[Are you itching to get away?]

With COVID-19 dashing international travel, people in Taiwan are finding themselves “stuck”. But it’s also forced people to take a closer look at the travel options right here in our backyard. In today’s show, Natalie Tso tests our knowledge of one of Taiwan’s 166 islands. Also, Andrew Ryan travels to Alishan to find out what Japanese photographer 小林賢伍 Kengo Kobayashi has to say about this “Land of Legends.”  

Plus:

- A mountain that looks like matcha ice cream

- Your grandparents’ clothes go viral, in Hashtag Taiwan with Leslie Liao

- Test your knowledge with our Lightning Round news quiz!

LINKS:

小林賢伍 Kengo Kobayashi on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kengokobayashijp/

小林賢伍 Kengo Kobayashi on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/iamnotkengo

Land of Legends: Taiwan’s Ali Mountain: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBBMDoEk0aI

Alishan National Scenic Area Administration: https://www.ali-nsa.net/zh-tw

Info about Little Liuqiu (Xiaoliuqiu): https://liuqiu.pthg.gov.tw/liuqiu/web_en.php?prog=intro

Special thanks to:

Alishan National Scenic Area Administration 

小林賢伍Kengo Kobayashi for the use of his photo of Matcha Mountain

And to Director Su Zhi-zong for additional footage from Alishan.

[Are you prepared for takeoff?]

With no sign of the global pandemic abating, it might be impossible to put off air travel until the situation improves. In today’s Taiwan Insider, we get a first-hand account from a woman who recently flew from New York to San Francisco to see her parents. Also, find out the latest rules about who can and cannot visit Taiwan.  

Plus:

- A popular “fake flight to nowhere”

- A restaurant that serves up sass, in today’s Hashtag with Leslie Liao

- Test your knowledge with our Lightning Round news quiz!

LINKS:

MOFA rules on who can travel :

https://www.boca.gov.tw/cp-220-5691-aa1c3-2.html

National Immigration Agency link on who can travel to Taiwan:

https://www.immigration.gov.tw/media/56810/restriction-to-citizens-and-non-citizens-entering-taiwan.pdf

New rules for Mainland Chinese children 2 years and under:

https://www.cdc.gov.tw/Category/ListContent/tov1jahKUv8RGSbvmzLwFg?uaid=90azaq0ZGxo0gtnPX6cjjQ

[Volcanoes, a pizza flavored boba, cell phone zombies?]

The starting point for today’s Taiwan Insider is a crowd-sourced grid of apocalyptic events, compiled from viewer suggestions. We’ll be touching on THREE of those news items: including a new volcano warning system, and how Hong Kong’s national security law is threatening Taiwan. 

Plus:

- Panda-monium! Join us for a quiz about the Taipei Zoo’s cuddly creatures!

- A lesson about Somaliland from Leslie Liao in today’s Hashtag

- Test your knowledge with our Lightning Round news quiz!

LINKS:

Download the Tai-Pocalypse Bingo Card: https://drive.google.com/file/d/11M0TtMIxMkcovhsuCRMJdg5hDSJFuDox/view?usp=sharing 

Where Hong Kong and Mainland China have Extradition Pacts (Bloomberg): 

https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2019-china-hong-kong-extradition-pacts/

Full Text of Hong Kong’s extradition agreements: 

https://www.doj.gov.hk/eng/laws/table3ti.html

Which Countries Support the New Hong Kong National Security Law (The Diplomat):

https://thediplomat.com/2020/07/which-countries-support-the-new-hong-kong-national-security-law/

Hong Kongers Say Taiwan Is Their First Choice as Exile Looms (Foreign Policy): https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/07/08/hong-kong-exile-taiwan-first-choice/

Taiwan to Launch Volcano Warning System by Year’s End: CWB (Focus Taiwan): 

https://focustaiwan.tw/society/202007060011

Catie Lily Tweet:

https://twitter.com/catielila/status/1278880383958790145

Special thanks to the following people whose suggestions made it onto our crowd-sourced Tai-Pocalypse Bingo card: (in no particular order) Nate Maynard, Florian Bourquin, Ping Chu, Jessyca Roy Landry, Sean Kuo, Chason Dailey, Daniel Kao, Taiwan Birds, Sean Carless, Victor Pan, Terry J. Benzie, Adam Hopkins, Tired Cheese Stick, Michael Stuart, Kate, Cindy Lee, Foreigners in Taiwan, Cat Thomas, Stephen Roberts, Lin CH, Sally Jensen, and Aaron Andrews.

[Working hard, or hardly working?]

If you’re working remotely due to the pandemic, this episode of Taiwan Insider is a must-watch! We’ll have some life hacks for you, and an inside look at how we managed to create six episodes of our show without ever being in the same room. 

We’ll also hear from Daphne Lee at The News Lens, who says Taiwan may have missed the opportunity to restructure the workplace environment. 

Plus:

- Baby panda videos and photos in “3 Pix”

- “Revenge Tourism”: Leslie Liao explains why regular tourism is no longer enough

- https://www.facebook.com/TaipeiZoo/Test your knowledge with the Lightning Round news quiz!

[Want a bite? We’ve got zongzi... ]

Join us as we celebrate with a dragon boat quiz and a race for Taiwanese items in the home between Miss Asian America Stephanie Lin and TaiwaneseAmerican.org Founder Ho Chie Tsai!

Plus:

-Leslie Liao heads down to southern Taiwan on a mission: to view the eclipse!

