“My ideas usually come not at my desk writing but in the midst of living”
~Anais Nin
It’s Monday afternoon at 2 pm my time, and since I didn’t post last night, it looks like today will be a double header. I’ve got four days left in Taiwan before heading back to London, and they’re sure to be full on: I’ll spend Tuesday morning/afternoon with the National Youth Commission giving a presentation on my experience to Taiwanese students and rehearsing beforehand. Then, I’ll head to On Tap for a gathering generously organized by James Hill of Cubie to discuss Taiwan’s media/enterprise scene.
This is a time when contributing to The Next Web has come in handy; James told me TNW name would be enough to get peoples’ feet in the door, and he was right! I’m already writing a piece for publication on TNW soon about how Portnoy Zheng, who I met last week, and his colleagues at the Association of Digital Culture Taiwan are bridging Taiwan’s “Digital Divide,” and hopefully more material will come out of meeting James as well.
Then, Wednesday will involve visiting Taiwan Public Television Service’s International Affairs Department, as well as Hakka TV, Indigenous TV, and PeoPo‘s Citizen Journalism Platform. I might also meet with university students that morning. So between the next two days, my plans to trek Taroko Gorge on Thursday are looking more and more ambitious. It would involve around six hours of round trip travel to and from Taipei, so unless I can miraculously stay another day here, it’s looking like local sightseeing is in the cards that day.
All of this was confirmed yesterday, after being out for half a day exploring the National Palace Museum and Taipei 101. I then needed to make the PowerPoint presentation for tomorrow and send photos their way, so last night’s blog post went by the wayside. The good news is that the gorgeous weather in Taipei made for a fantastic park visit, as well as a lovely experience at the NPM and Taipei 101 My tour guide at the NPM, Stephanie, is a volunteer at the Museum on Sundays but works in banking full time. After overhearing me tell a fellow American tourist that I’m from Boston, she told me after the tour that she went to Smith College in the Berkshires! The world shrinks a bit more every day.
I’ve included some pictures below for your viewing pleasure. Rain is in the forecast this entire week, so this may be the last you-and I-see of sun. Enjoy!
National Palace Museum gives guided tours in English for free at 10 am and 3 pm daily. I was early for my 3 pm tour, so I took a walk and found this garden nearby. Easily the prettiest garden I’ve been to!
I also found a photographer taking pictures and asked her to take mine. She took several great ones, but I think this is my favorite.
After lunch (Spicy McChicken again!) and a walk through the garden, I spent the afternoon in Taipei’s National Palace Museum, one of the biggest collections of artifacts from the various dynasties that rules the Forbidden City of Beijing
No photos are allowed inside, but the view from the top of the Museum is fantastic. My highlights were the snuff bottle and jade exhibits. Plus, this view.
After staying until the NPM closed, I headed near City Hall to visit Taipei 101. From its completion in 2004 to 2010, Taipei 101 was the tallest building in the world (that honor now goes to the Burj Khalifa Dubai).
Taipei 101’s elevator is equally famous-it holds the Guinness World Record for being the fastest passenger elevator in the world. You shoot from floors 5 to 89 in 37 seconds-and never realize you’re moving!
The view of Taipei below reminds you just how high you are. I loved seeing the city all lit up.
View of the rest of 101 from the observation deck on Floor 89. There are high bars that prevent you from getting a great look, and I couldn’t tell if it was fog surrounding us, or clouds. 1,667 feet up, it’s hard to tell!
I ended the day browsing the shops on Taipei 101’s observatory floor (there’s also an enormous, upscale mall on the first few levels) and getting my first milk tea in Taiwan. I chose hot hazelnut.
Lots of prep to do for the next few days, so I’m not sure yet what sightseeing today will bring. Keep your fingers crossed that I find something cool!
Cheers,
Lauren
"The World is a Book": My Trek Through Taiwan 