Saturday 31 December 2011

這輩子還不完

有一次去吃飯,順邊幫Julie帶便當,爸爸就一起結帳結掉了。

後來到Julie家,她把便當的錢拿給我,我要拿給爸爸的時候,


媽媽對我說:喔對,還有你幫我買咖啡的錢要給妳

我:不用,上次的漫遊電話費還沒還給爸爸,所以這邊還有錢

媽媽:確定?沒有錢要講喔

我:有錢有錢,我還欠爸爸錢


爸爸:唉唷,不用計較啦,妳這輩子欠我的,這輩子絕對還不完

我:。。。



想了好久,無論是錢,時間,或者愛護,真的還不完。

那我要繼續用力欠爸爸!

I love you (as always), Daddy!

Oh, 不能跟爸爸太好,媽媽會吃醋。



Here's Dad in May helping me with a caramel ice-cream monaka that I couldn't finish.


Thursday 29 December 2011

Christmas for busy people 忙碌的東京聖誕節





計畫趕不上變化,變化趕不上一通電話。

Our assignment arrangement fell apart again and I gained an extra day to rest, making it what would have been a nice three-day Christmas weekend. I planned on sleeping all three days away, because I had not had a day off in almost 20, and the next wave is about just as ridiculous. Then I was summoned to Tokyo for Christmas.



It was a Christmas for busy people - work on the 24th, family day on the 25th and off to Beijing for Mama and back to Taipei for me on the 26th then Taichung 26-27th. We were efficient - went for a drive AND a walk! Pearl had Christmas cake and we ate smoked chicken with Grandpa for Christmas dinner. It was for sure a more meaningful time than if I had stayed between a comforter and mattress.






Now I'm back in the office trying to survive post production and attempting to make changes in our assignment planning so I don't almost blow a fuse every time we are on location. Ah, I miss home. Where is home? At the moment Tokyo where Pearl is probably sleeping on the heated carpet, where my suitcase full of presents was.








Sunday 25 December 2011

And the present is... 結果禮物是...



Ta-da!

It is a ceramic bowl I made at the Shuili snake kilns this August during a travel feature. Because it's thick and doesn't tip over easily, I used to put my keys in it. Now it's going to be the key holder at my godmother's atelier!  :D

是去水里蛇窯採訪時做的手拉坏。因為很厚又不會東倒西歪,我把它拿來裝鑰匙。現在要到乾媽工作室裡面裝那邊的鑰匙了!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6CYhljRB9bM&feature=youtu.be&t=3m33s

Saturday 24 December 2011

Christmas present 聖誕節禮物



Having grown up in the States and then having moved back to Asia, Christmas was the time of year that took a lot of adjusting to. The spirit of Christmas here is not so much a time for family to get together, nor a time to spend lots of effort picking out those perfect gifts for family and friends. It's mostly a couple of busy nights for restaurants and an excuse for marketers to launch another campaign. So Christmas for my family has evolved to something kind of in between - we spend time together if we've got time, find gifts for each other if we plan to see each other. In other words, "out of sight, out of mind" is tolerated, and celebrating the holiday is optional. But we give each other things throughout the year and have a feast every time we meet for quality time anyway, so it's really Christmas all year long.

The above is my excuse for doing only one present this year. Before I say who or what, please examine the present in the picture. I wrapped it myself. In fact, I made the wrapping paper too. It is one of my woodblock prints. Yes, thank you very much. It's a great way to reuse artwork in progress destined for the recycling bin. What is inside the box is still a secret. Well, it's also something I made. The answer shall be revealed after Mama opens it.

Ho ho ho! Off to Tokyo I go!

Canon Kiss X3
EF 35mm f1.4 USM
Aperture

Friday 23 December 2011

Lugang eats - rice noodles 鹿港小吃 - 麵線糊



Traditional handmade rice noodles in thick broth. Great with a little bit of black vinegar, cilantro and garlic sauce. No garlic for me, for I am allergic. Also makes me safe to talk to (unless I am hungry and grumpy).

