Macau

Macau is a beautiful and interesting island, combining Chinese and Portuguese cultures (or at least embracing both). It is definitely a touristy area. Casinos are being built all over. It makes me wonder if there will be enough gamblers to go around when they get finished. There is also the obvious presence of prostitution, despite the practice being illegal. I was surprised to see young women approaching men right on the casino floor in the Venetian, one of the most popular and modern casinos in Macau. Cabs are cheap and the food is great. We went and tried some of the famed Portuguese Egg Tarts, and they are not overrated in the least. I wish I could bring some home. There are many old Catholic churches and Buddhist temples to see here and you can immediately sense the historical links to religion that the community is linked to. We also walked through some of the old Chinese neighborhoods and immediately drew looks from locals. I am guessing that this is because I stood out like a sore thumb. It seems strange that so many tourists stick to the casinos and fanfare. Perhaps this is because the area is more of a destination for vacationing Chinese mainlanders than for Westerners. Mainlanders are less likely to visit neighborhoods that remind them of home.

Chih Nan Temple

Chih Nan Temple is an amazing a beautifully kept temple that has a fantastic view of the city of Taipei. You can get there by taking the Maokong Gondola (closed on Mondays for maintenance). Before going you should try and take someone with you who knows the 'rules'. There are some actions that can be considered disrespectful to the gods. Also, don't take your girlfrind or boyfriend to the temple with you. It is rumored that this location is where singles go to see visions of their future, including future loves. There is some kind of cosmic redundancy in taking your significant other there, so be careful!

National Palace Museum

Stopped by the National Palace Museum for a historical perspective on Taiwan. They have many amazing exhibits there, but unfortunately no photos are allowed. I took some out side the museum and museum and in the Chih-shan Garden on the adjacent property. Quite a good value at 10 Taiwanese Dollars (roughly $3.12 US). The most famous item on displays was of a jade carving of cabbage with insects on its leaves. Click here for a picture. I also fed some ferocious fish in the Chih-shan Garden. You can see a video on the uploaded to the video area.

Maokong

Today we took the Maokong Gondola to the highlands Southeast of Taipei (yes, I am afraid of heights). The cable car makes stops at the Taipei Zoo and the Chih Nan Temple before arriving at the small town of Maokong. We headed straight for Maokong. Maokong is famous for their production of quality, high mountain Oolong Tea. We meandered around the streets for a bit before finding a beautiful spot have a tea service. It was a bit cloudy, but still a great view of the city of Taipei.

Restrooms

I was walking out of the men's bathroom in a local mall as a woman was walking in. I thought that perhaps she had a gotten the wrong room by mistake and paid it no mind. The very next day I was entering the men's bathroom at the National Palace Museum in Taipei and again, there was a woman strolling across the men's bathroom. So i checked to make sure I was in the right place. Sure enough, I could tell my the general layout of the room and the presence of other men doing their business that I was. I later came to find out that the two women that I had seen were washroom attendants. This seems very strange to be taking a pee and then looking over and seeing a lady cleaning up the sink area or mopping around a toilet. Guess its a culturall thing. The Asian men seem right at home with the whole idea.

Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall

Went to see Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall today. It was a beautiful area for being in the middle of town. Quite a tribute. I was surprised to see that a newly wed couple showed up to pose for photos on the steps to the National Theater (one of the main buildings in this area). Maybe it's considered good luck. Perhaps their children will grow up to be Chinese opera stars.

City of Scooters

I have come to find out that one of the most common forms of transport in Taipei is scooting on scooters. This is a bit strange considering the amount of rain they get. It is funny to see (and common) folks wearing colorful overcoats designed for the humid rain scoot commute. There are also television commercials designed to entice young, testosterone driven riders into buying new racing scooters. These are the same sales techniques that you would see from the crotch rocket companies in the states.

Typhoon Sinlaku

I woke up to some interesting weather this morning. The trip we had planned to Sun Moon Lake has been canceled because of the approach of Typhoon Sinlaku. I got here just in time to keep things interesting.

Travel Observations – SF International Airport

Having never flown internationally before, it has come to my attention that the international wing of the airport (ticketed passengers only) get a more upscale flying experience. This may be a bit premature; I should say waiting and shopping experience. I was surprised to see stores like Coach Bag, Minute Spas and even Sony (although it was a self-serve machine). You get the idea. Not only that, it was so pleasant and quiet in this area that I even saw several SF International tarmac employees (you know the ones in the bright yellow vests) enjoying a nice nap in the passenger waiting area. You can bet that they know the best places to take a break.

Another point worth mentioning is that I flew on September 11^th. Apparently the threat level today is at Level Orange! Personally, I didn’t notice much of a difference except for the prerecorded announcements reminding everyone of this. Well, I guess I will be extra ready to respond if I see anything fishy. I am going to knock on wood now.

More soon.

Travel Insurance

I bucked up and invested in some reasonably good travel insurance. Wow, that is incredibly mature for a guy like me. The gal at AAA recommended either AIG Travel Guard or Access America. I went with AIG. What a relief, my travel expenses, lost bags and medical will be covered should anything (knocking on wood) go wrong! I can breath easy right? Well, the ironic thing is that as soon as I get back I will return to my lowly state of piss poor college student coverage (if you can call it coverage), where anything that student health can't take care of in house won't be. Boohoo. Vote OBAMA! He has a plan!

