The sharper edge to traveling in Asia

Archive for the 'Shopping & Fashion' Category

WoWasis Taiwan shopping tip: buy a Fucashun multilingual world globe

Looking for something extraordinary to bring back home with you coming back from Taiwan? How about a Fucashun Chinese-English world globe? We here at WoWasis, think there’s nothing like having a real globe at home and work. Atlases and internet graphics can never truly portray the scope and distance of various countries and world geographical […]

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Fortunes won and lost below the streets of Taipei

One of the hottest commercial scenes going on in Taipei happens every night at the underground transit mall running between Taipei’s train and bus, and MRT Metro stations, right under Zhongxiao Road. Known in English as the Station Front Metro Mall, some of the best action here seems to occur between the Z4 and Z6 […]

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WoWasis ranks English bookstores in Taipei

Even though Taiwanese are voracious readers, most Taiwanese bookshops have little for westerners wanting to read in English. We’ve visited four bookstores in Taipei that offer — in varying degrees, books for western readers. Here at WoWasis, our focus is on bookstores that offer books in English on Taiwanese culture and history. Navigating these stores […]

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Sculptural furniture from Taiwan that’s standing Asia on its ear

Here at WoWasis, we’ve found great art in so many far-flung areas of the globe that seemingly nothing surprises us anymore. Artists and artisans can’t create without that secret sauce called “artistic temperament,” so they live where they want and damn all converntions. Which brings us to Kan Hsin-Yi of Taiwan. He lives in a […]

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WoWasis visits Jioufen: a Taiwanese town with one of the best market walks in Asia

At first glance, it’s easy to disregard Jioufen. Initially appearing to be yet another hillside town of nondescript buildings, the town unveils itself under the cover of a series of narrow alleys lined with shops, selling everything from calligraphy to condoms. Walking through the alleys of Jioufen takes the better part of an afternoon, and […]

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WoWasis on fashion: a great-looking environment-friendly bikini from Aqua Green

Here at WoWasis, we’ve been championing natural fiber clothing and accessories for some time. Travel socks made from bamboo, for instance, are the ones we always use at home and on the road.  Eco fashion is now a buzzword making the rounds, and designer Linda Loudermilk has crafted a bikini that is totally “green,” in […]

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5 travel tips from WoWasis on avoiding getting robbed overseas

Compared to most Western countries, we here at WoWasis feel Asia is pretty safe. Most travelers can go just about anywhere, any time, and not have to be constantly looking over their shoulders. Nevertheless, travelers not practicing basic security measures are leaving themselves open to the occasional theft. So here are some things to keep […]

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WoWasis field test review: a durable travel watch & calculator that will never be stolen

Here at WoWasis, we like to think we dress well when we travel, but we like to look cheap, too. Cheap enough that criminals won’t target us for robbery when we’re far from the police. Some folks like to wear Rolexes (even fake ones) and gold jewelry when they travel to countries with low average […]

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Shop at the new WoWasis Spycraft eStore for exotic covert gizmos & goodies

A number of WoWasis visitors comprise folks who’ve dealt in covert ops, detective work, and general surveillance, and sometimes don’t find it all that easy to find well-working trade goods. Our WoWasis Spycraft eStore is the answer. But it’s not just for ops folks, either. If you’ve ever accidentally locked yourself out of a rental […]

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Apple unlocks the iPhone 4 for international travelers

Part of the reason we here at WoWasis carry the cheap but reliable Nokia 1280 phone is that it’s cheap and reliable. It also is feature-poor. It does, however, work in every Asian country because it uses a SIM (Subscriber Identification Module) card, which you insert into the phone. You buy a different SIM card for […]

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