First weekend, part 1

Friday 20 March 2009

On Friday, I was at the annual Taipei bike trade show. It was a trade show. While I enjoy building bikes and tinkering, I'm not actually in the trade. But it gave me an idea for my own business. I would have to make lots of contacts in Taiwan; it is where they manufacture the parts and frames and forks. Mine is a good idea. I just need to find the capital to fund it, as well as develop the business plan.

Getting to and from the expo was straightforward. Mom was concerned about transferring at Taipei Main Station. It wasn't a problem. Nor was catching the shuttle bus connection the end train station to the exhibition center.

I got bored of the bike show. It took me a while, but I eventually got back to Main Station. From there, I went shopping for Gore-Tex jackets. Nobody had Paclite jackets. And the rest of the jackets were around €200-300. I suppose a proper Gore-Tex jacket can be twice that in Vienna, but it didn't really seem like a savings at the time. Maybe it is. I mean, mine cost me US$500 ten years ago. But it just wasn't the kind of jackets we were looking for. I did get Allison a small pink Nagelene water bottle, though.

The dozen or so outdoor/sporting goods shops.

I picked up Mom at the train station. Shane did his own thing. We spent the rest of the evening in. Shane cooked a meal and we watched a few DVDs. Not much different from my normal Friday evenings, except for lacking the frozen pizzas.

Saturday 21 March 2009

On Saturday, Kun allowed me to visit his apartment. I had to convince Kun that it wasn't distracting away from my holiday, that seeing a friend's apartment is part of the travel experience. On the way to Kun's apartment, I caught a glimpse of the Grand Hotel, which is modeled after the Forbidden City in Beijing. I might go back to get more than a glance, I'm not sure.

The Grand Hotel from the distance.

So, I got to see Kun's flat. It must be around 30m² or so. Not very big. It looks like it comes out of an Ikea catalog.

One half of the apartment.

The other half of the apartment.

Shane and I walked to Chaing-Kai Shek's villa, which is set in a large botanical garden. On the way there, we picked up a "super-giant large fried chicken breast". It was nice. It's been a while since I've had proper fried chicken. And yes, it was super-sized.

Super-size me!

Just in front of the gardens, there was a sculpture exhibition. It was mostly tree trunk carvings. Interesting. There were a few other sculptures, not from tree trunks, but in the same style.

Mingchuan University, Taipei campus in the hazy background (the university where Shane teaches, though not this campus).

CKS's villa -- or rather, the garden -- is a respite from the hustle and bustle of the big city. It is full of families getting away from the city.

Obligatory panda picture.

A group of kids practicing hip-hop dancing.

Year of the Ox.

Rose garden.

Typical Japanese colonial architecture.

I saw a woman grooming her traditional puppet. It was with meticulous care. Puppet shows are high-art entertainment here.



We picked Kun up from his apartment and came back to Shane's. We had to rush to make our dinner and theatre date. We had dinner at "Green Basil", an Italian place. I ended up having spaghetti carbonara. Go figure. Kind of odd, having "exotic" pasta here.

That evening, we saw a drum show. This is not just the big kettle drums used by the Japanese troupes. It also had cymbals, some dancing, narrative in classical Chinese. Some of the drummers were "resting" in a tai-chi stance. The whole performance told a story. The story was of a mountain, the rain, the dawn, the breeze. I was a sap and bought the CD, program, and t-shirt afterwards. I was interviewed by the government magazine. I was unfortunately not very articulate. But being a foreign visitor to a Taiwanese troupe must be a boost to the government's ego.




Oh, I got in trouble at the theatre. Before the performance, I was taking photos of the theatre. I was told that it was not allowed.




The whole building was very much like any modern theatre I've been to in the US or Europe, except there was Chinese "trimming". There was the orange tiled A-frame roof outside with red columns. Inside, there were the standard balconies, but the trimming had a distinct Chinese feel to it. I hope the pictures turn out.




We came home for another quiet evening.