I have no segue for that. I thought if I kept writing, one would come to me, but it just isn't. So, with our big vacation stretching out before us, yesterday we went for a hike up Yang Min Mountain. Taipei is in a big bowl, surrounded by mountains on three sides (south is kinda open) and we didn't exactly hike up the side of the mountain, 'cause someone had already put stairs in, but we didn't take a cab up either. Not like hiking in the Cascades, but it's a pretty good lifting of the knees.
This's where the fun starts. There're little signs on the steps telling you how far you've traveled. I forgot to get a shot, but after you get up the equivalent of a couple flights and you see a little plaque that says 100m you're thinking you're doing pretty good, until your guide-friend says it gets easier after 1,400. Then you start checking your watch for how late it is.
Just to point out, this isn't hiking by any means, but these're rough hewn lumps of rock. They aren't flat and even like a board, and they aren't uniform like stairs, you take one, then you might decide it's easier to take the next two, then there's a really wide step, and so on. I spent a lot of the time looking at my feet, just to check my footing.
I was trying to take a photo of the group as it came around this curve, but the gate is more important. I think this's near the half-way point, and we were making regular comments about living up here: groceries, coming home after a hard day at the office... but I think these were more farms than houses, but still, I wouldn't wanna haul fertilizer or seed up 700 meters of stairs.
The length was not well explained. I think it's like 1,400 meters linear, but then you have to rise 4 to 8 inches for every foot or so horizontal. That's a guess...
But the views said we were rising pretty fast.
We started after cabs hauled us up to the trailhead, of sorts, which was at the top of a long, steep couple of blocks, but walking up wouldn't 've been like climbing stairs for a half hour, forty-five minutes. But it would've made the stairs a lot more difficult.
At the top there was a long rough, dirt trail that wound around the top of the mountain. It had many vantage points for looking through the trees at the city and the valleys leading to it. This's Marie, Cat, Cyndy, and Fay (L to R).
This's what they're looking at. I don't know exactly what it is, but I'm pretty sure it's a temple. It looks like a really big temple surrounded by small houses, right? But it's actually a medium-size temple with many small shrines around it. I'm not sure, but they could be shrines of ancestors that people have put there. I'll have to get back to you on that.
It was, unfortunately, a really foggy day. Fortunately, it was only fog. It was around 55 F, so we were near the dew point, but I'm sure we're going back up there before long (read: before summer) when the sun's out.
This's the whole group, including Fay's dog, Runner. How apt for a dalmatian. (How do you tell it's January in Taiwan? I'm wearing a scarf!)
Cat's been sick, that's why she's wearing the mask. You can buy those things EVERYWHERE in Taipei. That's kinda the local answer to the smog and pollution problem, I guess 'cause people can't get decent catalytic converters for scooters or I dunno what, but it does make me glad we're not living here long term. I can tell those things would barely make a dent in your intake of pollution. I think Cat was wearing it 'cause it was chilly and she didn't want to breathe even kinda cold, moist air.
This's a Japanese temple, which's up on the side of the mountain as we were coming down. This's a whole history lesson in itself, about how the Japanese have colonized the island several times, and there's a lot of pop and historical Japanese culture here. I couldn't tell a Japanese temple from a Taiwanese tea house (well, I probably could, you'll see in a sec). I just liked the view and the ornamentation of the building.
This's the shot I really wanted. I'm getting almost good with this digital camera, finding a setting that tricks enough light into the system, assuming I have time for seven tries.
This's how I know the difference between a Japanese temple and a Chinese tea house.
That's right, the tea houses have signs. And this one just happens to be the Sun shine tea house. That was pretty funny. It's also a hot spring, which can be a little tricky, to stay in the mood for tea and good food in spite of the sulphur smells when you walk up the stairs, but hey! Free soak in the hot tub with your meal. We didn't ask about details tho'. That was silly.
But this was the view from the deck. We sat outside, 'cause we'd been hoofing it for more than an hour, so outside was pretty nice. There were New Year's fireworks off and on in the evening in the distance. And they even played American jazz most of the evening: Sinatra, Krall, a couple others I couldn't name.
I suppose it's not very Chinese, but it felt like the Christmas evening we hadn't had yet. It was very relaxing and the lights and the view were comforting. It reminded me of being in Arizona for Christmas, 'cause it gets cold sharply after dark, so that was familiar, too.
Fay and Marie after the meal. Did I mention I found a new setting on my camera? I have sepia tone, too. Black and white does make photos more interesting.
