The Undiscovered Country: Travel in Taiwan, Canadian Rockies and Beyond by S. A. Nelson

Athabasca Glacier, Columbia Icefield, Jasper National Park

2013-10-16T05:02:00.001-04:00

Photo by
Stephen A. Nelson - Writer, Traveller: Jasper News, Taiwan & World Views

Indian Ridge, Jasper National Park

2013-10-16T04:57:00.001-04:00

Stephen A. Nelson - Writer, Traveller: Jasper News, Taiwan & World Views

Jasper remembers Marilyn Monroe | CTV Edmonton News

2013-06-27T05:20:00.001-04:00

Jasper remembers Marilyn Monroe | CTV Edmonton News

Aurora Borealis: Trip The Northern Lights Fantastic with the Heavenly Dancers

2013-03-28T14:28:00.002-04:00

There's more to Churchill, Manitoba

than polar bears and beluga whales

By Stephen A. Nelson

For the Brandon Sun

Northern Nights: Igloo Under Aurora Borealis

2013-03-15T17:48:00.000-04:00


Photo By Stephen A. Nelson

Stories I'm Working On:

Have you ever seen those Northern Nights?
Churchill, Manitoba is one of the best places in the world to observe the Aurora Borealis. Scientists and photographers come from all over the world to see the Heavenly Dancers.

If you're a traveller looking for an authentic arctic adventure, there's more to this than checking off a "must do" on your bucket list.

You can learn how to build an igloo and pull back the celestial curtain to see what makes the midnight magic happen.
Part of a learning vacation at the Churchill Northern Studies Centre in Churchill, Manitoba.

From "City of Sadness" to Tourist Madness

2013-01-05T05:43:00.000-05:00

Photo by Kevin Willett

A film about Taiwan's Dark Days shone spotlight on Jiufen
Right after the 921 Earthquake that rocked Taiwan in 1999, I spent my first Moon Festival with my gf in Jiufen (Jiuofen, Chuifen), on the north-east coast of Taiwan. Far from the madding crowds in Taipei, it felt for a while like going to heaven. A little like Banff. A taste of Japan.

As you can see, this city in the clouds is a picturesque mountainside town. But during the height of the Japanese colonial era, it was a booming gold-mining town. "Little Shanghai." It went into decline when the events of World War II forced the mine to close. In other words, the Japanese lost the war and therefore had no POWs to work the mines. Then they were kicked out of Taiwan.

But the collection of historical buildings made Jiufen the ideal location for the filming of City of Sadness - the first Chinese-language film to win the Golden Lion award at the Venice Film Festival in 1989.

City of Sadness was the first film to deal openly with the KMT's dictatorial reign of terror after Taiwan was "handed-over" from Japan to Chiang Kai-shek's Nationalist China.

The film was also the first to depict the infamous 228 Incident of 1947, in which thousands of people were massacred by Nationalist (KMT) troops that Chiang sent from China to put down Taiwan's version of "the Arab Spring." Tens of thousands of Taiwanese and Chinese were rounded up, shot, sent to prison or "disappeared."

As one war veteran told me, "Chiang's troops landed at [the nearby port of Keelung] and started firing at anything that moved."

Despite the dark and depressing story, the success of the movie had the odd effect of turning the almost forgotten town of Jiufen into a popular attraction full of tea houses, coffee shops, and artisans. Legions of tourists. Myriads of visitors.

So - on a good day - Jiufen is about one hour from Taipei by train or by car. On a bad day - such as the last day of a Chinese holiday or a long weekend - it can take more than three hours of hellish driving. Trust me, I've done it.

Photo by Kevin Willett

Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall in Taipei

2013-01-05T00:58:00.000-05:00

Photo Copyright: by Kevin Willet

Last Emperor of China and the Mandate of Heaven

Every media visit, every guided tour of Taiwan stars with a visit to Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall in Taipei. As a temple dedicated to the Last god-emperor of China, it's deliberately modelled on the Temple of Heaven in Beijing's Forbidden City. It's the centrepiece of Chiang Kai-Shek Square, modelled on Tiananmen Square. It's meant to perpetuate the idea that Taiwan is the one true China and that Chiang Kai-shek and his KMT successors have the Mandate of Heaven.

