Hanjié's Blog

Night in an aquarium

2011-11-03T00:53:00.000+08:00

The National Museum of Marine Biology and Aquarium is the biggest aquarium in Taiwan and it’s located in Checheng, Pingtung County just about 20 km from the famous southern Taiwan water recreation area of Kenting. There are 3 themed exhibit areas: Waters of Taiwan; Coral Kingdom Pavilion and World Waters Pavilion. Opened to the public all year round, the aquarium closes daily at 17:00/18:00.

Now you can stay overnight in the aquarium, sleeping with fishes, penguins or seals. The night in the NMMBA is organized and operated by Hi-Scene World Enterprise Co, LTD. It’s a unique experience that allows you to see the aquarium from a different perspective after hours.Giving you a unique opportunity to view the workings of the aquarium from behind the scenes, you get to experience and tour areas that are not usually open to the public as well as having the chance to experience the sea life in their nocturnal stage. As well, you get to choose what areas you would like to sleep in, next to sharks or jellyfish perhaps fall asleep watching the stingrays.

The aquarium lighting system is synchronized with the natural environment so if you expect to fall asleep with fish swimming around you maybe disappointed. Except for this, I highly recommend to sleep over at the aquarium and experience the wonder yourself.

Reservation and Payment: reservations must made 3 days in advance

Online: go to the website: http://www.aquarium.com.tw/d_p2.php (IE only!)
Fax: Call +886-8-8825678 to check the availability, then fill out the reservation form (Download here) and fax it with the postal remittance to +886-8-8825061. (postal remittance account number: 42079414, Name: 海景世界企業股份有限公司)

Cost: Year 2011

Cost Region	6 years older (include)	3-6 years old	Younger than 3 years old
Waters of Taiwan	NT$1,980	NT$990	Free of charge
Polar sea	NT$1,980	NT$990
The sea otter of aquariun	NT$1,980	NT$990
*Wale pool	NT$1,980	NT$990
*Sunken ship adventure	NT$1,980	NT$990
Underwater tunnel	NT$2,380	NT$990
* Sunken ship adventure and Wale pool regions are opened for registration only by FAX Birth certificates are needed for children younger than 6 years old

Detail schedule:

Day 1
15：00-15：30   Registration
15：30-15：50   Deposit luggage
15：50-16：10   Introduction of the aquarium and schedule
16：10-17：10   Exhibition halls guided tour
17：10-18：00   Eco-tour of the tidal flat
18：00-19：00   Dinner
19：00-22：00   Visit back stage of the Pacific water square
                              Feeding jelly fish
                              Night tour of the Coral Kingdom Pavilion
                              Handy craft making
                              Shower
                              Snack
22：20~               Sleeping time

Day 2
07：00 ~               Wake up call
07：30-09：00    Breakfast
09：00-09：30    Feeding show at the Pacific Water Square
09：30-09：50    Souvenir & Receipt
09：50-11：00    Free tour
11：00~                Goodbye

Kinmen

2011-10-04T19:48:00.002+08:00

Kinmen or Jinmen is a small achipelago of several islands located 210km west of Taiwan; the closest distance to Chinese territory, Jiaoyu, is only 1.8km. The Han Chinese immigration started as early as the Jin Dynasty (317) when 6 families fled from a war in mainland China. The first administrative machinery was setup during the Tang Dynasty (803) when Chen Yuan was assigned as the administrator to supervise horse raising in this wasteland with 12 families. In the Ming Dynasty (1387), the formal name of the island, Wuzhou, was changed to Jinmen, the golden gate, as a fortress was setup to guard the east-south coastline of Fujian. The islands were used as a base for military training by Koxinga in the mid 16th century and it was one of the front-lines of civil war R.O.C against China after WWII. The islands were a military reserved for 21 years, and it was returned to the civilian government in the mid-1990s, after which travel to and from it was allowed. Given its geo-location and history, Kinmen developed a unique fusion culture that is reflected in the architecture, scenery, dinning and life style.

At first glance, I was amazed by the well preserved traditional southern Fujian building style houses in each village that is rarely found in Taiwan today. I walked into the village and spent time looking around, the western extended windows, angel sculptures on walls, baroque style architecture with stone lions in front, etc that is like looking at a giant Xmas tree being decorated with glinted balls and a bagua on the top, weird but somehow in harmony. And the fusion of Chinese and western styles was not an influence by outsiders but the residents who went to south asia for business and brought back money and the local culture.

During the war, there were about 100,000 soldiers who called Kinmen home, nowadays only about 5000 soldiers remain, garrisoning the islands. The once battlefields are now taking off their guard and transforming into a unique national park that is filled with a military atmosphere. Kinmen has the highest road density in the county built under military control; veering off the main concrete roads to unpaved trails that were trampled out by soldiers, I found fortresses hidden in the forest and a lot of them were deserted leaving bunkers standing still, watching over the sea. Beach is a delightful alternative while traveling in Kinmen, even though water activities seem to be still restricted. It's rare to see a person on any beach. The enormous tidal flat extends hundreds of meters from the shore to the open sea; it's a million dollar view all for yourself. Layers of spike sticks lay along the beach add contrast to the tranquility, the once anti landing fortification becomes a great oyster farm, It's the specialty only seen in Kinmen.

The people’s liberation army forces began an intense artillery bombardment against Kinmen on August 23rd, 1958. A half million artillery shells were fired in 44 days, the event is known as the 823 Artillery Bombardment. The bombardment actually lasted for 21 years as China kept firing artillery every other day till a diplomatic relationship between China and the US was established in 1979. The event not only made steel knives one of the famous souvenirs in Kinmen as they are made from the endless supply of bomb steel fired by China, but also created the massive underground tunnel network on the island. The A-shaped waterways of Zhaishan tunnel is probably the most visited in Kinmen. The tunnel was closed and abandoned in 1986 due to lack of manpower and money to save the tunnels from accumulated sand. The Kinmen national park headquarters took over from military in 1997 and opened it to the public. The depth of water in the tunnel could be very deceitful when the granite reflection is mirrored on the still water, creating an illusion. An annual music festival is held in the tunnel that softens the harshness of the place.

Getting around:
There is a car rental service in the airport. GuanCheng car rental tel: 0933278713 , opening hours: 07:30-19:30. Price: motorcycle: NT$400/day; car: 1cc for NT$1/day. There bus information can be found here: http://ebus.kinmen.gov.tw/KinmenE/index.html

Accommodation:
The Kinmen national park headquarters singed a contract with the owners of traditional southern Fujian building style houses in the villages. In the contract, the owners give rights to the organization to use the properties for 30 years and in return the houses will be renovated and returned to the owners when the contract is expired. The renovated houses will be listed in a public bidding and the winning tenderer can operate the houses as a museum, restaurant, bar or B&B, based on the bidders' presenting proposals. It's a shame not to stay in one of these houses overnight. The list of B&B can be found at http://guesthouse.kmnp.gov.tw/ (Chinese only). My recommendations: Piano Piano, in Zhushan village, tel:082-372866; 0988-182-832; Visit Kinmen Guest House in ShanHau, tel: 082-352058. If you prefer to check in a hotel, Haifu is my recommendation.

Eating
Eating in Kinmen could be a problem for backpackers who are traveling alone. A lot of restaurants are still used to serving dishes in large proportions because they became used to serving large groups of soldiers. For example, you have to order at least 30 pan-fried dumplings in Chengkong dumpling. There is no nightlife in Kinmen, the only pub is the White Lion that is owned by a wonderful Irish couple. In fact, it is the only place I know of that serves home made french fries with vinegar.

Note:
As some of the beaches are currently being cleared of mines, especially in Lieyu, do not wander off into areas that have barbed wire and "Danger Mine" signs. I spoke to one of the people working on mine sweeping, a nice guy from Mozambique, who said they should be finished clearing the area in about 2 years.

View Kinmen in a larger map

Taijiang National Park

2011-09-09T21:43:00.000+08:00

In 2001 the local government proposed that Sicao Wildlife Refuge be turned into a national park. Following years of campaigning, communication and research, the National Park Planning Committee approved the 「Taijiang National Park Plan」 draft that included part of Cigu Township in a national park in its 83rd meeting on June 29, 2009. The area was approved as Taiwan’s eighth national park by the Executive Yuan on September 28 and the formal announcement made on October 15. The national park headquarter was opened on December 12 the same year, signaling that the park had begun operating.

The park has a total area of 39,310 hectares. Land area includes public land from Tainan City’s Yanshui River to the Zengwen River, Tainan black-faced spoonbill Reserve and Cigu Lagoon, covering 4095. The main focuses of planning are protecting wetlands bio-diversity, and relics from the settlement of the area and the salt industry. The sea area portion of the park encompasses the coastal waters to a depth of 20 meters. The area is about 5 kilometers wide and about 54 kilometers long from the Yanshuei River to the south end of Tungchi Island. It was the main water route for early Han Chinese settlers crossing from Tungchi Island to Luerhmen. The sea area makes up an area of 34,405 hectares.

Was it because the Taijiang National Park was the only national park in Taiwan that was proposed and campaigned by the local government instead of the central government or was it because of its vast coverage that diminished the highlights in the park? I traveled hundreds of kilometers to the east of Taiwan for Taroko National Park yet the idea of paying a visit to the national park that is right in my backyard has never occurred to me. Actually, that is not exactly correct; I visited the Sichao green tunnel and the black-faced spoonbill preservation area years ago before the national park plan was even heard, but somehow the beauty of the scenery didn’t imprint on my mind.

