Category: Taiwan

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Treasure Hill 寶藏巖, Taipei….

Catherine Lee

Only 5 minutes walk from Taiwan’s most famous university, NTU (National Taiwan University), and its busy student shopping area and night markets, is this rather amazing village stuck on the side of a hill, Treasure Hill in fact…. After the war, lots of KMT soldiers were released from the Chinese military and settled here, building their own homes with rocks from the river, many still live here, plus artists in an artist village… This month, the village is hosting an art festival, hence lots of weird, wacky and wonderful objects! Fascinating place, well worth a visit! Continue reading Treasure Hill 寶藏巖, Taipei….

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Fish ‘n Chips in Tamsui… yep, the real thing!

Catherine Lee

Launching a restaurant selling ‘Traditional British Food’ right in the heart of a culture where food is the ultimate obsession is not for the faint-hearted…. but this is it! Tamsui’s 英國奶奶 Britshake restaurant, run by Amy and her husband is really a brave venture, but of course the food is great and Amy charms everyone by her vibrant and lively personality, so there’s queues of satisfied customers lining up for photos with her…. Amy comes from Lincoln in England and with her Taiwanese husband is determined to change Taiwanese perceptions of British food.  So armed with chef qualifications and plenty … Continue reading Fish ‘n Chips in Tamsui… yep, the real thing!

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Taipei Lantern Festival

Catherine Lee

Yesterday’s Lantern Festival in Taipei was spectacular – a huge area near the Expo and Art Museum and everywhere were lanterns of all shapes and sizes, many of gods and ancient sages, myths and traditional stories, also big lantern displays from schools of all ages, fun lanterns and aboriginal indigenous ones, all with an abundance of horses of course…. Happy Year of the Horse ~ and that marks the end of the Chinese New Year celebrations for this year…. and a new semester starts next week here at SJU! Continue reading Taipei Lantern Festival

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Happy Valentines Day…

Catherine Lee

and Happy Lantern Festival – the last day of Chinese New Year, and there’s lantern horses everywhere and big celebrations tonight… Should you be looking for someone to celebrate Valentines Day with, look no further than this new sign that I noticed at Chinese New Year in a street near St. James’ Church in Taichung…. Love it!  Just hoping that ‘Everlasting’ applies only to ‘Marriage’ rather than the whole title – otherwise their work’ll never be done! Continue reading Happy Valentines Day…

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2014 新北市平溪天燈節 Pingxi Sky Lantern Festival ~ Truly Awesome!

Catherine Lee

Truly awe-inspiring, honest!  Definitely a sight to behold…. Yes it was raining, the beautiful hot and sunny weather of last week having been replaced by a cold front of drizzle and cold, but nothing dampened our spirits on Saturday night at the Pingxi Junior High School as hundreds of lanterns were sent heavenwards.  Truly an awesome sight! Pingxi is an old coal-mining town in the mountains up beyond Taipei and famous for its annual sky lantern festival, made even more famous in recent years by several international media outlets, including CNN, who have proclaimed it a must-see event…. People can … Continue reading 2014 新北市平溪天燈節 Pingxi Sky Lantern Festival ~ Truly Awesome!

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Yuan Zai 圓仔 Baby Panda ~ so gorgeous (and awake!)

Catherine Lee

Taipei Zoo’s baby panda Yuan Zai 圓仔 is charming the whole country, but she doesn’t half like to sleep ha ha!  Queues and queues of people (limited to 19,200 per day) have lined up to see her for 10 minutes of viewing time during the Chinese New Year holiday as she made her public debut, and there she is (or not, if she’s often hiding) fast asleep…. Taipei Metro kindly shows the current panda viewing times and available tickets on electronic noticeboards on some of its platforms around the city – and so there it was that I came to be in … Continue reading Yuan Zai 圓仔 Baby Panda ~ so gorgeous (and awake!)

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Chinese New Year 2014!

Catherine Lee

And what a New Year it was!  The best weather ever ever ever, certainly ever since I ever remember – it was wonderful!  Praise God YES! Started with the New Year’s Eve Banquet just up the road at Shuang-Lian Senior Care Centre, invited by my good friends Rev. and Mrs. Hsu.  Definitely the in-place to be on the night!  Over 100 tables, over 1,000 people, whole families of 4 generations, delicious food and red envelopes for all the residents – fun! Then on New Year’s Day (Friday) to Taichung by High-Speed Rail – not easy to get a ticket, but … Continue reading Chinese New Year 2014!