"the Golden ratio" Or "da vinci code reloaded"...

What do the pyramids in Egypt, Leonardo do Vinci's portrait of the Mona Lisa, sunflowers, the snail, the pine cone and your fingers all have in common?

Me: "if you have studied some astronomy, you will definitely be amazed with its structure and the equilibrium in it. Formation of solar system, formation of galaxies, and stars, planets, satellites moving on certain paths in a very organized way by very organized distributed gravitational forces rather than in some chaotic motion. For millions of years this is happening, and equilibrium persists. One major crash may bring end to Earth, solar system, our galaxy or even whole universe. Gravitational forces will be affected, balance losts, planets will miss their orbits, crashing to each other... Perfect balance! No need to go thus far, science tells us about perfect equilibrium and proportinality examples in our small world. I read this article about the Golden ratio obtained from the sequence of numbers of one of my favourite mathematicians Fibonacci - Fibonacci sequence! Here comes the article ...
P.S: some similar discussions can be read from Dan Brown's "Da Vinci Code" book."
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The Golden Ratio

If a pleasing or exceedingly balanced form is achieved in terms of elements of application or function, then we may look for a function of the Golden Number there ... The Golden Number is a product not of mathematical imagination, but of a natural principle related to the laws of equilibrium.The answer to this question lies hidden in a sequence of numbers discovered by the Italian mathematician Fibonacci. The characteristic of these numbers, known as the Fibonacci numbers, is that each one consists of the sum of the two numbers before it.

Fibonacci numbers

0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144, 233, 377, 610, 987, 1597, 2584, …

Fibonacci numbers have an interesting property. When you divide one number in the sequence by the number before it, you obtain numbers very close to one another. In fact, this number is fixed after the 13th in the series. This number is known as the "golden ratio."

GOLDEN RATIO = 1.618

233 / 144 = 1.618
377 / 233 = 1.618
610 / 377 = 1.618
987 / 610 = 1.618
1597 / 987 = 1.618
2584 / 1597 = 1.618

THE HUMAN BODY AND THE GOLDEN RATIO

When conducting their researches or setting out their products, artists, scientists and designers take the human body, the proportions of which are set out according to the golden ratio, as their measure. Leonardo da Vinci and Le Corbusier took the human body, proportioned according to the golden ratio, as their measure when producing their designs. The human body, proportioned according to the golden ratio, is taken as the basis also in the Neufert, one of the most important reference books of modern-day architects.

Leonardo da Vinci used the golden ratio in setting out the proportions of the human body.

THE GOLDEN RATIO IN THE HUMAN BODY

The "ideal" proportional relations that are suggested as existing among various parts of the average human body and that approximately meet the golden ratio values can be set out in a general plan as follows:

The M/m level in the table below is always equivalent to the golden ratio. M/m = 1.618

The first example of the golden ratio in the average human body is that when the distance between the navel and the foot is taken as 1 unit, the height of a human being is equivalent to 1.618. Some other golden proportions in the average human body are:

-The distance between the finger tip and the elbow / distance between the wrist and the elbow,
-The distance between the shoulder line and the top of the head / head length,
-The distance between the navel and the top of the head / the distance between the shoulder line and the top of the head,
-The distance between the navel and knee / distance between the knee and the end of the foot.

The Human Hand

Lift your hand from the computer mouse and look at the shape of your index finger. You will in all likelihood witness a golden proportion there.
Our fingers have three sections. The proportion of the first two to the full length of the finger gives the golden ratio (with the exception of the thumbs). You can also see that the proportion of the middle finger to the little finger is also a golden ratio.
You have two hands, and the fingers on them consist of three sections. There are five fingers on each hand, and only eight of these are articulated according to the golden number: 2, 3, 5, and 8 fit the Fibonacci numbers.

The Golden Ratio in the Human Face

There are several golden ratios in the human face. Do not pick up a ruler and try to measure people's faces, however, because this refers to the "ideal human face" determined by scientists and artists.
For example, the total width of the two front teeth in the upper jaw over their height gives a golden ratio. The width of the first tooth from the centre to the second tooth also yields a golden ratio. These are the ideal proportions that a dentist may consider. Some other golden ratios in the human face are:

-Length of face / width of face,
-Distance between the lips and where the eyebrows meet / length of nose,
-Length of face / distance between tip of jaw and where the eyebrows meet,
-Length of mouth / width of nose,
-Width of nose / distance between nostrils,
-Distance between pupils / distance between eyebrows.

