Indigo Trekka

Updating part trois

2012-01-23T17:23:00.000+08:00

I'm attempting to make some changes to this blogs...so, we'll see if we can't transform it into something slightly more interesting.

By we, I mean, me.

In the meantime, feel free to follow me on twitter: dcoreys.

Walking around Elizabeth

2012-01-21T12:23:00.039+08:00

Not the most populated place in the world, Elizabeth, Pennsylvania, is also not the least populated. My usual explorations of places in...wherever I am, take me to decrepit buildings, rural landscapes, and scenes that speak of the nature of an area. Now, when I say "nature of an area," I want you to understand that I mean something that tells a story; the story a place tells doesn't necessarily need to be understood.

Look at it this way: You have a picture book that has a story, but it's in a language you don't understand. So, you get a general feel for the area, but the details elude you (or stare you right in the face, waiting to be understood).

This is what happened recently, when I drove to Elizabeth, PA to take some photographs. Here are some of my favorites:

Round Hill Cemetery

Landscape with wooden fixtures, note only one is falling apart.

This appears to be an old concession stand.

Not even rural areas can escape Pennsylvania's construction.

Open lands

nowhere, somewhere, nowhere

I also visited the Exhibit Farm in Round Hill, but most of it was closed, being that I attempted to visit at 4:37 (it closes at 4:00, or 4:30, anyway, it was closed). The place looks really nice, though, and I'm sure the animals are out and about during the summer time. Some animals I did see were ducks and geese, which were hanging around the pound near the entrance.

Numerous ducks and [not pictured] geese.

The farm's barn and silo

Congressional Discussion in Monaca!

2012-01-20T11:40:00.000+08:00

Yesterday, I went to Elizabeth, PA. I'll post on that later.

Right now, I'm going to talk about...nevermind. I'll just tell you that I went to Monaca, PA, and partook in a discussion group with Congressman Jason Altmire (PA-4). He is an honest man, one that I am extremely proud to have voted for and have represent me.

Here is what he had to say about H.R. 3261 (Stop Online Piracy Act, a.k.a. SOPA):

STOP SOPA

2012-01-18T13:49:00.002+08:00

Buckle down, language style

2012-01-18T04:50:00.000+08:00

"OK, that's it, brain, you need to learn languages and learn them now!"

That's what I yelled at my natural computational device, today. However, I am not yet certain as to what extent my brain takes me seriously.

Concerning language-learning, I barely take myself seriously; I'm an English fanatic, this is true, but linguistic capabilities in the style of foreign lands elude me. A brief rundown of language I'd like to learn:

- Anglo-Saxon
- Latin
- French
- Taiwanese
- Japanese

How many of those do I know? Well, as alluded to in the previous paragraph, none of them. I can force myself to recognize a negligible amount of Taiwanese, and my English learning has brought me to a point where Anglo-Saxon and Latin don't always look unfamiliar, but that's about the extent.

I have extremely vast tracts of time that could be used for language commitment, which generally fall prey to my inability to focus on anything for more than a second. That's a lie, I sat down to teach myself Latin, earlier, and came out with this:

- Sum means "I am" (I knew that, though)
- Nauta means "sailor" (I knew that, too)
- In omnibus requiem quaesivi, et nusquam inveni nisi in angulo cum libro means "Everywhere I have searched for peace and nowhere found it, except in a corner with a book."

So, now, I understand what each word in that [Latin] sentence means, though the conjugations and syntax are performing some evasive maneuvers. This, I suppose, could be attributed to a lack of formal training in the language.

Since I have lived mostly in Taiwan for the past three years, you can make two assumptions: 1) Learning languages such as Latin and Anglo-Saxon are out of the question and 2) my Taiwanese and Mandarin must be getting up there in fluency. Your former assumption is dead on, but the latter isn't even close. Like Latin, I've received little formal training (I had four semester of Mandarin, and I remember every word from that); coupled with my being an English teacher by profession, I find myself speaking English far more often than the languages in question.

Thus, I speak English, of that I can be sure.

What is the point of all this? I suppose it has been to make myself understand that I am terrible at motivating myself to learn languages. Knowing myself, I need one of the two following things:

1) A class or classes in one or more of the aforementioned languages of interest
2) Someone to learn it/them with

I've immersed myself in an environment where people speak Taiwanese, but their lack of interest about their own language and interest in mine demotivate me. Regarding the others, I have no friends that are interested in the languages that haven't at least learned them to an intermediate level already; I have not a soul to study with.

Maybe I can watch enough anime to learn Japanese...

The Collapse

2012-01-10T12:49:00.002+08:00

I see the collapse in clear view
Is it the collapse of you or
maybe...
moral apathy trails you
A lack of action makes it hard
to get through
Everything that binds
us to these constructs
our corruption to pass through
The consequence that subdues
Impales hearts with artificial words
That shatter and let tru-
th find a way to collapse our world views
I see the collapse in clear view
Could it be the collapse of you?

Zombies!!!

2012-01-07T15:49:00.002+08:00

Probably one of my favorite board-games...Zombies!!!

Mid-game: the players split up.

No more tiles left.

Mike (orange) is far away from the helipad, and I'm clearing out the garden store!

Fighting valiantly in the face of zombification.

Parking

2011-12-31T21:37:00.007+08:00

Check out that parking job!

First try = master parallel parker

Savior of Christmas (Pageant)

2011-12-21T23:19:00.000+08:00

Who has two thumbs and figured out how to use the above technological devices in about ten minutes? BOB CALS...I mean...THIS GUY [I'm pointing to myself]. Yes, I can now use the security cameras, sound system, and projection system of Touhu Elementary School's auditorium. Mainly, I was tasked with figuring out how to up the volume on the mics and adjust some of the lighting. Problems solved.

BirthdaChristmaValentine's Day!

2011-12-18T20:07:00.000+08:00

Decker Silicone Watch - Black

My BirthdaChristmaValentine's Day present from Yaling.

This watch is awesome.

Month of...merriment...

2011-12-16T21:24:00.000+08:00

What in the...where has Corey been?

I tell you, youngin', I've been around. Actually, I've also been around here, you know, my computational device, but in a form lesser of myself and more of, um, a fatigued self. Betwixt work, the girlfriend, various other activities, and the current holiday season, I find myself wanting more time. I need more time to do things and more time to sleep.

ANYWAY...

I had set the goal of doing one month this year where I updated every day, but as you can see I've failed in this venture. I highly doubt January will see anything of that nature, but who knows what the future holds?

Taiwan isn't a really Christmasy place; it does have its share of malls with Christmas decorations and randomly strewn-about decor in nearly all locales, but the feeling is different.

Take, for instance, my job, which is to teach children the wonders of the English language (absolutely no sarcasm there, I assure you...or there...or there...or there...really). At work, we have been tasked with a Christmas pageant of sorts. Each class needs to perform some type of act, whether it be a poem, song, skit, etc. I have two main classes: 2C and 1C. These two classes must do a skit and poem, respectively. I've chosen "Twas the Night Before Christmas" for 1C and a modified version of a short skit I found (which I can't find again) called "My Stocking is Too Full." In addition to their main duties, my classes must learn two songs: "Silent Night" and "Jingle Bell Rock." Some students find it to their liking, others are quite opposed and find every avenue from where destruction and mayhem can be caused.

I mention this because it is time consuming and rather taxing on the self. Our actual Christmas show is Wednesday (I can't wait for this to be over).

Besides this, it was my Birthday on the 12th, and my friend Dylan's on the 11th. That means there were multiple dinners/parties to attend.

Dylan's birthday dinner...note the lovely couples :p

My birthday party
Me, A-lun, A-seng, Pigu (not pictures), and Yaling (behind the camera)

Soon, I'll be going home to enjoy some time with my family, too, which means I've had to get my Christmas shopping done, here. Why? Well, I'll arrive in Pittsburgh on Christmas day! Yeah, I'm such a wonderful present.

Peace.

Intersection

2011-11-30T19:45:00.001+08:00

I've commented before on Taiwanese traffic, but I've never mentioned the variety of vehicles to be found on the streets of this lovely island nation. One such vehicle is the electric scooter. Now, generally, when you say "scooter" in Taiwan, it is assumed you speak of a motorcycle-like vehicle. Sometimes, though, this is an incorrect assumption:

Eye surgery

2011-11-24T02:58:00.000+08:00

So, I recently got eye surgery. Yes, I let the someone probe, cut, and laser my eyes...and no pain was felt.

I went to 博士眼科診所 (Doctorate Opthalmology Clinic), whose tagline is "無刀近視雷射手術專門診所" (The no-knife myopic laser surgery specialist eye clinic).

Now, "laser eye surgery" doesn't quite cover the procedure, as there are multiple ways to get it done with many options. Since working with words is quite difficult when you are eyeless, I decided it would be prudent to go all out and opted for every feature. Thus, my particular form of surgery was Wavefront-guided LASIK surgery.

It's not my goal to completely bore you with details, so I'll be brief with and just go into minute detail regarding the steps of the procedure.

1. Eye measurement w/ pachymeter: determine cornea thickness
2. Eye measurement w/ topographer: determine surface contour
3. Review: Details about eyes and future results are discussed
4. Washing out of eyes and general preparation
5. Anesthesia: a series of injections into the eye, done with needles (no pain)
6. Flap creation part 1: corneal suction immobilizes the eyes
7. Flap creation part 2: flap created using femtosecond laser microkeratome
8. Laser Remodeling: an excimer laser vaporizes tissue in the stromal layer
9. The flap is repositioned over the stromal layer

The rest is up to you, your eye, and the drops being used to maintain your eyes. Twelve days after surgery, I am seeing very well and nothing has gone wrong.

Yaling got her eyes done at the same clinic about a month before me, and her results are the same. This was a great experience, and I'm glad I did it. Now, most of my activities be simpler (well, after December 12, which is when I can do "strenuous activities").

After surgery, sporting my clinic-given shades

Eyes sans shades; the blood is a normal side-effect of the corneal suction

Taken just now, twelve days later...blood is almost completely gone.

"Beyond Ourselves" (lyrics)

2011-11-20T02:52:00.001+08:00

A song my band, 阜可 (Fuke), has been working on for a while, now. I think I'm finally happy with the lyrics.

(Verse 1)

Let's pretend for just one moment that our lives could coexist

Let our words run through our minds like water through a sieve

Flowing order, every corner of our minds,

Forward doesn't exist when we're always slipping on our time

(Bridge 1)

Look, it's the sky not falling

Look, it's the ground keeping its form

Everything's normal, no compromise in this

All paths lead to emptiness

(Chorus)

If you listen closely,

The silence tells us that the hours are slipping away

No longer deceiving our eyes

We’re too far astray

(Verse 2)

The sobbing continues

Wildly thrashing at the air

Can clouds provide us cover

When nothing else seems to care?

(Break)

Beyond our sight the imagery is crumbling

Beyond our hearing all the cries are failing

Beyond our taste the fruits are bitter and saline

Beyond ourselves we understand nothing

(Bridge 2)

Look, it's the sky not falling

Look, it's the ground keeping its form

Everything's normal, no compromise in this

No path leads to happiness

(Chorus)

If you listen closely,

The silence tells us that the hours are slipping away

No longer deceiving our eyes

We’re too far astray

"Penetrating Walls" (lyrics ver. 2)

2011-11-19T01:32:00.004+08:00

I posted a different version of these lyrics, before, but we felt the first verse needed some changing. So, the timing and style was changed, drastically. You can compare at will.

(Intro)
**Instrumental**

(Verse 1)
When at times, I face myself and cannot reason why
I can’t recognize the reflection, but detect a cry
A plea from a former friend
An end
That I used to justify my current means
Slowly stripped away the self
The shell
That used to hold and nurture me

(Chorus)
When I finally decide
What to do with all my selfish pride
There may be nothing left inside
of me

my mind plays to every whim
those lasting touches deep within
I'll never feel past these walls
around me

(Verse 2)
There's many reasons why my thoughts and logic disagree
They're colluding to strip down and conquer empathy
I can't explain what these emotions are coursing through me
And I fear that everything's leading to lunacy

(Chorus)
So, When I finally decide
What to do with all my selfish pride
Will there be something left inside
of me

my mind plays to every whim
those lasting touches deep within
I'll never feel past these walls
around me

(Break)
Careful what your expectations lead you to believe
I'm nothing you remember of me
Fears. Collections. Thoughts of binding but these
recollections
Feel so fake,
I see that now no matter how I look
Into the mirror, regardless of the time I take
This person
always finds a way to stay.

I just can't get away!
I just can't get away!
I just can't get away!
I can't get away!
Get him away!

(Outro)
Will I ever see what is me?

Mobile Pod Ball Ver.Ka (MG)

2011-11-17T01:43:00.000+08:00

Let's get this party started!

Snake Charmer

2011-11-11T02:36:00.001+08:00

Nothing really to report, except for the fact that this guy was inside the gate to my building when I was trying to leave to go to Rita's birthday party:

I wasn't terribly worried, though, because he doesn't look to be of any of the poisonous snake types that inhabit Taiwan (he vaguely resembles a pit viper, but the scale pattern doesn't look quite right). If anyone reading knows what species of snake this is, let me know!

Weeks of New Music

2011-11-08T01:00:00.052+08:00

I've recently acquired [read: purchased] many new and excellent CDs by a variety of talented musicians. Here's a list:

Carina Round - Things You Should Know [EP]

Beautiful, wispy voice that takes you weightlessly to the clouds and finally drops you like an atom bomb. Round's music on the CD is quite different than her other albums (which were a bit more...not soft, haha), really letting her probe atmospheric qualities not previously explored. The drums are light but crisp, the guitars high but trailing along at a leisured pace, with Round providing inspired lyrics and vocals throughout.

Favorite Track: "Backseat"

Puscifer - Conditions of My Parole [LP]

Maynard James Keenan's space for mental exercises and musical ventures, this Puscifer album may be his best yet. It's not as hard-hitting or lyrical perverted as his first release, V is for Vagina, and it flows a lot better than his third album (which, by the way, is my second favorite), C is for [Please Insert Sophomoric Genitalia Reference Here]. With that in mind, the qualities that make him a great musician, his vocal abilities and lyrical inspirations, really come together, here. This particular release was one inspired by the landscapes of Arizona, and you can really feel that in the mood of the LP. Seriously, give it a listen, if you listen to anything I recommend...it'll change you. For real.

Favorite Track: "Monsoons"

DRC Music - Kinshasa One Two [LP]

A wonderful project partaken by Damon Albarn and a few other noteworthy musicians (Dan the Automator, Actress, etc.) in the Democratic Republic of Congo. It melds the unique musical qualities found in the aforementioned land with the sounds that make Albarn, well, Albarn. It isn't a Gorillaz or Blur CD, but it is similar to another of his projects, Mali Music. The musical soundscapes on the CD cannot be done justice by mere words alone, and I encourage you, the reader, to peruse DRC Music's Soundcloud page for some insight into this masterpiece of music.

Favorite track: "If You Wish To Stay Awake"

Mark Snow - The Truth and the Light: Music From the X-Files [OST]

Um, it's the music from X-Files. If you liked the music from that show, this is a CD you definitely need to pick up...20 songs for under $13, get it.

Favorite Track: "Materia Primoris The X Files Theme (Main Title)" [of course]

菅野よう子 - DARKER THAN BLACK ―黒の契約者― [OST]

This is the soundtrack for an anime entitled Darker Than Black. You needn't ever see the anime (though, it is pretty decent) to appreciate this album, as Kanno Yoko, its composer, did a splendid job, as always. She's always very dynamic in her work, running from rock-anthem solos to electronic platforms that keep you held solidly to the ground, whilst it shakes violently, to tear-inducing piano solos and thoughtful jazz ensembles. I highly recommend anything she does...just get some Kanno Yoko CDs and you'll be good.

Favorite Track: "ハイヒールラナウェイ"

Wayne Static - Pighammer [LP]

Simply put: If you liked Wisconsin Death Trip and Machine from Static-X, you'll love this CD. Static gives you simplistic, straightforward guitar lines and electronic tracks (as he's dubbed: Evil Disco).

Favorite Track: "Slave"

サザビー MSN-04 SAZABI

2011-11-07T00:43:00.002+08:00

I think my third purchase from the Gashapon Senshi NEXT 03 capsule machine will be my last, as I think myself too big a chicken to gamble getting more doubles of the other Gundams I have. I got a double of the ガンドランター GUNDLANDER, but my favorite toy store, Rakucho (located in Linkou: 新北市林口區仁愛路二段510號), let me put it together and even paid me the nt$60 for it!

