Today is a great day. Its cloudy, cool, misting outside, nothing is on TV, my arm is aching and my stomach is a little upset from the antibiotics. So why a great day?

If you know anyone 'into' photography you gotta tell em about this blog, or wesite. What follows is super cool.

Many companies make photography bags, Tamarac, LowePro, Crumpler, etc. But the smartest, most logical, think of everything company Ive ever heard of is ThinkTankPhoto.

This is a company I can respect.

After a little hinting and verbal going-on-too-long-ness, I was able to convince my wife to get me the PERFECT backpack for traveling for the day or the week with my photo equipment. Its the Rotation 360

This may seems stupid and a lot of hype about a back pack, but its really cool!!

There is so much about it thats cool. Like the bottom part slides around to be ready for a shot without taking everything off etc. Thats its claim to fame i guess. But every piece has high quality zippers, rain gear, and quality material on the outside.

It has perfectly placed pockets, personal panels providing portable personalizeable protection this photographer pronounced this particularization prefaced primarily with PERFECT!!

spit that out 3 times.

Really though, i took all afternoon getting acquainted with its features. I can find fault. Even the fact that I'm a big guy this pack still fits.

The products can not be described as cheap, but could be extremely good value for the money.

Check them out ThinkTankPhoto

Another day in the green room done. This post i wont complain. no more IV no more tubes in my arm...just a splint and tensors. minimal pain, maximum boredom.

Could have been much worse. my roommate has some bigger issues. his wife is with him almost 24/7. he has numerous staples in 4 places in his head. they have 2 kids, Nicole and I gave them candy canes on Christmas. everyone has been big smiles ever since.

Doc Young said i can go home on Friday...ugg 2 more days...but like i said it could have been worse.

A funny thing happenned yesterday, a little girl maybe 4 and her dad came out of the elevator as i was nearby...the little girl looked at me with a puzzled look and asked "Santa Claus?"

what?? when did i start to look like santa claus...geez. maybe my red outfit and fuzzy slippers ave me away.

I have to say Nicole has been awesome with everything...like i said i have to say that.....just kidding...coincidentally she got me the perfect xmas gift an ASUS eee PC 8 GB.

Its basically a tiny laptop, 1 gb ram, 8gb HD, 7" screen, but fully functional.
its got a webcam,wifi, preloaded with open office, and skype and ton of other programs. And too boot its quite a bit cheaper than a reg laptop....so cool, and so useable...especially now.

well so long from the one armed santa claus.

part 2 ...DIY hospital

here is where my disappointment with the health care system comes in. imagine this, you can barely walk (sprained ankle) but you got to go the bathroom...but of course this arcane system can not provide you with bathroom tissue. wireless internet, and hours of surgery but not toilet paper.

the next day and i am thinking they must have me on a restricted diet....no i missed a couple meals because...they dont provide food!!! you change your own sheets, and pillow cases, and all injury dressings except for the surgery one. you also must go to the second floor to buy all your supplies as well including any tape you may need to hold the gauze to the wound.

medicine is left beside you in a sealed bag, which is hard to fight into with one arm broken and the opposite thumb sprained. and no water, thats down the hall turn right, go down that hall to the nurses station you can find a little fountain on the left. oh of course...sorry to bother you.

bring your own soap...or you will spread infections and will need to stay here for a much longer time.

now im gonna nit pick....the walls are stained and dirty from the many people before me. The bathroom walls are dirty with who knows what, there is mold growing on something in the corner beside my bed.

Language is an issue, even though one head nurse proudly told me they are becoming part of some international group. She said their english ability is very low....um ya i noticed, when i asked about toilet tissue and 2 nurses ran away giggling, and one was left to say...um....you ....family...bring.

thats all for know.

So here i am merry Christmas. I had a bit of an accident....well here is the full story.

I went to our great Christmas party from work. After the awesome meal i went home to my wife who was sick. i brought her some dinner, and since she was going to bed soon, i decided to go back out. I called a cab and met up with some of the other guys from work.

