The Yuanshan Zoo 圓山動物園

The Taipei Municipal Zoo or "Muzha Zoo木柵動物園" was actually relocated from Yuanshan in 1986. The original Yuanshan Zoo圓山動物園[Maruyama Zoo] was established in 1914 by a 70-person touring circus from Japan. It was taken over by the Colonial Gov't in 1915 and quickly became a very popular site with more than 800 visitors on any given Sunday. This Zoo housed about 70 species of mammals, birds, and reptiles. The picture above shows one of the main attractions, an Indian elephant named Malan [note: another, Lin Wang, was added in either 1952 or 1954].

Near the bottom of the water buffalo page of Taipics.com, there are photos of a 大猩猩 [Gorilla gorilla] (one of them is shown below), the then resident celebrity of Yuanshan Zoo. This majestic looking gorilla was electrocuted in 1945 when the Americans came to bomb Taipei, allegedly to prevent it from escaping from the Zoo and mauling hapless citizens in its path. Unfortunately, the American bombers never did hit this area, so the gorilla (and two lions) died for nothing. It was made into a ferocious fully-standing specimen-display that had remained a source of fascination for generations of children.
Then there was this exotic "fire-eating bird食火鳥", the most dangerous bird in any zoo, that had somehow avoided the euthanasia and survived the war. For illustration purposes, a representing photo here:
The fire-eating fame of 火喰鳥 (hi-ku'i-tori) originated from 1778 when the strange flight-less bird arrived in Nagasaki, Japan, on a Dutch merchant ship. The painting above depicts a Dutchman in striped pants holding a piece of flaming charcoal for the bird, called Cassowary, to eat. No one has ever witnessed such an event at the Yuanshan Zoo or elsewhere, however. The bird apparently eats fruits, insects, and small animals; everything except fire. Many of us still feel duped.

There was also an albino Persian cat with heterochromia (different eye colors). It lived by itself in a tiny wooden cage. Again, for illustration:
Alexander the Great (356-323BC) also had heterochromic eyes, probably from injury to the sympathetic nerve along the external carotid artery when his dad, Philip II of Macedonia (382-336BC), or someone picked up Alex the toddler by his head and inadvertently stretched the young neck. This type of nervous damage prevents proper pigmentation of the iris resulting in a blue eye on the afflicted side.

The Zoo was renovated and further expanded in the 1950s. The marketing policy of adding special shows and exhibits continued for 30 years until 1979.

On September 14, 1986, the zoo animals were moved, amidst great fanfare, through the streets of Taipei to the present site in 木柵.

清水祖師廟 Clear-Water Zu-Shi Temple in Danshui

This artistically re-rendered photo, courtesy of Mr Sam Wu, shows the work by master potter 陳天乞 - colorful examples of many more that adorn the 清水祖師廟 in Danshui. The resident deity in this temple 清水祖師 is also known as the 黑面落鼻祖師 or the most revered black-faced nose-dropping master. He was 陳應 (1044-1109), a monk-physician originally from Hokkien.

His dark face was supposedly from suntan from lifelong outdoor charity work (one of many versions). The nose-dropping legend of this statue actually abounds. It is a warning sign that appears whenever there is an impending disaster. The most famous episode was the earthquake in 1867 (on the 23rd day, 11th month, lunar calendar) that had leveled 石門Shi-men (north of Danshui) yet spared all residents. They happened to be parading 清水祖師's statue in an open field when the nose detached and the ground shook soon after.

The nose piece can only be re-attached by using ashes from burned incense mixed with water [see close-up above]. And no amount of human force can detach the nose. During the Japanese rule, the town folks worrying about an imminent epidemic had held a pre-emptive parade for 清水祖師 to patrol and bless Danshui. It was in violation of the Shindoism only law at that time, so the procession was halted by police chief 佐藤金丸. This was when the nose miraculously dropped. After re-attaching it, Sato was challenged to yank it off. He couldn't with all his might, the parade was therefore allowed to continue. Sato's successor 清水勉治 was also taught the same lesson. Cynics might argue that these two policemen were simply humoring Danshui-ren - to avoid a popular uprising. We of course know better.

