Enter The Dragon....

Late Saturday afternoon i went for the longest walk i've taken yet! Way aways for a walk. Anyway, there seemed to be an unusual amount of temple activity! Just past the park with the kites, i came across this celebration in what looked to me like a parking lot. There were a lot of families enjoying themselves. Looked like a lot of activity and enjoyment. kind of like old school St. Paul's festival!
Well, there was a big going on at this temple.

As i walked around the corner, what had looked like rose petals/confetti spread all over the ground, turned out to be firecracker paper! and from the look of it...a whole lot of it! Damm! i couldn't have missed it by more than a few minutes! when i got to a second drive-way, i could see the guys that were wearing the bottom of the Dragon costume!

Just outside of the lot, there were other "characters" still in costume! i asked (more like motioned!) to the drummer if i could take his picture! he graciously accepted and SNAP! captured forever!

I mean this is serious makeup. there were a couple of other guys too! this was the drummer, you could see his drum leaning against the wall! A very nice thing to see, the devotion/commitment to the religious celebrations!

Go Fly A Kite!

What a wonderful way to spend a saturday afternoon! at the park with the family and a kite

familys galore enjoying the day, young and old!
( i dared not go look at the kite prices, because it would have been trying to pack 5 or 6 of them in my suitcase! HAH!)

a really good size park!

A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To......

......Check Out!
It's 9:00p.m. local time. i'm all packed except for my shaving kit and laptop and ready to go! I've been up since about 4:00a.m. local time. why sleep! i've got a 24 hour plane ride for that. I digress!
I want to check out now. the car service will pick me up at 2:00 for the ride to Taipei Airport. this way i have everything good to go! i get downstairs, get in the car , and off we go.
the hotel has been busy all week! there is a high school sports tournament going on and an out of town boys and girls basketball team has been here for 4 days! i see all kinds of high school kids around in the evening in their sports attire! breakfast has been crowded too!
i get in the elevator figuring it will be quiet! the elevator stops and a younger man steps in. very athletic and a bit taller than me! (kind of like standing besides my nephew Mark!) anyway, down we go and when the door opens in the lobby, there are a couple dozen girls in the lobby and they start screeching! i think its these high school kids that have been here this week, but no, they start mobbing this guy for his autograph! seems the China Trust Whales are staying here this weekend! looking closer, all the girls in the lobby are wearing team jerseys too!

Fountains & Forms

Every morning, yes, every morning at 5:00 they are at the fountain!
i assume it is TaiChi, because they are all doing the forms together!
I had to wait until 6:00 to have enough light to take a picture!

very quiet, very pleasant to watch!

Still way to early for this kind of stuff!

Curbside Pickup!

the things that we take for granted in our everyday lives!
walking after work i hear a VERY LOUD ice-cream truck somewhere in the neighborhood.
as i come around a corner, i see that it is in fact a garbage truck making the neighborhood pickup! Everyone must know the pickup day, and when you hear the "music", everyone brings their garbage and recycles out to the corner!



Right behind the compactor garbage truck is the recycle truck!! it only takes a second and everyone is back on their way.


it's such a common everyday detail that we take so for granted!
that music would drive me crazy in about 10 minutes!

Nothing To See Here Citizen, Move Along......

on today's walk about town, i saw my first traffic stop! couldn't imagine what the heck for. because scooter drivers are in general crazy! but they pulled the two girls on the scooter over. there were two cops from the car and a traffic cop (stands in the middle of the intersection at "rush hour" directing traffic.


Maybe the infraction was an SUI..... you know, Scootering Under the Influence?


maybe it was the old SWH....Scootering While Hot?

All Terrain Sport Utility......

the scooter is the most prevalent mode of transportation in the country! i have seen families of 4 on one. i've seen scooters with trailers attached. it's amazing!
here is another example of necessity being the mother of invention! i walked past this scooter and thought What The Heck!


but then i see this little old lady hop on and take off down the road!

MICHAEL!!!!!!

you just can't make stories like this up!
When i was here late last year, i got a cell phone to use while in taiwan. if i'm not in my hotel room, no one could get a hold of me....family, work, or customer. i got the cheapest no fancy function phone and the smallest minute package i could get! it made life so much easier. i have several numbers of people that i work with at my customer that i can call them while at the plant or they can call me.
the fun part was signing up for the phone....there are cell phone outlets everywhere! i went to the motorola store across the street, thinking i could just get a sim card for my US phone, no! different technologies! so while walking around, i found a MYFONE store by where i often eat dinner. at least one of the girls there spoke more english than i did chinese! i do not have a work permit, visa, national health card, taiwan drivers license or other national i.d. after much discussion and calls to the "head office" i filled out the paperwork using my US Passport and Ohio drivers license and the hotel address. (i'm not a terrorist!)
it still took 2 days to get the service turned on!
when i came back in january, i found that my minutes had expired after so many days of non-use! dammit! so i went back to the same store! this time the two girls that were there could speak no english! my original number was no longer valid! but they did find in their records where i had signed up before! so i got a new number and minutes! they new my name as "michael" and that was that! a lot of thank you's and we're out the door. i knew i was coming back this month, so i knew that'ld i'ld be okay for my number not expiring.
after only one day, i can't make int'l calls! i check and i only have $1.50NT left. woops! not enough! after work i head over to the store to buy more minutes! i stick me head in the door and the 2 girls behind the counter call out loud togeter "MICHAELLL"! funniest thing you ever heard! the same two from january! they knew exactly what to do because i only needed minutes!
3 days later i'm back again! that's okay, we're in and out in 2 minutes!

