Taiwan Tonight - Taiwan News | Jul. 14, 2026

The Taichung City Government Tourism and Travel Bureau joined forces with three other cities, Changhua, Nantou and Miaoli, to hold a tourism promotion event in Seoul, where it attracted large crowds. I once went to Taichung with Taiwanese friends. We landed at Taoyuan Airport and visited Gaomei Wetlands via Taichung. The scenery was truly beautiful. A South Korean tourist who had visited Taiwan before was deeply impressed by Gaomei Wetlands. When she learned at a booth that there were direct flights from Seoul to Taichung, she exclaimed that she wanted to come back again. The South Korean market originally only had one route, but now it has three routes with 31 flights per week. The growth rate of the South Korean market has increased more than fourfold in the past two years. So the South Korean market not only has air routes, but also a sufficient number of tourists. Local governments are promoting tourism by joining forces, hoping to collectively enhance the international competitiveness of central Taiwan's tourism industry. More than 70 business operators from Taichung, Changhua, Nantou and Miaoli have teamed up to promote the region in Seoul, South Korea. Targeting travel industry professionals, the delegation aims to introduce Taichung and the major attractions across these four central Taiwan counties and cities. Representatives from the four counties and cities traveled to Seoul, where they not only placed large outdoor advertisements in Myeongdong, but also drew special coverage from Korean television media. Combined with in-person promotional activities, they successfully made a name for themselves and injected new vitality into tourism in central Taiwan. All seems normal with the trash truck playing its classical melody as people take turns throwing out their trash. But while almost everything is as usual, one unlucky victim is about to come face to face with a stinky situation. Over in Taoyuan's Guishan district, a man wearing a clean white shirt has just thrown his trash into the truck. But then, all of a sudden, his shirt is now a disgusting yellow. He's standing there shocked, with juices dripping from his face. The surveillance camera shows that the same yellow gunk is covering his hair. I'd just thrown in my trash because I'm thinking that he'd already thrown in his trash before me. It's probably from the people running the store next to me. They just threw in their kitchen waste as well, which ended up exploding all over me, covering me from head to toe. With his head down, the man, covered in rancid juices, walks back to his betel nut stand. Later on, he realized that the ordeal could have been due to someone not properly sorting their trash. The offender likely put kitchen waste in with the other trash, and when the truck's compressor squeezed the bag, the juices shot forward. He described the liquid as being yellow and oily, and that the odor smelled disgusting. Fortunately for him, a neighbor let him wash off. Without the kind gesture, he's not sure how he could have made it home smelling and looking like that. It must feel really gross. He's my boss, so it's scary to think of. Like, if it was me, I'd be really mad. Concerning the individual who failed to properly sort their trash, we will follow the regulations found in the Waste Disposal Act, which allow for a maximum fine of 6,000 NT. Taoyuan City's Office of Environmental Management reiterated that in addition to complying with trash sorting rules, in order to avoid a similar stinky situation from happening again, people should keep a suitable distance from garbage trucks. Brilliant multicolored neon flashes along to electronic music, forming an array of glowing shapes. The pounding rhythm and dazzling lights transform this space into a kaleidoscope world of mesmerizing interest. But how come this sign hanging above in flashing red and green says, Freshly Caught Tilapia, 50 per caddy? These traditional market furnishings contrast sharply with the nightclub atmosphere, but it isn't a newly opened nightclub. It's Taidong Central Market. We found out about it online. It's a wonderful surprise. Very different from how the central market is normally. It's cool. It's very different than usual, like a nightclub. From selling vegetables, fish and meat during the day, the central market usually quiets down late in the afternoon. But for this year's Taidong Expo, artists took the chance to reimagine the space into something resembling a nightclub. The trendy transformation has stopped many visitors in their tracks, who linger taking photo after photo. If there weren't an event like this, people wouldn't come. But doing this brings in more people and helps them get to know the area better. This year's Taidong Expo hopes to encourage visitors to slow down and explore the city. From a traditional market filled with the shouts of vendors selling their wares, to a bumping nightclub destination at night, this old venue is recapturing its glory days while launching headfirst into the 21st century. This surveillance camera shows that a barrage of rocks of all sizes are falling down the hillside, but the feed got cut off, presumably by the landslide that came rumbling down and into the path of a truck driver surnamed Luo. I suddenly heard the sounds of something rumbling, and then everything went dark. Then it was just boom, boom, boom. That's what it sounded like. On July 13th at night, the 46-year-old driver was on his way to deliver goods when falling boulders pinned his truck against the guardrail. His vehicle's exterior was