungle. The road is narrow and … Read the rest