The World Is Not That Big
Living in Taiwan
Photo of the week #42 – bicycles
Last Saturday ended with a half drunk jog home (about 6K) so on Sunday I took a long walk back to my motorcycle. During the walk I passed through several of the older neighborhoods in Kaohsiung. Instead of taking photos of these older neighborhoods I instead chose to take a few bicycle photos. These are not sleek, sexy bicycles but rather the more common bicycle in Taiwan. For the record I now have 3 bicycles and if I had unlimited (at least more) money I would buy another bicycle or two. I won’t be shopping for any of the bicycles below though.
Rusting bicycles can be seen on every street. Some are just forgotten about.
Some are collected.
Some contain all of their worldly possessions.
Photo of the week #41
A few photos from my neighborhood this week. Most of the winter Kaohsiung is buried under a thick layer of smog. Overall Kaohsiung probably has some of the worst air in Taiwan but last week the winds shifted and blew all of the smog out of Kaohsiung. Before the rain started we had one day of beautiful blue skies.
This building was a whole in the ground when I moved into my apartment exactly one year ago. My apartment is hidden behind the largest building.
Kaohsiung’s railroad is going underground. This will lead to an expansion of the bikepaths. They won’t match Taipei’s riverside paths but this will be really nice.
Kaohsiung-Kending-Kaohsiung by bicycle
I went back and forth between heading north to Nanhua Reservoir or Kending but ultimately I chose Kending. Nanhua Reservoir was 30-40 kms closer but I really wanted to do the Kending trip before it becomes hotter this spring. There was also some rain in the forecast this weekend and typically rain is worse as you head towards the mountains. Inevitably this leads to the ‘I would have been there an hour ago’ thoughts when you still aren’t very close to your destination but it was a good weekend.
Stony Brook Nature Farm – The nature farm part is kind of a farce since there are multiple huge hotels located here but they have an outstanding camping area. And the view is pretty good also.
Sail Rock, Kending – During the day the weather went from overcast to downpour to overcast to sunny to downpour to overcast. Other cyclists laughed when I rode by and they were waiting out the rain.
Hengchun’s Old Wall – Originally built in 1874 in response to a Japanese attack it is one last remaining walls of its kind left in Taiwan.
To add an extra degree of difficulty I rode around the southern tip of Taiwan and through Jialeshui on the way back. I really wanted to take this photo. I ended up having to get a taxi in Pingdong for the last 20 kms because I was whipped. My computer probably has the wrong calibration set because the numbers don’t make sense It says I went 250kms but I think I went closer to 230kms (2 days).
Photo of the week #40
Photography has been pushed to the back burner for most of the winter. I have been busy training for a big bike trip and I think I needed a break anyway. Here are a few photos from last weekend from Singuang Ferry Pier. It’s a popular place in the afternoon for families and at night with high school students. Two or three times per week I ride my bike through there at night but the best time to go is at sunset.
The 85 building is the signature landmark in Kaohsiung. At the time it was completed it was the 7th tallest building in the world behind the Empire State building, the Sears Tower and several Asian buildings. It is now the 31st tallest building in the world.
A wading pool with a large new building behind it. I’m still not sure what the new building will be but it looks pretty cool.
Sunsets during the winter are usually pretty lame due to the heavy smog. We are still a few weeks away from the spring rains but the changing weather patterns have blown the worst of the smog away and the sunsets will continue to get better.
Megaport Festival Day 2, Kaohsiung, Taiwan
The 2nd day at Megaport featured a few nice bands but the final show by Fire Extinguisher was my favorite. It’s the 3rd time that I have seen Fire Extinguisher and they have always put on a great show although they don’t sing in English.
Takeshi Hosomi was a Japanese singer songwriter that did a few covers but also had some excellent original songs. Like most Japanese singers at Megaport he sang in perfect English.
Every year Megaport sets up one free stage. This band was actually named Long Hair Monster.
Bowztiger – This girl might have been drunk but she had a lot of fun. I was a little surprised that she made it through the set.
There was a lot of anticipation for the last show on the main stage. All day long I saw Fire Extinguisher shirts( I have one…) and the crowd packed in much earlier than the other shows. The flags flying in the audience are the Chinese character for fire.
Fire Extinguisher’s website Facebook
