New Guidebook: Taiwan: The Bradt Travel Guide (3rd edition)
October 26th, 2019
The third edition of Bradt’s guide to the beguiling island of Taiwan, written by yours truly, is now available from online and bricks-and-mortar bookshops in the UK, US and several other countries. Few destinations are as fast-changing as Taiwan. Moreover, the island’s government has been investing heavily in tourist facilities. Consequently, every part of this […]
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Taiwan In Colours: Green
October 5th, 2019
As soon as you leave Taiwan’s cities, you’ll see plenty of green. The island straddles the Tropic of Cancer, and seldom lacks for sunshine or precipitation. Plots of land which are neither built on nor cultivated are soon taken over by grasses and weeds, then bushes and eventually fast-growing trees. Since the 1970s agriculture has […]
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An Interview with Life of Taiwan Founder Mark Pemberton
September 18th, 2019
Mark Pemberton, Life of Taiwan’s founder and managing director, was recently interviewed by a local English-language newspaper, Taipei Times (‘Expats play key role in boosting Taiwan’s tourism’, September 10, 2019). For reasons of space, the article didn’t include all of the original interview, which we now present here in its entirety: Of the 11.07 million […]
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Taiwan in Colours: Blue
July 4th, 2019
Taroko Gorge, perhaps Taiwan’s finest natural attraction, is one of those places where Mother Nature avails herself of almost every hue on her palette. The layers of marble, schist and gneiss range from near-pure white to dark grey. There are creamy browns, near silvers and even diluted golds. But at the bottom of this breathtaking […]
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Island of Trees: Taiwan’s Magnificent Woodlands
June 20th, 2019
Here’s a statistic that astounds many who’ve never visited Taiwan: About 58% of the main island is covered by trees or bamboo, with stands of hardwoods accounting for more than half of this area. That’s a higher percentage than in the US, Canada, or Brazil. The figure for the UK is a mere 12%. This […]
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Came for the Movies, Returned for the Cuisine: An Interview with Food Writer Matt Gross
May 30th, 2019
Acclaimed Taiwanese directors like Hou Hsiao-hsien and Edward Yang can take credit for more than award-winning movies like as The Puppetmaster and Yi Yi: A One and a Two. Back in the early 1990s, their films inspired in one American a profound curiosity about Taiwan which has turned into an ongoing love affair with the […]
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New Taiwan Photo Book: Ilha Formosa Taiwan in 100 HDR Panoramic Images & Scripts
May 8th, 2019
If you think the photos accompanying this blog post are stunning, you’re not alone. They’re just a few of the hundred pictures Sherman Cheng selected for inclusion in his stunning new book, Ilha Formosa Taiwan in 100 HDR Panoramic Images & Scripts. Cheng, who retired a few years ago after a career in a multinational […]
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Cats, Dogs, Deer and Salt: The Story of Place Names in Taiwan, Part 2
April 25th, 2019
As in north Taiwan, several places in south Taiwan bear names that are derived from the languages of the island’s Austronesian indigenous people. It used to be said that the ancient port town of Lukang (‘Deer Harbour’, image at the top of this blog post) got its name from the herds of sika deer that […]
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Peach Garden and Turtle Mountain: The Story of Place Names in Taiwan, Part 1
April 20th, 2019
‘Why does this place have that name?’ This is a question every tour guide should prepare for, especially in Taiwan where a lot of interesting stories can be told about place names and their origins. Some are very straightforward. Taipei (pictured top left) means ‘North Taiwan’ and Tainan is ‘South Taiwan’ (for more about place […]
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How to Read a Taiwanese Temple, Part 3: Conventions and Offerings
April 7th, 2019
A little knowledge about the the habits and taboos of Taiwanese popular religion will help you, as much as is possible during a short visit, to grasp the ineffable nature of the faith that influences more than 90% of the island’s people. And as a thoughtful traveller, it goes without saying that you’ll wish to […]
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How to read a Taiwanese Temple, Part 2: Icons and Incense
March 18th, 2019
In the ancestor shrines which many Taiwanese families maintain, those who’ve passed away are represented by names on elegant but austere tablets. In almost every folk temple, however, gods and goddesses take the form of colourfully-attired effigies. Some of these josses (a word derived from the Portuguese word for god, deus) are no larger than […]
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How to Read a Taiwanese Temple, Part 1: Roofs and Doors
February 19th, 2019
Even without counting the ancestor altars that are found in many homes, Taiwan has tens of thousands of places of worship. Some of these shrines are no bigger than a sentry box, while others are multi-level palaces. In a good number of the former, the ceiling is so low that those who step inside to […]
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