Ok back to the Magic Bus Trip!

Our final destination on our road trip was the small seaside town of Hualien, located in northeastern Taiwan.
We made a few stops along the way though. Our first stop was the town of Ilan, where we stayed in a beautiful, yet simple Japanese style hotel at the National Center for Traditional Arts.

Along the way to Ilan we had lunch in a small town (I don’t remember the name). We ate some really great seafood. Once we entered the restaurant we were immediately taken by a group occupying 2 tables.

Some of you out there may remember the 80s group Men Without Hats and their infectious , new wave hit, “Safety Dance.”
Sadly, they disbanded due to an identity crisis of sorts…and it’s a little known fact that they actually did “find themselves,” after many years…in Taiwan of all places. They now call themselves, Men With Hats:








We tried to figure out what group they really belonged to...even with our friends speaking Mandarin, well, all we got was: "it's a club." I like my theory better. "S-A-F-E-T-Y Safety dance! " doo doo doo doo doo doo doo doo doo doo...


We reached our hotel around dusk. The National Center for Traditional Arts is located along the Tungshan River. It looked like a college campus – and in fact they do have visiting scholars, so artists and students can study there. But not only is it an educational facility, it is also a place where tourists can take in traditional theater (pictures to follow), music, handicrafts, dance, toys and games and acrobatic performances. We visited a museum which featured puppets, pottery and other handicrafts. There was a row of shops filled with beautiful sculptures, traditional musical instruments, jewelry (I got lots of silver earrings and a beautiful silver and glass choker all at very reasonable prices) and other handicrafts. The best part was taking part in DIY crafts. Sujoy crafted a leather keychain and Anjoli and I made necklaces out of clay that you stamp and then bake. Sujoy also made an owl clock out of tile – it came out great. Anjoli made a very intricate mirror – she “painted” the mirror with a mixture of glue and colored crushed glass. It was taking forever – until our friend, Thomas had the ingenuity to think of making a tube out of a plastic bag which we squeezed onto the mirror as if frosting a cake. He saved the day! Thomas the Train is a man of many talents! (Anjoli is posting the DIY craft pictures on her blog, and I will post the link here as soon as they're up, in case you're interested).

Here are some pictures we took at the Center, with a few taken the night we arrived:






Alice in Wonderland:






This puppet costs $5000 USD. I kid you not.



We were able to catch a short opera performance. In this scene, two friends are saying a VERY LONG goodbye. They will not see eachother for a long time. I thought they were supposed to be men dressed as women - however they are actually men...dressed as men!





Chris and Anjoli pose with the performers



View from our hotel


YUM! If you are wondering what we had for breakfast, so was I...

Happy Birthday Pete!

You know him

You love him

Rock would never be the same

Without him!


Thanks for everything Pete.
Have a wonderful day!
Lots of love,
Sue D.

Happy Mother's Day!

I apologize for not posting for awhile.
I've been missing my mom so much this week. She passed away December 22, 2004.
I hear speak to me often though, and tonight I heard her say, loud and clear: "Don't be sad. Enjoy your family."
I did have a great Mother's Day, despite the sadness. Anjoli made me a basket at school filled with cards, homemade chocolate chip cookies (made at school) and origami flowers. She wrote a cute tribute to me. I promise to scan it soon.
Sujoy gave me a beautiful blue star sapphire set of earrings and matching neclace. The earings are very cool - they are tear shaped but the circular parts (with the stud behind them) are Chinese characters- one is a symbol of prosperity and the other represents good luck. I wore them all day today.

Last night, Sujoy took us out to a very nice, loungy restaurant downtown that featured a traditional puppet show by a group called the Shan Puppet Theater, that was really cool. I was surprised! We got special treatment when the owner heard that Americans were coming: he wrote up a brief synopsis of each scene for us. I wish I had brought my camera. We met the puppeteer after the show, and Anjoli and I got to learn how to work these gorgeous puppets. You wouldn't believe what he could make these things do! One of them was an old man who smoked a long pipe and coughed up real smoke! Another one was a beautiful woman with long hair - he showed us how he made her caress her hair (she was flirting in one scene) - she pulled it from behind and then flicked it back over her shoulder. He also got one to spin plates and a big bowl as well - on this very thin stick. He was a really sweet guy and very very cute! ;) We got his business card and I told him I would try to get him a gig at the nearby American School. (We're registering Anjoli there for next year). We met a journalist who was really taken by Anjoli's enthusiasm - so she was really a conduit for us- she translated and encouraged us to exchange business cards. It's funny because on our Magic Bus road trip we went to the Taiwan Center for Traditional Arts and we saw this amazing display of a Master Puppeteer who was known all over the world - he ended up settling in Paris. He died recently, and lo and behold this guy we met (Sam) was his protege! (Or one of them at least).

Today we went for a long walk and found the local recreation center (finally) with 2 huge pools - one outdoor and one indoor - plus a big spa (more like a lagoon), sauna and steamroom. I promised to take Anjoli every day (or therabouts). She's totally psyched.