Handmade noodles come in different widths, and give a nice touch to texture. I'm not a big fan of soup thickened by starch, but the noodles make up for it in this case.  :D


鹿港魚肉麵線糊,加點黑醋,蒜泥,和香菜很好吃~


麵條寬度不一,有的粗,有的細,口感好!
平常我不太喜歡勾芡,不過因為麵好吃,所以我還會再回來。 :D






鹿港蔡麵線糊
彰化縣鹿港鎮民族路196號

鹿港第一市場

#1 Lugang market
#196 Minzu Road, Lugang, Changhua

Canon Kiss X3
EF-S 17-55mm f2.8 IS USM
Aperture

Thursday 22 December 2011

Baolai hot spring travels 寶來溫泉旅

來去寶來泡湯,喝喝很「特別」的愛玉咖啡,嚐嚐梅精,還有到美濃欣賞我最愛的油紙傘!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yghPppG198I


a




And the shorter, English version.


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








畫面
OS/NS
onsen at night
高雄六龜的寶來溫泉,水色清澈,屬於中性碳酸鈉泉,您距離上一次來這裡洗溫泉已經多久了?這些遊客說,太久了!
泡湯民眾
氣氛好,風景和空氣也都很好,泡了之後皮膚也很好。八八風災後路都不通,不過現在復建之後很漂亮。
這邊空氣好,在山上,也養生。重建之後我們也不能一直往別地方跑,要來這裡支持他們。

寶來溫泉是南部的溫泉重鎮之一,不過因為莫拉克颱風,道路被摧毀,溫泉業者都大受創。而為了讓寶來溫泉加快腳步復甦,這群伯父伯母就這樣揪了團,殺了過來。

寶來溫泉讚!
主持人 翁郁容
很多人都還覺得寶來進不來,沒有溫泉可以泡,但其實路通了,而且很方便。看看最熱鬧的地方,寶來大街現在沒什麼車,也不用人擠人。現在來,旅遊品質剛剛好。接著我們要去體驗當地的名產,包括充滿了果膠的野生愛玉,還有吃了會醒過來的梅子。

寶來大街上有許多商店都賣梅子,各式各樣的都有,而且老闆號稱,都是「尚天然」。
梅子達人 鍾享桂
這裡一年產量差不多一二十噸。都沒有用肥料,很自然,也沒有灑農藥,因為價錢交給工廠很便宜。

隨便找家店都能看到像這樣的蜜餞,有紫蘇梅,檸檬梅,咖啡梅,梅子醬,大家大概一看就知道是什麼。不過,這一鍋黑黑的,需要不斷的攪拌的東西是什麼,您有看過嗎?要不要來嚐嚐看啊?
主持人 翁郁容
喔,好酸喔!
好酸喔。
可是等一下會,應該是你第一口的時候要小口一點。
不早說要小口一點。
醒了!
醒了喔?
醒過來了。

老闆說,這就是濃縮好幾十倍的「梅精」。
梅子達人 鍾享桂
梅精的製作過程就是從青梅七分熟的時候就要採下來了。不能全熟。梅籽去掉,把它打成果汁就一直熬, 從綠色熬到黑色,熬到凝固,總共要四十八個小時。一顆花生的大小沖150cc的熱水,它比較快融化。一天喝一杯可以增強你的體力,因為它是強鹼的食品。

連稀釋後用喝的還是好刺激。我們還是來點相較之下,比較溫和的飲料好了,咖啡如何呢?
NS
coffee grinder

,現磨的咖啡,好香喔。
咖啡店老闆娘 吳玉英
這一個是什麼?
愛玉。

?愛玉?!
咖啡店老闆娘 吳玉英
我們是用愛玉加冰咖啡。因為我自己也是喜歡喝咖啡,所以我喝咖啡的時候我就把愛玉加進去吃看看。結果吃了,,感覺還不錯。咖啡很香,愛玉又很滑很嫩,所以口感很好。

