Having faced multiple societal and political challenges in 1950, Taiwan has undergone vigorous development to become a model among nations of the world.
In that
year of 1950, Taiwan had undergone 50 years (1895-1945) of Japanese occupation,
sustained because of that occupation heavy bombing United States in the context
of World War II (1939-1945), and then experienced the trauma of Kuomintang (the
authoritarian right-wing loser to the Communists in the Communists Chinese Civil
War [1945-1949]) occupation in the course of the late 1940s.
But
during various phases since the 1950s, the Taiwanese polity and society has
become a model of political democracy and a progressive society making
stringent efforts to advance the position of women, indigenous people, and
people across the gender identity spectrum.
Here is a
detailed daily account of my two-week (Sunday, 29 March through Saturday,
13 April 2026) sojourn.
Saturday,
28 March 2026
MSP 10:35
AM (USA Central) to Seattle 12:27 PM (USA Pacific)
MSP 3:55
PM (USA Pacific) to
Sunday,
29 March 2026
Arrival Taipei
7:55 PM (Taiwan time)
Barbara
(spouse Barbara E. Reed, Professor Emeritus of East Asian Religion and
Philosophy at St. Olaf College, Northfield, Minnesota) retrieved our luggage
quickly, scooted (using a combination of Barbara’s app and my sense of
direction and reading of signs in Taoyuan International Airport) to the window
purchasing bus seats to Taichung; upon
arrival in Taichung, we found our way easily, mostly using Barbara’s app, to
the Blue Sky Hotel by 11:15 PM, and were in bed by 12:30 AM.
Monday,
30 March 2026
Barbara
and I arose late morning and were out by early afternoon to have lunch at a noodle
shop with generous vegetarian options that Barbara had identified with an app.
We were
feeling minimal jetlag at this point but appreciated an afternoon rest after
our first foray getting oriented from our location along streets of
Taichung.
We noted
that we have been to Taichung many times as the end point of the cross-island
highway from Hualian through Taroko Gorge;
to visit Tunghai University (a Methodist private university) during our
first visit to Taiwan; as points of
departure for the big Buddha in Changhua and the old port city of Lukang; but had not spent nearly so much time in the
city itself as we have in Taipei, Tainan, or even Kaohsiung. So we reveled in getting to know Taichung
better.
After out
mid-afternoon rest, we took a late afternoon/early evening walk to a night
market that was an approximately 30-minute trek from out roost at the Blue Sky
Hotel. After strolling the market and
considering handheld food items, I spied in a side street a small Vietnamese
restaurant that offered good food and a perfect level of comfort for dinner.
Tuesday,
31 March 2026
This day
found us utilizing city bus service to speed us to the Taichung Green
Museumbrary.
This is a
new museum, only open to the public for a couple of years, that is
architecturally exquisite and very clear in a mission to display works of
art--- paintings, sculpture, video--- that convey a message of an endangered Earth
and a world rent with violence that by following the better instincts of
humanity can survive and thrive in the future.
We sized
up the museum initially, then had lunch in a humble eatery that at first did
not seem promising for vegetarian fare;
but I jawboned with the proprietor, who put together a magnificent
combination of vegetables, tofu, and rice before a return to the museum and a
magical three hours from 2:00 PM to the 5:00 PM closing.
Wednesday,
1 April 2026
We
traveled at midweek to Chongtai Chan Monastery in Puli Township.
After a
snafu on the part of a company that purported to provide a tour that Barbara
had decided would be the best way to access this monastery forty miles or so
from Taichung and approximately eight miles from the town of Puli, I did my
usual thing of surveying the landscape, asking questions, and ultimately
finding the way to a bus company that specialized in transportation to Puli.
We
arrived in Puli in good time, caught another bus to the monastery, and arrived
for a good lunch in the monastery museum;
we then explored the museum and relics in historical context, replete
with statues of the major Buddhas and bodhisattvas and narrative setting these
in historical context for an hour.
Then, as
we were walking toward the monastery, a nun approached us,, offering to give us
a tour.
