Mark from Taipei

 

 

 This starts our big travel expedition.  As for Taipei, I have a few observations, or interesting findings.

- I've spent a lot of time in Thailand and there is a lot of overlap.  Taipei is similar but more economically advanced than the last time (13 years ago) I saw Bangkok.

- There are a LOT of rock climbing gyms here (like 15+), mostly bouldering.

- Like every Asian city I've been to, it feels very safe.

- The architecture is very interesting and varied.  I may put more of these pics in this blog than most want, but I think it's cool.

- They love their food, it is varied, not necessarily healthy, and incredibly plentiful; it also shows.  

- The public transportation is awesome in everyway.  

- In general, a very livable city.

- The hiking is steep as hell, straight up, and then straight down.  Down isn't always trivial.

The folks I'm traveling with:

exhibition with mirrors (Lynette and Mark),  the next one I simply call "Peyton" 

Talia

Interesting architecture:

First and foremost is Taipei 101, it more to this city than a building,  For instance on New Years it is the fireworks display.   Peyton has covered this, so there will be overlap.

There is a lot to this building, it's built in a high earthquake area, and typhoons can produce incredibly high winds.  Both of these make the engineering of the building difficulty, but even worse the mitigation of any one of these issues creates more issues for the other.  

Right:  Taipei 101 from one of our crazy hikes.

Left:  The massive steel ball that had to be hauled in in section and welded in place to counter act the typhoon winds (I'm not doing this damper system justice...it's amazing engineering).

More buildings I find interesting

Various hikes:

Something serious is going on with my legs, I think my back issues.  This hike was really hard on me and it should have been tough, but not that bad.  These hikes, all of them here in Taiwan thus far, are steep (it is volcano, this one was live), and often wet.  This was the highest point in Taipei.

sulfur from volcano

Pictures I like:

The phone takes some great shots

This was from a temple

Temple and traditional KFC offering

Rock climbing gyms:

This is a thing here; they're all over the city and seem to be mostly bouldering.  They come for long periods with their friends, so it's both climbing and social.  Peyton is now roughly as good as me, and Talia has gotten a ton better.  These are pictures from 4 different gyms,  I wanted to take advantage the plethora of gyms at a reasonable price.  

Night market and festivities:

One thing for sure, it's LOUD, drums, and massive----MASSIVE---amounts for firecrackers.

Random other sites:

This was at the museum of religions, the wall of tranquility (Peyton has his head in the water)

There is, and was, a Jewish community.  

This is 228 memorial, it is involved story which ushered in 47 years of marshal law.  The picture on the left is the inside.  What we did experience is different people, exhibits, and an incredibly different historical view.   

This is txt from the fine arts museum on architecture.  The politics here is very different and positive compared to our walking tour who viewed things as occupations and not nice ones; though she did give Japan some cred for modernization of Taiwan along with some brutal treatment. 

Taipei 101 being Taipei 101