Anyway, here is the new one!

Around the Neighborhood

2011-11-05T23:00:00.000+08:00

I don't take nearly enough walks, and the area around my apartment is just made for it. If you look out my window, to the left are buildings, directly ahead are farms, and to the right are mountains. Today, before needing to do anything, I went out for a little trip. Here's what I saw:

It seems I stumbled onto a farm! This place is pretty well-hidden in the mountains; you can't see it from any roads or buildings in Tamsui, just from this vantage and, probably some of the other surrounding mountainsides. It was a cool find, and nice to get out of the house. I was going to ask what they were growing, but there wasn't a soul to be seen.

Yay, November!

2011-11-01T04:28:00.000+08:00

Welcome, O', November, my favorite of months! Shall this be a month of joyous activities? Only the future knows what will become of our relationship, November. Let's make the most of it! Big plans or relaxation? Either way, it's November!

Here's a song for you, November...hope you like it, as I do!

Happy Halloween

2011-10-31T03:54:00.000+08:00

シナンジュ MSN-06S Gundam

2011-10-28T02:10:00.001+08:00

Recently, I gave in, once again, to the temptation that is the ガシャポン戦士 NEXT 03 (Gashapon Senshi NEXT 03) capsule machine,at Family Mart. Last time, I wasn't very lucky, as I got the one, out of five, that I least wanted (but it is still cool...no complaining, here!).

This time, though, I got the one that was highest on my list: the シナンジュ (Shinanju) MSN-06S Gundam!

If you're interested in pictures of the entire collection, check them out here: 萬代 BANDAI 扭蛋戰士NEXT 03【SD ガンダムガシャポン戦士 NEXT 03】GASHAPON WARRIOR NEXT 03 全.

Here is my new Gundam:

ガンドランター GUNDLANDER Gundam

2011-10-25T02:36:00.002+08:00

So, there is a Family Mart near my apartment that has a few of those vending machines that, when I was a child, some would call "quarter machines." These are slightly more expensive (about $1.80 per turn), but they contain cool things from Japan. Usually, I can skip them because they have miniature dogs or guns in them, but the ガシャポン戦士 NEXT 03 (Gashapon senshi NEXT 03) Gundam Series was just put in!

There are five different Gundams in the machine, so I tried my luck. As luck has it, I got the one I least wanted, the ガンドランター (Gandorantā) Gunlander Gundam.

Here it is:

To Sing-Ling!

2011-10-24T23:18:00.028+08:00

Saturday was quite the interesting day.

I woke up, called A-lun to see where we were going to meet, he didn't answer, and so I ventured out on my own. First, I went from Tamsui to Taipei Train Station, leaving my scooter at some random parking lot (which was already full when I dropped EDR off!). I caught a train to Taichung, where I needed to then take a bus to Puli Township (埔里鄉), in Nantou (南頭). This entire journey took about four hours (or a bit longer), and required much guesswork navigation on my part. For example, the bus station I needed to go to was ill-marked; I found the correct center for purchasing a ticket to Puli after seeing a sign marked 南頭 across the street and hoping that they held the key to getting to my destination.

This was the correct place, and about an hour and a half later, I was in Puli. From the bus stop, I had to walk another fifteen minutes with two Taiwanese I didn't know in order to make it to my terminal destination.

Many prayed before and after the concert.

What was my destination? Why, of course, Sing-Ling Temple (醒靈寺), a significant landmark in Puli and site of a battle between Taiwanese and Kuomintang soldiers following the 2/28 Massacre.

I made my way there for another reason: To see Chthonic (閃靈), a Taiwanese black metal band, play! It was quite the historical performance...the atmosphere was indescribable, with a solo traditional flute performance by Taiwanese aboriginal Pitero Wukah and nearly every song I love by this band. Every time I see this band live, it is touching and powerful, especially since these concerts are meaningful to everyone at the venue and carry with them the weight and tales of centuries of triumph, failure, death, and recovery.

The line for entry was extremely long.

For a pretty good review of the concert, check out this article: Chthonic: The Final Battle at Sing Ling Temple.

Almost time...

Jesse starting things up!

From left to right: Jesse, CJ, Freddy, Doris

Freddy being fierce.

D10s a plenty

2011-10-15T02:31:00.000+08:00

Thanks to my mother and various postal services, I'm ready for Exalted, tomorrow.

Some Tamsui River Night Photography

2011-10-12T03:40:00.018+08:00

Decided that I needed some tofu, chicken, and rice this evening, and so I headed out to find a good 小吃店 (Xiaochidian, or street vendor). Before heading out, though, I grabbed my camera and tripod because I knew it was going to be a beautiful night and that I'd want to take some pictures.

After getting my food, I drove to the end of Tamsui Old Street, parked near the police station (What? It's the closest place to the street near the dock!), and walked over to a nice spot across from some fishermen (when I say 'across' I mean about a hundred feet away and over a loading/unloading dock). There were three stray cats awaiting any lapse in judgment that left my food unattended, but I'm smarter than cats...I held onto my food.

At last, I set up my tripod and camera and began figuring out how to take some decent photographs. Here is what I came up with:

Sometimes I'm...

2011-10-11T23:51:00.001+08:00

...an engineer standing in front of a money lender because I'm broke.

Quick Trip up the Coast

2011-10-10T23:38:00.025+08:00

I told Yaling we'd go to one of the cafés along the north coast, which she forgot about...I reminded her and so, today, we went. It was a general café by the sea trip: we saw some chickens (OK, maybe that's not general for the sea), drank some coffee and juice, and just took in the scenery.

Not being a significant meal for us, it was decided that after I consumed my chocolate-covered waffle, we would go explore.

First, I tried a road adjacent to the café, but that turned out to be a farm...big surprise. Seriously, the entire north of Taiwan is farmland...and east coast, and west coast, and south...hell, Taiwan is a giant farm! ^^

This seagoing vessel was quite far out, so much so that Yaling could barely see it.

Not to be discouraged, we set out and, upon finding an interesting road, I turned to further delve into what looked like mountainside! I was kind of right:

Yeah, more farm, but at least these ones were a sight...I simply love the terraced farmlands. I don't know why, I guess it's a slightly more exotic feel.

Hot-rod-style dragonfly.

Further still, into the mountains, I drove, believing it would eventually lead to somewhere in Yangming. Actually, the road could have very well gone to the massive area that constitutes Yangmingshan National Park, but I stopped at this:

I coaxed Yaling into ascending the stairs, preceded by a very easy rubber/cemented path. The stairs, coming afterwards, I got past by saying, "No worries, it doesn't look like it's too difficult or far." And, in reality, it wasn't. Well, the part we stopped at...

Can't say for certain who this tomb belongs to, but I've been told it belongs to a naval officer. The plaques around the area are quite worn, and Yaling said given its age, that there are probably few people, if any, taking care of it. Indeed, I became privy to the fact that after four or five generations, most tombs in Taiwan have nobody to take care of them. I suppose that's the same everywhere...

To the left of the tomb is a very steep, 2.5 hour hiking path to a mountain summit. I'm sure i'll try this on another day.

We made it back down right before the sun set, and to the sea edge in time to snap this photograph:

Another Sunday, this one in Wugu

2011-10-09T22:10:00.001+08:00

Started on my newest gundam's weapons, so that's something...

Let's see...

I woke up around 1:30pm, after having gone to bed around 5am. I contemplated going to get a haircut, but I figure I can hold out another week. Instead, I played some Portal 2 and League of Legends, and fooled around a bit with Universe Sandbox; I forced a few galaxies to collide, so that was fun.

Yaling came up to go eat dinner, tasking me with finding the place to eat. As this was my task, I decided tha we needed to have some stinky tofu. I know this great vendor in Wugu (五股), and I've actually mentioned him before...you know, when I chased down a motorcycle vendor. Yeah, same guy.

Turns out, he's not around on Sundays...oh, well! No reason to fret, I know of another stinky tofu place in Wugu!

What? It's closed, too? Lame.

We decided to just find another place to eat, and it took about thirty seconds after finding out that the other place was closed to find yet another stinky tofu place. This one is, quite possibly, the best stinky tofu place I've ever been to. It's on Shueiduei Rd. (水碓路); if you go down 107甲 you'll eventually see Deyin Elementary School (德音國小). If you turn right onto Mingde Rd. (明德路), which is right after the school, the tofu place is the third food store on the left. Go, you won't regret it.

After eating entirely too much food (because it was so good), we headed back to Tamsui. On the way, we stopped off at a month-long temple festival, also in Wugu. It's interesting because the festival, taking 36 days, consists of multiple religions (of the likes of Buddhism and Taoism) that are working together, using their own ceremonies and rituals, to help souls still roaming the earth to pass on. At first, if you have no idea what is going on, the place is rather creepy and disorienting. Even Yaling, a native of Taiwan, was a bit freaked out by the dancing, singing, contorting, and other things going on at this place.

However, once you talk to the people there, it becomes less strange, especially once you realize its purpose. I say less because it's still...a bit abnormal, in my mind. That isn't to say bad, just...yeah.

I took this before it started, but it basically looks the same.

It's movable, as this was definitely not there a month ago.

End of the evening.

Sat. on the Typical

2011-10-09T04:43:00.001+08:00

Pretty typical Saturday:

I woke up...though, for a Saturday, I woke up early (11am), and drove to Shihlin to confront the other foreigners in my Exalted troupe. What is that, you ask? Do you know Dungeons & Dragons? Kind of like that...except humans become exalted (god-like) and there's tons of stuff in the world (Creation) and underworld (um, Underworld) to do. It's a high fantasy role-playing game that consumes much in the way of resources (time, creativity, patience, etc.). If you want to read about it, go here: Exalted - Wikipedia.

Before playing, we commenced and were defeated in two rounds of PVP on League of Legends. I love being slaughtered as much as the next guy, but two matches was my losing limit. Thus, we started Exalted and played from 1pm to about 6pm. So you're mighty aware, that's a relatively short period of time for this game. It's just as well, as I was doing awful today. Actually, my character was just making some awful decisions, which led to, amongst other things, my losing a powerful item.

Afterward, I drove back, slept for an hour or two, and then played Portal 2 with Scott for, oh, let's say around two hours. At least, it felt like we played for two hours.

My last feat for the day, or evening, was to finish the head of my RX-78-2 Gundam, which I did. I won't provide a picture, here, as I'd prefer to complete the rest of the gundam before showing my "final product."

RX-78-2 Gundam (RG)

2011-10-07T23:33:00.000+08:00

So, were you people aware that some people get really, ridiculously pissed off when you borrow their pen? For real, people...let me use your pen for an hour, I don't want to steal it, especially a blue pen.

Anyway, got my scooter cover fixed...now if only the rest of my scooter was as scratch-free. Since that's done, it's time to do other things to occupy my time...

Inspired by my mini MS-06S Gelgoog, I resumed work on my [RG] RX-78-2 Gundam. There are a lot of really hardcore Gundam modelers out there, people who can weather and battle scar their models. Alas, those people are not me. It's not that I don't want to, it's that I don't have the [insert excuse] to do it. Mainly, I just like putting them together. Whilst my models don't look nearly as cool as other modelers' models, I like them. [End Justification]

I just finished up the arms, and attached them to my previously completed torso and legs. I had some trouble with one of the legs, in the beginning:

You can't really tell, but the leg on the left isn't really well-put together. When I started on that leg, the inside jointed piece snapped in half...yikes! I super-glued it back together, but the resulting slight masses on the leg made it so the other pieces didn't fit to it. I tried to remedy the situation, and the above was the result. Unless you try to bend the leg, it isn't a really noticeable flaw, so I feel I've lucked out.

Here is its current status:

Yeah! He's starting to look like a real Gundam! I guess if you give me two more hours or so, I can have it done. But, that isn't for tonight.

There is no race in the world of scooters

2011-10-06T22:43:00.000+08:00

Last night, quite on a whim, I decided to stop at a random Kymco repair shop to see how much a new cover for my headlight would be. It turns out that he really had no idea, and quoted the price as being somewhere between nt$700 and nt$1,000. In a manner befitting a man who has lived in Taiwan for about three years [total], I talked the man down from the high to nt$800.

Now, I should preface the rest of the story with this: I have replaced this part before. The poor design of the G5's "head piece" makes it so that if you wreck, you are almost certain to crack the tiny sliver of plastic that holds the screw adjoining the cover to the rest of the steering column. I've had two such "accidents" in my period of ownership, both resulting in this crack. Honestly, I don't know how this got past Quality Control.

Anyway, I paid nt$100 down, and was to have the part replaced tonight. That kind of happened, but only partly. You see, it was replaced, but with the wrong color of silver; the cover is now a lighter silver than the rest of the scooter. This happened the first time, too, and I noticed, then, before the part was replaced. This time, I guess my eyes went a different shade of color blind and missed it, because when I looked, it was as if my scooter forgot to put sunscreen on everything except for its face.

Well, I attempted to talk to the man about my options, which seemed few. He basically said that it was such a minute difference as to not make a difference. Simply, that didn't fly with me. I asked if he could just put the old piece back on and I could come the next day to have the right color attached; it turns out that the original was basically torn off the steering column, resulting in an inability to reattach it. After a call to Yaling, and her rather quick persuasive abilities, I was allowed to, after paying and receiving documentation saying I had paid the remaining nt$650, leave with the wrong color and return tomorrow for the correct one.

Did you catch it? Yeah, he knocked off nt$50 for the mistake. Sweet.

Puzzled

2011-10-06T03:10:00.005+08:00

Sometimes the greatest words we have to say
Are the ones left on the floor,
The clichés on the lips of some addict
The wordsmith filing through troves and boxes searching for that final piece

Solutions to puzzles are often at the tip of the tongue
That saw-toothed curvature,
Acrimony, harmony, whatever the word I’m searching for
It is not here…

Gundam Converge (MS-14S Gelgoog)

2011-10-05T03:03:00.002+08:00

We're, and by "we're" I mean "me," going to try to update more often, this month, starting with:

MY NEW GUNDAM!

Granted, I didn't build this one and it's rather small, but I did get a new Gundam! It's a miniature of one of Char's Custom Gundams, the MS-14S Gelgoog Commander Type. I actually have an RG 1/144 MS-06S kit (also Char's) sitting beside me, waiting to be assembled after I finish the RX-78-2 Gundam I've been working on, off and on, for a month now. (By off and on I mean that I've been too busy, sick, and/or lazy to fuss with it...though, I did put together an arm the other day!)

Here's the miniature:

Cool, right? I agree.

Oh, joys in my life

2011-09-20T23:50:00.002+08:00

Being that the seasons are currently changing...excuse me...the weather is turning, my asthma has decided to accost me at various times throughout each day of the past six weeks. Thus, I've been left with little to do than go about my general boredom of a life and nix those plans that would provide some sort of relief.

Granted, I do find occasional refuge in the odd game of Exalted, playing video games, or hanging out with Yaling and my various other friends, but I'd really like to go hiking and exploring, more. Hiking, especially, would be a magnificent activity at the current moment, given that the weather is perfect. (Yes, so many words needed to be italicized.)

Most of my current social dealings go as such:

(Yes, I'm aware the comma in the second panel is out of place...MS-Paint doesn't know grammar.)

Yeah, I know, you're jealous. Good news is, it's mostly gone with only minor bouts of insane coughitude (yes, it's a word...don't care if it's not in a dictionary).

However, I can say that my everyday routine remains fairly unchanged, though I do far less driving around random locales...which is quite lame. Yaling and I got up to 十八王宮 (18 Lords Temple) for some rice dumplings and arrow shooting, so that was fun! Hopefully, after this week, I'll be over this and in the mountains.

With nothing else to say at current, I'm out. Peace, friends and family.

Good body

2011-09-18T21:42:00.000+08:00

Look closely and you'll notice that the middle LED sign says "good body." What the hell?

In the hollows

2011-09-02T01:21:00.001+08:00

In the hollows of your eyes lie the pasts to never be
The shadows cast through to mind comfort but bring
to mine finality

Trust and evaluation,
Agnominations of disrepair and hatred
Careful thoughts to bring closer our souls
Choke the holds for originally selling this time

In the hollows of your eyes lie the futures unrelenting
The active reflections of once thoughts that will bring
no finality

Catch and release,
Are a conception for game
And to relay this perception to hearts 'twined
...just a play for cons that forfeited their cautions

In the hollows of your eyes lie the current abating
The inactive fallacy slipping back to the depths
to bring finality.

Mountain Mama

2011-08-31T01:52:00.001+08:00

Last weekend, a group of friends and I went to Yingge (鶯歌). There, I witnessed this and felt my mother would appreciate it.

