Netizens reacted angrily after finding that a new attraction in Keelung has been damaged by overeager and careless visitors.
Visitors to the Chung Cheng Park were pleasantly surprised earlier this month when they discovered graffiti of “Totoro,” a popular character in the Japanese cartoon My Neighbor Totoro, on a wall by Shoushan Road.
The work became an overnight sensation, attracting large numbers of visitors.
Photo: Lin Hsin-han, Taipei Times
However, in recent days, some netizens reported that visitors have reduced an entire area of flowers and greenery in front of the Totoro painting to a small heap of trampled vegetation.
The discovery quickly sparked outrage as many Internet users raised the question: “Why can’t visitors just appreciate and photograph the artwork from afar?”
A Facebook post aimed at raising public awareness of the egregious deed has received quite a number of “likes” and “share,” with many laying the blame on Keelung residents.
A netizen based in Keelung countered the criticisms by saying “most of the tourists come from other municipalities.”
“Many of us who live nearby [the graffiti] have not been there yet,” the netizen wrote.
“It is everyone’s responsibility to conserve beautiful sights and the environment,” another netizen wrote.
“Pointing fingers at people from certain municipalities is not the sensible way,” the netizen wrote.
Commenting on the matter, Keelung Department of Public Works Director-General Lee Tung-cheng (李銅城) said the popularity of the graffiti has drawn huge crowds of visitors to the site and that access to the artwork has become very difficult during and after showers since the meadows were worn out.
The department plans to pave trails leading to the site, and grow the grass back to beautify its surroundings, he said.
Huang Yi-wei (黃毅維), head of the department’s public utilities unit, said that illegal parking around the park has been rampant recently in the wake of the graffiti’s popularity, causing much inconvenience to tourist buses.
He reminded visitors to the site to heed traffic rules or risk paying a fine.
Four factors led to the declaration of a typhoon day and the cancelation of classes yesterday, Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an (蔣萬安) said. Work and classes were canceled across Taiwan yesterday as Typhoon Krathon was forecast to make landfall in the southern part of the country. However, northern Taiwan had only heavy winds during the day and rain in the evening, leading some to criticize the cancelation. Speaking at a Taipei City Council meeting yesterday, Chiang said the decision was made due to the possibility of landslides and other problems in mountainous areas, the need to avoid a potentially dangerous commute for those
Typhoon Krathon, a military airshow and rehearsals for Double Ten National Day celebrations might disrupt flights at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport in the first 10 days of next month, the airport’s operator said yesterday. Taoyuan International Airport Corp said in a statement that it has established a response center after the Central Weather Administration issued a sea warning for Krathon, and urged passengers to remain alert to the possibility of disruptions caused by the storm in the coming days. Flight schedules might also change while the air force conducts rehearsals and holds a final airshow for Double Ten National Day, it added. Although
SEMICONDUCTORS: TSMC is able to produce 2-nanometer chips and mass production is expected to be launched by next year, the company said In leading-edge semiconductor manufacturing China is behind Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) by at least 10 years as the Taiwanese chipmaker’s manufacturing process has progressed to 2 nanometers, National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) Minister Wu Cheng-wen (吳誠文) said yesterday. Wu made the remarks during a meeting of the Legislative Yuan’s Education and Culture Committee when asked by Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Wu Pei-yi (吳沛憶) about a report published in August by the Chinese version of Nikkei Asia that said Taiwan’s lead over China in chip manufacturing was only three years. She asked Wu Cheng-wen if the report was an accurate
PRO-CHINA SLOGANS: Two DPP members criticized police officers’ lack of action at the scene, saying that law enforcement authorities should investigate the incident Chinese tourists allegedly interrupted a protest in Taipei on Tuesday held by Hong Kongers, knocked down several flags and shouted: “Taiwan and Hong Kong belong to China.” Hong Kong democracy activists were holding a demonstration as Tuesday was China’s National Day. A video posted online by civic group Hong Kong Outlanders shows a couple, who are allegedly Chinese, during the demonstration. “Today is China’s National Day, and I won’t allow the displaying of these flags,” the male yells in the video before pushing some demonstrators and knocking down a few flagpoles. Radio Free Asia reported that some of the demonstrators
RSS