With more people staying indoors as COVID-19 cases increase, countries are promoting opportunities to travel using their computer.
Taiwanese are being asked to work and study remotely as much as possible, but as many other countries have learned over the past year, it can be hard to fight boredom while fighting the pandemic.
Some places have responded by putting together “itineraries” for armchair travelers to enjoy far-off destinations from home.
For art lovers, the Hong Kong Tourism Board is promoting events that can be enjoyed from afar through its “Arts in HK” Web site.
Its “online showcases” include this year’s edition of the Art Basel Hong Kong fair, as well as the Art Central Capsule, which ends on Friday next week, and the Yim Tin Tsai Arts Festival.
Art Basel’s Hong Kong show, while canceled last year due to the pandemic, is back twice as strong this year with online and offline components.
On its new digital platform, Art Basel Live: Hong Kong, visitors can peruse virtual galleries and attend online events each day, including virtual tours and fair highlights.
The show ends tomorrow.
The Yim Tin Tsai Arts Festival is showcasing the last of its three-year arts revival project until July 16.
Held in a small village on Yim Tin Tsai Island in Sai Kung known for its unique combination of Catholic and Hakka cultures, the Hong Kong Tourism Commission initiated a three-year project to transform the island into an “open museum” through collaboration between residents and artists.
Now in its last edition, the festival offers a 360° degree virtual reality feature with an audio guide to give overseas participants a chance to visit and hear stories about the island.
Chubu Centrair International Airport near Nagoya, Japan, is also planning a unique virtual event for Taiwanese on June 12.
YouTuber Alan (阿倫) is to lead participants on a tour of locations in central Japan, including Shirakawa Go and Takayama in Gifu Prefecture, and Nabana no Sato in Mie Prefecture, the airport said.
For an additional fee, registrants would also receive a gift box, including DIY activities to be completed on the tour, it said.
A decision to describe a Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs statement on Singapore’s Taiwan policy as “erroneous” was made because the city-state has its own “one China policy” and has not followed Beijing’s “one China principle,” Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Tien Chung-kwang (田中光) said yesterday. It has been a longstanding practice for the People’s Republic of China (PRC) to speak on other countries’ behalf concerning Taiwan, Tien said. The latest example was a statement issued by the PRC after a meeting between Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong (黃循財) and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) on the sidelines of the APEC summit
Taiwan’s passport ranked 34th in the world, with access to 141 visa-free destinations, according to the latest update to the Henley Passport Index released today. The index put together by Henley & Partners ranks 199 passports globally based on the number of destinations holders can access without a visa out of 227, and is updated monthly. The 141 visa-free destinations for Taiwanese passport holders are a slight decrease from last year, when holders had access to 145 destinations. Botswana and Columbia are among the countries that have recently ended visa-free status for Taiwanese after “bowing to pressure from the Chinese government,” the Ministry
‘SIGN OF DANGER’: Beijing has never directly named Taiwanese leaders before, so China is saying that its actions are aimed at the DPP, a foundation official said National Security Bureau (NSB) Director-General Tsai Ming-yen (蔡明彥) yesterday accused Beijing of spreading propaganda, saying that Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) had singled out President William Lai (賴清德) in his meeting with US President Joe Biden when talking about those whose “true nature” seek Taiwanese independence. The Biden-Xi meeting took place on the sidelines of the APEC summit in Peru on Saturday. “If the US cares about maintaining peace across the Taiwan Strait, it is crucial that it sees clearly the true nature of Lai and the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) in seeking Taiwanese independence, handles the Taiwan question with extra
HEALTHCARE: Following a 2022 Constitutional Court ruling, Taiwanese traveling overseas for six months would no longer be able to suspend their insurance Measures allowing people to suspend National Health Insurance (NHI) services if they plan to leave the country for six months would be abolished starting Dec. 23, NHIA Director-General Shih Chung-liang (石崇良) said yesterday. The decision followed the Constitutional Court’s ruling in 2022 that the regulation was unconstitutional and that it would invalidate the regulation automatically unless the NHIA amended it to conform with the Constitution. The agency would amend the regulations to remove the articles and sections that allow the suspension of NHI services, and also introduce provisional clauses for those who suspended their NHI services before Dec. 23, Shih said. According to
RSS