A video, Time for Taiwan—My Beautiful Island, produced by Michael Fimognari was broadcast worldwide this year that had caught my attention. The green tunnel in Sichao looks so peaceful in the video so I took a day off and visited the tunnel trying to figure out how did I ever overlook such a beauty. The tranquility of cruising in the green tunnel formed by mangroves was lost in the tour guide’s noise amplified through the loudspeaker then I realized the tranquility in the video was a result of reduction: the loss of audio stimulation intensifies the visual impact. Then I saw the beauty and the value of the Taijiang National Park:
“the main focuses of planning are protecting wetlands bio-diversity, and relics from the settlement of the area and the salt industry”.

The seven links

2011-07-26T20:35:00.000+08:00

I am nominated by Lief in Taiwan for the 7 links project. The goal of the project is to "unite bloggers (from all sectors) in a joint endeavor to share lessons learned and create a bank of long but not forgotten blog posts that deserve to see the light of day again". I've lost track of how many posts that I had published and what the posts were about. The nomination gives me a chance to look back at what I had published via the 7 categories and here are my seven:

1. The most beautiful: Old Buildings New Spirits

Someone once said "everything new is beautiful". In the blog 'old buildings new spirits', I attempted to capture the beauty that still resides in some old and discarded places when they are given a renewed purpose in use. The effect captured a resonance in time and meaning that I found quite beautiful, inspiring and enjoyable.

2. The most popular: Black Card Photography I

Of all my blog posts, this one is far and away the most popular in terms of 'hits' and 'citations'. Much to my surprise it found its niche audience, specifically for people who are interested in this photo technique.

3. The most controversial:Traditional Chinese and Simplified Chinese
The never ending story of what kind of Chinese is best to use and how a founding member of the UN lost its position. This post was so controversial that it was blocked in China at that time.

4. The most helpful: Nikon picture control
This blog allows Nikon DSLR camera owners to design their own picture controls in a step by step guide that was most helpful to interested users.

5. A post whose success surprised me: South Tainan Station

This has been on my top ten list for a long time and I still can't figure out why? Color me surprised! Who knew that a post about an old train station would have so many people jumping on board.

6. A post that didn't get the attention it deserved: Human flesh search invasion
Electronic lynchings are all the rage says Mr. Murdoch, yet for some reason this post didn't get much attention. Maybe next time I should include anonymous.

7. The post that I am most proud of: Plitvice Lakes National Park

I have to credit the natural beauty of this area for making it my choice. The stunning beauty found in this part of Croatia makes me want to return time and again.

My nominations:
1. Fili's world
Full of great travel links, Fili has a passion and it shows in his blog.

2. Traveling Hawk
Many wonderful experiences but you have to translate it from Romanian

3. On pine street
Creative writing blog that can help you with writing

4. Tainan City Guide
Some place you can find information about Tainan

5. Craig Ferguson Images
Wonderful pics and tips

Blame it on the Moon

2011-06-16T05:09:00.002+08:00

I had a dream about the eclipse this morning: at the moment when the full eclipse took place, the blood red moon turned into a bright glowing orb in the sky emitting rainbow colors like a Sun. I took a video camera and filmed this unusual phenomenon then I blogged about it with the words "vampires would shed tears of joy as the day-walker is released from its intangible dream, it only takes a full lunar eclipse once in a blue moon" as my last sentences.

Sun Moon Lake Scenic Area

2011-04-27T00:12:00.001+08:00

Sun Moon Lake is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Taiwan. The Sun Moon Lake Scenic Area Administration hosts a website containing the most informative resources about the area you can find online. However, I am turned off by the swarms of Chinese tourists, aggressive boat ticket sellers soliciting everyone in the parking area, and invincible tourist guides who would stop the traffic in the middle of a road in order to get a short cut to restaurants for their groups regardless the traffic laws. Nevertheless, the beauty of Sun Moon Lake keeps me going back on a yearly basis.

The magic power of Sun Moon Lake is best felt at dawn, before it is surrounded by tourists. The lake is protected by the surrounding hills. At dawn, before the sun has risen, the still water and hills shrouded in mists cast a charm of tranquility that is like being projected into a masterpiece of Chinese brush painting where time stand still. The mesmerizing spell is broken by the rays of the sun that disperse mists among the hills and unveil the golden hue of swift mists on the surface of the lake. From a distance, the wake of a rowing boat disturbs the reflections on the mirror-like lake, turning the fairytale land into reality.

You can find all the information you need for a trip to Sun Moon Lake on the website mentioned above. Most of the tourist groups skip the trails that are the quintessence of the area. Here is my version of a 2 day itinerary.

Day 1: Toushe Basin --> Syuanguang Temple --> Ci En Pagoda --> Syuentzang Temple --> Ita Thao (lunch and feel the crowds)--> Ita Thao Lakeside trail --> Shueiwatou Nature Trail --> Dajhuhu Nature Trail--> Wenwu Temple --> Maolan Mountain firefly sighting (only during mid April to mid May)--> Shueishe pier (accommodation, book a room with a lakeside view in advance)

Day 2: Shueishe pier sun rise --> Shueishe lake side trail --> Hanbi trail --> Paper Dome --> Make by Iron

Recommended Nearby Scenic Attractions

Toushe Basin is located at the west-south tip of the Sun Moon Lake and its peat soil makes it glint like a star next to the bright lights of Sun Moon Lake. Peat soil in the lake area is formed of decomposed vegetation. It is mostly organic, with a small proportion of mud, and rich in humic acid with a pH value of about 3.6. The peat in Toushe Basin is about 60 meters deep and covers an area about 175 hectares. The ground of Toushe Basin bounces like a water bed, as a result all man made artifacts are built at the edge of the basin. It is an unique experience walking on it. Follow the signs for Red Wood B&B (紅木農莊; GPS: 23.83103, 120.90389) on HuanHu road and you will find the bouncing earth that I filmed below:

The great Hanshin earthquake in Kobe/Japan on Jan. 17th 1995 destroyed more than 200,000 buildings including the Takatori Church. To build a temporary home for the community meeting house, architect Shigeru Ban raised funds and recruited 160 volunteers, most of them were college students, to build the house that is made of paper. The project started in July and was completed on September 17th, 1995. Inspired by Bernini's churches, 58 paper pillars (5m in length, 33cm in diameter, 15 mm in thickness) were arranged in an oval-shape that were sheltered in a rectangular fiberglass form.

The New Home Land Foundation (an organization that's dedicated to post 9-21 earthquake community reconstruction ) heard that the paper church that had served not only as a temporary meeting house but also a spiritual asylum for the community was about to be torn-down and relocation to rebuild the Takatori church when participating in the 10th anniversary memorial ceremony of the great Hanshin earthquake. The chairman proposed to relocate the paper church to Nantou/Taiwan where the epicenter of the 9-21 earthquake was in 1999. The proposal was accepted and the paper church was shipped to Taiwan in July, 2005. The paper church reassembling was completed and opened to the public on September 21st, 2008 in Tao-Mi Eco-village, Puli township.

Entrance fee: NT$100, exchangable voucher
Opening hours: Sun-Fri: 09:00-20:00; Sat and National holidays: 09:00-21:00
Address: No. 52-12, Taomi lane, Taomi village, Puli township, Nantou county (GPS: 23.94143, 120.92703)

Make By Iron (金剛基地) is the base of Autobots in Taiwan. Inspired by the movie Transformers, Mr. Liang gave up his job as a gardener and built a Bumblebee, Optimus Prime and some transformers out from the car parts for his son. The base was opened for public on Jan. 23rd, 2011, with an entrance fee NT$30 which can deduct expenses in the base. (Address: 200, Chungshan rd sec. 4th, Puli township, Nantou County; Opening hours: 10:00-17:30; Tue. off)

Photo-trio

2011-04-11T23:41:00.002+08:00

I got this weekend free so I drove around Tainan and visited a few places that I always wanted to go but had never been. This is my photo-trio.

Cigu Salt Mountain is the monument that stands for the glory of salt making of old times. Under the promotion of tourism, Cigu salt fields usually overshadow the other salt fields in Tainan, but when it comes to the best quality of salt made in Taiwan, Beimen salt stands out unanimously. Jing Zai Jiao tile paved salt field (井仔腳瓦盤鹽田) was the first salt farm in Beimen District, Tainan, to use a tile base for drying the seawater.The saltworks started operation in 1818 and the area for salt drying in Beimen county was as big as 360 hectares in 1980. However, the high cost of manpower for making salt in Taiwan is becoming unaffordable and the Beiman salt fields were shut down in 2000. Jing Zai Jiao tile paved salt field is the only salt field kept for tourism purposes and the salt crystals glint in the sunset making it a great spot for photography.

