Enjoy A Cup of Coffee

2012-02-08T23:59:00.002+08:00

I went to the Susukino venue of the Sapporo Snow Festival in the morning only to discover that the venue would not open until 3 PM and all the sculptures were in the middle of an open road. The good thing about this was that there were not many visitors and I could take my time to take photos. Since it was a sunny day, I went back to the Odori Park venue to check the sculptures under sunshine and even went up the Sapporo TV tower again before ending my trip and went to the airport.

The ice sculptures at the Susukino venue were displayed at the center of the road.

Ice sculptures of Taiwan Presidential Office Building and Taiwan High Speed Rail train.

Frozen seafood was a famous display at the Susukino venue.

The ice sculpture that won the first price at the Susukino venue.

The ice blue sculpture of Taiwan Palace Museum.

The all white sculpture of Taj Mahal under blue sky.

Private made small sculptures lined up at the Citizens’ Plaza.

The Taiwanese team making final touches to the small sculpture.

The panorama view of the snow festival at Odori Park under daylight from Sapporo TV Tower.

The large snow sculptures of One Piece, Tsuruga Castle, and Taj Mahal viewed from Sapporo TV Tower.

The skating ground in front of the TV Tower.

I waited more than 40 minutes for the cancelled then delayed trains to the airport, so I could not spend more time to visit the newly renovated terminals of New Chitose Airport.

Mural of Doraemon at the New Chitose Airport.

Statues displayed at the Doraemon Sky Park at the New Chitose Airport.

Our flight passing Hokkaido’s Lake Shikotsu.

The line clearly separating day and night.

The Previous Day | Web Album

2012-02-08T23:59:00.000+08:00

These are web albums of pictures I took during the Sapporo Snow Festival trip.

Sapporo Snow Festival	Sapporo
Doraemon Sky Park	Eating at Sapporo

2012-02-07T23:59:00.000+08:00

I went to Sapporo at Hokkaido, Japan, to visit the 63th Sapporo Snow Festival. The flight from Taipei to Sapporo was quite full, with most of the passengers also traveling for the same reason. After reached Sapporo from the airport, I went directly to the Odori Park, the biggest of the three venues of the Festival, and visited every small, medium, and large snow sculpture in the venue until the sky went completely dark.

I took EVA Airways’ Hello Kitty Jet again.

We passed All Nippon Airways’ Pikachu special livery plane after landed at New Chitose Airport.

Activities were going to begin on the stages in from of the Snow Aquarium large snow sculpture.

Some medium sculptures served as playgrounds.

Hawkers selling foods were always a big part of the festivals.

Formal Sapporo Court of Appeals at the end of Odori Park.

Heavy snows with colorful lighting.

The large sculpture of magician’s hat and Mickey Mouse sponsored by corporations.

The large sculpture of Japanese animation One Piece sponsored by corporations.

The all white sculpture of Tsuruga Castle of Fukushima was built to pay tribute to the 2011 earth quake.

The all white sculpture of Taj Mahal under heavy snow.

The small sculpture of mother and son brought warm feelings to visitors.

Penguins real and fictional.

Mascots of Taiwanese convenient store chain made appearance in the snow festival.

The large ice sculpture of Taiwan Palace Museum.

Taiwan team working on the small sculpture highlighting Taipei 101 at the international plaza.

Singapore team also working on theirs, with the competition of the international teams was scheduled for the next day.

The snow board stunts performed by professionals sponsored by Hokkaido’s most famous cookie maker.

The panorama view of the snow festival at Odori Park from Sapporo TV Tower.

The large snow sculptures of One Piece, Tsuruga Castle, and Taj Mahal viewed from Sapporo TV Tower.

The large sculptures of Taiwan Palace Museum and Snow Aquarium.

Performances on the stage of Ice Square.

Row of snowmen at one side of a building on my way back to hotel.

The Next Day

2012-01-29T23:59:00.000+08:00

I went to the Songshan culture park at the last day of the Lunar New Year holiday. The culture was repurposed to an exhibition and recreation complex by renovating an abandoned cigarette factory. I came here to visit the exhibition of arts of Ghibli’s latest film, From up on Poppy Hill, where concept sketches, storyboards, and the actual hand drawn backgrounds used in the animation film were displayed.

The pond in front of the culture park.

The walkways between the old Japanese factory buildings inside the culture park.

The park at the center of the old factory buildings.

The long hallway with wooden windows of the factory buildings.

Progress signified by the non-smoking display in an old cigarette factory.

The large poster for the exhibition at a corner of the culture park.

The exhibitions were housed in old warehouses.

These displays of posters of Ghibli’s films were the only place where photography were allowed in the exhibition.

But the exhibition did decorate this area allowing visitors to take photos.

The exhibition was coming to an end and most of the souvenirs were already sold out.

2012-01-27T23:59:00.000+08:00

This is the web album of pictures I took during my trip to Tainan.

National Museum of Taiwan History

2012-01-27T23:58:00.002+08:00

It rained for most part of the Lunar New Year holiday in Taipei. Seeking sunshine and blue sky, I took Taiwan High Speed Rail train to Tainan in southern Taiwan when the holiday was coming to an end.

The apartment buildings in Chupei near the THSR Hsinchu station, where many people working in Hsinchu Science and Industrial Park live.

The buildings in Taichung city near the THSR Taichung station.

The business and industrial complex in Tainan Science Park.

I transferred to trains run by Taiwan Railway Administration to Yongkang station. The names of the TRA Yongkang (永康) and Baoan (保安) stations could be read as "forever blessed for safe and prosper" (永保安康) in Chinese, and the tickets from Yongkang to Baoan made good souvenirs among Taiwanese people.

TRA’s local train was decorated with promotions of Tainan’s attractions.

The wooden building of the Baoan station.

The concrete building of the Yongkang station.

The Yongkang to Baoan tickets with souvenir stamps.

My goal of this trip was to visit the National Museum of Taiwan History that opened on last October. I was surprised to see that many visitors roaming around the museum. I didn’t have high expectation for the museum after reading the introductions on their webpage, but I was pleasantly surprised after visited the museum. Although most exhibitions were created with models instead of real historical artifacts, visitor could walk into Taiwan’s history from the aboriginal people to the ruling and colonization of Europeans, Han Chinese, and Japanese through the centuries through these exhibitions.

The huge solar panels in front of the museum.

The museum buildings located behind the solar panels.

Visitors stayed in the long line to get the entrance tickets allocated to time slots.

The activity building and outdoor exhibition of the museum compound.

The wetland recreational area behind the museum.

People lined up to enter the time theater for the video introducing Taiwan’s history.

The permanent exhibitions at the second floor of the museum displayed the history of Taiwan for the past centuries.

Miniature models of a Dutch fortress.

Life size models recreating a religious parade during the Qing Dynasty.

Life size models recreating worker in a salt fields in 19th century.

Life size recreation of a Taipei street during the early 20th century.

This room looked very similar to the photo studio my grandfather owned.

Recreation of a classroom after Nationalist government moved to Taiwan.

Household electric appliances made by Taitung displayed in the special exhibition of the past century were common memories to modern Taiwanese people (above a certain age).

Promotion souvenirs from the presidential elections displayed in the special exhibition of historical artifacts preserved by the museum.

Tools of trades carried around by street food hawkers a few decades ago displayed in the special exhibition of Tainan’s past.

The theater stage in the children’s indoor activity area.

Models of aboriginal culture displayed in the children’s outdoor activity area.

The TRA Tainan station retained the Japanese era building.

Photo Album

2011-12-28T23:59:00.000+08:00

After delayed for many times, ANA finally received their first Boeing 787 Dreamliner earlier this year. And after a few celebration flights, ANA has put the 787 to regular service since November 2011.

ANA has put their first two Boeing 787 in special liveries.

Light-weight yet durable composite materials are used to build the 787.

LEDs are used for interior lightings on the 787, which allows lighting to be adjusted to any visible color.

The new overhead baggage compartments on the 787.

ANA provides personal entertainment systems to the economy class on the 787. Videos focused on the 787 were currently provided in the video on demand system.

The domestic premium class seats on ANA’s 787. The 787 is equipped with large windows with electronic window shades.

There are five levels of opaqueness with the electronic window shade. Even the darkest setting allows one to see through the window. The picture I took during the night didn’t quite capture that so there were only four settings in the following comparison shot.

Being the first airline to commercially flying 787, ANA has made every effort to emphasize this through their promotion campaigns. The cup issued in the cabin was one example.

The advertisements of 787 covered a full interior section of Tokyo International Airport Terminal 2.

The self check-in counters with ANA’s 787 promotions at Okayama airport.

The advertisement of ANA’s 787 on Okayama’s tram. Interestingly, the other side of the tram has advertisement of Japan Airline’s services.

ANA also released many 787 merchandizes.

2011-12-28T23:58:00.001+08:00

EVA Airways has restarted their Hello Kitty service with three new second generation Hello Kitty Jets at the end of 2011, with each aircraft painted with specific themes. Like the first generation Hello Kitty Jet, the interior of these airliners are flooded with images of Hello Kitty.