We stayed out till about midnight and the left...everyone was going home except one guy he asked if anyone wanted to go for coffee. I said sure and he drove ahead, i said id walk. so far so good.
I decided to jog and was doing well i went one block then 2 and decided to cut through a new park. well it was quite dark but i could easily see the other side and i could tell that there was no one else in the park.
I truck through and before i know it there is no more sidewalk under my foot, my right foot hits the concrete and twists. I fall with my full weight landing on my arm somehow.

im stunned, dazed, and in pain. i wiggle my feet...yup sore ankle but it moves, arm 1 ok arm 2......no oak.

so i phone the guy im meeting and told him. i picked myself up and hobbled to the street..he got a cab and i went to the hospital. i think cabs are safer, faster, and more caring than ambulances here.

so in the end my injuries, sprained right thumb, sprained right ankle, cut and deep scrapes on left knee, AND dislocated elbow with 5 breaks.

Now post surgery, with plates n screws in arm and elbow I'm slowly regaining strength.

next episode....this damn DIY hospital. you wont believe what isnt included.

Just FYI, Im having problems with the program to build my website, hence the lack of updates. I want to re create one with Adobe Dreamweaver, so if anyone has any experience let me know. I need some help with a few issues.

Otherwise all is well and here is a kwik pic for you.
Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and Happy New Year!!!

Hmmm busy season coming up. Christmas, then New Years eve n day, then Nico's Birthday, then Chinese New year. All in a month and a half.

I was planning a trip to Cambodia, but tickets became impossible. then possible and now no problem but prices came out and I can fly to Canada for less money...stupid airlines.

But i did get a good offer on a flight to Bangkok. So Im thinking about Thailand now....hmmm sounds good. I didnt want to go with out Nico, but its either that or stay in Taiwan. And to stay in Taiwan by myself sounds lonely. Traveling sounds much better.

Just thought spew that useless info out there...Cambodia 90% out, and Thailand 90% in.

Well its been a while since Ive posted. Well with traveling jet lag, work, and my computer being down, I havent had that much of a chance.

Well Ive started facebook group, energy photo art, and nicole did one too about Randy and Nicole in Taiwan.

Here is a picture i took Halloween night in S'toon.

lemme know what you think.

Enjoy!

Well a month later and a lot has happened. I am now on my way back to Taiwan. Im in YVR and waiting for my plane. My parents anniversary was good, and i was able too see a lot of people, aunts uncles, family friends, a lot of people I haven't seen in a long time.

My picture taking was a mixed experience. Indoors with 1/2 lights was challenging for my parents anniv. But I di get s bunch of other Canada pictures, but i lost them all due too computer issue. Then i got a few of them back. in due time you will see.

More later.

I made a couple of new pics today.

The first one is called Fire on Ice.


The second is simply called... Tea, because thats whats inside. A high quality tea we picked up on one of our travels in Macau, China.
Yeah thats my Chinese handwriting, not that pretty but I really think its more recognizable than my English handwriting. The character is 'cha' or tea in English.

Let me know what you think?

Fire in the Sky

Macau, China Trip

Back from Macau.

We went to Macau(Macao), China which is right beside Hong Kong. Macau was owned by the Portuguese, until just before Hong Kong was given back to China.

So it has a huge Portuguese influence on everything. The street signs and everything is in Cantonese, and Portuguese, with English being 3rd. Except that most tourist places speak English, many others do not. Interesting.

The first thing we experienced was an international fireworks competition.

And tonight was Australia and Taiwan. (Go Taiwan!!) And did they ever.

It was amazing, the best Ive ever seen.

here is a few examples of the 1/2 hour show.

Check out the rest on http://www.dealboyrandy.com/Macau.html





Check out the rest on http://www.dealboyrandy.com/Macau.html

My Video from the fashion show

Part 2 of a Great week.

An odd turn of a typhoon on the right day at the right time, lead to a blessing in disguise.

5 months ago I had been given a formal VIP invitation to go to high end Lingerie Fashion Show as a Photographer.

As it turned out one of my students is a fashion designer for Mode Marie. Its a popular upscale womens lingerie brand. Its popular especially in Taiwan, Japan, and a couple other places which escape me just now.

Since my foray into photography, Ive wanted to touch on as many aspects in a professional setting as I could.

So I was cautiously optimistic until I made a mistake and booked off the wrong day. And the show was today which was supposed to be a busy day for me, not a good day to take off.

