Tuesday 29 November 2011

Good morning and good night 早安晚安

What a day it's been. I've turned into an ugly zombie. I've learned my lesson - I do need sleep and exercise after all.

Good night!

Here are time lapses of the sunrise and sunset from the rooftop of FTV today.



and


Monday 28 November 2011

Play hard, work hard 先甘後苦

The sky was beautiful today, so I decided to bring my camera gear to the office to do a time lapse of the sunset in between reviewing footage and writing and before dinner with Jack, an old friend who is in town.

But first, I went for  haircut, with my camera, tripod, time-bomb looking intervalometer, computer, purse and all. At the salon, I bumped into my friend Diana and we ended up going for tea afterwards. Tea stretched through the sunset and into the evening, so decided to go straight to dinner with Jack. We had a fun meal at Dancing Pig and I am 1,5 days behind in work. Body and mind were uncooperative so I only got half a day's worth of work done during the entire day. I guess instead of shooting last night's sunset, I will be shooting tomorrow's sunrise!

Today and tomorrow were supposed to be off days, so if I look at it this way, I'm actually not behind, I'm ahead half a day! Yeah right.

Time to get cracking.





Seediq travels 賽德克溫泉旅遊

Have you seen the award-winning movie "Seediq Bale" yet? I saw the first part and really liked it. Looking forward to the second, although I hear it's even more gory.







Canon Kiss X3 
EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM 
Photomatix Pro 
Aperture



A few weeks ago, we did a travel piece that's somewhat related. 

Here it is, in English and in Chinese.








The movie "Seediq Bale" has recently brought much awareness to the Seediq tribe and its culture. Practically just about anything Seediq these days is a topic of interest, including the hot springs in which they used to soak.

Li Ji-tian,Seediq Expert:
The Seediq lived in Renai Township. Nantou has the highest hot spring density in the country, and many are here in Renai. We have carbonic acid springs here.

Following a nice hot bath is a tasty meal made from very simple ingredients.

Li Ji-tian,Seediq Expert:
Food in those days was very simple. They ate whatever that the rivers and mountains provided.
If they caught a bore, they'd trade it with people at the bottom of the mountain for salt, and salt was the only seasoning they had. At that time, there was no refrigerator either, so when they caught a bore, they'd salt it to preserve it. That's why there is a lot of salted bore in their cuisine, and also shrimp and freshwater fish.

During the Japanese occupation, the Seediq decided to fight and to take back their dignity and sacred hunting grounds. One day, Mona Rudao, a Seediq chief launched a brutal attack.

After a second incident, there were less than 300 Seediq tribespeople left, and all of whom were then relocated to an internment camp.

If you're looking for a bit of history and culture to go with a hot spring trip, Nantou's Renai Township will not disappoint.


賽德克舞蹈表演
最近相當受歡迎
因為電影「賽德克巴萊」
越來越多人開始對這一個
原住民族群很好奇
想要更加認識賽德克文化

您知道嗎?
賽德克族其實很愛泡湯

賽德克文化推廣人: 李吉田


賽德克族住在仁愛鄉
我們知道南投是
全國溫泉密度最高的縣份
尤其是集中在仁愛鄉
這裡的溫泉是碳酸的溫泉

賽德克文化推廣人: 李吉田

原住民
他們都找有溫泉的地方居住
很方便嘛
我們上山打獵回來要洗澡的話
跳到溫泉裡面就可以洗澡了
就非常的方便

這邊的溫泉 是碳酸溫泉
水質清澈 無色無香
不過說到溫泉
當然也要來點美食囉!

賽德克文化推廣人: 李吉田
當時的料理非常簡單
靠山吃山 靠溪吃溪
打到山豬後就拿到平地
跟平地人換鹽巴
所以主要當時的配料
就只有一個鹽巴
當時也沒有冰箱
所以我們打到山豬之後
就把鹽巴灑一灑之後
就把它保存下來
所以我們現在就吃得到鹹豬肉
或者是溪蝦 溪魚

一些餐廳就從這種
簡單料理的原則
用著當地的食材
研發出原住民風味餐
菜色包括水蕨山豬肉
鹽酥溪蝦 蔥蒜烤雞
烤溪魚 烤香菇 
檳榔花炒肉絲 冰鎮烤地瓜
雖然冰鎮烤地瓜感覺
一點都不原始
不過冰冰甜甜的
很適合當飯後甜點
而且因為很健康
多吃幾塊也不會有罪惡感

