Perks of the Job

There are some benefits to the job I do, even if they are few and far between. As luck would have it, the steel flues for the chimney are being fabricated by a company based in Kaohsiung, Taiwan. This is easily my favourite location and city so the opportunity to be paid to go on a factory visit was perfect.

I first worked in Kaohsiung in 1991 and in the 18 years since then the transformation of the city has been nothing short of very impressive, although there was always plenty of scope for improvement. At the beginning of the nineties Taiwan was one of the leaders of the Asian Tigers with a booming economy and double digit growth but this economical miracle came at a price. Without doubt Taiwan back then was the most polluted, filthy, smelly place I've ever been - the swarms of cockroaches coming out of the street drains at dusk was worthy of a Stephen King novel. There was a million scooters on the road pumping out blue smoke from the 2-stroke engines (not many people were wealthy enough to own cars then); there were factories upon factories churning out cheap goods with the all too familiar "Made in Taiwan" little gold stickers that seemed to be on just about everything you bought 20 years ago; and there was the heavy industries, refineries and steelworks with chimneys pouring out black, acrid smoke. At the refinery where I worked, the minute you excavated a hole in the ground it filled up with a noxious black sludge that had leached into the ground over the years.

But what really exemplified how bad things were was the Love River. The Love River is in the heart of Kaohsiung but back then it hardly lived up to its romantic name for it was little more than an open sewer. It's waters were a forbidding, impenetrable black colour that didn't ripple and dance in the wind but moved in a languid fashion like hot tar. Just crossing the bridge between one side to the other necessitated either holding your breath to avoid breathing in the whiff of raw sewage or to continue breathing and gagging as you made your crossing. What is incredible was that once a year the Dragon Boat Festival was held on the river. However, in order to make this possible the sluice gates to the open sewers draining into the river were closed to give the river a chance to clear itself. The downside to this was that the sewers backed up into the city making the city somewhat less than fragrant.

It's difficult to describe the change as it's not a simple case of "now" and "then" because it 's been a process, rather than a event. However, without a doubt the change has been significant and to the city's credit the Lover River is now clean, full of fish, has river cruises operating on it and the river banks now have parks, walks and coffee shops.

A Clean Lover River

So, what are the other changes that have happened in Kaohsiung? Principally, it has gone from being a dirty,

polluted and chaotic city to one that's clean, organised and pleasant, and as much as I dislike the idea of change I have to admit this is a positive improvement. I think that the reason why this is so positive is because the people haven't changed and it's the people of the city that give it its soul. It's not become a Singapore in that it’s been sanitised and sterilised but it it is just far more pleasant than it used to be.

Kaohsiung's Wide City Roads

Kaohsiung always has had wide streets and boulevards but now they're green and planted. Before, the pavements were in a dire condition but now they're mostly renovated and smooth. Before, it was usually necessary to walk in the road because the footpaths were full of scooters but whilst scooters are still allowed to park on the pavement they are only allowed to do so in allocated areas. Of course, the fact that there are significantly less scooters on the roads now helps but then when you think that all those scooter drivers now drive cars, there isn't a car congestion problem either.

The city also has a brand spanking new underground railway system that runs north to south and east to west, and it's cheap to use too.

Underground Station Concourse

Apart from the underground trains, scooters and cars one incredible change has been the number of cyclists there are now. Eighteen years ago the only cyclist I ever saw was in the refinery where I was working, and that was ridden by a guy who looked a 100 years old and the bike had no tyres. But now there are cyclists everywhere and the side lanes to the main carriageways, that used to be the domain of the scooter, are now increasingly used by the cyclist.

And check this out for a brilliant idea; in strategic locations (i.e. at underground stations, principle junctions, parks, etc.) you will find racks of bicycles that are for use by the public. There is a machine that you swipe your credit card or your travel card, you punch in the number of the bike you want to rent (the only difference I could see was the saddle height) and it is released from its lock. Off you then go cycling where ever you want to and the best bit is you don't even have to return the bike to the same location, you just need to return it to one of the other racks around the city, and your credit card/travel card is charged according to the time you've used the bike for. And again, it's not expensive. What I find so amazing about this, and what it also tells you about the people of Kaohsiung City, is that there doesn't appear to be any vandalism or theft of the bikes. Picture this set up, if you can, in a provincial town in the UK or even in the cities. How long do you think this system would last at chucking out time? Isn't it a fact that the true measure of a civilised society is that a system such as this can exist for the majority and not be deprived of it due to the actions of a criminal

minority.

Bikes for Rent

For the factory visit I was picked up by the owner, Andy to give his English name, in his 20 year old Mercedes 300 SEL. What a wonderful car in pristine condition. The trip took only 30 minutes, with Andy complaining the at the roads were busy due to the World Games. Well if that's busy, give it to me any day. Obviously, Andy has never driven around the South Circular or any of the motorways in the UK.

In the morning we inspected the liners, looked at the fabrication process for the few cans (called cans because the liners are made in sections) that were still being made.

Liner Can Fabrication

Lunch was a leisurely affair at a local restaurant and consisted of noodles, fish, prawns, scallops, cuttlefish and beer. I don't think I've drunk beer at lunchtime whilst at work for probably 30 years, back when I was a hod carrier working in a women's prison. It was a nice touch and again rather than refuse and succumb to the mindset and constraints of the health and safety brigade it was liberating to be able to enjoy two bottles of the local brew - after all, it was only two bottles.

