It was four years ago when Jacky Chen (陳峻永) embarked upon a challenge after quitting his job as an electronics engineer: riding his bicycle across the world.
The 40-year-old Taiwanese has traversed the Americas, Europe and parts of the Middle East, sleeping in his tent or finding places to rest his head through apps like Couchsurfing.
In recent days, Chen has been in Jerusalem, taking in the sights and plotting his next rides on his red-and-black Merida Wolf 3 bicycle.
Photo: AFP
“This is an adventure,” he said of his reasons for setting out on the journey, which has so far taken him to 64 countries and across about 54,000km.
He hopes to visit 100 countries and travel 100,000km before he is done and estimates it will take him about another three years.
Speaking at Jerusalem’s Mount of Olives, a panoramic view of the Dome of the Rock and the Old City in the distance, Chen said he prefers not to do much research on places before his arrival so he can have his own initial impressions.
“This city surprised me,” he said of Jerusalem. “It is a big city, but it is historical.”
Some of the toughest moments he has had so far involved traveling through snowy weather, he said.
However, in terms of danger, Chen said he has experienced very little apart from nerve-racking moments when cars and trucks pass too close to him on the road.
He began in the US state of Alaska, has seen Machu Picchu and Paris, and is to head to Jordan before crossing to Egypt and cycling down the eastern side of the African continent.
He will then move on to Asia.
Chen is by no means the first to set out on such a trip. However, he is not after a record, preferring adventure over accolades.
“The amazing thing is always the people I meet,” he said, with the words “I am Jacky. I come from Taiwan” written on the back of his shirt.
The German city of Hamburg on Oct. 14 named a bridge “Kaohsiung-Brucke” after the Taiwanese city of Kaohsiung. The footbridge, formerly known as F566, is to the east of the Speicherstadt, the world’s largest warehouse district, and connects the Dar-es-Salaam-Platz to the Brooktorpromenade near the Port of Hamburg on the Elbe River. Timo Fischer, a Free Democratic Party member of the Hamburg-Mitte District Assembly, in May last year proposed the name change with support from members of the Social Democratic Party and the Christian Democratic Union. Kaohsiung and Hamburg in 1999 inked a sister city agreement, but despite more than a quarter-century of
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday expressed “grave concerns” after Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong (黃循財) reiterated the city-state’s opposition to “Taiwanese independence” during a meeting with Chinese Premier Li Qiang (李強). In Singapore on Saturday, Wong and Li discussed cross-strait developments, the Singaporean Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. “Prime Minister Wong reiterated that Singapore has a clear and consistent ‘one China’ policy and is opposed to Taiwan independence,” it said. MOFA responded that it is an objective fact and a common understanding shared by many that the Republic of China (ROC) is an independent, sovereign nation, with world-leading
The Ministry of Justice Investigation Bureau (MJIB) has been investigating nine shell companies working with Prince Holding Group, and the Taipei District Prosecutors’ Office is seeking further prosecution of alleged criminals, a source said yesterday. The nine companies and three Taiwanese nationals were named by the US Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) on Oct. 14 as Specially Designated Nationals as a result of a US federal court indictment. Prince Holding founder Chen Zhi (陳志) has been charged with fraud, conspiracy, money laundering and overseeing Prince Holding’s suspected forced-labor camps in Cambodia, the indictment says. Intelligence shared between Taiwan,
COOLING OFF: Temperatures are expected to fall to lows of about 20°C on Sunday and possibly 18°C to 19°C next week, following a wave of northeasterly winds on Friday The Central Weather Administration (CWA) on Sunday forecast more rain and cooler temperatures for northern Taiwan this week, with the mercury dropping to lows of 18°C, as another wave of northeasterly winds sweeps across the country. The current northeasterly winds would continue to affect Taiwan through today, with precipitation peaking today, bringing increased rainfall to windward areas, CWA forecaster Liu Pei-teng (劉沛滕) said. The weather system would weaken slightly tomorrow before another, stronger wave arrives on Friday, lasting into next week, Liu said. From yesterday to today, northern Taiwan can expect cool, wet weather, with lows of 22°C to 23°C in most areas,
RSS