吃飽飯 來聽聽故事
莫那魯道和賽德克族的故事
在日治時代
為了捍衛自己的家園
祖靈的獵場 族人的尊嚴
莫那魯道決定在日本人
舉辦霧社運動會的時候
帶頭出草

賽德克文化推廣人: 李吉田
1930年的10月27日

發生霧社事件
總共當時有六個部落參與
到最後賽德克族戰敗之後
戰死的大概有五百多人
剩下的五百多人被俘虜 投降
五百多人被俘虜之後
被集中在目前仁愛國中那邊
他們族與族之間有個對抗
他們知道賽德克族被關在
這個集中營之後
又發動了二次的霧社事件
殺掉了兩百多人
結果只剩下兩百多人
日本人怕說族跟族當中的矛盾
怕同樣的事情再發生
所以就把他們遷移到
目前這個地方來

您正鳥瞰著的就是
當時的集中營「川中島」
以前在山上靠打獵填
飽肚子的賽德克族人到了平地
因為不會種田
讓生存成了個大問題

賽德克文化推廣人: 李吉田
就是讓他們自生自滅

當然到這邊來 什麼都沒有
然後他要外出的話
也要經過日本人的同意
然後找到一個時間點
帶他們到鄰近的埔里街上
比如說採購一些物品
然後再回來
所以生活上非常有受到限制

被困在川中島 無法打獵
好在附近部落的泰雅族人
教了他們如何耕作

南投仁愛鄉
除了溫泉 美食
還有充滿了故事性的
賽德克歷史和文化
這次的旅遊行程 真是知性啊!

民視新聞 翁郁容 吳志鴻 南投報導

Friday 25 November 2011

Meinong paper umbrellas 美濃油紙傘



林榮君老師

我對紙傘,手工傘有很深厚的情感。住日本時,乾媽就是拿了一把有流疏的手工傘教我怎麼穿著禮服,採著高跟鞋走路的。那個時候怕得要死。不過學會怎麼走路,第一次到了京都發現,紙傘好優雅,好有味道。

但發現在台灣很多人覺得送傘,會讓人與人之間的感情「散」,但我一直想說這好可惜,因為雨傘,尤其是紙傘多美麗啊!為什麼不能送人? 

美濃油紙傘師傅們就教我這樣說:
傘的形狀是圓形,所以可以祝人事事「圓圓滿滿」
油紙的諧音「有子」,也就是「生子」
「傘」這個字裡面有很多「人」,所以可以說傘能讓人「多子多孫」




My apartment looks like an umbrella shop right now! The two in the back are from Kyoto - they're my first paper umbrellas. But not all of these are mine. Well, all but four (friends and relatives wanted me to bring some back for them when I was in  Meinong 美濃). The craftsmen, 林老師 and his wife 吳老師 are too busy making umbrellas, speeches and teaching to update their prehistoric website, so the latest designs are not on there.


So you see that I'm a big fan of 廣進勝's paper umbrellas. I use them rain or shine as an umbrella or parasol (dark ones I use as parasols). I also appreciate very much the couple that makes them. They do almost everything by hand, including the splitting of the bamboo frame. They are second generation umbrella makers, and now passing the tradition on to their son.

Meinong is known as a Hakka town famous for its paper umbrellas and large size ceramics.

http://www.shop2000.com.tw/美濃油紙傘/

Oh, if you visit the shop, you can also try your hand at making a mini umbrella or painting one that you can actually use later on!



Canon Kiss X3
EF-S 17-55mm f/2.8 IS USM (photos 1 and 3)
EF 35mm f/1.4L USM (photo 2)
Aperture

Symbol of love 真情告白

真情告白
Symbol of Love

Rukai (魯凱族) tribesmen give these to women to show affection. When a man sees the girl of his dream, he'll have his mother make one of these millet or black millet spray bundles. Then he'll give it to the girl and she'll hang it on her wall in the living room. If there are lots of them already hanging on her wall, then the guy will know that he has lots of competition, so a smart guy will first go and check out how decorated the wall is. If the girl and her family like the guy, they'll let him work for the family for a few years and then let him marry into the family later on. The Rukai tribe is a matriarchal society.

The black millet festival (黑米節) in Duona (高雄茂林多納部落) is this weekend, and visitors will get to make their own black millet spray bundles.

http://www.tipp.org.tw/calendar/2011/11/rukai_1.html

As for black millet, it is supposedly unique to Duona. The legend is, one day a tribeswoman went into the field to work, bringing her baby like any other day. She left the baby in the field like she and others always do and started to do her work, moving further and further away. But on this day, the baby disappeared. Everyone searched everywhere, but the baby could not be found. Days later, the god of the sea to the Rukais appeared to her in a dream. It said, "here is some black millet. When you have successfully made it into a crop for the village, your son will be returned to you." Decades later, she finally did it, and her son returned a grown man.

