Night scenes in Taiwan, December 2009 (台湾的夜景)

I spent the last two weeks of December in Taiwan. I didn't have as many opportunities to shoot as I might have liked because the main purpose of the trip was to visit relatives. But on three occasions I did get a chance to get out and wander around with a camera.  Check out my blog entries about my photos from the former gold mining town of Chiufen (九份), the waterfront town of Danshui (淡水), and the Shilin Night Market (士林夜市).  Or go straight to my Chiufen, Danshui or Shilin Night Market galleries.  Below is a slideshow combined all my favorite shots from this trip.



As usual, I really enjoyed my time in Taiwan.  I have a soft spot for Taiwan, having spent six months there in 1989, a year in 1992 and 1993, and made a number of visits since.  The people are about as friendly and reasonable as you can get, and there is a lot to see and do.  In some ways, it is even nicer now than when I lived there in 1989, 1992 and 1993.  The pollution isn't nearly as bad now as it used to be, the traffic is much better and the mass transit system has made everything more convenient, and there generally seems to be much more civic-mindedness, so drivers obey traffic rules, there isn't much litter anymore, and so forth.  I would swear that the food is much better now too, but maybe that is because when I was there before I was a student and couldn't afford anything but noodles and beer, and now I have the money for better restaurants.

While in Taipei, I had something checked out at the Taiwan Adventist Hospital, and was really impressed with how efficient it all was.  All of my appointments started right on time, the clinic seemed to manage its records well so that nothing was lost, and best of all, it was incredibly cheap.  I ended up having four appointments, and a variety of tests that I think in the United States would have cost several thousand dollars, but in Taiwan the total came to only a few hundred dollars, which I put on my credit card.  I kept all the receipts and paperwork, we'll see if my insurer will reimburse me.  I wish hospitals and clinics in the United States were as efficient, competent, and easy to deal with.  For its residents, Taiwan also has a national health insurance system that seems to work reasonably well.  It is nice to be someplace where the health care system isn't a complete train wreck the way it is in the United States.  I am sure the system in Taiwan has its shortcomings, but overall, what I saw of it was pretty impressive.

In Taiwan I also visited Hualien which was lovely, but I was too busy to get out and take pictures.  Hualien is on the east coast, perched between the mountains and the sea like Santa Barbara, and has a much nicer climate than Taipei.  When we were there, it was sunny and mild, just like being back in LA.  It is close to the spectacular Taroko Gorge.  Oh wait come to think of it I did take some pictures at the Gorge, I will get those uploaded soon.