Taiwan 2011 / Part 3 / IDA Day Two

after an undoubtedly exciting first day and night here at the IDA, i was so looking forward to what the second day would bring. yesterday we were presented with a myriad of speeches and presentations, discussions and dialogues that truly were engaging and i was looking forward to the same level of excitement that might pop up today.

at least i hope it does. 

 

and the first thing that greeted me as i woke up this morning, after dragging myself out of bed, was an unmistakable sense of something chilly in the air, and soon i find out, it was raining. now, usually i love rain, in fact i absolutely adore it, but the monsoon clouds that hovered over the island this morning was not a good omen. 

not a good omen at all. an explanation is necessary to explain the concern at hand. 

you see, part of today's agenda were planned excursions to some of the lovelier spots here in the island, which would include a boat trip to a scenic lake, a hike through a mountainous pathway, and a cycle thorough a delightful riverside promenade. 


that doesn't look too promising right now. oh well, ces la vie. 


irregardless though, i persevere, both in prayer and promise, and soon i get ready to walk in the light and lovely drizzle of the morbid morning to the venue. skies were dark and grey, and the tower too was obscure and dim. on to the conference, nonetheless. 

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and people start walking in, but to my surprise, i only see about half the crowd that came in yesterday. i was disturbed by the turnout this morning, but i assumed there must be a reason for the lack of interest. more space for the rest of us, i guess.

the first presenter of the morning had an impressive resume detailing a fantastic collection of credentials and achievements to say the least. a prominent quantum physicist from india, this sari clad woman with a huge red circle on her forehead, presented herself as a formidable intellectual behemoth on stage, speaking flawlessly in perfect The Queen's English about the dangers and misappropriate uses of biotechnology in the developing world. 

her speech went on and on about how this industry was robbing the meek and the feeble of their livelihoods, and how humanity had yet to reap in the rewards that this scientific field of study would have yielded after decades of research. even the other panelists didn't really have anything positive or encouraging to add to their own presentations during the session, and it got me kinda wondering why no one was focusing on the good.

i couldn't help but ask eventually after all that negative feedback on the matter, which of course are serious issues that need consideration and rectification, on why nothing postive and benefiecial was being presented. i deduced that surely after years and years of experimentation both in theory and practice, some good must have been birthed by the industry in question and i asked, nay insisted, on their personal opinions each for an answer.

again, to my surprise, after i ended my query with a distinctively vehement tone, the crowd immediately applauded my curiosity and some of them even came to congratulate me on my observation after the session was over. needless to say, i didnt really get a satisfactory answer from any of the panelists after the question was posed, and everyone simply moved on to other things.

 

its ok though, i felt good. and i made some new friends on the way.
once the session was over, we were told that due to unavoidable circumstances , ( read : rain )  some of the afternoon's more interactive activities had been regrettably cancelled, but one thing remained, and it was good enough to compensate for the loss for the rest of the day.  

now, before i arrived in taiwan, as i was planning on which activities i wanted to participate in at the IDA, one particular event caught my eye. one of the country s famous international technology brands, known worldwide as ASUS, had allowed the organizers to conduct a field trip of sorts for the participants of the conference to come visit the heart of thier operations, on the outskirts of the city, and i knew this was not something i wanted to miss. 

and so now, here i am. waiting to board the bus with a group of other like minded individuals to visit one of the world's most famous powerhouses of the IT universe right in their own backyard. lets go.

and after about half an hour or so, driving through a soft drizzle, soon we were there. a throughly modern complex, for a thorughly modern corporation. 

 shining walls of marble, with even shinier walls of glass.

and soon, the tour begins.

this kind gentleman takes us around the complex, showcasing the company's achievements, decked out for the world to see and expectedly, appreciate. the gleam in his eye and the smile on his face speaks volumes on how happy he is to be here, partaking in the company's success across the planet.

and what's being showcased? why stuff like this, of course ... laptops, netbooks and ultrabooks galore!

we were then taken in for a presentation and a sneak peak at future technologies being developed for the masses. nice. the zenbook in particular was certainly eye - catching, and i was tempted to flick one out as least suspiciously as possible. unfortunately, my attempts at being a skilful gadget smuggler didnt really pan out the way i had hoped it would.

after the presentation, we were taken upstairs for a tea break. 

next to a swimming pool!

yup, upstairs on the rooftop for tea, pizza and other munchies and such, next to a pool, a jacuzzi and a shower. life is good, no doubt, for the fortunate who work here. imagine taking a dip in the middle of the day to destress before getting back to work with a rejuvenated sense of self. yes, life is good.

and as i venture out in the balcony of the rooftop space with a cup of coffee in my hand and sushi on my tounge, i see before me skies and skies of dark rolling mushroom clouds of grey, disappearing into a misty unrecognizable haze beyond the mountains.