沒想到寶來也有愛玉喔。
咖啡店老闆娘 吳玉英
整個阿里山山脈,還有玉山山脈全部都有生產愛玉,所以從台東,從我們這邊,從信義那邊,從阿里山其實都有。
drink coffee, suck up 愛玉
原來如此。咖啡愛玉喝起來呢,蠻奇妙的,有點像在喝咖啡凍,而因為很「滑溜」,吸著吸著,哎呀,不知不覺,一下就全喝完了。
紅豆桂圓小米愛玉
如果想慢慢品嚐,這邊還有愛玉挫冰。冬天的時候,還可以選擇不加冰,直接加梅子,桑椹等配料。而這碗是紅豆桂圓小米綜合愛玉,老闆娘的招牌點心。
music


逛完名產店,嚐完特產,接著,想要來做點東西帶回家當紀念,就是DIY囉!
NS 搥搥搥


敲敲打打的, 這裡在做搥染,搥出自己獨一無二的杯墊創作。
搥染老師 劉秀蘭
要把葉子展開喔,不然搥下去它會糊掉。

製作搥染,一點都不困難,只是...
搥染老師 劉秀蘭
做好放在那裡沒幾天可能就有朋友跟你要走了,因為它永遠都是獨一無二的。

怕被朋友要去的話,那就多做幾個吧!
music


許多人到寶來,都會經過油紙傘最有名的美濃。建議您回程的時候可以停下來欣賞一下。
NS 開傘

music

NS 敲傘


美濃油紙傘業,日治時代到民國五〇年代最興盛,當時二十多家紙傘場,一年生產兩萬把以上,而製傘師傅,可都是「好野人」。
油紙傘師父 林榮君
紙傘那個時候是使用品,生產的量很多。一般家庭裡面有七八個孩子的很正常。有一個孩子會做傘,而且他是紙傘師父,他就會養活全家。

現在,油紙傘,則是一種手工藝,師傅們的使命,就是要把美濃這項百年文化,傳承下去。
油紙傘師父 林榮君
這樣就緊了對不對?這隻手要固定傘骨,對。繞過來。這個地方要截過來對不對?
對。
截過來到從這邊放下來以後,這個地方截斷,打一個結。OK 解決了。

傘骨的材質是韌性強的孟宗竹,傘紙則是先上過柿子水的棉紙。
油紙傘師父 吳劍瑛
那是柿子水,我們吃的都是紅柿子對不對?啊我們用青柿子。早期柿子水是黏著劑跟染劑,天然的。

遊客來到這兒,可以在黏好的傘紙上面寫字,做設計。上完桐油後,真的可以拿來當雨傘或洋傘!

像深色的,適合遮陽,而淺色,透光度高的,建議下雨的時後用。

每次經過美濃,都忍不住要買一把油紙傘,好啦,有時候不只一把。但它真的很美,古色古香。人家說, 傘的形狀是圓形,所以代表「圓圓滿滿」,而「傘」這個字裡面有很多「人」,所以可以拿來祝人「多子多孫」,還有,「油紙」的諧音是「有子」,可以跟人家說「早生貴子」,就很吉祥嘛!
music


很多人都覺得到美濃再上去的寶來,路還沒通,但跟您說,路修好了,今年山城花語溫泉季,寶來等著您來!

民視新聞 翁郁容 吳志鴻 高雄報導



畫面
OS/NS
onsen at night
Clear and odorless, neutral sodium bicarbonate hot springs is what Kaohsiung’s Baolai is best known for.
無色無香,中性碳酸鈉泉是高雄寶來最有名的特色。
泡湯民眾
The ambience is great, the view is nice and the air is clean. After a soak, your skin is nice too. After typhoon Morakot, the roads were all blocked, but now they’re OK, and this place is beautiful again.
The air here is good, and it’s good for health to be in the mountains. We decided to come here and show some support after it was rebuilt.
氣氛好,風景和空氣也都很好,泡了之後皮膚也很好。八八風災後路都不通,不過現在復建之後很漂亮。
這邊空氣好,在山上,也養生。重建之後我們也不能一直往別地方跑,要來這裡支持他們。

