Linda
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Post by Linda on Jul 9, 2023 17:32:19 GMT
Xiluo Bridge (西螺大橋) is a continuous truss bridge crossing over the Zhuoshui River (濁水溪) that marks the putative division between northern and southern Taiwan.  [Date of cancellation: 15 March 2023.] Initiated in 1937 during Japanese rule, the construction of this bridge was suspended after the outbreak of WWII in 1941 because materials were relocated and used for the war. It wasn't resumed until 1952 when the United States provided sufficient financial aid to Taiwan. Since then, this bridge has become a symbol of economic development in Taiwan (and of obvious influence and power of the United States in the Far East), and appeared on the 10 yuan banknotes at the time.  [Source: Wikipedia.]  [Source: Wikipedia.] With the advance in construction technology, Xiluo bridge has become too old to be used primarily for transportation. It has now transitioned to become a roadside tourist attraction and a local landmark. Many sources written in Traditional Chinese claim that at the time Xiluo bridge was inaugurated in 1953, it was the 'largest' bridge in the Far East and the 'second "largest" bridge in the world' next to San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge. However, I am unable to verify this information. The Chinese character used in this description is「大」, which is a very general term denoting something big / large /i.e. magnificent in one of the dimensions. It's not like 「長」that is about the length, or 「寬」that is about the width, or 「高」that is about the height. But judging from the fact that pretty much all the sources mention the length of the Xiluo Bridge being 1,939.03 meters, I guess it's the (total) length that was taken into consideration. The tricky thing about verifying this (superlative) claim is that there are many different types of bridge mankind has built, and the measurement used in comparing bridges differs from type to type. Golden Gate Bridge is a suspension bridge; the common measurement used for it is the length of the main span. Whereas for truss bridges, the measurement commonly used is the length of main span or the total length of continuous truss spans. The 3 digits vary widely in magnitude. If we are to consider the total length of the two bridges -- 2,737.1 m vs. 1,939.03m -- I find the latter rather too short to be the 'second longest' in the 50's. For the record, the Mackinac Bridge opened in 1957 measures 8,038 meters in total. If 1,939.03 was indeed the second longest, it certainly didn't hold this position for too long. So I guess it was just motivated by a fashionable sense of pride that Taiwanese should like to compare Xiluo Bridge to Golden Gate Bridge. |
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Linda
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Post by Linda on Jul 10, 2023 14:23:01 GMT
Sprawled across 3.3 hectares, the world's largest performance arts centre under one roof -- National Kaohsiung Center for the Arts, commonly known as 'Weiwuying' (衛武營) -- is found in Kaohsiung, Taiwan. Inaugurated in 2017, this futuristic building with an undulating roof was designed by the Dutch firm Mecanoo, led by architect Francine Houben who was said to take the inspiration from 'the sinuous canopy created by clusters of banyan trees commonly found in the region'.  [Date of cancellation: 14 March 2023.] |
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Linda
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Post by Linda on Jul 12, 2023 13:47:50 GMT
Holy Rosary Cathedral (Minor Basilica) founded and located in Kaohsiung is the oldest Catholic church in Taiwan. It was founded in 1860 by the Spanish Dominicans coming from the Philippines. The current Neo-Gothic building was built in 1931.  [Date of cancellation: 14 March 2023.]  |
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mberry
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Post by mberry on Jul 12, 2023 20:51:56 GMT
Linda ( Linda), would it be possible to add the date of the postmark for these, when you add future posts? I am trying to get accustomed to non US postmark dates and I am lost on these. If it is too much trouble, don't worry about it, just thought I would ask. Thanks! |
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Linda
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Post by Linda on Jul 12, 2023 21:05:53 GMT
mberry -- Sure, no problem, let me add them now.
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Linda
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Post by Linda on Jul 13, 2023 15:33:57 GMT
Yesterday, I presented the oldest Christian Church founded in Taiwan: the Holy Rosary Cathedral in Kaohsiung. But that parish church was rebuilt to the the current state in 1931, so architecturally, the building itself isn't the oldest church in Taiwan. Instead, the oldest church building in Taiwan is found in in Pingtung: it's the Wanchin Basilica of the Immaculate Conception, also founded by Spanish Dominicans in 1863. As the original parish church was destroyed by earthquake, it was rebuilt to a bigger size and its current state in 1870, making it the oldest church building in Taiwan.  [Date of cancellation: 15 March 2023.] |
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mberry
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Post by mberry on Jul 14, 2023 10:03:21 GMT
Thanks for adding the postmark dates!
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Linda
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Post by Linda on Jul 14, 2023 18:32:44 GMT
Dapeng Bay Bridge inaugurated in 2011 was Taiwan's first moveable bridge.  [Date of cancellation: 20 March 2023.] It's a cable-stayed bridge with a unique design. It looks like a sailing boat from the sides, and a letter A from the back. The moveable deck can be opened at an angle of 75 degrees, with a span of up to 20 meters.   |
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Linda
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Post by Linda on Jul 15, 2023 17:19:07 GMT
Hengchun Old City Wall refers to the remains of the walls that used to surround Hengchun castle town built between 1875 and 1879 during the Qing rule. Today, it consists of all 4 gates facing each cardinal direction, and a small portion of the wall near the north and east gates.  [Date of cancellation: 15 March 2023.] Both the cancel and the matching stamp depict the south gate, called 'Mingdu Gate' (明都門). |
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khj
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Post by khj on Jul 15, 2023 17:32:37 GMT
I just passed by the Holy Rosary Cathedral 2 days ago and drove over the Dapeng Bay Bridge (moveable deck lowered, of course) yesterday!
