Hsiao Liuchiu Island

This past weekend Erin and I took a trip out of Kaohsiung to Taiwan's only coral island, Hsiao Liuchiu.  Located just south of Kaohsiung it is made entirely of coral and provided a wonderful getaway.


We asked one of the school office staff, Ellen, to help us make arrangements earlier in the week.  She was able to get us an all-inclusive deal which included one night's stay, dinner, breakfast the next day, 24-hour scooter rental, and round-trip ferry tickets.  This made things much easier then trying to figure all of it out on our own.

However, there was still some difficulty getting to the island.  We started by taking the MRT subway down to the airport, from there we hoped to catch a taxi down to the ferry.  Unfortunately the driver didn't understand what we meant and we had to call Ellen to have her explain.  Finally we made it to the dock and after waiting awhile got on the ferry for the 30 minute trip to the island.  On arrival we were happy to find someone waiting for us who got us a scooter and led us to our hotel.

We were soon cruising around the island on our scooter enjoying the warm sea breeze.  Before long we found a nice harbor with a beach to enjoy our packed lunch.  It was really nice to just sit back and relax while listening to the waves lap at the shore.  After lunch we were back on the scooter down to the "Black Devil Cave".  The ominously named cave had many people backing out after getting halfway in and realizing they needed a flashlight to see (us included).  Crawling through the dark, narrow confines was exciting, but certainly wouldn't be for everyone.  After the cave we took to cruising around the island some more and checking out the local scenery.  We quickly passed by fishing ports, interesting rock/coral formations, and even a stage with a live play on the side of the road.

Back at our hotel we found a bench overlooking the ocean where we sat and relaxed for several hours.  It was nice to just look out over the sea while the sun slowly set.  For dinner one of the hotel staff led us into town at what must have been a sister establishment.  The food was good with plenty of variety.  Being downtown we went to check out a bar we had seen earlier.  Though not much more than a shack, the Deep Soul Bar had a nice outdoor area decorated with driftwood, some good mellow music, and tasty drinks.

On Sunday we found a path to hike partway around the island.  There weren't many people allowing us to leisurely enjoy the jungle and caves that we found.  Afterwards we spent some time on the beach so Erin could look for more shells.  We were soon back in town enjoying fried rice and smoothies for lunch.  It was getting time to head back home though so we took one more ride around the island before grabbing our stuff and going back to the ferry dock.


With subway, taxi, and ferry it ended up taking us about two hours to get back home.  While this was somewhat exhausting and often confusing when dealing with the taxi drivers, I'm very glad we went.  The island was beautiful, the weather was perfect, and the food turned out to be really good.  What more can one ask for in a weekend getaway?

Hot Springs and Hot Chocolate

Well, it's been a slow month for us as we've gotten back to work and used to the routine of life here. Things have been pretty good aside from a few weekend markets behind our building that play annoying music on repeat. Erin is as busy as ever with classes and the drama club while my work has been less demanding. It's given me more of an opportunity to focus on what we'll be doing when we return to the US this summer.


Last weekend we had planned a full itinerary in Taipei. While the rain and the cold kept us from doing some of it we still had a good time. We left Saturday late in the morning and after resolving my mistake at the hotel we were on our way to lunch at Ding Tai Fung, our favorite soup-dumpling place. In the same mall we were able to do some shopping for some western food that is hard to find in Kaohsiung. With the rain coming down we skipped our plan of a hike and instead went to see a movie. We finished the night with some drinks and bar food at Gordon Birsch.


The next morning we slept in before having a delicious breakfast at our hotel. We were relaxing back in our room when we started to notice some of the hangers shaking.  Turns out there had been an earthquake on the southern part of the island.  It had been strong enough to feel in Taipei, but hadn't done any more damage then a little bit of grout falling out of our shower tiles back at home.

We soon made our way out by the MRT to Beitou in the north part of the city. There we found a nice landscape and wonderful park based on existing hot springs. After walking up some narrow streets we came to the spa recommended in our book only to find it demolished. Nearby though we found another place called "Poetry in the Woods". Though it looked nice, the price and the setup made it not for us. After more looking we finally found a spa that we liked. Thankfully it had stopped raining and we were able to enjoy the hot springs for a little while before moving on.

