Sunday July 26, 2015
Tokyo, Japan
Hot, hot and Super Humid
The second day in Taipei was a full day private tour of the city where we would get a taste of the culture and history. We had a bit of a mix up to start with as the itinerary the concierge gave me said a 10am start but in actuality is was a 9am start. So, our guide and taxi driver had to wait for use while we had a leisurely breakfast.
We met our guide Rita, a chic lady who was a successful business women in the fashion and cosmetics industry and spoke perfect English. We found out she learned English at University of Kansas!! I’ve never been to Kansas! Anyhow, Rita lived all over Asia when she was a business woman and now does private tours of her country. She was not only knowledgeable about the history and culture of Taiwan but also new all of the chi-chi restaurants and of course shopping areas.
Our first stop was Chiang Kai Shek’s house in Shilin. During the Japanese occupation it was the location of the Shilin Horticulture center. The grounds were gorgeous and lush. The house was tastefully decorated by his most famous and highly educated wife Soong May-ling. And we learned there is a secret tunnel from the house to the Presidential Building. Most of the furniture was traditional and many were made by soldiers. After the fall of China to the Communist party, 1 million plus of the KMT (Chiang Kai Shek’s army) retreated to Taiwan. It was nearly impossible to find jobs for the soldiers so many were retrained to make furniture and buildings for the new government.
Next stop was the Grand Hotel. An over the top ornate hotel which was built to host foreign dignitaries. It is one of the world’s tallest Chinese classical heritage buildings. It is a very interesting building in that the dragon heads on the roof point inwards and not outwards which is traditional. This is because a disastrous fire broke out in 1995 while the hotel was being refurbished. So now the dragons face inward as it symbolizes water and rain and therefore meant to protect the building from future fires.
After a very filling lunch of dimsum, we then went to our first temple, the Dalongdong Boaon Temple which was built as a Taiwanese folk religion temple . It is a gorgeous temple which is now a Unesco World Heritage site. Its quite a beautiful temple where every inch is decorated with art. We learned that two groups of artists were commissioned to decorate the entrance of the temple. The artist who was voted to have done the most beautiful and complete artwork got paid for the work. Quite interesting. There are also remnants of artwork that were introduced during the Japanese occupation. The temple is definitely worth visiting.
After thoroughly enjoying the temple our next stop was the Confucius Temple which was originally built in 1879 but demolished by the Japanese early in the occupation but rebuilt again in 1930. However, given by that time any traditional Chinese ceremonies were forbidden, Japanese Shinto ceremonies were performed. Today it is used for education and it really is a nice place to escape to from the city as it is peaceful and very quiet.
Next stop was the Lin Liu-Hsin puppet museum near the historic DiHua street. It's a cute little museum whose goal is to preserve Taiwan and Asia’s traditional puppet theater. It was cute and also kind of spooky. Some of the puppets were just so scary!
We then made the short walk to the historic DiHua Street which is the oldest street in Taipei and existed since the Dutch ruled Taiwan.(1600s) In the old days it was located next to the river so it naturally became the center of commerce for the city. Even today it is busy with tea shops, Chinese medicinal herbs, fabrics, etc. What’ s great about the place it that the government is trying to preserve the old buildings and many new art shops are moving in while preserving the building. Rita introduced us to a great ceramics shop where I ended up buying a ceramic pumkin canister. But the surprise was the coffee and wine bar in the back. The shop was located in a traditional building which is long and narrow with an open garden in the middle of the house. Very nice!
By now, we are sweating and hot so before we went to our next stop we enjoyed a frozen fruit bar. Taiwan for the first time in history did not have a typhoon last year so had an overflow of fruit. So the government encouraged making frozen fruit bars so the fruit won’t go to waste. I had a delicious mango bar and the owner of the shop was so nice to let us sit inside his store and enjoy our snack.
We then headed out in the sun to the Chiang Kai Shek memorial which was grand! Huge! The memorial was a combination of Western and Chinese influence. Chiang Kai Shek was smiling but the memorial reminded me of the Lincoln memorial. I found it amusing that many mainland Chinese took selfies with them in front of Chiang Kai Shek. And the guards are serious. One kid went stepped over the barrier chain only to be greeted by a loud stomp of the rifle and a berating. The memorial also has a museum with artwork and photos depicting the struggle against Communism and also the Japanese colonists. Rita was curious if the Japanese still are in denial of Nanking and many of the atrocities. We said not all, but they still refuse to discuss the topic in school and we didn’t know of any movies made in Japan that are about Nanking.
After the visit, we hopped in our air conditioned taxi to cool off and head to our last destination which is YongKang Street. It's a popular street dotted with very cool boutiques by local designers, tea houses and of course if home to the most famous shaved ice parlor and beef noodle restaurant. Rita introduced us to some famous tea houses including a very pretty one that had an art gallery at the basement. We also ran into the councilman of the neighborhood who was taking photos of neighborhood. The councilman told us how when a new tenant moves in and wants to renovate the building, they are to leave a section of the original building for historical purposes. We really enjoyed that street and agreed to visit again the next day on our own.
Madame Chiang Kai Shek's Cadillac
The pathway to the house is lined with this tree where if one touches it or stands near it, one breaks about in a rash and develops uncontrollable itching. It was planted on purpose for security reasons
The Japanese Garden at Chiang Kai Shek residence
Chiang Kai Shek's house
The beautiful grounds of his house
Rose Garden with new expensive apartments being built next to the garden
The Grand Hotel
A huge orchid plant in the lobby.
Dragon looking to the sky (Grand Hotel)
Dimsum lunch
Dalongbong Temple - Gorgeous!
This is the female dog/lion diety that guards typical temples. But the artist did not get paid because the mouth is open.
God of Harvest. That is why he has a rice plant in his hand
Confucious Temple: The path to the temple is dotted with cute teddy bears holding a symbol of education
Puppet Museum
Old and New
Dihua Street: The Matchmaking Temple. It was busy
Scenes from the Dihua
If you look up, you see the original beautiful architecture
Tea Shop
The original Watson Store in Taipei on DiHua street. Geraldine with the proprietor of a craft store that occupies the building now
Chiang Kai Shek Memorial. Very grand.
Facing North and South of the Memorial are auditoriums used for events including the Chinese Opera
The memorial with 87 steps to climb as he dies when he was 87 years old
Yong Kang Street: Famous shaved ice place with long lines
Every remodeled building needs to keep a piece of the original
Nice and colorful tea shop
But we loved this tea shop- but I can't remember the name!
And of the course, the home to the best dumplings in the world - Din Tai Fung
