Day 4 CNY Scooter Trip 2013

Day 4
Wednesday February 13, 2013
11:30 a.m. Taichung
 
As you can see from my byline above, I did make it to Taichung. I made it here and I am currently writing on the sofa in a friend’s living room. We were up until nearly five in the morning, so she is still upstairs sleeping. I have never been able to sleep in no matter how late I …

Day 3 CNY Scooter Trip 2013

Day 3
Tuesday February 12, 2013
7:00 a.m. Cyuanhua Temple Group
 
The highlight of my second day on the road was, surprisingly enough, a meal. But I’ll get to that in a minute. I left for my little hike at about 9:30. The sun had not broken through as I hoped it would, but the rain had stopped and the mist and fog had thinned out considerably. Almost …

Day 2 CNY Scooter Trip 2013

Day 2
Monday February 11th, 2013
7:20 a.m.
Well, where in the world to start? I’ve only been on the road for one day and a night and it feels like I’ve been gone for weeks. It always feels that way, which is one of the reasons I enjoy travel so much – time dilates and it feels like there is so much more to life. A day …

Day 1 CNY 2013 Scooter Trip

Day 1
Sunday February 10th, 2013
6:45 a.m.
Taipei, Taiwan
I am heading off on a short trip this morning. I don’t know that this will be an exciting trip, but I am going to do my best to make it at least interesting.
It is Chinese New Year in Taiwan. In fact, it is officially the first day of the new year (the year of the snake) – if …

Preparations for My Travels

Ramblings on these topics in this post:

flying to Legazpi in the Philippines
travel budget
going out to school events in Taipei
repairing and modifying Arkel pannier bags
mosquito net, Katadyn water filter, Trangia pot set
Olympus OM-D EM-5 and lenses

Sunday January 27, 2013
It’s weird. I have to think really hard about what day and what month it is. I looked at my watch this time and saw that it was …

Vaccinations and the Human Race as Bread Mold

Things that come up in this post:

travel vaccinations for Japanese encephalitis, rabies, and polio at the NTU travel clinic
cycling around the world
the life cycle of the human race is like the growth of bread mold
woodblock prints exhibit at the National Museum of History in Taipei
Changsha porcelain exhibit at the National Museum of History in Taipei
the eight deities in ivory, oracle bones, and silver ingots that …

Regret, Chance Encounters, and Life

Saturday, January 19, 2013
Let’s see. What happened this week? So far, my banking adventures have had happy endings. On Tuesday or something like that, I checked my main bank in Canada online, and the two accounts that I had opened up through the call center in India were sitting there just as we talked about and were ready for action. To be honest, I was …

Yingge, Taiwan – Ceramics and Horses

Sunday January 20, 2013
8:00 a.m. at the 7-11 on Chang-an road in Taipei
Despite all the day trips I’ve taken in the Taipei area, I’d never actually been to Yingge, that small town just outside of Taipei that is famous for its ceramics. It’s surprising because Yingge is probably up there in the top ten or even top five of places that people are encouraged to …