Rixing Type Foundry 日星鑄字行 ~ the last Traditional Chinese Character Letterpress in Taiwan

Down a tiny little backstreet in Taipei City surrounded by hardware stores is just what you don’t expect to find ~ a shop full of rows and rows of tiny little Chinese characters! This article titled, “6 Things You Didn’t Know About Rixing Type Foundry, The Last Traditional Chinese Letterpress In Taiwan” on the City 543 website says, “The Rixing Type Foundry (日星鑄字行) is home to the last remaining collection of traditional Chinese movable type character moulds in the world, plying its trade for more than four decades with techniques that have been recognized since the Song Dynasty in 1040s… … Continue reading Rixing Type Foundry 日星鑄字行 ~ the last Traditional Chinese Character Letterpress in Taiwan

Taichung 台中 Sightseeing at 5:00 am on a Sunday? YES!

An interesting article appeared on the internet recently, The ‘Top 10 sights in Taiwan Japanese tourists love to visit‘ which has thrown Taiwan’s tourism industry a bit. Forget such famous places as Taipei 101, CKS Memorial and the National Palace Museum. They’re history.  Consigned to the distant past.  Instead, now, in 2017, coming in at number 2 on the list is the lobby of the ‘1969 藍天飯店 Blue Sky Hotel‘ in Taichung. So, on my monthly visit to St. James’ Church, Taichung this past weekend, I found myself at 5:00 am on Sunday morning with a u-bike ~ and off … Continue reading Taichung 台中 Sightseeing at 5:00 am on a Sunday? YES!

Old and the New, Ancient and Modern ~ Welcome to Changhua 彰化!

Changhua is at the heart of rural Taiwan.  Honest, it don’t get much more rural than Changhua!  It’s just south of Taichung, so it’s the beginning of southern Taiwan.  Flat farmland stretches for miles from the coast inland – with rice and fruit growing, and wind farms galore. Last Saturday, my good friend En-Yu (Rebecca) and her daughter took me around Changhua City and Changhua County for the day.  It’s a real mix of old and new, ancient and modern – all mixed up, like this old house with painted wall… Pride of place goes to the Changhua Roundhouse, mentioned … Continue reading Old and the New, Ancient and Modern ~ Welcome to Changhua 彰化!

Changhua Roundhouse 彰化扇形車庫 ‘Fan-Shaped Train Garage’ ~ must-go, must-see!

This place is really so gobsmackingly amazing, it’s definitely a MUST-GO, MUST-SEE (note the capitals) kind of destination! And not just for train-lovers either.  For anyone.  And especially for anyone who has grown up with Thomas the Tank Engine and his friends.  Which is pretty much everyone today in the UK, either with the original Railway Series books (26 written by the Rev. Wilbert Awdry from 1945-72, and a further 16 written by his son, Christopher Awdry – 14 between 1983 and 1996, and 2 more in 2007 and 2011) or through the TV series, Thomas and Friends from 1984 onwards. … Continue reading Changhua Roundhouse 彰化扇形車庫 ‘Fan-Shaped Train Garage’ ~ must-go, must-see!

Yang-Ming Shan Mountains 陽明山 ~ before the storm….

It’s summer, well and truly summer!  Schools finished yesterday, the last day of June ~ so the summer holidays have officially started ~ and everyone is making the most of it! Summer weather in Taipei this past week has meant fine and sunny weather every morning, up to the mid-30’s in temps, then soon after lunch, it clouds over and a storm comes rolling in, sometimes just torrential rain, sometimes with thunder and lightning too.  So today everyone was up early to the Yang-Ming Shan Mountains, just above Taipei, and back down again by early afternoon.  By 8:00 am I … Continue reading Yang-Ming Shan Mountains 陽明山 ~ before the storm….

Tamsui Treasures!

Bright orange U-bikes have arrived in Tamsui, and not just down by the river, but up in northern Tamsui, by the sports centre and Carrefour ~ yippee!  So a perfect way to spend a Sunday afternoon is riding around on a u-bike, exploring some of the places in Tamsui that are more difficult to get to – and the sports center is a good place to start. Well, it is for me, cos it’s the nearest to Sanzhi! First stop is the Cheng’s Old Residence, which is a traditional old Taiwanese house, around 3 sides of a courtyard, probably built … Continue reading Tamsui Treasures!

Rainageddon Hits Taiwan

And it was quite some weekend…. 644 mm of rain fell on Sanzhi on Friday from about 2:00 – 11:00 am. That was the start of it all.  This was the scene on the coastal road on Friday morning from inside my bus…. Fridays’s report about the situation from the Taipei Times is here…. The local river at Sanzhi on Friday afternoon …. The rains spread south over the weekend.  Tons and tons of rain.  2 dead, several missing, homes and businesses washed away or flooded. Terrible damage to infrastructure, agriculture and businesses.  This is today’s Taipei Times report here Yesterday I … Continue reading Rainageddon Hits Taiwan

Happy Dragon Boat Festival 2017 @ Taipei!

It was all happening at Dazhi Riverside in Taipei this morning ~ the final day of 3 days of Dragon Boat Competitions!  The sun was out, the weather was warm, and everyone was rowing hard! In good weather, and with plenty of time, the best way for me to get to Dazhi Riverside from here is by U-bike from Tamsui, and so off I set!  Before 7:00 am too, while the weather was still cooler.  It took maybe 90 minutes of slow riding, enjoying the scenery… First stop though was the graffiti wall along by the riverside near to the … Continue reading Happy Dragon Boat Festival 2017 @ Taipei!