Day 2 - Taipei To Sanxia and A Bit About Glove Puppetry, The Long Walk South In Taiwan
Day 2 - Taipei To Sanxia and A Bit About Glove Puppetry, The Long Walk South In Taiwan
This morning I woke up early and went to soak in the hot springs in our hotel.
I was too tired last night, and too full from our dinner, to enjoy a soak.
Luckily, I felt no lasting pain anywhere in my body.
After my soak we took the subway back to the last spot we walked to yesterday, and continued our walk south towards the town of Yingge, where our next hotel is located.
We didn’t take the shortest route, but instead opted for a more scenic path along the river.
It was a good choice, because the road was full of greasy scooter and vehicle repair shops, gas stations, and many cars and long traffic lights, which slowed us down.
The river path was partially shaded, and some people were using it to exercise.
There were no vending machines or stalls to buy water, so we planned ahead and bought a big bottle of water before we veered onto the river path.
At a certain point, the river path was closed for reconstruction, and we had to return to the busy main road.
As we crossed the road, we saw a puppet show at a gas station and stopped to watch.
There were no other people around except for the family that was performing the show.
The voice telling the story was pre-recorded and it seemed to be a conversation between a god and a farmer.
It was a hand puppetry or glove-puppetry show, in which the performer stands behind a screen and holds two puppets as gloves, one on each of his hands.
Traditional hand puppets were known as a “Bu Dai Xi” (布袋戏) and are commonly referred to as “Glove Puppetry”.
Glove Puppetry is a unique form of performance entertainment where puppeteers often utilize bright-colored dolls to recreate scenes from popular folklore and legends.
The one we saw was a temple puppetry show, that was not intended to entertain children.
Temple performances have specific elements, including a religious message, a blessing of the community and an expression of gratitude to the gods.
Folklore performances tell stories that might include religious characters such as gods and Buddhas.
There are traditional characters in puppetry performances, who can be used in a variety of stories and scenes.
Popular characters include the rich kid of the family, who is always stupid, never gets the girl, is mean to everyone who belongs to the lower class, adores only the upper class, is opportunistic and a little cruel, and is considered very funny.
There are also archetypal male and female characters, like the successful graduate of the imperial exams and his beautiful, patient, but long-suffering wife.
The morals of the stories intend to teach people how to behave in relationships and in society, through laughter and lightheartedness.
Glove puppetry, which is an old tradition in Taiwan, is not often seen anymore.
We adore puppets and try to attend their shows everywhere we go around the world.
In Bali, we took a course and learned how to carve dry raw leather into Shadow Puppets.
We had such a fabulous time doing it while our teacher, Putra, played the gamelan bells for us.
Shadow puppets were popular in China and Indonesia, and the many handmade holes in the dried leather that shapes the puppets, allow the light projected on a screen to show the puppets moving.
Traditionally the light was from a fire behind the screen, and a live group of musicians always played and sang.
Glove puppetry is different from wooden puppets on strings (popular in Europe and in Myanmar), and from puppets that are attached to sticks (popular in Indonesia and China) that are played by players standing under the stage.
The day was hot and humid, and as we continued to walk, I started to feel achy.
My hips and my feet hurt and my shoulders felt tight, but we pushed on past the pain.
At some point, I put on my headphones and listened to a story, which always makes the walk easier, because my mind is focused on the story, instead of on my discomfort and pain.
On a bench by the river, we rested and had some water and the handmade Moon Festival cookies that we had bought yesterday at the Full moon festival in Taipei, in the Sogo mall.
We arrived in the old town of Sanxia, just as it started to drizzle.
It was getting late and we felt too tired to explore the old city today in the rain.
We had to return to Sanxia tomorrow anyway, in order to continue our journey to Yingge, so we decided to explore the city and the market tomorrow.
We found shelter from the rain in a small air conditioned cafe in Sanxia, where we had good tea served in dainty porcelain cups, and I bought a bottle of fragrant essential oil to remind me that life is beautiful and not a daily struggle.
It was raining a bit harder, when we returned to Taipei by bus and subway.
We had very little strength left, so we changed Jules’ phone glass protector and had a great vegan Shokudo set meal for dinner, of soft creamy tofu, a salad, roasted chestnuts and a stew made from pumpkin and veg.
It was an awesome simple meal.
Back in our room, we finished packing everything, because tomorrow we leave Taipei and we will not return until the end of our walk.
Good night and sweet dreams to you,
Tali
Today’s Stats:
Steps - 26,827
Daily Distance - 18 km.
Total Distance To Date - 34 km