Beitou was a nice setting and we would like to return one of these weekends, but we were on a mission to get some hot chocolate. In Danshui, a city/suburb by the coast there is a place called "In Joy Chocolate" that serves the best hot chocolates we've ever had. They treat their hot chocolate like wine with a care for the varieties found from different parts of the world. The result is a pot of hot chocolate that we were willing to brave the renewed rain to get. They also make some good waffles and have a cozy cat-themed place.


We finally made our way back down to Kaohsiung after a ride on the train Sunday night. We had apparently brought the cold down with us, but it was okay. The hot springs and hot chocolate had warmed us up and gave us the needed reprieve from our routine.

Cambodia for Erin's Birthday

After a cold couple of days in Northern Vietnam, Erin and I were off to sunny central Cambodia to see some temples.  Flying in to Siem Reap we arrived in one of the nicest airports we've ever seen.  Getting through immigration and getting our stuff was a breeze.  There was even a tuk-tuk driver waiting there to take us to our hotel.  The ride into town was nice and the hotel staff were very accommodating.  It didn't take long for us to settle in, change into cooler clothes, and head out for dinner.  After some walking around we found a good Cambodian place to eat which let us try a variety of meals for not very much money.

The next morning after breakfast and booking our activities for the rest of the week we hired a tuk-tuk driver to take us around to the different temples for the day.  The main temple of the region is Angkor Wat, but there are in fact dozens of temples in the region.  We started with Angkor Thom which contained within it Bayon. We loved how we were able to climb on and around this centuries-old temple without being forced to a specific path.  This was the same for most of the temples as we were free to roam as we chose.  We took a route around Baphuon and Phimeanakis; over the Terrace of the Elephants and Terrace of the Leper King.  All beautifully carved.

By the time we had met back up with our driver it was around lunch time and we were getting exhausted from the heat.  Having some ice cream and creatively carved pineapple gave us the energy to drive on to our next stop, Ta Prohm.  Unlike most temples in the area, this one has been left in much the same condition as it was found.  Used in scenes from the original Tomb Raider movie it includes several trees growing in and around the temple ruins. Once we finished there we went to a small restaurant near the Angkor Wat temple for a true lunch and to cool off.  After lunch we had some time to explore Angkor Wat in all its glory.  It is a massive temple with well preserved carvings on several of the walls.

We finished our tour of the temples with a short hike up a nearby hill to Phnom Bakheng.  While a small temple where only 100 people are allowed in at a time, the real draw is being able to see Angkor Wat and the sunset.  When we were allowed up to the temple we found people sitting all over it waiting for the sun to set in what seemed like another hour.  We decided we didn't want to wait and went back down passing hundreds of people trekking up the hill for the experience.  We were glad we left.  It was better to avoid the avoid the crowds and head back into town where we found a Mexican restaurant with delicious margaritas.

The next morning (Thursday), after breakfast, we went downtown for a cooking course.  We started with a trip through the chaotic old market where a fish jumped off one of the tables at Erin.  There was a large selection of courses which we could choose to make, though Erin and I decided to make the same things.  It worked out well since there was only one chef/instructor for six of us.  While we enjoyed the class the lack of an extra instructor made it go a little late.  Once we had our creations for lunch we walked over to a complex of artisan shops.  Angkor Artisans was set up to give Cambodians with disabilities a place to learn and create art using different medium.  On a short tour we got to see people who were deaf and mute make silk screen paintings, lacquer items, copper engraving, stone carvings, and wood carvings.

Later that afternoon we got to ride ATV's out through the nearby countryside to see the sunset.  It was fun to ride through the fields and see all the kids waving as we went by.  We finished the night back downtown at an Italian restaurant tucked back in a small alleyway.

Earlier in the week, as I was making reservations for a horse ride, Erin reminded me of the many hours she had spent with horses growing up.  Feeling like I had a similar experience growing up we were looking forward to our two-hour ride Friday morning.  After resolving an issue caused by my inaccurate conversion from pounds to kilograms we were soon on our way with our guide.  It was just the three of us as we rode through the surrounding countryside, first at a walk, but then later trotting and cantering several times.  It was nice to have a bit more control of our horses than a standard trail ride would allow, but we had some problems when we tried crossing between two rice paddies and the guides horse refused to cross some quick-moving water.  With little space between the paddies to ride on we had a hard time turning the three horses around.  We eventually made it back to the stables safely, but we were also very sore.  After having lunch downtown we returned to our room to nap and recover.  That night we were picked up by one of the owners of a traditional Cambodian restaurant for dinner.  As we rode he explained how proud he was to be able to maintain this family-run business.  Tasting the food and some rice-wine mojitos from his brother in a very romantic atmosphere was wonderful.