Golden Proportion in the Lungs

In a study carried out between 1985 and 1987, the American physicist B. J. West and Dr. A. L. Goldberger revealed the existence of the golden ratio in the structure of the lung. One feature of the network of the bronchi that constitutes the lung is that it is asymmetric. For example, the windpipe divides into two main bronchi, one long (the left) and the other short (the right). This asymmetrical division continues into the subsequent subdivisions of the bronchi. It was determined that in all these divisions the proportion of the short bronchus to the long was always 1/1.618.

THE GOLDEN RECTANGLE AND THE DESIGN IN THE SPIRAL
A rectangle the proportion of whose sides is equal to the golden ratio is known as a "golden rectangle." A rectangle whose sides are 1.618 and 1 units long is a golden rectangle. Let us assume a square drawn along the length of the short side of this rectangle and draw a quarter circle between two corners of the square. Then, let us draw a square and a quarter circle on the remaining side and do this for all the remaining rectangles in the main rectangle. When you do this you will end up with a spiral.

The British aesthetician William Charlton explains the way that people find the spiral pleasing and have been using it for thousands of years stating that we find spirals pleasing because we are easily able to visually follow them.
The spirals based on the golden ratio contain the most incomparable designs you can find in nature. The first examples we can give of this are the spiral sequences on the sunflower and the pine cone. In addition to this, the growth process of many living things also takes place in a logarithmic spiral form. The curves in the spiral are always the same and the main form never changes no matter their size. No other shape in mathematics possesses this property.

The Design in Sea Shells

The flawless design in the nautilus shell contains the golden ratio.

When investigating the shells of the living things classified as mollusks, which live at the bottom of the sea, the form and the structure of the internal and external surfaces of the shells attracted the scientists' attention:

The internal surface is smooth, the outside one is fluted. The mollusk body is inside shell and the internal surface of shells should be smooth. The outside edges of the shell augment a rigidity of shells and, thus, increase its strength. The shell forms astonish by their perfection and profitability of means spent on its creation. The spiral's idea in shells is expressed in the perfect geometrical form, in surprising beautiful, "sharpened" design.

The shells of most mollusks grow in a logarithmic spiral manner. There can be no doubt, of course, that these animals are unaware of even the simplest mathematical calculation, let alone logarithmic spirals. So how is it that the creatures in question can know that this is the best way for them to grow? How do these animals, that some scientists describe as "primitive," know that this is the ideal form for them? It is impossible for growth of this kind to take place in the absence of a consciousness or intellect. That consciousness exists neither in mollusks nor, despite what some scientists would claim, in nature itself. It is totally irrational to seek to account for such a thing in terms of chance. This design can only be the product of a superior intellect and knowledge, the One most of us know as God.

Growth of this kind was described as "gnomic growth" by the biologist Sir D'Arcy Thompson, an expert on the subject, who stated that it was impossible to imagine a simpler system, during the growth of a seashell, than which was based on widening and extension in line with identical and unchanging proportions. As he pointed out, the shell constantly grows, but its shape remains the same.

One can see one of the best examples of this type of growth in a nautilus, just a few centimetres in diameter. C. Morrison describes this growth process, which is exceptionally difficult to plan even with human intelligence, stating that along the nautilus shell, an internal spiral extends consisting of a number of chambers with mother-of-pearl lined walls. As the animal grows, it builds another chamber at the spiral shell mouth larger than the one before it, and moves forward into this larger area by closing the door behind it with a layer of mother-of-pearl.

The scientific names of some other marine creatures with logarithmic spirals containing the different growth ratios in their shells are:

Haliotis Parvus, Dolium Perdix, Murex, Fusus Antiquus, Scalari Pretiosa, Solarium Trochleare.

Ammonites, extinct sea animals that are today found only in fossil form, too, had shells developing in logarithmic spiral form.

Growth in a spiral form in the animal world is not restricted to the shells of mollusks. Animals such as antelopes, goats and rams complete their horn development in spiral forms based on the golden ratio.

The Golden Ratio in the Hearing and Balance Organ

The cochlea in the human inner ear serves to transmit sound vibrations. This bony structure, filled with fluid, has a logarithmic spiral shape with a fixed angle of ?=73°43´ containing the golden ratio.