at vantage points like these, staring intently into infinity, everything we do as human beings, seems so insignificant, miniscule and pointless, and really evokes the grandness and magnificence of creation itself in such a way that we cant help but be humbled by the captivating beauty of it all. 

it puts things into perspective. at least, it does for me.



and  i stay out a little longer. but soon it was time to leave.

and spend some time on the bus with some friendly australians i met earlier on in the day. fun people, simply said. next on the agenda, we were headed to a japanese style retreat that was built decades ago during the second world for a taste of taiwans colonial past. it seems that the place was perfectly preserved from the past till the present and has been turned into a tourist attraction of sorts, while still offering services of a relaxing nature.

and yes, it truly was japanese. much to my delight.

i just loved the main hall, traditional and authentic. 

the tatami mats and the sliding doors were perfect. 

and soon, i sat in the senza postition, out of respect for the sacred identity of the building.

and even the boundaries of the tatami mates were delicate to the touch.

the whimsical fan motif was especially alluring to gaze at. 

the translucent beauty of shoji paper in the sliding wooden doors soon reveal themselves, by softly filtering light through its presence.

the corridors seamlessly integrate through the interior halls, on wooden floors and tatami mats, all bathed in hues of light earthy shades and tones, bringing about a sense of peace through a visual connection with natural elements found in the surrounding landscapes of the country.

but again, we needed to leave soon, but not before another shot with these two lovely angels just outside the retreat. we had one more place to go. just around the corner.

and as soon as i approach the venue, strangely i felt a sense of something familiar. deja vu, even.

i looked around and somehow, inexplicably, felt that i had seen this place before, and i was cracking my head as to where and when.obviously i had never been here before, but somehow this place seemed so familiar. 

did i dream it? imagine it? did it remind me of something else?

and then it hit me, like a bolt out of the blue, it hit me.

i realised, with a sense of relief that a mental burden weighing heavily on my brain had been lifted off, and this place was a project that i had read about in a design magazine years ago. slowly i realised that i had seen this place before, but only on the pages of a periodical back home a long time ago, and in it, it was a described as a modern library built with eco - friendly strategies in mind, hence its exposure on the international stage.

this was the public library here in Taipei, and it was a beautiful testament of green design that skillfully combined modern requirements and necessities with traditional building principles and aesthetics, neatly packaged in a contemporary identity to indulge both mind and spirit, hunger for knowledge.

a predominantly timber building with clearly expressed through a vernacular of wooden ceilings and columns, posts and beams, cladded with both walls of glass and veneers of stone and timber, this was an amazing building both respectful of the earth below and delightful to the eyes of the passerby.

inevitably we walk in for a closer at the interiors. and how wonderful the interiors were.

the all encompassing presence of  timber at almost every corner of the inside of the building coolly exuded a warm, homely ambiance, making the interior spaces perfectly conducive in creating an atmosphere that deeply encourages thoughtful contemplation while exploring the endless selection of materials abundantly provided everywhere.

even the ceilings were cladded with strips of luscious red and orange planks of polished hardwood, all delicately held in balance through a system of slender pillars and brackets and of softly tightened nuts and bolts.  

amazing detailing right down to the last connections.

and the lighting system employed here was well designed as well. clean simple orbs floating above us, whose sole purpose was simply to illuminate in all directions, unrestricted and unhindered in its task, and devoid of any distracting annoyances that cling to its form. pure and perfect.

soon, we were called up, and it was for a surprise. as mentioned earlier, this was a green building, and very quickly, we would find out just how green it really was.

yes, here we were, on a green roof. a literally green roof. the top portion of the buidling was converted into a sloping garden that was designed to collect rainwater and harvest solar energy, while its green carpet was designed to cool the exteriors of the top so that heat would be mitigated inside.

 and it was lovely to look at.
 

here was a living, breathing green organism that was flourishing above the library, providing relief during summer from the madness that the heat can induce, through passive cooling strategies that keep the rest of the interiors of the building relatively comfortable.

but now, it was getting dark and the rain seemed to be getting worse, and soon it became evident, that we needed to leave, not only cause our time here was up, but also because there was another night of festivities that we needed to get to, and some of us needed to prepare ourselves for the evening.

so once we took the long walk down, we were ready to depart.

this was my last shot of the evening of this spectacular building. 

simultaneously humble in form yet powerful in design, this truly was an amazing piece of public architecture. a repository of knowledge, cocooned and enveloped in an environmentally conscious skin of timber and stone, this building truly was a testament to the idea that both man and nature can find a compromise in existence with each other, and where we can immnesely benefit from the forces of creation in sustaining us and our aspirations. truly wonderful. 

but now as we leave, its time to party. 

oh yes, a party!