The tour was
conducted in English, for which we were joined by a young/middle aged Iranian couple. I affirmed that I had hear correctly that the
two were from Ukraine, then said to the male of the couple,
“Is your
family okay?”
He
replied somewhat mercurially, “This depends.”
Within
three minutes the guy sauntered back up to me, offering a further
explanation:
“What I
meant when I said, “it depends,” is that you’re okay if you’re not part of a
terrorist group.”
Since the
Iranian state is a sponsor of international terrorism, the answer did not offer
perfect clarity as to at whom such terrorism bringing personal danger would be
directed, but his attempting explanation smoothed the way to amicable exchanges
in the course of and at the end of the tour, when I said simply,
“We wish
you peace,” to which both wife and husband responded,
“Thank
you.”
The main
building in the monastery towers 37 stories, to which we made most of those up
to six. The statuary covers the range of
Buddhas and bodhisattvas and set peaceful moods for contemplation; the statues are mostly tastefully sculpted,
although Barbara found the glittering gold a bit overwrought on the upper floor
that we visited. The nun was very
sincere and gave good explanations as to the message of peace and contemplation
sought by Grand Master Wei Chueh (founder, b. 1928, d. 2016) and his adherents.
The
grounds are exquisite, and the architecture of famed architect C. Y. Lee is
considered a marvel.
Thursday,
2 April 2026
Barbara
and I took the train at late morning to Kaohsiung, with ample opportunity to observe
the central and western parts of Tainan County, where I spent so many days in
1989-1990 riding my motorcycle, getting a view of crop patterns in different
areas of the county, talking to farmers, and becoming thoroughly acquainted
with the geography and topography of the landscape. We arrived at midafternoon to find that
another entity that Barbara had utilized via an app had mistakenly made our
reservation for the Papa Whale Hotel in Taipei, rather than the Kaohsiung location.
Not to
worry, I just asked the desk clerk if space was available, and so it was: We booked a room for five nights at $15,700 N.T., approximately $98
U.S. dollars in one of the three largest cities on the island. (The way
population is calculated varies: My
information conveys surprisingly that Kaohsiung, for lo these many decades number
two, is no longer the second largest city in Taiwan, but third in an order that
now includes New Taipei (Taoyuan), Taichung, Kaohsiung, and Taipei City.
With Papa
Whale (the Chinese name is given only here and there as Meilidao Hotel, so
nothing to do with the English ) a willing host, YSM and I rested for a couple
hours before striking out for a nutritious meal at a nearby lay Buddhist
vegetarian restaurant, then took a walk to and sat people watching and
conversing for an hour in Kaohsiung’s Central Park.
Friday,
3 April 2026
This was
the day that YSM and I spent strolling comprehensively to and through the Pier
2 Harbour area, full of shops, food stalls, street vendors, entertainers, and a
great wealth of humanity of various ages and some variance in walks of life
huddling around middle class. The sea
views were striking, the walkways ample and leisurely. The day was splendidly idyllic. We dined on food from the stalls; Barbara had a vegetarian sandwich, I some
fried fish and candied tomatoes on a stick.
Saturday,
4 April 2026
The only
consistently rainy day of the trip, this was a good one to make the short
(forty-five minutes) trip by train and then a twenty-five minute taxi ride to
the outlying, splendid National Museum of Taiwan History, planning for which
began in 1993, much of the construction completed by 2007, with opening to the
public in 2011.
The
facility is first-rate, consistent with our observations island-wide, and the
exhibits brim with pride in the natural and human legacy of Taiwan, with due
respect without sentimentalization for indigenous cultures and excellent
exhibits indicating the limited contact of Chinese with Taiwan in a few maps
from the Ming Dynasty area; the
occupation by Han peoples during the Dutch, Cheng Chengong and the Qing Dynasty
areas; and on through the Japanese, Kuomintang, and democratic Taiwan eras with
surviving and thriving being implicit themes.