The first Hello Kitty Jet is Hello Kitty with Magic Stars.

The second Hello Kitty Jet is Hello Kitty Loves Apples.

The third Hello Kitty Jet is Hello Kitty Around the World.

The boarding pass and baggage tag for passengers fly on Hello Kitty Jet.

The economy class cabin of the Hello Kitty Jet.

The large Hello Kitty pillow provided in every business class seats.

The bulkhead of the business class cabin has a drawing of Hello Kitty; with the personal TV playing Hello Kitty themed welcome video.

The safety cards dedicated to Hello Kitty Jet.

The menu and dispense bag issued on Hello Kitty Jet.

The napkins issued on Hello Kitty Jet.

The packages of sugar and toothpick issued on Hello Kitty Jet.

The appetizer of the business class meal on Hello Kitty Jet. The Hello Kitty paper ring held the cutleries and the goose liver mousses were shaped as Kitty’s head.

The carrot and cucumbers in the main dishes were shaped as Kitty’s hairpiece.

Like the first generation Hello Kitty Jet, the bottles of the personal health products in the toilet were decorated with Hello Kitty image.

Also like the first generation Hello Kitty Jet, the toilet papers were printed with Hello Kitty image.

The Hello Kitty nursery exists for quite a few years in Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport Terminal 2, and I took this chance to finally took a couple photos of it during this trip.

The pink phone booth outside the Hello Kitty nursery.

2011-12-27T23:59:00.001+08:00

These are web albums of pictures I took during my trip to the Chugoku area of Japan.

Okayama	Okayama Castle and Koraku-en
Kurashiki	Eating at Okayama

2011-12-27T23:58:00.001+08:00

The plan for the last day was to take the Shinkansen back to Fukuoka, and then fly back to Taipei on the same Hello Kitty Jet.

View of the Okayama city before sunrise from my hotel room.

The train arrived Hiroshima station.

View of the industrial zone of Tokuyama.

The nose section of the Hello Kitty Jet Hello Kitty Loves Apples.

View of Kyushu’s Mount Unzen from the plane.

The Previous Day | Web Album

2011-12-26T23:59:00.001+08:00

I took the morning flight back to Okayama on the 787. I went to the Okayama Castle and Koraku-en in Okayama city in the morning, and then I visited the Bikan Historical Area in Kurashiki City in the afternoon.

View of the Tokyo International Airport before sunrise.

The Tokyo Sky Tree stands above all other skyscrapers in the Tokyo skyline.

The lines on the floor marked the interior design of vanished buildings of the Okayama castle.

The black exterior of the Okayama Castle earned it the name Crow Castle.

View of the Koraku-en across the Asahi river from the top floor of the Okayama Castle.

Visitors could change to period costumes and had their photos taken in the general’s room.

View of the Koraku-en from the top of Koraku-en’s man-made hill.

For some reason, a well-field system, so called because of the shape of the fields resembled the Chinese word for well, from ancient China was built inside Koraku-en.

The main building complex near the main entrance of Koraku-en.

The black Okayama Castle was integrated into the garden scenery of Koraku-en.

The Roman style building of the Ohara Mesuem of Art didn’t really fit into the historical buildings in the Bikan Area.

The history of the city and the historical area was told in the Kurashiki Story Hall.

Canal, weeping willows, and white-wall ware houses made the famous scenery of the Bikan Historical Area.

River boats for touring the canal were already parked for the season.

The Ivy Garden, named after the ivies on the brick buildings, next to the Bikan Area was a cotton factory turned leisure area with shops and restaurants.

The open air coffee shops inside the Ivy Garden.

The white walls and green leaves stood out more against the blue sky under sunlight.

And so does the yellow walls.

View of the tracks from the cockpit at the back of the train that took me back to Okayama.

The Previous Day | The Next Day

2011-12-25T23:59:00.000+08:00

The purpose of this trip was to fly on newly commissioned airliners with special liveries and the plan of the day is to fly from Taipei, Taiwan, to Fukuoka, Japan, on EVA Airways’ second generation Hello Kitty Jet Hello Kitty Loves Apples, take the Shinkansen high speed train to Okayama; then fly from Okayama to Tokyo on ANA’s first delivered Boeing 787 Dreamliner.

The Christmas decoration in the departure lobby of Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport Terminal 2.

Hello Kitty Loves Apples is the second of the three second generation Hello Kitty Jets.

The plane in the animation of the in-flight information system was in EVA’s standard livery.

During take-off and landing, the in-flight information system also showed screens similar to flight simulators.

View of the Kokura city from the Shinkansen train, which operates on high-raised rails.

View of the country side of west Japan.

View of the Hiroshima cityscape.

View of the Okayama city as the train approaching Okayama station.

The statue of Momotaro, a Japanese folklore figure, in front of the Okayama station.

View of the empty tarmac of Okayama airport.

ANA’s first Boeing 787 in its special livery just landed at Okayama airport.

The self check-in counters with ANA’s 787 promotions at Okayama airport.

The rainbow colored mood lighting welcomed economy class passengers during boarding.

The personal entertainment system for economy seats on board ANA’s 787.

The 787 parked at Tokyo International Airport at night.

The night view of the observation deck of Tokyo International Airport Terminal 2.

The Next Day

2011-10-06T23:59:00.003+08:00

These are web albums of pictures I took during my visit to the two national science museums.

National Museum of Natural Science

National Science and Technology Museum

2011-10-06T23:58:00.001+08:00

The original plan for the day trip was to take the Taroko Express train to visit the Taroko National Park. But it was raining heavily in east Taiwan the entire week, and I decided to change the plan to visit the two National Science Museums. Still, I wanted to experience the Taroko Express, and I decided to take it for a short hop then transfer to the Taiwan High Speed Rail train bound for Taichung.

The second fastest train of Taiwan.

The fastest train of Taiwan.

I had visited the National Museum of Natural Science a couple of times during school trips in my early teens, where there were many hand-on experiments but exhibitions were lacking. The museum has expanded and matured over the years. It now offered rich exhibitions on natural life and evolution, Chinese science and society, and earth and environment. It also had a planetarium and an IMAX theater. I had been to quite a few science museums around the world, and in my opinion, the National Museum of Natural Science could be regarded as a world class museum.

The National Museum of Natural Science had expanded over the years.

If memory served, these moving T-Rex were static displays when I last visited them.

The wooden structure of a temple’s roof hanged over the exhibition hall for Chinese spiritual life.

Delicate miniature models of old Chinese farming village.

Full scale models of Chinese pharmacy selling herb medicines.

Specimens of safari wildlife.

Displays introducing the life circle of stars

Hand-on experiments took the back seat at the museum now.

The green house with a modern glass structure.

Man-made rains kept falling at the rain forests inside the green house.

The museum started from this single building.

Leaving the National Museum of Natural Science, I took the high speed train to Kaoshiung to visit the National Museum of Science and Technology. This was my first time to the museum, which offered many hand-on experiments in introducing food, transportation, weaving, and machinery technologies. The museum did have rich exhibitions on the progress of Taiwan’s telecom and the history of Taiwan’s industries. This museum was not as good as the National Museum of Natural Science but it had a firm foundation and it could only get better.

Students in school trips flooded the museum.

Students took a ride in the earthquake experiencing house.

Students playing simple racing game in a real off-road vehicle.

The fighter jet simulator in the aerospace exhibition hall.

Projected narrator introducing the heavy machineries.

Old hand-crank telephones that required operators.

Evolution of Taiwan’s toll phones.

People used to gather in front of televisions to watch live national baseball games and cheer for the local teams at late night.

Taiwan’s computer industry had evolved from making clones to established brands.

Taiwan’s bicycle industry had also made its name in the world.

The water clocks of the two National Science Museums.

After visited the two museums, I caught another high speed train to go back to Taipei. Looking at the scenery of west Taiwan while checking my location on the smart phone, the time passed like fly.

Sunset over rice farms of west Taiwan.

Photo Albums

2011-10-01T23:59:00.000+08:00

This is the album of pictures I took during my tour of Wanhua, Taipei.

Wanhua, Taipei

2011-10-01T23:58:00.001+08:00

We came to Wanhua on this Saturday afternoon. Wanhua was one of the oldest district of Taipei city, but even though we passed through it all the time, it’s been some time since we really visited places here. Unfortunately, it was raining during our visit.

We came to the Wanhua sugar warehouse culture park. There are four warehouses in the park and it was managed by the Taiwanese Opera company Ming Hwa Yuan.

The trains used to transport sugars now parked in front of the warehouses.

This red brick warehouse was used to exhibition the history of the sugar industry of Taiwan.

The exhibitions described the progress of sugar processing technologies.

A model of modern sugar processing plant.

Artifacts used during the operations of the sugar trains.

These two warehouses was used for exhibitions of the costumes, props, and sets used in the stage performance of Ming Hwa Yuan.

Photographs were not allowed for the exhibitions of Ming Hwa Yuan, except this three-head dragon outside the set factory.

We next went to the Longshan Temple frequented by worshipers and tourists.

Our last stop was the Bo-Pi Liao historical site. The buildings and storehouses were well preserved here, but most of the houses remained empty.