The Democratic Progressive Party - during its eight-year interregnum (2000-2008) - re-branded Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall as "Taiwan Democracy Memorial Hall" and renamed Chiang Kai-Shek Square "Liberty Square." It was meant put the country's dictatorial past behind and highlight the way to a democratic future.

But the KMT Old Guard were up in arms (literally) and the best the DPP could do was paper over the past... literally.

When the KMT got back in office (they were never out of power) the first thing they did was reinstate CKS and his family (wife Soong Mei-ling and son Chiang Ching-kou) and as the unholy trinity.

Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall now has a souvenir shop where you can buy the idols for your home shrine: Chiang Kai-Shek, Chiang Ching-kou, and Sun Yat-sen. Even Mao Tse-tung. Don't be surprised - the KMT has been in bed with the Chinese Communist Party since the KMT lost the presidential election in 2000.

My God, It's Full Of Stars

2013-01-03T06:49:00.000-05:00

Jasper's becoming a stargazer's haven

Moonstruck: Peter Macmahon leads a daytime astronomy session as a young girl has her eye on the Man in the Moon. McMahon is one of Canada's best-known astronomers, and certainly the most media savvy. He's travelled around the world to follow his dream of travelling among the stars. Photo By Stephen A. Nelson

By Stephen A. Nelson

Peter McMahon has stars in his eyes. His head is in the clouds. You might even say he's moonstruck, and he'd probably agree with you. But one thing is certain -- this is one space cadet whose feet are firmly on the ground.

McMahon is one of Canada's best-known astronomers, and certainly the most media savvy. He's travelled around the world to follow his dream of travelling among the stars.

So when he says that "Jasper National Park is becoming the Disney World of dark sky preserves," he means it in a good way.

McMahon was in Jasper for its first-ever Dark Sky Festival -- a weekend of events in October celebrating Jasper National Park's designation at the world's largest -- and darkest -- dark sky preserve. Jasper turns out to be one of the best places in the world to get lost in space.

So it seems strange that his guided tour of the heavens is taking place on a bright sunny morning. The media types in the tour are wondering just what kind of tour you can possibly do with Sol high in the southern sky. But McMahon is sparkling with enthusiasm and aims his telescope at the faint daytime moon hanging over a mountain known as The Whistlers.

Skeptical about our prospects, we peer through the looking glass to discover that when it comes to gazing at the moon, everything is much clearer in the light of day.

Star Gazer

But McMahon is not the only spaceman.

One star gazer has set up his specially equipped telescope and set the controls for the heart of the sun. It's one of those rare opportunities to ignore your parents' warnings and do what you've always been told not to do: look right at the sun.

"What are those things that look like clouds moving across the face of the sun?" a reporter asks.

"Those are clouds," says the astronomer, who said clouds have an earthly -- not solar -- origin.

Star Trek

When evening falls, our group makes the trek to the mobile Telus Planetarium -- a sort of inflatable igloo that magically transforms the inside of a school gym into a high-tech dome for taking a star trek.

We feel like we're new members of a tribe who have gathered in the meeting igloo to hear fireside tales from the storyteller -- Tyson Wagner from the Telus World of Science in Edmonton.

As fate would have it, our storyteller is one of those cool Big Bang Theory-type of nerds: Someone who seems to have got his start in astronomy from watching Clash of The Titans. He swears he was into astronomy "long before that movie came out."

Using the dome of the inflatable igloo as his drawing board, Wagner shows us Cassiopeia -- the Greek queen whose vanity and beauty invokes the jealousy of the gods. To the north is her husband, King Cepheus. And to the south, their daughter Andromeda whom they sacrifice to the Kraken -- the sea monster with a taste for beautiful young women -- in order to appease the jealous gods. To the southeast is Perseus, the helmeted hero who first beheads the monstrous Medusa before flying on the wings of Pegasus to defeat the Kraken and rescue Andromeda.

