City Shots

Some photos I took recently while out and about in the city. The first 3 are from a political rally that took place near Catherine's work. The past few weeks there has been a constant stream of marches through the streets. I think it's great how involved the citizenry seems to be.



The following shots were taken while waiting for the subway. I think the second one illustrates the congestion in this city...it's overwhelming at times.

Gazing Out My Window

This is part of the collection of photos I plan on taking home to show my family and friends. These are shots out the window of my office.

You can see the top of Taipei 101 on the left side of this one. It was the tallest building in the world until a few months ago.

This is the intersection of Jhongxiao East Rd. and Dunhua South Rd. A busy spot in the heart of the city.

I really enjoy working here because I am a stones throw from everything.

Catherine's Groovy New Pad

Today was moving day for Catherine. I will give you three guesses as to who did all the heavy lifting?...lol It was not fun. Her old apartment was on the fifth floor of a building sorely lacking an elevator, and her new apartment is on the third floor of another building without a lift (that's British for a push-up bra or something). Yes, my legs are on fire!

I was glad to see her move because her new apartment is a lot closer to her work and much easier for me to get to from my apartment. Also, she is the sole tenant in this one. She is a bit freaked out about it now, but I think she will learn to love living by herself. This is her first time on her own in a place...I am so happy for her. At about $180 U.S./month, it's a steal. The apartment is about 2 minutes from Taipei Main Station, the hub for the subway and train systems in the city.

Anyhow, she managed to score an apartment that screams Brady Bunch. Folks, this place is trapped in the 70's. I gotta believe finding a place this dated is rare considering how quickly they dispose of the old buildings and build new ones in this city. Check out the photos below for evidence.

The apartment is HUGE! I am standing in the living room near the entrance. You can see her bedroom in the background and the kitchen is behind me. A shockingly big place for Taipei City.

Notice the fine wood-paneling on the left...we had wall-to-wall paneling in the basement of my childhood home...lol. Another out-of-the-ordinary furnishing is the carpet. This the land of tiling. Haven't seen a carpeted apartment since I arrived on the island.

As I was lugging stuff up the stairs I stumbled upon this little gold mine...two large stacks of vinyl! The LP's appeared to be in great shape. I am planning on offering the landlord a few bucks for them. I knew it was a find as soon as I saw Purple Rain on the top of the first stack.

The place was littered with piles of interesting do-dads...more on that later.

Check out the wood-framed windows...I love it! They are very cool. Can do without the faux forest wallpaper...scroll down for more tragic use of wall space.

The requisite household Buddhist shrine. Do I need to mention the wallpaper?...ugh

On your way to the bathroom, you get a little help from the waterfall image. If you didn't have to pee on your way in, you will have to after witnessing the cascading water. Head-ache inducing wallpaper is not a decorating plus.

The disco-style lighting and the recessed ceiling made my jaw drop! This place is unique, to say the least.

I knew Catherine picked the right place when I saw this display. Godzilla attacking some old bowling trophies is beyond the pale. What living room would be complete without these things?

This photo was taken about 2 seconds before Catherine smacked me in the head. She said something about invasion of privacy...who could possibly resist these little goodies? There were about 7 books full of dated snapshots, a.k.a. GOLD!

A full-frontal view of what would be the centerpiece of my mantel...lol After further examination, I came to the conclusion that Godzilla was, in fact, protecting the coveted bowling statuettes.

The happy couple in days of yore. These folks are very kind to allow Cath to rent this place. It has been vacant for about 5 years, never rented...very odd.

I plan on returning soon and I hope to continue my search for goodies! It's gonna take Catherine a few weeks to make heads or tails of the place. Once she does, it's going to be very nice. In the meantime, I have to ransack this city for a turntable. "I only wanted to see you bathing in the purple rain..."

Pictures! Lantern Festival

It was drizzling while I was taking many of these photos, so they are kind of spotty.

The entrance into The Lantern Festival. So many people. Catherine is incredible at weaving her way through crowds. She lead the way for much of our time inside, we were able to avoid standing in many lines.

It's the year of the pig, so most of the lanterns were pigs and piglets.

Catherine was excited to get her picture taken. This is a good thing because I run from the front of a camera.

I love the colors in this one...cute piggies.

Pictures!

The view from the train I take to work every day. Space is at a premium here. This type of apartment is common here. Folks don't put much time into making the exterior of their housing attractive, most of them are probably very nice inside. Being so close to the train is not a good location. This is Shulin, not one of the most sought after places to live in the Taipei area.

Same train ride, a minute or two later. Have to cross this river in order to get into the city. Taipei is in the background. I wouldn't drink this water if it was the last liquid on the planet...lol.

This is just bizarre. Taken at Taipei Main Train Station. I couldn't believe it when I saw it. It's OK to fart, pick your nose, and step over your grandma to get on a train, but god forbid you breastfeed in public.

Here is class 1093, the coolest group of kids you'll ever meet. This was taken shortly after our recent ice cream excursion. I'm the dorky looking white guy in the back...lol.