The clean and quite alley of Bo-Pi Liao.

Modern structures were added to some of the buildings. I could understand the steel beams were added for structure integrity, but I was quite confounded by the glasses rooms and the walkways.

Only a handful houses in the historical site were used for exhibitions and all the other buildings were kept empty and locked out.

Photo Album

2011-09-17T23:59:00.000+08:00

I visited the Shinsanhang Museum of Archeology.

The museum located in this awarding winning modern architecture, but the exhibition space was actually quite small inside the building.

The site of the museum was to be part of the Bali sewage treatment plant, but demonstrations from local people helped to create the museum to preserve the culture and history of the aboriginal people lived here.

Models or archeological diggings.

The theater used live-like models with narrations to introduce the lives of the aboriginal people.

For some reason, a doll of Einstein was put next to the models showing the procedures of facial reconstruction from skulls.

The special exhibition promoted a Taiwanese Movie telling the story of the Wushe Incident.

The aeration tanks of Bali sewage treatment plant.

2011-08-10T23:59:00.000+08:00

This is the album of pictures I took during my trip to Hakodate.

Hakodate

2011-08-10T23:58:00.000+08:00

The agenda of the day was to go home.

View of Mount Hakodate, with the observation deck hid by clouds.

The Edo Road souvenir stores and restaurants at the fourth floor of the Tokyo International Airport International Terminal.

This was the best view I ever had of Mount Fuji, both from ground and from air.

A heavy thunder storm over Taipei Songshan airport meant we had to do a few circles over north Taiwan.

Photo Albums

2011-08-09T23:59:00.000+08:00

The goals for this trip was to see the famous night view of Hakodate that I missed two years ago due to bad weather, and to try out the city center to city center flights between Taipei Songshan Airport to Tokyo International Airport. The journey to Tokyo was really smooth and I spent the time before boarding the flight to Hakodate at the airport’s observation deck.

View of Taipei’s Neihu technology park where my office located.

The Picachu livery plane of All Nippon Airways (ANA) was really popular among children.

Japan Airlines’ Sky ECO special livery changes the normal red color on the vertical stabilizer to green.

After settled down at the hotel, I went to the observation deck at the summit of Mount Hakodate immediately. As the sky getting darker, people started coming to the observation deck both by buses and the cable car, and before I knew it, the observation deck was packed with people even at a normal Tuesday evening.

Ascending to the observation deck of Mount Hokodate via the cable car.

There were already many people even before sunset.

View of Hakodate as the day turned into night.

The Old Hakodate Public Hall at night.

Live performances for the World Folk Music Festival at an open air theater near the Old Hakodate Public Hall attracted many locals.

The Next Day

2011-05-28T23:59:00.000+08:00

These are web albums of pictures I took during my trip to Northwest Japan.

Kanazawa	Kanazawa Castle and Kenroku-en Garden
Shirakawa-go	Eating at Kanazawa

2011-05-28T23:58:00.003+08:00

We wandered around the city of Kanazawa during our last day here.

A group of women doing sketches of Oyama-jinja shrine.

The golden hamlet of the founder of the Kaga domain was displayed at the garden of the Oyama-Jinja shrine.

The statues of the founder of the Kaga domain and his wife.

Ohmicho market has a traditional farmer’s market on the first floor with restaurants and other shops on the other floors inside a modern building. It still kept the typical entrance of Japanese

The lively stores of the Ohmicho market.

This store provided a lot of grilled fishes.

The century-old pharmacy in the traditional Meiji era wooden house.

The Meiji era western style building was now a gallery and café.

The modern design of the Kanazawa City Phonograph Museum.

The square leads to the geisha streer.

A group of women doing sketches of the geisha street.

Visitors wandering on the historical geisha street.

Musical instruments were displayed on the stage where geisha and musicians played music.

The kitchen of a geisha house.

Komatsu airport under evening rain.

Photo Albums

2011-05-27T23:59:00.004+08:00

We took highway bus to visit Shirakawa-go, where my mother always wanted to visit. Shirakawa-go was famous for its clasped-hands style thatching houses and was one of the UNESCO world heritage sites of Japan. There were so many Taiwanese, either with tourist groups or travelled by themselves, that we were confused at times that we were actually back at Taiwan.

The wooden gate in front of the glass structure of Kanazawa Station.

View of Shirakawa-go from a nearby hill.

It’s just passed 10 AM and the streets of Shirakawa-go village were already full of visitors.

There were snows on the peaks of mountains surrounding Shirakawa-go.

The clasped-style house began with simply one story structure as this one displayed at the open-air minka-en museum...

...and over time evolved to Japanese house with clasped-style thatching.

The wooden structure supporting the thatching.

The old style rice huller that were also used in Taiwan.

The suspension bridge connected the bus station to the Shirakawa-go village.

Many clasped-style houses served as guesthouses.

The still inhabited Wada house was opened for visiting. Tools for raising silkworms were displayed on the second floor.

The clasped style house and its reflection on the rice fields.

There were also many non-thatching wooden houses in Shirakawa-go village.

The sunken hearth inside one of the clasped style house.

View of surrounding houses from the third floor of a clasped style house.

Our day started and ended at the bus station and tourist information center of Shirakawa-go village.

The Next Day

2011-05-26T23:59:00.004+08:00

We spent most of the day at the Kanazawa Castle, Kenroku-en, and surrounding areas. Kenroku-en was named one of the three famous gardens of Japan. We missed the cherry blossoming season but the garden still offered many spectacular views (and hundreds of visitors). Staying with the shogunate theme, we also visited the community of low class samurais before calling it a day.

We passed the Ishikawa-ken Shiinoki Culture Complex on our way to Kanazawa Castle and Kenroku-en.

The rebuilt wall and moat of the Kanazawa Castle.

The Ishikawa Bridge connected Kanazawa Castle and Kenroku-en.

The wall next to the Ishikawa-mon Gate was under renovation.

The newly rebuilt Kahoku-mon Gate of Kanazawa Castle was just over one year old.

Archeological digging site next to the Tsuru-no-maru Square at Kanazawa Castle.

The narrow Gojikken Nagaya at Kanazawa Castle.

No metal or nails were used for constructing the wooden structure of Gojikken Nagaya.

The view of the San-no-maru Square from the watchtower of Gojikken Nagaya.

This fountain at Kenroku-en was said to be the very first one in Japan.

The tea house next to Kenroku-en’s Hisaho-ike Pond.

The boat-shaped pavilion at Kenroku-en.

The blossoming flower-de-luce near the Hanami bridge at Kenroku-en.

The Japanese garden of Seison-kaku, a villa not part of Kenroku-en.

The Karasaki Pine at a side Kasumika-ike Pond was one of the famous scenes of Kenroku-en.

The Kotoji stone lantern was said to be the symbol of Kenroku-en.

Kanazawa, literally marsh of gold, was said to be named after wells for washing gold.

The Ishikawa-ken History Museum located inside an old brick warehouse.

The silent alleys of the community for low class samurais.

The ditch that surrounded the community for low class samurais.

The gate of one of the low class samurai’s house

The Next Day

2011-05-25T23:59:00.002+08:00

The purpose of this trip was to take my mother to Japan for a short trip. Due to health reasons, it’s been some time since she last travelled. We were going to Kanazawa and Shirakawa-go. EVA Airways offered direct flights to Komatsu airport, which was one-hour bus ride from the city center of Kanazawa. These were afternoon flights, so it’s already passed 8 pm when we finally checked into hotel.

The public art hanging above the check-in counters at Terminal 2 of Taiwan Taoyuan Airport

In additional to traditional books, the “reading boarding gate” of Terminal 2 also provided many electronic reading devices.

The Boeing 747 DreamLifter cargo plane parked outside the hanger of Evergreen Aviation Technologies.

The FedEx cargo plane flew below us over Japan.

My dinner was microwave food from Japanese convenient store.

The Next Day

2011-04-02T23:59:00.000+08:00

These are web albums of pictures I took during my trip to Europe.

Buda	Pest
Godollo	Helsinki
Eating at Budapest	Eating at Helsinki

2011-02-27T23:59:00.000+08:00

These are web albums of pictures I took during my trip to Northeast Japan.

Matsushima	Yamadera
Sendai	Eating at Sendai

2011-02-27T23:58:00.003+08:00

I spent the day wondering around the city of Sendai. Sendai was founded by Date Masamune during the shogunate era and his footprints still scattered around the city.

Zuihō-den mausoleum was the final rest place of Date Masamune .

It seemed high school baseball game were underway.

The loop tourist buses connected all attractions in the city of Sendai.

A thin layer of ice still covered the five-color pond outside the Sendai city museum.

The cute toilet signs inside Sendai city museum.

This statue of Date Masamune at the ruins of Sendai castle was the landmark of Sendai.

View of the city of Sendai from the ruins of Sendai castle.

This display at the information center had the image of Sendai castle overlaid on the model of the hills by a beam splitter.

The glass structure behind the ginkgo trees on Jōzenji Street was the city library.

The police station on Jōzenji Street.

The EVA Airways plane that would take me back to Taiwan was about to land at Sendai airport.

