Taiwan is known as an excellent place to study the Mandarin language and is also home to the world-class National Palace Museum with its breathtaking collection of Chinese treasures. But Taiwan is not a purely Han Chinese society. Prior to the 17th century, the island was dominated by indigenous people of Austronesian origin. Before the…
An introduction to routes to almost all parts of the island. Taiwan has more than 41,400 kilometers of freeways, expressways, highways, and urban and local roads. Despite the popularity of cars (ownership reached 322 vehicles per 1,000 people in 2014) and especially motorcycles (676 per 1,000 residents), much of Taiwan is served by regular public…
Imported players are a hit in Taiwan’s professional baseball league Professional baseball pitcher Zack Segovia says that the idea of playing in Taiwan’s Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) was first introduced to him in 2015. “I was playing in Mexico, I’d gotten released from Triple-A, and they said, ‘Hey, do you want to go play…
As more Taiwanese travel internationally, competition is intensifying in the nation’s aviation market. In particular, carriers are vying for a greater share of long-haul flights to North America and Europe as well as Southeast Asia routes. Amidst these market conditions, China Airlines had added Airbus’s new A350-900 to its fleet. The A350-900 is praised for…
Despite declining visitor numbers, hotel companies are pushing on with expansion plans. Takehiro Masutomo and his family enjoyed their Taiwan sojourn. A Tokyo-based freelance writer, Masutomo has covered cross-Strait relations over the years and traveled to Taiwan previously for both business and leisure. He brought his parents to Taipei for a long weekend in March….
If three solid months traveling around the island researching a new memoir/ travel book while introducing Taiwan to my partner Stephanie has taught me anything, it’s this: Taiwan marches to its own beat. From a massive spherical shopping mall to a humble countryside church that happens to resemble a gigantic glass slipper, the Taiwanese have a…
The island is a great place to view many different species of snakes. When the temperature rises and rain falls, the life forms that inhabit Taiwan’s forests become more active. Some expatriates might loathe Taiwan’s sultry summers, but for snake aficionados Bill Murphy, Hans Breuer, and Dane Harris, the season has definite advantages. All three…
Taiwan possesses numerous natural advantages when it comes to providing hot-spring resorts, spas, and medical tourism. The big positive to living in a land of volcanoes and earthquakes is the plentiful hot springs they produce. In recent years the springs have become a big draw for tourists to Taiwan. After all, what could be better…
Five of Taipei’s biggest and best temples illustrate the importance of religion to the populace, both in the past and in the present. Their curved roofs and overhanging eaves, gaudy dragons and almost psychedelic imagery, incense and incantations, mark out temples as one of the most distinctive features of Taiwan. For the Instagram generation, temples…
Once the focal point of hostilities between China and Taiwan, the Kinmen archipelago has evolved into a fascinating tourist destination. Wandering Cihu Lake’s secluded beach on the largest of the offshore islands of Kinmen, I am about as close to the Chinese mainland as one can be in Taiwan’s territory. I came to the beach…