We topped off the day with a great sushi dinner at a nearby restaurant. I am so full now. Back to salad city tomorrow!
Now it is way past Anjoli's bedtime, so I better say goodnight!
Hope you are all well.
Remember to appreciate your mom and give her lots of hugs - and not just on Mother's Day, ok?
Be well,
Sue

Here are some pictures of the puppets we saw.(I found these on the Shan Puppet Theater's website). The first one is of the old man who smoked:




The Shan Puppet Theater:

Too Much: The Magic Bus

I have been hesitant to post our Magic Bus trip...I screamed and shouted "No blood for Oil" last September in a massive demonstration in Washington,D.C. It is a bit hyprocritical of me to post pictures of ah, excess, and wasted fuel. "Do I contradict myself? Very well then. I contradict myself. ( I am large, I contain multitudes)." Yes I always use that Walt Whitman quote to assuage my GUILT.
Other than those valid twinges of guilt, we had a great time - all SEVEN of us: me, Sujoy (hubby), Anjoli(darling daughter), Thomas the Train and Alice in Wonderland (our friends here in Taiwan who are also Sujoy's colleagues - Lyn gave them new last names), and our friends from the states Lyn and Chris (who are bro and sis) along with a wonderful driver Mr. Huang, boarded this lovely monster and headed to the east coast of Taiwan:




That's Alice (she's got a little pup in the oven. It's the year of the Dog - get it??) and Sujoy


We were pretty excited about the karaoke equipment and disco lights. Once we (the Americans that is) tried to sing...we soon realized that we are not really meant for this popular Asian past time. Alice has a lovely voice. Here she is singing along to a pretty Taiwanese song. The video had nothing at all to do with the ballad. It was of a couple getting drunk on sake. I've posted a picture of the guy's chest (!). He drew a face on it. But, these things happen when you have too many drinkies...





But the REAL show stopper was Thomas. Oh MAN! This guy is smooth! He has the most gorgeous voice. Why is he wasting his talent as an engineer???!! Well, at least he seranades his wife. Aw....such a happy couple.



More pics...










Much more interesting pics coming...and I REALLY DO care about pollution. I am not an air-conditioned gypsy. (Ok, maybe I am...).

Part 2 of First Road Trip: Shifen

Ok I'm a little slow...but you're in for a real treat!
After we left the tea museum in Pinglin, we drove to a small town called Shifen. "Shi" means "ten" in Chinese. The town was named "Shifen" because there used to be ten families working together in this town. It was once a town for coal mining. The nearby Pingshi Branch Railroad was built in 1918 for coal transportation, but was selected to be a tourist trail railroad in 1992. We had lunch at Shifen Station which was full of beautiful and nostagic scenery and artifacts.
On the way to Shifen, we noticed what I thought were "burning kites" in the sky. We later found out they were sky lanterns, which is "a paper lantern with a combustible element attached to the underside. When the element is lit hot air rises into the lantern sack and the lantern floats into the sky like a hot-air balloon." (Thank you Lonely Planet Guide to Taiwan!). They looked SO cool. I couldn't get a good shot of them, unfortunately. Paper lanterns were used long ago to send signals to people who lived in remote mountainous villages to warn them of an impending invasion from bandits and marauders.

BUT! This is the reason why we visited Shifen. First, we walked across a bridge:




Then we followed a cobblestone path along the Keelung River to another (smaller bridge):



And we walked alongside the railroad tracks...until we reached this!




Here is a 3 second video for your viewing pleasure! (I made a longer one, but I have to figure out how to edit it).


Video Hosting - Upload Video - Photo Sharing


It's like a mini Niagra Falls...just gorgeous. I promised Anjoli that she could post some pictures from Shifen on her blog, so be sure to check those out too! They'll be up soon (really!). Here are a few shots of the surrounding area:

Danshui

Here are a few more pics. They were actually taken the night before the first mini road trip. I'm trying to post everything chronologically...but I goofed.
Anjoli will post more Danshui pictures on her blog. (I've been VERY lax in helping her...tsk tsk!).
We took a cab to the MRT (mass rapid transit). The train is above ground, so it's a great way to see the city and surrounding mountains.
We had a seafood BBQ dinner that night. We sat around a grill and cooked our own food. The food was good, but we had to sit on these tiny plastic chairs - it was really weird! I know the people here are small, but...







Sokoun sucking on a seasnail...yum! (No, i didn't try it! After unknowingly eating squid lips (!) I've decided to err on the side of caution, gastronomically speaking!).




Put on your high-heeled sneakers! They're actually kinda cute (if you're 15!).





(Chris, Sokoun and Lyn). Lyn is telling me, "that's the LAST TIME I'm cooking on this trip!!!!"

First Stop on Road Trip Number One

The first weekend that our friends were here, we rented a minivan/driver and took a little trip to a few towns up north. The first stop was a beautiful tea farm/museum in Pinglin. The drive was just gorgeous. Lots of "broccoli mountains." (That's what they look like!). It's so green and lush here in Taiwan.
We drove up one mountain that was adorned on both sides of the road with flower boxes on a stone wall. We must have passed 10,000 flower boxes I swear!
Here are pictures of the Pinglin Tea Museum...I'll just let them speak for themselves.