Web Albums

2011-02-26T23:59:00.004+08:00

Sendai station served as a transit point for me today. I took a train on Tōhoku Main Line to visit Matsushima, one of the three views of Japan located the northeast of Sendai, in the morning. Then after returned to Sendai station by noon, I immediately took a train on the Senzan Line to visit Yamadera, famous for its temples on cliffs located at the west of Sendai. I finished the day at a observation deck on top of a building next to the Sendai station.

The main hall of Zuigan-ji at Matsushima was under renovation.

Some of the halls of Zuigan-ji were not opened to public.

The remains of the caves where monks used to meditate.

Cascading inlets at the Mastushima bay lead to Godaido.

Godaido was one of the landmarks of Mastushima.

The Fukuura bridge connected to the Fukuura-jima island.

Seagulls flew alongside the ferry touring the Mastushima bay looking for food from tourists.

Seagulls were not so cute when they flew in front of cameras and blocked views.

Naturally these two islets were named Twin inlets.

I actually forgot what the legends had when one rowed a boat through this tunnel.

Niou-jima cruise ferries were name after this Niou-jima inlet.

One could see the mountain temples (Yamadera was literally mountain temple) right after disembarking the train.

The temple behind the snow was worshiping Maitreya.

The trail to the mountain temples was half buried in snow and ice.

Icicles formed on cliffs.

The Godaido of Yamadera was well protected from piled snow.

This panorama view was the reason people came to Yamadera.

A train just departed Yamadera station.

The Shingansen bullet train that was arriving Sendai station.

The broadcast tower covered in colorful lights.

The shopping street in front of Sendai station.

I chose to have charcoal grilled beef tongue as the main dish of my dinner again.

The Next Day

2011-02-25T23:59:00.003+08:00

The destination of this trip was Sendai, Japan. Although there were direct flights from Taiwan to Sendai, there were only two flights a week. So I had to transit at Narita international airport.

Most of the flights from Taiwan to Japan would fly pass Sakura-jima at the southern tip of Kyushu.

Japan’s airport ground staffs always wave to departing planes.

The EVA Airway plane took me to Japen departed for its return journey to Taiwan.

Narita airport provides airlines guides for visitors to the observation deck.

The three widebody planes lining behind us for take-off.

The afterglow over Japan’s Tōhoku region.

The main dish of my dinner was charcoal grilled beef tongue.

The Next Day

2010-11-26T23:59:00.001+08:00

These are web albums of pictures I took during my trip to Central Japan.

Nagoya	Inuyama
Gifu	Meiji Village
Aicho Expo Memorial Park	Eating at Nagoya

2010-11-26T23:58:00.003+08:00

The main reason I visited Nagoya was to visit the house of Satsuki and Mei in the Aichi Expo memorial park. The park was far away from all other attractions around the area so I kept the place to the last day of my visit. I had some spare time after visited the park so I went to visit Nagoya castle before heading for the airport.

The Linimo maglev people movie of Aichi prefecture.

I wasn’t so sure about the purpose of the manmade fogs in this garden of Aichi Expo memorial park.

Moon hanging behind the Moon Tower of Aichi Expo.

The mascots of Aichi and Shanghai world expo in front of the Aichi Expo memorial center.

The exhibition hall of the expo now served the citizens as a water sport center.

View of the house of Satsuki and Mei from the animation file My Neighbor Totoro from a nearby observation tower.

The family name of Satsuki and Mei was marked next to the gate of the house.

This Japanese corridor appeared many times in the film.

Books and stationary on and around father’s desk.

The tour guide actually encouraged all visitors to touch and explore everything inside and outside the house.

The hole under the house where Mei looked for the small Totoro.

I didn’t quite remember ever seeing this in the film.

The bus stop where Satsuki gave an umbrella to Totoro.

View of the Ferris wheel from inside of the Linimo train.

The message said the service of the subway was halted. I was stuck on the platform for almost an hour.

The two Tenshukaku (keeps) of Nagoya castle.

The everyday life of Edo period was displayed inside the keep.

View of the Nagoya station and surrounding from the top story of the keep.

The monitor on the uSky airport train displayed the speed of the train and the view in front of the train.

The StarCraft II logo jet happened to visit Central Japan international airport when I was at the airport.

The rice balls and instant noodles (ramens) offered by the Centrair lounge. I couldn’t make up my mind whether this was a better alternative then offering cold dishes.

View of the sunset reflected by the glasses of the terminal.

Photo Albums

2010-11-25T23:59:00.003+08:00

After buying the one day pass for the Nagoya Railroads in the morning, I left Nagoya city and didn’t return until sunset. I went to Inuyama first to visit the oldest keep of Japan castles. From Inuyama, I went to Minji Village open air museum, where many Minji era buildings were displayed. Before returning to Nagoya, I took a not-so-short detour to Gifu to visit Gifu castle.

The animation showing the speed of train.

The radio studio on the old street leading to Inuyama castle.

Red maples decorated the Inuyama castle.

The ancient foundation and stairs of the oldest keep of Japan castles.

The shadows of the keep of the Inuyama castle on a hill.

Trails under red maples in Urakuen tea garden at the foothill of the Inuyama castle hill.

The study and teahouse was national treasures in Urakuen tea garden.

F-15J fighter jet from nearby Japan Air Self-defense Force base.

There were many churches with different construction styles in Meiji Village.

Visitors chatting with staff wearing period police uniform.

Old desks inside a elementary school.

Some Japanese buildings at one side of the street.

Western Meiji era buildings in a valley.

The steam locomotive just changed its direction.

A group of elementary school students eating lunch on the meadow.

The lobby of the Imperial Hotel located at the farthest end of the village.

The height of the maze’s brick walls was tailor made for children.

The keep of the Gifu castle painted by the setting sun.

View of the city of Gifu before sunset from the top story of the keep of the Gifu castle.

Archeological digging was underway at the ruin of the residence of Oda Nobunaga.

My dinner was miso udon.

The Next Day

2010-11-24T23:59:00.004+08:00

There were not that many long travelers coming to Nagoya, so I was asked more questions than usual when entering Japan (interestingly, in Japan, it’s always the custom officers asking the questions of purposes of visits and durations of stays, never the immigration officers.)

Terminal 1 of Taiwan Taoyuan airport was under renovation.

The decoration made from chopped motherboards in this boarding gate highlighted “Made in Taiwan”.

There were no planes at the domestic terminal of Central Japan international airport.

Nagoya’s Hisaya Ōdori Park after sunset.

Nagoya’s Hisaya Ōdori Park at dusk.

Nagoya’s Hisaya Ōdori Park at night.

Nagoya TV tower behind the Oasis 21 mall.

The roof of Oasis 21 was made with glass and a shallow pond.

My dinner was miso port chop meal with a large pork chop.

The Next Day

2010-11-07T23:59:00.001+08:00

This would be the last time the current generation flying hospital, a modified DC-11 wide body plane, of Orbis International visiting Taiwan, and the local Orbis office organized a charity event for the local people to tour the plane one last time.

After checked in at Taipei Songshan Airport, we passed the security to the tarmac, where a bus took us to the plane. Onboard the plane, volunteers of the Orbis International explained to us how eye examinations and operations were performed on this flying hospital, and how the plane served as a pivot for ophthalmology educations in developing countries.

Maybe due to there were a lot of people that wanted to visit the flying hospital, we were not allowed to take photos inside the plane. But we were shared one interesting tidbit was that all nurses of the flying hospital were also certificated flight attendants.

The boarding pass of the flying hospital.

This DC-11 was almost 40 years old.

Volunteers from United Airlines and FedEx handled the maintenance of the plane.

Logo of Orbis International on the vertical stabilizer and third engine.

I didn’t have a chance to take a photo of the entire plane so I had to make do with this model.

Other photos of the day were uploaded to the photo album.

2010-11-04T23:59:00.000+08:00

This is the web album of pictures I took during my day trip to Pingtung.

National Museum of Marine Biology and Aquarium

2010-11-04T23:58:00.002+08:00

I went to the National Museum of Marine Biology and Aquarium to test the camera I just bought.

This cable-stayed bridge was the most remarkable landmark of the southern part of national highway 3.

For some reasons sea turtles were displayed in their own shack.

The whale fountain in front of the museum buildings.

The pool introducing fishes living in mountain creeks.

Tides periodically washed into the tidal pool.

Tropical fishes fighting for food.

All cameras in the room were fixed to the whale shark.

Diver was cleaning the reef tank.

The underwater tunnel offered another point of view to observe marine ecology.

A shipwreck decorating the coral kingdom pavilion.

One of the daily shows of diver feeding fishes.

Lionfish swimming in a room of the shipwreck.

Beluga chasing a ball.

The few seaweeds of the seaweed forest tank.

Tunas in the tuna pool.

Nautilus , so called living fossils, floating in a tank.

A seal raised its head above water to take a breath.

The trail of bubbles illustrated paths of penguins diving into water.

The deep sea submarine simulator allowed visitors to experience deep sea explorations.

Fishes mobbed the diver with foods.

