Excursions in Taiwan: Taipei City Tour
One of the highlights of this tour will be a visit to 'Taipei 101', until recently the world's tallest skyscraper and so-called because of the number of floors it has.
Taipei City Tour
Taipei, Taiwan
Chiang Kai Shek Memorial Hall remains an imposing structure and is a landmark of Taiwan's modern history. The hall itself houses an interesting museum, which features among other exhibits Chiang's presidential cars and a mock-up of his presidential office. In front of Chiang's statue there is a guard change that takes place with much ceremony every hour. Outside the large square is flanked on both sides by large palatial buildings in the style of the Forbidden City in Beijing.
One of the highlights of this tour will be a visit to 'Taipei 101', until recently the world's tallest skyscraper and so-called because of the number of floors it has. You take the world's fastest lifts to the viewing floor, which provides phenomenal views on a clear day over the city and beyond to the coast and hills nearby. The building, and the ultra modern shopping malls packed with designer stores that surround it are Taipei's are an illustration of the island's progression over recent years to 'developed country' status and improving links with the rest of the world.
You also make a stop at the city's most well known temple, at Zhongshan, built by Chinese settlers in 1738. It survived the Japanese occupation and is today constantly busy with worshippers stopping by to pray.
In the afternoon you head for the outstanding National Palace Museum, in the north of the city. The museum contains the world's largest collection of Chinese artefacts, brought across from China by the fleeing Guomindang as the Communists claimed victory in the civil war.
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