So, flying from Vienna to Taipei might as well have been flying to another planet. Despite having been to Taiwan several times it still takes some getting used to. I spent a few days in the megopolis Taipei, before boarding a limited express train to the smallish (by Taiwan standards) coastal town of Taitung, home to many
Taiwanese aboriginals, and still cleaning up after the destruction caused my
Typhoon Morakot, one of the worst typhoons to strike Taiwan in recorded history, which hit in August. The pace of life in Taitung is slower and more relaxed than in Taipei and I'm enjoying spending a few days here relaxing, before I head back to
Shepparton for another season on the orchard.
The Tuna Cutter
Treddle Powered Singer Sewing Machine
Dealing with problem parking, Taitung style.
At the harbour.
At the Aboriginal Cultural Center.
Look out! Wasps as big as snakes!
Eating this tree is a bad idea.
They teach gambling at a young age here. 
After spending a few days in Taitung I started to notice some interesting facades on some of the older houses, both in Taitung and surrounding villages. They were all two or three floor houses and I'm guessing they were built in the 1960's or 1970's. Generally the architecture in Taiwan is really ugly, alot of unrendered concrete and bland tiles, sometimes the reinforcing steel is left sticking out the sides. In the past I've only really been impressed by some of the old Japanese era buildings, but it's nice to see that somebody was putting a bit of thought into the external appearance of houses back in the '60's too.
Note the reinforcing steel still protruding from the side of the house! And the later addition of the "tin shed" top floor. 