Built during the 23rd year of the reign of Jiacing in the Cing dynasty (A.D. 1818), the Jingzaijiao Tiled Salt Fields were formerly known as Laidong Salt Fields.The site was originally a barren desert. Lying on the sandy beach is a small sand dune, where underground water gushes out from low-lying ground forming a well-like structure. The name, Jiingzaijiao, was essentially derived from this particular landscape formation. To prevent salt crystals from attaching to the soil, salt miners at Pottery Dish Salt Field manually laid out broken debris of pottery onto the crystallizing ponds of salt fields. This approach resulted in purer and clearer salt being mined. Under the sunshine, the Pottery Salt Pan displays a resplendent, mosaic like pattern. These features make it a unique cultural landscape of the homeland of salt. Today, it has become an excellent site for tourists to experience salt drying.
http://www.swcoast-nsa.gov.tw:2480/en/02_tour/scenery_view.aspx?sn=155

Oyster farm is the most common scene in Cigu but the z-shaped oyster stands with the sun setting in a perfect location makes this spot a popular site for sunset black card photography. It's not an easy location to find, I drove back and forth about one hour, asked a few fishermen and still couldn't find it. It wasn't until I cross referenced with internet information and the google map with iphone to locate this spot. If you are interested, check on the map below for details.

Tainan Science Park public art space features the "yellow ribbon" at a cost of NT$300 million, (US$10 million) it's worth taking a look at just because of the price.
* lights up sometime after 19:00.

View Photo-trio in a larger map

E-Da World

2011-03-07T22:11:00.000+08:00

Located in Da Shu District, Kaohsiung City, E-Da world is a community that incorporates recreation, education, estate development and health care. E-United group, in cooperation with Eliter Corp, spent 25 years planing and constructing and invested more than 50 billion to build a community that has 2 hotels (Crowne Plaza and E-Da Skylark Hotel), the biggest outlet shopping mall in Taiwan, the first Greek themed amusement park, E-Shu University and international high school, Eliter Estate (Earl's District) and its own public transportation. E-Da World was test operated on June 19th, 2010 and the grand opening was on December 18th, 2010.

I visited E-Da world during the new year holidays and checked in to the Crowne Plaza. Off the freeway No.1, the width of roads to E-Da world started from 3 lanes each direction down to a 1 lane winding mountain road, with the new year crowds I was amazed that I didn't get stuck in traffic. After parking, I gave up on checking into my room because of the crowds in the Crowne Plaza lobby and headed to the outlet mall (Mon-Fri: 11:00-22:00; weekend/holidays: 10:00-22:00). The 19 thousand meter square outlet mall is divided into 3 sections. Section A, 7 floors and a ferris wheel on the roof (NT$200; free ride if you have a ticket to the amusement park), sells designers collections, interior decor and housewares. Section B, 2 floors, has a Fontana di Trevi replica and painted dome that attracts most of the attention in the mall. The roof of section B is an open-air market and restaurants where live performances take place every night. Section C, 6 floors, is where all the fun starts. Rock climbing, ice skating, baseball, basketball and a movie theater. This section is also the ticketing and entrance of the amusement park.

E-Da theme park (NT$890, 09:30-19:30; NT$ 650 after 15:00; tickets sold before 17:30) is the first Greece themed amusement park in Taiwan, the park is built according to the Acropolis, Santorini Mountain City and Trojan Castle styles. Acropolis has an extravagant opera theatre that can accommodate 1800 guests. Santorini mountain city creates an illusion of being actually in Greece. The giant wooden horse in front of the Trojan Castle recreates the scene of the famous story that has been told for thousands of years. In the castle, flying over Taiwan simulates hangliding over scenaries of Taiwan. There are 47 recreation facilities in the park including an U shaped roller coaster, a spin that goes up to 55 meters above ground and a roller coaster goes into water, etc. This is the place where you can have fun untill you throw up.

I went back to the Crowne Plaza Hotel and was suprised by the crowds in the lobby waiting to check in at 18:00. I've never seen anything like this: guests in every counter of the reception were complaining about the sluggish checkin procedure; a woman was screaming at the manager, it was so loud that everyone in the lobby could hear her and a group were taken into the manager room as they were banging on the table; people who waited in lines were total strangers but acted as they were the best comrades and were planing a riot. I waited an hour and finally it was my turn. After checking my reservation and ID the receptionist told me that my room was not ready yet and suggested that I should have dinner first and come back later! I asked the receptionist to send my key to me at the Italian restaurant in the hotel, 30 mins later, my key was sent to my table and my room was upgraded.

Despite the incident of checking-in, the hotel amenities of Crowne Plaza were fabulous. Water fountain show right next to the restaurants, sauna, swining pool, gym and espresso café machine in the room..., it was a great acommodation.

Transportation: shuttle buses commute between Taiwan High Speed Rail Zuoying station and E-Da World (NT$37; 06:20-23:00, timetable in details),

2011 Taiwan International Orchid Show

2011-03-06T01:07:00.000+08:00

The 2011 Taiwan International Orchid Show (TIOS) is now taking place at the Taiwan Orchid Plantation in the Huobi District of Tainan City. I bought a pre-ordered ticket from 7-11 ibon (NT$90; the full price for an adult is NT$150) and drove about 50km from Tainan city to the venue. I was affraid that I'd be traped in the traffic and would end up seeing nothing but tourists at the exhibition but to my surprise, the traffic was smooth and the venue was well organized: cars were directed to drive in from one direction and out from the other; parking lots were set far away from the exhibition and lots of shuttle buses were taking visitors back and forth seamlessly. I got to take some amazing photos of even more amazing orchids.

Magnificent landscaping made from all kinds of orchids can be found right at the entrance of the gallery that also exhibits the wining orchids to welcome visitors. this gallery is the highllight of the orchid show. The well designed exhibition and tour routes allow an enjoyable tour despite the crowds. The grand champion of this year is Prince Edward of York, a Paohiopedilum.

The show will continue from March 5 to the 14th at the Taiwan Orchid Plantation (325, Wushulin, Wushu Village, Houbi Dist, Tainan) from 09:00-18:00.
Info: www.tios.com.tw

Sio business dormitory

2011-02-16T22:15:00.000+08:00

In 1899, the salt monopoly policy was implemented by Japanese Government in Taiwan and the Taiwan Monopoly Bureau was founded in 1901. In 1919, Taiwan Salt Manufacture Co. was founded for manufacturing salt exclusively in Taiwan and in 1922, the Anping office, one of the 4 salt factories in Tainan, was set up and a building complex including a salt making laboratory ,vacuum distillation factories, warehouses and a dormitory was built. The complex was used as a experimental salt factory and salt re-distributing office during Japanese colonial period and the vacuum distillated salt was the great achivement. The vacumn distillation factory was destroyed in WW II and the building was used as a dormitory by Taiwan Salt Co. Inc. retirees. The Ministry of Economic Affairs took back the building and recognized the deserted dormitory as a city grade historical site in 2003. A renovation project was started in 2008 and completed in February 2010. The building is now operating by Hwang Sun Enterprise Co. Ltd. under the BOT contract, called Sio Business Dormitory (Xi You Chu Zhang Suo, 夕遊出張所, as sio is the Japanese pronounciation for salt and Chu Zhang Suo is a business dormitory)

The architecture is a combination of Japanese and western styles. The 2 wooden buildings are connected with a roofed corridor in a formation of L shape. The roof of the entrance was built in hankirizuma-zukuri style; extending from the main building, a style of western balcony. The windows are counterpoised, you can easily stop the windows in any position. In the building, looking up, timbers were arranged in a crisscross pattern, a traditional Japanese roofing style; one room is elevated and covered with tatamis emitting a dense Japanese atmosphere.

Given the history of the building, Sio business dormitory exhibits lots of salt sculptures in the room like the 12 Chinese Zodiac and Jadeite Cabbage with Insects.

366 different colored salt (one for Feb. 29th) is displayed in the lobby, you can find your birthday salt and a card explaining your characteristics.

Boiled egg is coated with white salt and shaped like a steam bun (NT$30).

Address: 196, Gubao St, Anping rd, Anping district, Tainan
Tel: 06-3911088
Opening hours: weekdays: 11:00-19:00; weekend: 10:00-20:00, Monday off.
Entrance is free

Fo Guang Shan & Shen Wei Tian Tai Shan

2011-02-13T10:07:00.000+08:00

During the Chinese New Year, I visited Fo Guang Shan and Shen Wei Tian Tai Shan I Kuan Tao. If you want to know more about Fo Guang Shan and I Kuan Tao , I embeded the links in the texts.

Happy Rabbit Year!!

Tai Sui Culture

2011-02-04T10:36:00.000+08:00

By observing the position of stars in the sky, Chinese astronomers discovered the regular pattern of Jupiter moving about 30 degrees every year and it takes 12 years for it to finish a celestial circle (the orbital period of Jupiter moving around the Sun is 12 years, 11.86 years to be exact). Based on this observation, Chinese astronomers divided the celestial circle into 12 sections called 12 Earthly Branches (地支) to follow the orbit of Jupiter. The ruling role of the Jupiter in ancient Chinese daily life was profound and it was recognized as the Year Star (Sui Xing, 歲星). However, Jupiter moves in a counterclockwise direction around the yellow belt (Yin direction) which is opposite from the habit used on Earth for direction. Chinese astronomers thus created a phantom star call Tai Sui (太歲) that moves in a direct opposite direction of Jupiter (in Yang direction (clockwise)) around the yellow belt with a cycle of 12 years. The twelve years of the Jupiter cycle not only identifies the phantom start "Tai Sui", but also provides the foundation of 12 Earthly Branches, the 12 Chinese Zodiac, the Chinese hour in the form of double-hours,12 directions, and the Chinese Sexagenary cycle, etc.

