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Taichung Prefecture Hall (台中州廳), one of the most attractive Japanese colonial-era buildings in central Taiwan, served as Taichung's local government headquarters for decades, and still houses the municipal Environmental Protection Bureau. It was designed by Moriyama Matsunosuke, the architect behind what's now the National Museum of Taiwan Literature.
Several weeks back, I took a motorcycle trip from Taichung to Sun Moon Lake via Puli. Shown above is Wenwu Temple, one of the lake's most popular attractions.
Inside the temple, there are hundreds of these golden pendants bearing auspicious messages like "hundreds of years of harmony." You're unlikely to see them in other Taiwanese shrines - probably because few are nearly so touristy as Wenwu Temple.
The tower on the ridge on the left of the photo above is Cien Pagoda. Leaving Sun Moon Lake, I took Highway 16 (shown below) to Shuili.
We're welcoming visitors of all kinds to Taiwanfoo Homestay Apartment. Located in the heart of Tainan - within walking distance of the train and bus stations as well as several tourist attractions, it's quiet day and night as well as being clean, safe and comfortable.
National Changhua Living Art Center (國立彰化生活美學館; 3 Guashan Road, Changhua City; tel: (04) 722-2729) is a community-focused exhibition space and creativity hub. It's also an intriguing piece of architecture and a lovely place to wander around on a sunny day, before or after a visit to nearby Mount Bagua. The center's website is in Chinese only.
This is the second book in a three-volume series by Cheryl Robbins, who is surely Taiwan's most knowledgable English-language travel writer when it comes to aboriginal culture and communities, as well as a professional licensed tour guide. The first book in the series (see this blog post) came out last year; the third volume, which will focus on Taiwan's north, is due out before the end of 2013.
A Foreigner's Guide to Taiwan's Indigenous Areas: Hualien and Taitung (Taiwan Interminds Publishing, NT$380) contains a wealth of easy-to-digest information plus maps and hundreds of color photos. Robbins doesn't limit herself to restaurants, places to stay and attractions. She includes several businesses where tourists can buy aboriginal handicrafts or clothing, plus music venues such as Tiehua Village in Taitung City. If a criticism can be made of the book, it's that for some of the places mentioned, details of opening times and days off aren't included.
One featured place I'd previously heard about (but have yet to visit) is the Taiwanese Aborigine Tattoo Culture Museum. Its founder, Kimi Sibal, has won renown for his photographs of traditional face tattoos.
Taiwan's Tourism Bureau has got together with local governments and telecoms companies to provide free wireless Internet access to foreign visitors. According to this report, all tourists need to do is to show their passport at a visitor information centre (there are dozens across the country, in airports, train stations and major tourist spots) and fill in a form. The report doesn't say if there's a cut-off date for the program. I would assume it'll last until the end of 2013 at the very least.
