Why Taiwan is one of the best spots in Asia – and maybe the world – for birdwatching.
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All articles filed in Joshua Samuel Brown
Taiwan Scene Editor in Chief: Joshua Samuel Brown (AKA Josambro) is the author of Vignettes of Taiwan and co-author of Formosa Moon (ThingsAsian Press). He’s co-authored thirteen Lonely Planet guides, including two editions of Lonely Planet Taiwan, and has written articles from Taiwan, Singapore, China, Malaysia, Belize, America, Norway and more for publications around the globe since 1997.
Beautiful Island: Taiwan is a Dream Location for Student Travel
Taiwan’s friendly people and unique combination of urban civilization and indigenous culture make it an ideal destination for experiential education. Two student leaders from America relate their story of leading a student travel group around Taiwan.
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Beer Tasting Night at Taiwan Scene
It was a Friday night to remember at the MyTaiwanTour office. Beer was involved, lots of it, extremely high-quality beer sent to us by craft brewers around the island.
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Follow Alana to Taiwan and Beyond
Alana Nichols and I are about to meet up at a vegetarian restaurant in Taipei’s Da An District. Though we’d worked together on an episode of her show, Follow Alana, a few weeks earlier (we’d explored coastal Hsinchu by bicycle, learned the finer points of rice noodle making and gotten in a kite-flying session) this…
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Anthony Bourdain 1956-2018
We at Taiwan Scene are deeply saddened by the passing of Anthony Bourdain, and remember fondly his visits to Taipei.
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Lord of Formosa: A Traveler’s Review
Taiwan Scene reviews Joyce Bergvelt’s Lord of Formosa, a sweeping historical novel about Taiwan’s Dutch colonial period and the life of Admiral Koxinga.
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Health is the Greatest Wealth: A Conversation with Peter Kurz
If the name Peter Kurz doesn’t ring any bells, chances are you’re not deeply invested in Taiwan’s financial sector, the world in which Kurz has made a name for himself over the past three decades as an investment guru, earning the nickname “Mister Taiwan” in the process.
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Friday the Thirteenth in Taiwan
(4/13/2018) Today is Friday the thirteenth, a date most westerners associate with ill tidings, negative omens and bad luck in general. An entire blood-soaked film franchise is based on Friday the Thirteenth’s nefarious nature, and more than a few folks avoid traveling on the 13th day of any month that happens to fall on a Friday.
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“Baby, it’s cold outside!” Winter in Taiwan
There’s no denying it – the mercury in Taiwan is dropping, especially up north. Even Siri is sympathetic. When I asked “What’s the weather in Taipei?” Siri responded in typical I-phone doggerel:
“Some bad weather coming to Taipei: Down to 9° Celsius today.”
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The Taipei Tai Chi Experience
If you’ve spent any time at all in Taiwan or China, you’ve probably seen Tai Chi being practiced in parks, usually in the early morning by anything from single practitioners to large, semi-choreographed groups. For the past month or so I’ve been practicing Tai Chi myself three mornings a week, and I thought I’d use this week’s column to share my experience.
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