Tai Sui was considered as a guardian star that held the same standing as an emperor and the direction of Tai Sui was considered the direction of best luck. However, the prestige of Tai Sui is unchallengeable, the civilians don't have what it takes to get benefit from it; in contrary, it's advised to avoid facing it directly as it might offend the supreme star which could bring misfortune. It's the same idea that civilians couldn't look directly at the Emperor in ancient time. In time, the guardian role of Tai Sui was neglected and the evil influence prevailed.

Tai Sui was first recorded to be apotheosized in Eastern Han Dynasty (25–220 CE). It was until the Jin Dynasty, the Emperor Zhangzong (August 31, 1168 – December 29, 1208) started to worship his mother's natal star to pray for a fast recovery from her illness, the Tai Sui worshiping culture (An Tai Sui, 安太歲) got its popularity. Later on, 60 honorable generals were apotheosized as Tai Sui to assist the Jade Emperor (the king of all dieties) in taking charge of the well-being of the mortal world. Each of them takes turn to be in charge for a year; 60 generals (Tai Sui) match the 60 years of Sexagenary cycle.

The basic rule of An Tai Sui can be simplified as follows: each year, those whose Chinese Zodiacs are in alignment with Tai Sui/Jupiter are considered offending the Tai Sui (2 Zodiacs) while those whose Chinese Zodiacs form an angle of 45 degree from Tai Sui/Jupiter are considered conflicting the Tai Sui (2 Zodiacs). For example: this year, 2011, is a rabbit year, which means Tai Sui is orbitting upon the Rabbit Zodiac. Together with the Rooster (on the direct opposite direction of rabbit) are considered offending Tai Sui. Meanwhile, the Rat and Horse form an angle of 45 degree from the rabbit (where the Tai Sui is located) are considered conflicting Tai Sui (take a look on Tai ji and 12 Zodiacs pic for better understanding). It is advised those signs to go throught a prayer for blessing in avoidance of the evil influence of Tai Sui that might bring misforturne.

The An Tai Sui ceremony was as simple as writing down words like "The Tai Sui of this year is here" on a yellow or red paper and posted it on a wall then worshipped it with joss sticks twice a day through out the whole year. In the end of the year, the paper was torn down and burned. Nowaday, people go to temples around Chinese New Year (usually before January 15th of lunar calendar), pay some money (NT$600~1,200) and have the professionals say the prayer for them. In Taiwan, those whose Chinese Zodiacs offending/conflicting Tai Sui go to temples and write down their names and birthdays in lunar calendar (Gregorian-Lunar Calendar Conversion Table)(including the hour of birth). The information will be written on a piece of red paper and posted on a wall with a LED light lit up throughout the year (some have a buddha statu embeded in the wall). To identify the paper that has your name on it on a wall from hundreds of similar papers on it is not an easy task. The Tainan Kaiji Wu Temple (No.114, Xinmei St, Central-West District, Tainan city) introduced a system to help to locate your Tai Sui easily. You will be given a 6 digit number that is unique for your Tai Sui, keyin these digit on the locator, all LED lights on the wall will be switched off leaving only your light turned on for a while. Other temples also embrace modernization: you can pay the money via creadit card or even do it online.

Mukumugi & Taroko Gorge, Hualien

2011-01-21T23:41:00.001+08:00

Taroko Gorge
Taroko National Park is one of the signature tourist attrations in Taiwan. It's located on the east end of the Central Cross-Island Highway (Provincial Highway No. 8) in Hualien, which was the first highway that connects east and west parts of Taiwan through the majestic central mountains. The budget used to build the Central Cross-Island Highway was funded by United States and the workers were veterans who fellback from mainland China to Taiwan with the Government in 1949. The construction began on July 7, 1956, and was first opened to traffic on May 9, 1960. The 190.83 kilometer highway passing through various topographies, altitude ranged from sea level to 3,000 meters and the most beautiful/majestic sceneries on the road are riveting for the last 20 km at the east end.

Most tourist groups spend only a half day in the park to visit Eternal Spring (Changchun) Shrine Trail, Swallow Grotto (Yanzihkou) Trail and the Tunnel of Nine Turns (Jiuqudong) Trail. Everyday, after lunch, swarms of crowds diminish the stupendous workmanship of the trails. It is wise to visit these trails in the early morning when the solitude intensifies the majesty of the gorge and then you can really project yourself back to the time when the veterans doug through the marble of the mountainside. Except for the 3 most popular trails, Taroko National Park has much more to offer; you can easily spend a whole week hiking in the park on different trails as each trail has its uniqueness and it's a shame to miss one.

Recently, I spent 2 days in the park and finally visited the Shakadang Trail (4.4km/oneway; 3-4 hours/roundtrip) and Lüshui Trail (2km/oneway; one hour/roundtrip) for the very first time. A friend of mine once told me that she thought the Shakadang trail is the most beautiful trail in Taroko National Park. I have been to Taroko many times but I could never find the entrance of Shakadang trail so I stopped by the tourist center of Taroko and found the information: "The trail entrance is near the park headquarters to the west. Through the tunnel of Shakadang about 1km(0.6mile) from the headquarters, there is a Shakadang bridge connect to it. On the right of the bridge head, take the staircase down to the trailhead" (there is a small parking on the other end of the Shakadang bridge, you can park your car there and walk back to the entrance). Shakadang trail was built along the Shakadang river cliffs during Japanese colonial period in order to divert water to the Liwu hydropower plant. Thousands of years, the river cut through the gorge leaving mysterious patterns on marble that reflects on still, copper blue waters in a greenish background, such scenery earned the trail the name "Mysterious Valley Trail". I couldn't agree with my friend more, Shakadang is the most beautiful trail in the Park and it's worth spending 4 hours for a roundtrip.

The other new experience on this trip was the Lushui Trail. The history of the trail can be traced back 300 years. It was the trail used between Taroko tribes when they first settled along the Liwu river. Walking on this trail, high above the Central Cross-Island Highway, you can overlook the Lushui terrace. A suspension bridge, a tunnel with water dripping down, butterflies, bees, etc. along the way, it was an easy yet surprising trail.

More info:
Transportation: Tourist shuttle bus, Taroko route, (Time table and Fare Sheet)
Accommodation: Leader Village Taroko, Tienhsiang Youth Hostel, Silks Place Taroko, and a camping site at Lushui.
Resturant: Except for accommodation sites listed above, there are a few resturants next to the Tienhsiang bus station.

Mukumugi
Meqmegi was the name of the first Taroko tribal family who settled in this area about 300 years ago. To honor their ancestors, the tribes called this area "MGMGI" and was known as "Mukumugi", a transliteration from the Taroko tribe, by others. The place was renamed "Tongmen" (copper gate) as a copper mine was found here. Mukumugi is located in Tongmen township, Sioulin county, about 20 min driving distance from Hualien City. Compared to the famous Taroko National Park, Mukumugi is less known and visited by tourists as it was closed for public visit on May 20th, 2003 in order to restore the ecosystem. The area was re-opened 3 years later, with a 300 visitors/day restriction. The Mukumugi eco-tourism started to get the public's attention as the Taroko National Park is getting over crowded, day by day. Unlike the Shakadang trail in the Taroko National Park, Mukumugi not only offers a similar picturesque scenery but also a resort that allows vistors to have a close encounter with the nature.

More info:
Entrance permit application: go to the Tongmen police station and fill-out the form on the day of entrance (ID needed)
Free tour guide: contact the Mukumugi tourist center in advance. (Tel :03-8641822) There are two trails in the Mukumugi area. One more difficult, requires a guide. Contact tourist center for more information.

Merry Xmas and Happy New Year

2010-12-24T19:49:00.000+08:00

Merry Xmas and have a wonderful year in 2011

Taitung & highway 9 and 11

2010-12-06T22:47:00.000+08:00

The central mountains separate the east part of Taiwan from the west, leaving the east coast untouched from the modernization that changed green fields into skyscrapers. Eastern Taiwan is known as the Garden of Eden of Taiwan; It is also a place where over half the aborigines of Taiwan call home.

Taitung is located in south east Taiwan, a pit stop for travellers to Green Island and Orchid Island. Despite the fact that Han is the majority of demographic composition in Taitung city, the city is the biggest aboriginal inhabitation in Taiwan. The biggest tribe in Taitung is the Ami (about 14000 people) followed by Puyuma (4000), Paiwan (1000), Rukai, and Yami etc. The various indigenous cultures make Taitung a great city for an aboriginal encounter. The main aboriginal festival, Malikoda, is held in July and August by Ami tribe, and the Mangayau, is held by Puyuma tribe in December. For details of aboriginal festival schedules and venues, visit Taiwan's Indegenous Peoples Portal (Chinese Only). Taitung is also one of the most important archaeological sites in Taiwan; Changpin Culture, Chihlin Culture (Huge Stone Culture), and Peinan Culture are the 3 most important prehistory heritages found in Taitung. It is easy to spend 2 hours in the National Museum of Prehistory (opening hours: Tue-Sun, 09:00-17:00, NT$80/person (the ticket also gives you free access to Beinan Culture Park); audio guide avaliable for free rental / ID needed) where you can not only travel back to the prehistory but also get to know the diversity of the Austronesian Cultures in Taiwan. The water fountain show of the museum is another attraction for visitors in Taitung, the schedules are 11:00-11:20, 17:00-17:20, and 20:00-20:40.