So out of nowhere a typhoon blows in to town just grazing the top corner of the island. The previous one was big n scary and no day off...a direct hit. This one comes and the gov't says stay home and hide, batten down the hatches, blah blah etc etc.

So day off...and then I get a call early in the morning saying the fashion show, is today and is still on...plus i have the day off....I look outside and its raining but not that big of gusts. So I'm in.

I was thinking and regretting not being able to go for a couple of weeks now... and by a whole lot of unexplainable long shots its fall into place.

Took the train in and was VIPed in, as was Nicole I might add, she was lucky enough to get in as well. The designer just said these are my special guests, and everyone had a fire lit under their bums, offering drinks and front row center seats etc....WOW

I went to where the other photographers and TV people were setting up and got a seat just off center but right in front. No prob, happy as a clam.

The show starts and I'm as nervous as it gets. I don't know why, probably the special treatment, plus I know I'm an amateur surrounded by professionals. I did feel a little embarrassed with my camera. Its not bad but I was surrounded by thousands of dollars of equipment...per person. Each guy had the Pro stuff. I felt like a six year old at a wedding with a Polaroid.
No one said much to me, and that was fine.

The lights went down and I started to click away.

( In the end....400 pictures in 20 minutes)

Here is a glimpse:

Part 1 of a great week

Part 1 of a great week

So life is full of ups and downs. I was on a bit of a down for a coupe weeks, now the ride is going up.

Last week I went on a spur of the moment scooter trip by myself. I saw a picture on the back of a tourist map for a mountain and temple I had never heard of. I decided I wanted to get that same picture.

I took off at 2 pm for a place called Lion Head Mountain. This is fine and all, but the road signs are not usually in English. I knew where abouts i should be heading, so off I went.

I drove for about an hour and a half and came to an area close to where i should be, and i had to turn off a main road and onto a small mountain road. I guessed on which road i should take. I drove until i seen an English sign saying "ShihTouShan". Well I know Tou is head and Shan is Mountain. So put 2 and 3 together, and we have a maybe. Half an hour later my ass is now part of the seat, and i am no longer riding but am 'one with the scooter'.
I got tired and almost gave up on this road when i said Im going to try this smaller road that said something about a temple. I couldn't read it but it looked like a temple-ish kinda sign. Sure enough after 10 minutes I find what I was looking for.

I had to hike up the small mountain, to the temple complex.

This was my reward.

Complementary and Pure Harmonies

A hand up to the bright sky, to block evening ball of fire.

Staring at the ruby glistening, lowering hand with the bush.

Lemony butterflies flutter around scattered Saskatoon Berries.

The sun sets with shades in gradients from silver to midnight

So we've dealt with a big typhoon. Not too much happened here in Taoyuan as usual, which is good. I had the day scheduled off anyways one of the supposed perks of working a crazy summer. But I got sick for the event just to add insult to injury. This weekend sucked so far. awake for no more than a few hours at a time before i as exhausted and had to have a nap. In fact I'm off to have one now....night night.

I received a comment on one website that i had shown a couple pictures on. And it made me quite angry. The comment was from an obvious amateur.

The comment was nice pictures but there all fake.

Now to be fair this wasn't only directed at me but a lot of people but he used one of my pictures as an example. Actually it was the Taoyuan Sunset that Ive previously added here....It is 2 posts down take a look before reading on.

He said they were fake because they are all photoshopped. I was became defensive because although I do use Photoshop on every one of my photos, I most often only use it for cropping or adding a border, watermark, or my logo. Rarely for anything that would dramatically change the essence of the picture.

Few pictures, like the one I show in the post below are radically altered. However this was just for fun, I was trying to create a convincing photo from nothing, an otherwise 'throw-away' file. In no way have I said this is how it really was.....but IF it were to be sold to the couple....which one would they most likely choose?


My question to all cynics is :

What is a photo.... to you?

I will argue its subjective all the way. There is no way for anyone to be able to tell that what the camera saved or what the film captured is 100% accurate in all respects to what was really there.

An infinite number of variables are available.

From camera view, available light that day, camera type, the multitude of lenses, filters, films, to the brand of machine and ink that prints the picture.

Every photo can be art, a snapshot in time, a point of interest, an expression of character, or a memory because for some reason the person behind the camera felt moved enough to push the shutter button.