I don't think it was after ten when we got home, maybe eleven, I don't remember, but the New Year's celebration was still in full swing.
This's actually from the afternoon, before we left to go up the mountain, but it's never like this. Our area is a busy place, but it's not a major place for people to come in droves, except for one thing, the Long Shan temple, which in Chinese is approximately the dragon mountain temple. It's very old and very large.
This only gives you a faint idea of the size. The entire temple is one inside another, inside another. This's inside the main walls, but outside the building itself. I won't claim to understand much. We just watched. This orb, for instance, people walked under it, one at a time, to pray. For what I have no idea but prosperity, health, and happiness are favorites.
This ox-man is next to the orb in the temple courtyard; the courtyard was so big I couldn't take a photo of both of 'em together. And this's here as a representation of the year of the ox, I believe. We didn't see anyone praying to it.
This archway here, is the opening to the main temple. This's inside the building behind the orb and ox. What really surprised us was the complete lack of structure. People came, prayed with incense, lighted candles, put food out, stood around, talked, bowed, stuck the incense in a massive iron caldron... there was no sense of organization. Everyone (and there were a lot of everyones) was one their own schedule.
I'm not quite so focused on the Judeo-Christian system as to think they needed organization, but it was really eye-opening. People came, prayed, and then they'd leave. I didn't really follow anyone through their time there, we just wandered around trying not to be too obvious about looking, unlike at least one other blonde who just stuck her camera in the main temple room, but there was a Taiwanese gentleman walking around with a camcorder, so who knows what they think of us.
I watched several different people but only for a bit at a distance. The popular system was to have palms pressed together, as in prayer, with many lighted sticks of incense held between their hands. They would bow once or five, or even more, times, and then stick one of the incense in one of several caldrons and repeat. But there didn't seem to be a set time or bows or anything. It seemed like there were guidelines, but that was about it. Mostly, we were amazed by the numbers of people and the constant movement.
This was also interesting. There are many small rooms behind the main temple, which no one enters. Same as the main temple. People would stand in front of the rooms, as the large central temple, and bow and pray. I do not know details, yet. But I'm going to ask around, just because it's so unfamiliar.
The other thing I don't grasp are these offering tables. It seems very clear that people leave food on these tables, and there were a lot of tables set up, some full of food, others looked like they'd been picked over. Marie and I saw a few people taking things from tables, but we're not about to take anything. It was also unexpected that while there were lots of fruit there were also lots of conventional convenience things, like bags of chips. I couldn't tell if it was a metaphorical offering, or if the food was intended to be eaten by monks, people in need... no idea.
In a couple of weeks they have the Lantern Festival. This marks the end of the New Year's celebration. If you look back at the ox-man photo, you notice the wall next to him is covered in these yellow globes. These lanterns are way bigger than my head. And they covered the entire wall the ox-man was facing. I get the impression that many of these lanterns (not these, 'cause I'm sure these are electric, but like them), which are made outta paper, are put in the river, still lighted, to float downstream. We'll have to see that.
I did mention the fireworks, right? It's a weird combination, for me, of secular food and family and gifts, and prayer, with fireworks. It's not hard to put the secular and spiritual together, but the fireworks still throw me. I knew they all got thrown together, so it wasn't a shock, but it's a weird experience to live it in, 'cause it feels like Christmas, New Year's, and the Fourth all glued together. And it's kinda noisy in the evening right now, so I'm really glad we don't have to go to work in the morning. I think our neighborhood is more prone to fireworks than other places.
And this's the secular bit. If you remember the first photos I took of the night market in our neighborhood, this's much busier. They've stuck carts (under the umbrellas) in the middle of the street, and there are even more people looking at all the stuff. The up side is there's no way for scooters to get in now. You just kinda ooze along with the crowd, gawking and laughing at things like pairs of little battery-operated pandas with glowing eyes wandering the streets.
Specifically, I took this for my brother, who noted that in Russia, you could buy a glass AK-47 (big gun) full of vodka. I think this dragon should've been filled with sake, but that's more Japanese anyway. Whiskey is a favorite here. So if anyone needs a glass dragon decanter of liquor, let me know.
Finally, this's how the locals decorate for the holiday. I don't know exactly what this says, but we've been learning to say Happy New Year over the last couple days. I think this's something like that, good wishes in general. Funny, you'll see these ribbons taped on closed store shutters and such. It's a tradition more than lights and older than Christmas trees.
So, what will we do tomorrow? We'll let you know.
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