While legislators are known for their politics, many pursue hobbies that have led to interesting collections.
Several Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) lawmakers shared the stories behind their collections with the Liberty Times (sister newspaper of the Taipei Times) recently.
DPP Legislator Lu Sun-ling (呂孫綾), who at 30 is currently the nation’s youngest lawmaker, often spends her free time assembling miniature models of famous landmarks, comic-book characters and military items.
Photo: Huang Hsin-po, Taipei Times
Her hobby not only helps her relax and improves her organizational skills, but serves to remind her that not to omit a single component when tackling any endeavor, she said.
The current favorite from her collection is a model of the CM-32 armored vehicle — commonly known as the “Clouded Leopard.”
“When I first started [in politics], people doubted my ability to succeed in a harsh male-dominated political environment, but I have always felt that as a younger woman I can offer a unique perspective,” she said.
Photo courtesy of Hsu Shu-hua’s office
Her first move as lawmaker was to suggest that the Ministry of National Defense’s Youth Daily News promote sales of the Clouded Leopard model as a way of helping it engage with the public, she said.
The model has proven popular, which she took as confirmation of her ability to succeed in politics, and why she likes it so much, she said.
Her DPP colleague, Cheng Yun-peng (鄭運鵬), has been called “the legislature’s biggest nerd” due to his fascination with US comic book characters and Japanese anime.
Photo: Huang Hsin-po, Taipei Times
One of Cheng’s hobbies is drawing anime-inspired sketches, and his office at the legislature is filled with collectibles from anime films and series, including toys from the popular Gundam series and a robot form of Sanrio’s Hello Kitty character.
Cheng also has models based on Spiderman and Harley Quinn — characters from DC Comics.
“Actually, I am afraid I would be in trouble with my wife if she knew I bought so much, so I keep them at the office,” Cheng said.
As a child, he loved Japanese manga, but could not afford to buy them and so could only read them on occasion by renting issues from comic book shops, he said.
After he began working, he used his salary to start his own collection of manga and collectibles, he said.
His favorite items are from Mazinger Z anime series, as well as its spin-offs, Cheng said.
KMT Legislator Hsu Shu-hua (許淑華) likes to collecting Smurf figurines and other collectibles from Belgian comic franchise.
Hsu, who has more than 600 figurines in her collection, began collecting 10 years ago when she saw Smurfs collectibles at a shop in Taichung’s Fengjia Commercial District (逢甲商圈).
The figurines brought back childhood memories of watching The Smurfs, she said.
She has since traveled to Belgium, where she bought more figurines, Hsu said.
KMT Legislator John Wu’s (吳志揚) collection reflects his passion for sports, which is really no surprise as he also serves as Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) commissioner.
He said the item that was hardest to acquire is a baseball signed by pitcher Wang Chien-ming (王建民), who played for teams in Taiwan as well as in Major League Baseball.
He flew to the east coast of the US in 2015 to visit Wang, who had been keeping a low profile after sustaining an injury, only to discover that the player had left for Seattle after being signed by the Mariners, Wu said.
He immediately boarded another plane for Seattle and was eventually able to meet Wang and get a signed ball, the lawmaker said.
Among his other favorite items are a basketball that looks like a baseball, which was used by Taiwanese-American Jeremy Lin (林書豪) during an NBA Central Division game in 2016, as well as dirt from the Hsinchu CKS Baseball Stadium, collected before it was demolished last year, he said.
However, a signed glove and ball from legendary baseball player Sadaharu Oh (王貞治) are his most prized possessions, Wu said.
“I had to go through a number of channels to get these items,” he said.
DPP Legislator Wang Ting-yu (王定宇) prides himself on his collection of patrol caps from military bases around the nation and abroad.
However, the caps are less of a collection and more of a reminder of his base visits, he said.
The most memorable cap is one that he got when he visited Republic of China Air Force pilots training at Luke Air Force Base in Arizona, he said.
“I was drinking and chatting with [members of] the US’ 21st Fighter Squadron in 40 degree Celsius temperatures in the middle of the desert,” Wang said, adding that he helped get a karaoke machine for the base at the squadron’s request.
He once flew to Itu Abu Island (Taiping Island, 太平島) to visit military personnel stationed there, he said.
He was able to help negotiate permission last year for family members of the personnel stationed on the island to visit them during the Mid-Autumn Festival, when the relatives were able to stay overnight in the barracks there, Wang said.
Looking at the hats makes him think of the brave young officers guarding their posts, Wang said.
“Every hat represents emotions and responsibility,” he said.
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
UNILATERAL MOVES: Officials have raised concerns that Beijing could try to exert economic control over Kinmen in a key development plan next year The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) yesterday said that China has so far failed to provide any information about a new airport expected to open next year that is less than 10km from a Taiwanese airport, raising flight safety concerns. Xiamen Xiangan International Airport is only about 3km at its closest point from the islands in Kinmen County — the scene of on-off fighting during the Cold War — and construction work can be seen and heard clearly from the Taiwan side. In a written statement sent to Reuters, the CAA said that airports close to each other need detailed advanced
WEATHER Typhoon forming: CWA A tropical depression is expected to form into a typhoon as early as today, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday, adding that the storm’s path remains uncertain. Before the weekend, it would move toward the Philippines, the agency said. Some time around Monday next week, it might reach a turning point, either veering north toward waters east of Taiwan or continuing westward across the Philippines, the CWA said. Meanwhile, the eye of Typhoon Kalmaegi was 1,310km south-southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, as of 2am yesterday, it said. The storm is forecast to move through central
RSS