Cameras

Documenting every detail of the trip is a priority in my mind, so I decided to buck up and replace my floundering digital camera with something new. I was so disappointing that my old Canon PowerShot A75 was having problems, because it had worked very well for the past four years. What can you do? I wanted something with a bit longer zoom and a bit more compact. And of course, mega pixels size is increasing exponentially. 3.2 mega pixel was perfectly fine for me and my needs, but the new cameras are now touting 8 to 1o mega pixels. I guess if I need to blow things up to poster size then I will be set. Personally I would rather get more camera and less pixel. I have a photographer friend that suggested that I check out a web site called Digital Photography Review. It was very helpful and provided some expert reviews (or at least more expert than me or the video testimonials on Buy.com). I wound up selecting the Canon PowerShot SD850 IS because it had all the features I was looking for and was highly recomended. I will post some sample shots when it finally arrives. Can't wait!

Watch your ass. Those new fangled credit cards can be a problem.

In an effort to protect myself on vacation, I have been researching a number of topics. This one seems particularly disturbing because I don't want to be paying for everything in cash. Guess I will have to buy an aluminum wallet soon. Isn't technology awesome?

Waldo Is Out, Giant Robot Is In

Star World has overtaken Waldo for Macu Hotels. Sorry Waldo. Due to some creative reservationing, we will now be moving up in the world like the Jeffersons. This is not a slam on Waldo, just a better option for us right now. It is also more centraly located to the tourist traps we anticipatte. This building is a bit odd though. For now I am calling iy the giant robot, because it reminds me of one. I hope it doesn't begin a launch sequence while I am trying to sleep - )

Accommodations in Macau

Finding the perfect place to stay is always a tough choice, especially when you have no idea where you are going and what to expect. In addition, casinos can be emotionally draining, so you better find one that is going to offer plenty of options besides gambling (especially when you're not much of a gambler). As you might have guessed I decided on the Grand Waldo in Macau (yes, Waldo has officially been found in China). So many hours of surfing the web and researching hotels can be daunting. Price, location, cleanliness, smoke-free room options, entertainment, dining, view, pool, etc. etc. Really what it came down to was price, quality and customer feedback. I must say the TripAdvisor.com was quite helpful. Lots and lots of customer ratings and photos from guests who had traveled your path before you and taken the risks that you no longer have to. A fine web site.

Sweet Tooth

There are two sweet treats that I am looking forward to trying on my travels to Taipei and Macau. The first is called a mango ice. Friends tell me that this puts American style shaved ice or snow cones to shame. The store that serves this decadent concoction is called Ice Monster. Check out the guy in this picture. He had to have two spoons just to get it to his face!

The other item is a baked good that is made on the southern tip of Macau. The bakery is called Lord Stowe's Bakery and they are famous for Portuguese Egg Tarts, which you can enjoy fresh out of the oven if you arrive at the right time. I plan to.

(The mango ice picture is by ZackWang and the egg tart photo is by chocolate monster mel on flickr.com)

Taiwan High-Speed Rail and Sun Moon Lake

So, I have some early plans for my trip and thought I would add them here. Then later, I will update them as I get to actually experience them and include my photos as I take them.

One of the first excursions will be to take this train from Taipei to Taichung. This speed demon travels at around 186 miles per hour. So, about three times as fast as the average U.S. freeway driver travels. This is a great argument for mass transit, especially for commuters. The trip from Taipei to Taichung should take about 30 minutes. I can't wait. The g-force should be intense.

In Taichung, one of the big attractions I hope to see is Sun Moon Lake. This is the largest natural lake in Taiwan with many things to see and trails to hike. A few of the sites here are a peacock garden and Butterfly Museum, Tzuen Ta Pagoda, Wunwu Temple and more.

More soon...

Luggage

So I had to do some shopping. Along with not having a passport yet, I did not have any grown up luggage. It is times like these when second run stores like Ross and TJ Maxx can come in handy for the student on a budget. Needless to say, I was able to pick up a nice bag (pictured here) for about $100 less than I would have spent anywhere else. Now I can roll through the airport in style. I must say that I much prefer rolling to lugging. Who was it that invented the wheel again? Oh yeah, Samsonite.

Learning the language

So I am hoping that I can pick up a few words of Mandarin before I travel. Unfortunately, Mandarin immersion is not readily available to me in the U.S. So books and software are the next best thing. Software is so expensive that I am turning to my local library to hook me up. Shi shi (thanks) tax dollars!

Preparations are under way

I am very happy to announce that the flight tickets have been purchased and my new passport has arrived!!! Oh yes. This pretty much confirms the trip. I had the passport expedited and the passport lady thought it would arrive in about three weeks, but it was much faster than that (about half that time). I had to go get a new birth certificate printed and pay twenty bucks to make that happen, what a pain in the pooper. Oh well, I guess when you wait as long as I did in life to get your first passport you haven't gotten out of the country much, so I shouldn't complain. More soon...