Evidence of Patriotism

The following are a few photos of Renai Rd. adorned with Taiwanese flags. The banners are left over from the 10/10 Day celebration. 10/10, or October 10th, is Independence Day here on the island.

That's Some Good Chicken

Every Monday & Thursday night Catherine and I head over to Xinsheng Rd., where our favorite chicken place happens to be. They serve up chicken and fried yams encased in a sinful batter. The chicken is cut up into bite-sized pieces. I eat/buy so much that the husband and wife that own the place throw in free food & tea every time we go!...lol. Here are a few photos of where the chicken magic happens:

These folks are great. The wife always has an ear-to-ear smile when she sees us. Catherine usually chats with them, leaving me in the dark...lol. You can see their very pretty daughter in the background of the photo.

I always get two large orders of chicken and a large order of yams. They know how much I love this stuff so they always cram as much as will fit in the bags...an incredible bargain. We usually don't go until about 10p.m., so Catherine only nibbles on a piece or two. She has this thing where she doesn't eat after 7p.m., probably a good idea. This great little place is located in an alley just off of Xinsheng Rd, about 3 minutes from the MRT.

A Visit to Yingge - Pottery Heaven

It was another get outta Taipei Sunday afternoon. We jumped on a train and headed to Yingge, a small town about 30 minutes south of Taipei. It's the hub of pottery-making in northern Taiwan. It was a beautiful fall afternoon. We were on a mission to get our hands dirty and explore an unfamiliar area. Check out the photos for details of our adventure.

The entrance to "Old Street", the touristy area of the Yingge. I was surprised how many people were there, it was packed.

Some cute kids mugging for photos in front of a typical shop.

An endless supply of hand-made goods.

Tea pots are big sellers.

This monkey-like man sculpture is incredibly detailed.

Catherine and a beautiful vase.

Yours truly. I love these carvings.

Catherine managed to find a really cute pair of shoes in one of the markets. I was happy to buy them for her.

Zamfir has come to Taiwan! This guy spent the afternoon jamming out on the pan flute while his partner marketed CD's containing his efforts.

This is Frank. He has set up shop on Old Street selling German sausage...excellent German sausage! This is the real stuff, Frank is from Germany. I ate 3 of them. If you decide to visit Yingge, ya gotta dine with Frank!

Catherine trying to decide on how to tackle our pottery-making mission. The guy on the left made some beautiful pieces. Check out the pot he is working on, it was awesome.

Molding our gunk. Neither one of us had a clue how to do it. It was fun.

We made matching flower pots. It was pretty funny because a few minutes after this photo was taken, about 30 people crowded behind us. I think they thought we knew what we were doing.

Catherine putting the finishing touches on her pot. She is such a cutie.

She had a difficult time etching the Chinese characters. We will be picking the finished products up in about a month.

I found this sculpture very odd. I guess the rotary club is a world-wide thing. I thought that it was something that only existed in small-town America.

Yingge was a lot of fun. We will be going back in a month or so. I was surprised at how nice the shops were. The shopping is not limited to pottery. Catherine found some great shoes and we found a lot of other stuff we would like, but didn't want to spend the money right then.

Take a Sunday afternoon and mosey on over to Yingge.

The Nobel Peace Prize

The republicans/conservatives are not dealing well with Al Gore's win. Come on, the guy has done lots of good stuff regarding climate change. He has helped bring the issue to the forefront. He seems committed to leading the charge for change.

Check out the reaction from this woman...she is clueless. She states that no one knows the names of any of the past winners except Jimmy Carter and Yasser Arafat. Is she familiar with Desmond Tutu, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Mother Theresa, Aung San Suu Kyi, The Dalai Lama and Elie Wiesel? The republicans have spent years dismantling the educational system in the U.S., this is a product of their efforts.



**Only 463 days until Bush returns to his ranch!

The Broken Escalator Challenge

I ride escalators and walk up and down countless flights of stairs as part of my daily life here in Taipei. Yet I can't seem to walk on to a broken escalator without nearly falling on my face! Why is that? It's not like I can't see that the escalator is motionless. No matter how I prepare myself for taking more than one step, I can't make the smooth transition.

It happened again today. After I took my first step, it felt like I was falling off of a skateboard. It is the strangest feeling.

I am not alone here. Here is an article written in England's Daily Mail newspaper pertaining to this very issue. It is one of those odd things in our daily lives.

Anyone else out there willing to swallow their pride and admit to this silly behavior?

Post-Storm Photos

I decided to snap a few pics from my balcony after the recent typhoon. The sky is always at its best after a storm.

Cleaning Up After Typhoon Krosa

Typhoon Krosa was, by far, the most severe storm I have seen in my two+ years here in Taiwan. My apartment suffered some serious damage as a result of the incredible wind (gusts reached 170 mph!) and tons o' rain (over 24 inches in some areas!). At about noon, all hell broke loose. The windows were rattling, the roof was creaking and several spots in my ceiling decided to crack. Yup, I spent about 6 hours today battling, at last count, six nasty little spigots. I managed to get all of my electronics out of harms way before the showers came. I don't believe I lost anything to water damage. The upside to this mess is it forced me to move all of my furniture and clean the spots that otherwise go unseen...lol.

At about 6 o'clock, everything seemed to taper off, thankfully. It's nearing midnight and all is dry...phew!

Jerry, my landlord, has already schedule some roof-repair guys for Monday. With any luck we won't have anymore appreciable rain before then. Today was a day off of work but I think I worked harder than any day I can remember at the school.

Typhoon Krosa Knocking on Our Door

Looks like it's going to be a wet weekend. Krosa is a big boy and it's headed right at Taipei. I have something really fun planned for Sunday with Catherine and I won't be happy if we have to cancel.

Check out the projected path and the size of this sucker: (I will be wearing my water-wings to bed for the next few days!)

Childrens Do Learn...ARG!!!

This makes me queasy. I am beginning to think that President Bush needs some ESL (English as a second language) classes...lol. Jon Stewart adds some incisive commentary to the sad situation. Just 474 days left until he retires to his ranch and goes back to what he is best suited for, clearing brush.

Burma/Myanmar Update (Day 13)

(Boston Globe)

Out of sight, out of mind. This, I believe, is the tactic being used by the oppressive military regime. They have managed to round-up most of the monks/protesters and truck them to secret prisons therefore quashing the rebellion.

It's so disheartening. Folks living on about US$1/day can hardly be expected to mount much of a fight against a heavily-armed army with the backing of the Chinese government.

The death-toll is uncertain because of the lack of communication with the outside world.

Catherine, my girlfriend and citizen of Burma, has been unable to speak with her family since this began because the government has shut down all internet access and telephone lines.

The U.N. is beginning to take action. I am afraid that their threats of international sanctions are falling on deaf ears. The country has been isolated for so long that further isolation will simply maintain the status quo.

The only way to turn the tide in Burma is to convince the government in Beijing that it's time for a change in Burma. Without the support of the leadership in China, the military thugs will fall.