As far as digital manipulation is concerned my view is unless its being used in false advertising, or meant to maliciously deceive someone, there is no harm being done.

I call my work PhotoArt.

Some are pure photos with NOTHING changed, and some have been altered.

Sometimes I brighten them up but this also happens automatically with any film you bring in to get processed. Its just that I can do it myself with patience, care and firsthand knowledge of how it really looked and not rely on some underpaid slack-jaw haplessly ruining everyones photos in "Under 1 Hour."

Everyone who has paid a photographer to take pictures of their wedding is in the same boat. Every wedding photographer uses photo editing software or has uses some sort of film processing and/or touching up the negatives or pictures directly.

Heck even a frame or the lighting on the wall can make a huge difference in how we perceive a picture.

If the Mona Lisa was in a 'Dollar-Store' frame sitting above a gas station urinal, it would have a whole different kinda smile.

Ive added a few new pictures on my website lately, plus i gave it slightly updated look on many pages to reflect the nature of the site and that is its about photography.

Ive been working on my photo retouching skills.

If you want a sample of my work compare these.

Information: I had a few wrong settings on my camera (the very blue hue), plus I was shooting it with a strong side wind and my biggest zoom set all the way out at 300mm and handheld. So the fact it is clear and in focus is about all I got right.

So i used this as a test of my retouching skills so far, plus my creative photoshop skills for the framing and plaque.


You can get a bigger version of the finished one here.



Start image:






Finished image:
Let me know what you think.

There is a couple of new pictures I took yesterday.

Enjoy.

So Im back from another Hong kong trip. Awesome. A real Mennonite shoppers paradise. Deals galore and people waiting to rip you off at every corner. Its true. Its all about shopper knowledge. You gotta figure out the bottom line of these people.

My tactic is to ask the price. If they say 100 dollars, hmm how about 25! They look at me and say 60! wow nice cut,so i say ok 30. they say 55, I say to high and start to walk away. If the price they buy for is 30 o higher, they leave me alone, if not they will run after and try to bargain some more. I wil go up maybe another 5 dollars, and be done. If they have left me alone I know i really was too low, so next time i'm willing to do the same thing but end up a little higher. Good thing there is always more than one shop with the same thing.

It feels a little stupid to offer a quarter of the price, but i usually buy for a third of the price, so it works out.

I bought a bunch of new ties for work adn ome nick nacks at the night markets. I bought a new camera lens, and tripod system at a camera store. Really gotta know which ones are good and which ones are not. Most that are well lit with neon lights are no good.

A few named Wing Shuing and Man Shuing (brothers) are the ceapest places around, but be ready for a lack of customer service. These guys want you in, your money, and you out ready for the next guy. The products are good and the prices are the best. But I require some customer service. so i researched 4 years of online comments about one store, Tin Cheung Camera Store in Tsim Tsa Shuei district. It turned out really good. I was a little it like a kid in a candy store, well it was candy to me and it was my birthday, so i had the right to be like that. They were supposed to open at 11 am s i was there at 10:55, and then at 11 they 1/2 opened they only let in deliveries and their lunch was delivered, and i am standing in the street trying to look patient but doing a horrible job. finally 1120 they open and let me in. And i rounded up my stuff. Then they usually dont negotiate, but my tripod was the display model, so they did, and i got a very good deal. The difference was worth the plane tickets to hong kong compare to Taiwan, and compared to canada it as even cheaper.

So we spent the rest of the day walking and shopping. It was super.

Hey all,

I added a few new pics on the www.dealboyrandy.com, and one that can be used as a wallpaper. Maybe I should put a freebie section and make some wallpapers in my spare time. Lemme know whatcha think.
Have a good one.

Its early afternoon, and I've had one very interesting day.

I didn't have to work today so I planned a short trip. I went to Yelieu. ( click on the name to see where). Its a small town on the north coast of Taiwan. I got up early to beat the heat and the traffic rush.
I left my house at 4:45 am. I must say Taiwan and Taipei is a nice place to drive through at that hour, although a little eerie without the hordes of people.

I got through Taipei and into Keelung, around 6 am. A lot faster than I had anticipated. So I stopped for some breakfast and checked my maps.

After my breakfast via the 'Golden Arches' I hopped back onto my trusty steed and roared up the coast.

