Spectral Codex

Spectral Codex

Welcome to Spectral Codex, a travel journal, photography portfolio, geospatial database, digital garden, and personal blog curated by Alexander Synaptic. This site is completely ad-free and features no sponsored content, though you’re welcome to support my work via Patreon if you like what you find here. Read a little more about my background and motivations, or start browsing the collection!

Currently this project features 6,189 locations (1,077 with images), 100 posts, 512 regions, 95 themes, 7,382 images, 19,057 outbound links, and 903,318 words, mostly covering topics related to Taiwan. Gathered below are some of the better and more recent links from around the site to get you started…

Recent Updates

Mailiao Jincheng Theater
( 麥寮金城大戲院 )

Lincuo Anti-Airborne Fortifications North Section
( 林厝反空降陣地北段 )

Lincuo Anti-Airborne Fortifications South Section
( 林厝反空降陣地南段 )

Tianmu US Military Housing
( 天母美軍宿舍群 )

Dahu Little Tianmu Villas
( 大湖小天母別墅 )

Linkou Shengtai Brick Kiln
( 林口勝泰磚窯 )

Yingge Nanmen Market Building
( 鶯歌南門商場大樓 )

Changle Theater
( 大樹昌樂大戲院 )

Xinglin General Hospital
( 杏林綜合醫院 )

Tainan Guanghua Theater
( 台南光華戲院 )

Tainan Minzu Theater
( 台南民族戲院 )

Hunei Wenxian Theater
( 湖內文賢戲院 )

Zuoying Qingshui Theater
( 左營清水大戲院 )

Waipu Airfield
( 福興外埔飛行場 )

Phahonyothin Rama
( พหลโยธินรามา )

Dajia Stone House
( 大甲石頭屋 )

Themes

Many different themes are explored on this site, generally as a way of making sense of history and socioeconomic change. Each theme features posts, field notes about specific locations, and a map to help navigate the geospatial dimension of a subject. I recommend having at least a glance at my most ambitious project, an extensive overview of nearly 1,200 movie theaters across Taiwan.

Theaters in Taiwan
( 台灣老戲院 )

Locations: 1,166
Posts: 5

Alishan Forest Railway
( 阿里山森林鐵路 )

Locations: 32

Luodong Forest Railway
( 羅東森林鐵道 )

Locations: 22

Postcards From Taiwan
( 台灣明信片 )

Posts: 15

Urban Exploration

Locations: 55
Posts: 1

1935 Hsinchu-Taichung Earthquake
( 新竹台中地震 )

Locations: 33
Posts: 1

921 Earthquake
( 九二一大地震 )

Locations: 104
Posts: 6

Chinese Renaissance Architecture
( 中國古典式樣新建築 )

Locations: 33
Posts: 1

Series

Complete series of photo essays and field notes from some of the many road trips and bicycle journeys I’ve undertaken over the years, mostly around Taiwan. If you prefer more of a narrative structure to explore the many places documented on this site you might like to start here.

Huadong Valley Ride 2018

Locations: 6
Posts: 6

Nantou Road Trip 2015

Locations: 4
Posts: 5

Southern Taiwan Ride 2015

Locations: 10
Posts: 7

Taiwan Summer Road Trip 2017

Locations: 32
Posts: 5