Well hello there! It's been a while since I last posted a new article. I have been quite busy at work for a couple of weeks, but after that, it has been vacation mode for two weeks as well, so boy, I was recharged, and of course, I have things to share!
I went to visit Taiwan with my sister and we were there for 6 days. We had a great time, and I will be sharing with you the places we went to, so stay tuned!
We arrived in Taipei at 2 AM via Cebu Pacific, and by the time we passed immigration and got our luggage, it was already past 3 AM, so we stayed at the airport until around 5:30 AM, then we took the airport bus 1960 to City Hall Station and it costs NTD145 per person. From there we took a taxi to our hotel, and we stayed at the Holiday Inn East Taipei, (there will be a separate article for the hotel feature), left our bags as it was not yet check in time, and went gallivanting right away.
The free hotel shuttle dropped us off at Taipei 101, and of course the very first thing we did was take pictures. It was a bit drizzly when we arrived, and it was windy as well, so the spire of the building was not visible at all. But that did not stop us from clicking away at the tallest building in Taiwan.
It was clear on our last day, so we took another picture of it just to show the entire building. The building was the world's tallest in 2004, but was surpassed by the Burj Khalifa in 2010. It has 101 storeys, hence the name.
A block away are some rental bikes, just like in New York and Seoul, and you just pay with your credit card and park it in another part of the city where there are bikes like these.
This structure is in front of Taipei 101, and a lot of people take pictures here. And of course we were no exception.
I even had a 'dialogue' with this thing in front of me, ha ha ha! There is a shopping mall inside the building, a branch of Din Tai Fung is also there, but the line was just super long so we just had xia long bao elsewehere.
From the Taipei 101, we boarded the MRT, which is the country's train system to the Chiang Kai Shek Memorial.
The whole complex is named Liberty Square, but is more popularly known as the Chiang Kai Shek Memorial, and it is the most prominent historical landmark in Taiwan.
The roof of the building is octagonal, representing the Chinese symbolism of the number eight, which is traditionally associated with fortune and wealth.
The two sets of 89 steps each represents the age of the late Gen. Chiang Kai Shek when he died. Let me take you up the steps.
Once you get to the top at 76 meters, you are greeted with the statue of the late leader, and it is guarded by military personnel that are changed by the hour.
The characters behind the statue mean "Ethics", "Democracy", and "Science", and the inscriptions on the side mean "The purpose of life is to improve the general life of humanity" and "The meaning of life is to create and sustain subsequent lives in the universe." That's according to wikipedia. :-)
In the hall behind and below the statue is a museum about the life and achievements of the general on display.
These are some writings that he did, there are also medals and photos he took with leaders from around the world.
The museum is well-maintained, and there are also locals who visit the museum.
The ceiling of the museum.
This was one of two cars he used officially, a chic Cadillac.
This was the other one, but I cannot remember the brand of this. There were also photos of him and his wife.
Just some of his medals and awards given to him by different countries, as he was the first president of the Republic of China, which is Taiwan.
A replica of his office, with a life sized figure sitting on his chair.
There are also exhibits about the culture and development of Taiwan in the hall, and we spent a couple of hours in the area, just browsing and reading about the displays, and taking pictures of course.
Aside from the museum, the large complex includes the Chiang Kai Shek Memorial Park, the National Concert Hall, and the National Theater.
The garden below the museum is also a nice area to take pictures from.
The structure of the building reminded me of the palaces in Seoul that I visited.
The garden is also very well-maintained, and looks very clean.
I think this is the National Concert Hall on one side.
This is the Square, the gate in the middle, flanked by the National Theater and the National Concert Hall, which to me look almost identical.
There were quite a lot of people around, but we just waited a little bit until other people finished taking their pictures before we took ours. :-)
This is how the garden looks like as you go up the stairs of the CKS Memorial Hall.
The National Concert Hall.
Posing in front of the gate.
I am so bad at taking selfies! I tried taking in the view as well, but to no avail!
From another angle. By the time we got hungry, we left the place, walked around, got lunch, and went back to the hotel to check in and rest since we did not sleep the night before.
Thus culminates our first day of adventures in Taiwan. To go to CKS Memorial, take the red MRT line, and stop at Chiang Kai Shek Station. Follow the exit signs for the memorial and as you get out, it will be right there.
Stay tuned for the rest of the adventure! For more travel articles, you can go to this page.
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