There are stars in the southern sky

When darkness has covered the land, we head to Pyramid Lake, about 10 minutes away from the town of Jasper and a galaxy far, far away from the city lights.

But the night skies are cloudy and gloomy and not at all hopeful.

There are stars in the southern sky but we can't see them. Easily recognizable favourites such as Orion the Hunter and Venus the Evening Star are obscured from our view.

But a West Wind blows and pulls back the curtain of clouds. The heavens are spread out before us.

Brian Catto, Parks Canada's resident skywalker, pulls out his laser pointer and draws us a picture in the sky -- just as Wagner had done on the inflatable dome of the planetarium.

And there they are, larger than life: Cassiopeia, Perseus, Medusa, and Pegasus. For good measure, we also see Hercules. And finally, the crowning glory: Jupiter, king of the gods, is rising over the crest of the Colin range.

The Lord of the Starfields, it seems, has smiled on us.

Jasper in January promises fun, indoors and out

2013-01-03T01:00:00.000-05:00

By Stephen A. Nelson

Those who love it, love it a lot.

And for those who love winter in the great outdoors -- there's a lot to love at Jasper in January, Alberta's answer to Quebec's Winter Carnival and Winnipeg's Festival du Voyageur.

"What's exciting about the Jasper in January festival is that it offers visitors a diverse array of events and activities that both couples and families can take part in and enjoy," says Anastasia Martin-Stilwell at Tourism Jasper. "It's really the perfect way to kick off the new year and head to Jasper for a little authentic Rocky Mountain fun."

The festival is a two-week showcase for everything that's great about the Rockies in winter.

This is where outdoor adventure meets indoor arts and culture. It's a party in the park that's become Western Canada's premiere winter festival.

It began more humbly, 24 years ago, on the silver anniversary of Marmot Basin -- the ski resort that for many defines the Jasper experience.

The ski hill decided to celebrate its marquee anniversary with a party that everyone could enjoy.

It was one heck of a party and a great success -- so they decided to make Jasper in January an annual celebration.

These days, Marmot Basin -- along with hotels, restaurants and retailers -- still offers attractive discounts to those who want to join the fun. And the whole community gets involved to roll out the red carpet for visitors.

"Whether you're interested in untamed outdoor adventure -- like skiing, snowshoeing, polar dipping, moonlight skates and the sights and sounds of a bustling family street party -- or you're looking more for eclectic indoor pursuits ... Jasper in January really provides one of Western Canada's premiere winter-festival experiences that everyone is sure to enjoy."

The original story in The Edmonton Journal

Stephen A. Nelson is a freelance writer and broadcaster.

Afterglow: Evening falls on Roche Bonhomme

2013-01-01T17:00:00.000-05:00

Photo copyright Stephen A. Nelson

Big Bang 2013 Taipei 101 New Year Fireworks 新年快樂

2012-12-31T19:16:00.001-05:00

2013 Taipei 101 New Year Fireworks HD 1080p complete 2013年台北101煙火 Taiwan - YouTube

新年快樂

Happy New Year from a country where they "overwhelmingly value their democracy" but keep electing the party of dictators, while imprisoning those who fight for democracy.
But it's the same old song from a people who "want to be the masters of their own fate" and yet refuse to do anything about it - except cry to the world and deliver up their messiahs to be crucified.

Turning Japanese - Let's Dance

2012-12-22T00:34:00.000-05:00

Japanese girls are dressed for the the bon-odori during the Obon festival in the port city of Kobe.

Obon - with its bonfires and ceremonies welcoming the ancestors' spirits - is similar to the Ghost Festival in Taiwan or the Celtic Samhain.

photo copyright Stephen A. Nelson

Not Your Daddy's Dinosaurs!

