Taipei Mayor Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) yesterday signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Ehime Governor Hirotoki Nakamura, vowing to promote exchanges on bicycle infrastructure with the Japanese prefecture.
The MOU saw Taipei and Ehime Prefecture enter into an “alliance of bicycle trails,” an infrastructure Taipei has been developing since former Taipei mayor Hau Lung-bin’s (郝龍斌) tenure.
Referencing his visit to Japan in January, Ko said that Japan is a country that can provide much inspiration for Taiwan.
Photo: Chang Chia-ming, Taipei Times
Ko said he hoped that promoting cycling would draw tourists.
Nakamura said that over the past 10 years, Taipei and Ehime Prefecture have carried out exchanges in many fields, including rail stations, hot springs and an annual chartered flight from Taipei to the Japanese prefecture.
Nakamura said that the prefecture benefited from bicycle maker Giant Taiwan Co chairman King Liu’s (劉金標) guidance when it established its public bicycle system and invited Ko to visit the prefecture and cycle there.
Nakamura said he originally wanted to invite Ko to cycle with him along the prefecture’s Shimanami Kaido, which he said is the most popular bicycle trail in Japan.
However, he hesitated after he read in the news that Ko had cycled more than 560km in just 28 hours, in reference to Ko’s “twin-tower’ bicycle trip last year.
Nakamura said he would still like to invite Ko to experience Shimanami Kaido with him.
“However, my limit is 100km per day,” he said.
Nakamura presented the Taipei mayor with a painted porcelain dish, and Ko presented him with a set of Universiade-themed souvenirs, including a wristband and a water bottle, and a replica of Festival on South Street, a famous piece by late Taiwanese painter Kuo Hsueh-hu (郭雪湖).
The MOU also stated that the city and the prefecture would promote exchanges in culture, education and tourism.
In other news, Kaohisung Mayor Chen Chu (陳菊) signed an MOU with Yamagata Prefecture Governor Mieko Yoshimura.
Kaohsiung and Yamagata Prefecture are to promote economic, academic and cultural exchanges.
Chen told Taiwanese officials who attended the signing ceremony that the prefecture was the hometown of Oshin, the protagonist of a Japanese television series wildly popular with Taiwanese.
As yesterday was Yoshimura’s birthday, the two female officials celebrated by jointly cutting a cake.
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