A Different Perspective

Mark is known for his love of mountains, trees, rocks, water and sky, and solitude. Recently, he had an experience which gave him a new perspective. Stuff like this happens in Taiwan. We'll let him tell it. Thanks to Ping for the real Chinese names for these places!

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We've been walking a lot more these days, longer distances. In many ways, for both of us, it's a return to the ways of our youth. Ping used to walk a long way to school, sometimes skipping the bus when she knew she could go faster. When I was in Ecuador, I used to walk for hours. I loved it. I'd rather walk than bum a ride or take the bus. I would sometimes walk home from school, which was a 10.9 km trek (I just measured my old route with Google Maps!). In the last week or so, I've walked 10 km once and 6+ km a couple of times. I wasn't hiking; I was simply getting where I wanted to go on foot, saving the NT$15 (fifty cent) bus fare while seeing the place firsthand and getting some great exercise at the same time. I discovered that walking the 6.4 km from Beitou to Tianmu, where I have periodic business, takes only 25% longer than riding the bus.

My route on Wednesday went uphill first (my favorite direction!) and then wound around between the ridges. I followed the road through Yangmingshan National Park's (陽明山國家公園） geothermal area where steaming sulfur springs bubble and spit, and a large fumarole makes that throaty hiss like a fighter jet idling before takeoff. Sometimes you can see rock climbers on belay on the limestone outcrops nearby. All around me rose the local peaks: DaTun Shan 大屯山 (our backyard!), QiXing Shan 七星山, Yangming Shan 陽明山 and others whose names I'm still learning. On this day, their summits were hidden by clouds that had hinted of rain all day but had only misted the lower elevations.

As I descended into Tianmu 天母, past the hot springs resorts, past the fruit stand, the bonsai nursery and the quiet, gated condos, I came around a bend and saw something that has never moved me like this before.

Down in the valley lay the City of Taipei 台北, spread out from the foothills at my feet all the way to the far mountains that jutted into the sky with shrouds of cloud around their shoulders. Tall towers and clusters of sky scrapers rose up from the misty streets below, some catching the glint of the setting sun and some casting long, cool shadows onto the darkening neighborhoods. The air itself shone peach and gold, as if the sun was breathing light on the city like an evening whisper. With each step, I could see new landmarks I've come to recognize over the last few months: Taipei 101, Taipei Main Station, the glistening rivers snaking their way through it all. I was struck by the beckoning mystery of it, this shining metropolis that I had traveled so far to see--and had come upon, finally, after this bend in the road.

Such wonder! This was the first time in my life that I had looked at a city and spontaneously thought: "Oh! How beautiful!" My next thought was: "I want to paint this!"

I wish I'd brought the camera, but maybe some memories are meant for the mind's eye only. For me, the remarkable thing was the realization that, indeed, a city could be beautiful, and I could feel that.

I'm glad I saw it from that perspective. If I can, I'll paint it. It's worth the challenge.  --Mark