twisted and crunched, but fortunately for the driver, he was able to walk away with just some skin abrasions. I told myself then that my wife and child are at home waiting for me to come back. So I used my foot to kick open the door, and then I knew that I had to start running forward. If I didn't start running, I was going to die. The driver, who must have been scared to death, was able to walk away with only some scrapes. He was asked if he wanted to go to the hospital, but he said he was okay. We went to the accident site this morning, and that's when we discovered all the rocks on the mountainside had fallen down. There was probably one or two thousand tons of rocks. The section of Miaoli Route 62 that has boulders blocking both lanes is in Dahu Township's Fuxing Village. This road is notorious for having incidences like this landslide after there are bouts of heavy rain. Miaoli Commissioner Zhong Dongjing suggested creating a shortcut road, but all that depends on the road's repair budget, which will require financial assistance from the central government. In terms of making a shortcut road here, the cost of that will probably be quite substantial, so it'll be difficult to do if only the county government has to pay for it. So for this aspect, I hope that the central government can work with our two legislators to come to an agreement as soon as possible. Dahu Township isn't the only place in Miaoli dealing with a blocked road. Students and workers in Nanzhuang Township's Donghe Village have July 14th off due to a section of Miaoli Route 21. The sinkhole is directly in front of Shibi Bridge. The Asian Games will be taking place in Nagoya this year, starting on September 19th. Taiwan has already put together a national team, which features some of the country's top sports stars. The roster includes tennis aces Xie Shuwei and Zhan Haoqing, as well as badminton stars Zhou Tiancheng and Wang Qilin. Also going to Japan will be Olympic gold medalist boxer Lin Yuting and heartthrob judoka Yang Yongwei. At a presser on Tuesday, Minister of Sports Li Yang offered words of encouragement to all the competitors and had a special message for his former badminton doubles partner. Let's hear what he said. Seeing most of the athletes competing in this year's Asian Games, I of course have to especially mention Wang Qilin. It seems that for him, every Asian Games run marks a farewell with his latest doubles partner. I hope that we can provide the best logistical support to every athlete, coach and delegation member. That's the most important thing for a competitive athlete. No matter what the results may be, it is our ministry's duty to stand behind each of them and to offer them our support. Team Taiwan managed to bag 19 gold medals at the previous Asian Games, tying its best ever showing. But Li did not set a target for this upcoming edition, saying that he did not want to put any additional and unnecessary pressure on the athletes. Instead, he said he just wants to be their strongest source of support. All in all, 482 athletes will be heading to Nagoya to compete in 34 sports. A sewer rat falling from the ceiling quickly ruined the mood at a popular Korean barbecue restaurant in Taipei Main Station. Diners at the All-You-Can-Eat establishment lost their appetite at the sight of the rodent, which was about the size of one's palm. Some took pictures of the rat and posted them online, where they spread like wire flare. Let's hear more. I can't believe it. I've never seen anything like that indoors. They should do pest control and put up an announcement about it. I would file a complaint. Rats are scary. I wouldn't want to see a rat while I'm having a meal. It's quite worrying. It's Taipei Main Station, the entrance to Taipei. You have rats scurrying around? That's a problem for hygiene and food safety. Both the central and Taipei City government should be held responsible. Our mayor, Jiang Wan'an, is completely hopeless at anything related to municipal affairs. Even the Environmental Protection Bureau claims this incident is not under their jurisdiction. There's rats running amok in Taipei, the city you administer. Do something. A DPP counselor says the disgusting incident is to be blamed on the Taipei City government, which she says has evaded its responsibilities. The barbecue restaurant says it has compensated all diners affected with discount coupons, adding that it will work on improving cleanliness. The department store Breeze Center says it immediately launched a complete disinfection of the premises at Taipei Main and enhanced measures to prevent further incidents. Black Hawk helicopter zips across the sky on a tactical fuel bladder sling load mission. It descends carefully until the fuel bladder is deposited on the ground as the rotor sends a cloud of dust in all directions, just like in a real battlefield. Today was day two of the military's joint defense drills, which saw Black Hawk helicopter from the Army's 601st Aviation Brigade simulate a fuel delivery in the field where other transport routes were cut off. The helicopter departs and troops move in to transport the 500-gallon fuel bladder, a key component in resupply operations that can provide timely logistical support to frontline combat units. The Black Hawk provides forward support to deployed units, enhancing battlefield effectiveness and helping frontline forces maintain their firepower and their operational readiness. Moments later, the Army's 21st Artillery Command deploys two Thunderbolt 2000 rocket-launched vehicles into firing positions. They're armed with MK-30 and MK-45 