The last day of our stay was Erin's birthday and so it was appropriate to take a car out to Banteay Srei, also known as citadel of the woman, or citadel of beauty.  But first, we went a bit farther to Kbal Spean, also known as "The River of a Thousand Lingas".  As it was early in the morning we were the first to arrive at the river and had the trail to ourselves, a guide, and a few friendly dogs. The guide showed us the many carvings in the river rocks mostly consisting of "lingas" which are a phallic symbol of Hindu god Shiva.  Back at Banteay Srei we struggled with the crowds to see the many intricate carvings.  Before too long though we had to get back to our hotel and checkout.


After two short flights and a long layover in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) we were back home.  It was a great trip and we were glad to have experienced such amazing sights first-hand. We would definitely recommend both Vietnam and Cambodia to anyone traveling in the area.   I feel especially lucky to have such a wonderful traveling partner to enjoy these places with and I'm looking forward to our future travels together.

Java SWT Programming

Over the past two years I have been working on a pair of engineering programs for a group of water gate manufacturers.  With the help of a veteran engineer as the voice of the customer I created these form-based programs to help design a specific water gate and gate hoist.  The two programs were very similar in their functionality including:

• An initial menu for choosing program direction


• A screen to retrieve previous program runs


• A password-protected table editor for adding and changing gate components


• A series of screens for entering details and selecting options


• A final page to view and print a formatted report compiling the data and calculations entered in the program.

Since I was working on a Linux (Ubuntu) machine and the program was needed to run on Windows desktop I opted for Java SWT to be able to compile versions for both operating systems.  Using Eclipse Plug-in Development for a framework allowed me to work in my preferred IDE while providing a number of desktop components out of the box.  Wrapping the whole thing up with an NSIS installer/uninstaller made for easy distribution.

Lunar New Year in Vietnam

Even though Erin and I were only back at work for two weeks it was already time for another vacation as the Lunar New Year came early this year.  Despite the crowds we had decided last year to travel to Vietnam and Cambodia.  We only had one week off though so we were going to be specific about what we visited.  First stop was Vietnam to see Halong Bay.


On Saturday morning we got up early for our flight to Hanoi, Vietnam.  It wasn't until I double-checked our itinerary that I realized that we had booked business class for our entire trip.  Thinking back I feel it was the only thing available, but it explained the high cost of our tickets.  In any case it was a welcome surprise as we got access to the business lounge before our flight and got the nice, wide seats on the plane.

We arrived in the cold and gray of Hanoi noticing the dull, utilitarian, communist elements of the airport.  Fortunately we had contacted our hotel to pick us up so we didn't have to deal with any shady taxi drivers.  Our hotel, The Hanoi Moment Hotel was very accomodating throughout the trip and let us check in early so we could get some rest before heading out on the town.  As it was the weekend before the New Year the streets were packed and there were flower markets all around town. We found a wonderful ice cream shop for a snack while walking around the idyllic Hoan Kiem lake.  After some souvenir shopping we went to see a very nice water-puppet show.  With all the people in town we had a hard time getting in to a place for dinner, but eventually found a place with some space.

On Sunday we went out for a cruise on Halong Bay.  After a four-hour shuttle ride we checked in and boarded the ship.  Our first stop in the beautiful bay was a floating village where we were guided around by local row boats. It was astounding to think about how the people lived their lives on the water as we were taken to the town's school.  Our next event was a short cooking class before dinner.  Erin and I were pretty exhausted after that so we retired to our cabin, but others stayed up to celebrate the new year.

On the next day, the first day of the "Dragon" new year, we were treated to a trip to a magnificent cave.  The geography of the area made our trip back to the dock spellbinding.  However, we were soon back on the shuttle heading back to Hanoi.  The streets were far less packed as we got back in and checked back in to our hotel.  We still had a hard time finding a place for dinner, but soon discovered some delicious Italian food.

