Tainan's Chimei Museum - A Must-Visit

On our family holiday back to Taiwan in December, I finally managed to take my two children down to Tainan for an overnight trip, with the primary goal of visiting Chimei Museum. If the name "Chimei" seems familiar to you, that will be because you have eaten or used a product or two made by Chimei Corporation.

Company founder Shi Wen-long is one of the richest self-made businessmen in Taiwan. Born in 1928, he was one of ten children in a poor family, and his childhood escape was a small museum in Tainan. Shi has fulfilled his dream to build a museum that is accessible to all. Practicing his belief that art should be a public good and not something hidden away in private collections, Shi has created a huge museum where people can see Western art without having to travel abroad. Entry to the museum is NTD200, but free to Tainan residents and to students.

In this video, Shi Wen-Long (now 90 years old) talks about his dream as a ten-year-old and making it come true:

This museum looks as good in real life as it does in that video. It is a journey into beauty and design. It is completely accessible. It is 100% child-friendly, and has many objects and spaces that are designed to encourage active exploration by children (and adults). The staff are knowledgable and proactive in getting everyone close to the exhibits.

Our Experience:

We took the train to Tainan and then transferred to Bao-An Station. This is a well-preservered station and we took time to take some photographs.(OK, my daughter took great photographs, which I don't have access to, whilst I managed a few snaps on my phone.)  It was a ten-minute walk for us to the museum. It was quite hot and there is little shade, so if you have young children, you might prefer to take a taxi.

The museum is set on sprawling grounds, with vast open space to run and walk and sit, with sculptures and fountains and open-air theaters to experience.

The temporary exhibit "Beyond the Shadows" has been extended until August 31st. We had A LOT of fun in this exhibit! From the more serious political statements to the frivolous fairytale dressup shadow roleplays, we spent nearly an hour in this section alone.

Playing with special effects created by shadows and tech.

Works by artists from all over the world on display. The introductory materials are all bilingual, and there is a lot of multimedia used to allow artists to introduce themselves and their work.

Using shadow puppet props, everyone can get involved in retelling the story of Alice in Wonderland. Become a shadow puppet yourself!

Chimei Museum not only displays the largest and most complete violin collection in the world. It also has a full introduction of all of the instruments in the national orchestra, complete with video introductions by members of the orchestra. Instruments are cut open so you can see the inside workings. Several times during the day, there is a STUNNING performance, where you can walk right up to the players while they perform, and experience music from right inside the "orchestra pit". The quality of the recording and the whole production blew my mind.

There are reproductions of European period rooms, where you can see how living rooms were set up during different eras, so people could enjoy musical performances in their homes.

The museum's permanent exhibits include "The Evolution of Arms and Armour" and a "Journey of Evolution". Notice how everything is displayed so even young children can get close.

There are two cafes in the museum. We chose the more family-friendly one. My teenagers sure did enjoy the pizza!

Umbrellas available to use outdoors.

We spent nearly the whole day on site. You could use the high speed rail and try to do a day trip, but why not spend a night or two in Tainan? We stayed at a very special hostel, Book Inn. I will write more about that experience later, but I recommend it, for adults, and families with older children who enjoy calm, quiet spaces. (They don't accept children under 7 years of age, and you must book one bed per person.)

Chimei Museum's multilingual website has comprehensive English-language information, including videos and virtual museum tours. Due to the changing nature of Covid-19 and related rules, please check there for travel and opening information: 

National Taiwan Museum Nanmen Park - History of Camphor

If you have been following my blog for a while, you will have figured out I am a little obsessed with the restoration of heritage buildings in Taiwan. My children still humor my fascination, and are willing to follow me as I check out sites, exclaiming, "Oh, that's from the Japanese Occupation!" Or, "Look at that Portuguese influence!" Luckily for us, government and individuals have embraced restoration and development of cultural and historical spaces within the buildings.

View from the street.

Quiet garden and fountain, nice for a picnic lunch, but take your own, there's not much to buy nearby.

We had not visited the Nanmen Park branch of the National Taiwan Museum before. The description of the building on the museum website naturally pushed me into going to check it out:

"The Nanmen Park is part of the historical monument reuse program which combines the historical architecture with the museum exhibitions.

 This exhibition hall retains the impression of the original camphor warehouse, so to make connection between the processes of camphor production with the history of industrialD development in Taiwan.