(Sorry for the singing, the first person to sing with the woman is A-lun, then I joined in to sing the words "West Virginia!")

Horse Riding

2011-08-28T22:01:00.019+08:00

I've never been an advocate for horse shows, or anything to do with making horses jump over fences and obstacles for fun and amusement; I especially don't enjoy this when people are gawking at riders hitting horses with whips. My best friend Scott shares this part of his mind with me, so he may be surprised to hear:

Saturday, I took Yaling horseback riding.

Now, here me out. Far be it for me to claim I'm not a hypocrite, but I'm not. Whilst I nudged my horse, Tina, with my shoe, I in no way whipped or kicked her. Period. Also, and as I told Yaling, I feel riding a horse is a valuable skill for the coming zombie apocalypse.

This was the Taiwanese one's first time to ride a horse and my...let's just say I've done it more than once, less than five times. I think she did pretty well, but she was quite sore the next day. Me, well, I'm not gloating, but I feel Tina and I forged a good relationship and that next time (if there is), I will be riding without the leash held by her trainer.

She says it makes her look strange, but I think it's tough.

Mmm, orange juice.

Day Trip to...金瓜石

2011-08-27T23:33:00.005+08:00

金 = gold
瓜 = melon
石 = stone

Though I'm not entirely sure what the area has to do with melons, there used to be a significant amount of "gold stones" in 金瓜石 (Jinguashih). The place used to be a copper and gold mining town, during the 20th Century, and home of a POW camp [read: force Taiwanese to mine for copper], run by the Japanese during their occupation. However, the Japanese were not, in speaking of duration, the longest occupation of 20C, so it begs to reason that Jinguashih maintains a mixture of cultural influences. This is, basically, what I experienced during my trip, there, yesterday.

As usual, I began by heading in the direction I thought my destination was in. In this case, that meant taking the coastal highway (2) east. Around 基隆 (Keelung) I got a might bit lost; I eventually found National Taiwan Ocean University, a place A-lun once showed me, so I knew I was once again headed in the right direction. Simply (or not, depending on your view), I did three things to get there:

1. Highway from 淡水 (Tamsui) to Keelung
2. Drive through Keelung
3. Coastal Highway 2 from Keelung to Shuinandong (水湳洞), the southern point of Jinguashih

Now, depending on whether you want to start your day from here or not, you could park somewhere along the road and walk up, or you could continue driving up the mountain. Should you choose to continue driving, just look to see where all the buses are going, they all go to where you want to go, and they all go on the left road. If you go right, you'll see this:

From here, both ways go to Jinguashih, but I think the left path, also known as the 小路 (Small Road), is more fun! When you get to the end of Small Rd., you'll see this gate and need to turn right:

It will be quite obvious where to park, as there's only one real parking lot in this area and you'll see plenty of signs near it and buses around it, so I won't spend a lot of time talking about it. Instead, I should point out that the main attraction of this area is the Gold Ecological Park (黃金博物園區).

The entrance to prospecting and prospective riches!

I'm not huge into museums; I'm more of an explorer of places. Thus, I wasn't sure I'd have a fantastically wonderful time, here...I came out pleasantly surprised.

First of all, the facilities that help tourists in the area are excellent. At every turn, there was a QR Code sign-post, explanatory wooden plaque, tour guide, or audio story. This isn't even to mention the tourism office you will definitely pass before entering the main areas. I didn't really have high hopes for the region, being that it is kind of in nowhere, but there's Wi-Fi and 3G access everywhere, so you can access all the information you want about transportation, scenic spots, etc., provided you at least have an Internet capable phone or laptop. Speaking of, one of my favorite things were these little signs scattered around the area:

If you have ever seen these weird looking square barcode things but didn't quite know what they are, behold: They are QR Codes. In the most simple sense, they take text and information and encode them into the above squares of incomprehensible black and white. I've never seen a great use for them, but I really like what Gold Ecological Park did: They translated site information into Chinese, English, Japanese, and Korean, threw them onto a sign using QR Code, added another web address for further research (and those who don't have QR capabilities), and gave a phone number with extension for people without internet access!

This would be a photograph of my Samsung Galaxy SII (unfortunately unavailable t'yinz in the United States), but any phone running Android 1.5 or above would be able to utilize the following helpful application: Shuijinjiu (水金九). One of it's best features combines LBS (Location-based services) and AR (augmented reality), which basically finds you location as you're walking, in real time, and produces their various information on-screen. It has a search mode using a map, a list, or your own camera, and a plethora of other features. As I was deciding which places in the museum I would go, I used this application to get more data on the various locales.

For pricing, or lack thereof, of the different places within the park, you can check out the above visitors center...erm, Tourist Information Center. There are a few things that cost money, like checking out the 5th Benshan Tunnel (more on that later) and panning for gold (didn't do it), but, for the most part, the park is free, free, free. Did I mention: Most of it is free.

My first stop was the Prince Chalet, a relatively small, traditional Japanese housing complex. It was built in anticipation for the crown prince's arrival to the mining town, and is complete with multiple studies, bedrooms, a cooking area, various other rooms that didn't have plaques, a pond, and a gold course. Yeah, apparently Japanese were all about golf in the first half of the 1900s.

Entrance

Hallway betwixt adjoining rooms...or the rooms joined by walls...

...anyway, the rightmost room is a dining room.

Fish pond!

Where the crown prince studied...whatever he studied.

General complex layout, complete with concrete golf course.

It doesn't take much time to look around this area, unless you're an extreme Japanese housing gawker (which I'm not), so I'm going to say it took me around 20~25 minutes to look around? If that...

I looked at a really large mass of arrows to decide where to go next, and it came to pass that my next destination was to be Benshan 5th Tunnel, the last remaining of the complex's five mining tunnels. I say last remaining, but there are actually still five...it's just that one is completely submerged in water, one is on its way, another is decayed and in a sorry state of disrepair, and the 4th (because I know its number) is not currently open for business.

You'll know you're in the right place when you see the black monstrosity:

Part of what once was Asia's largest air compressor;

there's definitely more to it than pictured!

The ticket counter to enter the 5th Tunnel is located just to the left of the above-photograph. The entry fee is only 50nt, so it doesn't break the bank by any stretch of the imagination. Your ticket will come complete with an additional brochure advertising...the Gold Ecological Park?, a coupon for a restaurant, and a lovely blue hat, which you need to put on before proceeding:

It's to prevent your sweat from reaching the hard hat you need to wear!

This would be the entrance to the tunnel. Just beyond those people is a lengthy series of reconstructed tunnels, complete with wax figures of indentured (enslaved?) Taiwanese miners! The blue sign the people are reading talks about some of the mining taboos of the time:

1) No whistling: partly to keep communication well, but also because Taiwanese are anti-whistlers
2) No women (after the 1960s, as the Japanese didn't care about "body search inconveniences")
3) No talking about snakes, because no minerals will be had in the mineral-rich mountains, that day, if you do

Old mining tram, circa-OLD

Taiwanese miner waiting for the dynamite to explode!

One of the shafts leading up...it got hotter as you went up, and I liked it better below.

Once you get out, you return your hard hat...and your blue hat thing!? Are those reused? Good for you, Taiwanese! It was at this point I realized I was very hungry so I...forwent eating and went off on a path to find Tunnel 4. I didn't find it, and I have a sneaking suspicion I didn't go high enough (but the sun was beating down on my shaven, unprotected head and I was dying), but I did find an old Shintō shrine!

You may notice there is no torii, here (the large, very Japanese gate that using precedes a shrine or something sacred), but these mark its entrance. Both cubed structures have ensō, or the "circle of strength, elegance, the void, the Universe, and/or Japanese aesthetics" (to put it simply), on each of their four sides. On the one to the left, you can see that the ensō carving has broken off, which has happened to most of the sides. There is one on the opposing side, though, but I felt this captured the general feel of the area.

This is the torii that marks the entrance to the actual Shintō shrine.

And here's the Shintō shrine.

Apparently, it was much larger and more complex and magnificent back in its heyday, but met with some quite unruly mobs post-WWII. In case you were wondering, the shrine was dedicated to the Japanese Kami ôkuninushinomikoto, kaneyamahikonomikoto and sarutahikonomikoto...do you know who they are? If you do, great, because I sure don't!

Moving on...

I was extremely thirsty by this point, so I headed back down, down, down, down, down...used my phone's trusty Shuijinjiu application to head me in the right direction, and I came to this establishment:

I won't paint a rosy picture for you, because at best, Golden Impression Cafe and Restaurant is kind of like a Tarnished Silver for the casual diner, in my eyes, anyway. I say this because I ordered four items: a waffel, chicken nuggets (my stomach was upset and the other things were large course meals), a mango juice, and a mango soda.

First up was the mango soda, which was straight soda with mango at the bottom that wouldn't mix...and that didn't mix well in my stomach. Everything else was good, so I gave it 3 out of 4 stars! Actually, take the "tarnished" part away, because I'll be damned if these were not the best chicken nuggets I've had in the entirety of my life...it may have been the seasoning.

After that, I decided to go visit the POW Memorial Park...to get there you need to go through Chitang Old Street:

It looks very different than the Taiwan I have become accustomed to: black tar-roofed houses of different heights, lanterns strung over nearly every street, little shops in people's living rooms, and just...too many stairs to count. OK, that last one isn't so abnormal, but this place seems a bit lost in time, and that's a good thing. You don't go on a trip to experience what you've already experienced, and this place, for all its past, is a peaceful, quiet area. There are tiny cafes and stores in the nooks and crannies of this street, so the fun is in exploring!

Here, I met the two-above Taiwanese girls (they are pictured at the bottom of the stairs), three Japanese girls, and some Malaysians...everyone wants in on this place! I'm telling you, the feeling is relaxed and easy.

I eventually got to the POW Memorial, which I photographed from afar (pictured above). You don't really understand the scope of the place with close-ups, so I hope you "enjoy" this photograph, dedicated to all those who fought for their values and died prisoners of war.

Cyuanji Temple (勸濟堂) was my final destination for the upper portion of Jinguashih...although there is much more to do, the already four plus hours was taking its toll, especially on this only partly cloudy, 93°F day. At first glance, Cyuanji Temple looks like most other Taiwanese temples...but upon closer observation, you'll notice the huge statue of Guangong!

You can see him in the center, above the KMT ad...

From the back

I paid my respects to the man, seeing as he is everyone's friend and all, and that was that. If you want to go in, don't be scared off by the foot-and-a-half planks set in the doorway: they are just there so you have to be uncomfortable as you step over them. Did I mention that this particular Guangong weighs 25 tons and is the largest statue of this deity in the world? The more you know...

They have a special ceremony called the Green Grass Ceremony, where they search for herbs around the community and make a special kind of food out of them, but this is during Dragon Boat Festival. I guess we all know where I'm going next Dragon Boat Festival!

After that, I went back to my scooter and headed toward the Gold Waterfall:

Here is me with the golden waterfall, complete with sweat!

This is the whole thing...and I think it would have looked better without the AMD.

Here, I also asked some people to help me take my picture...then they replied that they didn't understand me, proceeded to tell me they were Indonesian, and that English was just fine. So, then they took my picture. Great! This place is so international!

I heard a few Taiwanese comment on the beauty and strangeness of this area, but it's all created by poor mining practices and pollution. Above, I mentioned AMD, which is Acid Mine Drainage (a.k.a., ARD, or Acid Rock Drainage), a condition where acidic water flows from mines. The mine in question would be the copper mine I visited...*sigh*

Anyway! The waterfall was cool, though acidic!

Part of the creek that flows to Yin-yang Sea...

...as you can see there are many scraps of metal draped across it.

I had intended to visit the Shuinandong Smelter, a.k.a. the 13 Stories, but first I ended up at a tiny little community of four houses called 長仁社區, or the Changren Community. This was the community prosperous during the gold mining period of Taiwanese history. After the area dried up, the place kind of just stopped and stood still in time. Remember when I said that the Chitang Old Street looked like it was stuck in the past, well this place makes it feel old.

Besides the cars, the community feels, as Yaling would put it, "Super Local."

It was a genuinely relaxing place, and I could have stayed there the rest of the day.

If you climb the stairs to after the communities, um, gate?, you'll find this sweet looking pavilion:

From it, you have a view of everything: 13 Stories, Yin-yang Sea, Jinguashih, Coastal Highway 2...everything. It's a sight to behold. The sign at the bottom says you can really just feel the whole area from up there, and it is true.

13 Stories, minus one or two stories.

Now, 13 Stories is, basically, a giant sorting and smelting facility for the mining operations in the area. You're not really able to explore the premises, but if you look hard enough, there are some places that you can see to dig deeper into the past.

The only part of the 13 stories I got up-close and personal with was the top-most story, #13. This part is peculiar to the rest as it is not built into the mountainside. Instead, it it is a large, honey-combed, cube-shaped structure consisting of numerous chutes.

Most of the chutes are plugged up, but the generally look like this:

Or these ones, which are basically the first in each line of compartments:

Each line has four squares, with each first square having two chutes and every subsequent square having one. Most of the chutes are plugged up, but a few of them are open, revealing open sky. If you look into the first two chutes of the first square on the left, you'll note that they open to an inclined wall that can be climbed. And, this is what the top looks like:

Pretty neat, right?

Huge smoke tunnels run across the whole mining complex.

There are three total, and they look like giant pythons crawling over the mountain.

All thirteen stories, as viewed from a gigantic, but equally abandoned parking lot.

Even miners have administrative staff!

My final of final stops was at the Yin-yang Sea, where visitors are promised a sea of dual-colors. This, again, is caused by the acidic water from the mountains flowing out into the open waters. The government says that this is a generally naturally occurring phenomena, as the mines have been closed and abandoned for some time, now, but I'm sure the mining exacerbated the situation a bit. Regardless, it's still a nice view, and there are few ships ever in sight (a plus), so I enjoyed taking in the sea air.

All-in-all, it was a great trip! You can do this area in a day, and even head on over to Jioufen (九份), if you'd like, but if you want to take everything in, I'd give it two. There are some lovely B&Bs in the area, which I am considering partaking in at some point in my stay, here.

For the remaining 150+ photographs not shown, look at the sidebar or click here: Jinguashih (金瓜石). Peace.

MS-06F Zaku II (RG) II

2011-08-22T02:13:00.015+08:00

Finally finished my Zaku II Gundam...and here is how he turned out:

There are some minor blemishes where I detached some of the pieces from the runners...I'll probably fix that with model paint at a later date, but this is it, for now.

MS-06F Zaku II (RG)

2011-08-20T04:53:00.001+08:00

If you've known me for any amount of time, you know that I like things...everything...nearly.

Hiking, photography, English, writing, guitar, electronics, electronica, books, anime, sci-fi, movies, music, Taiwan, Asia in general, etc.......

Basically, if you can name it, there's a chance I've delved into it at some point or another with some amount of energy and come out with a bit of satisfaction. Whether or not I stick with and pour over a particular activity it dependent on if it can hold my attention. Over the years, things have come and go, and come again. One of these things is Gunpla (Gundam Models [plastic modeling kits]).

Originally, I got into Gundam as a teenager. I'm not afraid to admit that I spent time watching Sailor Moon (hey, Sailor Venus was hot), but I was more into Dragon Ball Z and more action-oriented anime.

Eventually, Toonami Midnight Run did it for me by running Mobile Suit Gundam Wing, G Gundam, Outlaw Star, Voltron, and Neon Genesis Evangelion, and Adult Swim putting shows like Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex and Big O in their programming. They needed to only put Gundam Wing on to win me over (though Neon Genesis Evangelion and Big O are huge winners in my book).

I went on to request that some Gunpla modelling kits, like the XXXG-01D2 Gundam Deathscythe Hell featured in Mobile Suit Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz, end up under the Christmas tree. I completed those tiny NG [No Grade] models with vigor and went about my teenage years.

Now, I'm in Taiwan and surrounded not just by Taiwanese culture, but also Japanese culture. By association, Otaku culture finds its way to my doorstep and I suffer frequent bouts of needing to watch FLCL, Samurai X, or one of the numerous 12-episode anime series.

The other day, I was stricken with a minor case of the asthma, as is my life, and was confined to either zombie-walking around work or laying covered up in bed. As I lay there, I again became stricken, but this time with the urge of Gundam. Two days later, Yaling and I were out and I asked her to accompany me to the Taipei Underground Metro Mall with the intent of purchasing a Gunpla kit.

I ended up with an MS-06F Zaku II (RG).

Here is my progress, thus far:

Unpacked the runners and the instructions.

First, I did the feet...might as well start from the bottom and work up!