Today, the black millet is also used as a charm to keep people safe from harm, and is taken as a food. Its shell is black, but white on the inside. It is a glutinous rice and is chewier than most other kinds of glutinous rice.


Canon Kiss X3
EF 35mm f/1.4L USM
Aperture

Thursday 24 November 2011

Maolin Crow Butterflies 茂林紫斑蝶


Purple Crow Butterflies are starting to arrive in Maolin, Pingtung (屏東縣茂林) for the winter. From about 1000 to 1200 every day, you can see swarms of these beautiful creatures just from the side of the road. The trick to photographing these guys is to simply focus on one at a time and waiting until it opens its wings. They'll open and close, open and close. I didn't learn that until after we left. So no pictures of them with wings open. Silly me. You'll have to watch our news report that comes out in a few weeks.



Hanging out at the nectar bar.







Lunch time! 



Happy to see that our driver really enjoyed the trip too.



Canon Kiss X3
EF 100mm F2.8 L macro IS USM
Aperture

Wednesday 23 November 2011

Mahogany tunnel 桃花心木林隧道



Come walk with me, through this tunnel of mahogany.

 Maolin, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.

 茂林新威森林公園

Canon Kiss X3
EF-S 17-55 F2.8 IS USM
Photomatix Pro
Aperture

Saturday 19 November 2011

Saturday breakfast 星期六的早餐



Good morning! Having breakfast right now in between newscasts. How do you like my outfit today? I feel like a cute little schoolgirl.

早安!趁空檔正在吃早餐。
今天的服裝感覺很像私校的女學生,
挺可愛的!

I usually have a two-part breakfast of convenience store rice balls on Saturday. One at 0430 and one at 0900. My favorite flavors are salmon, salmon roe, codfish roe and o-inari-san related items.

一般禮拜六的早餐有兩部曲,
兩粒便利商店的御飯糰,
分別在0430和0900的時候個吃一粒,
不這樣吃,我會沒力氣播報。
一次吃太多則會想睡覺無法播報~
最喜歡的口味是鮭魚,鮭魚卵,鱈魚子,明太子,稻荷系列。



This is the travel feature we are airing this weekend.

這是這個週末的旅遊專題。

http://youtu.be/y7Eh9NzT5BE



Friday 18 November 2011

Judy Ongg 翁倩玉 ジュディ・オング concert pictures 1






This is the first of a series of pictures from Miss Ongg's concert with Evergreen Symphony Orchestra and other artists in Hsinchu County, Taiwan. The concert took place 11-12 November 2011, but these photos are from the 12th.


You can follow Miss Ongg on her Facebook page. These are all pictures that have already been published there.


I had only 2 lenses to work with:
EF 100mm F2.8 L macro IS USM
EF 35mm F1.4 L USM
and a Kiss X3 body, but I think I did OK!

Kind of proud of myself, actually!

More to come later!

Here is the news story from the concert and a preview for the re-airing of her documentary on FTV.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6TzaORJoAY


Thursday 10 November 2011

Lishan - Undiscovered beauty 梨山原來這麼美


http://youtu.be/iqbhAn_Cj4s?hd=1

This is only a tiny part of it. I would like to see more of this beautiful back country. Clouds and fog like this can be seen all year round.

Seasonally, there are:
Red maple leaves in Autumn.
Snow in Winter.
Ping cherry blossoms in Spring, followed by white plum blossoms, then pink and white apple blossoms.

Looking forward to the next time I am there.

Hoping that this little time lapse sequence (shot on my camera which is about to poop out) will make it into our travel feature.

Daddy, would you like to sponsor me for a new camera and a lens? *wink wink*


Sock zebra 襪子斑馬



How do you like my new desktop?

This is a sock zebra I made at a Changhua tourist sock factory, Loho Hosiery Factory Tours 樂活觀光襪廠.


Our guide there said that sock toys people DIY here usually ends up looking a little like themselves. You think this one resembles me?


:D





Socks/hosiery is the largest industry in Shetou, Chuanghua. 80% of socks in Taiwan used to come out of here.


Loho Hosiery Factory Tours 樂活觀光襪廠 (Springdex)
彰化縣社頭鄉廣興村中山路一段465號
#465, Sec. 1, Zhongshan Road, Guangxing Village, Shetou Hsiang, Changhua County
+886 4 872 0522


All photos in this post:
Canon Kiss X3
EF 35mm F1.4 L USM
Aperture

Wednesday 9 November 2011

Autumnal Passion 秋天的狂戀


Canon Kiss X3
EF-S 17-55mm F2.8 IS USM
Aperture

Talking about falling in love with Lishan! This is by the visitors' center in Lishan. It's just down the way from the roundabout, a little bit off the paved path.