Wax or
wooden figures aided in the presentation of many customs, including a superbly
executed Mazu procession.
Barbara was enthralled. I was in Gary Marvin
Davision Heaven.
Sunday,
5 April 2026
We
allowed ourselves a leisurely start to the day, traveling in late morning and
early afternoon to the amazing Neiwei Flea Market, replete with all manner of
objects from the traditional Taiwanese to American Route 66 signs, old
typewriters, Coca Cola machines--- the
most densely packed such market I have ever seen.
We had
ice cream and iced green tea in a little shop near the flea market before
walking to Lotus Lake, along which are wild and wildly popular temples occupied
by many and varied deities; fine views
of the lake; and the large dragon and
tiger figures though which one walks (in through dragon, out through tiger),
built by devotees to ward off natural disasters predicted by soothsayers a few
years back.
Barbara and
I sat for a long while sipping carbonated fruit drinks in a plaza area off the
lake.
As she
was for much of the trip, Barbara was apt at using her apps to identify the
best bus and stand for the return to central Kaohsiung. We got off near Central Park and walked the
short distance to a funky restaurant patronized by many different societal
representations, including a youthful avant garde crowd. Barbara had pasta. I had pizza.
Delightful wrap to the day.
Monday,
6 April 2026
We
traveled on this, the last of the long Qingming (Tomb-Sweeping) extended
weekend to Foguangshan Monastery Museum, next to the monastery where you and I
went as Barbara’s representatives in 2003.
The
museum was a state of the art addition to the monastery complex and presented a
faithful history of Master Hsing Yun’s 1967 founding of the monastery and his
mission. We viewed in one building a
touching video as Hsing Yun (b. 1927, d. 2023) at age 86 was losing his sight
and mobility but was still turning out droves of one-stroke calligraphic works
that struck a cord among adherents and the public, bringing many additional
funds to the monastery and mission.
Barbara seemed to have kinder than previous thoughts at this poignant moment
for a figure who thrived by supporting and developing deep connections with the
Kuomintang regime.
We had an
excellent vegetarian lunch, thoroughly toured the side halls and main museum,
and admired the grounds before Barbara sipped tea and rested in an area close to
the bottom of the part of the mountain leading to the original monastery, to
which I trekked with many memories of the visit made by you and me.
I had an
exciting time going down a different side of the mountain to a humble town
below, then having to madly ask folks most of whom seemed quite unaware of the
newer museum part of the complex, finally finding someone who could point me in
the correct direction as I quickly hoofed to the bus stop with only ten minutes to spare
to reconnect with Barbara and catch the last bus back into Kaohsiung.
Tuesday,
7 April 2026
We took a
high-speed time train this time in traveling from Kaohsiung to Taipei (Finders
Hotel).
After a
rest in Finders, Barbra again adroitly used an app to identify a superb
vegetarian restaurant a twenty-minute walk from our roost. Barbara had a dinner centered on
dumplings; I ordered ala carte (xiaotsai)
to put together a meal of qingtsai, kimchi, and a tofu dish, all in a
quiet, classy setting.
After
dinner Barbara walked on back to Finders while I sat a long while in a nearby
plaza in this Zhongcheng section of Taipei, in the same general area broadly
construed as our YMCA Hotel of many stays.
I strolled on to get my first view of the newly organized Ximending
shopping and entertainment pathway, then spent an hour back on Chongqing Street
at the famous San Min Bookstore perusing volumes on Taiwanese history.
Wednesday,
8 April 2026
To the National
Palace Museum went we at midweek, lunching on good vegetarian dishes in an
eatery near the entrance before spending three and one-half hours admiring the
latest exhibits of the horde carted to Taiwan by the Kuomintang.
The lower
floor featured an intriguing exhibit focused on the role of both mythological
and real (nonhuman) animals in Chinese history.
