A Temple in Fanlu, Chiayi County

One day in May, I called my English speaking taxi driver and said, "Hey," (I'm quite the eloquent conversationalist, if you don't already know that ;-)), "I'm leaving Taiwan in a little less than two months and I haven't been on enough adventures. Where can you take me and my camera so we might take home more memories?" He thought for a few moments, climbed in the back with me and pulled out some maps, rubbed his chin and furrowed his brow. And then he smiled and looked up at me. "Have you ever been to Wu Feng's place?" Well, no, I hadn't. But of course, I always wanted to go there with folk lore and legend being high on my list of .. "Oh, tell me about it!" I'll post more about Wu Feng later, but this particular post is about a temple the taxi driver took me to on the way to Wu Feng's. If you've read many of my posts in this blog you have seen many temples. If you continue to read, you'll see more. They fascinate me. If someone were to photograph and document the stories of the gods in these temples, it would take years and many volumes to even brush the surface of tales there are here. With this particular temple, the photos I have chosen to post give a sense of the temple atmosphere rather than show many of the features particular to the temple. You'll see a monk sitting on the concrete in front with the remnants of fireworks from the previous nights festivities, close up shots of dioramas, the burning of incense, gifts for the gods, and some of the scenes on the roof. There are thousands of things you won't see. If you have never seen a temple in Asia, it is hard to describe the intricate nature of what you will find there.... everywhere, nearly every inch of the space. I hope I have captured some of the atmosphere in the photographs I've chosen to post.

Going back a few weeks

to May 12 and Lotus Lake. I am using the laptop tonight to post so this will likely be short.... the laptop has a tendency to suddenly erase a few paragraphs at a time. So far in this post I described a traffic accident at Lotus Lake and a ride to the train station I took with some local Taiwanese..... but.... the laptop decided I didn't need to elaborate, so that information won't make it to the blog. Instead, I will tell you about the strange sights at Lotus Lake. Ordinarily, this Lake has some unusual attractions that could almost pass as visuals at an amusement park. There is a huge dragon and an equally huge tiger at the entrance to some pagodas. Visitors walk into the mouth of one and through the rear of another if they want to see the pagodas and the art inside the pagodas. Strangely enough, I was really looking forward to that. But, during my visit, there was construction going on and I was unable to explore inside the pagodas or to even take any good photos of the attraction. Another large temple across the street was also under construction but I was able to photograph some of the architecture of the temple.... minus the paint cans and ladders and such. Although I was disappointed at the construction, I was still impressed with many of the other statues and pavilions out on the lake. It was very hot on the day I went to Lotus Lake and there was really no place for me to escape the direct sun.... so I didn't stay too long at the lake. Perhaps these photos will give you somewhat of an idea of what it was like at Lotus Lake. The bamboo you see along the dragon is scaffolding. That's the way it is done here....rather nice, don't you think?

Interesting day at school today

Nearly 100 degrees even before the fire.

Foguangshan Buddhist Monastery

A few years back, my favorite poet at the time was Adrie Kusserow. At poetry readings for Urban Spaghetti, I always read one or two of her poems, particularly, Hunting Down the Monk. There is a feeling quite like looking deeply into the eye of a bird in Adrie's poetry. I cannot speak or breathe for fear of disturbing the moment, nor can I look away. I learned a lot from her poetry. As an anthropologist, she studied Tibetian Buddhism and wrote about it. Not doubt that influenced my decision to go and stay the night at The Light of Buddha Mountain near Kaohsiung, Taiwan. The monastery is a sprawling temple complex which houses a university, meditation center, lodge and many artifacts. I stayed the night at Pilgrim's Lodge. Foguangshan is apparently the main center for Buddhism in southern Taiwan. I got scolded for photographing something I wasn't supposed to photograph. I'm not entirely sure what it was and I didn't even get a good photo. That's one of the drawbacks to being illiterate.... not knowing what is sacred in the temples. Generally, there are signs that show a camera with the "no-no" circle when photos are not permitted, but here there was no such sign. I tried to photograph the sunset at the top of the mountain in Buddha Land, but the trees limited my view. And what does one think about at sunset while standing amongst nearly 500 identical buddha images looking down the mountain and over southern Taiwan? Many things. But apparently, the wrong things in my case. No, I did not expect to find "enlightment" in any way, nor be inspired to write great poetry. Maybe that was my mistake. The following day I left the monastery a bit more relaxed, but none the wiser.