If you 're looking for amazing, red maple leaves without a crowd, Lishan is a good place to go.



Canon Kiss X3
EF 100mm F2.8 L macro IS USM
Aperture

Tuesday 8 November 2011

Brrr in Lishan 梨山好冷!



We are now in Lishan 梨山. It is quite cold here (the red maple leaves say so too), especially coming from Taipei, where it was over 30C this past weekend. Now at 2041 in Lishan, it is about 12C. With no heater but a nice bathtub in my room, I think I'm going to have a soak, then crawl under the four layers of comforters and wool blankets.

Good night!

Changhua's Bawan 彰化肉圓



We're currently on assignment in central Taiwan. Today, we visited Changhua 彰化 and of course had 肉圓 bawan (Taiwanese). I'll usually have about two of those a year, or even less, but I had three this afternoon. I really was stuffed, but it was quite good! Bawan is roughly translated as "meatball," but to me, it's more like a dumpling because of the skin around the pork filling. The outside layer is made of sweet potato flour, which is a little chewy when cooked and holds everything together. First, the entire bawan is steamed and then it is then fried at a relatively low temperature. You can practically touch the oil with your bare hands and not be burnt. The frying makes the outermost part of the bawan skin a little dry and just a little bit tough, making it chewier. You can get it simply steamed or boiled in other places, but people in Changhua like their bawan chewy and oily. The sauce that goes on the bawan is also very important. There are two parts to the sauce. One part is usually made of glutinous rice flour and it is very thick and a little bit sweet. The other part is thick as well, but savory. Each restaurant has their own secret sauce recipes. Both sauces are dropped onto the bawan and the sweet and savory flavors mix in your mouth.



In this particular luxurious bawan, in addition to pork, there's also bamboo shoot, mushroom, a salted duck egg yolk and scallop. The sauce at this restaurant has peanut in it, giving it a nutty, almost sesame-ish flavor.




The young women in this picture are the great grandchildren of the man who first started selling bawan in Changhua. They were both studying in the States, (one studying to become an occupational therapist) but decided to come back when their father fell ill and thought about closing the store for good. They came back to take care of their father and to continue the family business of selling bawan. They said it's a tough and messy job, but they feel that continuing the tradition and the family business is their responsibility, and as far as I could see, they do it willingly and happily. I was really touched.

This is my cameraman who wanted to take a picture with them but was too shy to smile. Haha..


正彰化肉圓
彰化市陳陵路203號
+886 4 722 7868
They deliver!

Thursday 3 November 2011

FTV's Reporter's Day promo 民視91記者節宣傳片



One night after coming back from a days long assignment, a cameraman from the programming department came to me and said, "hey quick, grab a script and come do a voice over for me. We're filming the promo for Reporter's Day." Dirty, smelly and tired, I said, "I'm really not feeling all that pretty." He said I looked perfect and then dragged me downstairs. Now I understand the effect he was going for. He wanted to show how hard we work to bring our audience the images that they see. 


有一天晚上,剛出差回來
工程部的攝影大哥,星助哥說
”趕快,拿份稿子來過音,我們在拍記者節的宣傳片”
我又髒又臭又累的說,"現在真的很醜耶"
他說,”不會啦,這樣很好”
然後把我抓到剪接室去。
現在我了解他為什麼要我看起來那麼狼狽,
他希望呈現新聞工作者為了把第一手畫面帶給觀眾
真的很拼命。
謝謝星助哥!謝謝導演文權哥!

Wednesday 2 November 2011

Hello Bello!













We adopted Bello the Weimaraner from Sean of Animals Taiwan. It's his third day with Mom and Dad, and so far so good it seems. He's still getting used to the new environment. Apparently, these guys are quite smart. According to a dog intelligence ranking, Weims are 20 on the list, lower than Labs but higher than Boxers and Westies. But all of our dogs are smarter than average. ;)





http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ifSudReeuM&feature=player_embedded

These guys are really intelligent indeed.

Bello 今天晚上趁爸爸媽媽不在家的時候
從桌上叼了一罐XO醬下去
和Oreo and King一起吃香的喝辣的。

重點是,他是把蓋子打開的
玻璃瓶沒破掉喔。

現在三隻一起在拉肚子,
獸醫說明天繼續拉就要去打針了。

Here's Oreo wanting to play the first day they met, 
but Bello seems a bit too serious for such nonsense.

Photo info:
Canon Kiss X3
EF 35mm f/1.4 L USM
Aperture