2012-12-01T01:16:00.000-05:00

Chryolophosaurus (copyright Stephen A. Nelson)

Chryolophosaurus is part of the Ultimate Dinosaurs - Giants from Gondwana special exhibition still on at the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) in Toronto. The show will be open for special hours during the holidays, till January 6.

This is the World Premier for these fearsome reptiles and this exhibition. It features dinosaurs that weren't in Jurassic Park, terrible lizards from the southern hemisphere that most of us have never seen before.

From the ROM's website: The first dinosaur named from Antarctica, Cryolophosaurus lived 190 million years ago during the early Jurassic. It would have grown to over 7 m (23 ft) long and weighed around 450 kg (990 lbs). Its name means "frozen crested lizard" which refers to the striking crest it sported on top of its head and the fact that fossils of this animal come from the cold bottom of the world.

Fall Colours

2012-11-01T03:59:00.001-04:00

Journey Behind The Falls - Niagara Falls, Ont.

Photo By Stephen A. Nelson

Once in a Blue Moon

2012-09-04T01:56:00.002-04:00

Blue Moon photo by Stephen A Nelson

Good: Medicine Lake on Labour Day

2012-09-04T01:39:00.000-04:00

Medicine Lake Photo By Stephen A. Nelson

Picasso's Last Words (Have You Ever Really Loved A Woman?)

2012-05-13T18:33:00.002-04:00

Pablo's Masterpieces at The Art Gallery of Ontario

By Stephen A. Nelson

TORONTO — “I paint the way some people write an autobiography,” Pablo Picasso once said. “The paintings, finished or not, are the pages from my diary.”

If that's true, then the Picasso exhibition now on at the Art Gallery of Ontario (Picasso: Masterpieces from the Musée National Picasso, Paris) is the artist's life story writ large. All of the chapters are here, everything from the A Portrait Of The Artist As A Young Man to Picasso's Last Words.

The exhibition at the AGO has been described as "Picasso's Picasso" and as “the greatest display of Picassos in the world.”

"I Am The Good Shepherd..."

2012-04-30T03:10:00.000-04:00

Picasso's sculpture now on display at the AGO (Art Gallery of Ontario) in Toronto.

It's officially called Man With A Lamb.

But nearly everyone calls it The Good Shepherd, recalling Jesus' saying, "I am the good shepherd... the good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep."
Which just happened to be the Gospel lesson this week.

When Evening Falls: Canada Life at Dusk

2012-04-25T02:45:00.000-04:00

God is really only another artist ... He has no real style, He just goes on trying other things. - Picasso

Photo by Stephen A. Nelson

Picasso's Last Words I: Give me a museum and I'll fill it.

2012-04-25T02:37:00.001-04:00

Picasso's Portrait of Dora Maar from Picasso Exhibit now on at Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) in Toronto.

photo by Stephen A. Nelson

Maligne Lake Boathouse at Dusk

2011-10-11T03:25:00.004-04:00

Photo Copyright: Stephen A. Nelson

A Bridge Too Far: Athabasca Glacier from the Morraines

2011-09-29T04:29:00.004-04:00

The Athabasca (Athabaska) Glacier is part of the Columbia Icefield that sits atop the Great Divide and spans Jasper and Banff National Parks.

It's vanishing and shrinking at an ever-increasing rate.

But don't worry, there's no such thing as Global Warming.

Photo copyright: Stephen A. Nelson

The Undiscovered Country: Travel in Taiwan, Canadian Rockies and Beyond by S. A. Nelson: Rocky Mountain High - The Facebook Fotos

2011-09-27T05:17:00.000-04:00

The Undiscovered Country: Travel in Taiwan, Canadian Rockies and Beyond by S. A. Nelson: Rocky Mountain High - The Facebook Fotos

Rocky Mountain High - The Facebook Fotos

2011-09-27T05:16:00.001-04:00

Rocky Mountain High - The Facebook Fotos

Go here to see the album

I've been to the Mountain Top

All photos copyright Stephen A. Nelson

Full Moon Rising Over Tekarra at Mid-Autumn Festival

2011-09-12T01:22:00.003-04:00