-Got Eclipse FOMO? Don’t worry, Hashtag’s got your back

-Test your knowledge of current events in Taiwan with our Lightning Round News Quiz

LINKS:

2020 Taipei International Dragon Boat Festival: http://dragonboat.utk.com.tw/En/

TaiwaneseAmerican.org: http://www.taiwaneseamerican.org/

TaiwaneseAmerican.org Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/TaiwaneseAmerican.org/

Eric Hu Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eric.4456/

Central Weather Bureau’s stream of the eclipse: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jT40XoeMr0U

[What is it like to be black in Taiwan?]

Just two days after a solidarity rally was held in support of Black Lives Matter, a popular group of local YouTubers posted a video of themselves in blackface. While the group has posted an apology, the incident has highlighted a major gap in understanding.

In today’s show, we speak with two of the organizers of last Saturday’s rally, Stefanie Davis and Toi Windham, to find out what it is like to be black in Taiwan. 

PLUS:

How does this year’s Mazu procession differ due to the pandemic?

The use of “Taiwan” on passports and planes, in Hashtag Taiwan  

Sandcastle wars! Check out some top contenders in “3 Pix”!

Photo Credits: 

Much gratitude for the photos by photographers Sofia Kuan (who also shot the cover photo) and Jamie MacGregor shared via the organizers. Please visit them:

Sofia Kuan: https://m.facebook.com/home.php…

Jamie MacGregor (Temporary Truth Creative): https://www.facebook.com/temporarytruth/

LINKS:

Watch the full interview with rally organizers Stefanie Davis and Toi Windham,

On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=2973865049388165

On YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zrBPdmrSiwo

Connect with the Black Lives Solidarity Global Initiative on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BLSGlobal/

Fulong International Sand Sculpture Art Festival:

https://events.necoast-nsa.gov.tw/sandart20/

https://eng.taiwan.net.tw/m1.aspx?sNo=0002019&lid=080327

In the news:

Taipei rally shows support for the Black Lives Matter movement (Focus Taiwan): https://focustaiwan.tw/society/202006130013 

Groups hold BLM rally in Taipei (Taipei Times): https://www.taipeitimes.com/…/archives/2020/06/14/2003738196

Taiwan Black Lives Matter rally gets indigenous twist (Reuters): https://reut.rs/3dWH5kA

[World’s first Urban Quiet Park]

While most of Taiwan was focusing on the nation’s first-ever recall of a mayor, in the southern city of Kaohsiung, the northern city of Taipei was celebrating something much quieter: the world’s first Urban Quiet Park! 

In today’s show, we turn to Fulbright Scholar Lev Nachman for some insight into why Kaohsiung Mayor Han Kuo-yu was recalled. Then,  we take you for a walk down a silent path in Yangmingshan.  

PLUS:

Fun facts about Yangmingshan National Park

Taiwan Birds lights up Twitter with relatable posts about our feathered friends

Test your knowledge of the week’s news in our Lightning Round News Quiz

Cover Photo Credit:

LINKS:

Yangmingshan National Park: https://www.ymsnp.gov.tw/main_en/

Quiet Parks International: https://www.quietparks.org/

Soundscape Association of Taiwan: https://www.soundscape.org.tw/

Full interview with Lev Nachman: https://www.facebook.com/TaiwanInsider/videos/702786033842179/

Special thanks to Quiet Parks International and the Soundscape Association of Taiwan, for their kind assistance with today’s program!

On the anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Incident, with protests raging around the world against racism and authoritarianism, we pause to take a close look at why we protest. We listen to the words of Dr. Martin Luther King, and find out what psychologists say propels us to hit the streets. 

How Taiwan’s biggest protests changed the country

Learn how to say “Black Lives Matter” in Chinese

Tips for getting involved in the BLM movement in Taipei

      -    News Quiz: What fashion trend has Health Minister Chen Shih-chung started?

LINKS:

Black Lives Matter Taiwan: https://www.facebook.com/BLMTaiwan

Black-faced spoonbill shirts can be found at the Hermin Textile Museum: https://www.hermin.com/hmtm/

Black Lives Matter and Taiwan 228 article: http://blackyouthproject.com/black-lives-matter-taiwans-228-incident-and-the-transnational-struggle-for-liberation/

[New Chinese law pushes HK closer to “one country, one system”]

Even before China passed the controversial national security law on Thursday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was warning that Hong Kong is no longer autonomous. Here in Taiwan, President Tsai said the country would help Hong Kongers wanting to come to live and work. 

In today’s Taiwan Insider, we explain how Hong Kong got its special status, and we hear from China expert Alexander Huang about the territory’s future.

Plus:

- #VivaTaiwan and #VivaBrazil are trending, find out why in Hashtag Taiwan

- Insider Experiment: Find out what happened to that dirty bread!

- News Quiz: What popular item has gotten a boost from the pandemic?

LINKS:

One Country, Two Systems: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_country,_two_systems

How ending Hong Kong's 'special status' could affect US companies (Reuters): 

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-china-hongkong-trade-explainer/explainer-how-ending-hong-kongs-special-status-could-affect-us-companies-idUSKBN22Y22Z

[Starting off strong, with 73% approval]

President Tsai is entering her second term in office with her highest approval rating yet. But there are challenges, too: a global pandemic, and the persistent threat from China. In today’s Taiwan Insider, find out what was special about this year’s inauguration, and get an insider’s look into her first one!

Plus:

- Past inauguration photos reveal fun facts

- Taiwan comedian @Brian Tseng “drags” pro-China music video

- Who was absent from Tsai’s inauguration? Take our news quiz!

LINKS:

Tsai’s inaugural speech with simultaneous English translation:

https://www.facebook.com/TaiwanInsider/videos/680597722728575/

Presidents of the Republic of China (Taiwan): https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President_of_the_Republic_of_China

Full “China” music video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8BoMJJ5AK4

Full “Taiwan” music video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AN0rQR0RlOM