Last week, in a frenzy of excitement, we broke the news (for English-language press, at least) that Taiwan's EVA Air would celebrate their 20th Anniversary by bringing back the old, immensely successful Hello Kitty-painted airplane. Instead of only one as before, however, there'd be three A330s, each with a unique paintjob and the full treatment of Hello Kitty-ization on the inside and out.

That alone was awesome news, and now we have more. Although the Hello Kitty plane routes only operate from Taipei-Taoyuan International to Tokyo, Fukuoka, Hokkaido, Seoul and Hong Kong, EVA Air has just begun long-haul flights from New York-JFK to Taipei. Switching operations from Newark to JFK means it's now that much easier for American travelers to hop an EVA flight and connect at TPE to one of the Hello Kitty jets. ]]> JetSetCD 2011-11-02T08:52:07-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2011/10/28/02231/691

If you've ever considered a getaway to Taiwan, now is the time because on this upcoming Monday, Taiwanese airline EVA Air will launch three—count 'em—three Airbus A330s each painted with a unique Hello Kitty design.

This will be the second time EVA makes a splash with the Sanrio character as they previously had two planes bearing the cartoon kitty-cat, but retired that livery back in 2009. See a picture of the old design here. This year, however, the airline has added a third plane and freshened up the entire look, which includes everything from the flight attendant aprons to the sugar packets onboard, all Hello Kitty-themed.]]> JetSetCD 2011-10-28T10:26:00-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2011/10/20/22038/747

Watching the movie "The Terminal" or reading the Alain de Botton book A Week at the Airport can make you have crazy ideas, like perhaps that living in an airport for a period of time would be awesome. Tom Hanks kind of finds romance, de Botton eats a ton of room service and listens to the melodramatic life stories of travelers passing through Heathrow's Terminal 5; it all seems so nice and easy.

This week however, those daydreaming about living at an airport got a wakeup call when a Japanese man was found to be doing just that in Taipei International Airport, after running out of money and overstaying his visa. Masaaki Tanaka subsisted on soy sauce and wasabi packets while searching the airport floor for loose change. Hmm—not so glamorous.]]> JetSetCD 2011-10-20T08:30:01-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/8/10/11027/3340

After a punishing weekend of pummeling rain, landslides, flooding, and collapsing houses, Taiwan and The Philippines are licking their wounds and counting the dead resulting from being hit by Typhoon Morakot.

The collapsed six-story Taiwan hotel in the picture above, whose 300 guests were all successfully evacuated, ended up collapsing into the floor waters, and it's no wonder with some southern cities getting dumped on by over 80 inches of rain. Before Morakot—which means "Emerald" in Thai— made landfall on Taiwan, it first killed 21 people in The Philippines. Among the dead were two Belgian tourists and a French tourist. ]]> JetSetCD 2009-08-10T09:29:32-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2009/1/2/91559/48302

Late in 2008, St. Louis was rejoicing that Jason Reitman and George Clooney would be crawling all over the city to shoot the new flick "Up in the Air." But rather than wait for producers to notice them, officials in Taipei are straight up financing a feature film, which will start shooting this spring.

Reports the Taiwan Journal:

The film follows two sisters who move to Taipei and open a coffee shop, with the metropolis serving as a backdrop to their relationships with customers and friends, as well as their love stories.

The film will take viewers around the city's most famous tourist spots such as the Tong Hua night market, Nan Men traditional market, Taipei Zoo, which will soon be housing two pandas, Maokong--an area on the outskirts of Taipei known for its tea plantations and tea houses--and will also take them for a ride on the Taipei Mass Rapid Transit System, the city's subway.

While it could be an early contender for the best travel movie of 2009--producer Hou Hsiao-hsien is an international film festival veteran--Emily Haile of the travel blog The Telegraph wonders if it will be more "extended commercial" than cinematic success because of the city's intimate involvement.

Related Stories:
· Taipei on Screen: Future Film [The Telegraph]
· Filmmaker Set to Showcase Taipei [Taiwan Journal]
· The Soup Strainer Jets To St. Louis [Jaunted]

[Photo: tylerdurden1]]]> pbb 2009-01-02T10:00:41-05:00 http://www.jaunted.com/story/2007/8/6/44233/67747

Apparently there is more to Taiwan than cheap plastic toys that have "Made in Taiwan" stamped on them. This weekend's Sydney Morning Herald even reported that it's an island full not of manmade wonders but of natural beauty.

Surprisingly, this tiny country has more than 250 mountains that reach to above 3000 meters (almost 10,000 feet) high. Particularly recommended is the Yehliu Geopark, full of natural rock formations that "look like they were sculpted by Salvador Dali on acid". On the northeastern coast of the island, these limestone features are accessible by bus from Taipei.

Also worth seeing is the Buluowan Trail. It runs through Taroko National Park where you might spot the native monkeys, Formosan macaques, or giant snails. Seems like Taiwan is more than just the industrial mecca where everything was "made in".

Related Stories:
· Gorging on Beauty [SMH]
· Taiwan Airport's New Name [Jaunted]
· Taiwan's Lantern Festival Goes Porcine [Jaunted]
· Taiwan Hotels [HotelChatter]]]> amandak 2007-08-06T08:33:25-05:00 Search Jaunted string http://www.jaunted.com/search/