Lost In Translation!

in the lead up to the olympics this year in china, a lot has been written about the english translation of signs! sometimes it is not always a concise translation. sometimes it is, but the spelling nuances of the english language can be overwhelming! (even for a native they can be! believe me!)



the bull my very well have fought bravely, but i think that it is safe to assume that he lost! otherwise, the sign would read differently!


this sign was in the window of a women's clothing/shoe store! i'm not quite sure the second word is spelled correctly, but that is not the larger question. Should the store be called the "Black Widow" instead?

More Advertising!

Another advertising post!
Here are two american icons that you do not usually see advertising together! They have different target audiences! I've seen these two grouped together in multiple stores! This is the front of the store!

This is a closeup of the icons together!



they are selling clothing with the label/images of these two companies on them!

Food Groups!!

There are almost as many bakeries around as 7/11's! to walk by them is to inhale that familiar fresh baked bread heavenly aroma! not your typical crispy cream, but they have a wonderful selection of tarts and cakes too!



this piece just called out to me when i walked past! and i know why! look closely, currants! fruit of the gods! oh, and don't forget lots of chocolate!



and stoling past the fresh market, how could you pass up fresh strawberries! i mean, it's not even father's day yet, and they are local!!!!! hmmmmmmmm!

East vs West

i know, i know!
i promised no more bathroom pictures, but this was to good to pass up! See, to much time in Osaka!
What is different about this toilet setup?

HA! instead of a typical western type toilet seat with a seat and lid, this has 2 seats!! maybe for kids, maybe for fat ass americans like me!




Now you know! aren't you glad i posted this! your life is now a little broader! (no pun intended!)

Advertising!

From Wikipedia: Advertising is a form of communication whose purpose is to inform potential customers about products and services and how to obtain and use them This certainly seems to be a theme from this trips posts!

(click on the images to enlarge!)

While on our brief layover in Osaka, i had plenty of time to wander the concourse!
I came across this public service poster regarding smoking. Thought provoking, not your standard public service announcement about cancer/heart attacks/the usual.


i'm not sure that a smoker will care about burning a kids eye out, but it's something to think about.


being a clean/fastidious people, i'm sure disposing of your butts properly and not littering the street is a good thing! I don't think people care about the sewer rats though!



certainly a good reason not to wear polyester suits!



again, a thoughtful person is always neat and prepared for any situation!


Here's the kicker! the public service sign is posted on the outside wall of a "Duty Free" shop! Hmmmmm..... makes one think..... are they really trying to discourage/reduce smoking? or just trying to feel good by mentioning it?

Don't Cry For Me Argentina!

Jim, this one is for you!
(Click on the images to enlarge!)



Brother Jim has always been a "coin" collector. I've helped where i could and when we talked before i left, he asked if i could help him out! Well, here's some coins from Argentina for you! (nice trick on a plane from detroit to taipei!)





the woman across the aisle from me was on the plane that we had to wait for before we left detroit! she is a travel agent from Osaka, and was on her way back home with 16 "little ducklings
" in tow! So having nothing better to do for several hours, we chatted! They were on their way home from an 11 day holiday in/through South America! I asked if she had any left-over currency and she did! and she was only to happy to donate it to your collection! Nice!

Another adventure!

The weather was clear and cold when i left the house Friday morning for my next installment of Travels with Papa! There were 6-7" of snow predicted for that evening, but the morning was clear and promising. Mom dropped me off at the aiport well on time. Within 10 minutes of being dropped off, i was checked in, through security (no shoes and all), and at the gate! Now for the hurry up and wait at the airport!
the flight from CLE to DTW was on-time and uneventful!
arriving at Detroit, the weather was cold, cloudy, and threatening.
Then the travel ritual starts!
First i exchange my US$ for a whole pocketfull of NT$! then it's off to start transitioning! cultural immersion.....diet conversion..... Eating! especially before getting on the plane!



It's a looooonggggg flight, and very little chance to eat in Osaka! arriving at the hotel 2:00a.m. local time, the only thing open is the 7/11!

So a little fresh protein, the real stuff, not the Wegman's/Giant Eagle veggie roll!



and a bowl of soba noodle soup! (must hydrate!)