Fishes ignored the diver once all foods were distributed.

Two sets of trains of Taiwan High Speed Rail.

Eating a lunchbox sold by Taiwan Railways onboard the train of Taiwan High Speed Rail.

Photo Albums

2010-10-01T23:59:00.000+08:00

These are web albums of pictures I took during my day trip to Macau.

Macau

Eating at Macau

2010-10-01T23:58:00.001+08:00

This day trip to Macau was to see the newly opened The House of Dancing Water show at the City of Dreams. Before go to the City of Dreams, I also toured the Taipa.

An EVA Airways Boeing 747 just took off.

The flight path from Taiwan to Macau passed over Hong Kong’s Victoria Harbor.

After flew pass the Hong Kong International Airport, the plane took a 315 degree turn before lining up with the runway of Macau Airport.

The colonial houses of Taipa Houses-Museum.

The newlywed took photos at the Taipa Houses-Museum.

The dining room of an early 20th century colonial house.

The Church of Our Lady Camel on top of a hill.

People sampling snacks from vendors on the souvenir street.

The building the History Museum of Taipa and Coloane located used to be the Town office of Taipa.

My lunch was pork chop bun and curry fish balls.

City of Dreams was the second casino complex opened on the Cotai Strip.

The Bubble Fountain next to the Bubble Theatre.

The spiral water curtains opened the Dragon’s Treasure show.

The underwater scenery projected onto the sphere shaped screen.

Children trying to touch the mermaid in the virtual aquarium installation called Vquarium.

Above the entrance of the Theater of Dancing Water was a projected screen designed as a scroll.

Signatures of casts and crews on the poster of the House of Dancing Water show.

『水舞間』的網站上說這些橋段的編排以喜怒哀懼愛惡欲這七情為主題，有些表演很明顯的表現出對應的情緒，有些則實在猜不出來。隨著故事的發展，平台會從水中昇起組成高低形狀各異的舞台，把地板上及淺水中的疊羅漢、軟骨功、高空彈跳、芭蕾舞和現代舞等元素也加入表演裡，而故事的後段居然還有相當突兀但是也非常刺激的越野機車特技。多變的舞台上甚至還可以做出變化豐富的水舞噴泉。

Costumes of the show displayed in the souvenir shop.

The tarmac of Macau Airport at night.

Photo Albums

2010-08-27T23:59:00.000+08:00

These are web albums of pictures I took during my trip to Nara, Japan.

Nara	Horyuji
Heijo-ko 1300th Anniversary	Eating at Nara

2010-08-27T23:58:00.002+08:00

Like my last trip to Japan, I went to the airport directly after checked out from the hotel as the flight returning to Taiwan departed at noon.

The EVA Airways plane I was going to take almost landed in Kansai International Airport.

The China Airlines plane soon followed.

We flew pass the Akashi-Kaikyo Bridge soon after took off.

The train of Taiwan High Speed Rail arrived Taoyuan station.

Photo Albums

2010-08-26T23:59:00.002+08:00

I visited some of the most famous temples of Nara, all of them listed as world heritage, and returned to the site of the Heijō Palace to visit the exhibitions there.

Deers were considered sacred animals and were allowed to wander around the temples in Nara.

The majestic main hall of Tōdai-ji, the most famous Buddhist temple in Nara.

The statue of Buddha Vairocana inside the main hall of Tōdai-ji.

It was said that people would be blessed after climbing through this hole at the base of a pillar inside the main hall.

Nigatsudo was part of the Tōdai-ji complex and was constructed on a slope.

View of the Tōdai-ji complex and the city of Nara from Nigatsudo.

Visitors entering the Tōdai-ji complex through the southern gate.

Kasuga-taisha was the most famous Shinto shires in Nara.

Thousands of lanterns were consecrated to Kasuga-taisha.

A quiet corner at Kasuga-taisha.

For some reasons, the Nara National Museum was built in western style.

The main hall and five story pagoda of Kōfuku-ji.

Reconstruction has begun for the central main hall of Kōfuku-ji.

There was also a three store pagoda in Kōfuku-ji .

The tea Congee bendo served at a tea house near Kōfuku-ji was bitter but delicious.

iPod Touch was adapted as the personal electrical guide of the Heijō Palace.

Replica of the ship used by the missions to Tang China during the Nara Era.

It appeared the lanterns I saw last night were laid on the square every evening.

The bushes marked the locations where pillars of long gone buildings stood.

Archeological diggings underway at the site of the Heijō Palace.

Royals and nobles used to have summer evening banquets in this garden.

The Next Day

2010-08-25T23:59:00.004+08:00

I chose to go to Nara for this short trip. The reason being I was not really interested in the attractions in Osaka and three days were far from enough to visit Kyoto. Having two UNESCO world heritage sites within 15 minutes train ride was surely a plus for Nara, and it also happened that Nara had a year-long celebration for the 1,300th anniversary of the city established as one-time capital of Japan.

This five-story pagoda at Hōryū-ji was said to be one of the oldest wooden structure in the world.

The main hall of Hōryū-ji. The lecture hall behind the main hall was under renovation.

The visiting road connecting the western temple to the eastern temple.

This garden could only be viewed from this angle.

The dream pavilion was the only stand-along building in the eastern temple.

The three story pagoda in the nearby Hōrin-ji.

When the moon rised, people gathered near the Suzaku-mon gate to enter the site of the Heijō Palace.

Huge number of lanterns for the summer evening light and candle fair at the palace site created a spectacular sight.

There were also light-themed modern decorative arts at the light and candle fair.

The busy and lively night market provided many delicious snacks to the visitors.

The Next Day

2010-07-09T23:59:00.000+08:00

These are web albums of pictures I took during my day trip to Taitung, Taiwan.

Taitung

National Museum of Prehistory

2010-07-09T23:58:00.000+08:00

I went to Taitung, a county in the southeast side of Taiwan, for a short break.

The rock formations created by seawater erosion at Xiaoyeliu.

A crab resting on a rock.

The Eight-Arch bridge connecting Sanxiantai (literally three-saint islands).

Sanxiantai was now one of the attractions visited by Chinese tourist groups.

Wooden trails were placed around the three islands of Sanxiantai.

A small lighthouse on top of the outmost island of Sanxiantai.

The offices of the Duli Tourist Center of the East Coast Scenic Area Tourism Bureau.

Meadow of the tourist center in front of the Pacific.

The Amis Folk Center inside the tourist center.

Displays in the information center of Peinen Culture Park.

Volunteers described the procedures of archeological diggings.

The moon stone monument near the Taitung station.

A sundial in front of the National Museum of Prehistory.

Sceneries of Taiwan projected above the models.

The guide explained how the pre-historical people hunt.

The canoe the Tao people of the Orchid Island used for fishing.

The part behind the museum.

The façade of Taitung Airport.

Photo Albums

2010-05-29T23:59:00.000+08:00

These are web albums of pictures I took during my trip to Singapore.

Singapore

Eating at Singapore

2010-05-29T23:58:00.001+08:00

It seemed most Singaporeans and visitors to Singapore were not early birds, so I was able to enjoy my own capsule when I ride the Singapore Flyer observation wheel. To escape the tropical heat, I visited the air conditioned National Museum of Singapore before heading for the airport.

My own Singapore flyer capsule.

The busy shipping lanes outside the marina bay.

View of the Singapore city from the top of the Singapore Flyer.

The National Museum of Singapore located in a colonial building.

The montage of a day in the life in Singapore was projected to the inner wall of a tube.

The personal electrical guide supported positioning functions.

Old Singaporean movies were played at the retro movie theater.

The roof top swimming pool of Singapore Changi Airport.

The zigzagging flight path was to avoid thunderstorms on South China Sea.

Photo Albums

2010-05-28T23:59:00.002+08:00

Cathay Pacific Airways offered very attractive fares for business class tickets from Taiwan to Singapore (almost equaled to economy class fares of direct flights offered by other airlines), so I took the bait and visited Singapore.

Chinatown Heritage Centre located in an old store house in Chinatown.

The Chinese characters were last name of families of Chinese immigrated to Singapore from all over China.

Visitors of the Chinatown Heritage Centre watching documentary of gangsters.

Visitors from all over the world browsed the stores in Chinatown.

People eating out at a hawker center in Singapore.

Old and new buildings of Singapore.

Many visitors took turn to take their photos in front of the statue of Merlion.

Constructions were almost completed at the Marina Bay Sands.

The finish line of Singapore Grand Prix.

The colorful lights of the Singapore Flyer at dusk.

The central business district of Singapore at night.

No price for guessed the nick name of the Esplanade Theatres was durians.

The Next Day

2010-04-06T23:59:00.000+08:00

These are web albums of pictures I took during my trip to Nagasaki, Japan.

Nagasaki

Eating at Nagasaki

2010-04-06T23:58:00.002+08:00

Since the plane back to Taiwan would depart at noon, I headed to the Fukuoka Airport right after checked out from hotel.

This long traveler entertained himself by playing guitar at the observation deck of the airport.

The Club ANA lounge at Fukuoka Airport only offered simple refreshments.

EVA Airways was a promoter for Taipei Floral Expo.