A few stops along the way to take some pics, and I arrived around 7 am.

As I round a bend just before the town I knew I was close because the rocks change from normal sharp and jagged to this...
Very odd to say the least.

So I get to the entrance of the Yelieu Geological Park, and I'm waiting because I figure I'm early, there are big revolving bars for a door to get in, but its locked to go only one way... out. They clearly marked as one entrance and one exit so I start to wait.

I'm slowly walking around in the parking lot when I hear a 'Hey!', I look around and see a woman in the distance slowly waving her hand. She was on the wrong side of the edge of this ...stuck down on a wave breaker...

She is waving her arm and was thinking you shouldn't be playing around in there if you cant get out. I kinda figured she was fishing from there because in the distance i could see others fishing from the top of them.
But as I get closer I notice a very different look in her eye. Her face was swollen, her jaw looked broken, and many old and new cuts and scrapes. Her left arm was scraped and bloody and in general she looked absolutely exhausted.

She reached out for me to grab her hand as she was too far down to get out, and these things are big so there was no way she could do this on her own. I grabbed her hand and tried to pull her up but I was dangerously on the edge too and I didn't want to be the next victim.
I looked around and didn't see anyone to help.

So I had to try again, this time with 2 hands, and I felt I could pull her up, but I would probably hurt her more as I would have to drag her over the embankment, with me falling back to the other side. She was too exhausted to get a leg up and help herself. Not the best option.

So I lower her back down slowly so she wouldn't fall down. The wdge was about 6 feet, and I told her in Chinese to hold on I will get help and return quickly.

She says 'hao' (ok), not like she really had another choice.


I headed off to find help and in the distance I find another guy and I try my best to explain the situation, so he gets on his cell phone and calls the police. I persuade him to come and look, he hops on his scooter and we go back I show him where she is and with the both of us we are able to eventually get her onto the edge and back over, about 10 minutes later the police slowly drive up and take her to the hospital.

The guy stopped to tell me she was going to the hospital and he went to give a statement to the police. Everyone was very thankful. So I became a Good Samaritan for the day. WooHoo

She looked like she had been beaten before with the old wounds and possibly slipped or was dumped, and woke up there?? I'm not sure of how she got there.

So after feeling good about my deed, I went back to waiting for the place to open, I was a little frustrated because it was getting warmer now and I left early for a reason...to beat the heat, and so I asked one shop owner and she pointed to another entrance that was open the whole time, and because I was early it was free. YipYipYipee!

I trot in and get my camera out and start being amazed at the strange rockscapes.

Here is the classic Queen's Head all natural and photographed by yours truly.
There will be more pics on http://www.dealboyrandy.com soon.

The rest of the trip was relaxing as i took the #2 highway back through Yanmingshan National Park one of the less active volcano's in Asia. It was scenic, cool and peaceful.

I was out and about yesterday, and i came across a new subdivision, and i thought people might like to see the new styles of houses that are coming up. Quite different from North America.

Rather thin for my tastes.Not bad looking from the front.
I was mainly out looking for small country temples. I found some and one in particular stuck out to me. The dragons looked especially fierce. It should be up soon on www.dealboyrandy.com in the temples section.

Healing only to face pain.
Pained to the point of numbness.
Feeling void of life
Lethargic movements in a dark space.

Small light behind
Speck of hope in the distance
Blurred circles
Nystagmus

Gravity, leaden sky
Slumber, pulling to black
Look behind
Pin light

Color of life
twinkle and tinkle
Rumbling
Roaring
Deafening Thunderous Crack

Light, White is Dark
Bright, Blind are blinded by the light.
Uplifting free
Heart pushed back

Up to the surface
Back to be free
Freedom to choose
Life returned, black fades
Always remembered.

For as much as I am missing home and kinda tired of the antics that go on in Taiwan, I am also very happy about the small things .

Yesterday I went to have my signal lights fixed on my scooter.

I was sure i needed new ones and that my old one was faulty, but when i went there, they WD-40'd them and after working the oil in it started to let go and now they are good as new.
Charge = Free. So I was thinking would i ever get a free fix back home ???

I went to renew my drivers license today, as it was a month overdue. So i readied myself for a hassle and a runaround in with the administrative minions that generally work in any government office so much that I was astonished, flabbergasted, and in utter dismay when I walked out I had to triple check my license.

