Here’s a trailer for a youth gang film call Monga which is set in Taiwan. Seems interesting and hopefully a little different since it isn’t set in either Hong Kong or Japan as alot of these movies seem to be.

Via TwitchFilm

Technorati Tags: film, gang, Monga, Taiwan

We haven’t seen much in the way of Taiwanese illustration on this blog so here’s five examples to address the balance a little. They’re from Onextrapixel, who showcase 22 Taiwanese illustrators in total, so if you like what you see, click on the link at the end to check the others out.

22 Inspiring Taiwanese Illustrators

Technorati Tags: illustration, illustrators, Taiwan

Blog The Daily Kos goes out exploring around Taiwan by bike and shows you a few areas to see. If you’re a keen biker, then Taiwan looks like the place for you.

Read more : Biking Weekend: Biking in Taiwan

Technorati Tags: biking, Taiwan

A Taiwanese woman named Ya-ching Yang has become famous around the world for a blog she set up about pursuing 100 kisses from Parisian men.

Based on a whim she had three years ago, she went into action last summer in Paris. With 54 kisses under her belt so far, Yang is accompanied on her expeditions in France by a Parisian friend, Chinese photographer Xiang Zhenhua, who gets everything on film and then posts the shots to her blog.

With her website receiving a million hits and a possible book deal containing her photos and blog posts on the way, there’s still a chance for would-be Parisian suitors to be immortalised in her quest.

Visit Ya-ching’s blog

Read more on TheWildEast.net

Technorati Tags: 100 Parisian Men, kissing quest, Paris, Taiwan, Taiwanese, Ya-ching Yang

The Thailand-based Art from Steel tout a superb range of hand-crafted metal statues depicting characters from a range of well-known films and TV series.

Billing themselves as the world’s largest producer of hand-made recycled statues, their workshop boasts over 450 unique models with the larger ones requiring the talents of up to 12 skilled workmen!

Their list of source material includes Alien, Dr. Who, Gremlins, Gundam, Lord of the Rings, Predator, Robocop, Star Wars and Transformers.

Check out the Art from Steel website to see more…

Technorati Tags: Alien, Art from Steel, arts, crafts, Dr. Who, Gremlins, Gundam, Lord of the Rings, Predator, hand-crafted metal statues, Robocop, Star Wars, steel statues, Thailand, Transformers

Whilst in Taipei last month, we came across these packets of dried snacks in the Eslite book store. Dried seafood is nothing too unusual in East Asian supermarkets – I’ve grown up on dried chilli cuttlefish etc. But these packets contained little whole crabs, shells and all!

I guess you’re meant to chew on each one like crisps. Anyone tried this before? Here’s another packet which has assorted contents…

Technorati Tags: crab crisps, Eslite, snacks, Taipei, Taiwan

This video (in Taiwanese), demonstrates a rather interesting concept by Taiwanese inventor Peng Yu-Lun for a train that never stops.

He correctly points out that trains would be far more efficient (and on-time) if they didn’t have to go through the trouble of stopping to pick up passengers,

Yu-Lun’s design achieves this with a kind of “top-mounted boarding shuttle that is scooped up when the train passes one station and automatically deposited when it reaches the next stop.” See the video to get a better sense of how it would work.

Via Swiss Miss

Technorati Tags: Peng Yu-Lun, Taiwan, train that never stops, trains, transport

Fans of Taiwanese singer (and movie star) Jay Chou might wanna get their hands on these guys. Toy2R recently released two different 2.5″ Qees, but they’re only available in Taiwan.

Via Vinyl Pulse

Technorati Tags: Jay Chou, Taiwan, Toy2R, toys

A pair of giant pandas sent as a gift from the mainland to Taiwan arrived on the island last week in the latest sign of rapidly improving relations across the Straits.

The four-year old pandas – Tuan Tuan and Yuan Yuan – touched down at Taipei Taoyuan airport after a three-hour flight from Chengdu in Sichuan, with island residents watching spellbound as the journey unfolded live on local television.

Via China Daily

Technorati Tags: China, giant pandas, pands, Chengdu, Taipei Taoyuan airport, Taiwan, Tuan Tuan, Yuan Yuan

PingMag talks to photographer Masato Seto, who has been photographing women at their betel nut stands in Taiwan.

Betel nuts are seeds from the Areca palm tree, about the size of quail eggs. The seeds are split in half, spread with lime and pepper, and wrapped in betel leaves. They are then chewed like gum. They excrete a red juice when sucked on that gives a buzz.

Read more on PingMag

Technorati Tags: Masato Seto, betel nut sellers, culture, Taiwan