Then, the legs to attach to the feet...

Waist unit...lookin' pretty nice

Left arm

Right arm

Finally, gave him a torso to put it all together.

As can been seen, I'm nearly done, and this is about three hours into the process. Now, I need to finish the helmet up and add the decals!

I've recently ordered an MS-06F Zaku II Johnny Ridden Custom (RG)...it will be awesome, and I'll keep yinz updated on that and the progress of my original MS-06F Zaku II.

Tiny-eyed Drawings

2011-08-12T23:32:00.005+08:00

One of the many interesting things that I force my students to do is draw pictures. This is as much for their benefit as it is mine: They can better understand a written text and I their grasp of reading by illustrating what they read, and I can also take up some of those extra minutes they would otherwise want to use for "game time."

Anyway, one of my students, today, drew these pictures...and I find them amazingly amusing:

The 十八王公廟s in a Day!

2011-08-10T03:35:00.002+08:00

At around 3pm, I looked out the window, decided it wasn't going to rain despite the calls of, "Thunderstorm! Thunderstorm!" by meteorologists, and put my things together to take a short trip to the northern coast (I mean...it's right there). My goal was to go to the 18 Lords Temple (十八王公), A.K.A. "The Dog God Temple." It's been a while since I went all touristy on Taiwan, but today I jumped into the fray and became one with my foreign brethren...attraction time!

Black clouds be damned!

Decided to follow this guy...and he went exactly where I was going!

18 Lords Temple isn't exactly hard to get to, and it's hard to miss once you know what to look for. If you're driving, you just go up Danjin Rd. (淡金大路), and when I say "go up," I mean this, because you just get on the road from either direction, Tamsui (淡水) in the west or Keelung (基隆) in the east, and drive. Eventually, on your right, or left, respective to the aforementioned locations, you'll see a very large, gushing, rushing, frothy, white-water-esque flow coming from the mountains...this would be the first nuclear power plant built in Taiwan. If you are wondering why I've pointed this out, it is because the temple you're looking for it located right next to the power plant! You should know, though, that the temple was built first, and I'm certain the locale was much more happenin' before its arrival.

If you want something else to look for, wait until you see signs for Shihmen/Shimen (石門), which is the district the temple is located in; then look for signs for 十八王公 (Shiba Wang kung/Shiba Wang Gong). That should also get you there.

So, when you arrive, you'll notice something very strange: An eerie feeling of nothingness. That is because there is nothing there, at first glance. What you expect is a grand temple and lots of people, but what you get is a few elderly ladies coming up to your car/scooter/bicycle/person and offering you Joss paper/incense packs for praying at the temple (for nt$150), a few vendors selling Zongzi (rice dumplings), and a small temple with a label showing it is 十八王公. This sounds a bit drab and unentertaining, but it gets significantly better!

First, if you plan on praying at the temple, the ladies that will greet you at the parking area are a fine place to get your supplies...that is, if you're going all out; if you just want to use incense, wait til you get to the temple.

After leaving the parking area, you basically enter a small market. To your left is a small area with some tables (nobody really sits there) and a place to purchase drinks (which was closed when I was there). The other side is way more interesting, though, with a bunch of vendors that sell the same thing, mussels and zongzi, and the long awaited temple!

I often find myself at a temple, either praying to Guangong (關公) or Land God (土地公), so I usually know what to do in these situations. However, I am not afraid to admit I was a bit lost as to the customs of praying to a dog; the locals are quite aware that everyone, foreigners and Taiwanese alike are, for the most part, unaffiliated in the art of canine prayer, so they will lend their assistance.

One woman who tends to the supplies will quite passionately demonstrate what you do with the red scarf she will sell you, and the incense or other items you brought with you and/or purchased.

As with some other temples, especially those where you are trying to improve your wealth, you will rub an object. In this case, you are taking the scarf you (I assume) purchased and rubbing it over the two dogs on either side of a large stone table and tablet; this particular structure is on the left side of the temple. After doing thus, you go to either side of this little indoor pagoda and tie your scarf to a line of other scarves that other people have left.

My scarf is the one prominently centered in the picture.

十八王公 Tablet.

Right dog...

...left dog.

From there, you move on to praying to the 17 other lords...oh, I've neglected to mention this, haven't I?

OK, first, there are 18 lords: the dog and 17 men. The version of the story I was told is this:

One day, 17 sailors went out to sea. It happened that one of those sailors had a dog, a very faithful one at that. When the sailors were expected back, they failed to return. Still, the dog remained staring out to the open sea, waiting for the sailors to come home. One of three things happened:

1) Eventually, the dog, yearning for their return, leapt into the sea, never to return again.
or
2) Much like the Japanese akita Hachikō, waited for his master until his death.
or
3) Similar to Hachikō, waited for his master whilst also refusing to eat, thus starving to death.

The villagers in the area, seeing this, were in awe of the dog's loyalty and compassion. Therefore, they built a shrine/temple in his honor. Since that day, the dog has been revered and immortalized, and raised to a god-like status (I've heard from other that he may have been an incarnation of a bodhisattva or another god).

Kind of like Christmas, yeah?

Thus: 18 Lords Temple.

(It should be noted that I've read six different versions of this story, with some of them very different...I just went with the above since it was easiest to write!).

Back to the temple, you will leave the two [scary-looking] dog statues and then light your incense. Each dog statue is given three incense, and then when you move on to the other 17 lords, three more sticks should go into the censer directly in front of the lords and then into the censer directly behind you.
You are now free to move about the cabin...erm...Temple? Market? Street?

At this point, you may wonder what else there is to do...you could wander over to the 十八王公橋, the 18 Lords Bridge, and check out the nuclear power plant from the outside:

Or, you could go in the other direction and find a staircase or road leading...down...

Something interesting about this place is that it seems to have been a very happening area, at one time. I assume that the building of the nuclear power plant next to the temple and market had something to do with its gradual decline, because, as noted before, there is very little left. But, that doesn't take away from the character of the place...and traces of the place's past certainly remain.

Once you locate a staircase, or road, going down into the buildings, you'll find rust, broken concrete, broken things you are unable to identify, and decrepit restaurants that reflect their former glory:

At least the prices used to be reasonable.

A little scary...like they just picked up and left.

My most interesting encounter during my exploration, though, was with this man:

You may be saying to yourself, "What? What is happening? Did Corey forget a few paragraphs?"
No.

The above-man was sitting in this well-lit stall amongst the decay and ruin, waiting for some person (me) to stroll on by and ask to play a game. I asked if I could try the air gun shooting game, which I was quite successful at: I made 21 of 24 shots!

We talked for a bit about a variety of things, mostly about what I was doing in Taiwan, and he concluded with saying, ironically in Mandarin, "Your friends should teach you more Taiwanese." HAHAHA! Brilliant.

From there, I explored a bit more and found some interesting things...which can be found in my more complete, 129 picture album: Shihmen District: 18 Lords Temple (small & large) & Maolin (石門區：十八王公廟【小跟大】與茂林).

After climbing a staircase back up, I hopped on my scooter and went to go home, when I found this sign:

An English Wonderland!?!? OH JOY! MUST FIND!

I found it...eventually...but it was actually an elementary school. Lame.

But, this part of my journey yielded two great things:

1) Another temple
2) A quaint community

The new temple was 十八王公廟...basically "18 Lords Temple [but with more temple]." What was far more impressive about this structure was:

MAMMOTH DOG!

Holy crap, do you see the size of this dog? The thing is bigger than the building I currently live in! If you are still having trouble figuring out how gargantuan this thing actually is, check this out:

So, after gawking at the dog for a while, you can go inside the temple and pray some more. This time, the dog inside looks a bit friendlier, and there is only one, and the 17 lords are accompanied by a dog, this one golden. Also, there are three other gods on the right side, who you can also pray to: Land God, on the left, Wealth God Guandi (武財神關帝), in the middle, and Wealth God Bigan (文財神比干), on the right.
Incense count, here, is to your discression...there are many, many gods up in this temple.

When I was done poking around the temple grounds, I went to poke around in the community near the elementary school I previously mentioned.

All I really have to say about that is I would like to live there: It's quiet, the freely roaming dogs are quite friendly, it's quiet, the air is wonderful, the buildings are very interesting to look at, it's quiet, and it is small. Did I mention it's quiet? Yeah, it's very quiet.

I did all I could do in that community, which was nothing, and then headed back to Tamsui, but not before stopping off at 咖啡公園 (Coffee Garden) to get a chocolate covered waffle and mango smoothie (US$7.50, nt$220). The view from this café is always a tremendous treat, and the atmosphere of the surf and breeze easily makes you forget the rest of the world. To top it off, I was the only customer for my entire meal. It doesn't get any better than that.

After eating, I headed home, helped a tiny frog cross a busy highway, finally made it home, and then typed this.
Peace!

Good morning from...

2011-08-09T05:34:00.001+08:00

..my balcony!

Across the river

2011-08-08T22:49:00.000+08:00

A huge thunderstorm was hovering above Linkou as I was working. During my class, multiple lightning strikes hit the building being constructed across the street, shaking everything around and setting off all the car alarms in a two block radius. I was a bit frightened to drive back home on my scooter, but the storm let up by the time my class was over (though it would have cost a bit, I think a taxi ride home would have been enjoyable!).

As I was driving home, the rain went from sprinkling, to heavy, to nothing at all. It was at that final point that I found myself near the edge of Wugu (五股) and almost in Bali (八里). I stopped at a riverside park and searched around for my camera; it wasn't anywhere around. Luckily, I had my Samsung GSII and snapped this awesome photo looking across the Tamsui River (淡水河) at Guandu (關度) and Beitou (北投):

3 things I'm doing

2011-08-08T01:42:00.000+08:00

Let's do a life update, shall we?

Current Book: States of Mind - Brad Herzog

So far, I've only read the prologue/epilogue and the first chapter on Harmony, California. The book chronicles the author, Brad, and his wife, Amy, as they leave their home and jobs behind for a 300+ day trip around the continental United States. As the book basically says, they are looking for confirmation that their generation (Generation X) isn't as absurd (he puts it a lot more eloquently) than it seems. To do this, they search 48 of the 50 states for "faith, hope, inspiration, harmony, unity, friendship, love, pride, wisdom, honor, comfort, joy, bliss, freedom, justice, glory, triumph, and truth or consequences."

So far, so good...or bad, depending on your perspective. At this point in the book, what the couple has found is less than gratifying. I have a feeling, based on reviews of the books, that it will only get better...but we'll see.

I recommend the book without having read much of it because his writing is wonderfully done...very descriptive and thoughtful enough to really bring all senses into the story.

Current Music: Staind - Break The Cycle

Though it's a release from 2001, it remains a magnificent testament to music writing and lyrical prowess. Seriously, if I were half the lyricist that Aaron Lewis is, I'd have no problem writing for my band, Fuke (阜可).

Standouts from this CD are "For You," an angry call to be let out of the emotional jails we find ourselves in, as well as an end to those situations created [or enabled] by the ignorance around us, and "Fade," a song of trying to let go whilst retaining those memories you find unbearable and pain-inducing.

What else is going on?

Fuke (pronounced | Fooh keh |), my band, is still slowly making its way through the deep, murky waters of recording songs. Each of us has our own problem(s): A-lun is finding breakdown writing difficult, or at least annoying; A-Q is just out of the hospital from a motorcycle accident and unable to play drums; I am having trouble finding my muse; A-seng seems to have no difficulty in coming up with riffs...then again, it seems he has nothing but time!

The "studio" in A-lun's apartment...5th Floor Studios.

Regardless, we're making progress, as demonstrated by us having, at the least, three songs in various states of completion:

- "Penetrating Walls" (previously known as 5438): A song about breaking down our mental barriers before it is too late to feel, and the process of determining who we are.

- "Concrete" (working title): A song about how much we hate city life...well, I know it reveals how A-lun and I feel about cities, though I'm not sure about A-Q and A-seng.

- "I'm So Happy, Or Not" (working title): A somewhat cynical and sarcastic (hard to believe coming from me, right?) look at relationships and how it is difficult for people to coexist with each other, especially when two people are completely incompatible.

If you'd like to listen to what we have so far, you can click the "Music (阿瑞 / 阜可)" tab at the top of the page.

Hopefully, I'll be going somewhere interesting this week...so, I'll keep you posted.

It seems I'm back in my writing groove!

Busy-ness

2011-08-03T21:12:00.001+08:00

Sorry, folks, but it seems that this summer will be like all the others: Fraught with infrequent updates.

I'm not entirely sure why this happens every summer, but looking at the history of my posts, at least two or three months out of the year see a drought of words. Not that my words are an extremely useful source of...anything...but I offer my humblest of apologies to those who actually enjoy my ramblings.

As for my business, or "busy-ness" at the case may be, I am embroiled in the following ventures/happenings/misfortunes-of-experience:

- My friend 阿Q is in the hospital, still, after about three weeks, because of a motorcycle accident. I've been a frequent visitor.
- My job in 林口 (Linkou) keeps me busy with it's strange schedule
- Again, the 林口 job, but this time in trying to get my ARC renewed because of a general lack of competence by certain parties.
- I also have jobs in Tamsui (淡水), Da-an (大安), and 天母 (Tienmu), so I do a lot of traveling to and from work.
- 阜可 (Fuke), my band, had been in the process of recording new songs, and that means I must do some lyric writing as they complete instrumentation.
- Eating
- Hanging out with friends
- Playing Exalted (a tabletop RPG, essentially), which takes an extremely long period of time per session

You see, I actually have things I'd like to write about (for instance, night hiking with A-lun, stupid drivers in Taiwan, and some local temples), but I simply haven't had the energy nor willpower to put together thoughtful, comprehensive posts...which I blame on the above-mentioned points.

That said, I'll try and write more, but I'll definitely be back in full swing by the end of August.

In the mean time, enjoy my haircut:

OMG GUYZ, ITZ NESTLÉ CRUNCH!

2011-07-08T00:04:00.000+08:00

Yesterday was the only time I've ever seen a Crunch Bar in Taiwan. Funnily enough, it was in a Japanese store that I found this Taiwan Limited Edition (says so in the yellow lettering) Crunch Bar:

Looks delicious!

nt$45...and you can send it to a friend!

This is what US$1.60 gets you!

worth it

Minor Trip to Yingge

2011-07-02T23:55:00.003+08:00

Drove to Yingge District (鶯歌區) today and damned if I'm not tired. Xinbei City (新北市), the so-named area previously known as Taipei County (臺北縣), is much larger than I realized. More than that, going from Banciao (板橋) to Shulin (樹林) to Yingge, and everywhere in between, was much longer than anticipated. Regardless, it only took about two hours total of driving, if you count my start from Tamsui.

When Yaling and I arrived in Yingge, we were greeted with two signs, one pointing straight and the other left, for Yingge Old Street, which was our destination. This happened one more time, but after we found a small bridge, we were confronted with the quite obvious departure from urban-esque Taiwan:

I'm told that the above scenes are somewhat abnormal for Yingge, but I'm glad I went at a time that people seemingly didn't want to go to the Land of Ceramics. Oh, yeah, Yingge is, like, the ceramic Mecca of Taiwan...purposefully, I may add.

Anyway, some cool things were this entrance-way to a store:

Looks cool, but tricky, tricky: it leads to a store

Once through the entrance-way, you see this...a catacomb of ceramics!

After checking out the randomly places tunnel betwixt two ceramics shops, we began to hear drums. Thus, we headed out to find them and, indeed, we did! It turns out that students from different schools in Yingge and Sanchong (三重) were there to perform!

First group, just on traditional drums.

Same group, but in a different formation...

Some stylin'.

Different group with a larger variety of instruments...

...every song sounded extremely happy.

Also, notice in the above-photograph that there is a girl on the left using a kind of portable pipe organ. If anyone out there knows what it is, let me know! I'm immensely curious and can't find anything on it.

We had some oven-baked pizza and browsed a few shops before heading back to...oh yeah...

I went to buy a new flash drive at Guang-hwa before we went to Mia's to watch some TV and chill out. It was nice to relax after a long day of driving around.

End.

Slowly but surely recording

2011-06-30T23:58:00.000+08:00

My band is slowly, but surely, going through the process of composing instrumental parts, writing lyrics, and recording, more or less, complete songs. We have two songs pretty well thought out, Penetrating Walls [working title: 5438] and [working title] Concrete. I've written lyrics for three songs, the two aforementioned and another called, at this time, 阿阿阿 (ah ah ah)...Penetrating Walls' lyrics are done and Concrete is about 80% through the editing process, and we'll not even talk about the lyrics for 阿阿阿 (though it does have a full set).

