Articles by Doug Nienhuis
I am a Canadian, and I am currently traveling through Asia with a touring bicycle. These are stories and pictures from my trip.
Receipt Lottery Day in Taiwan
It’s my favorite day in Taiwan – the 25th day of an odd-numbered month.
On this day (which come around six times a year), the Ministry of Finance in Taiwan releases the Uniform Invoice Winning Numbers for the previous two months. That’s just a fancy way of saying it’s receipt lottery day.
In Taiwan, there is an 8-digit number printed at the top of every receipt that …
Lanyu 005 – Practical Info for Visiting Lanyu
The Many Names of Lanyu
Lanyu has been known by many names. While the Ching Dynasty controlled Taiwan (1683-1895) it was known as Hongtou, which means Redhead Island. (This refers, by the way, to a mountain which turns red during sunsets, not to redheaded people.) During the Japanese occupation of Taiwan (1895-1945), it was called Kotosho, which also means Redhead Island but in Japanese. The Puyuma …
Lanyu 004 – Coast Road North of Taitung
One of my favorite things to do in Taiwan is to ramble. I get on my scooter and simply drive around the mountains looking for small adventures. It’s surprising how many tiny roads you come across when you start looking for them. It’s even more surprising how many beautiful and interesting places those roads lead to.
On the last day of my Lanyu trip, I went …
Lanyu 003 – My Yami Underground House
Saturday April 3, 2010
So far, I couldn’t ask for a better birthday. The magic is still in the air. It is still cloudy and a bit rainy, but it adds a bit of drama to the scenery. I’m sure it would be much better if it were sunny, but the extreme weather, occasional high winds and dark clouds makes it all pretty interesting if a …