Monday morning we spent the day walking around Hanoi looking at the various sites.  From lake pagodas to Ho Chi Minh's Mausoleum it was all very interesting to see.  We just wish we could have been there when it was warmer.  We finished our sight-seeing at the temple of literature which contained a number of stone turtles carrying tablets of former Vietnamese scholars.  It was nice walking around the streets of Hanoi, but it was soon time to head back to the airport and fly off to Cambodia.  By that time we were looking forward to a warmer climate and some sun!

Home for the Holidays

This year for the holidays Erin and I made the long flight back to Denver. Making the flights seem even longer was the lack of seat-back TV's that we have come to expect on international flights. I think we'll avoid flying long distances with United in the future. Once we got back to family though it made the long flights worth the trouble.


We started our visit with Erin's parents, Mike and Susie, and their cute dog, Dante. Erin's brother, Andrew, and his fiancee, Sara, soon joined us.  The next night after dinner at the artfully decorated Beatrice & Woodsley Erin's sister, Amy, her husband, Kevin, and their 6-month old daughter, Nora, joined us as well. From then on it was a cuteness contest between the baby and the dog. Even though she was sick (as most of us were or would be) I think Nora won and Dante had to battle for attention.

On Christmas Eve we had a wonderful home-cooked meal compliments of Andrew and Sara. After dinner Erin and I presented everyone with an activity we had brought back from Taiwan: Chinese Lanterns. These were paper balloons with flammable material suspended at the base. We prompted everyone to write down what they were wishing for in the coming year. We then took the balloons outside and lit them. The balloons filled with hot air and gently lifted off into the night sky taking our wishes for the New Year with them.

Christmas morning found us opening presents and talking to family. Though Nora wasn't old enough to open her presents by herself she certainly received the lion's share. Dinner that night was another wonderful home-cooked meal, this time coming from Susie's cookbook. We finished the night with a game of dominoes.


On Monday, the day after Christmas Erin went with her family for pedicures and then we all went out to a Vietnamese restaurant for lunch.

While Tuesday was a relaxing day to catch up on emails, Wednesday proved to much busier. As a birthday gift Erin had gotten me some time at Denver's indoor skydiving building. After a brief introduction our instructor had us suited up and ready to get in the vertical wind tunnel. I spent my first two minutes trying to remember my previous sky-diving experience. When it was time for me to go again for another two minutes I was ready to do some basic manuevers like turning, going up and down, and going back and forth. Later that night I went out to join our supper club at Duo Restaurant in the Highlands. Unfortunately Erin couldn't join me as she was going to see "West Side Story" with her family. It was unfortunate she couldn't make it to experience the wacky gift exchange we did, but she enjoyed the musical.



On Thursday we had to say goodby to Erin's family as my parents, Karen and Gary, were flying in and we were going to stay with my aunt and uncle, Janet and Reynold, for their stay.  It was hard to say goodbye knowing we wouldn't see some of Erin's siblings and our niece until Andrew and Sara's wedding in September. Still, it was great to see my family and have a wonderful spaghetti dinner fixed by Janet that night.



On Friday Janet had reserved a table for afternoon tea at the Brown Palace.  The hotel is beautiful and the tea and scones were delicious.  Later we went out to dinner at a great place in downtown Littleton called, Terracotta.  On Saturday it was much the same except that Erin and I joined our friends Pete and Leah for dinner at the Wash Park Grill. We all then went over to join our other friends, Rachel and Cameron, at their house. It was nice to talk and catch up with them.


We started the New Year on Sunday with more relaxing time with the family.  This included playing Reynold and Janet's Wii along with some dominoes.


On Monday Erin and I got to meet with friends around town. That night Erin and I cooked my family a nice dinner of shrimp and tilapia before sharing the Chinese Lantern experience once more.


On Tuesday Erin and I drove my parents out to the airport for their flight back to California. We also took the opportunity to try to get some things out of storage that we would need in Taiwan. That night it was my turn to treat Erin to a surprise. We started out with dinner at the 9th Door Restuarant, a favorite tapas place downtown. We then went up to the Omni Interlocken Hotel in Broomfield. It was a nice hotel to stay at.


The next day the surprise continued as I got Erin an early birthday gift of a hot stone massage at the spa attached to the hotel. So she wouldn't be alone I went with her for my first hot stone massage. It was nice, but probably only something I would do rarely. We spent much of the afternoon running errands and preparing to leave. That night we went out with Erin's parents to the Sushi Den.


