Kenting National Park

Drove all along the edges of the east coast after leaving Taroko Gorge - enjoying gorgeous scenery, and arrived at the Chateau. Due to a most unfortunate circumstance (not!) the Family Suite had been mistakenly rented to someone else, so we got upgraded to the Royal Suite. This is the view off our very lengthy balcony:




Gloriously deserted beach and luxurious monster suite, with three big-screen TV's, bar, jacuzzi, steam room .... sorry, I can't stop giggling ... !

Back to Taipei this afternoon.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Kenting, Taiwan

Wednesday, March 14

We rented a van and drove from Taipei, along the rugged east coast, to Taroko Gorge today. We lucked out and got a cabin at the luxurious Leader Hotel, run by aboriginal Taroke tribespeople. It is like being at Jasper Park Lodge (possibly the most gorgeous place on earth) Taiwanese-style. It is sunset, and we have returned to our spacious cabin to relax after an event-filled hike to see the gorge. Here is the view from the veranda ...


... where I am sipping a glass of zinfandel and, miraculously, using wifi to write this post. Dinner is in half an hour and then we will watch an aboriginal ceremony. The kids are watching movies and the old folks are checking their emails - I think I may be in paradise.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Taroko Gorge, Taiwan

Tuesday, March 13

Sorry for the delay in posting! In Beijing, there's free wi-fi everywhere, but Facebook, Youtube, and blogs are censored. So I could check email but couldn't post.
My photos are mostly on my DSLR but I did take my iPad to the top of Mutianyu where the Great Wall can be accessed by cable car which I thought was pretty scary ... until the kids talked me into riding the luge to the bottom. So here's a shot of being up top:



It was a beautiful, sunny day, but very chilly at the top, and when I have time I will post the incredible details of the rest of that day. It's a story in itself.
That is me, in the photo below, arriving at the bottom. I had to wear my rain cape just to stay warm. I am sure it was warmer in Ottawa!



Right now I'm in a Starbucks getting caffeinated after enjoying a traditional Taiwanese breakfast of Dan Bing, Radish Cake, hot soy milk, and various fried pastries at a street kiosk. Mmmmm. And as we are about to explore the city with our wonderful guide (my eldest son, Matt, who has been living here since August and who is becoming exceptionally fluent in Mandarin), I must be brief.

When we arrived in Taipei yesterday, my son had left instructions about where we were to have lunch while he finished up his class at the university. We had the most incredible beef broth with noodles and pickled mustard greens, and really yummy ribs. Here's what I would say is the best soup I ever had (photo courtesy Michael Pal):




That's it for today!
Your Canadian guide in Taiwan,
M.
Posted from my iPad

Location:Taipei

Day 1 - Hour 1 - The Adventure Begins

All set and ready to head to Vancouver en route to Beijing. I have the coolest little keyboard for my iPad that makes it act like a tiny computer. I have my cappuccino, so I'm ready to go!


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:VIP Lounge, Ottawa International Airport

AQE Postcard

"Madeleine" - 6" x 4"

I did say I would post the photo of the 4" x 6" postcard I am donating to the "Hang with AQE 2012" Art Quilt Elements 10th Celebration. So here she is, moments before being popped into an envelope for mailing.

It was a much more daunting challenge to work in such a small scale than I imagined - the cheesecloth was much denser and tricky to manipulate than I would have thought.  But she's done and is one more thing to cross off the list.

Over the weekend, I cut the borders off of "Memories of Gombe" and faced her, resewing the sleeve and label. Found a great tutorial online  made by Jeri Riggs that made the job quite neat.  I got the quilt wrapped and boxed and mailed to Philadelphia.  And got my SAQA square packed and sent off as well.  I would like to finish one last quilt tomorrow and then pack my bags to be ready to leave Thursday morning.

Wrapping Up Loose Ends

Nereids - 25 x 52 in. (Photo: R Pilon)

I leave in five days for Beijing/Taiwan so am doing all those last-minute errands necessary for a big trip.  In case you've been following my cheesecloth adventures, I did enter Nereids in the Taiwan Exhibition - the new owner (who has become a dear and cherished friend over the years) very generously allowed me to enter it, even though he will have the hassle of packing it up and shipping it back to me if my piece is accepted. (Thank you, Nysha!)

But I did not receive the anxiously-awaited copyright permission in time to enter my Inuit piece to TIQE.  So it is languishing on my worktable, half-finished and no time to work on it over the next few days. I cannot resist posting a little teaser detail of his face here too.  I am incorrigible!

This week will involve making a cheesecloth postcard to submit to Art Quilt Elements - if I get it done by Wednesday, you know I'll post it!  And I have to sew sleeves and labels on Memories of Gombe and Sizing Up so I can mail them off before I leave. (You can tell by my procrastination that these are details I only get to when I am absolutely forced.)

I just learned I have been selected as a Featured Member on the TAFA (Textile and Fiber Art) List!  Rachel Biel has done an amazing job setting up this beautiful site - hope you'll check it out: http://www.tafalist.com/mary-pal-life-lines-cloth