Horns and Teeth That Grow in a Spiral Form

Examples of curves based on the logarithmic spiral can be seen in the tusks of elephants and the now-extinct mammoth, lions' claws and parrots' beaks. The eperia spider always weaves its webs in a logarithmic spiral. Among the micro-organisms known as plankton, the bodies of globigerinae, planorbis, vortex, terebra, turitellae and trochida are all constructed on spirals.

THE GOLDEN RATIO IN THE MICRO WORLD

Geometrical shapes are by no means limited to triangles, squares, pentagons or hexagons. These shapes can also come together in various ways and produce new three-dimensional geometrical shapes. The cube and the pyramid are the first examples that can be cited. In addition to these, however, there are also such three-dimensional shapes as the tetrahedron (with regular four faces), octahedron, dodecahedron and icosahedron, that we may never encounter in our daily lives and whose names we may never even have heard of. The dodecahedron consists of 12 pentagonal faces, and the icosahedron of 20 triangles. Scientists have discovered that these shapes can all mathematically turn into one another, and that this transformation takes place with ratios linked to the golden ratio.

Three-dimensional forms that contain the golden ratio are very widespread in micro-organisms. Many viruses have an icosahedron shape. The best known of these is the Adeno virus. The protein sheath of the Adeno virus consists of 252 protein subunits, all regularly set out. The 12 subunits in the corners of the icosahedron are in the shape of pentagonal prisms. Rod-like structures protrude from these corners.

The first people to discover that viruses came in shapes containing the golden ratio were Aaron Klug and Donald Caspar from Birkbeck College in London in the 1950s. The first virus they established this in was the polio virus. The Rhino 14 virus has the same shape as the polio virus.

Why is it that viruses have shapes based on the golden ratio, shapes that it is hard for us even to visualise in our minds? A. Klug, who discovered these shapes, explains:

My colleague Donald Caspar and I showed that the design of these viruses could be explained in terms of a generalization of icosahedral symmetry that allows identical units to be related to each other in a quasi-equivalent way with a small measure of internal flexibility. We enumerated all the possible designs, which have similarities to the geodesic domes designed by the architect R. Buckminster Fuller. However, whereas Fuller's domes have to be assembled following a fairly elaborate code, the design of the virus shell allows it to build itself.

Klug's description once again reveals a manifest truth. There is a sensitive planning and intelligent design even in viruses, regarded by scientists as "one of the simplest and smallest living things." This design is a great deal more successful than and superior to those of Buckminster Fuller, one of the world's most eminent architects.

The dodecahedron and icosahedron also appear in the silica skeletons of radiolarians, single-celled marine organisms.

Structures based on these two geometric shapes, like the regular dodecahedron with feet-like structures protruding from each corner, and the various formations on their surfaces make up the varying beautiful bodies of the radiolarians.

As an example of these organisms, less than a millimetre in size, we may cite the icosahedron based Circigonia Icosahedra and the Circorhegma Dodecahedra with dodecahedron skeleton.

The Golden Ratio in DNA

The molecule in which all the physical features of living things are stored, too, has been created in a form based on the golden ratio. The DNA molecule, the very program of life, is based on the golden ratio. DNA consists of two intertwined perpendicular helixes. The length of the curve in each of these helixes is 34 angstroms and the width 21 angstroms. (1 angstrom is one hundred millionth of a centimetre.) 21 and 34 are two consecutive Fibonacci numbers.

The Golden Ratio in Snow Crystals

The golden ratio also manifests itself in crystal structures. Most of these are in structures too minute to be seen with the naked eye. Yet you can see the golden ratio in snow flakes. The various long and short variations and protrusions that comprise the snow flake all yield the golden ratio.

THE GOLDEN RATIO IN SPACE

In the universe there are many spiral galaxies containing the golden ratio in their structures.

The Golden Ratio in Physics

You encounter Fibonacci series and the golden ratio in fields that fall under the sphere of physics. When a light is held over two contiguous layers of glass, one part of that light passes through, one part is absorbed, and the rest is reflected. What happens is a "multiple reflection." The number of paths taken by the ray inside the glass before it emerges again depends on the number of reflections it is subjected to. In conclusion, when we determine the number of rays that re-emerge, we find that they are compatible with the Fibonacci numbers.