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Linda
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Post by Linda on Jul 15, 2023 17:38:35 GMT
khj -- You are visiting Taiwan?
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khj
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Post by khj on Jul 15, 2023 17:53:00 GMT
Yes. I haven't been back in 7 years. The airfare was ridiculous after COVID-19 hit, so I kept putting off our next visit. The airfare is still ridiculous, but at least stopped going up and they restarted the direct flights from my airport. Dislocating the thumb on my right hand helped, as I curtailed my stamp spending miscellaneous expenditures, so had extra set aside to cover the jump in airfare and my wife/daughters voracious appetites for Taiwanese/Japanese "food". I just sit there and watch, as I can't/don't eat most of the stuff. The only exception is I'm pigging out on Lychees (please don't tell my doctor, I'm pretending I forgot some of her diet instructions after my really bad blood test results this past year). Both my daughters are in college or medical school, so this may be the last time we will be able to take a trip back together. We actually had to stagger the flight schedule to be able to have a couple of weeks with everyone here. My wife wants to take my daughters to visit my hometown. I guess, so they'll know who to blame?  It's 2AM here. Time for me to hit the sack, as it's another travel day in the morning. Sorry to take your thread off topic... |
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Linda
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Post by Linda on Jul 15, 2023 18:18:29 GMT
Oh I didn't know you are from Taiwan? Which part? I was born and raised in Taichung City until 1999 (when the Taichung County was still a thing), but when I biked through my native city earlier this year, I couldn't recognise it -- Everything has changed. Most of the landmarks (like those that feature on the stamps/cancels) today are newly built. Even the older buildings got renovation and looked distinctly from what I remembered ...
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khj
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Post by khj on Jul 15, 2023 22:56:24 GMT
My wife is from Taichung. Yeah, Taichung has changed a lot, really built up and outwards. My brother-in-law has been living in Taipei for the past 30 years, and he actually got lost driving us from the Taoyuan airport to Taichung! We ended up arriving in Taichung 2 hours late. We got a good laugh out of it.
7 years between trips has been one of the longer stretches for me. Normally I return every 5 years on average. Not sure if pandemic or additional 2 years, but I would definitely say this trip I've seen a lot more dramatic change (last time I saw such dramatic change was between the late 1970s to early 1980s (and that change was not a good change).
Taiwan is definitely a lot more bicycle-friendly (in terms of recreational bicycling) in the past 20 years. I see a lot more recreational bicycling routes in the infrastructure layouts now. U-bikes are everywhere. Really massive agricultural changes.
I am from I-lan originally. But I guess they now write it as Yilan since the previous to last attempt at unifying the Romanization of geographical names. For those not in the "know", Yilan is roughly 75km SE of Taipei. I definitely don't recommend biking the mountain route (Taiwan Route 9)! -- Although I used to love the drive (don't know what it's like now). Yilan has changed a lot, and I haven't been back there in close to 20 years. Back in the 1970s, there was only 1 traffic light and it was flashing yellow all the time. Now, I don't think I could find the houses I grew up in without a GPS map.
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khj
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Post by khj on Jul 15, 2023 23:11:56 GMT
Anyway, I posted this in another thread earlier this year as well -- thanks for your posts. Really brings back a lot of memories!
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Linda
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Post by Linda on Jul 16, 2023 16:51:31 GMT
The main subject of depiction in this stamp/cancel combo is the Eluanbi Lighthouse located on Cape Eluanbi, the southernmost point of Taiwan. It was first erected in 1883, then was rebuilt by the Japanese government in 1898, making it the southernmost lighthouse of the Empire of Japan. Subsequently, it was destroyed by the allies during WWII, the reconstruction by ROC in 1947 would be the 3rd time. 
[Date of cancellation: 15 March 2023.] The post office clerk postmarked my drawing paper at a strange location, more in the middle of the whole paper. I wonder what kind of composition I can make out of this ...    |
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Linda
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Post by Linda on Jul 17, 2023 13:51:35 GMT
These stamps and cancel show the 'Frog Rock' that is located within Kenting National Park. It's so named because when looking down from a high position, the rock looks like a frog who is about to jump into the sea -- Do you think so? 
[Date of cancellation:15 March 2023.]  |
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khj
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Post by khj on Jul 17, 2023 14:57:20 GMT
I thought it was a stretch. I know I would never have noticed it unless someone had told me. You have to look at it from the correct angle. Add to that an implanted idea in the brain that there is a frog shape hidden in the rock, and let your imagination do the rest of the work.
Turtle Rock, on the other hand, is more readily visualized.