The loop of our flight path was probably to adjust our arrival time to the airport.

Photo Albums

2010-04-05T23:59:00.001+08:00

I started and ended the day at churches in Nagasaki. The one I visited in the morning was located on a hill where westerns used to live in Nagasaki, and the one I visited in the afternoon was rebuilt when the original one was damaged by the atomic bomb.

Ōura Church was said to be the oldest church in Japan.

The moving sidewalk leading to Glover Garden, the residence of Tomas Glover that was now an open air museum of relocated residences of foreigners in Nagasaki.

This building used to be the dormitories for Dutch sailors in Nagasaki.

Colorful tulips in front of the residence of Glover.

Mikosh were displayed in culture center between festivals.

Statues of Confucius’ students stood before Confucius Shrine.

The blue houses of western community at Higashi-Yamate neighborhood.

Cheery blossoming in front of the Higashi-Yamate Juniban Mansion.

The map on tiles near the Dutch hill.

Spectacles Bridge was named after the arches of the bridge and their reflections.

Sōfuku-ji was a Buddhist temple built by Chinese monks.

The Chinese style main hall of Sōfuku-ji.

This was the ground zero of Nagasaki. The brick column was the remaining structure of the original Urakami Cathedral.

The park at ground zero served as a place where locals went for recreation or just took a break.

Documentary of atomic bombing at Nagasaki was played on the screens behind the debris displayed in the Atomic Bomb Museum.

The area damaged by radiation was projected to the model of Nagasaki.

The reflective pool at the roof of the Peace Memorial Hall.

Statues gifted to Nagasaki from countries around the world shared the same message of peace.

Urakami Cathedral was rebuilt on a hill near the ground zero.

A famous shop selling Castella, the Nagasaki specialty originated from Portugal.

The Next Day

2010-04-04T23:59:00.002+08:00

Nagasaki was the only trading port of Japan during the Edo era, and was heavily influenced by both Chinese and European cultures. Nagasaki was also the second city suffered atomic bombing. And I was attracted by the rich history of the city.

The front and back sections of the trains separated for different destinations.

The livery of the express train arrived Nagasaki promoted NHK’s Taiga drama Ryōmaden, which told the story of Sakamoto Ryōma, who happened to lived in Nagasaki for a period of time.

The street car of Nagasaki.

The man-made island, Dejima, was the only trading place of whole Japan. What used to be sea was now a ditch of the city.

Most rooms had monitors showing animations of the how people lived in the rooms.

Modern structures sat next to historical buildings.

The janitor was a giant working on the model of Dejima.

An old temple located between residences.

The gate to the Nagasaki China town.

This assorted noodles was a Nagasaki specialty that evolved from Chinese food.

The city of Nagasaki was built around the tip of a bay.

Nagasaki at dusk.

The night view of Nagasaki was named one of the top three in Japan.

The Megami bridge at the opening of the bay.

The Next Day

2010-01-25T23:59:00.002+08:00

Here is the test result I received from National Geographic Society's The Genographic Project for my maternal genetic history:

Your DNA results identify you as belonging to a specific branch of the human family tree called haplogroup M*.

The map below shows the direction that your maternal ancestors followed as they set out from their original homeland in East Africa. While humans did travel many different paths during a journey that took tens of thousands of years, the lines above represent the dominant trends in this migration.

Over time the descendants of your ancestors were the first modern humans to leave Africa and headed east, moving across the Arabian Peninsula, through the Indian subcontinent and on to eastern Asia and Australasia. But before we can take you back in time and tell their stories, we must first understand how modern science makes this analysis possible.

Your Ancestral Journey: What We Know Now

We will now take you back through the stories of your distant ancestors and show how the movements of their descendants gave rise to your mitochondrial lineage.

Each segment on the map below represents the migratory path of successive groups that eventually coalesced to form your branch of the tree. We start with your oldest ancestor, "Eve," and walk forward to more recent times, showing at each step the line of your ancestors who lived up to that point.

Mitochondrial Eve: The Mother of Us All

Ancestral Line: "Mitochondrial Eve"

Our story begins in Africa sometime between 150,000 and 170,000 years ago, with a woman whom anthropologists have nicknamed "Mitochondrial Eve."

She was awarded this mythic epithet in 1987 when population geneticists discovered that all people alive on the planet today can trace their maternal lineage back to her.

But Mitochondrial Eve was not the first female human. Homo sapiens evolved in Africa around 200,000 years ago, and the first hominids - characterized by their unique bipedal stature - appeared nearly two million years before that. Though Homo sapiens have been around for about 200,000 years, about 150,000 to 170,000 years ago, a woman was born from whom we are all descended. This happened 30,000 years after Homo sapiens evolved in Africa.

Eventually, for any number of reasons, all of the other lineages of people went extinct, and "Mitochondrial Eve" as we call her, was the only female who had descendants that are now living in the present day. We can all be traced back to that one woman, who lived about 170,000 years ago.

Which begs the question, "So why Eve?"

Simply put, Eve was a survivor. A maternal line can become extinct for a number of reasons. A woman may not have children, or she may bear only sons (who do not pass her mtDNA to the next generation). She may fall victim to a catastrophic event such as a volcanic eruption, flood, or famine, all of which have plagued humans since the dawn of our species.

None of these extinction events happened to Eve's line. It may have been simple luck, or it may have been something much more. It was around this same time that modern humans' intellectual capacity underwent what author Jared Diamond coined the Great Leap Forward. Many anthropologists believe that the emergence of language gave us a huge advantage over other early human species. Improved tools and weapons, the ability to plan ahead and cooperate with one another, and an increased capacity to exploit resources in ways we hadn't been able to earlier, all allowed modern humans to rapidly migrate to new territories, exploit new resources, and outcompete and replace other hominids, such as the Neandertals.

It is difficult to pinpoint the chain of events that led to Eve's unique success, but we can say with certainty that all of us trace our maternal lineage back to this one woman.

The L Haplogroups: The Deepest Branches

Ancestral line: "Eve" > L1/L0

Mitochondrial Eve represents the root of the human family tree. Her descendents, moving around within Africa, eventually split into two distinct groups, characterized by a different set of mutations their members carry.

These groups are referred to as L0 and L1, and these individuals have the most divergent genetic sequences of anybody alive today, meaning they represent the deepest branches of the mitochondrial tree. Importantly, current genetic data indicates that indigenous people belonging to these groups are found exclusively in Africa. This means that, because all humans have a common female ancestor, "Eve," and because the genetic data shows that Africans are the oldest groups on the planet, we know our species originated there.

Haplogroups L1 and L0 likely originated in East Africa and then spread throughout the rest of the continent. Today, these lineages are found at highest frequencies in Africa's indigenous populations, the hunter-gatherer groups who have maintained their ancestors' culture, language, and customs for thousands of years.

At some point, after these two groups had coexisted in Africa for a few thousand years, something important happened. The mitochondrial sequence of a woman in one of these groups, L1, mutated. A letter in her DNA changed, and because many of her descendants have survived to the present, this change has become a window into the past. The descendants of this woman, characterized by this signpost mutation, went on to form their own group, called L2. Because the ancestor of L2 was herself a member of L1, we can say something about the emergence of these important groups: Eve begat L1, and L1 begat L2. Now we're starting to move down your ancestral line.

Haplogroup L2: West Africa

Ancestral line: "Eve" > L1/L0 > L2

L2 individuals are found in sub-Saharan Africa, and like their L1 predecessors, they also live in Central Africa and as far south as South Africa. But whereas L1/L0 individuals remained predominantly in eastern and southern Africa, your ancestors broke off into a different direction, which you can follow on the map above.

L2 individuals are most predominant in West Africa, where they constitute the majority of female lineages. And because L2 individuals are found at high frequencies and widely distributed along western Africa, they represent one of the predominant lineages in African-Americans. Unfortunately, it is difficult to pinpoint where a specific L2 lineage might have arisen. For an African-American who is L2 - the likely result of West Africans being brought to America during the slave trade - it is difficult to say with certainty exactly where in Africa that lineage arose.

Fortunately, collaborative sampling with indigenous groups is currently underway to help learn more about these types of questions and to possibly bridge the gap that was created during those transatlantic voyages hundreds of years ago.

Haplogroup L3: Out of Africa

Ancestral line: "Eve" > L1/L0 > L2 > L3

Your next signpost ancestor is the woman whose birth around 80,000 years ago began haplogroup L3. It is a similar story: an individual in L2 underwent a mutation to her mitochondrial DNA, which was passed onto her children. The children were successful, and their descendants ultimately broke away from the L2 clan, eventually separating into a new group called L3. You can see above that this has revealed another step in your ancestral line.

While L3 individuals are found all over Africa, including the southern reaches of sub-Sahara, L3 is important for its movements north. You can follow this movement of the map above, seeing first the expansions of L1/L0, then L2, and followed by the northward migration of L3.

Your L3 ancestors were significant because they are the first modern humans to have left Africa, representing the deepest branches of the tree found outside of that continent.