Why ??
1) Government Office (usually 1 hour wait)
2) Got everything I wanted right the first time. (still oddly doubting)
3) NO CHARGE for renewing my drivers license for another year!

How does that work? I keep asking myself, a government office not charging for drivers renewal?? In a timely manner, shortly before it closes, and with immediate understanding.

Anyways I drove away in a flash to make sure no one would chase me to collect money from any mistake.

I next had to change the front brake on my scooter, i knew it had to be done, so i pressed my luck again, and again BINGO! 10 minutes, and 9 Canadian dollars later my bike was washed, lubed, and fixed.

I thought a car back home would have cost in the neighborhood of $100+.

So today I'm a happy camper.

Im a little worried about tomorrow :-(

Here are some new pictures.

Stuff i bought in Kinmen:
Kinmen Gaoliang (Koaliang) Liquor made from rice.


old weigh scale
Ceramic goblet replica of a past emperors. Apparently rare, and difficult to make due to the three legs being thin and difficult to make them equal level, and not move while drying.

The last one is a Kinmen Wind God with a Calabash, (i think) (a kind of Squash) commonly used in cooking as well as made into musical instruments.

Woo Hoo!!

Back From Kinmen Island. For those of you who don't know, I went on a little sightseeing trip. I was gone for 3 days, and I went to Kinmen Island. It's a Taiwanese Island, but its about 200km from Taiwan and about 2 km from China. So nonetheless it has history....a ton of it, especially war history.
The first thing I found is that it is still very much a military island. From the moment I stepped off the plane until I landed back in Taipei, I was constantly reminded this is a military zone.

So I got to Kinmen around 11 am Sunday morning. My plan of attack was to find a
better map than the one i printed off the Internet. They happen to have a very7 nice Tourist information place in the small airport. I asked if they had a map, and they did, a nice clear one.in English and Chinese. Perfect.
Next I want to rent a scooter. I asked about that , and she said sure and gave me about 6 Chinese papers, all p[laces that will rent scooters. But none near the airport. So I need to take a taxi.

I asked how much it should cost to get there by taxi, she says, you need to negotiate with the driver...but normal is around 100 to 200 NT(CAD $3-7). Hmm OK kind of a big range....

I hop into a taxi and show him the ad for a place to rent a scooter he said OK. I ask how much , he says NT200. I try to negotiate like i was told, and he says, no but he will put on the meter. OK no problem...

We start to drive and he tries to talk to me, but I don't understand a lick of what he's saying...thinking man I thought my Chinese was a little better than that. He motions to look at the paper, And points to the scooter. I say yes, he says this place is no good,. This is where I start to understand what he's saying, I am pretty sure he was speaking Kinmenese...Like Taiwanese, but different. Gees I barely know Chinese, I don't know every dialect ever spoken in Asia....anyways, he switched to Chinese, and we got along. He says the place is no good he will take to his friends place... Sure no problem, It will either be a good deal, or a complete rip off...hopefully I can tell.

So He takes me into the small town of 金城鎮 (Jīnchéng) Or Golden City in English. He brings me to the very centre, and motions for me to get out. Hmm He pops into a building, and rambles off something, and motions for me to come in. I look around and notice the only English I can see on the street is on this building, and luckily it says "Kinmen Hotel".

OK well that's not so bad, English sign and a hotel, but that's not what I was asking for....Fortunately they also rent scooters. So what the heck i ask for the price of a room, also cheap and a scooter is delivered to the Hotel. Nice almost new 125cc. Nice. So for CAD 48 dollars I got a scooter and a hotel for a night. (NT400 or CAD13 scooter, and NT1080 or CAD 35)

So I drop my main pack in the hotel, grab my camera and head out.

I forgot about lunch, and kept going until supper time. I whizzed up the coast and down the coast.
Above the old look out tower is now in the middle of the river due to erosion.

Below: Notice the old anti-landing craft barriers in the water.


I continues along into the hills and came across an old bunker.




I peeked inside,it was small and eerie but the passages inside were blocked beyond the first room. I think it was a work in progress.

On my way back I stopped and admired some of the architecture. They are known for the old Fukien (Fujian) style houses. With the saddle style roofs, and the reddish-pink colored brick walls, they are truly a relic from the past.




