Another Yehliu (a.k.a. "Middle Earth") Excursion

"My precious, my precious..." Daniel does a great Gollum impersonation on the rocks of Yehliu.


Climbing near the all-seeing eye of Sauron. (photo courtesy of Gollum)


Marth the MIG (pilot) Man takes his cool helmet on the road. Nobody even tried to touch him.


Lisa "The BENQ Woman" displays her colors proudly. Peter must be very happy.


Don't try this at home. The idiot is me (Phil) springing from "Jump-Off Rock". In case you're wondering, we snorkeled and scoped out the area below before jumping. I appreciated having cheerleaders (and "nurses" if necessary) like Lisa and Beth below. (photo courtesy of Gollum)


Steve follows with an aerial ballet before plunging into the water. (photo courtesy of Gollum)

Paul shows a nice form on his jump. From the side, it looks like he's walking on water or surfing without a board. Having a view up close (cleft in the rock on the right side of the picture), I think I'm in a good position to give him a "10" on style points. (photo courtesy of Gollum)

Andrea inspects and gives it a good look before deciding to save the jumping for next time when Let's Talk In English brings along the TV cameras. Andrea, 加油! (photo courtesy of Gollum)

The "Middle Earth" crew (Liz, Beth, Gollum, Joyce, Lisa, Paul, Phil, Andrea, Gareth and Steve) pose for a group shot before heading back to Taipei. (photo courtesy of Gollum)

Souvenir from Beijing

Steve on his first day back at his post in the Taipei office, this time with new gear. I'm looking forward to seeing him hit the streets of Taipei (on his scooter) sporting this new lid. You gotta' love that cool face-shield. But, is it bullet-proof? Mmmm, I don't think so. However, since we're north of Taiwan's "Mason-Dixon Line", I think you're safe, Steve.


Linda models it very well. It looks great on her with the matching top.
Women in the military? Even female pilots in the Air Force? I vote "YES".


After giving up on Chen Shui-bian, Billy has no choice but to embrace the symbol on this helmet (ha, ha). Thanks for being a good sport, Billy. My apologies to all you DPP supporters out there.

Chinese Writing

In Beijing's Temple Of Heaven Park (天壇公園), this old man was writing Chinese characters with a large brush and water.


Now it's my turn. I start to write my Chinese name (劉建華). The old man compliments me but here it looks like he's not impressed, ha ha.


I wrote my name clearly, but oops, I didn't get the middle character (建) well-centered in the square. Fortunately my characters (top right) have already started to evaporate. Whew! That way, anyone seeing this can't laugh at them. The nice old man wrote my Chinese name to the left of where I'd written, showing how it's really done by an expert. Finally, true to form, he wrote me a compliment: 美國小伙子真棒 (Young American Guy is really good) Yeah right, 爺爺, but thanks anyway for being so nice. :) It was a fun cross-cultural encounter.

The Other Mr. Mao

This Mr. Mao needs all the help he can get in holding up a positive image.



However, the real Mr. Mao has no image problems. His name is David and he does a great job in ORTV's Information Technology (IT) Department. Everyone around here appreciates David (as you can see). Visit his blog at: http://blog.ladios.net/

北京 China Trip

Liz can't contain her excitement at being back in Beijing. Here she is at Qianmen (Front Gate) of Tiananmen Square.


Here on the east side of Tiananmen Square is the Museum of Chinese History/Revolution. On its front steps is a large countdown clock for time left until the 2008 Beijing Olympics.


This young guard stands watch just outside the Mao Zedong Mausoleum in Tiananmen Square. In the background is one of the revolutionary statues surrounding the mausoleum.


Linda, Hazel and Liz make a statement in an alleyway along Wangfujing Street


With Bruce Liu and the Studio Classroom Beijing office staff.

Jeffrey (left, front row) is a nice handsome 28-year old bachelor who was a great help to us while in Beijing. I have informed our Taipei office staff that he would be available to help improve cross-strait relations. :)


Liz conducts an English teaching demonstration for Beijing English teachers at the Beijing Institute of Education.


Hazel brings out a puppet during a session on using drama and fun activities for English teaching.


With some of the Beijing teachers who attended our training sessions at the Beijing Institute of Education. There were about 70 of them in all who completed the 3 day program.

Neihu Swimming Hole

It's not easy getting into Steve's favorite swimming hole. Yvonne can attest to this fact.


However, once there, one can see why Steve likes this retreat from the city so much.


Liz enjoys a quite moment.


Here's a video of the swimming hole featuring some good jumps by Gareth, Phil and Steve. The video and "battle scars" earned on the trail are courtesy of Jason Ball. Jason truly sacrificed and stretched himself to the limits to make the trip to and from the swimming hole. And without him, there would be no video here. Thanks Jason!

After Work Hike

One day after work, I took Linda, Campbell, Diane, and Beth over to Jinmianshan (one of my favorite hiking spots in Neihu). Here they are on the way up looking back towards Taipei.


Going up Jinmianshan there are several rocky slopes and sections like this one. Linda shows her great smile while Campbell steadies the rope for Beth and Diane.


All that climbing up was worth it. Perched on a rock near the top.


Yes, the wind is really blowing up here. Linda's smile is still great whether her eyes are open or closed. This angle shows Beth, Linda, Diane and Campbell on the rock from behind with the view out in front of them (across part of Neihu and toward Xizhi).