Now to wait at the gate for 3 1/2 hr. wait for the next flight. boarding time comes and they announce that they are going to delay the flight for an hour while they wait for a connecting flight from minniappolis with 20+ connecting passengers on it! (mechanical delay they say!)
I understand, especially having missed this same flight before because they wouldn't hold for 8 passengers!
When we finally get to board, the weather starts to deteriorate very badly (snow!)
Not a problem, this is detroit afterall! can't let a little snow stop us!
Well we wait for another half hour before the connecting flight finally catches up! a lot of hustling and shuffling and we're closing the doors ready to go!

now they fire up the APU (Aux. power unit so they can disconnect from groung power) and engines! BUT! the plane is covered with snow and ice now! so before we leave the gate, they want to de-ice the plane. A very good idea (soon to go very bad!)!
while de-icing the plane, somehow "somebody" floods the APU in the tail of the plane with de-icer juice and shuts it down. Now the plane has no power, no engines, no nothing! Call maintenance! after about 45 minutes they get the APU back up and we're good to go! this time, they'll de-ice out on the runway just before takeoff! we'll be first in line! yippee!
We taxi out to end of the runway and then sit! they shut the engines and APU down to save fuel while we wait for them to plow the runway! (no APU, no air circulation,no lights, 500 people sitting there stewing!) this ain't no local puddle jumper, this is a 747 loaded with people, cargo, and fuel! Gross takeoff weight of a 747 is 750,000 pounds! that's a lot o weight! as they are now plowing the runway, they start us up and begin another de-ice! no take-off yet. they have to do "braking" tests on the runway! becuase a 747 uses everybit of it and if you can't make takeoff speed, now you have to stop before you run out of runway! (GOOD Thought!) As you may have guessed, did not pass! there were local/commuter planes taking off, but at 8:00 we start to head back to the terminal! The pilot(s) made an executive safety decision not to takeoff! As you can well imagine, the crowd was getting very restless! there was a lot of not knowing what comes next. by now the airport was closed to operations, and we weren't the only flight that was cancelled. it took a good half hour to get back to the terminal. they announced that a gate agent would give us further information when we get to the terminal! lots more grumbling from the assembled captive masses. My feeling is i'ld rather been safe than spread on I-75!
It's not like you could run over to United/Continental and try and grab another flight. the airport was closed, and there are no other flights to Taipei!
As we got back to the terminal, the crew announce that NW was going to put us up in local hotels with a meal voucher and the plane would leave at 9:00a.m. Be back at the airport by 7:00. No luggage except what you carried on! can you imagine the confusion of unloading that plane and then turning around in 8 hours and have to security check and load it all back on! that made waiting at the luggage area unnecessary! as we stepped off of the plane, the ground agents at the gate gave everyone a hotel voucher and $15.00 meal voucher. this part of the process was very well handled by NW and very efficient! definately an Attaboy!

So it's down to baggage claim and get a shuttle to the hotel....me and thousands of others! oh what a madhouse! a lot of peoples easter travel plans got put on hold.
finally, a shuttle for our hotel shows up and way to many people jammed into the back! (me, i took the front seat! hah!) stories about how long people were standed were plentiful!
this is the hotel leaving at 5:00 in the morning! i want to be early!


get checked back in and to the gate by 6:00! i'm glad the left a light on in the cockpit for the pilot to find his way back in the dark!
well, wait wait wait! that's what this trip is!


The flight to Osaka is delayed for whatever reason for 2 hours! we don't leave until 11:00a.m. the good news is that we left! so, now we have 15 hours to go to Osaka!
things quickly settle in the Plane routine! i've finished two books by now, slept, hydrated, urinated for the 14+ hours!
normally, you take the same plane from Osaka to Taipei. passengers get off with all their carryon and go through security screening. this gives them time to clean, service, re-fuel the plane. Nooooooooooo, not today! as we're taxing to the terminal after landing, they tell us that the plane is not continuing on to Taipei! Gate agents will give us more information when we have landed! Here we go again! turns out that this plane turns right around and is headed back to Detroit to get this circus back on schedule. so we deplane and everone going on to taipei ends up going to a different gate and those whose destination is Osaka, head on to customs!
When we get to our new gate, we check in and are given water and a "box" lunch!
What a very nice thoughtful touch. A little something to tide you over.



A very nice little snack! how thoughtful!



becoming a very suspicious person this trip, we soon learn why the snack!
We now have a 5 hour layover in Osaka! What they are going to do is fly the group from Friday's plane on Saturday's plane to Taipei! Oh well!
i went and found a lounge area where i watched sumo wrestling! apparently some major championship with a whole lot more ritual than you'll ever see on US tv! I'ts more than just fat guys in tongs belly bumping! these atheletes were treated with reverence and awe!
This is the first time at a gate area i spread out my stuff, laid down with my head on my laptop bag and went to sleep for a couple hours! it's not like they're going to leave without me knowing it!
FINALLY! arrived at Taiwan a day late! fortunately (for me) i had Fiona's cell phone number on my phone. When this all started hitting the fan, late friday, i called her at home (her saturday) and she helped to switch my hotel reservation and most importantly, rescheduled my ride from the airport to DouLiu. the rest of the week has been a blur of work, eat, sleep with the occasional walk thrown in! i had to get this post out of the way before i could start on my regular adventure stories! stay tuned for more!