Except for cultural festivals, there are two distinct sceneries scattering along highway 9, the rift valley line, and highway 11, the coast line, from Taitung to Hualien. There are 3 routes of tourist shuttle buses that shuttle in between the tourist attractions in Taitung City (NT$100/person, unlimited access to all 3 routes on the purchase day). The rift valley route takes highway 9 stopping by Beinan Culture park, Endemic Plant Area, Chu Lu Ranch, and Lu Ye Hill etc; whereas the offshore island route takes highway 11 stopping by Forest Park, FuGang Fishing Harbor, Shiao Ye Liou, and Water Flowing Uphill etc. The 3rd tourist bus, Taitung City route, commutes between Taitung train station and Taitung airport stopping by Forest Park, Fruit Street, and National Museum of Prehistory etc. The 3 routes cover most of the tourist attractions in Taitung, however, to really enjoy the beauty of eastern Taiwan, I highly recommend to rent a car and take a few days driving along highway 9 or 11. Day lily sightings during late July to early October attract tourists to stay overnight on the mountains, to witness the moment when the golden hue of the flowers are brought up by the first ray from the Sun, spreading outward until the whole mountain is covered in a golden glow; hot springs wash away fatigue that was built up when driving in the wandering mountain roads and ranches make cowboy dreams come true for a day, etc; these are the excitments that highway 9 has to offer. Driving on highway 11, on one side the moutains are veiled occasionally by mists that makes the landscape look even more majestic and on the other side off the cliff, the waveless shimmering water of the Pacific Ocean contrasts the mercurial mountains making the name "Pacific" appreciated.

Useful websites:
Department of culture and tourism Taitung--the official tourisim website of Taitung.
East Rift Valley Natioanl Scenic Area-- Scenic spots along highway 9
East Coast National Scenic Area-- Scenic spots along highway 11
Wikitravel Taitung-- General information

Car rental tip:
The car rental services are mostly located in a walking distance of Taitung train station (car rentals in Taitung google map). The Union Car Rental has the best price. However, if you are planing to rent a car in Taitung and return it in other cities, you should stick with the HOTAI LEASING CORPORATION(HLC) as you don't have to pay an extra fee NT$1000-3000 if a reservation is made in advance.

A 3 days Itinerary:
Day 1: Visit Gao Tai Flying Sports Park in Lu Ye for sky diving -> lunch at Taitung Yuan Sen Applied Botanical Garden--taste organic vegetables hot pot -> Chu Lu Ranch for a walk -> Beinan Culture Park -> National Museum of Prehistory -> water fountain show at 20:00 -> check in to Aboriginal Culture Hotel (cheap and clean but NO air conditioning)

Day 2: Dulan Sugar Factory -> Water flowing uphill -> Shiao Ye Liu -> Fugang Fishing Harbor for seafood lunch -> Zhiben Forest Recreation Area -> check in one of the hot spring hotels.

Day 3: Day lily sighting on Jean Zen mountain in Taimali (late July to early October only) -> Taitung Forest Park bicycle riding (you can rent the bicycle at the Taitung Aboriginal Culture Hotel) -> Taitung Railway Art Village.

Green Island

2010-11-29T23:40:00.005+08:00

Green island (綠島, Lyu dao) is a small vocanic island located about 33km off the eastern coast of Taiwan. The island was originally inhabited by Ami aborigines who called it Sanasai, meaning the birth place of ancestors. A fisherman, Chen bi Xian, who led the village from Xiao Lu Chou first settled down on the island in 1803 and the Han immigration started. The island was called "Huo Shao Dao" (fire-burned island) in the begining of 19 century (Chin Dynasty) and renamed "Green Island" by the magistrate of Taitung in 1949. There are several versions of stories about how the island was called fire-burned island including the residents would light up torches on the hill of the island to guide fishing boats to a safety return before there was a light house; a wild fire burned down the half island; and the red soil was exposed because the vegetation on the island was destroyed by typhoon in summmer or cold fronts in the winter time creating an illusion from the distance.

Surrounded by Pacific Ocean, the island is an ideal isotated spot for outlaws, and the island was noted as a place that held the most dangerous exiles of Taiwan. There were two prisons on the island: the Green Island Prison that used to lock up the most brutal gansters is still functioning as a prision today; the Green Island Lodge where most of the political prisoners were held during the white terror is now opened to the public for visit.

Green island has one of the three sea bed hot springs in the world (one in Japan and the other in Italy) that attracts a lot of sea bed hot spring afficionado worldwide. The hot spring is located in a tidal flat, in the eastsouth of the island, a perfect spot for sunrise. Sitting in the ocean and feeling the heat of the hot spring surrounding you as the first ray of sun appears is a unique experience.

Except for the sea bed hot spring and exotic vocanic landscape, the underwater world is the jewel of green island. There are over 300 different species of coral in green island including a 13 meter tall Porites lobata that has lived in the Shrlang area for over 1200 years. Every summer the black current brings many different species of fish to the area making it the high season for tourism.

Video by Yang Zhe Ren, National Museum of Marine Biology & Aquarium.

Transportation:
To the island:
By ferry: NT$ 920/person for a return ticket. Take a ferry at Fugang harbor in Taitung City, check in 30min before departure. You can find the schedule and book a ticket online at http://www.ezboat.com.tw/ (Chinese only).
By air: NT$ 1028/person for an one way ticket. Take a plane at the Taitung airport; there are 3 flights a day by daily air; flight schedule.

On the island:
Motocycle is the best transportation to move around the island, NT$350/day, or you can take one of the tourist buses that depart at 08:00, 09:00, 10:00, 11:00, 14:00, 15:00, 16:00 and 17:00 at the Nanliao Harbor. The bus clockwisely circumnavigates the island, it also makes brief stops at tourist attractions of the island and the bus final stop is the Nanliao Harbor. It takes about 2 hours for a bus trip, NT$100/person. ( for details call 089-671272)

Accommodation:
There are a lot of B&B on Green Island, most of them provide a package tour (about NT$2000 to 250 per person) including one room, green island return tickets, motocycle, snorkeling/ glass boat/ hot spring, night tour for wild sika deer sighting, etc. you can find out more by surfing the B&B info in the following websites:
http://www.gbnb.com.tw/
http://www.yoyogreenisland.com.tw/

Diving:
http://diving.okgo.tw/
http://blog.yam.com/black481861
http://www.089672010.tw/

South Tainan Station

2010-09-26T17:18:00.002+08:00

Yong Kang (永康) and Bao An (保安) Stations are the two most famous stations in Tainan and the reason those two stations obtained fame is weaved in their names. Departing from Yong Kang to Bao An (South bound), you can read the station names printed on the ticket counterclockwise (clockwise for North bound; Bao an to Yong Kang) and it’s read Yong Boa An Kang (永保安康) which means ‘safe and healthy forever’ so the ticket is a popular collectable in Taiwan. Being one of the stations in the Tainan Urban District Underground Railway Project (details below), the long forgotten South Tainan Station is remembered again.

Located in an alleyway next to the parking lot of the Abab hotel at Datong road and Goumin road intersection, the South Tainan Station was built in 1943 for unloading reserve supplies for the air force base nearby. It’s 2.67km south of the Tainan Station and that’s how it got the name. The station was destroyed during the WWII and the building now standing was rebuilt in 1950. The station was left unused since 1991and was entrusted to the East district office for maintenance in 2006. In 2010, the Station was transformed from a station to a lounge bar under the 5 year BOT (Build-Operate-Transfer ) contract with the government and started doing business this summer.

The wooden roof, windows that used to sell tickets and two mileposts etc were kept in the renovation. Awards, documents, staff uniforms and railway badges are displayed in the building, it feels like walking into a railway museum instead of a lounge bar at the first glance. Sitting at the outdoor area, a cool beer in hand watching trains passing by, punctuality is not required anymore as leisure is the atmosphere of the station. I imagine passengers aboard passing trains would feel the desire to stop and get off as they see the station now.

Address: 111, lane 635, Datong rd, sec. 2, Tainan City
Phone: 0926176815
Opening hours: Sun-Thu: 19:00-02:00 with minimun expense NT$150/person, Fri-Sat :19:00-03:00 with minumum expense NT$200/person.

Further reading: The Tainan Urban District Underground Railway Project on MOTC News

In order to balance regional development, help integrate the transportation system, improve the quality of the environment, and solve the problem of increased traffic caused by the city’s socioeconomic development, the Tainan City Government and the former Taiwan Provincial Government conducted research on the feasibility of railway grade separation in 1993. In 1995, an overall plan was formulated for the Tainan Urban District Underground Railway Project (referred to as “Tainan Project”); in 1999, planning was continued by our bureau’s former Taichung and Tainan Office (changed on July 1, 2009 to the “Central Region Engineering Office”). On September 9, 2009, the project was approved by the Executive Yuan with a total budget of $29.36 billion NT (87.5%, or $25.69 billion, paid by the central government, and 12.5%, or $3.67 billion, paid by the Tainan City Government) and construction time of 7 years, 8 months. After over 15 years of effort, the project has finally been approved and is underway.

The project provides the following benefits:

Provides metropolitan areas with fast, convenient transportation.

Balances urban development and removes obstacles to the development of areas along the railway.

