Noriko Fukushima on YUNLIN!

Yunlin: The holiday of a lifetime

Are you fed up with “flopout” beach holidays or irritated with long queues and tourist traps in popular tourist spots? Yunlin County is “off the beaten path”. It’s peaceful and full of charming landmarks for a relaxing short trip. And also, it’s an ideal land for a long-haul destination to share in Taiwanese people’s customs.

Yunlin County is located in the southwest of Taiwan, off the east coast of the Taiwan Strait. It is easily accessible by THPR(Taiwan High Speed Rail) which takes just 72 minutes from Taipei. See the timetable in THRS website: https://www5.thsrc.com.tw/en/ticket/tic_time_search.asp

Yunlin County is well known as 

the “kitchen of Taiwan”: its flat land is rich for agriculture with abundant water which supplies 40 percent of Taiwan’s vegetables and fruits. The following examples are some of its specialties: sugar cane, coffee, peanuts, black garlic and tea. Besides, along the coast of Yonlin there are excellent fishing grounds. Also, aquaculture industry is thriving: oyster, eel, prawn. 

⇒For More specific information, take a look the following video about Yunlin agriculture industry. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pfjNh6vPf68

Try a glass of freshly squeezed cane juice which is easily available  at street stalls.

Don’t miss the chance to purchase black garlic!

It’s made by heating whole bulbs over several weeks, a process that results in black cloves. In Asia it has been perceived as a health product, indeed it’s rich in antioxidants, but recently, it has become a sought-after ingredient in worldwide high-end cuisine.

Have you ever heard about tea seed oil? 

It resembles olive oil in its rich nutrient composition, in addition, it doesn’t contain any natural trans fat. It’s proper either for Chinese cooking or for Western cuisine.

Stroll through the Taiping Old Sreet (in Douliu City) where the neobaroque buildings of the Japanese occupation era are now converted into local shops and restaurants. It’s an ideal spot to meet the very caring local people along with the Boziliao Fishing port and Renwen Park Night Market. You’ll see for yourself Taiwanese traditional lifestyle remains there.

“Yunlin Fishery Assosiation Direct Sales Center” in Boziliao Fishing Port provides all sort of seafood to the public from 8am to 6pm.

 Don’t miss a chance to savour fresh-caught fish! 

The large and lively Renwen Park Night Market is held every Saturday night. More than 400 open-air booths are gathered.

Chaotian Temple situated in Beigang Township is dedicated to the deity Mazu: the goddess of the sea. It’s one of the most famous pilgrimage destinations in Taiwan. Especially, on March 23^rd of the Lunar Calender for the Mazu’s birthday it becomes completely jammed with thousands of believers. This temple is well known for its splendid architecture with showy ornaments.

Please go on an excursion to small villages of Yunlin County. If you are a tea lover you’ll enjoy the stunning scenery of tea plantations in Linnei Township. You can get the main information on the following website.

http://www.vrwalker.net/en/scenery_view.php?tbname=scenerys&serno=1082

Do you have a thirst for adventure? Let’s get ready to trek into the breathtaking natural landscapes in Caoling.

We warmly welcome your visit to Yunlin County! 

  

Postcrossing Meetup (Received Cards): CYNTHIA from THE USA

This poscard was sent to us from Florida, the warm and sunny state of the United States of America! It was sent by Cynthia, who lives in Jacksonville, 6443 kilometers away!

In the picture of the card we can see some laughing dolphins, reputed to be man's best friend (in the seas) and some sort of tropical cocktail, along with the motto: "Time to play in Florida". These images help to remember that Florida one of the most usual holiday and retirement destinations in the US, quite similar to the Spanish Benidorm.

On the other side we can see a beautiful stamp with the full moon on it, and a brief text that informs us that Cynthia is going to stay till the winter in Florida. She also wishes us good luck with our English lessons.

Thanks a lot, Cynthia!

Oliva Fraga on MADISON!

TOP TOURISM ATTRACTIONS IN MADISON

Madison is a city located in the county of Dane in the United States of America and it´s the capital of the state of Wisconsin. It was called Madison in tribute to James Madison, the fourth president of USA. 