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Linda
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Post by Linda on Jul 18, 2023 16:39:34 GMT
The 10-km Yufu Biking Trail that links Yuli and Fuli spans two plates: Eurasian plate and the Philippine Sea plate. Formerly a railway, it was rebuilt into a biking trail in 2007.  I passed through this area of Hualien County after the sun set, so I don't have any picture to show how scenic the ride was. |
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Linda
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Post by Linda on Jul 19, 2023 16:14:12 GMT
Hualien Port Lighthouse in Hualien County was first built in 1909 with lighting equipments that were relocated from other lighthouse. In 1964 it was rebuilt in to the current iron frame outlook.  [Date of cancellation: 20 March 2023.] The black pictorial cancel is the special first-day-of-issue cancellation that accompanies the release of a new set of stamps commemorating Zhuyin, a set of Chinese phonetic symbols that is currently only in use in Taiwan. It doesn't has any connection with the lighthouse, besides that it was available at the Hualien post office which offered the lighthouse cancel. |
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Linda
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Post by Linda on Jul 20, 2023 16:00:58 GMT
Shown on this pictorial cancel, Dayulin (大禹嶺) is a mountain pass that transverses the Central Mountain Range between Hehuanshan (合歡山) and Mt. Bilu (畢祿山), within Taroko National Park. Administratively, It's the junction of Taichung, Nantou, and Hualien. As the highest point sits at 2565 meters, its surrounding area is known for alpine agriculture; Dayulin's high-mountain tea is among the premium tea produced in Taiwan.  [Date of cancellation: 20 March 2023.] The stamp on the left commemorates Hehuanshan; the one on the right Dayulin. Like last piece, this one is also graced with the special first-day-of-issue cancellation that accompanies the release of a new set of stamps commemorating Zhuyin, a set of Chinese phonetic symbols that is currently only in use in Taiwan, because these stamps happened to be cancelled on the 20th of March when the Zhuyin stamps were released. |
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Linda
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Post by Linda on Jul 21, 2023 10:02:07 GMT
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Linda
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Post by Linda on Jul 22, 2023 19:56:57 GMT
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Linda
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Post by Linda on Jul 23, 2023 15:38:34 GMT
Xiuguluan River is a river that flows through the Huadong Valley before emptying into the Pacific Ocean in Hualien County. It's known for being the steepest river in Taiwan with many rapids, and has become a prime destination for rafting since the 1980's.  |
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khj
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Post by khj on Jul 23, 2023 17:14:46 GMT
As it turns out, I was at Taroko Gorge last week! Near Yanzikou (Swallow Grotto) Trail is the Zhuilu Old Road Trail. This is a mountain hike that now requires a permit. While the hike is only a little more than 6km round trip, it is pretty strenuous along most of the route, taking you upwards of 3000'++ in elevation. The suggested allotted time is 4-6 hours. It took us 3hrs up and 1hr down, and that includes taking several hundred pictures, water breaks, and packed lunch. Hope you don't mind me sharing about half dozen pictures to add onto your already wonderful posted pictures/stamps. We started off about 50' above the river, going over a bridge. There's another higher footbridge in the background, but that's for a different shorter trail.  After the bridge is a series of several hundred steps. Several hundred other steps follow intermittently, but this stretch was the longest  After that is a combination of climbing dirt trails crossed by tree roots for traction, large rock pathways, small rock pathways, more steps, and an occasional smooth dirt section. Here is an example of a section of large rock trail.  As you get further up, there are a few sections of crudely paved trail or small rock trail, but no guardrail. Typically there is an almost straight to straight drop of several hundred feet in these sections. Most of the trail is at least 3' wide, but the narrowest parts can get down to 2' or even 1' wide (remember, no guardrail!).  But the views are breath-taking. Here, you can see the river and the road running alongside, far below.  I won't bombard you with more pictures. Just wanted to let you all get an extra taste of Taroko Gorge! k |
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dorincard
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Post by dorincard on Jul 23, 2023 17:18:38 GMT
Gorge-ous!
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Linda
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Post by Linda on Jul 24, 2023 10:19:01 GMT
khj -- Wow, the trail you took looks way more difficult than the Idas Trail (伊達斯步道) we took to go to Buluowan Terrace (布洛灣吊橋). I thought Idas Trail was pretty tough with all the narrow and steep stairway!
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Linda
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Post by Linda on Jul 24, 2023 11:12:59 GMT
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khj
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Post by khj on Jul 24, 2023 11:31:42 GMT
Great pic of the river, Linda! When I visited Yilan last week, I was shocked by how much it had changed -- granted, my last visit was over 20 years ago. Back in the 1970s, there were only a couple of traffic lights and they were set on flashing red. I had great time reminiscing with relatives about that. My original home has been demolished to make way for progress.  But I was able to visit my grandparent's house, although it has been sold to a new owner since they passed away in the 1990s. We didn't have a car, so I couldn't take the highway with the 9 switchbacks -- a childhood favorite of mine. One of these days, Linda, you'll have to go biking up that mountain!  Meanwhile, getting ready for the typhoon. Where's a typhoon stamp when you need it? k |
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Linda
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Post by Linda on Jul 25, 2023 15:41:09 GMT
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