An initial focus emphasized mythological beasts: the phoenix, dragons, hybrid reptilian
creatures, and those that combine human and nonhuman animal features. Highly interesting to me was the portrayal of
animals about which the Chinese had only heard, so that the physical depictions
followed only written descriptions, resulting famously in the stylized lion and
other examples such as the giraffe (not a bad approximation but not the
completely accurate of giraffes that we in the United State know [unless we’ve
been to Africa] from our visits to zoos).
A
generous collection of Shang and Zhou bronzes was on display, mostly not then
huge ceremonial urns but smaller, often exquisite ceremonial cups, small urns,
and implements of warfare. Also notable
was a presentation of furniture and other household items of very fine
artisanship from the collection of an early 19th century Qing
Dynasty prince. And there were two large
rooms devoted to Ming Dynasty murals, one of which had high-tech applications
that created the perception of people, carts, and chariots in motion. Then there was that quirky painting by a
French artist boldly portraying a Chinese market scene from a China that he
knew (as with those who imagined animals not previously seen) only from written
description.
Upon departure
from the National Palace Museum, YSM and I took a bus to the Shilin Night
Market, where we perused the wares for sale and had dinner in the food court
area, starting with blooming onions, then later in my case purchasing and
eating more traditional items: Big Cake
Wrapping Small Cake (Da bing bao xiao bing) and an oyster omlette (E-zhai-jian)
while Barbara sipped on iced green tea.
Thursday,
9 April 2026
On this
day Barbara and I explored separately htis city of so many memories, Barbara taking
the light rail to and spending a generous amount of time at Lungshan Temple and
then taking a stroll through the Wanhua area.
YSM described the temple as being every bit as lively as usual, and the
surrounding area bustling with activity in both underground and street level
markets.
Barbara
had one humorous, odd episode at which point she had sat down on a ledge for a
bit of a rest, after which a woman approximately our own age came up and stared
as if Barbara had taken her place; this won
Barbara a new friend who came up to console her with regard to the strange
behavior of the woman.
I took a
long walk to Freedom Memorial, the old Shida neighborhood, and back along
Roosevelt Road to scout the precise location of the National 2-28 Memorial
Museum, walking then past the Presidential/Executive office building and
northern stretches of Chongqing Road.
This was
an enormously revealing day for me, as I reveled at how the Freedom (formerly
the Chiang Kai-shek) Memorial has been overhauled inside for display of
touching exhibits of the price paid by the Taiwanese but also people around the
world in the pursuit of liberty. The old
man’s statue still sits Lincoln-like on the upper floor, bur I arrived just as
there had been a relatively low-key changing of the guards that now is
performed not on at that upper tier, but outside at ground level. Only eight or so other people were at the
upper floor while I was there; the
freedom-oriented exhibits on the lower floors drew much more intense interest
and numbers of people reading carefully the accompanying texts.
The
residential buildings in the old Shida neighborhood remain the same, but the
commercial area has greatly changed since our periods of living in the area,
much as we found the situation when you and I explored for restaurants in 2016.
A Pizza Hut and a Burger King occupy
prominent locations, and there other establishments with a Western or
Taiwan-contemporary vibe. But this time,
probably because I was in the area at early evening, there were on the back
streets to the east a number of Taiwanese food options, in one of which I had a
delightful vegetable soup and an order of qingtsai.
The best
that I can tell, the old Mandarin Training Center building is one of the few
that I observed in Taiwan having been torn down, in this case replaced with a
new building housing mostly the Shida Student Union; on three floors of this nine-story building
there is a newly named English as a Second Language program, which appears to
be the contemporary version of the old Mandarin Training Center. The restaurant options for students and
others outside this building now include at least three items, and there is a
Starbucks (now very popular in the major cities of Taiwan) and one of the
ubiquitous Seven-Elevens.
Friday,
10 April 2026
This was
the day that YSM and I visited the AMA Museum conveying the plight of the
Japanese comfort women, with videos of personal testimonies of entrapment and
abuse, with comparisons then to the life challenges faced by immigrant women
from Southeast Asia in contemporary Taiwan, whether with regard to prostitution
or to working conditions (on-demand 24-hour service and low pay) in Taiwanese
homes.
