One mistake many foreigners make when dealing with the gals in Thailand is not recognizing what class the lass comes from. Many western countries do not have a definite class structure so it is understandable that guys often make this simple but fatal error. Thailand, as most of you know already, has a very specific class […]
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WoWasis book review: Jay Taylor’s ‘The Generalissimo’s Son: Chiang Ching-kuo and the Revolutions in China and Taiwan’
In this book, The Generalissimo’s Son: Chiang Ching-kuo and the Revolutions in China and Taiwan (2000, ISBN 0-674-00287-3), Jay Taylor provides a fascinating history of the man who presided over much of the political modernization of Taiwan. Ching-kuo was, at one point, a communist student in the Soviet Union, and maintained ties there throughout his […]
Read the rest of this entry »Did that Thai girl bewitch me with love magic?
The Good Manner: Advice on Thailand from WoWasis’ Pa Farang Today’s question: Did that Thai girl bewitch me with love magic? Dear Pa Farang, A little over a year ago I entered into a relationship with a beautiful lady from Isaan, during a visit a few days before leaving to go back to Afghanistan she […]
Read the rest of this entry »WoWasis book review: Jay Taylor’s ‘The Generalissimo: Chiang Kai-shek and the Struggle for Modern China’
As we here at WoWasis found when we visited Taiwan, English books on Chiang Kai-shek are damned hard to find. Chiang isn’t a very popular figure in many Taiwanese circles, which is why, as a bookstore clerk explained to us, books on Chiang would be found in the “China,” rather than the “Taiwan” section of […]
Read the rest of this entry »WoWasis book review: Judith Heimann’s The Airmen and the Headhunters (Borneo)
Judith M. Heimann’s The Airmen and the Headhunters: A True Story of Lost Soldiers, Heroic Tribesmen, and the Unlikeliest Rescue of World War II (2007, ISBN 978-0-15-101434-7) is more than just an adventure story, encompassing many fascinating anthropological elements of the Dayak culture of Borneo. It starts off slowly, but becomes a real page-turner as […]
Read the rest of this entry »What’s with my Thai broken toilet seat?
The Good Manner: Advice on Thailand from WoWasis’ Pa Farang This week’s dilemma: My new Thai broken toilet seat Dear Pa Farang, Greetings from California. I go to Thailand several times a year, and am proud to say that I’ve plumbed a Thai toilet hose into my bathroom here in the States. Recently, at a […]
Read the rest of this entry »WoWasis visits Taiwan’s Customs Museum in Taipei
One of Taipei’s more curiously odd museums is the Customs Museum. It sits in the highly secure Customs Building, so like we did here at WoWasis, you’ll need to call for an appointment. You’ll be given a tour of the museum by a uniformed customs official, and ours clearly enjoyed leaving the desk and pointing […]
Read the rest of this entry »WoWasis book review: ‘A New History of Taiwan’ by Hung Chien-Chau
Noted Taiwan newspaperman Hung Chien-Chau (also known by his English name, Joe Hung) has admirably faced up to the daunting task of writing a history of his country in A New History of Taiwan (2011, ISBN 978-986-86637-3-2), an updated edition of his 368 page book of 2000. Hung is a veteran journalist who serves as […]
Read the rest of this entry »WoWasis explores Taiwan’s rich indigenous aboriginal culture
Taiwan’s presence in the high technology world has given it an aura of modernity that somewhat masks the fact that it has an extraordinary richness and diversity of aboriginal peoples. These diverse tribes are all part of the Austronesian language group, which spans an incredible distance, from Madagascar to Easter Island, and Taiwan to New […]
Read the rest of this entry »WoWasis visits Taipei’s Baoan and Confucius Temples
Two of Taipei’s finest temples are adjacent to each other, and offer a nice contrast in architectural styles and bearing. Both the Baoan and Confucius temples are located a short cab ride from the Yuanshan MRT station. The Baoan temple is the more ornate of the two, dedicated to Baosheng Dadi, the god of medicine. […]
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