YeinJee's Asian blog

Asian Culture, Lifestyle and Entertainment

Taipei City

Tuan-Yuan pandas meet visitors in Taipei

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A pair of pandas donated by China to Taiwan made their debut at Taipei City Zoo following an opening event by Taiwanese President Ma Ying Jiu on January 24th.

Giant panda in Taipei City Zoo
Taiwanese President with the first group of panda’s visitors (Image from Xinhuanet)

The pandas, named Tuan-Tuan and Yuan-Yuan (Tuan-Yuan means Reunion in Chinese), arrived in Taiwan in late December 2008 and underwent a month long quarantine before being officially introduced to the public. A group of 500 orphans and underprivileged kids were the first group of visitors.

The panda diplomacy is seen as a huge leap of relationship between the two political entities. China first suggested the donation in 2005 but was rejected by Taiwan’s leadership back then, but the idea was embraced in 2008 with the change of Taiwanese presidency.

Golden Bell Awards 2008

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The 43rd Golden Bell Awards were presented in Taipei on Friday (Oct 31); Golden Bell is Taiwan’s most prestigious radio and television broadcasting awards.

“Fated to Love You” won the best drama series as expected; Ariel Lin was crowned the best actress (in drama series) with “They Kiss Again”; while Jacky Wu and A-Ya claimed the best variety show hosts award with “Guess Guess Guess”.

Other winners are relatively unknown; couldn’t recognise most of the names to be frank. Sharing a few red carpet pics (from Sohu) instead…

The emcees – Patty Ho, Jacky Wu and Tian Xin

Picture of Taiwanese stars Patty Ho, Jacky Wu and Tian Xin at Golden Bell Awards 2008 in Taipei

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Amazing Race Asia 3 – Ep 4 & 5 – Taipei

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Interesting culture and places in Taipei, Taiwan; as featured in the 4th and 5th episode of The Amazing Race Asia (TARA) season 3.

Ximending, Taipei

Ximending is one of the most bustling areas in Taipei with a mixture of new and old culture.

You can find the latest trends and hype in Ximending… fashion, books, entertainment, cosplay, games etc; and on contrary also home to some of the oldest shops and restaurants in Taipei.

Ximending is also a popular place for celebrities to hold fans meeting or small concerts.

Picture of Ximending in Taipei, Taiwan
Ximending in a relatively quiet night (Image by Kok)

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World record for simultaneous foot massage

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2016 participants (1008 reflexologists and 1008 tourists) have set a new Guinness World Record in Taiwan on July 1 for having “most people receiving foot massage (reflexology) simultaneously.”

Tourists who volunteered for the event came from various countries, including Japan, Korea, Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong etc.

World record for most people receiving foot massage (reflexology) simultaneously in Taiwan
The world record attempt at Taipei Arena, Taiwan (Image from Huaxia)

The attempt was organised by Taiwan Tourism Bureau to promote health tourism Reflexology is a popular practice in Taiwan for relaxation and improving general health; the activity is gaining popularity among foreign tourists in recent years.

There were no previous attempts made on this category; Guinness have set the requirement to have at least 400 participants with treatment for at least five minutes on each foot… which were met by the folks without much sweat.

Vintage town of Jiufen, Taiwan

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Jiufen (or Jioufen) is a small town in northern Taiwan famous for its nostalgic old street, food and ocean view. Jiufen was a prosperous gold mining town since 1890s but its popularity faded as the gold resource was depleting since 1950s.

Jiufen was given a new life in 1989 when award winning movie “A City of Sadness” (directed by Hou Hsiao Hsien and starred Tony Leung etc.) was filmed there. Jiufen has become a popular tourist spot since then and a favourite weekend getaway location for Taipei folks.

Filming location for A City of Sadness in Jiufen, Taiwan
The most iconic spot in Jiufen, made famous by A City of Sadness

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