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New Year's Eve guide

Taichung youth can revel atop the Jin Sha Department Store. PHOTO COURTESY OF ROLAND OF CHIFUNK

Now that the millenial fuss of the last two years has been dispensed with, 2002 comes in rather sheepishly and with only one meager aspect of numerical significance. It's a palindrome: a number, word or phrase that reads the same forwards and backwards.

Another example of a palindrome is "Bob," because spelled backwards or forwards it's still "Bob." Both "Bob" and 2002 are shorter and much more clearly apprehensible palindromes than "A Santa at NASA," "dumb mobs bomb mud" and many of the fine palindromes offered on the web site of The Palindromist magazine, like: "Eva, can I stack Rod's sad-ass, dork cats in a cave?" (Feel free to check these for yourself.)

When it comes to calendars, palindromes are fairly rare. Anyone who's now over 11-years-old, in fact, can consider themselves lucky, because they are preparing to celebrate the second (and probably last) palindrome year of their lives. The last palindrome on the Gregorian calendar came in 1991, and the last one before that came in 1881. The next will be 2112.

Fan Wei-chi PHOTO COURTESY OF WAVE RADIO

So barring those people who've lived to be 110 and timed it right, no one has lived through two palindromes in around a thousand years. That's right. In these advanced millenia, it's only about once about every thousand years, around the turn of any millenium, that some lucky people get to live through two palindromes. Which is why they consider themselves fortunate and go mad with celebration at the beginning of the palindromic new year. Or maybe they just celebrate like most people, for the heck of it.

Chang Hsin-che PHOTO COURTESY OF WAVE RADIO

Either way, Taiwan will have plenty of distractions to offer next Monday night for New Year's Eve. In major cities, governments, radio stations and cable channels will put loads of pop stars on open air stages before the public. The nation's concert halls will ring with symphonies and show tunes. Major hotels will serve special dinners. Dance clubs will, on average, double their cover charges. And some bars that charge an entrance fee on no other day of the year will ask their regular patrons to pay for the sad privilege of being somewhere crowded.

Fei Hsiang PHOTO COURTESY OF WAVE RADIO

So to help you decide where to spend your New Year's Eve, we've compiled a rough guide of what's going on. So have fun in 2002 -- ninu fe vahos!

SPECIAL EVENTS

Hsimenting free concert, Taipei: Wave Radio, FM96.3, is sponsoring a free outdoor concert in the middle of Taipei's Hsimenting, bringing in the new year with stage performances from 7:30pm to 1am. The arrival of the new year will be signaled by the illumination of a column of light rings and the release of around 10,000 "wish balloons" bearing the wishes of spectators and performers alike. On stage, there will be at least 25 performing artists in all, including 30-minute sets by pop stars Winnie Hsin (辛曉琪), Kris Fei (費翔), Tanya Tsai (蔡建雅) and Chang Hsin-zhe (張信哲); rock bands Backquarter (四分衛) and the Clippers (夾子); and appearances by other groups and personalities including Power Station (動力火車), Shunza (順子), Fan Fan (范瑋琪) Makiyo, Kokia, Chiang Mei-chih (江美琪), Jeffrey Kung (孔令琪) and Tracy Su (蘇慧倫).

Hsin Hsiao-chi PHOTO COURTESY OF WAVE RADIO

Taichung will have its own cavalcade of stars, with Jolin Tsai (蔡依林) and Taichung Mayor Jason Hu (胡志強) joining forces to usher in the new year before a crowd that is estimated to reach 50,000. Five hours of performances sponsored by the GTV television network and Mobitai Communications will start at 7:30pm in the Taichung Athletics Stadium (台中體育場).

Tang Chong-sheng, left, Jolin Tsai, center, and Chia Yung-chieh will host Taichung's official New Year's Eve bash. PHOTO COURTESY OF GTV

Golden Plaza Department Store (金沙百貨), Taichung: One of the top choices for this new year's eve goes to DJ RainboWarrior, who has delayed his annual pilgrimage to Goa because he believes he can create a party in Taichung that's as good as any he can find in Thailand or India. Together with his Chi Funk team, he will again occupy the ridiculous plaza atop the Golden Plaza department store tower, with its two-story waterfall and the giant revolving UFO Restaurant above. The music spotlight will shine with the tribal progressive of Jan Lo, a New York City DJ that has played top clubs like Limelight and The Exit. There will also be hip hop, techno and trance, rounding out an eclectic night of diverse surprises. Admission is NT$500. The address is 105 Jianguo Rd., 19th floor (建國路105號19F).