I Can't Wait!

Our friends Chris, Sokoun and Lyn are coming from San Diego to visit this Friday for a few weeks! Yay! Sokoun's mom was also going to come, but her mother (Sokoun's grandmother) is quite ill and is not doing well. I am very sad to hear about this, and I'm sure it will be difficult for Sokoun to be so far away at this time.
Still,we are all SO psyched about the visit. It's fun here (at times), but we really miss home and especially our friends, of course. We need more people in our house...we've been at eachother's thoats lately! (Ok, I'm really to blame there. I have to admit. I'm having anger issues...I think it's still a culture shock/adjustment thing).
I promise to liven up this blog again soon with more pictures. We're going on a road trip to some gorgeous areas. We're even going to stay in a national park and take a lesson in aboriginal art. Wonder what that will be all about? I'm really looking forward to driving along the east coast (the Hualian highway). It looks a little hairy! We've hired a mini-bus (Magic Bus!) and a driver. We'll spend one night in a beautiful resort-like hotel. Sounds like massage time to me! Our friend Alice made all the arrangements...THANK YOU ALICE!!! She and her husband Thomas are going also - so it will be eight of us all together.

Today Anjoli and I had to go for a battery of tests at the local hospital, as part of Sujoy's work permit requirements. One of the requirements was an AIDS test. Poor Anjoli - she threw a fit! Crying her little eyes out...I felt badly. It took three of us to hold her down! In addition to a physical, we were checked for, among other diseases: leprosy (!), parasites (guess how?) and I had to have a chest x-ray, which I'm assuming was for TB. The amazing thing was, including the time it took to draw Anjoli's blood, we were out of there in a little less than 2 hours. That would be unheard of in the states! The bad news was, the woman who drew Anjoli's blood wasn't wearing gloves. I told her, "you're not wearing gloves!" and she said, "Oh, sorry." I didn't push it (and yes, I should have) but Anjoli was causing such a ruckus, I just let it go...she swabbed Anjoli's arm with alcohol...oh man what a morning!

I can't wait to get back home, in all honesty...Maybe things will perk up when I start taking Chinese classes (twice a week). It would be nice to have coffee or tea with some ex-pats in one of the trillion cafes here! Fingers crossed I meet some cool people...all I seem to attract are people who want to take me to Church or Bible study classes! (I love Jesus in my OWN way and I believe that there are MANY paths to enlightenment).

Last weekend we went to the Taipei Museum of Art. We went mainly for an art fair outside the building. It was pretty cool - Anjoli made a few crafts, including a block print. After we went to the fair we went inside - admission was less than a dollar. We saw a wonderful photography exhibit. Beautiful black and white photos of people from both Taiwan and China from the 1900s- present. Some of the modern art photography was very very cool...some of it was disturbing (children were not allowed to view it).

Here are a few shots I took at the fair and outside the museum.

I Felt the Earth Move...

Hey!!!
I was just about to write a new post a few minutes back...and my chair and computer started tilting to the left! Yikes! The chimes on my wall near the kitchen table started tinkling(!), and the light fixture over the table is still swinging. I move from one fault line to another. Great. This one was a little scary!

[This is from The Taipei Times 4/2/06: A powerful earthquake, measuring 6.4 on the Richter scale, rocked Taiwan yesterday, sending panicked residents rushing out into the streets, but there was no immediate report of serious injury.

The quake struck at 6:02pm, with its epicenter 10km underground near Taitung City, the Seismological Observation Center said.

"It is a relatively shallow quake, making the impact even more obvious," a center spokeswoman said.

The powerful quake was felt in most parts of the country, with skyscrapers in Taipei shaking in a slow up-and-down movement].

Yesterday I subbed for a science teacher at Anjoli's school. I had 6th, 7th and 8th grade students...with slight attitudes (natch). It's a Christian school, so one of the students reminded me that we're supposed to pray. I knew I was supposed to, but I have never in my life lead a group in prayer before so I was feeling weird about it. I looked for volunteers or some sort of guidance - all I saw was a sea of blank stares...so, being my irreverant wiseass self (yes I can be), folded my hands and looked up to the heavens and said, "Oh God, please help me with this class!" I told them I was KIDDING!! They were not amused...I got the rolling eyeballs, looks of disgust...what a way to start the day, eh?
Then I took them to an assembly - they sang songs of praise (ok - they pretty much just sat there while the younger ones sang), and a few of them who were ESL students put on a funny skit (making fun of American movies/t.v, but it had to do with the Bible really). I ended the day with the same class, and instead of watching a Discovery Channel dvd, I took them outside for recess (they usually don't have PE on Fridays) so I won them over after all. I brought them back and said a NICE prayer for them. ("Oh Lord, thank you for this day, and help everyone have a safe and happy Spring Break"). Phew, I survived. Good thing it was only a half day! One of the 6th graders told me she'd like me to come back and teach next year, so that was nice!
Sujoy took Anjoli to the Shilin Presidential Gardens today, so I'll share some pretty pictures (taken by Sujoy).