The fact that a great many unconnected animate or inanimate structures in nature are shaped according to a specific mathematical formula is one of the clearest proofs that these have been specially designed. The golden ratio is an aesthetic rule well known and applied by artists. Works of art based on that ratio represent aesthetic perfection. Plants, galaxies, micro-organisms, crystals and living things designed according to this rule imitated by artists are all examples of God's superior artistry. He reveals that He has created all things with a measure. Some of these verses read:

… Allah has appointed a measure for all things. (Surat at-Talaq, 3)

… Everything has its measure with Him. (Surat ar-Ra'd, 8)

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Me: "Religion is a collection of messages from God, some are direct some are hidden. Science explains and helps us to understand its true deep meanings. I was inspired by above article, and want to research and verify about this golden ratio personally."

...the day is over. tomorrow is a fresh new beginning...

фестиваль луны и "лунные" пироги

As many of my friends are informed much about the chinese moon festival and mooncakes, I will post about it in Russian for those who are less informed. Below pix; mooncake box and red envelope given by my company for this festival.
у китайцев/тайванцев есть такое событие - фестиваль луны. Они отмечают его в 15ое число 8го месяца по китайскому лунному календарю. везде можно увидеть сверкающие красные фонари, и везде продают "лунные" пироги (mooncake).
это как раз и есть традиционное лакомство для этого фестиваля. В Тайване обычно все компании раздают по коробке этих лакомств своим сотрудникам и конечно же традиционный "красный конверт". А что там внутри - конечно же деньги! Хотя не так и много, но очень хороший обычай, и типичный для китайцев/тайванцев которые так и обожают деньги (не зря они желают друг другу во первых "процветание"- prosperity). А история про этих "лунных" пирогов началась во время династии Юань (А.D.1280-1368). В то время в Китае рулили монголы, и лидеры предыдущей династии Сунг (А.D.960-1280) решили организовать восстание. Как раз приближался фестиваль Луны и они решили изготовить специальные пироги для этого и распространить записки с планом атаки в этих пирогах. В результате они удачно восстали и прогнали монголов и династия Минг (А.D. 1368-1644) пришла в власть. До сих пор люди готовят эти "лунные" пироги в честь той легенды (спасибо за рассказ Терезе Ли).
Ну и мне достался коробка "лунных" и конвертик красный, было там около 20 баксов - хватит на хороший ужин!
Кроме этого, тайванцы любят посидеть всей семЬей за барбекю в этот день, но иногда все получается не так-то чисто и аккуратно.

away from home

Being away from home in different countries for a long time, time to time I realize the fact that I don't belong to this place and that my place is there where my family, my people are. Then it takes me back to the memories of the best moments of my life spent with them although I couldn't realize that before. then I start to feel very lonely in this foreign land with foreign people, yes, there are many dear friends here too, but nothing can replace warmth and dearness of those in Kyrgyzstan, of my family. For them I have been their hero, their pride, their hope, their son, brother or friend. And I want to stay as it is in their eyes. knowing that there is always someone there for you makes life much easierand the difficulties much smaller. And whenever I have a bad mood, they are the one who come to my mind first, and they cheer me up, they motivate me back, they put me on my legs again. Then again I am full of hope, optimism and motivation as I was when I started this journey to be successful. Talking to them on the phone is the best psychological cure for me. simple talks, yet they mean a lot for me. Hearing their voices wakes me up from my current English-spoken life, somehow brings back Aibek that left home long time ago pursuing education and career, hearing them takes me back home.
I am planning to go home next spring, so far no chance for autumn and winters are very cold in Kyrgyzstan. By that time, my nephew Nurseyit will be 1 year old :).

Ads on jerseys

Jerseys of football players, F1 pilots, etc. are full of ads. And actually teams earn good money from that. Recently, huge jersey ad sponsorship deals are being invested by advanced new-age technology firms, IT companies, telecommunication giants, etc. Like Chelsea jerseys has Samsung Mobile ad, Real Madrid has Siemens, Arsenal has O2, F1 McLaren Mercedes pilots have many including Siemens, etc. Here some examples;
I don't think it will take long before football jerseys will turn into F1 pilots-like jerseys with lots of ads. I took a step forward and already designed one. New version of Galatasaray SK team jersey with Yahoo, Skype, Google and, of course, Aibasoft ads! ;) Surely, these are the big sponsors of tomorrow.

