Rice is a staple food in Taiwan. By the 17th century, rice porridge, or congee, was already part of people’s diet here. Having a bowl of congee with a few savory side dishes early in the morning or late at night helps us get warm. In today’s Taiwan, congee has made its way from private kitchens to restaurants. As fine dining gradually takes hold, we now have Michelin-recommended restaurants which serve congee with accompanying dishes.
2016, the start of Taipei’s tenure as World Design Capital, was also the 70th anniversary of Taiwan Power Company, better known as Taipower. That year the previously unassuming main entrance of the Taipower Headquarters Building on Taipei’s Roosevelt Road was embellished with various public art works. Flowingly Blows the Breeze is a ribbon-like canopy festooned with miniature wind turbines and LED lights, which at night is transformed into a beautiful band of light.
The Dutch have proudly said of themselves: “God created man, but the Dutch have created land.” But here in the 21st century, the government of the Netherlands has decided to “return the land to the rivers.” They will restore riverside flood plains that for centuries have been used as farmland and occupied by residents, so that they can once again fulfill their functions of floodwater detention and storage.
A notice on the wall of the Taipei Metro’s Ximen Station declares: “Flood Depth Record of Typhoon Nari, Sept. 17, 2001.” Below the notice is a line marked “540 cm.” This high-water mark reminds us of the destructive power of typhoons. Unfortunately, Taiwan is well acquainted with natural disasters. In 2009, Typhoon Morakot caused landslides that buried Kaohsiung’s Xiaolin Village, and killed a total of nearly 700 people across our island.
In warm early morning sunlight, a throng of people with foreign faces congregates on leafy Zhongshan North Road Section 3 in Taipei. They are brightly and cleanly dressed, and they speak in Tagalog peppered with English. The shops and vendors are selling products and foods from Southeast Asia that are not often seen elsewhere in Taiwan, and the atmosphere is relaxed and welcoming.
The film The Day After Tomorrow depicts numerous disasters resulting from climate anomalies caused by global warming. At the time the film was released there was debate about whether or not this could happen, but today the scientific community believes that in the long term the possibility of global catastrophe is real.
Looking at Earth from space, more than 70% of its surface is covered by azure blue sea. No wonder science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke said, “How inappropriate to call this planet Earth when it is quite clearly Ocean.”
With three fifths of its land covered with forest, Taiwan is home to at least 5,188 different native plants. Not only has the island cast a spell on botanists from across the world, but locals have also been tapping into its woodland resources, making use of even the scents of plants.
2022 was not a peaceful year. As a consequence of climate change, extreme weather events occurred in rapid succession, and news of natural disasters arrived from every continent. Hurricane Ian battered the US and Brazil, causing more than US$100 billion of damage. Summer heatwaves hit Europe, leading to droughts and wildfires. Pakistan, meanwhile, suffered devastating floods that inundated close to one-eighth of the country.
For more than five years now the Vietnam Storybook House, located in Hualien, has been offering free Vietnamese language classes every Saturday. The teachers read illustrated storybooks, lead the children in games, and make Vietnamese food.
