Taipei’s Amazing Upside-Down House @ Huashan 1914 Creative Park!

Yes, everything is upside-down and it’s really amazing. I totally love it! But so does everyone else, ha ha!  So the first time I went, at Lantern Festival a few weeks ago, there was a 2-hour queue to get in….. and then the second time I went, a few days ago, there was hardly anyone, and the queue was 10 minutes!  It’s wonderful! The Upside-Down House is at Huashan 1914 Creative Park (華山1914文化創意產業園區), Taipei’s old winery dating from the Japanese era ~ first producing sake and ginseng wines, and breeding moth orchids, then it moved into production of rice wines, liquors and … Continue reading Taipei’s Amazing Upside-Down House @ Huashan 1914 Creative Park!

Punk Tree?!

Yes, right in downtown Taipei, along by the side of the Control Yuan HQ no less, is a tree that looks totally dead with all the bark flaked off, until you look up and see it’s actually quite healthy up at leaf level!  Helpfully there’s even a notice next to it giving it’s name as Cajuput Punk Tree. Turns out to be a kind of eucalyptus tree from Australia…. Quite amazing ~ and what a name! Continue reading Punk Tree?!

Totally Surrounded @ Dongmen Market…

Totally surrounded by vegetables, that is! Cannot fail to be impressed by the man at his stall in Taipei’s Dongmen Market who is, yes, totally surrounded by his produce. And just down the market from him is this big tub full of Stinky Tofu on the boil – it’s called Stinky Tofu for a good reason, but it’s not often that the smell is quite so noticeable first thing in the morning! aaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh! Continue reading Totally Surrounded @ Dongmen Market…

Master Chang Ching’s ‘Exquisite Arts’ Exhibition 新開創 – 張敬の精湛藝術邀請展 ~ a big must-see!

From now until January 24, the National Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Hall in Taipei City is THE place to go!  Not for the changing of the guard, although that’s quite fun if you arrive on the hour like hundreds of tourists do, and like we did yesterday.  But even more fascinating is the Wood Sculpture Exhibition by Master Chang Ching 張敬, it’s STUNNING! Master Chang’s story was published over 10 years ago in English by the Buddhist Tzu-Chi Organization (click here for the article), and it’s fascinating to read ~ he has a great Christian testimony! He’s now nearly 80 and still … Continue reading Master Chang Ching’s ‘Exquisite Arts’ Exhibition 新開創 – 張敬の精湛藝術邀請展 ~ a big must-see!

Happy New Year 2016!

New Year’s Eve extravaganza at Taipei City Hall and the fireworks at Taipei 101 ~ THE place to be on New Year’s Eve in Taiwan! An extract from the Taipei Times report of the evening, sums it all up wonderfully ….. Hundreds of thousands of people flocked to Taipei’s Xinyi District (信義) on Thursday night for the city government’s New Year’s Eve countdown party and to celebrate the new year.  The star-studded party was organized by the Taipei Department of Information and Tourism and a coalition of private enterprises, including Taipei 101, SET-TV media group and Union Bank of Taiwan. … Continue reading Happy New Year 2016!

Advent Word Global Advent Calendar

Day 9: #be #存在 Monday December 7 ‘Contentment is more about being than about doing, or acquiring, or mastering, or craving, or searching. Contentment is about being satisfied given the limitations of our present life’. 知足與其說是一種作為、養成、主控、渴求、或探究,不如說是一種存在。 And now for the verb ‘to be’ ~ ‘I am, you are, he /she is, we are, they are, everyone is, all are’… here at ‪‎TanShirt‬ Workshop English Class, outreach of ‪‎Advent Church‬… Day 10: #surprise #驚訝 Tuesday December 8 ‘This season of Advent invites us to look and listen for Jesus. Look and listen for the unexpected’. 降臨節期,我們受邀同來注視耶穌、聆聽耶穌。且讓我們真的看見和聽到,那超乎預期的人、事、物! Taken outside the National Theater, … Continue reading Advent Word Global Advent Calendar

Taiwan Elections ~ coming soon!

Taiwan is gearing up for presidential and legislative elections on January 16, 2016, so the next few months promises to be a very lively time indeed.  Campaigning is in full swing. Loud speaker vans roam the streets, campaign billboards are up all over.  One thing’s for sure, Taiwan elections are never boring and never quiet! Freedom of Speech is of course a greatly valued right in any democratic society, and Taiwan people make the most of it.  This was the scene on the footbridge in central Taipei yesterday, looking towards the Control Yuan ~ one man with a loudhailer letting … Continue reading Taiwan Elections ~ coming soon!

Humming round Taipei in a Humvee?

Most Thursdays off I go to the diocesan office in Taipei ~ and en route there or back I often find myself passing by some of Taipei’s more famous buildings. Yesterday afternoon took me past the Sheraton Hotel, strategically located right in the middle of the area housing many of the main government ministry buildings – so also centrally located to observe all protests, demonstrations, occupations and of course VIP events. Turned out that yesterday the hub of activity around the Sheraton Hotel was for the visit of President Ma Ying-Jeou.  Outside was parked a super-shiny silver Humvee.  Kinda unexpected … Continue reading Humming round Taipei in a Humvee?