寶來溫泉讚!
Baolai hot springs are fantastic!
Michella Jade Weng, Presenter
There are three foods you can try when you come to Baolai. In the summer, there’s mango and towards the end of the year, there are fig jelly and plum, sour plum.
來到寶來,可以試試當地三種食品,夏天有芒果,而接近年底有愛玉和梅子,酸梅。

Baolai produces plums, and you can see them in all forms in stores around here - marinated, made into jam or reduced into this thick, black paste that will for sure scrunch up your face if you have a taste. 
寶來生產梅子,各式各樣的都有,醃漬品,果醬,還有這鍋黑黑稠稠的梅精。吃了一定會讓你的臉擠成一團。
梅子達人 鍾享桂
Jhong Siang-guei, Plum expert
You have to pick the plums when it’s not yet ripe. First we deseed it, then juice it and cook it until it turns from green to black until it is a paste, and it takes about 48 hours.
梅精的製作過程就是從青梅七分熟的時候就要採下來了。梅籽去掉,把它打成果汁就一直熬, 從綠色熬到黑色,熬到凝固,總共要四十八個小時。

Because of its strong alkaline characteristic, some people take this as a health supplement. But boy, it is really sour!
因為它的強鹼性質,很多人把它當做健康食品食用,不過,哇,真的好酸喔!
music


On the way to Baolai, you probably passed Meinong, a Hakka town famous for its paper umbrellas. You might want to stop by on the way back. 
許多人到寶來,都會經過油紙傘最有名的美濃。建議您回程的時候可以停下來欣賞一下。
NS 開傘


The paper umbrella industry here started about a century ago and the local economy heavily depended on it.
美濃油紙傘業,有百年歷史,以前傘業是當地一個很重要的產業。

But today, handmade paper umbrellas, even though still fully functional, are more of a novelty, and craftsmen continue to make them mostly to keep the tradition alive. 
不過現在油紙傘,則是一種手工藝,師傅們的使命,就是要將這項文化傳承下去。

The umbrella is made of bamboo and cotton paper. Persimmon juice binds them together.
傘骨的材質是只傘是用孟宗竹,和棉紙製成,柿子水則是黏著劑。
油紙傘師傅 吳劍瑛
Wu Jian-ying, Umbrella Craftsman
That’s persimmon juice. The persimmons we eat are red, right? Well we use green persimmons for this. In the old days, persimmon juice was a glue and dye. Completely natural.
那是柿子水,我們吃的都是紅柿子對不對?啊我們用青柿子。早期柿子水是黏著劑跟染劑,天然的。

After typhoon Morakot, the roads to, from and thru Baolai and Meinong were heavily damaged, but are now restored, making this area once again open to tourists.
八八風災後,很多人都覺得到美濃再上去的寶來,路還沒通,但跟您說,路修好了,今年山城花語溫泉季,寶來等著您來!


Wednesday 21 December 2011

Thoughts on recent media disaster 華視梁春姬事件感想

哇,今天網路上大家還是繼續罵。看到很多人寫,很多台灣媒體有多糟,台灣教育有多失敗,教出這樣的記者和媒體人... 更有記者說[就是因為這樣,我不從來不拿出識別證讓人家知道我是記者],其實看到這些,心理很難過。


不尊重自己行業的人還講得出來,做得下去,那真的很令人驚訝。不過看這麼多人一竿子打翻一艘船,也覺得沒必要。


我覺得華視利用這樣的手法不代表所有台灣媒體都一樣糟吧... 我認為連其他媒體都覺得太離譜所以也做這條新聞呀... 該檢討的是[每日新聞報導],不過台灣的[新聞專題]常常抱回亞洲電視獎,光民視至少就有異言堂和台灣演義在國際上被肯定,其他台也有不少作品入圍和得獎,所以[台灣媒體]不是整個都那麼的糟糕。我相信(包括我在內)很多媒體工作者這時候希望說:大家不妨看一些專題,或許您會發現所看到的內容有意義,有趣,也有水準。不要被部分沒水準的每日新聞影響而失去對台灣媒體所有的信心!

