Day three / June 7th (Sunday). Today is June 13th (Saturday).
Originally, I had planned a long-distance trip, going from the National Broadcasting and Cultural Heritage Museum (Chiayi) to the National Museum of Taiwan Literature (Tainan). However, at this point, I hadn’t yet visited the 228 Memorial Hall, which is of great importance. But it’s definitely relevant to my research, and I must come to Taipei and visit it… After much deliberation, I changed my route. I decided to go from the 228 Memorial Hall to the National Broadcasting and Cultural Heritage Museum (Chiayi). That said, the trip from Taipei to Chiayi takes about three hours one way. Therefore, I decided on a route of 228 Memorial Hall in the morning → taking high-railway train → Chiayi.
蛋餅 and 蔬菜湯. The shop owner will remember your face.
My third visit to the 228 Peace Park. A group of elderly men and women were practicing Tai Chi. I wanted to join them.
I arrived 30 minutes before opening time, which left me with plenty of time to spare.
Here’s a recommendation for Taiwan. This sour plum soup (Suanmeitang), which is like a plum and shiso juice, is really delicious. There’s a shop selling this sour plum soup in front of the park. This one. It’s super tasty. I added ice to make it iced sour plum soup. You know how McDonald’s used to have a plum sauce a long time ago? It tasted similar to that. It’s not as sweet as candied plums, and it doesn’t have that strong, assertive plum flavor. It’s more like a subtle, refreshing plum and shiso flavor. The balance is really delicious.
Now, off to the 228 Memorial Museum.
It was here that I had a fateful encounter. I asked the volunteer sitting at the reception desk if they had a Japanese version of the guidebook. She asked me in return, “Are you Japanese?” When I said yes, they asked, “You know that Japan colonized Taiwan, right?” From there, I received a lecture on Taiwanese history in broken English. She said that their grandparents had experienced the Japanese colonial period, and she explained it while incorporating her grandparents’ words. I recorded the entire two hours. My own research for this trip also focused on the topic of Japanization education in Taiwan during the Japanese colonial period, so I listened attentively, nodding along.
I waited in front of the reception desk for about 90 minutes. The volunteer at the reception desk was explaining things while writing lots of words on a piece of paper. I was really moved by the fact that she was explaining things so enthusiastically to a first-time visitor. When I asked if I could have the notes, she laughed. She asked, “Are you sure? They’re all messy.” I replied, “That’s what’s good about them! They’re beautiful.”
“The painter of this painting is actually at the very bottom of the picture, and his appearance is also depicted in the painting. But the person in charge of the memorial museum is pro-China, so they cut off the bottom part of the painting when it’s on display. I don’t think that’s right. I have the real version of the painting on my smartphone, so I’ll show it to you later.”
“Where are you from? Kyoto? Beautiful city~. Oh, this person was in Kyoto too.”
“I don’t think this way of exhibition is good. At least I don’t agree with it. I mean, just look at this video. The names of the victims appear, and then there’s this explosion effect… Don’t you think it’s disrespectful?”
I’m so glad we became friends. Are you coming again in September? My name is [Name]. Please come again. I’m so happy.
It took two hours on the Shinkansen, even though I got flustered by a transfer mistake along the way.
I walked,
walked,
and walked.
Someone told me it was 15 minutes from the station to here, and I thought, “Okay,” but when I actually walked, it definitely took more than 15 minutes. Even if it’s the same 15 minutes, there’s a difference between a tedious 15 minutes and a pleasant 15 minutes♪. This was definitely the tedious kind. Maybe it’s because it was a straight road that went on forever. Forever Young.
I was mistaken; I thought it closed at 4:00 PM, but it turns out the last entry is at 3:30 PM and it closes at 4:30 PM. So I was disappointed that I only had 30 minutes to look around, but I ended up spending an hour there.
The National Broadcasting Museum stands tall amidst a paradise of palm trees. Established in 1999, it is Taiwan’s only broadcasting museum. Speakers are mounted on the roof of the building, and presumably, Taiwanese radio broadcasts are playing from them.
The combination of kanji in the caption. Perhaps because I was thinking about the title of my new work, my eyes were drawn only to this sequence of kanji.
台湾人発声的喉舌
強力喉舌
躍動的電波
發聲
有聲有色
歳月的聲音
聲音後的日常
有聲製造 聲製造
發音間
聲音的旅行
聲音的旅程
…
Large pieces of apparatus. But for me, apparatus isn’t this size.
Perhaps it’s something where you can see the mechanism, it’s medium-sized, and it’s like a collection of elements. That kind of thing feels more natural to me as an apparatus, and I also find it romantic.
On my way to come back.
On the way Taipei, lined with palm trees.
Within a five-minute walk, I found the Minxiong Broadcasting Station Guest House. Apparently, this was once the site of the broadcasting station’s dormitory.
The garden was once a baseball field.
On the way home. At the Shinkansen station (probably Chiayi?). I no longer make mistakes with transfers.
I went to Shilin Night Market at night after a light rain. I had Da Ji Pai, a Horoyoi, and long French fries and had a great time.
Thank you for your reading. It was a day of big travel, including the trip from Taipei Station to Shilin. I slept very well that night.