East Coast Trip: Taroko Gorge and Green Island

(This is a copy of the blog written for Taiwan Youth Travel Agency who sponsored this trip)


East Coast of Taiwan offers many beautiful sceneries and unique traveling spots for travellers. Among them are the top destinations like Taroko Gorge and Green Island. Taroko gorge is accepted as the No.1 tourist destination in Taiwan. It was one of the places I was planning to visit during my stay in Taiwan. I fell in love with Green island when I read about it from the travel books. Thanks to the sponsorship by Taiwan Youth Travel, I finally had a chance to visit these two places last weekend.

Part 1: Taroko Gorge
On early Saturday morning I was on my feet ready to start the trip I have been waiting for so long. Backed with my Taiwan Lonely Planet book, some printouts about destinations, some maps and, of course, English-Chinese translator book, I headed towards Taipei Bus Terminal near the Taipei Main station. I was planning to take a bus to Hualien with transit at Suao, and the main reason was the Suao-Hualien highway that offers astonishing view of the coast (see the picture below) and the Chengshui cliff.

What a disappointment it was, when, after a lengthy trials to communicate with ticket booths personnel about the bus to Hualien, I learned that there are no more buses to Hualien from Taipei. The other options were to take a train or a plane. Without losing much time, I went to train station and bought a ticket for the earliest train to Hualien. This train would travel north then take a route along the coast till Hualien, so it still was to offer me some east coast view. Indeed, train journey was fun, I had a chance to view how country-side looks like in Taiwan, some nice views of the coast around Fulong area, and the rest of the trip were passing through many tunnels. After 3-4 hours I reached Hualien. Hualien train station was well-decorated with east coast scenery pictures. The bus station for the buses to Taroko was just outside of the station on the right side. Saleswoman didn’t understand English, so with the help of pen and paper I managed to buy a ticket to Taroko. It looked like the language will really be a problem away from Taipei. Just at that moment, a woman approached me and asked if I needed information about Taroko Gorge and directed me to hualien visitor info center.

Staff was very helpful there, as they gave me latest brochures about the place and the bus schedule(!) as the bus schedule info in my travel guide was old. There was a guy who could speak good English, and he helped me to plan with the buses as I was going there for only 2 days and 1 night. After nearly 1 hour bus trip, I was in Taroko. Taroko is a small village along the liwu river and entrance/gate to Taroko Gorge is located at the other end.

Taroko National Park headquarters was on the other side of the river. You need to cross from the bridge and take left turn and go up the hill a bit. I could see a lot of aborigines there, some of them dressed in traditional clothes for daily aborigine shows. Besides the information center, there is a small food/snacks shop and a souvenir shop there. As it was late afternoon, the visitor center was just closed (it operates between 08:30-16:45). After a quick lunch, I still had time to explore nearby trails before it gets dark and I went for it.
But then it started to rain. I forgot my umbrella and rain jacket. But there is always a solution and plastic rain coats were being sold at the shop nearby. They say car or motorcycle is the best transport to explore Taroko Gorge, and I clearly understood it there. As there are only few local buses there and trails are in certain distances from each other, one should either take a bus, drop by at the point, then after completing the trail, wait for the next bus or should have own transportaton. Walking is not suggested.
Not having anything to ride, I walked to the nearest trails which are Shakadang (Mysterious valley) and Eternal spring shrine. But it was through 1 km long tunnel, which was the first signal of my mistake not to have a transportation. First I went to Eternal Spring shrine. It was on the bottom of the mountain with a waterfall and was the end part of the whole trail (one of the most dangerous ones) which was closed now.

There was a sign which says the trail was closed due to falling rocks. But it seemed like people were still entering it and going to the shrine. As it was getting late, noone was around. I went through small dark tunnels and reached the shrine. The shrine was beautiful, and the place was very relaxing under the sound of falling water.



