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I saw pictures of this place last year and could not find enough information about it to share, so I am delighted to find this article. A neighborhood found in Taichung City in Taiwan, a military dependents village founded over 50 years ago, is one of the most colorful places in the world, thanks to 86-year-old artist Huang Yung-fu.
Huang Yung-fu first picked up a paintbrush about two years ago. He started to paint for his own pleasure using the remains of the equipment from the art classes he attended when he was a child. Students of a university not far from the “painted military dependents’ village” seem to be among the first who discovered this old man’s talent and started to spread the news. Some even took pictures of the paintings and published them online. Information about his paintings went viral, to the point where tourists have flown in from Malaysia, Japan, and Korea to see them. The dull and drab military dependents’ village is now recognized as one of the must-see spots in central Taichung City.
See more pictures at Amusing Planet. Link -via the Presurfer
(Image credit: Flickr user Steve Barringer)
Long, long ago, in a galaxy far, far away, on the planet Endor, under the forest canopy, lies a village made of chocolate, breakfast cereal, and gingerbread! And don’t look now, but there’s a Death Star lurking above. The Canadian baker who blogs under the name The Infinite Yums built this Ewok Village for a charity auction. The post about it has the building process and plenty of pictures of the details. Link -via Boing Boing
Roads? We don’t need no stinking roads!
Actually – the village of Giethoorn in the Netherlands looks very lovely without any road whatsoever:
Can you imagine a village with no roads? There is such an unique place in the Netherlands called Giethoorn (pronounced ‘geethorn’). There are no roads, and cars have to remain outside the village.
The only access to the stunningly lovely houses in Giethoorn is by water, or on foot over tiny individual wooden bridges.
The Presurfer has the video clip on how one gets around the village: Link
London artists now have a solution to the dilemma of renting expensive studio space to work in. Furniture designer Auro Foxcraft purchased four old Underground subway cars for 200 pounds each and mounted them to a rooftop, creating some unique, affordable office space.
Located atop a warehouse in Shoreditch, London, Village Underground as it’s called, only costs artists 15 pounds a week. And while the roof is a work area for artists the warehouse below is used to exhibit their work.
From the Upcoming 
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It is a small island stuck in-between Malaysia and Indonesia. Within many of our lifetimes it was the location of some of the worst ethnic violence seen anywhere in the post-war era. Conversely, within ALL of our lifetimes it has been a shining example of strength through ethnic diversity and a model of progressiveness and modernism.
I’ve been to Singapore twice – both visits almost 20 years ago (am I really getting that old?!)
When I was there I saw the slow, relentless urban renewal effort in action. Old-fashioned Chinese “shop house” neighborhoods were being systematically torn down and replaced with more modern facilities for living and for commerce. There was some sadness around this march of progress – but perhaps more palpable, a sense of excitement for the future.
Fast-forwarding 20 years from my last extended stay in Singapore and the International Herald Tribune is reporting today that only one old-fashioned rural village remains in Singapore and it, too, is slated for “renewal” itself before long.
The IHT has a nice [short] video about Singapore’s last village and the relentless march of time. Are there any “old Asian hands” among our readers who can remember the old Singapore?
[International Herald Tribune]
