If you ever get a chance to see a total solar eclipse, do it. Growing up in a family of amateur astronomers, I have many memories of club meetings where members shared pictures and stories of various eclipses they traveled to see around the world. Almost everyone would go to one, get bit by the […]
Category: Travel
A Visit to the Mountains
Given that we said our goodbyes and spent three days driving from Ontario only a few short months ago, we weren’t quite ready to go back home this Christmas. Instead, we decided to visit a friend of ours from our time in Taiwan, who’s now working in Calgary. We rented a car and did a […]
Checking out another province – Moving to Saskatchewan!
Well, we’ve started another new adventure – Mike has been accepted into the Clinical Psychology program at the University of Regina. So we’ve packed up all our things and driven out to Regina, our new home.
Taiwanese Reunion – Keeping it Weird in Portland
Friends of ours from Taiwan, Gavin and Pamela were planning to take summer holiday visiting Gavin’s parents in Vancouver, Washington. We were about ready for a vacation and they suggested we come and visit too! If there’s one rule for a good trip, it is spend time with locals, so of course we took them […]
Things I miss about Taiwan
This is a bit disjointed & disorganized, but I wanted to get down a few stories & thoughts about Taiwan before it starts to fade. So here goes – things about Taiwan that make me smile.
Missing the hot springs of Taiwan (and Japan)
A long cold winter has me pining for the wonderful warmth & relaxation that comes from a day visiting hot springs. My first exposure to hot springs was the onsen culture of Japan. Starting slowly, at an indoor facility in Osaka called Spa World (check out Mike’s review here), both Mike and I quickly got […]
Earthquakes!
Although there were (very) minor earthquakes while I lived in Toronto, I cannot say I ever felt one. My experience in Taiwan, however, was a completely different story. Located near the ring of fire, earthquakes are very common there. In fact, it only took about a month to experience one! I was so excited, I […]
The Effects of Altitude
Taiwan’s mountains are huge! Seeing the peaks poke through the clouds flying in and out of Taipei gives you a little taste of their size, but even more impressive is their highest mountain pass. The highest mountain in Taiwan is Yushan (玉山) at 3952 m, and the highest mountain pass crosses Hehuanshan (合歡山) at 3275 […]
Rainy Days, the Monsoon and Taiwan
The word ‘monsoon’ may conujure up images of warm tropical rains, however the term monsoon refers to a seasonal wind that reverses direction during the year. The summer monsoon is typically a rainy season, whereas the the winter monsoon is typically dry. This is because during the summer, the Asian landmass gets heated by the […]
Rain, wind and waves… Typhoons!
Typhoons are the the Northwestern Pacific’s equivalent to the hurricanes that occur in the Northeastern Pacific and Atlantic. They are formed when a number of factors (including a warm ocean and an existing weather disturbance) come together. When a typhoon makes landfall, it can bring high winds, torrential rain, huge waves and flooding. Heavy rains […]