During the Sino-French war when the French came to invade Danshui, 清水祖師 together with MaZu, Guanyin and Royal Lord Su, divinely intervened. For which, a wooden plaque "功資拯濟" was granted by Emperor Guan-Xu. To house this royal gift, a new temple must be built, so the statue of 清水祖師 was temporarily moved to the 清水祖師廟 in 艋舺 (Manga, now Wanhua). Unfortunately, the folks in Manga later refused to return the statue, even fabricated a duplicate to swindle Danshui-ren. These had resulted in lawsuits during the Japanese era. It was eventually decreed that the two towns settle through time-sharing. However, after the war, Danshui-ren discovered that the shared statue was again a fake.

Historically, Danshui-ren were in mutually beneficial collaboration with people from Manga. The town history, however, had also recorded disdainfully that during the Sino-French war, a bunch of unruly Manga youth came and attacked Christians in Danshui. Dr George Leslie Mackay and his family had to flee to Hongkong as a result.

The stories of 清水祖師 are still growing even today. The most recent one was about an architect commissioned for a renovation project. He arrived at the temple with blueprints in hand late one night for a meeting with the caretakers, only to find that all the gates were locked shut. After knocking on the doors, a booming voice inside told him to slip the blueprints under the doors. He did so unsuspectingly and found out on the next day that no living person was at the temple since the previous evening.

[Above: Two more-recently added ishidoros guard the entry to the temple, replacing two stone lions from the olden days.]

For many young Danshui-ren drafted to serve in the military, wearing magic spells available from the temple is a must. At least one kid credits his survival from a bad accident to the protection by 清水祖師.

Every year on the 6th Day of the 5th Month, lunar calendar, Danshui celebrates 清水祖師's re-designated birthday (it should really be the 6th Day of the 1st Month - minor details really). This is also a great excuse for Danshui families and friends to get together and have a feast.

Mark that on your calendar and come to join the festivities and witness one of the most enduring legends in northern Taiwan:

A poem by Du-Fu杜甫

杜甫 (712-770AD), a most famous poet of the Tang Dynasty, is also well-known and accepted [受容] in Japan. The style of his poetry heavily influenced the 五山文学 of the Japanese 南北朝 Period (1334-1393) and later the work of haiku master Matsu-o Ba-sho松尾芭蕉 (1644-1694).

The poem above 春望 [Anticipating Spring] by 杜甫 was calligraphically reproduced in the 行書 style by Mr 廣川研一 [source: http://www.shipboard.info/blog2/], a long-time resident and teacher of Danshui, who was appointed the Principal of 三芝San-Zhi Public School on May 5, 1944, and oversaw the transfer of school properties before repatriation to Hiroshima in 1946.

War time chaos is a recurring theme in Asian literature. Du-Fu was lamenting (translation by Eyedoc):

Nation in ruins yet mountains and rivers remain
Spring sees city deep in overgrown weed and trees
Tears of sadness splash onto flowers
Crowing birds disturb a reluctant farewell
In three months of continuous war
A letter from home is worth 10 thousand pieces of gold
Stroking graying hair shortens it so
Hairpins have nowhere to anchor any more

This was also what was happening in 1944-1945, in Danshui and in Taiwan.

春望 and its Japanese version:

　　国破山河在　　　国破れて山河在り
　　城春草木深　　　城春にして草木深し
　　感時花濺涙　　　時に感じては花にも涙を濺ぎ
　　恨別鳥驚心　　　別れを恨んでは鳥にも心を驚かす
　　烽火連三月　　　烽火　三月に連なり
　　家書抵万金　　　家書　万金に抵る
　　白頭掻更短　　　白頭　掻けば更に短く
　　渾欲不勝簪　　　渾て簪に勝えざらんと欲す

Taiwan Jinja 台灣神社

Most old-time residents of Taipei remember that the best known hotel in the city, the Grand Hotel 圓山大飯店, was built in 1952 on the same site where 台灣神社 was once located. This and the Tainan Jinja were the two highest level shrines that honored 北白川宮能久親王, among other major Japanese deities. [Note: The Grand Hotel was rebuilt in 1973 into a yellow and crimson 14-story palace which was damaged by fire in 1995; it underwent extensive renovation and re-opened for business in 1998.]