I was enough excited to complete the trail but it was getting dark, noone was around, and considering that it was the Ghost Month(!), I decided to go back before it gets too dark.Well, it would be a crazy thing to do to risk because in case something happens the probability that I survive was too low and there was no human life nearby to expect help.
Anyways, it took me 45 minutes to reach here from Taroko, and now it would take same time back too, and I was shocked when I saw that there are no lights on the road and in the tunnel! I had a small flashlight which could just light 1 meter in fron of me. And I started to walk through the full dark tunnel, and I can tell you, it is not the best feeling. Few cars passed by, but my attempt to hitchhike didn’t give any results. But the next one a small truck carrying construction workers and to my surprise they picked me and drove till Taroko. It rescued me from an unpleasent walk through dark tunnels.
For a place to stay for night, there were only 2-3 options. Book suggests to stay in the Liwu hostel. It was near the entrance, and after some bargaining they gave me a double room for 600 NTD (they asked 1000 NTD first). Room was decent, with TV.
For dinner, it would be expensive to order, so I got some canned fish, sandwich bread, chips and drinks from 7-11 store near the hotel. Taiwan is famous with its convenient stores which are really convenient! I was so tired that I didn’t wait much before I was in deep sleep.
The next day in the morning I went Taroko Nat. Park HQ to get more information about the trails in Taroko. The staff were kind and helpful, and they haelped me to plan my trip to see as much as possibe before I leave to Taitung that evening. So after a breakfast (as it was too early nothing was ready, so I went for instant noodles, not the best breakfast), I started with Shakadang(Mysterious valley) trail. It is about 1 km from that place. It starts near the Shakadang bridge and continues deep into the valley.



People usually go there to watch birds, insects, butterflies or just to have a relaxing walk in nature. Also blue river water gives amazing view, but in my case, water was dark due to recent rains.



For me this was the first time I walked on the road/trail carved on the cliffs with rocks hanging on top. Indeed, very dangerous, especially after typhoons/rains, rockfall is very possible. I think I chose a bit wrong time to visit Taroko gorge.

I liked this trail a lot because the valley was beautiful and kept its wildness, and trail carved on the mountain gave me huge excitement. It really had the mysterious atmosphere. Although it is forbidden, I saw some people swimming in the river. Maybe if the water was more clean, I wouldn’t pass this place without swimming too. How lucky those people who live near to these places as they can take a motorcycle to come here and enjoy this relaxing and mysterious place anytime they want. There are some benches on the way to sit and relax, and only one thing I wish there was the 7-11 store to buy a cold drink J. I’d suggest travellers to take drink with them. The fact that river water was not clean was a disappointment, so I decided to come to this place again to catch true beauty of this Shakadang trail. Still I manged to take some nice photos of the nature there.
Anyways, as I was in a rush, I completed it in 2 hours, and then ran to the junction to catch the bus to Tienhsiang. If I missed that I would wait for another 2 hours. But I was on time. The highway here was indeed human perfection. Human being is really smart enough to build a road in these kind of places; roads were either carved on the cliff or were the tunnels through mountains. It is sad to know that many lives were lost while building this highway.

Our bus driver was a bit crazy to drive in full speed in this narrow road with many zig-zags. Few times we almost had an accident. Smallest mistake may give you a unique view of the valley from flying bus. On the way, I had a chance to see some part of the Tunnels of Nine Turn and Swallow Grotto (if I visit again, I will spend more time to explore these 2 places too). Finally, we arrived at Tienhsiang. It is a small town deep inside the valley, popular destination for travellers. There are many trails nearby and Wenshan Hot springs (it was closed due to accident happened last year where a falling rock killed someone).
I started with Buiyang waterfall trail. Actually I was going to Wenshan hot springs (despite the fact it was closed, I wanted to see how possible it was to get there), but on the way I saw a small tunnel and people were entering/coming out of it. I checked the map and it was the beginning of the Buiyang waterfall trail. Why not to take it?! The tunnel was half a kilometer long, no lights, and again my small flashlight was in use. For those who are reading this blog, I strongly recommend to bring a good flashlight as these places are full of tunnels.



Buiyang waterfall trail was my favourite trail in overall trip. I liked it because the river water was clean and blue here, I explored waterfalls and caves with water curtains inside, and I had a chance to meet with 5 nice ladies. The trail was full of warning signs of poisonous snakes and killer bees. It took about 35 minutes to reach the waterfall.