Sometimes I get lost in...

2011-06-20T01:42:00.105+08:00

...cemeteries.

Or, on mountains surrounded by cemeteries. Either way, I went through a hell of a lot of them, today.

I guess the mountain wasn't really surrounded by cemeteries so much as it had many cemeteries situated upon it. Regardless, here's the skinny:

My main goal was to hike somewhere away from Yangming. However, I had little time in which to do so (my evening was to be taken by either Yaling and Mia, or by foreigners to play board games). Thus, my travels took me to Wugu (五股). Yes, that magnificent place of beside-the-riverness and engulfed-in-pollution-from-factoriesdom. Linkou, Wugu, Taishan, and the like, are all on the same side of the river, situated in varies parts of various valley formations. As such, these locales that happen to harbor many of the island's lovely factories also contain some, be they small, mountains.

So, I found my way to Mt. Jhengzih Liao (成子寮山). I had no real idea what awaited me besides some vague knowledge that there was a cemetery or two in the area.

First, I needed to find this entrance:

You may say that it looks rather obvious, that path to the left of the drainage ditch, but that's just because you see it from this perspective. In reality, next to that blue door, there is a building, beside me, a road, and to the left and right of me are vans. As such, the thing was hard to spot from my scooter. Anywho, I found it.

The beginning of the hike was way easy, with a decent path going up about halfway. At that point, I realized that nobody hikes this, and I mean nobody. Really, I wouldn't use italics on the word "nobody" if I didn't mean it.

I hacked my way through the bushes and brushed aside some pretty dense spiderwebs and eventually came to another path. Later, I would find that next to the path I went up was another farm (my path went through a farm, too, but not as far), which had a longer path and took me to the one I just found. But, I digress...I found myself in a bamboo farm around an...electrical tower.

See?

There are a ton of paths in this part, so I consulted my GPS which told me, "Go thataway," so I went thataway. That's where I met a very kind, very insistent elderly gentle...farmer.

As is customary in pre-lung cancer Taiwan, he offered me a cigarette, to which I expressed my regret in having to decline. He insisted, and insisted once more, and then refused to let me pass until I took one. I did my best "I do this all the time" impression and lit and mock-smoked the thing, to which he grinned and continued on his merry bamboo cuttin' way.

Continuing on down the path, I soon came to...a road! GASP!

This road took me to a cemetery...a very large cemetery, one that I'm sure I've seen from the road before.

Greetings, traveler, you be at the cemetery!

My GPS map had me going down the road to the right, so away I went. It turns in various directions, and I, of course, picked a strange, narrow path. This took me to a more private area of the cemetery, and thus made me a bit lost. Not one to constantly check my GPS, I acted the part of the best grave robber and snuck around undetected, eventually scaling a wall and gettin' up out of there.

There's not much to tell about the cemetery, really; if you've seen one Taiwanese cemetery you've pretty much seen them all. So, we'll fast-forward a bit to me getting to the end of the cemetery, where I found this:

Freeway! Yes, this stretch is car-only...no two-wheelers allowed (unless they are true motorcycles). I got the above-photograph by walking across a land-bridge, under which motorized vehicles travel. This bridge allows the road I was on to connect to another offshoot, that leads to a, what else?, farm. When I got there, a man told me to go back the way I came and showed me where I could go to follow the freeway back to the portion of Wugu I came from.

I intended with all my heart to do this, but ended up making a circle back to the cemetery. This time, though, I was on the other side. I walked and walked and walked and came to this view:

From foreground to background: tombs, Tamsui River, Taipei City.

It turned out to be for the best, I guess, but I still didn't come out where I wanted to. You know when I was talking about that farm, earlier? I kind of lied, now that I think about it. The other farm wasn't that close to the one my path went through. The farm I found, and my way down, ended up in another part of Wugu, near the road that takes you to the other road where my scooter and path entrance were. If that is confusing, it's fine; you can go ahead and look up the road names on the Garmin map below and figure it out yourselves.

After making some crazy jumps down from obviously abandoned areas of the farm, I came to an overpass that connects to the freeway...not even joking, see:

From there it was smooth sailing: All I had to do was walk through some factories, down a well-paved street, and then find my scooter. That is, after I propositioned a quite attractive betel nut girl for some icy water, and then was offered a Taiwan Beer from some construction workers near a rather gigantic intersection.

All-in-all, the hike was a success, and I loved nearly every minute of it (AGH, MOSQUITOES!)

my bestest friend

2011-06-18T12:23:00.001+08:00

My best friend...miss you, buddy!

Stream of Thought, II: Silver Grass

2011-06-13T23:53:00.002+08:00

The wind whispers
Calling me to disallow the continued falling of my spirit;
lift up, gear up, the future is still far away.
It tells me there's no use,
that none of us really choose where our spirits land.
So subtle, the motion of the grass,
The silver tones contrasting the monotone and letting the negative come and pass.
[It] tells me to calm, let my spirit collect,
soak in the air and allow my mind to neglect those things that may weigh me down.
Further down, still, I delve, into what I thought was Hell,
but turns out to be the misunderstanding of my needs,
the desires that would see me off
Instead of where I am,
anchored to self-conscious meandering and thoughts too deep,
or too unreal,
to explain.
I can watch the silver grass continue to bend,
unbreaking,
unyielding,
unafraid of the elements.
The wind questions from where my own fear and doubt stem
and I can only answer that I'm uncomprehending of the energies that flow through me.
It continues to move, but never comes closer,
echoing my own unvoiced words through the peaks around and surrounding.

From Datun to Cising

2011-06-10T12:15:00.002+08:00

A-lun made some comment about a crazy guy and aliens up in Mt. Cising...

Much to my surprise, my travels took me to said place, not long after my hiking trip with said Taiwanese guitarist. Originally, I wanted to go somewhere far away, but I woke up late. As usual in this situation, my scooter decided it was best to try my luck somewhere in Sanjhi, or in Yangming.

Thus, I ended up here:

Datun Nature Park, a land of picnicking families, annoying foreign couples out for a jaunt, equally annoying massive globs of Taiwanese out for...whatever it is they are out for, squirrels, killer wasps, a never-ending line of cars, [on a good day] sun, windy roads, military installa...well, not yet.

I don't have much to say about the park, because I try my best to get out of any situation that brings me close to x-amount of people, when x is larger than, say, five.

Being the case, I headed up the road, which was good because it took me to a secluded staircase betwixt 8-foot stalks of dense grass. I'd been there before, when I hiked some 22km around the Datun/Jhongjheng/Anbu area. I remembered that Anbu was somewhere after the descent, so I followed it down to where it reconnects with the highway I had just transitioned off of.

Why was I headed in this direction?

I spied a mountain, named Mt. Siaosong (小嵩), and decided it needed ascended. However, upon further observation, I found it to be connected to a certain previously visited military installation, hindering my plans.

(Hint: look to the mountains on the right-hand side)

Instead, I walked along the road until I reached:

Siaoyoukeng, a land of sulphur, steam, groups of college students out for a stroll with their basketball T-shirts and umbrellas (figure out the genders for yourselves), park employees who speak near-flawless English, large parking lots, tall silver grass, and crags.

Oh, as with everything else mentioned this time, I've done it before...

Except, this time, it wasn't supremely foggy and I noticed quite a nice hiking trail alongside, and through, the fumaroles of Siaoyoukeng. And, for a semi-graveled path, it wasn't a walk in the park, which I find stupendous. Truly, I loath hikes-made-easy, so the steepness and more natural feel of this trail was all too welcome.

Looking down from the top of Siaoyoukeng

Best part of the hike was through the fumeroles

At the path's terminus, erm, termini, you find yourself on Mt. Cising (七星山), pretty much the highest point of Yangming National Park at 3,675ft (1,120m). The reason you see that wonderful Latin word pluralized in the previous sentence is because the path actually continues to Mt. Cising East Peak (七星東峰). In fact, that isn't even the end, as the path goes down the other side to Cising Park. I didn't go that far, but you can see it in this picture (it's to the right of the lake, but not as far as the electrical towers).

Nice, save for the towers, yeah?

Here is a better view:

It was all downhill from there...and uphill, and down a bit more, and then through...and then, well, back to the apartment!

Long day from Pinghsi to Jioufen

2011-06-09T12:15:00.002+08:00

This actually happened on the 7th, but I hadn't the energy or want to write about it...so you get that, now.

We [A-lun and I] went to two places over the weekend:
Pinghsi (平溪區)
Jioufen (九份) / Rueifang (瑞芳)

So, you can see the actual locations of these places on the map to the right, but I'll go ahead and approximate that for ya:

- If you go to Taipei City, take the MRT to Nangang, then drive east, you'll eventually hit Pinghsi.
- Then, when you get bored of the nothing, you can drive northeast and eventually hit Rueifang.

Now, this post will have no pictures because, well, I forgot my camera, but I've taken shots of Mt. Wuer Chahu (無耳茶壺山 / Mt. Broken Handle Teapot) before [henceforth known as "Mt. Teapot"].

So, first we woke up at 5am...then 6am, and then finally met at 6:30am. From Tamsui, we drove through Taipei City and into Mucha, where A-lun lives. We got some sandwiches to eat at that moment and for the hiking trip, and then made a brief stop at his house. There, I met his brother (nice guy), who is also a teacher and happens to work in Pinghsi.

With not much to do, there, we headed out to Pinghsi, finally making it there around 9am. Now, before you ask, I will reiterate: I had no camera, so there are no pictures. However, if you are dying to see some, you can go to Tony's, a Taiwanese guy who hikes a lot, website to see the area.

The hike isn't really for beginners, especially beginners who are in it for endurance, but if you've done some more serious hiking, it shouldn't be too taxing. It starts like any lame Yangming trail, with a long path of gravel leading into the mountains. Eventually, though, you come to a completely vertical rock wall, with some stairs carved into the mountainside. You must make your way up, without slipping, and eventually you'll find yourself on some trodden dirt paths. Continuing on, you come to a large spire in the middle of the forest; the climbing here is ridiculous not because of the difficulty, but because of the pure randomness of these things being there. Seriously, they look like they don't belong.

I could go into detail of our path, but suffice it to say that it was a normal hike save for the above-mentioned. There are five of these "spires," and you can climb each one, with the last being the most difficult to descend (there is a ladder that goes up halfway, and then steep stairs carved into the other half). I can't quite do it justice with words, so have a look at those pictures in the link.

Well, after the first climb, we were pleased, but after five, it was overly repetitive, almost monotonous. This isn't to say it wasn't enjoyable, and I recommend it to all, but don't expect a terrifically difficult hike (which I was). Instead, there are only a few areas you need to use ropes to ascent/descend (with the first spire being the most interesting in this regard) and most of them are quite steep.

Finishing in a little over two hours, we found ourselves with some very unexpected time. Thus, I suggested we drive and hour to Rueifang to do a mountain I've done before.

Long story short: we went there and we did it. I won't go into detail about the first part of the mountain because, well, I've done it before: To Rueifang and Yilan, and Back [Part II]. However, during that time, I didn't continue on to Mt. Teapot. Instead, I retraced my steps to my scooter...I hadn't done much planning or really an idea of the area.

This time, though, A-lun and I continued past Mt. Banping to Mt. Teapot. This time was slightly more difficult for three reasons:
- Last time I did it, it was in September, so it was cooler (this time was HOT).
- The flora was severely overgrown and nearly impassable at some points...machete to the rescue!
- There were bees interfering in two key passes through the rocks...I had to find a way around them by scaling other, stepper rocks around the passes.

Eventually, after the peak of Mt. Banping, you need to climb down one of the mountain's vertical faces. Then, make your way through another long tract of tall grass.

Sadly, A-lun had some trouble with slippy, as I guess he has yet to gain his hiking feet. At one point, hilariously, I turned around to see A-lun quite far behind, walking down the mountain. Then, suddenly, he wasn't there anymore, disappearing in the tall grass! 哈哈哈 Oh, such a great experience!

Now, Mt. Teapot is wonderful. The rock is orange and black, and you need to do a lot of climbing to get across (something I really wish I had my camera for!). You need to, first, make your way over some crags littered with loose, jagged rocks. Then, you need to climb up another rock using a rope, crawl under a space, and then over another very flat boulder with some foot-holes carved into it. To get down the other side, you can either go over the edge of the rocks, and descent via rope, or spelunk a short distance and come out the other side (the cave was quite cool, in both sentences).

Once we were done, it was decided to find a bus instead of going back the way we came. This we did, and luckily, we got an interesting bus.

I noted before we actually took the bus that the driver seemed like a jag-off. Much not to my surprise, after traveling a ways, a taxi stopped in front of the bus, trying to block it off. Our driver skirted this and continued on, but was then blocked by another bus! Apparently, our driver had an on-going feud with various people in the transportation industry of Rueifang/Jioufen. 哈哈哈

At the end, as in the beginning, we prayed to the Land God and Gongguan for protecting us, or just me depending on your perspective, on our journey.

End.

Updating part deux

2011-06-08T02:12:00.003+08:00

Some changes I've made, if you haven't noticed:

- Added a map to the sidebar, documenting the mountains I've hiked in Taiwan

- Added a "music" page to the menu bar at top, which gives you easier access to my musical endeavors

- Changed background to a less busy texture

- Changed text color for links and sidebars to make it easier to read

- Changed the background color for posts and pages, as the white was very...bright

As is always the case with this place, the changes are by no means permanent. That means: they will eventually change, as always.

"Penetrating Walls" (lyrics)

2011-06-07T02:33:00.009+08:00

My band 阜可 (Fuke), finished the lyrics to our first song, "Penetrating Walls." This is the English version; we'll translate them into Chinese, eventually, just for easier understanding for non-English-speaking Taiwanese people.

(Intro)
**Instrumental**

(Verse 1)
Where can I
find the tools to shed this husk of mine
How can I
ease this pain and realign
When every
Moment seems the same routine
When every
Moment sees me to my knees
I persist
Unable to resist, remaining conscious
As these walls are thickening!

(Chorus)
When I finally decide
What to do with all my selfish pride
There may be nothing left inside
of me

my mind plays to every whim
those lasting touches deep within
I'll never feel past these walls
around me

(Verse 2)
There's many reasons why my thoughts and logic disagree
Yet they're colluding to strip down and conquer empathy
I can't explain what these emotions are coursing through me
So here I am, left standing in my self-defeat

(Chorus)
When I finally decide
What to do with all my selfish pride
There may be nothing left inside
of me

my mind plays to every whim
those lasting touches deep within
I'll never feel past these walls
around me

(Break)
Careful what your expectations lead you to believe
I'm nothing you remember of me
Fears. Collections. Thoughts of binding but these
recollections
Feel so fake,
I see that now no matter how I look
Into the mirror, regardless of the time I take
This person
Always finds a way to stay.

I just can't get away!
I just can't get away!
I just can't get away!
Get him away!

(Outro)
Will I ever see what is me?

Updating

2011-06-02T23:03:00.008+08:00

I'm working on some new features, or at least working on implementing some new features into this site. As such, I may continue to be slow on updating.

Conversely, this could motivate me to write more, or even give me something more to write about.

Either way, there are things to come, and eventually updates will be come more frequent.

In addition, my schedule is finally fixing itself into a pattern, which has been the major burden on my time and ability to get things done.

Drive-bys

2011-05-20T20:41:00.004+08:00

At times, I wonder what goes through the minds of Taiwanese people. The culture here is so very different from the one I grew up in, leading to many events that register as 'abnormal' and 'strange,' in my mind. Now, don't take these two words to be negative in meaning, because they are not. Simply put: Taiwanese culture is strangely awesome and abnormally wicked (the good one).

Case in point: traveling stinky tofu vendors.

For real, these things are amazing. Sometimes, you'll just be hungry and say, "Man, I could go for some awesome 小吃 [Taiwanese 'snack'] rick now." Then, like the other night, you may see a guy on a motorcycle towing a food stand. These food stands contain a variety of things, but the most coveted of all is the stinky tofu vendor:

The guy on the motorcycle in front of me is A-lun, who was the one who actually flagged down said vendor so that I could purchase some food stuffs.

When you finally get them to pull over, this is what happens:

Yum!

Speaking of strange occurrences, today I was driving to work, which means I was going from Da-an to Linkou, and was making my way through Taishan when something amazing happened: a speed pothole filling. I'd never seen the sort of thing, and seemingly nobody around me had either, but here is what basically happened:

- The light turned red

- A police officer slowed traffic around the bend (we were at a 4-way intersection)

- A guy brought out a bucket of asphalt

- The contents of the bucket were poured into the hole

- Another man tamped this down, scraped off excess, and tamped again

- They set a cone down, put a company sign on, and took a picture

Elapsed time: 41 seconds.

