Huwei

This Lunar New Year holiday I decided to take a trip to the south back to my first stomping ground in Huwei, Yunlin County. Once I got past Changhua the congestion on the roads eased up a little but it was when I got on Route No.19 that the ride became very pleasant - open fields and trees, clean air and little traffic with the added bonus of flying over the Chou shui River on an empty bridge - an act that I consider to be the geographical marker that tells me I'm in the south. Here's some photos I took during my few hours in Huwei, which I might add has had a make over by the local government to make better use of its cultural and historical heritage (and about time too ...ps: Next task guys: renovate the old Japanese village buildings please and pull down the electronic monstrosity at the roundabout and return the the trees and benches)

1. The Old 'Police Station' has been renovated and reopened as a puppet museum. Huwei in Yunlin is the spiritual home of puupet theatre in Taiwan and the station is now a major tourist attraction:

2.There are many exquisitely made puppets to be seen but photography is not allowed (I took these snaps before they could tell me not to take pictures)

3. The inside of the buildings has had a very nice make over ...


4. This display case shows you the stages of making a puppet head from wood block to final character ...
5. There's also a clay sculpting area ...

6. For those familiar with Chinese folk lore this character will be unmistakable. Amazing to think I was first introduced to this guy as a child in the UK in a television series me and my friends called 'Monkey Magic' (you know .. the travelling monk and the monkey man with a ring around his head that she controlled him with).

7. Outside, a restored Japanese building is now a Children's play center.

8. Me outside the Japanese building.

9. It was a lovely day and some of the locals thought pit to bring their pets for a walk ...

10. New signage points people in the right direction to places of interest.

11. A real joy - they renovated the Huwei railway station too and a lovely job they did ...

12. Inside was a cafe and shop. I bought a yellow Huwei t-shirt for old times sake.

13. They even remade the small platform which looks out on the Sugar Factory - still in use today.

14. Out in the fields taking in the fresh air the winter crops were busy growing ...

15. ... and this pump continually sloshed out a large volume of water ...

16. This neat arrangement of lettuce caught my eye for its aesthetic appeal.

17. Waste not Want not. No viable growing space left unused.

18. Neat patterns of rice and two interesting clumps at the end. Anyone know why the clumps are there? (It didn't seem like an accident because most fields had them)

19. Not forgetting the herbs, a small square set aside from the fallow field.

I call Huwei my hometown in Taiwan - makes me happy to go back but I do realise that I probably couldn't live there on a full time basis again even if, and when, they do build the HSR station near the town.