Trial Fitting of the Cans

Back at the factory we talked about previous project and I was keenly interested in his company's heavy lifting capabilities, and Andy was enthusiastically happy to show me around their stock of jacks and equipment and to tell me the stories of their research and development programme, showing me the early prototypes. Later that afternoon we did a trial fitting of the liner to demonstrate that there would be no problem joining the sections, which are bolted together.

Once back at the hotel I had arranged to meet a once colleague and now good friend of mine, Dave, who originally went to Taiwan in 1989 and had married a Taiwanese girl and stayed there ever since. We met in a bar on the Wu Fu 4th Road, which is famous for what was once its vast selection of bars but which now seems somewhat depleted. I'm not sure whether this was as a result of the downturn in the global economy. I was told by several people that Taiwan was suffering more than it had in the past - it certainly didn't seem to be impacted significantly during the Asian crisis of 1997.

After a few pints in Jasmines Bar (an old time favourite) we went to Stormy Weather , then The Oxford and finally into Bloody Mary's, which Dave told me he was the owner of. It was good to see some familiar faces and as usual, the welcome was warm and friendly.

Temple Roof

The following day I went out walking and taking photographs and as is usual at this time of the year it was swelteringly hot. To be honest, I think that Kaohsiung is a architectural disaster. Whilst it does have some outstanding buildings, it predominantly consists of concrete and tiled shop/town houses that are a hotch-potch of design and additions. However, along just about every street there is at least one, if not more incredible Chinese temple of the traditional design.

Kaohsiung City

I headed up to Long Life Mountain where you can grab an impressive view of the whole of the city. In the distance the surrounding mountains could be seen. During my first visit to Taiwan it must have been least 6 months before I realised that the city was surrounded by mountains and even in the year I was in Kaohsiung I only ever saw them twice due to the high levels of smog and pollution. I think that it was a really positive indicator that the clean up was well underway way - or perhaps I was just lucky to be there on the right day? I then walked down Long Life Mountain, through the university to Hsitzuwan Beach, where the beach volley ball tournament of the World Games was underway.

I then proceeded to walk along the harbour, watching the heavy seas break over the harbour wall, and up to the old British Consulate building overlooking the harbour. I was disappointed to see that my favourite restaurant had gone. It wasn't that it served particularly good food (bad food is hard to come by anyway) it was brilliant due to its location - right at the narrow straits that is the entrance to what is reputed to be the fourth busiest harbour in the world. From here, over plates of fried rice and fresh sea food you could watch phenomenally large container ships glide past that seemed to be so close you felt as though you could reach out and touch them. You would have to be brain-dead not to be in awe at the sight and size of these ships.

I was exhausted when I eventually made it back to the hotel, only to receive a call from Dave telling me I was invited out to dinner that evening with him and his wonderful wife, Amy. Dinner was in a area that I once knew but now did not recognise, called Tzoying. Eighteen years ago there was a dozen buildings surrounded by rice paddies and vegetable fields. Now it is a heaving metropolis that is even busier than down-town Kaohsiung. The restaurant was an all-you-can-eat buffet with free flow beer, wine, Saki, cognac and juice. Like the trust shown with the bicycles, you didn't have to wait for the restaurant staff to come and fill your glass, you just went and helped yourself at the beer pump or the wine bottles or the Saki and no one seemed to be eating or drinking to excess. Apart from a table of eastern Europeans who, with insane grins and bad pony tails repeatedly went up and filled the largest glasses they could find with cognac and made numerous trips with Saki bottles wedged between every available finger on their hands.

After dinner it was back to Bloody Mary's for a night cap.

Sunday was a day of more walking, shopping and taking a ride on the underground. Later that evening I went to the night market but there wasn't too much happening (probably too early) and so decided to walk back to Bloody Mary's to meet Dave for a farewell beer. On the way it sounded like a coup was going on and as I approached the city centre I chanced upon a Chinese festival with parades, marches and of course, lots of fireworks. Fireworks as we know them in the west are not the same in Taiwan. In places like Hong Kong and Singapore they have been banned and criminalised but in Taiwan, I'm pleased to say, that it's on ongoing tradition.

The firecrackers, which are ear-splittingly loud, are strung out in the middle of the road and at the end of them there is a pile of pyrotechnics containing enough gunpowder to keep Guy Fawkes more than happy. The result of what appears to be an impromptu firework display is traffic chaos but I didn't see anyone who was angry or looked inconvenienced and most were happy to stop and watch. The first display I saw was almost over by the time I arrived but the second firework display I saw took place in the Kaohsiung equivalent of Piccadilly Circus.

Street Fireworks

The procession, which had started from a temple just around the corner stopped at the firecrackers and waited for all the other participants to catch up. There were no barriers to keep people back, there were no bossy marshalls, there were no giant LCD screens instead of the real thing, no health & safety posters and no "light the blue touch paper and stand well back", just an orderly and polite crowd that were just as keen to look at the photos I was taking as well as watching the impressive display. Firstly the firecrackers were set off and then a main display started. And what a display! Made all the more exciting by being in such close proximity as you could physically feel the bangs and booms of the exploding rockets, smell the gunpowder and smoke and was showered upon by the falling ash.

By the time I reached the bridge over the Love River a second and equally impressive display had started and so I paused here to watch again. A video of the fireworks can be seen by clicking here.

The evening, and indeed my stay in Kaohsiung was concluded with several pints with Dave in Bloody Mary's as I had to fly back to Cebu the following day. As always, I was very sad to be leaving.