Then, a car proceeded to drive over the filled hole with nothing getting on the tire and the hole remaining level and filled. Amazing!

So, that's two things I've seen/done in the past 20 hours...you?

幻日 (Anthelion) Concert!

2011-05-17T23:21:00.000+08:00

幻日 (Anthelion)..going to see them Saturday!

Who?

Them:

ZS-3000A Helmet!

2011-05-17T00:30:00.001+08:00

Along with my new job comes the ability to buy slightly more than usual, so I went out and got myself a new helmet! This is a full helmet, not one of those 3/4 helmets I wore before.

The helmet is a ZS-3000A (平光黑)...check it out:

Features:
- Front portion lifts up (via a button under the chin-guard)
- Outer, clear plastic visor (easily replaceable)
- Inner, tinted plastic visor (retractable via a handle on the left side)
- Top mounted, closeable air vents
- Mouthpiece air vent
- Rear air vent
- Three padding air vents (at rear)
- Looped chin-strap (that locks with a button)

Pictures!:

Front view

Visor up

Sun visor down

Front raised (front-view)

Front raised (side-view)

Inside padding

Side-view

The back

Yeah, it came with instructions! However, the helmet is pretty easy to use, and gnarly in its look and functionality. I can tell you that it isn't hot and the sunvisor does come in quite handy and work well. Great purchase, especially since my face is less likely to be ripped off in the event of an accident.

Later days!

A-Jui - Gebrysed

2011-05-15T14:16:00.000+08:00

阿阿阿阿

2011-05-13T02:54:00.000+08:00

Lot's of stuff going on recently:
- Work in Linkou
- Work in Tamsui
- Two new 1-on-1 classes in Tamsui
- Recording ambient music
- Recording music with my band (Fuke / 阜可)
- Hiking
- Computer gaming
- Trying to get this second book read!

Thus, I have come to a point where it is harder than usual for me to find time to use the computer for things other than merely checking E-mail. Rest assured, however, that some fun, and possibly exciting, things will be to come. With that in mind, you can check out the following two websites for updates on music:

- Fuke/ 阜可
- A-jui (solo music)

Later days.

Stopping off in Wugu

2011-05-06T16:14:00.003+08:00

Since my other job is in Linkou, I have to drive from Tamsui and through Wugu to get there. Quite often, behind the dirt and grime that pollute the air of Wugu (because of factories and the like), I find magnificent things lurking around!

The modern and ancient: the mountains behind a highway running through Wugu.

Looking towards Kuan-du

Two old boat halves form a nice shelter from rain.

If I ever get my bike over to Wugu, this is definitely the path I'm taking.

Looking towards Hsin-jhuang

Panorama: Yehliu

2011-05-02T11:02:00.001+08:00

Put this together last night...it's the tip of the rock formation in Yehliu...enjoy!

Yehliu Time

2011-05-01T22:43:00.000+08:00

Mia and I never really get to hang out, so we went to Yehliu to get our minds off our individual...conundrums. Apparently, she had never been to the area, whilst I am a veteran, so it was quite fun to show her around. We ended up getting there around 2:30, paid for admission (yeah...have to pay to...be in nature), saw the tiny Queen's Head, and then headed out to the farthest point of the area: 24-Filial-Piety Hill. This area looks out to the sea...and down a bit:

Eventually tiring of just staring at water, we walked down some harrowing stairs (carefully) to an area frequented by fishermen and not tourists.

The pockmarked rocks are quite a sight.

The artistry of nature...

After walking along the coast for about half an hour, it began to rain, so we accelerated our movements and high-tailed it to the market portion of Yehliu. Then, we checked out Yehliu Ocean World, as we were curious about ticket prices...yeah, nt$350 per person...not havin' that! Anyway, the A/C was nice...and so were the 4D tank souvenirs!

I can't even begin to imagine how to put one of these together...

After our little trip, we just headed back to Tamsui. It was a nice ride to and from (though a little wet on the way back), and the experience was overall enjoyable and relaxing...glad we did it.

Peace.

A-Jui - Frið

2011-04-23T21:27:00.000+08:00

Stream through Wugu

2011-04-21T16:27:00.003+08:00

Being the small island-nation that it is, and considering the size of its population, it's no wonder that building, here, often takes on unique and interesting forms. When I go somewhere new, or even when I'm walking around somewhere extremely familiar, I find myself fascinated by and engrossed in the merger of architectures, environments, and locales. As you're probably aware, I've been working in Linkou District (林口區) for about a month, now. Every day, I take the same roads to work (well, on Fridays I take a different path...but, that's still every Friday).

I've been meaning to stop off at a small temple near the base of the mountain upon which my job is located, but I didn't have time until recently. I didn't take pictures of the temple, but the more important part, at the time of taking the following pictures, was the stream (apparently either man-made or manipulated in some manner) next to the temple.

Looking up the creek.

I'd like to live next to one, though I'm not sure they smell particularly good.

(At least, this one didn't smell good.)

Cool lookin' tunnel, though! It goes to the other side of Wugu (五股區))

That said, the view is facing the direction of the temple.

Looking south, to Wugu.
Please, notice the awesomeness that is the collection of houses and little bridge.

European Magpies

2011-04-19T08:41:00.001+08:00

Good morning!

And, it truly is! I awoke to two European magpies (喜鵲) hanging out on a bare tree positioned outside my window!

General Life

2011-04-17T21:08:00.001+08:00

In case you're wondering about the infrequent updating of this website, it's mainly because of my new job and my inability to quickly adjust to a new schedule.

Since I have so many jobs in different places, I have two activities that take up much of my time: teaching and traveling. Monday through Wednesday isn't so bad, it's the killer combo of Thursday and Friday, where I have jobs in Tamsui (淡水), Linkou (林口), Tienmou (天母), and Da'an (大安). On Fridays, I have to make it from Da'an to Linkou in an hour, which is quite an experience...

Regardless, I've found time to hang out with my friends and to further dabble in music composition. At current, I'm working on an ambient song using the Propellerhead Reason DAW, Audacity, and Prime Loops' Ambient Fractals and Dubstep Nation sample/loop packs.

If'n you wonder

2011-04-11T03:10:00.002+08:00

I'll start with the reason why I am an awesome teacher:

This requires a little pretext. Normally, I teach a starter class at the American Eagle Institute in Linkou, but on Fridays, I teach a level two class reading and writing (generally, just writing). Last time, I tasked them with a lesson on order words, such as first, next, last, etc. So, in their books, they had various exercises, with one of them being to look at two pictures and a blank square. The first two pictures began and continued the story, with the third being responsible for the ending. Students had to write what was happening in the first two and then decide what the conclusion was.

As for the above-photo, the first two boxes showed (1) two girls filling a cup with popcorn and (2) popcorn filling the room in which they resided. Most of my students either killed off the girls or had them rejoice in ecstasy over their new-found trove of popcorn. Knowing they would do this, and as is in my nature, I decided to go the strange and more abstract route. Thus, my conclusion for the story was a kernel of popcorn, sitting in an armchair, daydreaming about that day in the future when he and his minions will exact their revenge upon humankind.

Quite.

After said class, it was off to Wugu (五股), a quick fifteen minute jaunt down the hill. There, I waited an hour and some odd minutes for Yaling to arrive from her 49-stop bus journey. The day prior, I asked if she would like to go to a BBQ in Wugu as the repayment for her assisting in my finding a new job; it was only proper that the restaurant would be somewhere in the vicinity of my job, and since Linkou has little in the way of proper eateries, Wugu did just fine.

I simply loved this BBQ...it was quite the happening, and very local, place.

For some reason, well, I suppose I know the reason, I've been spending quite a lot of time at A-lun's and Aish's apartment. I revised the initial start of that sentence because the general pretense of my venturing to their abode is for the devising and recording of music. Very little in that vein actually ever happens, but it's the thought that counts, I guess.

I've recently come into possession of a miniature MIDI keyboard, an AKAI Pro MPK mini, pictured in the awesome photograph below:

When I say that I recently came into possession of a MIDI keyboard, I mean I bought it, online, for a sum of money equal to US$125 (I'm aware this is higher than in the U.S., thanks).

If you are not aware, most of my Tamsui friends are of the musical persuasion, so it begs to reason that I acquire some musical device. As I fancy electronica, dubstep, and the like, I decided to dabble in it myself.

Last night, I went to the apartment to record some music, which actually happened. Kiri has a song entitled "Sacrifice," to which he had given lyrics and basically recorded to completion. With the file still on the computer, I wrote new lyrics and recorded my own vocals, which sounded pretty good. We also kicked around a few ideas for other songs, and I believe we have two workable ideas going on, now.

Quite in interruption of these festivities, my mother called at some point to inform me that she and my father were at the Waffle Shop in East Liberty (in Pittsburgh). There, they host a talk-show whilst customers consume apparently tasty waffles. As a result, I watched my father be interviewed for about ten minutes. IN said interview, I was talked about, in regards to my being in Taiwan and what I do.

This is me preparing to guest star on the Waffle Shop talk show via Skype.

After that, Aish came home and he, A-lun, Siao-pang, and I sat down to watch TV. Being that it was 4am, little was on in the way of substance-filled televised content. Thus, we settled on a show where a Buddhist monk discusses Buddhist philosophy. Normally, this is quite dull, but we found him to be very amusing. Why?

For starters, Buddhist philosophy is hard, especially when written in Classical Chinese. The guy has an hour to talk, and he decided to, last night, discuss three sentences. These sentences were quite short and the idea not terribly difficult to grasp [by my Taiwanese friends, as I didn't understand half what he said], but he discussed them for three hours. Not only that, but he often paused for periods in excess of five seconds, quite a long time on television. Still further, his pacing was all over the place, which made watching quite hilarious. Or, it could be that we were awake to the wee hours of the morning and were on a sleep-deprivation high. Either way, good times.

Now, the weekend is over.

Work tomorrow, sleep now. Peace.

Mt. in Wugu

2011-04-09T02:34:00.000+08:00

Probably the best twenty seconds of my drive to work, in Linkou.

A lot of the drive, though, is quite wonderful...the parts between the highway and factories.

水管路: the almost finishing

2011-04-02T23:05:00.003+08:00

It was a beautiful day, today, around 85°, so hiking needed to be had. As I woke quite late in the day, for hiking at least, I decided to go closer to home, only venturing into the mountains of Tamsui. More specifically, I took another stab at Water Company Rd., a path I tried before and stopped because of wetness and lack of ability to clear away overgrowth. Today, though, I went quite far...a few miles further than before...actually, many miles further. In fact, there was a taxi involved, but more on that later.

Nothing but green, green, green...

Well, except for the pipes, which I followed.

On a previous occasion, I stopped because the ground was too slick and the overgrowth too plentiful to continue safely around a horseshoe-like curve. However, last month, apparently, a group of mountaineers came and cleared the paths! How great! I didn't need to bust out my machete or anything, letting me enjoy the narrow paths and brief climbing sections.

Indeed, that's one of the things I love about this path: it's not particularly difficult or easy (moderate) and provides for a variety of activities, with climbing and jumping being the most fun amongst them. Also, you never know what interesting things you'll see along these cliffside paths:

Not exactly sure why, but the limbs branching off this tree's one branch are 100% vertical.

I quite like it.

Down and back up!

Told you it was cliffside, which provides this beautiful scenery.

If I ever need to camp around here, this collection of tree roots looks quite sheltering.

Do you see the path I used to get to my vantage point?

So, as you can tell, I so far had a pretty easy trip, just following pipes and flags wherever they may lead! That is, until I came to this:

Mind you, the above-photograph is after I came out of a patch of bamboo to find a split, left and right. I chose right, and was then confronted with two more options. This time, I chose left, but only because I had seen a temple-like building in the distance a while back, and thought to myself, "Hey, that might be something cool to head towards."

Turns out, the trail comes out here.

And that is where my hiking stopped. The path continues up another mountain, which I did briefly ascend, but I decided that an hour's light wasn't enough for me to continue on and make it back to my scooter (miles behind me) before fatiguing myself to death.

That, my friends, is when it struck me: keys? I had my wallet, but no keys...which I figured must be in one of two places: somewhere along the path where I slid along my butt to get down various hilly areas or in my ignition. Neither prospect was really appealing, as one required my walking a narrow, forested path at night, and the other my scooter being left dormant, keys in the ignition, for several hours.

So, I went back down the path, walked along a waterway, and then found some stairs into a little mountainside community (most houses vacant). That is where I met a family: father, mother, grandfather, and middle-aged daughter. I asked them for the quickest route to the highway, which happened to be 北新路, a road I am all-to-familiar with. However, they failed to catch the gist of what I was implying with the word "快" (fast), and invited me to drink some tea. Not one to pass up a good cup of oolong, I obliged. We discussed, amongst other things: where I came from, my hiking paths, the father's and grandfather's adventures in the mountains of Japan and in Taiwan's Jade Mountain, farming, and Chinese occupation and civil war (though, I'm still not certain of their position, but it was their topic of discussion, not mine).

Finally, I excused myself and made my way, briskly, down the mountain.

Random awesome outhouse in the middle of nowhere.

I said something about a taxi, right? Yeah...let's do this in bullet format:
- Got to 北新路 (North New Road)
- A van pulled over and asked me a question, which may have been an offer for a ride
- Received a lot of stairs from people as I walked along the road
- Watched a dog slyly follow a family as they walked their two dogs
- Finally made it to the highway
- Became worried about my keys and could wait no longer, so flagged down a taxi

The driver of the car was quite nice, but his family [wife and son] were with him. He had asked me where I wanted to go, to which I responded, vaguely, "鄧公路," the road on which I live. This was mostly the truth, as Denggong Rd. comes out at the intersection that crosses to the road I needed to go up in order to find my scooter (do you hate that sentence as much as I do? Ah, we'll get over it).

I couldn't quite make out his complaint, but I do know that he had dinner plans with his wife and son, and didn't plan on going as far as he did. The bright side for them, though, was that they now know a road they previously were not privy to, and can add it to their list of "roads available for taxiing customers."

Worried about his driving ability in pitch black (the top has no street lamps), I told him to let me off in front of a large house. Then, I walked up the hill a bit until coming to my scooter and seeing this:

Oh, what a great sight!

If I would have walked the whole thing, the trip would've been 12.86mi, but I caught the taxi at slightly over 6.5mi.

Safari Disco Club!

2011-03-29T02:21:00.001+08:00

Ah! The new Yelle CD comes out, today [in the U.S.]! For now, I need to make do with the album stream, online, but soon...Yelle on the mp4 player!

A few weeks ago, the band came out with a dual music video for their songs "Safari Disco Club" and "Que Veux-Tu." So, there are two songs, with a small intermission...the second video is fantastic (and quite sexy, I may add)...the first is rather strange, but the entire thing is just...très impressionnant!

Écoutez de la musique! Soyez heureux!

a Settlers day

2011-03-28T00:44:00.001+08:00

Buenas noches, queridos lectores! ¿Cómo estás?...I don't speak Spanish, so that's it.

Nearly every weekend, generally on a Saturday, I find myself at Eddy's Cantina, answering the Settlers call:

This one word contains motivation enough to brave Tamsui's weather, on weekends.

Settlers? More precisely, The Settlers of Catan, a boardgame originally from Germany translated into English and now played in Taiwan...by us. Us? Some of us foreigners in Taiwan, mainly Eric, Eddy (of Cantina fame), and the above Stewart. Many others play the game, but for the past three or four weekends, the above players have been pretty standard.

All right, where did I diverge? Yes, Settlers. Have you ever played Risk or Civilization or Total War or some other game where you were forced to claim land, build up a civilization, and then rule the region? Settlers is like that, except its resources come in the form of wheat, brick (rock), tree, bowl (metal), and sheep, there are four players (up to six with the expansion), and it lasts for about an hour, whereas the other can take far longer.

I'd tell you how to play, but learning is part of the fun, and it isn't something I can easily do. Instead, you can go to the Wikipedia article on The Settlers of Catan - Gameplay, which lays out the basics. Seriously, the game is addicting...which is why it takes a simple "Settlers" in my phone's inbox to get me out of bed on Saturdays (or in the case of today, Sundays).

Today was a special day, since we [Eddy and me] tried our hand at the Settlers expansion, Catan: Cities and Knights. Far more complex, the expansion was, incredibly, better than the original and, I think, in ways easier. I say this because the original is fairly simple, but with the addition of multiple facets, which you must keep track of and plan out, it requires more skill whilst giving you far more options of play.