A huge collection of pictures of 台灣神社 can be found in the Taipics.com website. Two of them are shown below, you can see the torii (gateway to the jinja grounds), the bridge over Keelung River - the 明治橋 (中山Chung Shan Bridge after the war), and the street leading up to it - the 敕使街道 (later the Chung Shan N Road):

To the left of the taxis was the old Yuan-shan Zoo. Notice the bike riders traveled on the left side of the street.

And a bird's eye view of the whole complex is captured in this painting:The shrine complex was further expanded in the 1940s. In 1942, the 台灣護國神社 (Taiwan Gokoku Jinja) was built on the 劍潭 side. This would become the Martyrs' Shrine after the war. The original Jinja seen above was promoted to the palatial status to 台灣神宮 in 1944, and a new hall was constructed next to the old jinja. It was to be dedicated in Dec of the same year; instead, it burned down shortly before on Oct 25, when an airliner crashed near it while trying to land in the Matsuyama 松山Airport. Many would see this as an omen foretelling the downfall of the Japan Empire. It was never rebuilt and Japan surrendered 10 months later. This site is now a radio station.

The imposition of the Shindoism onto [some would argue that this was accepted voluntarily by] the Taiwanese went into high gear in the 1940s and the shrines served as the spiritual centers. Worshiping at the shrines was integrated into school activities. Many had their wedding ceremonies conducted at these shrines. They were also the favorite sites for the touring public. After the war, most jinjas were dismantled. The recent interests in preserving these shrines and artifacts (e.g., stone lions, bronze horses, and stone lanterns - ishidoros) came from the realization that the Japanese did share a common past, however briefly, with the Taiwanese. Marc of Taipics.com has sent this photo of an ishidoro on display at the Flowers Expo (for more, see here) - a remnant of the past except the light bulb, a gratuitous addition:

There are strict rules, etiquette and proper attires for attending ceremonies at Taiwan Jinja:

Some photo records are highly personal. Here we have three generations of Tansui-jin/Danshui-ren celebrating the wedding of Mr Hirokawa and his bride, Miss Harada:

[This photo of 廣川 bride and groom (couple in front center), family and guests was taken on May 20, 1939, at Taiwan Jinja 台灣神社 - kindly provided by Hirokawa's son.]

The groom, Mr Hirokawa, had taught at 淡水公學校 [now Danshui Elementary School]. Among the guests were the School Principal, Mr Matsuda松田 (right-hand side of groom) and the Mayor of Tansui/Danshui, Mr Nakahara中原 (second from right, front row).

The eagles of Danshui and more

Contributed by Sam Wu

There are 400-450 species of birds in Taiwan that include those migrating from northern Asia either arriving in Taiwan for the winter or stopping over, on their way to, e.g., Indonesia.

There was a time when the sky above Danshui River was teeming with eagles hunting for fish [four of the most numerous: Chinese goshawk, gray-faced buzzard eagle, Formosan crested goshawk, and serpent eagle]. Now, with their winter nesting sites crowded out by humans in 觀音山 area, you are lucky to spot one or two on a good day.

In the wetlands and forests, however, a few other species have apparently survived and done well:

[Above and below: 鷺鷥white Egret, commonly sighted in riversides and rice paddies, strolling in lady-like grace; there are 6 species of egrets in Taiwan]

[Above and below: 紅臉水雞Common Moorhen found in 紅樹林, known to fuss over their broods]

[Below: 白頭翁 Chinese Bulbul - noisy residents of the woods]

[Above: a Red-faced 番 duck/Muscovy, known to chase after kids]

[Above: a 斑點鶇 Dusky Thrush, most likely from E Siberia]

[Above: a 白腹鶇 Pale Thrush, another visitor from Northeast Asia]

[Above: a 夜鷺 Night Heron - hunts at night often at fish farms much to the chagrin of the farmers]

[Above: a 藍磯鶇 Blue Rock-thrush and below: a very rare migratory 藍尾鴝Red-flanked Bluetail known as "rooftop violinist" for its trilling songs]

[Below: a 樹鵲 Himalayan Tree Pie - usually seen in groups, large and loud residents of parks in Taipei]

[Above: a 爪哇八哥White-vented Myna, this one in a bamboo bush in Danshui; and below: a 五色鳥Muller's Barbet, a loner with feathers of 5 different colors]

[Above: a 翠鳥Kingfisher, aka a flying jewel; and below: a 黃尾鴝Daurian Redstart, another visitor from the north]

The good news is, with planned conservation in Danshui, Guan-du and Taipei, these beautiful birds seem to be making a comeback. We hope the magnificent eagles of 觀音山, all 10 species of them do as well.