Why would humans have first ventured out of the familiar African hunting grounds and into unexplored lands? It is likely that a fluctuation in climate may have provided the impetus for your ancestors' exodus out of Africa.

The African Ice Age was characterized by drought rather than by cold. Around 50,000 years ago the ice sheets of northern Europe began to melt, introducing a period of warmer temperatures and moister climate in Africa. Parts of the inhospitable Sahara briefly became habitable. As the drought-ridden desert changed to savanna, the animals your ancestors hunted expanded their range and began moving through the newly emerging green corridor of grasslands. Your nomadic ancestors followed the good weather and plentiful game northward across this Saharan Gateway, although the exact route they followed remains to be determined.

Today, L3 individuals are found at high frequencies in populations across North Africa. From there, members of this group went in a few different directions. Some lineages within L3 testify to a distinct expansion event in the mid-Holocene that headed south, and are predominant in many Bantu groups found all over Africa. One group of individuals headed west and is primarily restricted to Atlantic western Africa, including the islands of Cabo Verde.

Other L3 individuals, your ancestors, kept moving northward, eventually leaving the African continent completely. These people currently make up around 10 percent of the Middle Eastern population, and gave rise to two important haplogroups that went on to populate the rest of the world.

Haplogroup M: The Coastal Migrants

Ancestral line: "Eve" > L1/L0 > L2 > L3 > M

Your next signpost ancestor is the woman whose descendants formed haplogroup M. Haplogroup M comprises one of two groups that were created from L3.

One of these two groups, haplogroup N, moved north out of Africa and left the continent across the Sinai Peninsula, in present-day Egypt. Faced with the harsh desert conditions of the Sahara, their ancestors likely followed the Nile basin, which would have proved a reliable water and food supply in spite of the surrounding desert and its frequent sandstorms. The ancient members of haplogroup N spawned many sub-lineages that went on to populate much of the rest of the globe. They are found throughout Asia, Europe, India, and the Americas.

Your haplogroup, M*, constitutes the other group that split off from L3, and gave rise to the first wave of modern humans to make a successful exodus from Africa. These people likely left the continent across the Horn of Africa, where a narrow span of water between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden separates the East African coastline from the Arabian Peninsula at Bab-el-Mandeb. The short ten miles would have been easily navigable for humans possessing early maritime technologies. This crossing constituted the start of a long coastal migration eastward across the Middle East and southern Eurasia, eventually reaching all the way to Australia and Polynesia.

Haplogroup M* is considered an east Eurasian lineage, as it is found at high frequencies east of the Arabian Peninsula. Members of this group are virtually absent in the Levant (a coastal region in what is now Lebanon), though they are present at higher frequencies in the south-Arabian Peninsula at around 15 percent. Because its age is estimated at around 60,000 years old, members of this group were likely the first humans to leave Africa, and they likely did it heading east. Haplogroup M is found in East Africa, though at much lower frequencies than its subgroup M1. It gives the appearance of a more recent age in eastern Africa than in Asia which is likely the result of smaller populations in Africa, which would have reduced genetic diversity and would therefore appear more recent.

Your haplogroup is prevalent among populations living in the southern parts of Pakistan and northwest India, where it constitutes around 30 to 50 percent of the mitochondrial gene pool, depending on the population. Conversely, the M* haplogroup is absent or rarely found amongst people living west of the Indus Valley, and is found at low frequencies in the Central Asian populations, around 10 to 15 percent. The wide distribution and greater genetic diversity east of Indus Valley indicates that these haplogroup M*-bearing individuals are the legacy of the first inhabitants of southwestern Asia. These people underwent important expansions during the Paleolithic, and the fact that some East Asian haplogroup M* lineages match those found in Central Asia indicates much more recent (i.e., not founder) mixture into the area from the east.

Haplogroup M* has several sub-branches which exhibit some geographic specificity. Subgroup M1 is found at high frequency in East Africa, at around 20 percent in many populations. Because haplogroup M* itself is almost entirely absent from the region, M1 individuals likely represent migrations back into the continent from the Arabian Peninsula after people had left Africa. M2-M6 are characteristic Indian sub-groups. Haplogroup M7 is distributed across the southern part of East Asia, and two of its own daughter-groups, M7a and M7b2, are representative of Japanese and Korean populations, respectively. M7 individuals reach frequency in southern China and Japan of around 15 percent, and are found at lower frequencies in Mongolia. The old age of this branch indicates a pre-Jomon contribution to the mitochondrial gene pool in those areas.

© 2005 - 2009 National Geographic Society. THE GENOGRAPHIC PROJECT, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, and Yellow Border are trademarks of NGS. All rights reserved

2010-01-25T23:58:00.003+08:00

Here is the test result I received from National Geographic Society's The Genographic Project for my paternal genetic history:

Your Y-chromosome results identify you as a member of haplogroup O.

The genetic markers that define your ancestral history reach back roughly 60,000 years to the first common marker of all non-African men, M168, and follow your lineage to present day, ending with M175, the defining marker of haplogroup O.

If you look at the map highlighting your ancestors' route, you will see that members of haplogroup O carry the following Y-chromosome markers:

M168 > P143 > M89 > L15 > M9 > M214 > M175

(Less is known about some markers than others. What is known about your journey is reflected below.)

Today, more than half of all Chinese males carry the genetic marker M175, which is also widespread throughout East Asia and found in lower frequencies in Tahiti and Indonesia.

Your Ancestral Journey: What We Know Now

M168: Your Earliest Ancestor

Fast Facts

Time of Emergence: Roughly 50,000 years ago

Place of Origin: Africa

Climate: Temporary retreat of Ice Age; Africa moves from drought to warmer temperatures and moister conditions

Estimated Number of Homo sapiens: Approximately 10,000

Tools and Skills: Stone tools; earliest evidence of art and advanced conceptual skills

Skeletal and archaeological evidence suggest that anatomically modern humans evolved in Africa around 200,000 years ago, and began moving out of Africa to colonize the rest of the world around 60,000 years ago.

The man who gave rise to the first genetic marker in your lineage probably lived in northeast Africa in the region of the Rift Valley, perhaps in present-day Ethiopia, Kenya, or Tanzania, some 31,000 to 79,000 years ago. Scientists put the most likely date for when he lived at around 50,000 years ago. His descendants became the only lineage to survive outside of Africa, making him the common ancestor of every non-African man living today.

But why would man have first ventured out of the familiar African hunting grounds and into unexplored lands? It is likely that a fluctuation in climate may have provided the impetus for your ancestors' exodus out of Africa.

The African ice age was characterized by drought rather than by cold. It was around 50,000 years ago that the ice sheets of northern Europe began to melt, introducing a period of warmer temperatures and moister climate in Africa. Parts of the inhospitable Sahara briefly became habitable. As the drought-ridden desert changed to a savanna, the animals hunted by your ancestors expanded their range and began moving through the newly emerging green corridor of grasslands. Your nomadic ancestors followed the good weather and the animals they hunted, although the exact route they followed remains to be determined.

In addition to a favorable change in climate, around this same time there was a great leap forward in modern humans' intellectual capacity. Many scientists believe that the emergence of language gave us a huge advantage over other early human species. Improved tools and weapons, the ability to plan ahead and cooperate with one another, and an increased capacity to exploit resources in ways we hadn't been able to earlier, all allowed modern humans to rapidly migrate to new territories, exploit new resources, and replace other hominids.

M89: Moving Through the Middle East

Fast Facts

Time of Emergence: 45,000 years ago

Place: Northern Africa or the Middle East

Climate: Middle East: Semi-arid grass plains

Estimated Number of Homo sapiens: Tens of thousands

Tools and Skills: Stone, ivory, wood tools

The next male ancestor in your ancestral lineage is the man who gave rise to M89, a marker found in 90 to 95 percent of all non-Africans. This man was born around 45,000 years ago in northern Africa or the Middle East.

The first people to leave Africa likely followed a coastal route that eventually ended in Australia. Your ancestors followed the expanding grasslands and plentiful game to the Middle East and beyond, and were part of the second great wave of migration out of Africa.

Beginning about 40,000 years ago, the climate shifted once again and became colder and more arid. Drought hit Africa and the grasslands reverted to desert, and for the next 20,000 years, the Saharan Gateway was effectively closed. With the desert impassable, your ancestors had two options: remain in the Middle East, or move on. Retreat back to the home continent was not an option.

While many of the descendants of M89 remained in the Middle East, others continued to follow the great herds of buffalo, antelope, woolly mammoths, and other game through what is now modern-day Iran to the vast steppes of Central Asia.

These semi-arid grass-covered plains formed an ancient "superhighway" stretching from eastern France to Korea. Your ancestors, having migrated north out of Africa into the Middle East, then traveled both east and west along this Central Asian superhighway. A smaller group continued moving north from the Middle East to Anatolia and the Balkans, trading familiar grasslands for forests and high country.

M9: The Eurasian Clan Spreads Wide and Far

Fast Facts

Time of Emergence: 40,000 years ago

Place: Iran or southern Central Asia

Estimated Number of Homo sapiens: Tens of thousands

Tools and Skills: Upper Paleolithic

Your next ancestor, a man born around 40,000 years ago in Iran or southern Central Asia, gave rise to a genetic marker known as M9, which marked a new lineage diverging from the M89 Middle Eastern Clan. His descendants, of which you are one, spent the next 30,000 years populating much of the planet.