Also: today was my first win! I don't care...I'm excited about it!

That out of the way, here is what the game looks like:

Stewart fashioned this board out of the original, cards, hexes, and all

This is what a winning hand and board look like! I was green.

I won with three cities, a metropolis, longest road, and +1 vp for defending Catan.

Just another view

I recommend the game to all. If it sounds like I'm smitten with the game, it's because I am. Should the game somehow come into possession of a woman's body, I'd marry it.

End.

My Denggong Apt.

2011-03-26T23:59:00.004+08:00

I truly have no idea why, I guess I'm just that fascinating, but people have been all about hassling me for pictures of my apartment. Fine. Here is my apartment, in all its nt$5,000 a month glory.

mirror for your self-admiration
a place to hang your coat
cleaning devices
a map in case you forgot what country you're in
a calendar in case you forgot what day it is
KEYS!

stored near the ladder to my bed are my shoes and hiking equipment!
mini-fridge: can't get enough of those
clothes
under-bed storage
and, of course, my bed and place for my computer...so I never have to leave my "loft"

heater, for guests mostly
bathroom
door to my balcony
alcoholic bookshelf

This is my favorite part of the room...it's nice to look at!

again with my alcoholic bookshelf
desk for two [computers]
terrible towel and Pittsburgh flag
photographs of important people
identical Ikea lamp to the one I have in Pittsburgh
electric water kettle
fan and air conditioner

A view from higher up

Please take note of my awesome floor pattern:

Blue: walk here without shoes

Gray: walk here with shoes

Also, see there is a hole where the laundry basket goes!

That's it...hope you enjoyed the tour.

Educational References +1

2011-03-22T21:48:00.000+08:00

And it continues, the non-stop love affair I have with whiteboards. I could go on and on about the pictures I draw and their utter ridiculousness, but I won't. Although, now that I think about it, I do have some interesting photos to share with you:

I drew this lovely chart for my X7 class. Here, you will see how possession of a medium, by a spirit, works:
- Medium (stick figure) is found
- Said medium channels (represented by the TV) a spirit
- The channeled spirit connects with the medium
- Said spirit possesses said medium
- Bada bing! Possession (shown by stick figure now being overlapped by a spirit)!

As my American Eagle Institute colleague Ava calls it, my 'picasso' was obviously drawn to illustrate body parts. He ended up this was because I needed to clearly indicate a knee, elbow, and chin, this resulting in a dancing, exaggerated figure. Striking, yes?

I didn't draw these cute shapes; one of my students, Jolin, drew them. I asked my students to stand at the board and draw the shapes I called out, and she took it a step further by making them all extremely happy!

Hsinchu Training

2011-03-19T23:16:00.058+08:00

I've not yet mentioned it here, but most of you know: I have a new job.

As is my profession, the job is English-related; even more relevant, it is a teaching position. My initial job (David's English Center, where I still work, part-time) has me teaching adults, but this current institution, American Eagle Institute, has me teaching children....around the age of second graders.

Since I'm not particularly used to teaching children, I felt it pertinent to my professionalism to attend a training session provided by our HQ. This training session was not in Tamsui, but in:

So, that's where I was today. How'd I get there? Good 'ol fashioned train:

Well, the train isn't quite "'ol fashioned," but it served it's purpose

To start my day, I had to go from my apartment, in Tamsui, to Taipei Main Station, where I was to catch a train. I got there at 9:40am, which gave me enough time to get to the ticket counter and purchase a...train ticket. Obtaining a ticket for 10am was my goal, but I was there one minute too late, so I got one for 10:06am (not too much later). Ticket in hand, I rode the escalator down to the platform, where I was directed to platform 4; much to my dismay, my train ended up being on platform 3, so I missed it. Regardless, I caught a 10:20 train to Hsinchu, and still had a seat.

At 11:15am, I found myself in Hsinchu and had to put the second part of my plan into motion: walk to American Eagle Institute HQ.

To do so, you walk southeast...pretty simple, right? Well, at about the halfway point I encountered some sort of college, and had to walk through a bustling cafeteria to get to a sky-bridge. I thought this would get me to where I needed to be and my obstacles were basically over, that is until my road ended, quite abruptly I might add. Busting out my trekking skills, I pushed through the shrubbery directly ahead, threw my bag across the gap spanning the creek's width (didn't mention a creek? Yep, creek), leapt across the divide and grabbed the edge, pulled myself up, and scaled the muddy hill. Yeah! Take that, new shoes!

After that event, it was a pretty easy-going trip, save for my having to run half the way and find alternative routes around a rather large expressway:

I followed a guy who looked like he knew where he was going...

This goes under the expressway

At 1pm, I ended up at HQ, which was the exact moment it started...thus, I was on-time.

One fellow teacher-of-Taiwanese, Lars, was in disbelief over my walking to this event...he said, "You know, there are people here [that can give you a ride]." That's true, but I knew no one else there, which defeated the point. However, taking this remark into consideration, I extended an invitation for him to take me back to the train station, which he accepted.

The training itself was all right, with one speaker talking about how to help students who are struggling with pronunciation and comprehension, and the other about ~~defense against the dark arts~~ disciplining children.

I won't really go into that, though a later post could, possibly, discuss teaching theory. However, I will talk about something I always find of interest: police practices in Taiwan. This is occurring because I saw something at the train station...

Police, here, love to take pictures and video. I mean, if you ever thought Taiwanese women were the only one snapping pictures as if they had no short-term memories, you would be wrong. Taiwanese police officers travel in groups of two to four people, all in the same car. When they do stop someone, which is quite rare (as this requires work), one person writes the citation, and at least one other takes pictures. More still, you may find one standing directly across from the driver videotaping him/her. How incredibly embarrassing and annoying...were I this driver, I'd be extremely pissed:

To her credit, she remained extremely calm with hands planted firmly on the wheel and eyes straight ahead. I understand the purpose, and it makes sense, but my mind still can't register anything except for it being stupid.

Anyway, that's basically it. I mean, I had a return ticket for 9:20pm, but exchanged it, easily, for a 6:25 ticket, but nothing else really happened. I just went back to Tamsui.

Hey! Foreigner! Want to play!?

2011-03-17T23:22:00.029+08:00

Sometimes, Taiwanese people stop me and make me do things...

Like today: I was walking through Tamkang University, after having gone to the library, when a group yelled, “ㄟ！阿斗阿要不要玩！？！？” (Hey! Foreigner! Want to play!?!?) I turned around and was quickly drawn into a game of Twister that used not colors, but directives that I didn't quite understand.

'Jessica' laughed maniacally at my impending humiliation

Start by doing a few push-ups

B-boy pose!

The game didn't end with someone falling. Instead, the rules were that you had to complete all four of the poses written on the card you selected. Mine was in the theme of a vegetable vendor, and I was picking food (I guess...that's what I got, anyway). When all three players completed their moves, they then held for ten seconds, which we all did. Thus, I came to win a paper umbrella...discount...= =

Yes, my prize wasn't an actual object, but a discount for purchasing an object...so I bought their paper umbrella for 20nt (um, 68¢).

Steelers in Taiwan II

2011-03-16T15:42:00.000+08:00

Ever vigilant, I am always looking out for Pittsburgh-related items in Taiwan.

I was driving to work today when, out of nowhere, this guy appears in front of me.

I asked, and yes, he does know who the Steelers are and actually likes them.

My current [foggy] view

2011-03-12T13:36:00.000+08:00

The current view from my apartment.

Tenure and the Evils of Teaching (my take on the matter)

2011-03-11T22:42:00.008+08:00

Someone on my friends list posted this link: Chicago Tribune Chart. It spells out the tenure appeals process. It shows that it's a waste of money to give teachers tenure, that the system is broken, that teachers are horrible, money-grubbing, egotistical, self-centered crooks out for personal gain, that teachers are undeserving of such a device.

Poppycock.

What people don't get from the graph is that during much of this process, there is no pay and they are suspended from practice. What is more, this is no different than other jobs that provide tenure: it can be difficult to fire these people. Please, note the language used with these types of articles: "it can take up to *** years to fire a tenure teacher" and "it can cost as much as $*** to fire a tenure teacher." The uncertainty and vagueness in such statements calls to question the integrity and certainty of such articles and the frequency with which such events occur.

Additionally, realize that the tenure probationary period is far longer than most other jobs, meaning that there is far greater chance of being fired before reaching tenure and a much longer evaluation period. Thus, the "bad teachers" are often weeded out before this period of time. Or, "good teachers" and "bad teachers" alike are fired before the end of this period so that they don't need to be paid tenure.

However, some do reach this point and overtake it, thereby achieving tenure. Good for them! So, when one does "go bad," there is a process that should be undertaken to fire them. Yes, I said should because they obviously got there for a reason. The tenure system was created to protect people in positions where personal vendettas and unfair hiring/firing practices can and do run rampant; anyone who has been a teacher knows that there are students who love you and those who hate you, this goes for parents and colleagues. The position of a teacher is a volatile one, and people are often out to get these professionals, and I would venture to guess far more often than many other jobs, where this frequency of interaction simply does not happen. During this appeals process, rights are given that protect both sides, not just the teacher, and I would say most know when to stop beating a dead horse. Indeed, it can take up to five years to fire a tenure teacher, but five years is an exception, not a rule. In general, it does not take years to fire a teacher. Contrary to popular belief, we are reasonable people.

If we were in it for money, we would not become teachers...if we didn't like kids/teenagers, we would not become teachers.

The ones that put up with the mind-numbing hoops to graduate with a degree, the vague and convoluted process to remain certified, the continued education courses we are required to attend, and the many hours of unpaid work we do outside of the classroom (grading papers [yes, we read them all], creating tests [they don't come out of thin air], attending school functions [a requirement of the job, and you're not always paid to chaperone], etc., etc.), are the ones that become teachers.

It is not a job you just get; you have to work towards it and it has to select you.

I'm tired of the propaganda that is encircling and enveloping teachers, smothering our rights as professionals and smearing our good names, as if the contractual dealings and union benefits we fight for are evil and unwarranted. Our summer vacations are not as long as students', we do have to go into school and attend staff and curriculum meetings, and some of us do teach summer school. During this summer period is when we plan the entire year of lessons, which we must spell out in detail and submit to our peers and overseers. Winter vacation? Other jobs get this to varying degree, and sorry, work is often done during this period, as well.

The truth is that the American educational system is in bad shape because of over-emphasis on standardized testing, absurd laws and regulations that hinder the educator, and funding shenanigans run by state governments and the federal government. Entirely too much blame is put on educators, and not enough on the barricades that hold them back and the parents, administrators, and various other people who try to stifle their yells for change.

My point is that teaching is not an easy job, and the majority certainly do not and are not able to abuse the system as the news so often reports. This essay is not just about the chart, but the perception of teachers that is, sadly, prevalent throughout America.

Thank you for your time and attention.

真的嗎？Again with the 三峽？

2011-03-07T12:59:00.003+08:00

Sanshia's my thing, so sue me!

It didn't take much effort to get A-lun to go on a brief camping trip with me. I had class on Saturday, so we left Tamsui really late [for camping], at about 1:20pm. We stopped in Sindian (新店) for some chicken and then traveled to a place I am quite familiar with: Mt. Hsihsiongkong (西熊空山) and Mt. Red Turtle (紅龜面山).

We parked at that outlook I spoke of previously, and then walked to a nice clearing in the mountains, nestled in a large field of bamboo. I forgot to take pictures of this, so...you don't get to see our camping site (I'm sure there'll be more). However, I can show you that I was king of the mountain:

This trophy was found at the top of a tree...no joke.

Since we got the tent and everything set up by around 4:30pm, we did some hiking along a nearby creek.

We reached a small watering hole by about 6pm, so we headed back up the creek. After making some headway, we saw another path, and since there was some light left, we took it. This led to a place known as 大豹幹 (Great Panther Way), which is, essentially, a few houses with no occupants spread along a random road in the mountains. Going nowhere, we went back to camp, unwound, and slept.

We woke up to some psychotic birds screamin' their heads off. I slept like a baby, but A-lun said it was a trying experience...but, he's sure to fair better next time.

Our destination, after packing up camp, was to a path we noticed on the way to camp: Mt. Red Turtle. To get there, you can go one of two ways: take a farmers road and cut through some farms, or take a strongman trail (OK, really, really need a new name for these). We took the latter and it was amazingly fun.

This way to the mountain!

Deciding which way to go...

Seriously breathtaking view...

Pole marks the highest point of the mountain.

All's well!

Ropin' and polin' my way back up the mountain.

Like I said, the trip was brief. By 12pm we were back at the lookout point and preparing to ride back to Taipei. A-lun had to work at 3pm, and we were in Tienmou by 2pm...giving him about an hour to rest before commencing his business of slicing fish apart. Me? I just went back to Tamsui and, um, did nothing. Hah.

Back to Sanshia...& 一點 Sindian

2011-03-01T18:58:00.089+08:00

I have a lot of time on my hands. At last count, I had 154 hours of total free time, per week. This is not to gloat, because it's actually quite...terrible (lack of hours means lack of money). However, every cloud has a proverbial silver lining, and this lack of hours yields much in the way of hours towards hiking.

Sunday, a traditional non-work day for many across the 'verse, I went back to Sanshia (三峽), intent on finding something other than a café. The route I previously took to Sanshia was the same, and instead of turning off 北109 to the café, I continued on, deeper into the mountains. Interestingly, I kept seeing signs with bears on them that showed I was getting progressively closer to...something. (bears?) Turns out, I was getting closer to a place that sells potted shrubbery, cooks food, and has a lookout platform that provides a splendid view of the valley.

I continued past the lookout and found a path on the side of the road. I parked my scooter and ended up in the mountains, "far away" from people (so I thought) and following a creek.

There's not much to report, here...but I did end up in an endless maze of farming roads, because the way leading to a main road was hidden behind a house.

How did I get to this maze? I climbed up a very steep hill, one that was so steep that I was not going back down it.

Tadpoles! Cute!

So, from the creek I ended up in a community that was mainly farms (the maze), and from there I made my way to another path. Strewn about were water pipes, so I guess it was originally cut for bringing water from the creek to farmland in the area. After a while, the path ended at a little pond, and I wasn't going any further, so I climbed the embankment to my right to what I knew was cleared land. This ended up being a newly tilled farm. Being a farm, I knew there had to be a point of access, so I walked to the top to find a small, dirt road with a van sitting in the middle. With no way around, I walked up to it and the man inside woke up. We had a very strange Chinese conversation that went, basically, like this:

Me: "Hi, is there a road around here?"

Man: "There is no road."

Me: "Are you sure? You mean, there's no road behind your van?"

Me: "But, you're in a van...how'd it get here if there is no road?"

Man: "There is no road, you have to go that way [points towards the forest]."

At this point, I gave him a pleasant look and went back down, over the embankment, across the pond, and up the other side (the left embankment). No road my ass! I found the road:

Quite aways in the distance is the aforementioned van...kind of hidden in the trees...

(look around the single tree in the middle)

This was yet another blessing in disguise, because I found more paths to explore! One took me to a "strongman trail" (I really need another name for these things), which led to Mt. Red Turtle (紅龜面山), where I made it all the way to the top.

Always super-cool at the summit.

So, the way back was pretty simple: got back to the road the original path ended, retraced my steps up the creek, and found my scooter.

On my way back to Tamsui, but still in Sanshia, I came across this:

Large chunk'a rock that fell from....

Here:

Yikes...

Now, my trip didn't quite end there...because I called A-lun to see if he wanted to get dinner on his break. This was an approved plan, but his break was at 6:30; the time I called was 3:30. Being thus, I took a small trip in Sindian (新店) to Siaoshih Hill (小獅山, or "little lion hill").

Very neat, very sturdy stairs leading upwards.

View of Sindian

1.25mi later, I was on my way to Tienmou...for dinner.

Through Mt. Jhongjheng

2011-02-26T18:39:00.017+08:00

Finally, I got to do some up-creek hiking!

Having had my fill of Yangming's nicely kept walkways, I decided to find my own way into the mountains. So, I ended up driving to 北投 (Beitou) and parking next to a waterway, one that was almost bare. From there, I spied a mountain in the horizon. It turns out that this mountain is Mt. Jhongjheng, which I have walked up numerous times; however, at that moment I knew nothing about what was in front of me.

I started by walking along the waterway, and eventually found that my ability to do so would end. As such, I followed a rather narrowly cut path to a small farm area, complete with multiple cemented paths. My ascension continued on these roads, passing many a farm and hastily built shed/shack.

Interesting little park area...the information was too sun-bleached to understand...

