Our first stop was the Martyrs Shrine. The sky was overcast, but fortunately there was only a slight drizzle.
The changing of guards' procession
We then proceeded to the National Palace Museum, which houses the world's largest collection of ancient Chinese treasures. Our guide told us these awe-inspiring treasures only survived the Cultural Revolution because the KMT brought them to Taiwan when they fled China. The visit provided a cultural and historical overview of China and the Chinese through the ages, and it was pretty interesting for a museum. Unfortunately, photography was not allowed.
Next, we stopped by the National Taiwan Democracy Memorial Hall, which was more well known as the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall before Chen Shui-bian renamed it earlier this year, and started "renovation work" around the compound, in effect closing its doors to the public. Courting even more controversy, he recently ordered that the inscriptions on the main gate be changed from "大中至正" to "自由廣場" to commemorate the democratic movement. Fortunately, we were there before the change.
Our next stop was Ximenting, a shopping district for trendy youths. But because our tour group was made up mostly of older folks, we only had one hour there. I left empty handed, and fuming.
I was hoping for more luck shopping at Taipei 101 but it housed mostly luxury boutiques so it was all window shopping, again.
We left early and made our way to Hsinchu for the night, settling at a resort. I love the Victorian-themed buildings!