It was indeed something worth to see. Waterfall starts from the top of the mountain and then it reaches another edge of the mountain and forms second waterfall (see above right photo). The water was clear and blue. There is a hanging bridge to cross the river to the watching area near to waterfall. Then I saw a group of foreigner ladies crossed over the fences and climbed towards the waterfall. Normally it is forbidden, but I think they decided to go closer. I was already astonished with the view and I also decided to go and look at it closer. Well, we reached the end where you need to climb the rock in order to go close to waterfall. It was risky to continue. But on the other side under the waterfall there was an amazing place to swim! Well, we decided to go for it. Only me and another girl called Erica (Canada), whom I met there, managed to climb down there. And there it was, unspoilt pool under the waterfall which you can only see in pictures. I didn’t risk to go under the waterfall, but still swam on the side. That was one of the unforgettable moments. People were looking with interest from the watching tower probably thinking how crazy we are to risk to go there and at the same time with piece of envy. As I left my camera back on the way, only they took the photos and I am waiting them to send me photos from that moment. The others were 2 Karens, Tanya, and Daniel. Tanya is from S. Africa, and the rest are from Canada. It was interesting to talk to them, and we completed the rest of the trail together. We continued further to reach the cave with water curtains. Nothing much about that place, just some water curtains inside the tunnel.

After that we completed the trail by a swim in the river near the entrance tunnel.



Tanya dropped me back to Tienhsiang on her motorcycle (they were on a bicycle/motorcycle trip from Hualien). They were staying in Catholic Church hostel for 300 NTD per night. It was a better deal comparing to the ones in Taroko, and the place was on the hill and looked nice. Definitely, a great option for backpackers! After enjoying Taroko gorge so much I decided to change my plans and stay here for 3 days, but I decided to come here again and go to green Island this time. Before leaving Tienhsiang, I climbed up the hill nearby to the Pagoda.


There was a great view of Tienhisang from top of it.




It was time to catch the last bus. After grabbing my late lunch-in-the-box with me, I took a bus back to Hualien train station. And I was just on time to catch the last train to Taitung. The bus/train schedule that was provided by Hualien Visitor Info center and their suggestions regarding the buses/trains truly helped me to spend more time in Taroko and still reach the train to Taitung. Journey to Taitung were through the tunnels and didn’t offer much to see.
The train reached Taitung late in the evening. Thanks to the kind man sitting near me I could easily arrange taxi to the hotel area. He helped me with communication and directions. Taitung train station is 5 km away from city itself. And in the rest of the trip almost all my money was gone for transportation. I paid 200 NTD for taxi. The hostel I was going was the Gringo hostel and taxi driver knew it. It is a mostly suggested place in travel guides, it offers dormitory bed for 200 NTD for night, truly nice deal! But, to my surprise it was closed, no lights, kind of deserted. Then I checked my list of other hostels and there was Chuan Tai hotel nearby. It is not a dugested in Lonely Planet book due to ints dirty condition. I didn’t have any other choice so I went for it. It showed that Lonely Planet is more than right, place was indeed dirty, same condition in the rooms, just bend and look under the bed and you will explore different world there! J And the lady charged me 500 NTD for that place, can you believe it?!


Part 2: The Green Island

Well, I spent the night without any accident, and in the early morning I took a taxi to Fugang harbour. There were a lot of people waiting for the ferry there, it seems like even in Monday mornings many people go to Green Island. Ferries were departing every 30 minutes and the one-way ticket was 400 NTD (too expensive, especially if you are going there only for 1 day).


It took about 1 hour ride to reach the Green island. Finally, there it was, the long-waited destination!


The Green island is popular with its beautiful scenery, spots for diving and snorkelling, sea-water hot springs, etc. I wanted to see this place for few reasons; to tour around the island and to see its beautiful scenery, to enjoy seawater hot-springs and to swim, if possible. There were some clouds in the sky, and it looks like there wouldn’t be very hot day.Well, I managed to do all these things. But how? In what ways?! Well, not as I was planning…
I never rode a motorcycle, but I was planning to learn to ride (they say it is very easy) in Green Island and then tour the island with motorcycle. When I reached there, there were many places to rent a motorcycle for 500 NTD for whole day. I don’t know why but I asked the renter to teach me how to ride (with the help of some other people who can speak English as the renter was an old man and, of course, didn’t understand me). Then he asked for my driving license, but I never had one. And he didn’t want to rent his motorcycle anymore, but suggested that I could rent a bicycle (!). Lonely Planet says it is possible to rent a bike from which I understood that it is possible to tour the island with a bike. It is 17-km tour along the beach and could be easily completed with a bike too. Well, that’s what I was thinking! So I said “OK” for the bike. It was cheaper, 200 NTD. Luckily the man agreed for me to leave my bags in his garage. First I rode to visitor info center to get a map and some information. My next destination was a lighthouse on the north of the island.