Scooter Trip

With Daniel at Fengguikou. Gotta' like the matching helmet and shirt he's got. Daniel's new at ORTV, so Jason Ball thought it would be good to take him on a scooter trip out of the city. I couldn't agree more.


This a view of Taipei from Fengguikou. The Taipei 101 is not visible from here. It's behind the ridge to the left and out of the picture. However, you can see the orange roof of the Grand Hotel. It's just to the right of center in this picture and barely over the top of the ridge.


Now up at Mt. Neishuangxi we can see central Taipei and the 101 building. To the right of the 101 is the orange roof of the Sun Yat-Sen Memorial.


Taking a break on Mt. Neishuangxi. Our scooters are parked in the background to the right.


Beth likes the scenery in Yeliu. Behind her is the nice blue water and a rocky peninsula which has a lookout that we walked up to. Daniel also liked the view of the peninsula from here but said he'd have to photoshop out the tower.


Jason Ball and I look like we're attempting to hold up one of the rock sculptures at Yeliu. We didn't dare touch the Queen's Head nearby. A sign there asks tourists not to touch her as her neck is even thinner than this similar formation pictured here.


With Beth's friend, Bobby (from Pennsylvania) perched on one of the "sponge" rocks at Yeliu. This is my favorite rock there to hang on to.

Good-bye Yvonne

A good-bye lunch for Yvonne at Fat Zhou's restaurant in Dazhi. She will be leaving for the U.S. (Portland) soon. At the table (clockwise from the left) is Jason, Naomi, Mary, Beth, Andrea, Yvonne, Lisa, Karen and Liz. Nice expressions from Jason and Liz.

More Funny English

What's this CKS airport display tallking about? Marijuana in Taiwan? Ha, ha, fortunately not.

A native speaker of English would know that "pot" should have been worded as "potted" here (for the correct adjective form). Quite obviously the translator didn't know that "pot" is slang for marijuana.

Macau

We recently visited Macau for the first time. The purpose of our trip was attending the Chinese Congress on World Evangelization (CCOWE) with members of ORTV. It was a good time of sharing and learning with Chinese Christians from around the world. We also presented some workshops on English Teaching and Evangelism.

Ironically, we were staying in the city's casino district. Fortunately, we managed to stay away from temptation and "Lost Wages". Instead, during our free time we made several trips down to the historical center of Macau. There we were treated to the legacy of Macau's Portuguese/European and Christian settlement. This can be seen in many of the old buildings and churches. Macau as a whole is place where East and West have come together.


Liz in front of the Ruins of St. Paul's. This is the facade of the Church of Mater Dei built in 1602-1640, and destroyed by fire in 1835. It is now a landmark and symbol of Macau.


In Senado Square, the urban center of Macau. The square is surrounded by pastel-colored, neo-classical buildings giving it a Mediterranean feel.


In Senado Square at night with Esther K. This picture was taken in front of the Santa Casa Da Misericordia (Holy House of Mercy). It was established by the first Bishop of Macau in 1569, and modelled after one of the most prominent charitable organizations in Portugal. This Holy House of Mercy was responsible for founding in Macau the first western-style medical clinic and other social welfare programs that still function today.


Next to the fountain in the Cathedral Square. The Cathedral was built around 1622 and restored in 1780. It has two matching belfries.


On the street next to St. Augustine's Church. It was first established by Spanish Augustinians in 1591. Today it still maintains the tradition of organizing the city's Easter Procession which comes right through here.


In the Protestant Cemetery behind Morrison Chapel is the grave of Robert Morrison (1782-1834) for whom the chapel is named. He was the first Protestant missionary to China in 1807. During his lifetime, he compiled a dictionary of Chinese and helped to translate the Bible into Chinese. Morrison helped bring the Gospel to China and literally paved the way for many missionaries who would follow in his steps.


Esther K. unknowingly walks into the picture at St. Dominic's Church but Liz doesn't seem to mind (ha, ha). This church was founded in 1587 by three Spanish Dominican priests who originally came from Acapulco, Mexico. Also, it was here that the first Portuguese newspaper was published in China.


No, we're not in Europe or the Mediterranean. We're in Asia. Liz takes a small detour on this side street, and it looks like someone needs to come and check their mail.


Outside the Casa Garden built in 1770. It was originally the home of a wealthy Portuguese merchant and later rented out to the East India Company. Today it is the headquarters of the Orient Foundation.

Hitler's Tea Shop

You have to leave the Western world to see something like this. Believe it or not, the tea shop's logo is a smiling cartoon version of the madman himself. The Chinese characters on the sign are a transliteration of "Hitler" in Chinese.

Steve's Waterfall

Steve and I went up the mountain looking for an easier way into his favorite waterfall and hangout spot. We ended up bushwacking down the hill, so it turned out not to be the best way after all. But we did have some good views on the way up.

We finally were rewarded with some cool refreshment. Sure, we broke a sweat going up the mountain and sliding through bushes on the way back down. But that just made the water feel even better once we dove in.

Good Food in Chiayi

Liz checks out fresh mangoes on the roadside with Shirley and members of our Chiayi staff.

Enjoying some of Chiayi's specialty dishes in a local restaurant. There's Shirley on the left with Hazel and Stephen (both surprised by the camera) on the right. Linda Ludwig tries to peek around Shirley.