Early the next day Susie drove us to the airport for our flight back to Taiwan. As I type this we are once again on a long flight with limited entertainment options. It is a grueling process, but it was definitely worth it to see our family.

Lions and Tigers and ... Turkey - Thanksgiving in Singapore

With four days off for Thanksgiving Erin and I decided to see Singapore over the long holiday weekend. Flying out Thursday morning we arrived to our modest hotel that afternoon and were soon out exploring the city. Our first stop was the famous Raffles Hotel and Long Bar where the Singapore Sling cocktail was originally concocted. The hotel and bar exuded a British Colonial style along with a tradition of leaving peanut shells on the floor.


From there we went to a Thanksgiving buffet put on by a brewery/restaurant on the Riverfront area. It was nice to get some turkey and stuffing, but the buffet style and confused service limited our enthusiasm for the place. Maybe finding the perfect Thanksgiving dinner in a former British colony in South-East Asia is asking a bit too much... We finished off the evening with a river cruise that described some of the history of the sites we saw up and down the river. It was nice to get a feel for some of the history of the city while taking in the splendid night skyline.

The next morning we were up early for breakfast out at the zoo. After a long ride on subway and bus we arrived just in time for our breakfast with orangutans. In an open-air dining area we got a typical breakfast buffet while animal handlers brought out orangutans, cockatoos and boa constrictor to join us. We were able to hold the snake and get pictures with the animals before finishing our meal and heading out to the rest of the zoo.

The Singapore zoo is truly one of the best in the world. It's been a while since I've been to the San Diego Zoo, but I would say this one was better. The main reason was because animal enclosures were created in the most natural way possible and even gave direct access to some of the animals. Highlights included a sea lion show where we were close enough to get wet; seeing various types of monkeys get fed; an Australian Outback exhibit where a walabi came up close enough to touch; and an enclosed area with freely-roaming lemurs, deer-mice, parrots, and butterflies. It's only drawback is the long time it takes to get there and back to the city.


It was mid-afternoon by the time we got back so we relaxed some and got cleaned up before going out to dinner at the fancy "Coriander Leaf" hotel back on the Riverfront. While the meal was decent and our server was nervous at times the real treat was the wine-pairing that accompanied each course. The wines were exceptional and almost justified the high price of the meal.


On Saturday we slept in a bit before going out for brunch near Chinatown. PS Cafe on Ann Siang was a wonderful place to sit back, read a paper, and enjoy the amazingly delicious food. It was a great way to start the day. From there we went out to Sentosa Island by way of cable car. While the views from the ride were nice, we met with disappointment once we arrived. The ride we wanted to do was booked for the day, it was hot outside, and everything else looked cheesy. We confirmed this suspicion with two cinema experiences: a hokey, water-in-your-face, bumpy show about pirates and a nausea-inducing, poor-video "log ride".  After sulking in the mall a bit we made our way to the Botanical Gardens.

Erin and I have discovered something paradoxical in our travels. We like to visit and stay in big cities, but once we're there we enjoy seeking out the natural, open spaces of parks, gardens, and wilderness. After walking around the gardens we were feeling much better and even made some friends from Louisiana along the way. The highlight was the National Orchid Gardens with thousands of beautiful orchids in a variety of settings. We would have spent more time in the gardens but we had to get to dinner. After a delicious Italian dinner along the river we were heading back out to the zoo area.


Right next to the zoo is a night safari that many people recommended. With many animals being nocturnal it was a wonderful chance to see them up and about. While not as good as the zoo, the night safari provided plenty of highlights as well including a tram ride where you could potentially reach out and touch several animals; a bat enclosure with bats flying inches from your face; and the chance to see a variety of animals that only come out at night.


After arriving back to our hotel late the night before we were exhausted on Sunday. We had time to get some breakfast and walk around Little India before grabbing our stuff and heading out to the airport. Leaving at 2pm with stops in Bangkok and Hong Kong we didn't get back home until midnight.


Even with only four days I feel like we got to see a good portion of Singapore. We're both fairly sore from all the walking and tired from the hectic pace, but we had a great time and would love to visit Singapore again in the future... how else will we see all the parks and nature reserves that we missed.