Changhua County Government has selected 20 rental stations in front of Changhua City Train Station, and a further 10 stations to the rear, including areas surrounding Changhua County Government, Changhua County Cultural Affairs Bureau, Zhongshan Elementary School, Yanping Park and Changhua County Police Department etc, totaling 30 stations. The system is slated for completion in July, and will provide more than 750 public bicycles. According to County Magistrate Cho, in an effort to promote green transport policy and shape a low-carbon city, the County Government has collaborated with bicycle manufacturer Giant to launch the “Public Bike Rental System” as one of the transport equipment-types of the public transportation system. This is the first “Public Bike Rental System” to be unveiled in central Taiwan after Taipei City, New Taipei City and Kaohsiung City. In addition, Changhua County is also the first city to introduce “YouBike” in addition to Taipei City. In the future, aside from providing the citizens with a pollution-free short-range transport system in order to reduce car/motorcycle usage, the public bikes will also mitigate problems such as pollution, road use and energy consumption. If bike commuters can be cultivated over the long term, more street and road space can be freed up to transform the overall urban demeanor of Changhua, therefore the public bike rental system serves as a paradigm for the county’s sustainable, ecological and green township policy in the future. In the future, after the system is completed, the high quality service of YouBike will be maintained to provide a high volume rental system where the public can apply for membership within three minutes and complete bike rental/return within one second. More importantly, the system will offer durable, easy-to-ride public bicycles that can withstand the elements. Furthermore, in combination with local specialty delicacies in Changhua such as meatballs and rice with braised pork, local residents and tourists alike can enjoy the fun and convenience of “short distance commuting by bicycle, instead of driving, to reduce carbon emission”.

Changhua County Government held the opening ceremony of Lukang Dragon Boat Festival – Dragon King Ceremony in the form of “poe divination” on March 2 at the Lukang Lungshan Temple. The wooden poes were thrown by Changhua County Government Deputy County Magistrate Lin Tian-Fu on behalf of County Magistrate Cho Po-Yuan; moreover, divinations were requested from Avalokiteśvara and the Holy God of the Dragon King, to decide on April 26 (Saturday) as the event day for “2014 Lukang Dragon Boat Festival – Dragon King Ceremony”. According to Deputy County Magistrate Lin, the proverb “The heavens will not rain until the dragon lifts its head” symbolizes “Dragon raising its head will bring about bumper crop”. Therefore, in order to pray to the heavens for favorable weather and success of the dragon boat festival, February 2 on the Chinese lunar calendar (Dragon Lifts its Head) was chosen to seek divination from Avalokiteśvara and the Holy God of Dragon King by throwing poes to determine the auspicious date for holding the dragon boat festival launching ceremony. It is also hoped that the “Propitious day of the dragon lifting its head” will bring about safety and peace for every household in Changhua County. On behalf of Magistrate Cho, Deputy Magistrate Lin extended his invitation to everyone in the country to come to Changhua to “watch dragon boat festival and visit Lukang”. The “Dragon King Ceremony” is the opening ceremony of the annual “Lukang Dragon Boat Festival”. Before the dragon boats are launched into the water during Dragon Boat Festival in May on the Chinese lunar calendar, a deity parade will be organized for the “Holy God of the Dragon King”, and the Shuexian Deity will also be invited to the venue of the dragon boat festival. This is a folk festival unique to Taiwan. In order to determine the date for this year’s Dragon King Ceremony, divinations were requested from Avalokiteśvara and the Holy God of Dragon King to decide on April 26 (Saturday) as the event day for “2014 Lukang Dragon Boat Festival – Dragon King Ceremony”. During the day of the event, the “Dagon Boat Eye Dotting, Launching and Blessing Prayer Ceremony” will be conducted together with a traditional artistic performance parade and industry museum tours to raise the curtain for the Lukang Dragon Boat Festival. Everyone is welcome to visit Changhua to appreciate the beauty of the county.

The highly popular films “You are the Apple of My Eye”, “Seven Days in Heaven” and TV drama “Once Upon a Love” were all shot in Changhua! With plots inspired by growing up of the director or screenwriter, many scenes were filmed in Changhua County, in turn attracting many fans to visit the area. Thanks to the films and dramas’ promotion, we are even more fascinated by the simple yet interesting sentiment in the Changhua region. Everyone is welcome to visit Changhua!