Removes nine railroad crossings, four underpasses, and two overpasses along the railway, increasing safety by solving traffic problems caused by crossroads.

Solves public environmental problems such noise and vibrations caused by trains.

Improves the city’s image and urban quality of life.

Increases economic activity, and urban land use value.

Additionally, the Ministry of Transport and Communications will form a working group to steer land development and integration of railway transport infrastructure in order to simultaneously complete railway grade separation works and urban development of the surrounding areas.

The Tainan Urban District Underground Railway Project stretches 8.23 kilometers. It starts in the north at 0.17 kilometers south of Zhonghua Bridge (Yongkang Bridge) on the southern side of Yongkang Station in Tainan County, and runs south to 1.91 kilometers south of Shengcan Road. Major works include:

Planning and design, urban rezoning, and the process of land site acquisition.

Tunnel construction: Cut & cover reinforced concrete box-shaped structure.

Tainan stations: Added two island platforms and additional commuter stations (Linsen Station and South Tainan Station) on four tracks.

Old Tainan station preserved and listed as a historic site.

Surrounding projects: Station’s surrounding facilities, transfer and improvement of freight (military) transport.

Electrical works: Tram line, signal, telecommunication, and station electrical engineering systems.

Six feet under

2010-09-01T22:05:00.001+08:00

I started writing this article three years ago, after my Mom passed away, but I couldn't finish it. Every time I tried to go deeper, I ended up lost in overwhelming emotions; feeling suffocated and I couldn't put it down in words, until now. It's ghost month again, it is said every year in July (lunar calendar) all ghosts could pass the gate that separates two worlds and re-enter the world they used to live in and enjoy a feast prepared for them. More than 3 years have passed, I can't stop wondering if reincarnation does exist as it is claimed in Buddhism or Taoism, shouldn't my Mom have already reincarnated? The paradox is why those people keep worshipping a wood tablet for the rest of their life while they believing in reincarnation? Don't they wish the deceased had started a new life? Reincarnated or not.

Filial piety is one of the virtues in Chinese, in fact it is the core idea imprinted in Chinese and we are all chained in this invisible shackle. "You should build an altar in the living room as a home for ancestral tablets where the spirits rest and serve them with joss sticks every morning and evening"; " you should kneel and crawl all the way in to the house as when she passed away you were not by her side"; " you should order wreaths or better, towers made of cans and present them in the most prominent location"; you should...". Tons of "you should" during the funeral process and lots of them made no sense to me. It seemed everyone was an expert in this kind of things and the list of suggestions was not suggestions but orders, failing to comply was considered unfilial or blasphemy. Does it really work this way or it's an inescapable exploitation discovered by undertakers? "How sad it is that none of the kids in this family got married" was an nice comment from the visitors; "How unfilial could you be, no grandson to carry the family name? She must die in regret!" was the mean one. Despite the fact that we did most of the "suggestions" in the funeral, we still couldn't escape the lynching from others with filial piety held as a weapon.

The funeral should be a final chance that the living can do something for the deceased and through the process the living get to grieve. Somehow, Taiwan developed a unique culture in the funeral ceremony like professional daughters who cry with a microphone in funerals (video) or funeral parade (video). "To make it presentable, at least once in a lifetime they are treated as someone important" says the undertaker, and of course the filial piety works like a charm. It's for the death or for the living that puzzles me, it seems no one knows that you are dead or dying alone is the greatest fear in Taiwanese and arranging such "entertainment" somehow they manage to have the fear contained.

Years back, we had a discussion about "should we ban burning ghost money" in a class. It was started by a foreigner who posted an article in Tainan Bulletin, urging Taiwanese to stop burning ghost money in order to slow down the global warming. Almost all students in the class were angry; outsiders who came from a country that has the highest CO2 exhaustion, riding second-hand scooters that might not even have their exhaust checked to the protest/petition meeting, how ironic. Nevertheless, finding a substitute for ghost money is an ongoing evolution in Taiwanese's beliefs, with or without a protest from outsiders. The funeral business is adapting to the new thinking. The whole funeral that used to take 49 days is now acceptable to be done in 1 week, and the "funeral entertaining" service has became a sunset business. Even though a custom made furneral service can be arranged, without unleashing it from the shackles of "tradition" how much room can it evolve? I wonder.

Fussen

2010-08-26T23:17:00.001+08:00

Fussen is a small town about 2.5 hours south-west of Munich city by train, it's the start/end point of the 350 km romatic road in Germany. The most famous castles, Neuschwanstein and Hohenschwangau, are located near the town. Travellers by rail change onto buses No. 73 or 78 at Füssen railway station to Hohenschwangau bus stop. I booked a room at Hotel Konig Ludwig in Schwangau, luckily enough, I got on a bus that didn't go to the castles as most of the buses did and 10 minutes later the bus stopped in front of the hotel already.

After checking in, the concierge told me it's better to walk about 10 minutes to the tourist information office in Schwangau Rathaus and then take a bus from there to the castles as not many buses stop at Hotel Konig Luwdig. I went in the tourist info office to get some pamphlets and the staff told me it's about 15 minutes by foot to the castles. Fifteen minutes later, I was still on the road that seemed to have no end and the Neuschwanstein on the hill seemed to be staying away from me at the same distance, it took me about 40 minutes to get to the ticket center! If what the staff told me about the distance was right than I must be a slow walker.

To visit the castles, one has to purchase the tour at the ticket center and arrive at the castle's turnstile at the time that is printed on the ticket. Tours are available in English and German or with an Audio guide. I purchased English tour for both castles, it was a great tour in Hohenschwangau, but I found it too crowded in the Neuschwanstein. It was so crowded that some people couldn't find their way to get in the Throne Hall when our guide started her introduction. So here is the advice: get an audio guide tour for Neuschwanstein. The tours last only 30 minutes, only 7 rooms are opened for the public in Neuschwanstein, and no photos are allowed in both castles. On the path to Marienbrücke (Mary's Bridge), you can get a great bird's eye view of the Hohenschwangau. The bridge itself is as famous as the castles as it provides a great view of the Neuschwanstein. However, to get a postcard-view of the castle, one has to cross the bridge and somewhere in the steep terrain is where the dreamy catstle pictures are taken.

It was around 20:30 when I got back to the ticket center and it was empty down there, no cars no people, I was the only one walking on the road. It was until I heard cheers from a bar at the corner of the tourist information office in Schwangau Rathaus then I realized it was the semi-final football game, Germany V.S Spain. I couldn't find a table available in the bar so I ran back to my hotel bar and ordered a small cup of beer, watching the game with everybody. Basically, my tolerance for alcohol is zero, by the time I finished my beer my eyes were all red like I was crying and the game ended with the result that Germany lost its chance to get the world champion by 1 point. Everyone in the room was disappointed and an old man looked at my red eyes trying to comfort me, he said: "oh well, it happens. Anyway, it was a good game, so don't be sad". I nodded and pretended to wipe off a tear from my eye.

2010 world cup this was the video broadcasted all the time in Germany.

I was wondering why most of the guests in the hotel were elders with walking sticks. During my stay, they even had a prosthesis conference held in the hotel and the hotel looked more like a high-end rehabilitation center then a hotel to me. From the Fussen official website I realized that the town itself is a recognized hydrotherapy spa and "Where health is tradition" is one of the slogans in Fussen. The nature of the town is incredibly beautiful and the biking trails are well designed so the riders can enjoy the nature without worrying about having a close encounter with automobiles.

The bold €6.90 on the board of a Chinese restaurant attracted my attention when I was wandering around Fussen town. It's very difficult to refuse a Chinese lunch buffet for only €6.90, so I went in and the boss spoke fluent Mandarin made me believe that it would be an authentic Chinese delicacy. "Try our spicy & sour soup" said the boss, while I was enoying my food. I am not a soup person, so I smiled and nodded and kept eating my food. A moment later, she went by and said the same thing to me again, "they are so proud of their spicy & sour soup, it must be good" I thought, so I got a cup and gave it a try. I tasted it and had to try very hard not to scream out loud "man this place needs to hire a better chef, the soup is terrible, yuck!" It tasted sweet and sour instead of spicy and sour, actually it's so sweet and sour that I believed someone must had tip over the sugar and vinegar bottle. A few minutes later the boss went by to check on me (she really was persistant in having their guests try the spicy and sour soup) and she bursted out laughing, "that's not the spicy & sour soup, that's sour sauce for salad" she said. I was so embarrassed, even the "foreigners" at the other tables were giggling, I must be one of the few Taiwanese who could not tell the difference between spicy & sour soup and sour sauce. I finally never did try the soup, but their food was good nevertheless.

View Fussen in a larger map

Useful info:
You can search train timetables of Munich/Füssen as well as bus timetables in Füssen via DB Bahn website. Print-out train timetables are available at the DB Bahn station lounge in Munich.

You can get a discount when purchasing the tour of the castles or the boat cruise in Forggensee with a hotel check-in certificate.