 The mottled red bricks that lined the walls of the exhibition hall whisper softly about the stories of the Nanmen Factory."

~National Taiwan Museum

You can read the full history of Nanmen Park here.

The museum is off the main road and very quiet. It has a lovely park with a fountain and fabulous toilets! Due to the coronavirus threat, the children's activity room and cafe is closed right now, but the main exhibit is still open. The exhibit space is fairly small, so young children can feel a sense of accomplishment in walking the "entire" museum, including stairs up one floor and back down the other side. Entry is NTD20 "regular" and NTD10 "discount". There are lockers available.

History of Camphor Exhibit:

This is the permanent exhibit of the museum. In this section, you can learn about camphor, early trade, and some of the developments and troubles this brought to the island. There is a fun setup where you can sit in an old street scene and "ride" around the district on the back of a wagon. I was more infatuated by this than my 13-year-old, who spent more time reading the history on the walls and studying the art than I did...

Temporary Exhibit: Drawing Nature

On the second floor, you can surround yourself with beautiful drawings of nature, drawn by Taiwanese and international scientists over generations. One of the treasures in a huge book of drawings of birds. There are also stories of explorers and naturalists who visited Formosa long ago, recording their "discoveries". It is a multimedia exhibit, with films, documents, and hands-on activities. There is enough material up close and down low to make it accessible for young museum-goers. (I always encourage families to take young ones to museums and galleries. Don't worry if young children seem to whip through the place, they are taking in what they need with all of their senses, and absorb much more than we adults can in very short amounts of time, with their whole bodies!)

Drawing tools and paper are supplied, so you can attempt to draw what you see in these beautiful containers.

The exhibit material is in Chinese and English, and there is enough detail to make learning meaningful in either language.

With the pandemic meaning there could be sudden changes to opening times, conditions, etc, it is advisable to check the website before heading out so you are not disappointed. It's multilingual. Click here for the English link.

Google map link here.

Wenshan Public Assembly Hall - Old Meets New

Well, it's been a long while! After five years away from Taiwan, we are back for longer periods of time, as we care for Ama. My children are both teenagers now, so how they see Taipei has changed quite a lot since my long-ago posts. We had a family trip back in December, before the craziness of the pandemic, and I would like to share some of our discoveries.

I'd been admiring the restoration of this building for many years but never been in. We had some time after doing admin at the Wenshan District Office across the road, so we decided to go in and take a look around. This building is an impressive example of the restoration of heritage buildings in order to serve modern purposes and to keep architectural history alive. Undiscovered Taipei has a thorough description of the process of restoration and how important it is for districts to keep their heritage buildings: https://www.travel.taipei/en/attraction/details/690

Of particular interest to my children were the art exhibitions and regular community classes held in the building. They hold weekly art classes, for example. If you are a Muzha resident, I recommend you stop by to check out the beautiful Japanese garden and tatami rooms and to see whether any of the community classes suit your interests. During this period of coronavirus, you can stop outside and admire the architecture and plants. It is a very good photography subject.

Address: No. 189, Section 3, Muzha Road, Wenshan District, Taipei (opposite Wenshan District Office)

Open Monday to Saturday, 9am to 5pm

Self-promotion: new anthology of Taiwan Stories on Amazon

Last week, I became a published author, in an anthology of eight stories.

This collection is a mix of genres including fantasy, speculative fiction, and romance. I have been involved the entire process and I am proud of the result. It is a book for adults.

Please take a look, download the sample, buy if you like it, and share with friends. Leave a review on Amazon or comment here. Writers need feedback from readers!

5th Anniversary of Red Room - Huge Afternoon and Evening Event

Join us in celebrating the Red Room's 5th anniversary!
參加紅房五週年慶祝日

11/15, 1-9pm
華山文創園區舉辦 中館3-1
Huashan Creative Park, Zhong Guan 3-1 Warehouse

八德路一段1號, Taipei, Taiwan
No.1, Sec. 1, Bade Road, Taipei

In celebration of all the kind, magical artistry and the quirky, warm souls that have joined together through these past 5 years to support and continuously create the Red Room, we will be celebrating our anniversary on November 15th, 2014.

The anniversary will be held at the Huashan Cultural Park from 1-9 pm. Beginning with Stage Time & Juice activities in the early afternoon, we will follow up with four bands performing live music with food and drink on offer. An R4 production will launch the evening and the rest of the night will follow with a Stage Time & Wine session.

