Taipei

As many of you have seen on my facebook page, John John and I took a trip to Taipei, Taiwan for a swim meet.  We had a fantastic time!   While we didn't have a lot of time to see the sights, which will be remedied with a future trip, we did get out a bit.  

The swim meet was sponsored by the Taipei American School (TAS).  But, don't let the name of the school fool you.  The school, as did all the others who participated, had an international student body.  We spend the weekend with families from across the globe and it was unlike any swim meet that we've ever attended.  

First, TAS ran a tight ship.  I've never been to a more efficiently run event that dealt with swimmers from the age of 8-18 years.  And, secondly, I've never been to a meet where the parents of swimmers from other teams cheer for your child.  It was meet that embodied sportsmanship on every level.

TAS was located one block away from our lovely hotel and the very long street on which the hotel and school lay was full of shops and eateries.  We had a great time window shopping and were able to enjoy the amazing culinary experience for which Taipei is renowned.  

On one evening we had time to wander through on of the famous night markets of Taipei.  Sensory overload doesn’t quite describe the experience:  There was the assault of smells coming from the many food stands...both good and not so good smells.  The crowd, the cacophony from the many competing merchants and the rain created a throbbing beat known as the Shilin Night Market.

Please enjoy some photos from our trip:

 The older swimmers playing cards at the airport as we await our flight to Taipei.

 I loved the style of Hotel Dandy!  This was the area in which we ate breakfast.  The hotel accommodated our swimmers' early morning schedule by providing breakfast an hour earlier.  Now that is customer service!

 This is the view from our 8th floor room at the hotel.  This district of Taipei is known for being the home to ex-pats and those from around the world that work in Taipei.  

 The Cafe Market restaurant at which we had the most amazingly fresh, cook to order meal.

John is enjoying his own noodle creation. 

Choose your noodles, broth, meat, veggies and it was cooked to order at the noodle bar.

 At a lovely 9 floor mall we enjoyed the elevator operator who was dressed for the holidays and bowed each time a door closed as the elevator departed.

 Not the best photo, but lucky that we were able to get the picture taken without anyone walking in front of the camera.  We are about to enter the maze of the Shilin Market.

 A little gaming at the Shilin Market. 

 As my dear friend said, "Wow... No!"  I couldn't agree more!

 How my head felt by the end of the evening!

This was located nearby our departure gate at the Taipei airport.  What are they trying to say?!  

This will be a bit of a long post, however I think you will enjoy the little history lesson about Okinawa and the photos that follow.

 A Little History

Approximately 32,000 years ago it is believed that the first humans lived in the Ryukyu Archipelago.  It is widely believed that the people of Okinawa are descendants of those who traveled from China to the islands during the prehistoric era.  And, there is archaelogical and current cultural evidence of a strong southern pacific influence on the island of Okinawa, the largest of the Ryukyu islands.

Let's leap forward to the Gusuku ("goo-skoo") period.  Gusuku is the word used for castle.   It is around the 12th century that strong political forces began to dominate the Okinawan political climate.  Warlords known as aji ("ah-gee") fought fiercely.  And, in order to protect their "kingdoms" they built castles.  

Fast forward again.  In the early 1300's the Three-Kingdom period began.  As a result of submission to stronger warlords and treaties three dominant kingdoms emerged: the southern, middle and northern kingdoms.   The Three-Kingdom period lasted until 1429 when Sho Hashi defeated the ajis thereby unifying Okinawa (known as Ryukyu at the time) and marking the birth of the Sho Dynasty.

Due to the stability brought through unification Okinawa created strong diplomatic and economic (through trade) ties with China, Japan, Korea and many regions of Southeast Asia.  And, because of its ideal location, Okinawa became a hub of trade.

Shurijo or Shuri Castle (Shurigusuku), located in the southern portion of the island  became the political, economical and cultural seat of Okinawa.  It is from this Castle that the Sho Dynasty ruled.  The first Sho Dynasty lasted 40 years until a farmer took the throne in a coup.  

The Okinawans had strong ties with China and out of respect for those ties the farmer took the title Sho En, keeping the Dynasty in name.  This began the second Sho Dynasty and it lasted for the next 400 years.  

Recognizing the value of controlling a hub of trade the Satsuma Clan from mainland Japan invaded, seizing Shuri Castle thus ending the second Sho dynasty.

Okinawa was then ruled by the Satsuma Clan followed by the Tokugawa Shogunate.  Still, Okinawa did not become a Japanese prefecture until 1879 when the Japanese government forcibly ousted the king from Shuri Castle therefore ending the "Kingdom of the Ryukyu".

Now for some pictures..... There are five gates that lead to Shuri Castle, two pictured here.  What gate you entered depended upon your social standing.   In accordance with feng shui as well as for strategical purposes, the castle was set on high ground nearby the pond and stream with a view of the ocean.  About the grounds you can see the caves in which the Japanese Army burrowed.  The castle, even during WWII, proved to be formidable.  However, in the end, it was destroyed.  I will write more, in the future, about Okinawa during WWII. This is the site of the castle's well.  You can see, in the background, there are remnants of the original wall. After WWII the grounds served as the campus for the University of the Ryukyus. When the university was relocated, the Castle was restored to its present condition. The present Shurijo Castle is modeled after the 18th Century structure and as you can see, the influence of Chinese culture is quite strong.   Above: The King's Throne.   We visited Shuri Castle during the yearly festival.  A parade that lasts 3 hours (yes, 3 hours!) begins at the port and marches up to the castle.  The photo below is the beginning of the parade.   The parade route runs along Kokusaidori (International Road) or as we call it "The Miracle Mile"  There are many stores and eateries.  We watched the parade as we browsed through stores and from the restaurant at which we had lunch.   And, of course, as an important part of Okinawa's modern history, the US Marines end the parade with their impeccable performance. A bit of fun on Kodusaidori.  There is a benimo tart store where you can watch the tarts being made.  Yes, that is me posing as the, ahem..., little tartlet! =D Some things just don't translate well.