Ilan County (Yilan)

From Hualien to Ilan, the scenery is spectacular. Unfortunately, the train went through so many tunnels that I only caught glimpses of the ocean. The mountains are against the edge of the island which means there are sheer drops directly to the ocean.....hence the tunnels. Going this route by car or bus would have given a bit more of a view and a lot more of a thrill. If I were to stay another year here in Taiwan, I would request a transfer to the east coast. It is cleaner, has a cooler temperature, is far less crowded and the traffic is even slightly better. There are more earthquakes, but since the ground is more solidly rock, the earthquakes are felt less than where I live in Chiayi City. For awhile, I considered going ahead and signing a contract for another year here, but I know it would be a mistake. I need to return to the United States. While in Ilan, I visited the Center for Traditional Arts again, mostly to get another look at the puppets. The photos here are from the center. My camera was soon to break down and need repair, so photos are limited. Here, in Ilan County, I tried a soak in a hot springs. That was definitely interesting, though I can't say it cured any ills or rejuvenated the spirit to any great extent. On the top floor of the hotel was an aviary with beautiful and colorful birds. It was dusk when I went there, so the photos are not very clear. I will post one just to give an idea of what it was like.

East coast - Hualien and Taroko

From Taitung, we took a train up the east coast to Hualien, Taiwan. For this part of the journey, the train went inland, somewhat away from the ocean. I wished I could have gone up the east coast by car. This island holds enormous adventure for those people who do not have to travel by public mass transport. From the very beginning of my time here in Taiwan, I have wished I could have a car and a good map. My scooter is too vulnerable and far too powerless to make any long trip. The east coast is truly incredible. The photographs you will see here do not do the area justice at all. And, only one day was spent in Hualien/Taroko Gorge. I am told the Cross Country Highway is totally breathtaking. "Chicken" that I am, I think I would have to live here for more than one year to get up the courage to travel that route though, as it is a very hazardous highway, especially during rainy season when mudslides are frequent. We stayed at an artist's backpackers hostel close to the train station and had a great family style "Mexican" meal there(prepared by a young surfer dude with a gold tooth) with English speakers. Ha! We even passionately discussed politics and for a few minutes it was almost like being back in America. Art magazines and journals were plentiful as well as attention from a strangely manicured dog who seemed to know more about life in Taiwan than any of the humans wandering in and out of the hostel. As luck would have it, Amy and I shared a taxi through Taroko Gorge with a young couple from Hong Kong. This was perfect as English is spoken by most people from Hong Kong and the spoken Chinese, though not the same, is understandable between Hong Kong and Taiwan. After we visited Taroko Gorge, we stopped by the ocean and spent about an hour there. Taroko Gorge is quite beautiful. Yet, it is not more beautiful than some of what I remember from America. It is definitely a place to visit when in Taiwan.

'Round the Island trip

On April 4 I was in Taitung, Taiwan. I went with another Ohio teacher, Amy. We visited an active archaeological dig, something I have always wanted to do. It was in Peinan Cultural Park. The excavation there is ongoing and the ruins are said to date back about 5000 years. The Puyuma tribe lived there and a huge grave yard was discovered in 1980. After that time, archaeologists uncovered building and homes as well as household items. Unfortunately, my camera was beginning to fail and so many of the photos have lines through them. We also visited a temple and began a trip out to the Three Immortals bridge, but changed plans as we realized it was much, much farther away than we thought.

Long Time Gone

It is over 9 months now that I have been living in Taiwan. I will return to the United States in July. I've had many exciting adventures here and will no doubt have more in the coming months. There are many things I miss about my country. Some of the obvious things are of course my family and friends, my garden and even my car. Ha! But one thing I have missed most tenderly, is Heydude, my dog.