Archive for September, 2008

Jangmi - Aftermath

Typhoon Jangmi came into Taiwan on Sunday, dropping lots of rain and giving me a typhoon day off today. I think the meat of the storm really occurred last night, as today was quite calm with relatively light rains. This gave me the chance to walk about Bitan, close to home, and see what happened.

Actually, this was taken just prior to the typhoon hitting us. As you can see, the rain was already coming down in buckets.

The cleanup begins.

The river must have crested at some point in the night. Even in the early afternoon, the debris showed how high the water hit, but it had already receded a few meters, though still high.

Some big stuff was swept away and dropped elsewhere.

Lots of mud ‘n muck on the walking path, normally a good three meters above the level of the river.

More big debris, left high and dry.

More debris. There fence which normally keeps people a safe distance from the river. The fence is lengths of chain, joined to granite/marble pillars. These pillars are bug - maybe 60cm across - yet some were snapped by the pressure of the water.

Nothing like a high, dirty, muddy river in which to go after minnows with a net.

Lots of people have claimed spots along the riverbank and set up a small garden. These guys are seeing what they have left.

There was a tonne of water rushing over the spillway under the Bitan Bridge. I can only imagine what it was like at the high level mark.

The water is already being pumped back into the river, the walkways will be cleared and I am sure that within a few days, it will be hard to tell that anything had happened.

Posted on September 29th, 2008 by Darren | 4 Comments »

Today

Well, I still haven’t been taking a whole lot of photos recently, but I was dedicated enough today to roll out of bed at 6:00am and try my luck. No great excursion was planned; I was simply going to head to a spot close to home where I have had good luck in the past shooting insects and bugs, then wander through the market close by.

Luck was not really with me today; both my “insect area”, as well as the market were slow. Nothing great came out of today, but it does feel good being out taking photos no matter what.

Here are some of the insects:

Butterflies:

These two are the same type of butterfly;

they look quite different with their wings opened and closed.

Skipper

Dunno; might not be a butterfly.

I am guessing it is, because of the shape of the antennae.

Grasshopper

Hoverfly

In for a landing.

Luckily, these guys tend to stay in one spot for a bit, allowing me to catch him in flight.

Common Flies

Beetle?

And some of the folks at the market today:

People working with numbers.

Butchers: Lots of fresh meat in Taiwan

Posted on September 21st, 2008 by Darren | 1 Comment »

Cao Dai - Temple of Colour

One of my very favourite stops on my travels has been the Cao Dai Temple in Tay Ninh, Viet Nam; not far from Saigon.

Although I went on a very touristy, very brief, bus tour which led me precious little time to have an authentic experience, I have to say that I was completely taken with Cao Dai. The Cao Dai religion, as I understand it, takes and holds beliefs from all the world’s major religions; Christianity, Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism and perhaps one or two more which slip my mind at this time. Aspects from all are brought into Caodaism, with the result being something completely different to what most of us know or understand.

The end result is the both the most colourful temple, as well as the most colourful dress amongst its adherents that I have come across. I can’t really get more into the details of the religion, but I am sure a quick google should help you should you want to know more. The end result though, under the one all knowing eye of God, is a fantastically appealing set of colours, coupled with the gentle welcome so common throughout South East Asia.

As as many temples I have visited, the aged are somewhat

overrepresented in terms of the breakdown of worshippers.

I always find the Vietnamese ao dai to be elegant and beautiful.

The Cao Dai version is no different.

Cao Dai impressed me not only for its wonderful colours,

but also for the great geometry of the worshippers and the temple alike.

With the very Asian looking dragons offering protection,

the worshippers should be very safe indeed.

Three bye three.

The temple band played traditional instruments as we were making our way out.

I believe that the colours of the robes are indicative of both the ranking within the religion,

but also perhaps related to the branch of major relgion which brought them to Cao Dai.

I could be completely wrong on that though.

This guard sat at the entrance;

I am not sure if he was there for security or to offer welcome.

Some photographic trivia: Tay Ninh was the sight where Nick Ut took the photo of a naked Kim Phuoc running naked down the street after a napalm attack on her village. For me, this remains as perhaps the most impactul and dramatic photo ever taken.

Posted on September 14th, 2008 by Darren | 9 Comments »

A New Purchase

Something quite different….

I have always been a bit of an audiophile. I have worked in the audio industry, always craved the best and even if I couldn’t afford truly high end gear, I built myself quite a nice sounding audio system back in Canada. However, since moving to Taiwan, the audio gear has been in storage back in Canada, my thousand or so CDs have been replaced by my iPod, and I have kind of lost touch with what was happening not only at the highest end of audio, but in the budget audiophile ranks as well.

Well after deciding that the sound quality of the on board sound card of my computer was no longer tolerable when listening through headphones (my usual method), I had kind of decided on a new sound card. Well, I thought, if I am going to spend about 2500nt on a new sound card, maybe I should give a little more consideration to a piece I have seen around town, but never really looked into that deeply. This is how the Dared MP-5 ended up on my desk.

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The Dared MP-5…Beautifully Simple

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The Dared is a really cool piece. It is basically a very small integrated amplifier, with a line level input on the back and a USB input on the front. Simply by plugging in a USB cable between my computer and the amp, I can now let the Dared make the sound I hear from my computer. Further, I can use my iPod or any other source along with the MP-5.

The Dared is an integrated amp, being able to deliver something like 13 watts per channel, as well as having a headphone jack for more private listening. As of right now, I am only using it with my ‘phones.

I have to say that I could not be more pleased with what I get for my money from the Dared. The sound is clean, lively and open; far surpassing what I was expecting. It is hard to explain if you haven’t had experience with tube electronics, tubes sound good and the Dared doesn’t dissappoint. For a pretty inexpensive, made in China piece, I have to say that the fit and finish is also really nice. The attenuator has a good, resistive feel, as does the source selector switch. The chrome is nicely finished, although easy to fingerprint and probable scratches easily. Nice touches are that included in the package are a pair of white cotton gloves for handling and a brush for cleaning out little nooks and crannies. Nice touches on a budge piece.

Since getting the MP-5, I have spend a lot of time, just relistening to old favourite tracks; it has reminded me why I used to enjoy music and audio gear so much. I guess now my next purchase will be a small, efficient set of speakers to mate with them.

Buying stuff is so much fun…

Posted on September 7th, 2008 by Darren | 1 Comment »

Smokin’ Mad at Ma

Strictly a vanity project…

We all have our vices. One of mine is most certainly smoking, just not in the way most who have the habit are addicted to it. I don’t partake of the death candles myself, but when it comes to taking photos, I can’t help but take shots of men while smoking. There is something about those little cancer sticks which make for great props in a photography to my eyes.

The Ma@100 demonstration certainly presented me with the opportunity to indulge my weakness. Here are some of the selects.