Category Archives: Taiwan

Hostel’s Cat Wall Art

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Tainan Post Boxes

Carbon Barbecue

The naming of a grilled meat stall

White Ampalaya

White ampalaya on display at a juice beverage stall in Shilin

A Particular Position Sign

This-particular-position-is-prohibited-on-this-wall sign

Slipping Warning Sign

Crab Soup & Glutinous Oil Rice

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Thick crab soup and glutinous oil rice

I shall return for this heavenly thick crab soup and honestly delicious glutinous oil rice at Keelung Miaokou Night Market.

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Miaokou Night Market in the afternoon

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A combination of food and temple at Keelung Miaokou Night Market

Crab Soup & Glutinous Oil Rice

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Thick crab soup and glutinous oil rice

I shall return for this heavenly thick crab soup and honestly delicious glutinous oil rice at Keelung Miaokou Night Market.

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Miaokou Night Market in the afternoon

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A combination of food and temple at Keelung Miaokou Night Market

Mobile Library

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Mobile Taipei Public Library at a park in Tamsui

Public service means bringing the Taipei Public Library closer to the people.

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Taipei Time

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Taipei Public Library in a subway is open from 6:00 ~ 24:00

I concur that it is clearer to use 24:00 than 0:00 when representing continuous time. Also in Japan for example, a store or a public elevator will write its open hours in a continuous manner. So if store hours is at 12 noon to 2 AM, the sign will read as 12:00 ~ 26:00.

Optical Public Service

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Reading glasses provided at a museum in Wulai District, Taiwan

In Taiwan, service quality in public sector includes the availability of reading glasses in public places.

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Reading glasses provided at a tourist office in Wulai District, Taiwan

Culvert as Sun Shade

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Concrete culverts as sun shade for the park's benches

Formosa Felines

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Spray Faucet

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Conscious about water conservation, public toilets in Taiwan have spray faucets

Payphones in Taiwan

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Cat Signs

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Improvised cat house says "Destiny by love"

Lily Pads

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Large lily pads at Taipei Zoo

Marble in Soft Drink

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This is a soft drink that I often see in North Taiwan. Its look and taste appeals the young though it’s hard to open it without adult assistance. The pink contraption on the lid is what you’ll use to open the bottle by pushing down an embedded marble to make a hole. So it’s like this, while guzzling , you’re fully aware that there’s a marble moving around the liquid inside.

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Taiwan’s Water Dispenser

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Drinking water dispenser at the train station

Ideally, something so essential such as potable drinking water should be accessible for free in public places like parks, museums, transportation hubs, airports, tourist sites, etc. Countries who can afford to provide free drinking water in their cities, Japan for example, typically have drinking fountains everywhere.

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Drinking water dispenser at Chiang Kai Shek Memorial

I’m surprised that in Taiwan, not only that drinking water is accessible to the public, but they spend considerably more in order to provide hot and cold water for free. Imagine how convenient that is. One can eat cup noodles practically anywhere. Same is true for any ‘just add hot water’ sort of instant food or beverages. Thus, instead of drinking fountains, Taiwan makes use of an upright water dispenser with three faucets — for hot, tepid, and cold water. This type of appliance labeled as Digital Drinking Fountain is ubiquitous in Taiwan.

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Drinking water dispenser at the hotel hallway

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Drinking water dispenser at Taipei Zoo. Hot water as needed and by request only.

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Refilling one’s water bottle instead of buying bottled water is encouraged in Taiwan

Airborne Wishes

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Writing wishes on their lantern

There is one district in the outskirts of Taipei named Pingxi where tourists flock mainly to see and experience the flying lanterns on a railroad track.

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Readying the hot air lantern by putting fire on bunch of papers inside

To do the lantern experience, I’ve observed that first, you choose and buy a lantern from one of the many vendors in there, then write anything that you (and your companions if lantern sharing) hope or wish for, afterwards stand on the railroad tracks (when there’s no passing train of course), it is there that fire will be lit on a bunch of papers inside to generate hot air. Just before releasing, smile at the camera (100% of those I’ve observed have their photographs taken, and they were all smiling, the lantern must be expensive, I suppose), lastly let go of thy wishes into the air. Goodbye. I wonder where all those lanterns end up.

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Couple smiling at the camera with their lantern on the railroad tracks

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Released lantern

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Assortment of lanterns

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Bye bye lantern

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Trio lantern sharing

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