This large lineage, known as the Eurasian Clan, dispersed gradually over thousands of years. Seasoned hunters followed the herds ever eastward, along the vast super highway of Eurasian steppe. Eventually their path was blocked by the massive mountain ranges of south Central Asia—the Hindu Kush, the Tian Shan, and the Himalayas.

The three mountain ranges meet in a region known as the "Pamir Knot," located in present-day Tajikistan. Here the tribes of hunters split into two groups. Some moved north into Central Asia, others moved south into what is now Pakistan and the Indian subcontinent.

These different migration routes through the Pamir Knot region gave rise to separate lineages.

Most people native to the Northern Hemisphere trace their roots to the Eurasian Clan. Nearly all North Americans and East Asians are descended from the man described above, as are most Europeans and many Indians.

M214:

Time of Emergence: 35,000 years ago

Place: Eurasia east of the Aral Sea

Estimated Number of Homo sapiens: approximately 100,000

Tools and Skills: Upper Paleolithic

As the first hunter-gatherers moved into Asia they encountered a vast swath of land that allowed for the early establishment of many different populations in the region. Most of these first migrants descended from the M9 genetic line, having made their way into Asia directly from the Middle East. Once there, several distinct Haplogroups formed, two of which share a common ancestor known as M214.

The man carrying this marker descends from the M9 mutation and lived in Eurasia, likely east of the Aral Sea between 35,000 to 40,000 years ago. His descendants gave rise to a Haplogroup called NO, because it is considered the parent group to two important sub-groups. Haplogroups N, defined by the LLY22 polymorphism, and Haplogroup O, defined by M175, are found at overwhelmingly high frequency throughout North and East Eurasia. This means that the man carrying M214 has become the direct patrilineal ancestor of a very large percentage of present-day humans.

Despite (or because of) the success of these descendant Haplogroups, the ancestral NO group is very rare in today’s population. It is found only sparingly along the north and eastern fringes of present-day China, as well as low frequencies in parts of Southeast Asia.

M175: The East Asian Clan

Fast Facts

Time of Emergence: 35,000 years ago

Place of Origin: Central or East Asia

Climate: Ice Age

Estimated Number of Homo sapiens: Approximately 100,000

Tools and Skills: Upper Paleolithic

Your genetic trail ends with an ancestor carrying marker M175 who was born around 35,000 years ago in Central or East Asia. This ancestor was part of the M9 Eurasian clan that, encountering impassable mountain ranges, migrated to the north and east.

These early Siberian hunters continued to travel east along the great steppes, gradually crossing southern Siberia. Some of them, perhaps taking advantage of the Dzhungarian Gap used thousands of years later by Genghis Khan to invade Central Asia, made it into present-day China.

East Asia had been home to Homo erectus for nearly a million years, but traces of occupation disappear from the archaeological record around 100,000 years ago. The earlier hominids may have abandoned the region or died off due to a steadily deteriorating climate.

By the time your ancestors arrived in China and East Asia, the Ice Age was once again advancing toward glacial maximum. Encroaching ice sheets and Central Asia's enormous mountain ranges effectively corralled them in East Asia. There they evolved in isolation over the millennia.

Today, some 80 to 90 percent of all people living east of Central Asia's great mountain ranges are members of haplogroup O, the East Asian Clan. The marker M175 is nearly non-existent in western Asia and Europe.

There were actually two waves of migration into this region. While your ancestors populated the region from the north, another group approached from the south. Descendants of the Coastal Clan—people who left Africa perhaps 60,000 years ago and headed along the coastline toward Australia—may have reached East Asia by 50,000 years ago.

The Coastal lineage is found at a frequency of 50 percent in Mongolia, and is common throughout northeast Asia.

The present composition of East Asia still shows evidence of this ancient north-south divide, showing a clear distinction in genetic heritage between northern and southern Chinese.

This is where your genetic trail, as we know it today, ends. However, be sure to revisit these pages. As additional data are collected and analyzed, more will be learned about your place in the history of the men and women who first populated the Earth. We will be updating these stories throughout the life of the project.

© 2005 - 2009 National Geographic Society. THE GENOGRAPHIC PROJECT, NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC, and Yellow Border are trademarks of NGS. All rights reserved.

2009-08-17T23:59:00.000+08:00

These are web albums of pictures I took during my trip to Kanto, Japan.

The Little Prince Museum in Hakone	Green Tokyo Gundam Project
Hakone	Eating in Kanto

2009-08-17T23:58:00.000+08:00

For my last day in Tokyo, I joined the Sumida River boat tour from Asakusa to Odaiba. My goad was the 1:1 model of the Mobile Suite Gundam that was erected at the Shiokaze park to promote the Green Tokyo environmental project. I then visited the Toyota’s exhibition center, Megaweb, before heading to the airport.

The tour boat was the Sci-Fi esque Himiko.

Cabin design of the Himiko.

Himiko cruised below the Rainbow bridge that connected Odiba to the center of Tokyo.

The visitors at the feet of the Gundam provided perfect scales to demonstrate the size of the robot.

The logo on the left shoulder guard promoted Tokyo’s application to host the 2016 Olympics Games.

Formula 1 racing car from Toyota team on display in the Megaweb exhibition center.

Simulators allowed visitors to experience the thrill of being a racing driver.

Toyota iQ was a microcar that was only available in the Japanese and European markets.

I drove a right-hand-driver car for the first time at the test circuit of Megaweb.

Adjustable conceptual personal vehicle displayed at Megaweb’s design showcase center.

Some personal vehicle concept resolved to mimic the way human moves.

Selected classic sports cars displayed at the Megaweb’s historical garage.

Classic American cars parked at the garages of a mocked-up motel.

The Yurikamome monorail people mover moving between stations.

ANA’s Fly! Panda special livery celebrated 20th anniversary of service to China. This plane was solely used on Japan-China routes.

Photo Album

2009-08-16T23:59:00.000+08:00

For some reasons, there was a museum dedicated to The Little Prince and its author Saint-Exupéry at Hakone. Being a fan of the book, I decided to visit the museum and spent the day at Hakone before returning Tokyo to see Cirque du Soleil’s show, Zed.

Asteroid B612, welcomed visitors to the museum.

French esque street in the Little Prince museum.

Photos and scripts of Saint-Exupéry were displayed in the museum.

Also on display were replicas of places Saint-Exupéry lived.

The fox was an important character in The Little Prince.

Statue of the Little Prince in the garden.

After left the museum, I took the ropeway to Ōwakudani. The ropeway provided great view of Mount Fuji, weather permitting.

Sulphur vents and hot springs at Ōwakudani.

People lined up to buy black eggs, the specialties of Ōwakudani that were cooked in boiling hot spring.

View of the volcanic valley of Ōwakudani from the ropeway.

The zigzagging Hakone Tozan Railway was about to switch direction.

Traditional Japanese sweets I had at Hakone-Yumoto.

The ekiban (railway lunch box) I had on the train back to Tokyo.

The Cirque du Soliel Theater in Tokyo Disney Resort before the show started.

The Cirque du Soliel Theater in Tokyo Disney Resort after the show ended.

The Next Day

2009-08-15T23:59:00.000+08:00

The main reason for this Tokyo trip was to catch the musical Rent, with the leading roles played by the original Broadway cast.

The tip of Mount Fuji above the clouds.

The route map displayed on the cabin of Narita Express, the express train connecting Narita International Airport to Tokyo city centers.

Theatergoers arriving the Akasaka ACT theater.

The Akasaka ACT theater after the show ended.
照片：散場時的赤阪 ACT 戲院

The Next Day

2009-06-01T23:59:00.000+08:00

These are web albums of pictures I took during my trip to Hokkaido, Japan.

Sapporo	Otaru
Hakodate	Eating in Hokkaido

2009-06-01T23:58:00.001+08:00

For our last day in Hokkaido, we visited the old government office then go to Mount Moiwa for the panorama view of Sapporo.

The conference room of the government office in its original setting.

One of the few Sapporo trams that retained their original dark green color.

The view of the Sapporo city was already good en route to the summit of Mount Moiwa via the ropeway.

從藻岩山山頂的展望台可以一覽整個札幌市的市容，市中心的札幌車站和電視塔等較高的建築以及市內的幾塊綠地都清晰可見，惟獨被高樓包圍著的大通公園只能靠電視塔找到相對位置。據說天氣好的時候從這裡可以遠眺小樽，不過以今天多雲時晴而又霧濛濛的天氣，其實從展望台上能看到札幌市區已經感到很慶幸了。

It was not hard to imagine that Sapporo was the fifth largest city of Japan.

Sapporo TV Tower and the JR Tower next to the Sapporo station were among the tallest buildings in Sapporo.

The Sapporo Dome served as the home of local baseball and football teams.

Japanese style business class meal served onboard EVA Airways’ plane.

The sun set as we approached Taiwan.

We were about to dive into the clouds.

Photo Album