Most of the trek looked like this...no real trails, just plastic banners marked the way.

No idea what this is; I guess it's a really long slug with a fanned head.

I didn't touch it: yellow mean 'no-touchy.'

After seeing the two-foot slug, I kept on movin', coming to an eventual exit from the creek and up the mountainside. The best part of this trip was quite brief: I got to pass under this kick-ass tree:

After that, it was pretty much smooth sailing, especially with the surprise of being on Mt. Jhongjheng (I knew I was close, didn't know I was there).

At various times, I've spoken of a dog that had a severed paw. I even contacted a Taiwanese animal rescue group to try to help him, but they were unsuccessful in finding the dog. I suppose the reason was because someone else helped him! Yes, the dog above is him, and he is one leg down, but certainly not out...as evidenced by the video below:

End.

Hiking at Random

2011-02-22T23:56:00.088+08:00

I was kind of bored sitting around my apartment, so I grabbed my stuff and went...yeah, you guessed it...hiking! It wasn't a terrifically difficult trek, but it was no easy feat, either.

First, I should mention the two street pavers. Actually, I'm not sure if that was their profession or if they were just fixing up the road around their houses, but that's what they were doing. Anyway, I asked them where I could park my scooter, as I wanted to go up the path the was right there next to them. They replied in a puzzled manner that there was no path on this hill and that if I wanted good hiking I should go to Yangming. Here, I should note that if one actually looked up, you would see a mountain belonging to Yangming National Park.

I left out that I went back to that Manure Basket Lake (糞箕湖) community that I mentioned before. So, there I was, surrounded by huge houses, owned by upper-middle class to upper class people, talking to two guys who obviously had no clue of their surroundings. One of the men, sporting a gray, straggly beard, began to yell at me about foreigners traipsing about wherever they please and that they had to live here, so I should go elsewhere. Blah blah blah...it's an open community, he doesn't own the road, and I'm sticking to that mentality.

After listening to his babbling, and trying to explain that there are paths on this hill, at least three, I just left him to his own devices, parked my scooter a bit further down the hill, and started walking back up.

Last time I came to this place, I took a path called Water Company/Pipe Route; however, this time I wanted to try another trail that went in the opposite direction, and straight up.

Though difficult to make out in the photograph, the path is quite difficult, is quite vertical, and is quite on the muddy side, all making for good times in trying to ascend the bloody thing. It's good that I had trekking poles with me, as my feet were not going to do it on their own,.

I made it to the "top" of the path, and continued through a maze of barely-there trails through the mountains, eventually coming out at what turned out to be the path to Singtian Pond. This was actually a pleasant surprise, because the last time I was there it was very foggy and I could hardly see anything.

A wonderful 55°F/13°C

Lovely scenery when you can see it

Along with the more established of paths came my boredom, even if it wasn't as strong as being in my apartment staring at the wall. Much elation came with the spotting of a small path to the side of the one I was on. Taking it, I soon discovered it was one used by a water company to lay pipe. Following said pipe, I soon found myself surrounded by varying degrees of flora, much different than that of the rest of Yangming. Mainly, this is due to various farms being planted along the path at different times. The remnants of some farms exist today:

I enjoy finding sakura farms along paths in Yangming, they are like hidden treasures!

Towards the end of my journey, I came to a portion of the path lined with, um, furs? I guess they are furs...

Regardless, there was a very well-hidden path inside these trees, which I promptly explored. This led to a house that had been abandoned in 2001 (I checked a calendar in said residence). Now, I'm told this was probably because someone died in the house and nobody ever came to clear it out...but that doesn't seem to have stopped locals from using the location for various activities from playing boardgames to barbecuing to gettin' it on (not even playin').

Kind of spooky.

Go ahead, maybe you can find directions on Google Maps...

After the house, I made my way through the rest of the houses that made up the remainder of that mountain community, continued down the road, and eventually got back to my scooter. The guys were still there and asked me where I had gone, to which I replied, "I hiked up the paths on the mountain behind you." They said I was crazy and there was nothing there...so, I just left.

Nascent Liner Notes: Re-Imagined

2011-02-21T22:21:00.004+08:00

So, I thought about the name of my blog and figured, with the frequency that music makes it into my posts, that it doesn't have enough to do with music to constitute it being "liner notes." Though, every bit is "nascent" in the beginning, it does become old...which doesn't really make the statement hypocritical, just...the name's "sense making ability" was waning.

As such, I have re-imagined the site as Indigo Trekka. Both words came from inspiration from Puscifer songs, Indigo Children and Trekka, respectively. This name holds more meaning that Nascent Liner Notes, I suppose:

Trekka
Trekka is a pretty amazing song. That said, some of the songs speaks to me (whilst some of it doesn't), and I believe the message I get from it to be motivational:

"I don't know but it's been said, you do or don't, and then you're dead," is one of the lyrics of the song. Indeed, you either do something or you don't, with the culmination of life being death. One must do things instead of putting them off or saving them for another day.

"I don't know but it's been said, we'll rest forever when we're dead," is also repeated throughout the song. Quite: get out and do something, we have plenty of time to remain idle upon the end of our lives...as we're currently animated, the time should be spent commencing actions.

Finally, the word trek also holds meaning, as I have found great relief and meaning in my new hobby, hiking. When one hikes, one is really just trekking the wilderness...which I hope to do for many decades to come; mountaineering is a really spiritual, magnificent activity.

Indigo
I guess I just like this song, with the lyrics not particularly inspiring, beyond talks of loving and continuing higher and moving to the rhythm of nature. With that, indigo is often associated with extrasensory perception, spirituality, and intuition. Now, I'm not the most spiritual person in the world, but I feel I'm becoming more in-tune, spiritually, and continuing on a path that is allowing me to "find myself" (without trying to sound disgustingly cliché.

All up in Jhukeng

2011-02-18T22:44:00.097+08:00

Apparently, my planning needs to be more...thorough. I went out yesterday with the intent of camping in 三峽 (Sanshia). Further still, I had planned on camping at an established location, a public venue, if you will. However, I was unable to find said place (well, I kind of gave up).

To begin, please realize that my sense of direction has been inherited from none other than the Human Map himself, my dad. Whilst he can, off the top of his head, weave a magnificent tapestry of street names and landmarks, I am left with a keen sense of magnetoception and fair recollections of previously visited locales. I've heard stories of my father using a map, and I've witnessed him utilize said cartographic devices at work, but have I ever really witnessed such a thing myself? Nay! Thus, to follow in these footsteps and carry on the proud tradition of "needin' no maps," I set off for Sanshia, more or less, blind.

It's a pretty straight shot, which is what truly allowed this to happen. Once leaving Tamsui, I need only go down 承德路 (Chengde Rd.), continue onto 文林路 (Wenlin Rd.), turn onto 中正路 (Jhongjheng Rd.), turn right onto 中山北路 (Jhongshan N. Rd.), and follow that as it turns into 中山南路 (Jhongshan S. Rd.). Eventually, this ends up in Sindian (新店), which is north of Sanshia! See? Simple.

Eventually, you need to get on 北109 (North 109) to get to the camping ground, which is odd since you are going to be traveling south (as it ends in the mountains and is only used to go to said area). I easily found 北110...and that eventually turned into Route 3, which I didn't want to be on. For the sake of brevity, after cruising around downtown Sanshia, I eventually found a road that looked like it led to the mountains...which it did. This road came to a fork that went to 北112 and 北109, left and right, respectively, so obviously I went left...J/K, Ya'll! (Yes, that did hurt me as much as it hurt you.)

Determined to camp in some fashion, I continued into the mountains; the earth towered around me and fog rolled over the land. As the roads twisted, so did my stomach, as I only continued deeper into the mountains with no particular destination (it would take 1.5 hours to get to the camping site, but I had about forty minutes). Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted "216 Chateau Coffee" (full name: 216 Chateau Coffee 莊園咖啡). So, being the only place around, I followed the signs. Higher and higher and higher and still higher I climbed, coming to a final sign that said "P ->;." As I was parking, a man came out of a wooden cabin (yep) in a flannel shirt (yep) and greeted me in English (mhmm).

As seen from the cafe;

the next morning, the fog had lifted and the mountain-view was magnifique.

Quaint, Quiet, and delightful.

For dinner, I had some kind of hot dog thing, some eggs, fruit, and rolls. At the same time, I also purchased my breakfast for the following day...everything totaling nt$650 (something like US$20). After eating and watching the owner pay his respects to his ancestors by burning a large quantity of joss paper, I inquired as to where I might set up my tent, preferably somewhere close to the area (as there was little light left). The man replied that I may reside on the deck of his other house (yep), to which I humbly accepted and gave my gratitude.

My tent, complemented by a light-bulb on a branch (made by the owner).

In the morning, I was awoken by, "Hello, good morning," one minute prior to my alarm going off. I proceeded to the cafe for my brunch, which was actually breakfast called brunch (being that it was 8:30am), and then went back to pack up my things.

After packing, I hiked a short distance up Jhukeng Hill (竹坑山) to near the summit of West Hsiongkong Mountain (西熊空山). Before commencing, I was warned that there were wild boar in the area, some of which could weigh up to 110kg (242.5lbs, or 0.022 adult elephants). Neat! Anyway, 2.5mi later, I was back at 216, on my scooter, and descending the mountain. Then, I headed back to Tamsui, knowing that I'd return to the area on a later date to complete my original quest!

Trekking the Water Company Route

2011-02-16T23:02:00.017+08:00

~~You may recall that I once found a place called Manure Bas~~

Ne'er did I mention that I once found a place called Manure Basket Lake¹ (糞箕湖), as far as I remember (and I can find no mention of it, here), so I will now inform you: I once found a place in Tamsui named Manure Basket Lake. ......I could have sworn that I mentioned it before...

OK, fine, I didn't...anyway, this community is obviously on the up-scale and/or rich side of mountain-life in Taiwan. The houses are situated on a hillside below Mt. Mientien (面天山) called HsianTiendi (向天地). At the top of this community is a decent-sized shrine to a variety of gods, a garden for both vegetables and flowers, and a vast wooded area.

This area, I suppose, falls into the jurisdiction of Yanming National Park...fine by me.

I decided that I should go on a hike, this afternoon, but one that wasn't particularly taxing. My ankle is still mildly sore, so I didn't want to aggravate it. As such, I chose to explore the top of this community, a place I seemed to remember had woods and, most probably, paths on which to hike.

As per usual, my hunch was correct and I found a fork that went off in two very different directions: one horizontally, quite flat and following a water company trail, and the other, vertically, going to...no idea...up. With my day's mantra being "no excessive strain on the ankle," I chose the former and was off. It wasn't anything terribly difficult, though the path looks as if it is meant to throw people off hiking it: parts are quite overgrown, but a majority is free of impeding flora.

I only quit after coming to a point where the mountain horseshoed around and there seemed to be no easy way to get to the other side (other than a precarious ledge), so I opted to try that another day.

2/3 of the trail looked like this, with the other 1/3 covered over with plants

The most dangerous part of the trail, thus far (though, not hard)

A bamboo farm I found on my way back from the mountain

The above video is a bit of two minutes, and just shows some of the hiking trail...and exhibits the jingling sensation that is my emergency whistle/contact information combo.

And finally, for your viewing pleasure...DOGS!!!

¹It's been told to me that the name is likely an effort on the part of the more uppity, rich folk wanting to feel "closer to their roots," so to speak...I guess to remember where they "came from."

Building's Skeletal Structure

2011-02-14T01:14:00.000+08:00

Not so much abandoned as it is condemned and being razed, this is what's behind the giant, metal, blue fences you see in Taipei city (and, I guess, around Taiwan...but maybe they're different colors). As the area around Mingquan West Road (民權西路) expands and prospers as a high-class, high-culture area, its passed is being torn down. I know nothing about this building; it's probably just another small apartment building occupying the space a taller, larger one could be using, but it's still sad, in a way.

22km around Western Yangming

2011-02-09T23:30:00.034+08:00

It seems I've been spending a lot of time in Yangming National Park, which is about right seeing as there are a lot of mountains, much hiking to be done, and it is very close to my apartment. Noting thus, today I went to Chingtien Temple, from where I once hiked to Siangtian Pond (you know, the crater with no water). Indeed, not content to just sit there with sore feet, I went on another hike!

I know I've given this map before, but for reference:

Yikes! This one is completely written in Chinese...that's OK, I'll give you my route:

清天宮 -> 面天坪叉路口 -> 面天坪 -> 松林棧道 -> 二子坪 -> 菜公坑山 ->
大屯自然公園 -> 大屯坪 -> 大屯西峰 -> 大屯南峰 -> 中正山觀景台 -> 公車嶺頭站 -> 反向

Chingtien Temple -> Miantienping Fork -> Miantienping -> Pinery Trail -> Erzihping ->
Mt. Caigongkeng -> Datun Natural Park -> Datunping -> Mt. Datun West Peak ->
Mt. Datun South Peak -> Mt. Jhongjheng Scenic Deck -> Lingtou Bus Station -> Reverse

This was a hike in every sense of the word: I went through tall grass, forested areas, muddy paths, climbed up some areas, felt both sun and rain, made my way through dense fog, and went a total of 13.5mi (22km).

Holding pond fed by a nearby creek.

The day wasn't particularly splendid, as fog engulfed the whole of Yangming National Park and rain fell at regular intervals. So, it was a good thing I was prepared with a jacket and my pack has a rainproof cover. I had never been to Erziping before, and certainly not the recreational area, so it was wonderful to see the large lake, pavilions teeming with people, and multiple ways to explore.

I went from Erziping to the entrance of Datun Trail...I wanted to go to Yu Youren (于右任) Cemetery, but whilst walking there, I realized I'd been to the area before. Instead of going to the tomb again, I turned around and walked back to the trail entrance for Mt. Caigongkeng.

Summit of Mt. Caigongkeng.

The magnetite in the stone makes compasses go wild, I checked and it works.

My hike was really, really foggy...but beautiful nonetheless.

After making my way down the other side of Mt. Caigongkeng, I received a call from Animals Taiwan, asking if I could assist some volunteers in finding a dog I had reported to them, earlier. You see, during my trip with Yaling to Beitou, we came upon a dog with a severed paw, so I took photos and sent them to animal rescue groups throughout Taiwan. Animals Taiwan answered my call and put together some volunteers to find the dog. So, to shorten this explanation, the other girl called me and I told her where to go...only she never got there, I guess. There are about four entrances to Mt. Jhongjheng, where the dog makes its home, and I couldn't make heads or tails of where the volunteers were.

I attempted to find them by going through Datun Natural Park and then over two of the three Datun peaks, but when I got to Mt. Jhongjheng, I was unable to find the volunteers. To make matters worse, the latter mountain has no cellphone reception, so I was unable to help further along her directions.

Running out of daylight, I unfortunately had to scrap the mission and head back to Chingtien Temple.

Hiking...in style!

Quite the muddy trip...this was the nicer of the muddy paths.

At least the sunset was cool.

When I made it back to my scooter, I nearly collapsed, my left foot hurt so bad. I twisted my ankle on a tree root earlier on one of the muddy cliff-sides, but it didn't start hurting until I was descending to Chingtien Temple. Anyway, I packed all loose articles away and road my scooter home. End.

From Jhongjheng to Anbu (中正山到鞍部)

2011-02-08T23:49:00.006+08:00

Recently, I had a conversation, with my father, about my hiking. He said, and I quote, "Two and a half miles, that's nothing." Seeing as this is true (even though the last hike was through rugged and quite difficult terrain), I went on another hike...this time, though, I went back to Yangming National Park. Once again, I decided to traverse Mt. Jhongjheng (中正山), but this time I started from trail entrance A, instead of Dengshan Rd. (登山路). This is good, because my hike proved much longer than than 2.5mi and I could ask the land god for some protection on my journey.

Small shrine for Guangong (關公), the Land God (土地公 ), and Matsu (媽祖).

There's not much to tell, really, about this hike. I went up Mt. Jhongjheng, passed near Mt. Miantian (面天山), turned to a path that led to the southern peak of Mt. Datun (大屯南峰), ascended Mt. Datun (大屯山), and finally kept going down the opposite side to Anbu (鞍部). After that, I just went back the way I came...pretty easy hike, though quite steep at times (the stairs leading up Mt. Datun Hiking Trail are very steep).

View from Mt. Datun South Peak.

Panorama of the same area.

Trip narration...enjoy!

Looking north from the peak of Mt. Datun.

Hiking a narrow trail near Mt. Datun West Peak (大屯西峰) during sunset.

Sunset over Mt. Datun.

Read the sign.