還有,我們假日的旅遊新聞專題也不錯看喔!!!


Here's a very rough and quick translation of the above:


Two days after the CTS news disaster, people are still ranting about it on the internet (in Taiwan). Lots of Taiwanese people are writing things like "Taiwanese media is the worst," "Taiwanese education is a total failure, producing reporters and media workers like this," and I even saw a reporter write, "this is the reason why I never take out my TV station ID and never tell anyone I'm a reporter." Actually, reading this really breaks my heart, and seeing a reporter make a statement about not respecting his/her profession and still continuing to be in that profession really amazes me too.


CTS's choice to present their news this way does not mean the entire media in Taiwan is doing the same thing or has the same values as CTS. The reason why the entire media is reporting on the fiasco and the criticism that CTS is being bombarded with is because they believe what CTS has done is inappropriate (I believe). Spot news in Taiwan as a whole needs to improve, but that doesn't mean the standard of the entire spectrum of Taiwanese media has gone to hell. Many of the features produced here have won honors at Asian TV Awards. FTV's Hall of Dissent and Taiwan History have won international awards, and many other stations and their news programming/features as well have also received international acclaim, so Taiwan's media as a whole certainly does not reflect what happened on CTS news. I believe that myself included, many people working in Taiwanese media would like to say, "please tune into news features, you might find what you see to be interesting, meaningful and well made." Don't let one TV station's disaster cause you to lose faith in all of the media.


Oh, do tune into our weekend travel features, those are pretty good too!


Terrible translation, I know. I should have rewritten. But I must get back to writing for work before I am fired.

Tasty fruits 好吃的水果



Day 16, 連上太多天班,EQ驟減,心很煩...來切水果!

Cooking (well, not really allowed in my apartment) or cutting fruit and vegetables are very therapeutic for me.

Here we have oranges and melon from my coffee farmer friend in Alishan and persimmons from Lishan that I got at the farmer's market last weekend.

這裡有來自阿里山咖啡農朋友(陳皇仁,他的咖啡真的好喝喔!)的香瓜和柳丁,以及上個週末在爭豔館市集買的梨山甜柿。

I love Taiwan's fruits!

我愛台灣水果!






養顏美容!

Plenty of fruit for breakfast, and then a nice, healthy snack at the office.

Ah, satisfied. Now I can sleep.

Good night!

Canon Kiss X3
EF-S 17-55mm f2.8 IS USM
Aperture

Tuesday 20 December 2011

Next TV interviews Judy Ongg 壹電視專訪翁倩玉

Judy Ongg 2 December 2011 interview with Amanda Lee of Taiwan's Next TV. The show will air on 22 January 2012 at 2200 here.

翁倩玉接受壹電視李晶玉專訪,2012年1月22日晚上10點播出。



Proud to say that I am getting better at taking pictures. Having good lighting and an interesting subject really is incredibly helpful!

More pictures at Judy Ongg's Facebook fan page.





with anchor Amanda Lee 李晶玉

and with producer Tracy Hwang 黃安晴




Canon Kiss X3
EF-S 17-55mm f2.8 IS USM
EF 100mm f2.8 macro L IS USM
Aperture

Monday 19 December 2011

令人無言的媒體作品...

我的媽呀


這兩天看了兩個讓我下巴掉下來的新聞片段


台灣媒體,可以不要這樣嗎?


我看過台灣好多好多很好很好的作品,但這種的也有必要做嗎?






http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxHAFR4s8k4




Sunday 18 December 2011

Persevere and hope for the best 走自己的路


Choose our path, persevere and hope for the best.




I'm a firm believer that we should walk our own path, do what we think is right and hope that one day we shall receive what we deserve.


(this is what I tell myself when I don't have what I want or have to work with difficult people and difficult issue...)


Walami section of Batongguan trail in Yushan.



我一向認為

我們應該走自己的路
做我們覺得是對的事情

然後希望有一天
會得到我們所應得的


玉山八通關步道,瓦拉米路段



Canon Kiss X3
EF 100mm f2.8 IS USM
Aperture