Thursday, 14 March 2019
Enroute from Kaohsiung, Taiwan, to Manila, Philippines

I have just finished an excellent Eggs Benedict breakfast in the Dining Room—today served perfectly cooked and hot.  Turns out my usual dinner-time waiter is working breakfast today, so he made sure everything is perfect.  I have fallen behind again and have much to catch up, especially after two glorious days in Taipei and Kaohsiung, Taiwan--the largest and second largest cities of this small island “nation” (just don’t say that in China).  The usual terms are ROC (Taiwan --Republic of China) and PRC (Mainland China--People's Republic of China).

I had planned to work on the blog after breakfast, but Janji and Randy were still cleaning up my stateroom, so I took my computer upstairs to the top deck (10) to work in the quiet of the Crow's Nest  Lounge that looks out the front of the ship.  But to find an available electric outlet I had to share a table with a very nice woman--a retired medical educator from Philadelphia--so became engaged in more sociable conversation rather than typing away.  By then it was 11:15 and time to head for the Mainstage Theatre for the Mariner's Presentation by the Captain; then a special lunch in the Dining Room for return HAL guests, where I joined Carol and Peg for sparkling wine and food.

After lunch it was time for a brief but required health inspection (remote temperature taking) by officials from Manila, where we land tomorrow.  Fortunately, HAL prepares all the paperwork with our information already filled in.  At each port we have to take ashore with us a copy of the first two pages of our passport, stamped by the appropriate immigration officials.  Fortunately, again, HAL has made multiple copies of those pages and present them back to us as we approach each new port.

So it is now two in the afternoon and I am finally working the keys of the computer.  Last over-night and this morning were a little rough--I could see the waves swelling from my veranda (where I sat yesterday afternoon pleasantly watching as we sailed through the very long harbor of Kaohsiung, watching the parade of ships at anchor and docked. It takes almost an hour to reach open sea from the pier and reminds me very much of sailing into and out of  Rotterdam.  The short term of rough seas was the first reminder since boarding in Singapore that the Westerdam is actually sailing through a number of Asian seas, as well as part of the Pacific Ocean.  Before last night--until last night it hardly felt like we had been moving at all.  Right now the seas have calmed significantly and it looks like we are over this very brief and very minor rough patch.

But I have two more days of Taiwan to cover, so let me begin here, with our arrival in Keelung, the port of Taipei, about a 40-minute drive from the larger city.

Tuesday, 12 March 2019
Taipei, Taiwan

The sun rises on a beautiful morning as we sail into the port of Keelung, about 20 miles north of Taipei.  Keelung itself is a large city, but the real attractions of this part of Taiwan (formerly known as "Formosa," the beautiful island), lie in Taipei, the capital and largest city.  Today's shore excursion shuttles us by bus into the heart of the city and then meets us back there six hours later, leaving each of us to explore the parts of Taiwan that are most appealing.  The bus leaves us at the official iconic tower of Taipei 101, an address that is hard to miss.  This tallest building in all of Taiwan houses a five-story luxury shopping mall and then offices that rise into the clouds.  Although it is beautiful weather I don't see much point in another fast elevator ride to the top of one of the tallest buildings in the world, but the pagoda-like structure covered in green glass, with the latest in earthquake-resistance credentials, is quite impressive--and visible from all parts of the city--a useful fact when I take a taxi later in the day.  In fact we see the tower rising very shortly after leaving Keelung.

Pagoda-Shaped Green Glass Is Visible from the Ground Floor

Mall Interior Atrium

Colorful Glass Bricks Outside Taipei 101 Hold the Names of Every Person Who Helped in its Construction

Blinding Sunlight Makes Touring Easy but Photographs Difficult

Futuristic Mall Interior Highlights:  Expensive Shops and Bright Lights (above and below)

My original plan was to spend the first part of the day at the National Museum, a repository of the world's finest collection of Chinese objects (taken from the Mainland when the ROC was established).  The PRC makes noises about wanting the collection back, but since PRC residents make up most of Taiwan's visitors, its presence is not really an issue anymore.  But the day is so pleasant that I decide to spend time outdoors rather than in the museum.

From Tapei 101 it is a short walk to the Creative Arts Center at the City Hall Complex.  The Center combines an exhibition hall on the ground floor--today hosting a baker's convention--and a four-story museum tracing the development of the city above it.  The exhibits in the museum are artfully presented, with especially wonderful three-dimensional models of the city in various historical periods. Exhibits under glass that can be walked on above, give the visitor a bird's eye view of the city.

Museum Exhibit

Bird's-Eye View of Contemporary Taipei

Another short walk takes me to the Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Hall, dedicated to the philosopher-politician venerated as the founder of modern China.  The monumental building is surrounded by pleasant gardens and a children's park dotted with age-appropriate statues.

Behind the present-day construction site of a new sports area, stands an older neighborhood of apartments and shops.  A large swath of the area is a former tobacco factory that has been converted into a series of artists' workshops, cafes and coffee houses (coffee is very popular among the Chinese--there are more coffee shops than tea shops anymore).  It contains a large area devoted to sales by the artists themselves.  I buy a small souvenir notebook, easy to pack and carry, to add to my collection at home.

Old Apartments and Shops

Tobacco Factory Converted to Artists' Studios and Cafes 

Inside the Artists Shop

Across the street from this restored area is a post-modern shopping mall and office building fronted by an abstract work of art.

Not far away is a more traditional form of art, constructed over time with natural materials.

The next part of my exploration of Taipei takes me to more traditional areas.  I will travel by Metro, by foot and by taxi.  But first I will take a break and publish this material.  The next blog entry will continue with my day in Taipei.

Waiting on the Metro Platform