David on Formosa

Taffy* of Pháiⁿ-sè reports that Taiwanease magazine’s first issue is now available around Taiwan.

Pay careful attention to the spelling of Taiwanease. There is an extra “a” in there; it’s not Taiwanese. The “ease” part of the title is written in italics.

I picked up copy in Taipei this morning. The magazine’s editorial says it aims to cover “a range of topics that showcase the diversity of the island”.

The design of the magazine is very clean and easy to read. A white background with plenty of space is used. Before reading any of the articles I was impressed by some of the artwork. There is a beautiful illustration of a man in a white shirt and helmet pushing a bicycle down a Taipei street. Anyone who has been in Taiwan for a while will know that the only people who look like this are Mormon missionaries. The illustration accompanies an article written by a Mormon missionary about his early experiences of Taiwan. it was certainly something I had wanted to read about. In my few encounters with them in Taiwan they have only ever asked me to go to church, but I have always been curious to learn about what they do without the proselytising.

Daniel Wallace, Taiwan’s most brilliant former blogger, writes about the rough, tough world on Taipei’s buses. Linda Gail Arrigo recalls a very different Taipei in the 1960s. Christina McFarquhar reports on Taiwan’s endangered humpback dolphins.

The magazine also includes a large classifieds section from Taiwanted, a website associated with Forumosa.com. Overall the first issue of the magazine was interesting and worth reading. I look forward to the next one, which should be out in two weeks.

* Taffy is the magazine’s editor.