Creepy Crawly: The Creatures of Okinawa

As I write this I understand that the east coast is being hit by Hurricane Sandy, otherwise known as "Frankenstorm".   I am completely confident that you will all be well, perhaps without electricity, but well.  And, while I wish you could be spared this hurricane, I can't help saying, "Better you than me".   After we've had 4 typhoons in the period of one 2 months I can't help thanking  the weather gods for spreading the wealth.

I've been saving this post for a while because I thought it would be appropriate to share on Halloween.  However, it is after the last typhoon that I thought to share with you the critters of Okinawa.  You see, after a typhoon all the creepy crawly beings are quite flustered and they are on the move.   I was warned, quite strongly, by our lawn care provider that I should be on the lookout for the Habu after a typhoon.  The Habu snake is not the only thing on the move so, without further ado, I would like to introduce you to some of Okinawa's creepy crawlers!

This is "Shell-don".  He lives nearby our side door.  He is about the size of the palm of my hand.  This is no wee hermit crab. And, despite his cumbersome looking mobile home, he moves rather quickly.  "Shell-don" is harmless and a regular occupant of our yard.  We look for him in the evening so that we don't accidently hear a "crunch" when walking outside.

Anyone who has talked to me on the phone or seen my facebook comments will know that we have geckos...lots of geckos.  They are called "yaru" (yah-roo) and that means "guardian of the house". The Okinawan people believe that the gecko brings good luck so they are not killed.  They do eat bugs, which is the only reason I tolerate them in the house.  While the gecko may eat bugs and bring good fortune, it also brings lots of poop.  Proportionally speaking, the gecko, which is about the size of my thumb, poops like a New York City rat.

This is the body print of a baby gecko.  It was on the lid of my kitchen garbage can.  The baby gecko is about 1 inch in length and must have just been hatched in a location where it picked up a bit of dust (probably a vent).  

This little (not!) guy is nick named the "banana" spider.    Bottom line:  They aren't poisonous, but their bite is painful, which is only mildly reassuring.  The leg span of the "banana" spider is about 5-6 inches long.  This spider is big and that is a good thing.  I can spot one of these long before bumbling into one of its webs.

The Habu snake is probably the most vile of all land creatures here on Okinawa.  They are very poisonous.  They are most active during the fall and spring and after a typhoon shakes up the natural environment.  They are also nocturnal.  So, since I have no intention of cutting a swath through the jungle at night I hope to never come face to face with one of these lovelies.

Yup... those are jars with Habu snakes.  The jars are filled with sake (sah-keh) and are sold in many stores on Okinawa.  No need to find your way to a back alley, seedy hole in the wall to purchase one of these as they are quite main stream.

There is a definite lack of wild furry creatures.  So, when I happened to see this furry little guy I was a bit surprised.  (As it turns out, I only know of two animals with fur.  You'll read about the other below.)  This is a mongoose.  The mongoose is not native to the Ryukyu islands, but was brought to Okinawa in the early 1900's to help curb the habu population.  Good intention, bad outcome.  Yes, the mongoose will actually devour a habu snake and live to eat another.  However, there is one problem:  The habu is nocturnal and the mongoose is not.  This has caused a problem on the island as the mongoose eats other creatures the Okinawans would rather it didn't.  Plus, the mongoose has no natural predators on the island.  Frankly, I'm just happy to see something that looks cute and fluffy.

Our other furry friend is the Ryukyu flying fox or as I like to call them, bats. The flying fox is actually a fruit bat that is not in the least dangerous to humans.  Within 24 hours of our arrival I spotted one of these flying overhead at twilight.  I've since seen them flying about at twilight, in the pre-dawn hours and it was very interesting, if a bit creepy, when I spotted one hanging upside-down from a tree sleeping.  I hear that these are endangered, yet I see them at least once a day.

Last, but definitely not the least is the box jellyfish.  I was only going to write about land critters in this post, but this creature deserves a mention as both John and Paul were stung by one of these back in 2004 when we were here for a visit.  The tentacles leave burn marks on the skin that resemble the tentacles themselves.  These are nasty creatures and even though I know they must serve some purpose in the eco system, they are in the top 10 of my "Useless Creature" list.   Thankfully, there is a beach nearby that has a "jellyfish" net in the water and we can swim there without the little, back- of -your- mind feeling that we might get stung.


That's enough critters for now.  I hope everyone is safe and dry during your "Frankenstorm" and we all wish you a HAPPY HALLOWEEN=D

Photo Credits: The photo of the mongoose and the fruit bad come from a blog called Mike's Ryukyu Gallery.  The photo of "Shell-don" and the gecko print are mine.  The other gecko comes from a blog called Love Okinawa.