Koxinga's sister (Part 1): Ursola de Bargas

[Koxinga's birthplace in 平戶Hirado in Nagasaki - known as 兒誕石]

According to the writing of Franciscan missionary to China, Fr Antonio de Santa Maria Caballelo (1602-1669), 鄭芝龍Cheng Zhi-lung's daughter married one of the sons of Mr Manuel Bello, a Portuguese resident of Macau. Another Franciscan, Fr Bonaventura Ibanez (1610-1691) also reported that Bello and his son Antonio Rodrigues, both of whom Macau-born Portuguese came to call on him in 安海An-Hai. And during the visit, Rodrigues had described his wedding to Lord Cheng's daughter, Ursola de Bargas, in Macau.

This is the little known chapter of the Cheng family history. Indeed, Ursola was Koxinga's sister from the same Japanese mother, Lady Weng [翁夫人 - 田川松Takawa Matsu]. Her Chinese/Japanese name remains unknown.

鄭芝龍 had never forgotten this branch of his family. In May, 1630, after several unsuccessful attempts through emissaries, 鄭芝龍 finally sent 鄭芝燕 his own brother to hand-carry a letter to the Daimyo of Nakasaki asking that his family members be released. In the Tokukawa Period, however, no Japanese citizens were allowed to emigrate. Outraged, Lord Cheng dispatched a fleet of 10 warships to Japan threatening retaliation. After some negotiation, only the then 7-year-old Koxinga was let go. Lady Weng stayed behind to take care of her second son 田川七左衛門, then barely one year old. Apparently, a daughter was also left behind with the mother.

Perhaps to honor 鄭芝龍, his daughter was brought up a devout Christian [even though Lady Weng was not in this faith]. She arrived in Macau with other Christians in 1636 to escape the religious persecution then the rage in Japan. She was evidently quite well cared for by the Portuguese.

[The St Paul Cathedral in Macau built in 1582-1602, destroyed in 1835 by typhoon and fire]

Upon learning the arrival of his daughter in Macau, Lord Cheng demanded the custody which the citizens of Macau refused citing that Cheng (known in Macau as Nicholas Iquan) was no longer a practicing Christian and that his daughter, if returned to China, would be residing in a land with no churches. Lord Cheng initially threatened to bring 500-1,000 warships to attack Macau but relented later.

[Macau, ca 1640]

The father and daughter were finally united in 1646. This was because Lord Cheng, instead of taking hostages, had taken very good care the crew of a Portuguese ship that had sunk in his territory. In gratitude, the Portuguese in Macau decided not to block the re-union any longer. At the same time, Lord Cheng made a promise to his daughter that he'd build a church to accommodate her and other Christians. It was indeed built inside his 138-acre seaside compound in An-Hai in 晉江. This cathedral was decorated with icons and portraits of Jesus, Virgin Mary, and Christian saints complete with preaching and regular services. This was also where the two aforementioned Franciscans met up with Ursola and her husband Antonio Rodrigues.

After 鄭芝龍's surrender, the couple returned to Macau in 1655 when Koxinga decided to fight against the Qing and restore the Ming. He burned down the compound with everything in it to re-group in Amoy. It is known that Rodrigues became a sea captain at least until 1678.

For two long years, Mr Manuel Bello stayed with his in-law Lord Cheng when the latter was imprisoned by the Qing. For unknown reasons, Bello was spared the death sentence when Lord Cheng together with 10 immediate family members were executed in 1661.

