Taiwan

'Life can't be perfect. But your hair can'. - Slogan in Hairdresser's window. Taiwan.

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Tainan is a slower city than Taipei, not so high-rise by their standards and has many temples.

Tuesdays are Tainan’s rest day and since the old town of Anping is a bit of a tourist attraction we were pleased to find most shops were closed when we visited.

Suburbia

Suburban Garage

Instead, Tuesday is the day for cleaning, rest and more importantly its Karaoke time! On days off, the older generation get together for Tea and Karaoke. We were warmly welcomed with tea, but we declined the invitation to sing, for everyones benefit.

Tea and Karaoke

The technology and transport is much better than ours, yet they have a simple and relaxed way about them. There was little litter or anti social behaviour. They don’t really show off, the older folks sit out and play games like chess or walk around tracks in the parks for exercise in the evenings. Everyone seems so happy.

Everyone eats out as food is so cheap. You can get a meal for a £1 if you eat in the local cafes. No-one appears to goes hungry..

We met an elderly man at the Confucius Temple who was very well educated and was keen to discuss the political situation in Hong Kong. He criticised the Chinese police saying they were wrong to use force. Here in Taiwan the police will avoid using force but have stronger political voices. 

We preferred Taipei but Tianan has become more interesting the further we explored and bikes were the perfect solution and only cost a couple of pounds.

One evening we stumbled across a market, just a few stallholders were still there working late into the night either making clothes or doing their accounts.

The food market here was a massive car park with hundreds of stalls. They seem to eat most parts of the animal - from feet, insides, to head. 

Taiwan is probably the safest and friendliest place we have ever  been, people go out of their way to help. When we first arrived into Taipei and looking for our Metro a complete stranger stopped in their tracks, came up and asked if we needed help and then took us to our station before resuming their journey. It was the same all the way round, we would get about 6 people helping to find the location or translate when we caught a Taxi. They go out of their way to help, not looking for tips or payment either, just to be good. 

Maybe it stems from the ethos of their religion -Taoism. One cab driver said in Taosim if something grows good and strong, then it becomes a god and you worship it. It is bad luck to destroy it.


There is not much that is negative about Taiwan except the music is pretty dire and they have an obsession with mobile phones and games which appears unhealthy. They also, by their own admission, have a very sweet tooth. Practically all their food and drink has added sugar and is very, very sweet.

We will really miss Taiwan. Japan here we come.








'We Want Peace' - Graffiti slogan on wall. Wanli UFO village

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We travelled over to the beautiful north coast of Taipei, where you can see the ocean on one side with tall green mountains on the other. We made the journey to see the strangest architecture that you’re going to find in Taiwan. The alien looking ‘UFO Houses’.

The houses are part of a beachside community of holiday homes, located in the district of Wanli. The UFO Houses which are officially known as Futuros have an interesting history and the small community of houses on Taiwan’s North Coast consists of the biggest group of this architectural design in the world. 

In addition to the ‘Futuros’ there are also a number of ‘Venturos’ which are similarly designed homes. They were both designed by architect Matti Suuronen in the 1960s. The Venturo houses that are here tend to be in much better condition than the Futuros and quite a few of them have been renovated and are occupied today. It is thought that these are ‘Made in Taiwan’ versions as they differ slightly from Suuronen’s original designs. But nevertheless they are fascinating.

An occupied Venturo.

The Futuro is a pill-shaped structure made of fibreglass, reinforced plastic and plywood. The interiors, which are slowly disintegrating, comprises of just 50 square meters divided into a living room, dining room, kitchen, bathroom and private bedroom. The creative allure, flexibility and size was an attempt to solve housing issues around the world. Once ready for production, special furniture packages were also created. Unfortunately the rising prices of plastics and oil in the 1970s sealed their fate and only about 100 homes were made before production ceased.

Futuro kitchen, dining and living space.

Venturo bedroom

Venturo living space.

Futuro kitchen

Bedroom and living room with sliding partitioned door.

The Venturos occupied today have the original stainless steel canopy frames and handrails. Some have the addition of a basement underneath providing more living space or modernised with new cladding and tiles.

What makes this place even more bizarre is that the area of Wanli is pretty desperate. Many of the beach side hotels are derelict with just a few taken holiday apartments on the sandy beach. Apparently beach holidays are not popular with the Taiwanese and the winters on this side of the island are pretty harsh.

The town has barely anything in it. We managed to find a cafe, which was someone’s house. She showed us the crab in the fish tank  and cider in the fridge and that was all that was on offer. We bought the cider.

Thank you to Josh Ellis for the information on the internet regarding the history of the UFO Houses.






'Scrapping Cupping clean ears Foot cuticle removal' - slogan in massage parlour.

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Good Morning Taiwan.

Taiwan is described as a modern metropolis, combining Chinese culture fused with Japanese colonial lanes, busy shopping streets and contemporary buildings. Taipei, we found, is a softer, garish version of Singapore.  It’s clean, orderly, and very, very friendly. 

On arrival to Taipei it was like a gigantic warren, lots of underground passages with shopping, food and bright lights. Getting to our apartment was easy, the metro is cheap, efficient and has free wifi, so navigation is easy. No food or drink is allowed on the metro, so it is spotlessly clean. The kids give up their seats for you.

The Taiwanese queue better than anyone. Such a contrast to India where queuing is an unknown concept.

Home was in the district of Ximending. It’s very neon, a bit like a Piccadilly Circus. The 50 years rule of the Japanese created an entertainment and cultural hub as well as a residential grid system, the Chinese then introduced businesses and retail. The region has thrived ever since. 

The city is all high rise, with many businesses and flats on top of each other.

Street food is everywhere. Coffee shops are popping up all around, although they have quite a long way to go with the taste, they are popular places to chill out.

The dogs are quite overweight, not only do they have a lot to eat, they are carried or scootered around. 

Ximending targets the young who proudly call themselves Independent-Tiawanese, they are more global and western than the older generation.

Hawkers markets and night markets are the places to eat. However, the tourist ‘Snake Alley’ in Whanhua is really quite horrible. It is out to shock the visitors with its choice of produce, paying little attention to quality of food. 

We ventured deeper into the district and found backstreet karaoke bars and brothels. 

Ladies of the night.

The night markets on our doorstep had some really good food. Be prepared as your food cooks - it may disappear down an alley as the vendor may suddenly have to out-manoeuvre the authorities. Its up to you to catch up with them..

Finally caught up with my corn, after the vendor did a runner. It was worth it, she did the best sweetcorn in town.

There are an abundance of cosmetic shops even targeting very young children with make-up and face packs. It is a young audience here. Selfies and vlogging are continual.  Stickers, toys, cartoons characters are everywhere, even as government information boards. India was like being involved in a chaotic Mario Carts game, Taipei is like a giant Japanese cartoon.

The culture of obsessive collecting of cheap plastic toys is quite remarkable. There are vending machines everywhere. The shrieks and tears of disappointment when they don’t get the right toy is quite worrying. What drives this market I’m not sure. Some Androids, which I have to say are rather cute, are demanding up to 10,000 TWD. Thats £250 in sterling.

Slot machines and Bagatelle are a popular choice for adults and children alike and available in all shopping malls and night markets. 

Back of the Bagatelle Machines,

Oh yes and everyone is into Massage. Everyone appears to get a massage after work, en-masse, male and female.

The Taiwanese get up late, have a pragmatic approach to work and appear to have a positive work / family life balance. That’s probably why they are such a happy friendly bunch.