A boat cruise on Forggensee is possible. There are long cruises (2 hours, €11), 3 boats depart from Fussen Bootshafen at 10:00, 12:30 and 15:00 daily; and short cruises (55 min, €8), 6 boats depart from Fussen Bootshafen at 10:30, 11:30, 13:00, 14:20, 15:30 and 16:30 daily. More infomation at http://www.tourismus-fuessen.de/schifffahrt.html

Hohenschwangau official website: http://www.hohenschwangau.de/index.php?id=430
Neuschwanstein official website: http://www.neuschwanstein.de/englisch/palace/index.htm

Munich

2010-08-25T00:02:00.000+08:00

My journey in Munich actually started in the Munich Franz Josef Strauss Airport. I was transitting via Munich to Dubrovnik, and the connecting time was 10 hours later! I went through every duty free shop in terminal 2, including the Private, a sex toy shop. "It can't be, a sex toy shop in the international airport?", I thought, looking at the sexy lingerie and the cute version of dildos displayed in the window. I walked in the shop and a big flat screen TV was broadcasting pornography; DVD, role playing costumes, condoms and dildos molded from the famous porn stars, sizes for all were exhibited blatantly. I felt the heat on my face when I encountered the smiling staff's eyes. It's a new way to boost energy efficently after hours lingering among the duty free shops, dont' miss it!

I participated in a free walking tour organized by the Sandeman's new europe. Our guide, Travis, not only had he shown the group the tourist attractions in the city center but also told their histories and tales. it was an informative and pleasant 3.5 hour tour. Walking in the historical sites in the center of the city, you got to admire how precise the Germans are; the city went throught World War I and II, and still it looks just like the way it was back in the old days. Knowing Munich would be a hot zone in the war, Germans took tons of pictures from every corner of the city before the war which helped the restoration of the city.

The BMW Museum is the ultimate attainment of beauty and high-tech. The museum presents the milestones of automobile making through the decades with exceptional lighting and projections. The architecture itself is an extravaganza complimenting the cars. You don't have to be a millionaire to touch these beauties but you wish you were one after a tour in the museum.

Englischer Garten is one of the world's largest urban public parks. Standing on the gravel trail that extends to both sides and dispears in the dense forest, I was indecisive of which direction to go. It was a hot sunny day and blisters on my feet demanded a cool sedation, so I went along the creek toward up stream. It was a big open space, people laid on the grass next the creek, with tops off, enjoying the suntan. I sat by the river bank and soaked my feet in the icy cool water enjoying the sun like everyone else. Then I saw a man stripped off completely in front of me, I looked away, and on the left, 3 naked men were spinning their kids around and everyone seemed cool about it. It then made sense to me, that's why the symbol/acronym of naturism was adpoted from German FKK (Frei Körper Kultur, free body culture).

I wanted to go to the Kaltenberger Ritterturnier Knights Tournament but my timing was not right. If you are there at the right time in July take a look.

Useful info:
If you are getting and leaving Munich via the Munich Airport plus you are staying in Munich over 24 hours, the Bayern-Ticket is the ticket you should purchase. The ticket is valid throughout the entire MVV network, plus the whole of Bavaria, on regional trains. It is available from all the ticket machines in the airport or via the internet or one of the automatic ticket machines at the DB Bahn station.

Muenchen tourist office: http://www.muenchen.de/home/60093/Homepage.html
Public transportation: http://www.mvv-muenchen.de/en/home/index.html
Munich Wikitravel: http://wikitravel.org/en/Munich
Virtual tour: http://www.panorama-cities.net/munich/munich_germany.html
Toytown--Germany's English speaking crowd:http://www.toytowngermany.com/munich/

Zagreb

2010-08-19T23:02:00.001+08:00

Plitvice Lakes National Park was on my must see list when planning the trip in Croatia, and it seemed the bus commute between Zagreb and Zadar was the only way to get to the park, so I gave up the Episcopal Complex of the Euphrasian Basilica in the historic centre of Poreč and headed to the capital of Croatia, Zagreb. While waiting for a bus to Zagreb at the Plitvice lakes bus stop, I met a couple who were also going to Zagreb and the girl was half Taiwanese from her mother's side even though she couldn't speak Mandarin. Before any bus came, a minivan stopped at the bus stop and a woman asked if we would like to share the van with them, 3 Australians, to Zagreb, so we hopped in the van and enjoyed the nice company and beautiful scenery on the road to Zagreb.

The city is devided into the upper and lower towns; churches and historical buildings are located on the hilly park of the city whereas art museums and greenery parks are scattering in the lower town. The buzzing Trg Josipa Jelacica and the adjacent Dolac fruit and vegetable market are great starting points for a walking tour as they are located on the 'border' between the upper and lower towns. The colorful tiled roof of St Mark's Church makes it stand out from the surrounding buildings. Did the same architect design the roof of the St Stephan's Cathedral in Vienna as well, I wondered. Despite the emblem of Zagreb on the roof, somehow the color tiled roof church looked 'German-ish' to me.

"Zagreb doesn't do many markets, but those that it does do, it does well." The Dolac fruit and vegetable market (06:00-15:00; daily) sells freshly picked vegetables, flowers and fruits from all over Croatia and the antiques market (09:00-14:00; Sunday) on Britanski Trg is a treasure island for collectors. Hrelic (07:00-15:00; Sunday) is the biggest flea market I have ever seen so far. The market is located in Sajam Jakusevac, about 20 minutes away by bus (No. 295) from the city center. From hundreds of meters away, I could see goods laid out on the ground on both sides of the road, it's only when the bus had come to a full stop that I realized how big the market was. Almost half of the market was second hand cars and car parts. I saw CDs, underwear, kitchenwear, anything you can name, even a pig roast, all this in an area that looked like a big garbage dump or gravel pit. A man was having fun with his untopped umbrella, "it's perfect for anyone who wants to get a beautiful suntan in the summer", he said with broken English. That was the highlight of the market for me, charming.

Summer means fun in Croatia. I spent one night in the Park Ribnjak watching people fire dancing with the music; another night sitting in the rain watching Opereta Gala at Scena Gradec. Teenagers with great profiles, shirt off practicing flips while a little boy watched and trying to imitate them. The city is not only fun but has a lot of energy in summer, no wonder it is listed as one of the coolest places to go.

Useful info:
Zagreb has a well-developed and efficient public transport system that consists of trams, buses and trains. The tram network is an ideal transportation in the center of the city (routes and timetable in Croatian) while the local bus system covers the area outside the city center. The price of a single-ticket valid for 1.5 hours is 10 Kuna; a day ticket (dnevna karta) valid for both tram and bus until 4 am the next morning, is available for 25 Kuna at most kiosks. Buy a ticket and punch it in the little orange machine once you enter to validate.

Zagreb card grants you unlimited travel on public transport in Zagreb, discounts at virtually all of the city’s museums, reduced prices at many restaurants, shops, and service providers (discount details). The card is valid for 72 or 24 hours (90kuna or 60kuna) from the date and time entered on the card and is not transferable.

Zagreb tourist board: http://www.zagreb-touristinfo.hr/?l=e

Plitvice Lakes National Park

2010-08-17T22:27:00.001+08:00

There are two entrances in the park, the main entrance on Plitvička Jezera and the secondary entrance at Velika Poljana. Buses from Zagreb stop at the main entrance that accomadates souvenir shops, resaurants, etc. Buses from Zadar stop at a wooden bus shelter and a skywalk that leads into the forest where 3 hotels and the secondary entrance of the park is located.

The path from the secondary entrance leads to the largest lake, KoZjak Lake, and forms a boundary between the upper and lower lakes. The upper lakes are seperated by dolomite barriers, surrounded by dense forests and interlinked by several gushing waterfalls. The lowers lakes were formed by cavities created by the water of the upper lakes. Most of the water comes from the Bijela and Crna rivers and pool in the Proscansko Lake. There are 16 lakes in the park, all connected by well designed wooden walkways and trails.

View Plitvice Lakes National Park in a larger map

Useful info
Bus timetable:
To get in: seach timetable with autobusni kolodvor, the station of the Plitvice Lakes National Park is Plitvička Jezera. Another searchable timetable is Liburnija Zadar, if you are departing from Zadar (Croatian only). There are discrepancies from two search engines, it is highly recommended to re-confirm the bus schedules with the bus stations. To get out: If the bus is not full, it will take on more people. Bus schedules are posted at information stations near both entrances to the park.

Ticket: if you are staying in one of the hotels in the park, buy a one day ticket and have your hotel stamp on it that will give you unlimited access to the park and all transportation in the park during your stay.

There are many routes in the park (maps) and all are well-marked. You can choose one that fits your schedule and an easy way to see all the lakes and waterfalls is to take a shuttle bus to Okrugljak Lake at the top (St4) and then walk down (red line). Take a boat at P2 to P3 (green line) and then red line to St1. Take a shuttle bus back to St2 where the hotels are located. (Google map above)

Plitvice Lakes National Park official website: http://www.np-plitvicka-jezera.hr/eng/index.php

Zadar

2010-08-16T22:13:00.000+08:00

I thought my hotel was located in the old town of Zadar which is about 20 min walking distance, 1.6km, from the main bus station. After 15 minutes walking on the sidewalk with cars driving by fast from both directions, I still couldn't see a sign that looked old enough to me. It was a view you would see in any modern city: big roads with lots of cars, high-end boutique shops, tall buildings with opaque picture windows, etc. I couldn't help wonder did I choose the wrong direction again? I stopped in a photo shop to ask for the direction to my hotel and she looked at me like I was a lunatic. "You should take a bus, No. 5, and of course you could always walk if you insist, but it would take at least 30 minutes" she said. A trip in Croatia made me realized that my sense of direction was not as good as I thought it was, so I bought a ticket from her and got on the bus not knowing of which stop to get off. It was my lucky day, I got off the bus by instinct and there it was, Hotel Donat, situated on the grounds of the Falkensteiner Hotels & Resorts Borik, nestled in a large park with pine trees and a pebble beach next to the Adriatic sea.