[Re-posted from http://chenghistory.blogspot.com]

For part 2, see http://chenghistory.blogspot.com/2010/12/koxingas-sister-cheng-wan.html

The rest of Danshui

Besides the hustle and bustle of the 老街Old Street, there are many tourist attractions in Danshui, e.g., the Little White House, Ft Santo Domingo, Fisherman's Wharf, Hobe Gun Fort, Danshui Presbyterian Church, etc. There are many lesser-known yet no less important sites such as the three major temples, 媽祖宮, 龍山寺, and 清水祖師廟, plus the 蘇府王爺廟 [described in the last post]. Then there are the always overlooked sites, for example, 淡江中学Tamkang High School and the nearby Foreigners' Cemetery, the Taipei County Martyrs' Memorial, etc. Here we'll offer a quick introduction to these sites and more:

Tamkang High School was started in 1882 by Dr George Leslie Mackay as 牛津學堂the Oxford College. It was formally established and moved to the present site by his son 偕叡廉博士 in 1925. This is the gym, at the end of a long walkway from the front gate:
The walkway is paved with red bricks with some old "撒木耳煉瓦會社Samuel and Samuel Co" bricks embedded, most likely salvaged from other buildings from the 1920s.
Inside the gym, you'll see the portraits of two boxing champions, [l] Jake Martinez (1955-56) and [r] Juan Lazcano (1950-53) on the wall:
During the infamous 228 Incident (1947), one of the students was shot and killed near the post office on Chung Cheng Road. The school principal and two teachers were also arrested and murdered. Here is a memorial on campus:
There are also other landmarks, e.g., the first rugby field in Taiwan, the bell tower, and the 八角耬 (for more, see here by Patrick Cowsill). And near the gym, there is a Mackay family cemetery and next to it, the Foreigners' Cemetery (below) where the 17 heads of French fusiliers marins from the Sino-French war in 1884 might have been buried:
Below is the original Oxford College, located within 真理大學 that used to be where the British Consulate was. The land was leased from the Qing in perpetuity until in the late 1970s when it was sold to the university:
Across the street from 真理大學 is of course the 紅毛城Fort Santo Domingo. Going down a steep slope from this area, you'll run into Chung Cheng Road again. And a short distance going north, you'll come across the tree-shaded boulevard into the Danshui Golf Course, famous since the 1920s.

Walking up the blvd, before going into the Golf Course itself and on the right-hand side, there is a footpath leading up to a new addition, the 一滴水記念館:
It is an old house from 福井Fukui Prefecture in Japan, originally built by 水上勉's father. It was dissembled in Japan and re-constructed in Danshui by volunteers, now a cultural exchange center and a library housing the entire work of 水上勉 and 陳舜臣 [both of whom novelists from Japan]:
On the left side of the entry way, there are the well-visited 滬尾砲台Hobe Gun Fort (built by 劉銘傳) and the usually ignored 台北縣忠烈祠Taipei County Martyrs' Memorial.
Some maybe interested to know that this memorial was built to symbolize the victory over the colonial Japan. This Chinese gate (牌坊, above) used to be a Japanese-style roofed gate (only the foundation now remains; the 2 Chinese style stone lions maybe a post-war addition). And the memorial hall was built on the site where the 淡水神社Tansui Jinja was originally located:
223 individuals plus one group of 72 are commemorated in this hall that include the defender of Danshui during the Sino-French war, 孫開華. The group of 72 is first on the list - KMT revolutionary martyrs already memorialized in Canton, China. Inexplicably, the list also contains the names of three Qing officials who vowed to fight and die for Taiwan but ran back to China instead when the Japanese came to take over Taiwan in 1895.

And back to the soon to be totally altered 重建街 area, here is the famed western style 紅樓 (the Red Castle) owned by the 洪Hong family, now a cafe:
It has appeared in many famous paintings of old Danshui. And right below it, in front of the now demolished 白樓 (the White Castle) is the China Berry tree long associated with 木下靜涯Kinoshita Seigai:
Danshui is rapidly changing into a town of all tourism all the time. And in the back side of Danshui MRT Station, the landfill project continues:
Eventually another tourist bridge that goes nowhere similar to the one in Fisherman's Wharf will be built here. The landfill narrows the span of the river that is certain to impede the flow of water from upstream. It will be interesting to see if Taipei is flooded when the next typhoon hits.