Madison is said to be one of the best places to live in the USA thanks to its vibrant cultural scene. From superb events such as the wonderful Rhythm and Booms, a huge firework and music festival that includes fly-pasts by air force jets, to its first-rate museums and art galleries, Madison offers a diversity of attractions for tourists. 

In the summer months, the city´s extensive bike trail network is bustling, while others prefer sailing on its amazing lakes (Mendota, Monona and Waubesa). In the winter you can go skating or practice hockey, Nordic skiing and ice fishing. One of the city´s major claims to fame is its long association with famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Born in Wisconsin, Wright designed many of Madison´s most notable buildings. 

In addition to visiting the buildings designed by Wright you must see: 

* The wonderful State Capitol Building. 

* The Madison Museum of Contemporary Art: it´s the lifeblood of arts and entertainment in the city and is in many ways a piece of art itself. 

* The Chazen Museum of Art: permanent exhibitions include paintings, sculptures, drawings and watercolours, as well as prints, photographies and applied decorative arts. 

I hope you find this post useful!

Postcrossing Meetup (Received Cards): EBERHARD from GERMANY

We received the following postcard from Germany. It was sent by Eberhard, who lives in the city of Darmstadt, in Germany, 1554 kilometers away!

Eberhard is a teacher of natural sciences, so in the postcard he has sent us we can see an image of a local building called the 'Darmstadtium', which incidentally is the same name of a chemical element that was discovered by scientists in this city (hence its name).

The card informs us of this and of a few other aspects, and comes with a nice stamp as well.

Thanks a lot, Eberhard!

Lorena Costoya on CHANGZHOU!

Hello everybody! My name is Lorena, I'm 33 years old and I love travelling. I've visited so many countries and places that I've decided to write a blog with little entries for you to know about culture and things you can do if you decide to try the same destinations as me. Are you ready? Here we go!

In this occasion I'm going to write about Changzhou, which is a prefecture-level-city in southern Jiangsu, China, with a population of about 5,000,000 inhabitants. This city is located on the southern bank of the Yangtze River, and I had the great opportunity to stay in a little typical house with wonderful sights of this river. Just look at this picture below and imagine it. Waking up every morning with the sound of birds, opening the wooden door and enjoying the nature itself from your balcony, all in front of you. Unforgettable. A sensation of peace and carelessness will invades you immediately.

Anyway, it depends on the season you choose to visit this place, of course. I went there in spring, for me the best option because I hate the cold weather, and it was wonderful, with 15 or 17 degrees maximum. If you travel in winter, you will support up to7 degrees , and in summer is horrible, with more than 30 degrees, including nights! It's not for me!

Apart from the beautiful sceneries you find from your own room, Changzhou offers a lot of things to see and activities to do, from visiting the Ruins of Yancheng, the four pictures below, to going to the China Dinosaur Park, situated in the Xinbei District of the city. 

This park it a collection of bones and fossils of dinosaurs from all over China. If you enjoy more the religion, you have the opportunity to visit the Tianning Temple, one of the largest Zen Buddhist temple and monasteries in China. As I'm an enthusiast of this religion, it was the place I enjoyed the most. The feeling of peace and relax was really indescribable (sadly, I wasn't allowed to take photos of this beautiful place).

I don't know why a gorilla is in the middle of the dinosaurs, but all the tourists which visits the Park, take a photo of it.

For the least adventurous, there is another place you can go, with or without children.

The Dongpo Park, located in the east part of downtown of Changzhou city, is a typical Jiangnan Garden composed of cultural sites and natural landscapes with 2,667 hectares. If you love taking photographs or you simply want to forget that you are in a city, don't let it go.

The Old Museum of Wisteria is also located in this city, but I don't like this kind of tourism. If you do, you can find a piece of information in this link:

http://www.cultural-china.com/chinaWH/Arts/en/102Arts14217.html

So, friends, that's all for now. If you want, you can send me your comments in the space provided, telling me if you like this blog, if I can improve something, or maybe if you would like to travel but you can't, you can give me some ideas of places I can visit and write about. This way, you would feel as if you were there with me! 

See you soon!

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