Then I rode along the beach. It was low tide, so the rocks were on the surface giving a nice scenary to watch.


Further I saw a hill and climbed it. On the other side,there was an amazing place to watch; crystal blue water and the rocks. I couldn’t stop myself from climbing down this high-risk rocks. There were many crabs there who tried to hide as I apprached. It was hot day, and I was burning. Once I was there, why not to swim I thought. It was very risky, full of rocks and there was a current in the water. Another risk to swim in a risky place? Yes! I am not a good swimmer, so I didn’t go away from the rock. I got what I wanted, I swam there, where maybe nobody has swam before :).




As I continued my way, I reached the place where road went up to the hill. That was the last thing I wanted having a bicycle. Being only for 1 day, a person wants to see as much as possible. I rode as far as I can, and the rest was to pull my bicycle up the road. That’s when my relaxing day started to turn into working-ut or being-cooked-under-hot-sun day. That’s when I understood why I am the only one with the bicycle where others are on motorcycles and why that people looking me in a strange way! I realized that my bicycle looks like a “donkey” comapred to motorcycles which were like “horses”. Basicly, I pulled my bicycle till the top of the hill where Little Great Wall was located. There are 2 huts from where there is a great view of north-east coast of the Green Island. By the time I reached there, my legs gave up and were screaming “No way! I will not make any further step!”, and my body was crying “So hot! Let’s go home.”… The Little Great Wall huts were just the right place to rest my body.




The rest of the road seems easy, it was down the hill. But now I didn’t have much time. I lost too much time trying to swim in that place and pulling my bike up the hill. This time it was an amazing feeling flying down the road J, I think I deserved it! After 30 min of ride, finally I reached Zhaori sea water hot springs. Well, you should be crazy to enter the hot springs in the hot summer afternoon, especially after you were on the road and your body was burning. But I was only for 1 day here, and I wanted to “experience” sea water hot spring (there are only 3 places in the world with sea water hot springs!) so much that I decided to enter it. Normally entrance fee is 200 NTD, but the owner didn’t want to take anything when I told him that I am in rush and want to enter only for 15-20 minutes. Well, indeed, it is not the best feeling to enter the hotspring in hot weather. As the owner told me it is best to enter at night and people come there at nights.


Nearby there are some other pools where people could cook eggs as theowner says.


Anyways, 15 minutes were enough to fulfill my interest, and after 5 minute cold shower (to cool down my body) I continued my way. I passed by some beaches. Well, there are no those tropical sand beaches here. Small coral stones/parts and rocky beaches are the majority. Thus not the best place for swimming. But usually people go there for diving and snorkelling and it really looks like a nice place for that (although it can not be compared with Redang island in Malaysia!)


It was almost 3 pm when I reached the whale watching area and I already could see the harbour from here! I was so happy to be near to the end! I toured the island with a bicycle!!! And I don’t suggest it for anyone else J. My “donkey” was getting tired too…


As I had some time, I went for swimming near the harbour to cool down my body and to fulfill my desire to swim. I was just on time to ride back to garage and take my staff. People were very kind to drop me to the ferry terminal with their motorcycle. And I took ferry back to Taitung…
On the boat I met 2 taiwanese girls, divers, and they tod me that there is direct train to Taipei from Taitung once a day and it is fast and doesn’t stop anywhere except Hualien! It would depart Taitung train station at 17:30 and we were just on time to make it. We got the tickets but only till Hualien we had the seats, the rest of the journey we spent siting on our bags. It took only 5 hours to reach Taipei!


Finally I was back in Taipei, back at home! My body was crying, my legs were resisting, and even my tan skin got burned till red! That was a trip I’d never forget. Maybe one day I’d like to visit those places again…

iPod nano

I was planning to buy iPod mini, but after seeing this small and esthetic iPod nano, mini doesn't attract much anymore. or should I wait for iPod terra? :) I'd rather get a local Taiwanese brand mp3 player, they are so cheap here and the choice is huge! Still, iPod nano amazed me with its tiny design.