medium to long-range rockets, ideal for anti-landing missions. The five-day joint defense exercise kicked off on Monday, featuring simulations of enemy forces setting sail and intruding into Taiwan's territorial waters. A key focus of the exercise is coordinating decentralized units to break the opponent's kill chain, testing the capabilities of spread-out command and control systems. The exercise is designed to showcase the military's high mobility. The exercise places each operational zone at the center of decision-making to simulate decentralized command. Even if communication is disrupted, each zone can engage with the enemy independently while coordinating air defense, sea control, and anti-landing operations. Also part of the drills was a nighttime runway repair exercise, simulating damage by enemy fire. Engineering units from the Air Force deployed forklifts and lights to make rapid repairs and restore operations as soon as possible. Through these realistic exercises, Taiwan's military aims to strengthen its defenses while reinforcing deterrence against aggression. Workers have come out winning big in Formosa Plastics Group's annual wage negotiations. Every July, labor and management meet to determine how to adjust salaries for the year. Labor had requested a 3.66 percent raise, but the group's new president, Wu Jiazhao, was even more generous, approving a salary increase of 4.5 percent, which applies retroactively to July 1st. And all in just 30 minutes of negotiations. In addition to the pay hike, employees will receive better benefits. They'll get 600 NT in meal allowance every month, while shift workers will get an allowance of 2,380 NT. There's also a regional allowance of 2,500 NT, and Taipei residents will get a 5,000 NT housing subsidy. The changes are part of Wu's strategy to revive revenue by restructuring the group and setting up AI-driven initiatives. The substantial pay increase is not just a reward for employees, but serves as a morale boost across the company. Drum beats swell as performers depicting the eight generals step out, wielding weapons and fans. They walk along Kaohsiung's Love River, stopping at four temples along the way. Their skill makes it hard to believe they're university students. Most people misunderstand this culture, and it tends to be quite stigmatized. But if you try it for yourself, you'll find it's totally different from what you imagined. I've been interested in it since I was a kid, so I figured, why not take the class and try it out? I think the hardest part is doing the formations and the steps. The eight generals are a common part of any temple festival in Taiwan, but they've gotten a bad reputation over the past few years. To reverse this stigma, the Department of Chinese Literature at National Sun Yat-sen University organized a class with the Gusan Jishengtang Eight Generals Troop. Seventeen participants learned everything, from formations and steps to face painting, and at the end, held their own performance. The Chinese Literature Department happened to have a partnership with our temple. This was how I got the chance to take the class. I was determined to join, even though my parents didn't approve. The formations, the face paint, the entire cultural context are all super interesting. Becoming a troop member has been a very new experience for me. Once you actually join, you'll understand the meaning behind a certain movement. In our Jiayi lineage, one main attribute is that we usually paint the face with solid blocks of color. Over in Jiayi, they'll emphasize finer details and lines. Charmed by the unique eight generals tradition, many students decided to formally join as troop members. The class even attracted some foreign exchange students. There was even a Christian student who overcame religious limitations to experience it firsthand. This time was very special. We had a Christian student who joined to understand some of the body movements. There were some things like the finer details that the students couldn't do perfectly, but I don't think it matters that much. This time we had students from Malaysia and Hong Kong. Over six weeks, they learned about Taiwan's eight generals culture, the history of Ji Sheng Tang, the face paint and formations, as well as some rituals and taboos. Then for the main event, we went out and experienced holding our own performance. Although it was only a part of a class, every step was executed perfectly. The university hopes that the course will help people better understand this rich part of Taiwanese religious culture and ensure it's passed down to future generations. Driver stopped at his red light watch as a motorist's baseball cap flies off, landing in the left turn zone. He stopped at the side of the road and started walking over to get it. But after just a few steps into the crosswalk, his pants start falling down, flashing his underwear in front of the waiting drivers. He quickly pulls them back up and keeps walking to get his hat. This embarrassing incident happened on the busy Fengping First Road in Kaohsiung's Daliao District, ensuring there were plenty of witnesses. And what's more, police said that the man would be fined as he wasn't wearing a helmet. Our precinct still has not received any reports or public complaints. Based on the video footage, the driver failed to wear a helmet, which is punishable by a fine of 500 NT. We will ask the driver to come in and clarify the situation. The driver set out in only a baseball cap, only to have it fly off and result in this embarrassing debacle that will end with him having to pay a fine.