Janet Hsieh (Traditional Chinese:謝怡芬, b. January 20, 1980) is a Taiwanese-American television personality and model based in Taipei, Taiwan. She is the host of the Discovery Travel and Living Channel's popular series Fun Taiwan.[1] The program is currently in its 10th season and has expanded to include Fun Asia.
Hsieh was born and raised in Houston, Texas. Her father hails from Kao Hsiung and her mother is from Taipei. She learned to play the violin at age five and was part of the Texas Young Virtuosos who played at the White House for President George Bush and in Europe.[2][3]
Hsieh graduated with a double major in Biology and Spanish from Massachusetts Institute of Technology.[4][5] She also studied at the Universidad de Buenos Aires in Argentina, as well as at UCLA and UCSB in California. After graduating from college, Hsieh went to Taiwan for a medical residential internship.[6] She also pursued modeling on the side.[6] Her combination of beauty and personality eventually caught the attention of the Taiwanese media. This led her to audition for a new Discovery Living and Travel Channel television series exploring the Formosa island of Taiwan.[1][6] She has been nominated twice for the Taiwanese Golden Bell Awards as Best Host.[4]
Hsieh holds a black belt in Taekwondo[5] and is a trained sushi chef[3] and circus performer.[3][6] She is fluent in Mandarin, Spanish, French, and Taiwanese.[1][3]
Hsieh published her first book in 2010 titled Traveling with 100 Toothbrushes. [7]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Janet_Hsieh
