The follow article appeared in Guanxi Magazine:
For years I’d been intrigued by the peculiar house on Chang’an Rd in Taichung’s Taiping District. As with most of my best discoveries in Taiwan, I’d stumbled upon it – in this case almost literally, when a scuffed pass had sent a football trickling down a sloping, paved path leading out of the south side of Liyuan Park, a jagged patch of green just south of the confluence of the Dali and Buzi rivers.
My presence here was itself purely down to chance: I was in Dakeng visiting a friend who had become temporarily occupied with business matters, so I scooted off with my then 10-year-old son to explore the environs.
The misplaced ball came to a stop at a knee-high brick wall at the end of the slope, which was designed to prevent vehicle entry to the park, and I lumbered off to retrieve it. Bending down to pick it up, I noticed a strange pattern on the façade of a building at the end of the adjoining lane. Much to the lad’s annoyance, I decided to embark on a customary poke around.