The 4th Metal Immortal Party at Zeitgeist (聖界), Taipei: The new year will come in hard, heavy and with enough metal to build a battleship at one of Taipei's mainstay rock clubs. The line-up includes Very Ape (Hong Kong), Opposition Party (Singapore) and several of Taiwan's heaviest bands, like Chthonic (閃靈), Manum and Snow Dance (雪舞). Admission is NT$444. Doors open at 8pm and should stay open until around five-ish.

Tomorrow, at 8:30, the same club will host "Chaos in Taiwan," pulling some of Taiwan's top non-mainstream bands, including the Clippers, Relax-One, Anarchy, A-fon from Groupie, Ellie from Ladybug and DJ@llenblow. Tickets are NT$399 at the door.

Cosma Asia Tour -- Space Odyssey 2002, Taoyuan: For ravers, Dreamfield is rigging one of its NT$400,000 sound systems and putting on a New Year's dance party in one of its favorite spots, the Kunlun Drug Touring Recreational Park in Taoyuan (桃園縣龍潭崑崙藥用植物園) -- their translation, not ours. Israel's DJ Cosma will somehow teleport or teleconference in, joining the local Dreamfield cast of Ziki, Amir, Jocy, Mooks, Natty and Rainman. Admission is NT$800 in advance or NT$1,000 at the door. For more info, check www.dreamfield.com.tw.

The Cactus (仙人掌), Kenting: Air Dolphin will play three nights of psychedelic instrumentals and trance, with Sunday night as a mellow jam, New Year's Eve as the main performance, and the following day as a wind-down set. Cover charge will be NT$100 on Sunday only, other nights are free. The Cactus is located at 26 Dawan Rd. Kenting (墾丁鄉大灣路26號), tel: (08) 886-2747.

Witch House (女巫店), Taipei: This cozy coffee shop and pub will offer a special program of highly alternative music and performance, including a musical and oratory performance by a mad clown, an abnormal puppet show by A-zhung (阿忠), and the music of Taipei's leading ska band, the Wall Tigers and our favorite, Scudder. The program starts at 10:30pm and admission is NT$450. Witches will also hold a special New Year's dinner from 7pm to 9:30pm for NT$380.

Concerts

New Year's Eve Concert -- New York, New York, Taipei: The National Symphony Orchestra, featuring conductor Amy Chang, soprano Deedee Lynn and tenor Welly Yang, will play selections from Broadway musicals and movie soundtracks at the National Concert Hall. The show starts at 7:30pm and tickets run from NT$300 to NT$1,200.

Taipei Philharmonic Woodwinds Quintet, Taipei: The woodwinds quintet will play selections from Verdi, Mussorgsky and Taiwanese folk songs at the Recital Hall at the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial. Tickets cost between NT$200 and NT$400.

Kaohsiung City Symphony Orchestra New Year's Concert: The Kaohsiung City Symphony Orchestra will ring in the new year with a performance of Beethoven's 3rd symphony, Eroica. The concert starts at 7:30pm in the Kaohsiung City Cultural Center's Chihte Hall. Tickets run between NT$200 and NT$500.

Taipei clubs with no or low cover charge:

DV8: no cover

Roxy 99: NT$300 cover

Roxy Vibe: NT$400 cover/NT$300 for members

Saints and Sinners: no cover, free champagne at midnight.

Tavern: NT$350 cover, including one beer, champagne at midnight, barbecue and finger food from 7pm to 11pm and a bowl of new year's goulash at 1am. Michel Blanc, the proprietor, says that the goulash is a European tradition and serves to fill up revelers with a hot soup before they set out back into the cold.

Underworld: NT$350 cover, no bands will be playing but LTK's Hsiao Ko will be one of the special guest DJs.

Watersheds: no cover

Clubs with a cover charge:

2nd Floor: NT$1,000

45: NT$500 after 8pm

Carnegie's: NT$1,000 after 9pm, including two drinks; set dinner special of fillet mignon or king prawns from 6pm to 8:30pm for NT$1,000.

Kiss La Bocca: NT$1,000, including two drinks.

Room 18: NT$1,500, including two drinks or a small bottle of Moet champagne and snack buffet.

Spin: Will decide on the day of, though Christmas Eve cover charge was NT$600. Special offerings will include a lucky draw and drink specials.

TU: Still undecided, though Christmas Eve cover charge was NT$600.

* Check inside listings for addresses and phone numbers
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