This week Pop Stop is scooping the competition with news that Jay Chou (周杰倫) is looking West to develop his career and conquer the world of entertainment. Taiwan, Hong Kong, China and even Japan are all in the grip of Chou-mania after the success of last year's seminal album of "chinked-out music," November's Chopin and his movie Initial D.
Our spies in Beijing (where Chou is making a video and said to be pub crawling) have picked up an interesting posting in the online edition of That's Beijing magazine. In the help-wanted section there is an ad for an English teacher from "yida86."
"For those that don't know, Jay Zhou [sic] is a very famous singer from Taiwan" and wants "to find a part-time tutor that can help him improve his oral English."
Requirements for the job include being a native English speaker, "preferably female and with a good sense of humor" who speaks some Mandarin. "This is a great [opportunity] for someone to meet with and teach a famous celeb and get paid in the process."
Those who have met "The Chairman" report that his English is currently pretty poor, so it looks like a long-term project. Perhaps he was inspired by the example of South Korea's Rain, who has an English tutor trailing him around at all times for impromptu lessons?
It could be that she's desperate to plug her latest album, but A-mei (
TANK is the newest boy on the block, hitting the number one spot in G-Music's local pop chart with the album The Way to Survive (
Tomorrow, TANK should earn a little more for his scheduled appearance at Luxy with Mojo.
Just after 6am, I walked up to the ticket gate at Taipei Main Station and entered the Taiwan Railway platform without scanning any ticket; instead, I flashed the Sanrio Fun Rail pass on my phone to the gate worker and was admitted. I found my train and prepared to board. My destination? This very same station. I was embarking on a 13-hour journey on one of two round-the-island trains operated by ezTravel. They run each day, one counterclockwise around the island and one clockwise. They differ in a number of ways from an ordinary Taiwan Railway train and can make for
Jason Han says that the e-arrival card spat between South Korea and Taiwan shows that Seoul is signaling adherence to its “one-China” policy, while Taiwan’s response reflects a reciprocal approach. “Attempts to alter the diplomatic status quo often lead to tit-for-tat responses,” the analyst on international affairs tells the Taipei Times, adding that Taiwan may become more cautious in its dealings with South Korea going forward. Taipei has called on Seoul to correct its electronic entry system, which currently lists Taiwan as “China (Taiwan),” warning that reciprocal measures may follow if the wording is not changed before March 31. As of yesterday,
The Portuguese never established a presence on Taiwan, but they must have traded with the indigenous people because later traders reported that the locals referred to parts of deer using Portuguese words. What goods might the Portuguese have offered their indigenous trade partners? Among them must have been slaves, for the Portuguese dealt slaves across Asia. Though we often speak of “Portuguese” ships, imagining them as picturesque vessels manned by pointy-bearded Iberians, in Asia Portuguese shipping between local destinations was crewed by Asian seamen, with a handful of white or Eurasian officers. “Even the great carracks of 1,000-2,000 tons which plied
On Thursday, former Taipei mayor and founder of the Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) Ko Wen-je (柯文哲) was sentenced to 17 years in prison and had his civil rights suspended for six years over corruption, embezzlement and other charges. Seven others related to the case were also handed prison sentences, while two were found not guilty. It has been a bad week for the TPP. On Tuesday, prosecutors charged Chinese immigrant Xu Chunying (徐春鶯) with suspicion of taking part in Beijing-directed election interference. Xu has strong links to the TPP, which once offered her a party list legislator nomination. Tuesday also
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