David on Formosa

tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-107568172009-05-13T20:03:37.797+07:00David on Formosahas moved to blog.taiwan-guide.orgDavidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13061413827755873948noreply@blogger.comBlogger105125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10756817.post-1156658319942681612006-08-27T13:53:00.000+07:002008-01-01T08:28:33.419+07:00Blog moved to blog.taiwan-guide.org

David on Formosa has moved to:blog.taiwan-guide.orgPlease update your links and bookmarks.* * * * *

Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13061413827755873948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10756817.post-1156599012828492842006-08-26T23:24:00.000+07:002006-09-16T15:59:33.093+07:00More travels in Sanxia

I bought a motorbike during the week. As much as I love bicycles, they are not always the most convenient means of travel. Having a motorbike allows me to travel a little further and not feel exhausted when I arrive at my destination. In the earlier morning I headed out to Sanxia (三峽). My first stop [more...]

Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13061413827755873948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10756817.post-1156512384645519862006-08-25T22:20:00.000+07:002006-09-16T15:59:47.610+07:00Hiking in a different light

I normally go hiking in the mornings, but this afternoon I finished work early and in the late afternoon I headed for the hills of Tucheng (土城). It was a good change to hike in the late evening. [more...]

Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13061413827755873948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10756817.post-1156308095677957172006-08-23T12:56:00.000+07:002006-09-16T16:00:08.313+07:00Close Songshan Airport

I had a letter published in the Taipei Times today. It was in response to an article which ran in the paper on Monday. [more...]

Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13061413827755873948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10756817.post-1156054447402232212006-08-22T07:00:00.000+07:002006-09-16T16:00:25.853+07:00Making it simplified

A while back I posted about the use of simplified characters in the word Taiwan. It is also interesting to note that quite a few simplifed characters can be seen around Taiwan. It is not surprising given that many of the simplified characters are based on cursive or shorthand forms [more...]

Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13061413827755873948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10756817.post-1156055118953209632006-08-20T22:14:00.000+07:002006-09-16T16:00:48.480+07:00Taipei by night

After leaving Longshan Temple just as the sun was setting I walked across Taipei passing by a number of famous landmarks. [more...]

Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13061413827755873948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10756817.post-1156056648322452552006-08-20T21:48:00.000+07:002006-09-16T16:01:15.123+07:00Longshan Temple

Late on Saturday afternoon I took the MRT to Longshan Temple Station to visit the temple of the same name. This temple was established in 1738, although it has been reconstructed and renovated several times. It is not just the beautiful stone carvings and history that make it an interesting place to visit. The temple [more...]

Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13061413827755873948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10756817.post-1155905871471003262006-08-18T22:59:00.000+07:002006-09-16T16:01:41.103+07:00The best beef noodles

Since I returned to Taiwan a few months ago I have found the food here disappointing. I guess living in Thailand one gets spoiled. While Taiwan offers a huge range of different dishes most of them are quite bland in their flavour. [more...]

Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13061413827755873948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10756817.post-1155297889955431512006-08-15T17:40:00.000+07:002006-09-16T16:02:15.160+07:00Two movies in three parts

About Love (關於愛) and Three Times (最好的時光) are two movies that share much in common. First, they are both love stories. Second, both films are shot in three separate parts. [more...]

Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13061413827755873948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10756817.post-1155549611701825342006-08-14T18:05:00.000+07:002006-09-16T16:02:41.390+07:00David on Formosa on What's up in Taiwan

My interview with Henry and Julian from What's up in Taiwan has just been "podcasted". You can listen to it by going to What's up in Taiwan (中文). [more...]

Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13061413827755873948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10756817.post-1155478342991708272006-08-14T08:00:00.000+07:002006-09-16T16:02:58.916+07:00Cycling to Wulai

On Sunday morning I rode out to Wulai. I started out a bit late by my own standards, hitting the road at 6:30. Still on a Sunday morning there is not much traffic. It took me about an hour to reach the Xindian MRT Station, although that included a stop for breakfast. [more...]

Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13061413827755873948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10756817.post-1155377195690014452006-08-12T18:20:00.000+07:002006-09-16T16:03:13.050+07:00Greening area

When I first saw this sign I thought it was yet another example of extremely bad romanisation that is often seen in Taiwan. Not only are there several different systems of romanisation in common use, but often the signs are just plain wrong. Tay Tzyy would be written as tàizĭ in Hanyu Pinyin. The pinyin on the sign is actually written in Gwoyeu Romatzyh (國語羅馬字). This system is designed to avoid

Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13061413827755873948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10756817.post-1154955315358587902006-08-07T21:21:00.000+07:002006-09-16T16:03:28.596+07:00Some photos from Taiwan

Late this afternoon I met up with Julian and Henry to do an interview for the What's up in Taiwan podcast. We did the interview on the 32nd floor of the Taipei County Government Building in Banqiao. There had been a few thunder showers during the afternoon and the air was clear with glorious views across Taipei City. [more...]

Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13061413827755873948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10756817.post-1154768707055310352006-08-05T18:25:00.000+07:002006-09-16T16:03:44.923+07:00Some books about Taiwan

In a recent post I lamented the lack of books in English published about Taiwan. Although there is a lack of books compared to those available in or about some other countries in Asia there are still some good books about Taiwan. I had the chance to buy two books about Taiwan this morning at the breakfast meeting at Swensen's in Taipei. Both these books were written by Jerome Keating, who very

Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13061413827755873948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10756817.post-1154768248553687862006-08-05T18:05:00.000+07:002006-09-16T16:04:10.656+07:00Not as easy as it looks

On Saturday afternoon I went to Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall in Taipei where I discovered an exhibition* of calligraphy by Master Hsing Yun (星雲大師), the founder of Fo Guang Shan (佛光山). As I wandered around the exhibition some ladies who were volunteers invited me to sit down and write some calligraphy. [more...]

Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13061413827755873948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10756817.post-1154646167896285202006-08-04T07:59:00.000+07:002006-09-16T16:05:18.956+07:00A movie that needs to be made

I found out about plans for this new film from cleverCLAIRE. The film Formosa Betrayed is currently in pre-production with a planned release in 2008. The film is about the struggle of Taiwanese democracy and independence activists during the 1970s and 80s. It is a fictional story based on true events. [more...]

Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13061413827755873948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10756817.post-1154302783181178882006-07-31T11:07:00.000+07:002006-09-16T16:05:35.933+07:00On reading Chinese

A couple of months ago I wrote about the beginnings of my efforts to learn to read Chinese. It's time for an update. [more...]

Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13061413827755873948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10756817.post-1154172920993901792006-07-29T20:31:00.000+07:002006-09-16T16:06:07.653+07:00The view from Banqiao

The windy weather this afternoon blew away all the pollution creating one of those rare days with crystal clear views of the mountains surrounding Taipei. Late in the afternoon, as the sun was about to set, I went [more...]

Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13061413827755873948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10756817.post-1153803599411328102006-07-25T17:40:00.000+07:002006-09-16T16:06:23.686+07:00Learning Mandarin in Taiwan

Today's Taipei Times has an article by Dan Bloom about learning Mandarin in Taiwan. The article was written in response to a a recent issue of Time magazine about the growing popularity of learning Mandarin and studying the language in China. [more...]

Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13061413827755873948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10756817.post-1153696942309287772006-07-24T13:05:00.000+07:002006-09-16T16:06:40.580+07:00206cc in Yilan

My friend 亮亮 is a dedicated member of 206cc and she has long promised to take me on one of their trips. I finally had the chance on Sunday, joining the trip to Yilan. [more...]

Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13061413827755873948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10756817.post-1153465327887994842006-07-21T16:01:00.000+07:002006-09-16T16:06:55.030+07:00Cycling to Manyue Yuan

This morning I cycled out to the entrance of the Manyue Yuan Forest Park (滿月圓森林遊樂區). The last time I rode out here was over three years ago. Not much has changed [more...]

Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13061413827755873948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10756817.post-1153450422386536592006-07-21T10:57:00.000+07:002006-09-16T16:07:11.476+07:00Human trafficking in Taiwan

I blogged about the problems with human trafficking in Taiwan back in June. David at jujuflop has just posted an analysis of the report. He makes the conclusion that [more...]

Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13061413827755873948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10756817.post-1152979158751455302006-07-16T10:05:00.000+07:002006-09-16T16:07:23.146+07:00A-yue live at the Living Mall

I caught Taiwanese rock musician Zhang Zhen-yue (張震嶽) performing live at the Living Mall in Taipei last night. He played about half a dozen songs [more...]

Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13061413827755873948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10756817.post-1152950814674497812006-07-15T17:27:00.000+07:002006-09-16T16:07:45.450+07:00Urban spaces, hidden places

The geography of Taipei combines dense urban living with forest clad mountain slopes. I have previously blogged about some of my hikes around Tucheng. While none of the places I have hiked could be described as wilderness, they are a stark contrast to the pollution and chaos of the nearby city. I lament the failure of imagination that is evident in the new development in the Xinyi and Neihu

Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13061413827755873948noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10756817.post-1152358509267079142006-07-08T20:44:00.000+07:002006-09-16T16:08:52.200+07:00Wonderful Wulai

With the weather having been so hot recently I decided to abandon my usual plans for a Saturday morning hike. I still headed for the mountains though, but with the intention of swimming and bathing in the hot springs. I took the MRT to Xindian Station and then [more...]

Davidhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13061413827755873948noreply@blogger.com