The e-book offers information on Changhua’s delicacies. Users can use their iPad to search for gourmet food in Changhua and use the information as reference for planning their journey. Everyone is welcome to come to Changhua to view the flowers, birds and taste delicious food. Source: Changhua County Government

Construction for the THSR Changhua Station has commenced! The station is inspired by the image of flower capital and is expected to be completed in 2015. The ground-breaking ceremony for the THSR Changhua Station was held in the morning of February 6, 2013; inspired by the image of the flower capital, the station is expected to be completed in 2015. The overall design of the station emphasizes Changhua’s local spirit, where floral and sunlight imageries are used as the main theme to resonate with Changhua’s characteristics as a flower production region, as well as Tianzhong Town’s symbols of “Surrounded by Paddy Fields”. The design employs petal-shaped pillars and flower-inspired skylights to introduce natural light to illuminate the lobby. This is complemented by the greenhouses dotted around the station to create verdant scenery, thereby establishing an elegant spatial atmosphere for passengers. According to the THSRC, after the opening of the Changhua Station, it is expected to become the transportation hub for traffic entering and leaving Changhua, extending the reach of the “One Day Living Circle”. Not only will the station provide a more convenient and comfortable intercity transportation and tourism service, it is also expected to stimulate regional economic development and intercity/township exchange.

In order to assist local economic development, Ting Hsin International Group started planning the event six months ago in collaboration with Miaoli’s Yuanli Farmers’ Association. The paddy field art technique was handed over to the Changhua Xiushui Farmers’ Association under assistance from the Changhua County Government. 1.5 hectares of farmland near the National Highway No.1 northbound Changhua section (205K) was selected for the farmers’ association and farmers to jointly conduct the first ever large-scale paddy field art in Changhua. According to County Magistrate Cho, as the world’s largest instant noodle manufacturer, Ting Hsin International Group is the glory of Changhua and the pride of Taiwan. Furthermore, it has made contributions to the hometown by investing over US$200 million in Changhua County to construct the Master Kong Cultural Park. This time, it has launched the “Paddy Field Art – Kongmong Quality Rice” project to create the most beautiful land art in Changhua and cultivate the highest quality rice, so as to help market Changhua’s agriculture to global consumers. Due to the aging population and outward migration, many of Taiwan’s farm fields have become fallow; of the neatly 200,000 hectares of fallow land in Taiwan, more than 5,000 hectares fall within Changhua’s territory, which is truly a pity. By contributing back to their homeland and retaining their roots, the Ting Hsin International Group plans to cooperate with the County Government to revitalize the fallow land and allow the younger generation to become involved in farm village development, so that talents and land are put to good use in making Taiwan’s agriculture more competitive. In an effort to grow the best rice, the Ting Hsin International Group especially invited the farmers who have won the Council of Agriculture’s top ten rice award four years in a row to assist in the transplant of rice seedlings, cultivation and harvesting. The best cultivation technique is applied to grow the best quality rice. After harvesting, the rice will be the perfect souvenir for the Cheng Mei Hall in Changhua. Source: Changhua County Government

“New Horizons for English Services in Taiwan” Needs Your Fun and Inspiring Video Clips! The New Horizons for English Services in Taiwan program, sponsored by the Research, Development and Evaluation Commission (RDEC), Executive Yuan, announces an open call for your creativity! All entrants should be in the form of videos and highlight the experience of creating English services environment in Taiwan by video format. Submissions are being accepted between Jul. 1st and Aug. 31st, 2012. Take this opportunity to show your creativity, and have some fun while you present how you have been touched by one of Taiwan’s efforts to create a friendly and effective English environment. We welcome Taiwanese and international visitors / residents to enter this competition with their videos took nationwide (including Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu). Give us the best entry and we will give you the top prize that worths NT$50,000! Contact: Ms. Chen Tel: +886-2-2698-2989 ext.2596 E-mail: 2596@cpc.tw Address: 2F., No.79, Sec. 1, Xintai 5th Rd. Xizhi Dist., New Taipei City 221, Taiwan (R.O.C.)

　　Changhua County is a hub of bicycle production. The Changhua County Government is actively involved in planning an expansive bikeway network and promoting energy conservation/carbon reduction. In particular, the recently completed Sihu and Erlin bikeways have not only introduced more vibrant colors to the existing bikeway network in Changhua County, but also offer the public more diverse choice. The bikeways provide country scenery, edutainment, healthy roaming and family fun; everyone is welcome to enjoy the experience.

The coveted “Taiwan’s Top Ten Tourist Towns” were announced in the evening of March 14, 2012, and Lukang Town of Changhua County was successfully selected as one of “Taiwan’s Top Ten Tourist Towns” due to its profound cultural foundation and friendly environment. According to Magistrate Cho Po-Yuan, besides appreciating the jurors for their favorable opinions, he also wanted to express gratitude towards the townsfolk of Changhua County. In the future, government resources will be better utilized to strengthen the local characteristics of Lukang and enhance Lukang’s sustainable development!

The coveted “Top Ten Small Tourist Towns in Taiwan” selection result was unveiled in the evening of March 14, 2012. Thanks to its profound culture and friendly environment, Lukang in Changhua County was successfully selected as a Top Ten Small Tourist Town in Taiwan. According to Changhua County Magistrate Cho Po-yuan, in addition to thanking the jurors for their favors, he also wants to express appreciation for the town folks of Changhua County for their support and votes. In the future, governmental resources will be utilized to further enhance the presentation of Changhua’s local characteristics to ensure sustainable development of Lukang!