As noted
in one of your responses to my texts, the Taiwanese are good with the mea
culpa and are making a vigorous attempt to set past wrongs aright.
We then
had a magnificent four hours strolling the Dihua Market area of northwest
Taipei, replete with enchanting old buildings dating to both pre-Japanese and
Japanese eras, full of all manner of traditional and contemporary wares--- and including the bustling Xiaohai City God
Temple, where as at other temples I was impressed with how intensely people of
all ages take their supplications to the gods.
YSM and I
dined in the area, which featured all types of cuisine of Taiwanese and
international prevenance; we ultimately
opted for a restaurant that featured pasta and pizza, along with salad. Barbaraa ordered a salad, I a pizza, and we
ended up sharing both. Good change of
pace. Fun. Our typically invigorating conversation.
Saturday,
11 April 2026
I shall
always remember with great fondness our last full day in Taiwan for this
sojourn.
I had
lingered in Peace Park on my long walk of Thursday 9 April for an hour and
one-half visit to the Taipei 2-28 museum and then had felt more of the struggle
for freedom vibe at Freedom Memorial.
On this
day Barbarra and I completed the sweep of pursuit-of-freedom exhibits (found
also in the National Museum of History in Tainan) with two and a half hours
spent at the National 2-28 Memorial Museum (opening to the public in 2011,
located in a Japanese-built building that over the years has had a varied
history of occupants) about which I had read in Lonely Planet and had
scouted on my evening stroll back on Thursday, 9 April.
This
memorial featured thematically similar but in detail different exhibits by
comparison to the others with a liberty focus, including an exhibit that was
enlightening for both Barbara and me, conveying the fate of Yen-ping (Yanping)
College founded by Zhu Zhao-yang in 1946 as the first Taiwanese-established
institution of higher learning, shortly after the departure of the
Japanese. So very poignant was the
effort made by Zhu and other members of the elite to work with the Kuomintang
government to create a Han Chinese society that honored both mainland and
Taiwanese traditions. But the college
included some communists and other leftist students and professors, generating
fear on the part of the Kuomintang regime and Inducing closure in 1948 in the
aftermath of 2-28. Zhu worked for years
to reopen the college but had to settle for the opening of a high school (that
still exists) on the site in the late 1960s.
Barbara
located via an app an excellent nearby cold sesame noodle shop, where we took
our repast and then trekked to the south side of Peace Park to National Taiwan
Museum. This provided another look at
contemporary Taiwan, including recent archeological finds of rhinoceros
remains; videos extolling the natural
beauty of Taiwan; a small-screen
informative video on sustainable agriculture in Taiwan; and a section focused on the two-month 1895
existence of the Republic of Taiwan, with a bold visual presenting the Yellow
Tiger Flag of that republic (I am going to try to locate replica for display in
my study and in my room at New Salem.
We
strolled back to the YMCA Hotel that has been such a big part of our lives for
ice cream and sodas.
After
this magical day, Barbara returned to our room at the Finders Hotel to prepare
for departure on the following day, while I took an evening stroll through the
area and back to Peace Park for one more look at the 2-28 Memorial statue and
thirty minutes in a reverie of reflection upon this enchanting visit to our
beloved Meilidao.
Sunday,
12 April 2026
Given the
early (5:30 AM) departure from Finders necessary to get to Taoyuan, YSM via an
app ordered a taxi (as opposed to taking the light rail).
The
procedures at the airport and boarding went smoothly.
There
must be some powerful tailwinds going northeastward: The flight took just a bit over ten hours, by
comparison to eleven and one-half for the trip from Seattle to Taipei.
We
arrived in Seattle at 6:00 AM (USA Pacific) and had a shorter layover this
time, boarding by 7:40 AM for the 8:25 AM (USA Pacific) flight from Seattle for
an 1:47 PM (USA Central) arrival at MSP.
Connections
with Park’n Fly were perfect; we were
back at Palace 312 by 3:15 PM.