在如此多樣化種類的活動、充滿神奇藝術性、又加入離奇的氣氛、同時不忘了溫馨的心靈，我們和一路支持我們的朋友，齊聚一堂慶祝紅房五週年生日。我們會在 11/15 慶祝週年日。

這 次週年生日會在華山文創園區舉辦，從 1pm - 9pm，從 Stage Time & Juice 下午青年活動，一路到四個現場表演團體演出伴隨著飲料和食物提供。而紅房新廣播劇場也會帶來夜晚表演活動，一直到揭開 Stage Time & Wine 活動。


PROGRAM 節目單:

1:00 pm -3:00 pm Stage Time & Juice
Children are invited to our multicultural platform where they can listen to stories, share their talents and learn from creative-minded people. Come take a seat, sip some juice and share with the Stage Time and Juice family.

Children’s Activities including 蕭爾呈 magician, puppet show, poetry, music and dance.
孩子們的多元文化舞台，讓他們可以聆聽故事、分享他們的專長，以及從聰明有想法的朋友學習。來這邊取得一個座位，喝的果汁和其他家庭一塊分享。孩子活動包含表演、布偶戲、詩詞、歌曲和舞蹈。

3:30pm – 6:00 pm Music Bands Performance 音樂團表演

Future Lands (String Quartet)
Young David 青春大衛
Red Cliff
6:10 to 7:00 pm Red Room Radio Redux performance 紅房新廣播劇場表演
THE MOST DANGEROUS GAME by Richard Connell
“The world is made up of two classes—the hunters and the prey.”

7:30 pm – 9:00 pm Stage Time & Wine
STW is a monthly spoken word event hosted by the Red Room. We meet to sit and listen, beyond language, to what is around us, to the one sharing. We also meet to be heard.
Stage Time & Wine session will be open for registration via this link (http://goo.gl/forms/V7LyMU7egB) or on the Red Room Facebook page.

入場票資訊:


紅房五週年慶祝日
日期： 11 月 15 日。
地點：華山文創園區，中館 3-1。
時間：1pm - 9pm
在 11/5 前預購門票每張 NT$350。(http://www.accupass.com/go/redroom5)
門口售成人票每張 NT$400。兒童票十二歲以下 NT$300
門票會包含飲料與一份輕食，吃喝將由 Alchemist Superfoods 和 Ron Bar + Cafe 提供, Lutetia, JB’s Diner。

Ticket info:
Pre-register here before November 5, 2014, NT$350 each. (http://www.accupass.com/go/redroom5)
At the door, NT$ 400 per Adult. NT$300 per child under 12 yrs.
Ticket price includes one free drink and one light snack. Food and drink provided by Alchemist Superfoods, Ron Bar + Cafe, Lutetia and JB's Diner

Mandarin Books for Kids - I Finally Chose Good!

I've been slower than a tortoise when it comes to finding fun, inspiring books for my children that are written Mandarin.

Last week, I finally got up the courage to ask the young man at Hess Bookstore, "What do you read?  What do you recommend as reading for my children, who love reading, if it is not in Mandarin?"

I invested some money in a few titles from different series.  This included the Kano 3-comic set, books introducing local and international geography and history in interesting ways, and poems and stories by one of Taiwan's favorite children's poets.

My kids devoured every single one of the books you see in these photos, and are waiting for me to earn enough money to complete the sets. I photographed them so you can simply show this post to people in your local bookstore or library.  I will try to get a list of titles and authors together, but I am so excited by my own discoveries, I want to post this up right away, even with a sideways photograph.

Vocal Lesson Recommendation: Sean Wong (Taipei)

It seems I am raising a future blogger.  My son wrote this concise recommendation for his vocal coach: http://cubscouterblog.wordpress.com/2014/08/04/seans-singing-class/

As a mom of a boy who loves to perform, I am feeling extremely grateful for the opportunities that have come by our family this year.  One big spin-off from my son's role in Zeelandia is the connections we made here in Taipei.  Kyle's lessons with Sean Wong is one very good example. Sean is great with kids. He treats them as young professionals. He sets high standards and lets them take part in the decision-making process.

You can contact Sean directly for more information. He teaches children and adults.  info@seancswong.com

Sean's music website for reference: http://www.seancswong.com/