Just to add these houses are being used. They are being lived in as normal houses. People were puttering around some kids playing, and some people hanging laundry etc. I tried not to disrupt their lives by intruding too much.

I took a new road and it led me to an artillery museum, and some tunnels.

and finally to some tunnels. This is pure granite, and it was dug out to give cover to troops and supplies that arrive under fire. It was very wide, not humid, but eerie.




Afterwards i traveled back to the beaches further along the island. I thought it was quite considerate that the government add the odd English sign, just to let me know not to go swimming, or poking around too much.




And i couldn't go very far without seeing various bunkers, fortresses, and etc around.


I went back to my Hotel for a nap. Later i went back out to some statues i had seen earlier and thought i might get some pictures at night.



I went back to the hotel with some local food from a bakery, ate it and went to sleep.


DAY 2

I was dreaming that a school of children were let into a giant kitchen and they had taken every pot and pan out of the cupboards, and were making one heck of a racket. Then I woke up to notice i was obviously very close to a temple and it was time for morning celebrations. Still sounded just like the dream but it wasn't school children....and it was only 6 am.

I got up and went down for some free breakfast that was included with the room. It was a torpedo shaped bun but the texture like a croissant with some sweet paste inside. It was fresh, but add to that some warm soy milk scooped from a big ol bag and I was eating local delights.

I left the hotel and decided to find Maestro Wu's shop. Its real name is the Chin Ho Li Steel Knife Factory, but the trademark name is Maestro Wu. I heard about his shop a few years back. He makes high quality knives from old bombs. So after some quick searching I found one shop.



But alas it was his old shop.

But I was told his new shop is nearby. So given directions I went and found it.

His family has been making knives since the Ching Dynasty. During WW2 there was a shortage of steel, so Mr. Wu began collecting artillery shells that had been dropped by the US and allied forces. Later after the August 23, 1958 Artillery Battle with China. The bombing left millions of shells, and abundant source of metal for his trade.

Since I showed up and was alone (no tour bus) and he saw i was eager to take some pictures, he invited me into the shop for a closer look.

He cut a piece of metal out of a bomb, and heated it up in the furnace.
Then he hammered it flat into a shape. Cut a slit on one side and bent it open for a tang.

Then he used the big press to pound it thin and shape the knife.

After forging the steel for a while it began to take shape, and then he moved over to the grinders, to clean and shape the blade.



And showing the basic finished blade. He said from start to finish one blade takes about 2 hours.

Here is his inventory to choose from for raw material.
The best shells to be used are the propaganda ones, which kept coming until 1989. Every so often they would send a shell over from China and it would explode 500 feet up, and rain food stuffs, propaganda, cigarettes, candy etc, kind of just to say we like you come to our side, but we can still shoot you. This game was played for many years.
Ive bought 3. One for in the kitchen, one for a keepsake and a small lock blade for my key chain.

Next i traveled to the far side of the island to the nearest point to China. There is an observation post there where you can checkout the view.

Long underground tunnels to it.


Then eventually you come to the area to spy on China.


With the binoculars it was amazing to be able to see as much detail as you could. Basically you can watch each other watch one another.

This post is still in use. Also close by is an old wall of megaphones used to scream messages at the other side. Big signs saying "One China, Two Systems" was lit up for a number of years. The Chinese government actually complained when Taiwan finally turned it off, because it was drawing tourists to the area in China.

Just in case your wondering how close I was, my cell phone sent me a message saying "WELCOME TO CHINA, PLEASE USE CHINA TELECOM FOR ALL YOUR NEEDS" It automatically switched my carrier to China. Kinda neat I thought.
You know your close to China when.....

Back through the low dark tunnels to the scooter and continue on.

Nearly all of the fields I saw still had anti-landing posts/ barriers up so that you couldn't land a glider or airplane on them.

Bunkers were adapted into peoples homes as an added room. Here is one as part of a barn.




Not all areas were scary and war like. Some places like Tai Lake were very peaceful, with lotus flowers blooming, and birds chirping.

My eyes saw war but my body and mind felt at peace and comfort in this place. It was a very strange experience, but one where I was very aware of everything. The people were very relaxed and laid back. The sights were a mixture of beauty and past wars.

I will never regret that trip.