I got only two days to come out with an itinerary and to get all my hotel bookings done before I could send my application for the Croatia visa (read here), so I picked my hotels by scanning through the prices, internet critics and their locations on the google map. I didn't pay attention to the details of my bookings so when I was told that 3 buffet meals and drinks from the pool bar were included in the room rate (euro$ 81), I was happy even after I finally realized that the hotel was 4 km away from the old town, 6 km from the main bus station. It was a beautiful sunny day and Zadar was my last chance to dip in the Adriatic ocean, I spent the whole afternoon getting suntan while drinking refreshing cool drinks from the pool bar.

The compact old town of Zadar is overshadowed by the surrounding modern architecture. Even in the old town what attracts people the most is the world famous high tech designs, the sea organ and sun salutation, and clubs/bars run by UB40's producer Nick Colgan and drummer James Brown. When St Donat's church (one of the best preserved pre-Romanesque buildings in the world) is no longer in use for religious ceremonies together with the Roman Forum next to it becomes a theme background of an outdoor cafe shop, it is the Venetian lion on the town gate that tells the fading histories of the city while cars drive through it.

Useful info:
Take bus No. 2 or 4 from the main bus station to the old town of Zadar. A bus ticket in one direction costs 8 kuna while a two way ticket costs 13 kuna. Two way tickets are only available for purchase at Kiosks.

Local bus routes: http://www.liburnija-zadar.hr/kolodvor/flash_gradski.php
Intercity bus routes: http://www.liburnija-zadar.hr/prijevoz/flash_hrvatska.php
Searchable timetable (Craotain only): http://www.liburnija-zadar.hr/kolodvor/raspored_linija.php

Sibenik & Krka National Park

2010-08-11T23:13:00.001+08:00

Saying goodbye to Trogir, I went north to visit the Krka National Park. Located in Šibenik-Knin county, central Dalmatia, it is just about 15 kilometers away from the city of Sibenik. There are 7 daily buses that commute between Sibenik and Skradin via Lozovac (2010 timetable, intercity line, ŠIBENIK - SLAPOVI KRKE - SKRADIN). Departing from Sibenik bus station, the bus drops you outside Skradin's old town. You can pay the park admission fee at either Lozovac or Skradin entrance; the price includes a bus (from Lozovac entrance) or boat (from Skradin entrance) ride to Skradinski Buk where the walking trail starts.

I wanted to take a boat ride to Skradinski buk so I bought a ticket to Skradin. Somehow the idea that Lozovac entrance was further than Skradin stuck in my mind (maybe because Lozovac is located at the upstream of the national park?) so when I saw the first parking space of the Krka national park and all the "touristy looking" people seemed to be all getting off the bus at this stop, I was confident that I must have arrived at the Skradin entrance. I bought a ticket and was ready for the boat ride even though I couldn't see a boat. I asked the staff where could I take the boat and she told me the shuttle bus would take me there. The shuttle bus stopped in front of an information/ticket booth and the staff came out selling tickets for the boat excursion, I was totally confused, the boat ride should be included in the admission no? It wasn't until I saw the boat docking by the river bank at the other information booth at the other end of the trail that I realized I got off the bus too early and I took the Lozovac entrance instead of Skradin.

The Skradinski Buk is the longest and the loveliest waterfall on the Krka river. Wooden trails built on water take you deep into the flourishing forest making a close contact with waterfalls possible. In fact, at the bottom of the Skradinski Buk you can swim in the icey cold water with the most magnificent waterfalls in the area as background. I saw a man climb up the cliff and dove into the water; girls in bikini posed for photoshoots; babies happily tapped water in fathers arms on shore; seagulls waited by the falls for fish; a snake submerged into the water luring fish to take the bait.., it was paradise for everyone.

It takes about 2 hours to circumnavigate the Skradinski Buk (if you only stay on land) and that's just a small propotion that the Krka National Park has to offer. A boat excursion to Visovac Island, Roski slap, the Krka monastery and the Early Croatian fortresses of Trosenj and Necven is also availabe with extra price 50-130kn based on the journey you pick. Details refer to the google map and the official Krka National Park website below.

View Krka National Park in a larger map

Sibenik is often overlooked by tourists and served as a pitstop enroute to the Krka National Park. Churches and monasteries, stone houses and mansions, all are ornamented by portals and heraldic crests, Sibenik is one of the 7 UNESCO Heritage sites in Croatia and the highlight, Cathedral of St James, was constructed entirely of stone and is reputed to be the world's largest church built completely of stone without brick or wood supports. Well, after exploring the city of Dubrovnik, Split and Trogir, Sibenik seemed a bit plain at first glance. I got back to Sibenik from Lozovac and waited under eaves of the public library to open for internet access (opened at 18:00; 10kn for 2 hours) while pouring rain hit. An hour later, the rain stopped, I walked out of the library and it seemed that the historical city came back to life with the touch of golden rays from the sky, like a miracle. Jugglers and a mini circus were busy entertaining the crowds whereas a ballet was staged in between the town hall and the cathedral of St James. It was the trademark of Sibenik, International Children's Festival, that has been held during the last week of June and the first week of July annually for the past 40 years. I bought a popcorn and sat on the stone road with crowds enjoying a "mosquito movie*" in Hrvatska, even though I didn't understand what they were saying in the movie, I laughed like a kid.

Useful info
Sibenik buses timetable: http://www.atpsi.hr/index-eng.asp
Krka National Park: http://www.npkrka.hr/#/pocetna/?lang=eng&p=
Sibenik time: http://www.sibenik-times.com/
Explore Sibenik :http://www.sibenik-tourism.hr/eng/
Grad Sibenik: http://www.sibenik.hr/index-eng.asp
Tourist board: http://www.sibenikregion.com/en.html

* In Taiwan, a mosquito movie is a humourous term for an outdoor projection at special occasions like a local temple ceremony where people tend to get bitten.

Split & Trogir

2010-07-30T22:49:00.004+08:00

A boat ride from Dubrovnik to Split not only saved me from a time consuming passport check at the border of Bosnia but also gave me a chance to stop by Korcula and Hvar islands en route to Split. After eight and a half hours sailing on the Adriatic, I arrived at Split around 18:30 which was still not too late to find my accommodation for the night. On the Lonely Planet map of Split, the Diocletian Palace is a walled city but in reality the buildings are either built over the walls or the walls are gone, either way I couldn't find the walls and ended up walking much farther then I should have. An orchestra rehearsal in the Trg Republike caught my attention, I walked in the square and seeing the Hotel Bellevue made me realize how far I was away from the "used to be" walled palace, and I finally navigated myself back to the B&B Kastel 1700.

I couldn't find any restaurants that were recommended by the hotel staff, so I went to one of the restaurants listed in Lonely Planet to challenge their language skills as in the book it stated: Sperun, is a favourite among the foreigners possibly because the waiters seem to speak every language under the sun. Well, it had proven that Mandarin is still one of the tough languages to master even for waiters who seem to speak every language under the sun. And the secret of its popularity among foreigners in this restaurant was, my personal feeling, good hospitality: the chef moved among the customers and a free bottle of water service made this a cozy restaurant.

From a postcard of the old Diocletian Palace, the city was divided into 4 quarters by two straight roads crossing in the center of the city. Each wall has a gate named after metals: gold, bronze, silver and iron for north, south, east and west gates, respectively. From the eastern to western gates, a straight road, Kredimirova, separates the imperial on the southern side from the northern side that was used by soldiers and servants as living quarters. Today, the definition of the old city walls are lost in buildings; bars, shops, restaurants and local residents mix with historical sites, museums and cathedrals. A few turns in the labyrinthine streets in Diocletian Palace, I couldn't tell which direction was north, so I put maps away and just followed my heart then I heard acapella singing from the Vestibule. Like a miniature Pantheon in Rome, the echo in the Vestibule creates the best stereo system for such an enchanting acapella performance.

I loved Trogir at first sight. Trogir is a small island about 30km north from Split, it is connected to the mainland and Ciovo island by 2 bridges on each side creating a 360 degree natural canal that surrounds the island. Unlike Split, it is much quieter and relaxing. Luxury yatchs docked at the trogirshi channel, sitting on a bench by a wide seaside promenade that hosts bars and restaurants, I watched the crowd flow in the sunset. It was so peaceful that I was startled by occational loud exclamations coming from the soccer fans in restaurants behind me. If you ever go to Croatia, you must stop in Trogir, it is a gem.

Useful information:
All public transportations, train, bus and ferry, are next to the Split harbor that is about 300 meters away from the Diocletain Palace.

Split Card is available at the tourist office in the Diocletian palace. 36KN/5Euro for one card and it is valid for 72 hours; the best part is if you are staying in Split for 3 days you can get it for free! The card gives you free access to most of the city museums, half price discounts to many galleries and tons of discounts on car rental, restaurants, shops and hotels. (Details at : http://www.visitsplit.com/15145/split-card/)

Diocletian' Palace Map: Inside; outside

Trogir online: http://www.trogir-online.com/index.asp