Getting to Liberty Square

In my time in Taipei I came across Liberty Square numerous times as it is an absolutely huge chunk of land.  I read in the Taipei Lonely Planet Guide that Liberty Square and Chiang Kai-shek memorial hall also go by other names as well due to politics which I have no idea of so I won’t mention it any further.  If you mention CHiang Kai-shek to most cab drivers or people I would be willing to bet they would take you to Liberty Square.

The area of Liberty square takes up 240,000 square meters (2,583,338.5 square feet) of space of the Zhongzheng District in what seemed to be central Taipei.  I passed by it a couple times in a taxi but I was either on the way somewhere or just didn’t have the guts to try to speak to the Chinese speaking driver.

My second morning in Taipei I decided to try the subway system to find Liberty Square and the Chiang Kai-shek memorial hall.  There is a subway stop right next to Liberty Square which made it easy once I figured out the name of the stop.  I cannot remember the name as of now, but it will be on any tourist map so don’t fret.

When you arrive at Liberty Square you will see 3 giant temples.  It turns out that the 2 big red ones are the National Theater and Concert hall while the blue one is the Chiang Kai-shek memorial hall.  I have read that everything from hip-hop concerts to band practice goes on in the square but there was some sort of school function going on the day I was there.  You can see the size of the National Theater and Concert hall by comparing the ant sized people in the photograph below.

Liberty Square from the Steps of the Chiang Kai-shek Temple: See the National Concert Hall & Theatre

Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall

It is my understanding that Chiang Kai-shek was a former president of China who fled to Taiwan after the communists took over.  Not all people in Taipei hold him in such high regard but that is beyond the scope of my research and this blog.  Regardless of his legacy Chiang Kai-shek has this memorial hall is the blue temple you see on the photo at the top of the screen.

It takes several sets of steps to get to the top of the temple where the statue of Chiang Kai-shek sits.  Two elaborately dressed armed guards on either side of the statue of the smiling Chiang Kai-shek.  At the entrance to the room you can look out and see (above photo) the entire liberty Square along with the National Concert Hall & Theatre.

Chiang Kai-shek

Changing of the Guard

The impressively dressed guards, complete with shiny helmet and bayoneted rifle on either side of the Chiang Kai-shek statue at all times.  The Taipei Lonely Planet mentioned the changing of the guard which happens maybe once a day.  Evidently the guards do a ceremony at the top of the temple and the march all the way down to the bottom.  At the bottom of the temple is various gift shops and other shops and the guard quarters.

I was both lucky and unlucky in this instance.  I got there at the right time as the guards were marching towards their quarters but as a new DSLR user I was fiddling around with the camera settings and missed the shot!  How embarrasing!  I try to get a good shot most of the time but I will post a near-miss this time.

Missed Shot of Marching Soldiers after Changing of the Guard

Overall Impression

Liberty Square and the Chiang Kai-shek memorial temple is worth a visit for anyone who finds themselves in Taipei.  Being centrally located, culturally significant and free there is no reason to miss this tourism opportunity in Taipei.   I can see most would be satisfied spending no more time than an hour or 2 at Liberty Square if there are no events going on in the square.

If you do go to Taipei, you definitely want to check an event calendar so you can see if there is anything special such as a concert going on in Liberty Square.  It may be obvious but if you are interested in theater and concerts going on in the National Theater and Concert Halls it is best you book in advance.

Leaving Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall

Bike Friendly

As opposed to most major Asian metropolises, the streets of Taipei are pretty bike friendly.  The not-so bad traffic along with the wide streets and quality roads make bicycling in Taipei something that even tourists can take part in, feel comfortable without worrying too much.  For Americans, the cars drive on the same side of the street as America as well.

Taipei Bicycle Map (click to Enlarge)

Getting There & Rending a Bicycle

Since rivers dominate the Taipei landscape it is not hard to get to a river.  I cannot remember which exact place I was dropped off by, but around 8 or 9pm I had a taxi driver bring me to the river.   I don’t remember what exactly I told him but I got to the river via taxi.  I was dropped off at a giant gate in a neighborhood next to the Danshui River.  The neighborhood was literally littered with bike shops.  There were at least 4 or 5 bike shops within a block of the entrance to the river path which was separated from the streets with a 20 foot high wall as you can see in the photo on the top of the post.

In the particular neighborhood I was dropped off at there were some vending machines selling hot and cold beverages.  I took advantage of this as I grabbed a hot coffee and walked around looking for bike shops.  I should have known coming so late on a Sunday evening that there would be no rental places open and I was right.  Most rental places were closed before 10pm which made sense.  Anyone reading this should take note, but then again most people probably don’t look to rent a bike at 10pm on a Sunday night in a foreign country.

The Place along Danshui River I started From

Riding Bicycle along the River Bike Path

As I mentioned in the previous paragraph I made the mistake of not getting to the river in time to rent a bicycle.  I had thoughts of just calling it a night and trying to wake up in the early AM to rent a bicycle but I didn’t want to risk missing my Monday afternoon flight but I decided to hoof it.

Since I was there and armed with my Nikon D90 digital SLR and tripod I decided to walk along the path to get some shots.  I remember seeing a couple of cool bridges at one point and I saw some in the distance so I thought I could walk to them so I started walking.

I noticed the nice, 2-lane paved and marked bicycle path along with a walking/jogging path which I walked on.   As I walked I had the river to my left, bike path and 15-20 foot wall to my right.  It was a pleasant, quiet and dry evening.  I noticed high water marks from the recent typhoon on along the bike path.  Stating the obvious, I’d recommend staying away from this area during a typhoon!  The late hour I was there would have been nice for a bicycle ride as there were few bicyclists and joggers.

I just kept walking along the path until I got tired.  There were either steps going over the giant wall or entryways about every kilometer or so.  I had a chance to take a few photos of the buildings across the river with the great cloud reflections but it soon got monotonous.  There were several bridges in the distance so I decided to catch a cab once I got a couple shots of the bridge, exited the bike path and took a taxi back to the hotel.

One of the Bridges across the Danshui River

Overall Impression

I would recommend anyone who plans to visit Taipei to rent a bicycle and travel along the paths.  I have read there are over 100km of bicycle paths throughout Taipei, some even leading out of the city into wilderness areas.  I surely regret missing out on the opportunity for less physically active endeavors.

I was alone, pretty late at night and felt completely comfortable.  The only thing that spooked me was the presence of a couple stray dogs as there would really be nowhere to run if they ran after me.   I could see how some people may find the path uncomfortable at night time so if you do the same, it would be a good idea to bring a friend or 2.

More Scenery at a Pit-stop along the Danshui River Bicycle Path

First Hotel Taipei

After I failed to postpone my weekend trip to Taipei I had a struggle finding a hotel.   All of the hotels I found online were booked as I kind of expected searching 2 days before the day I arrived.  The answer to my hotel problem was closer than I thought.  Instead of searching online for a hotel and contacting all the hotels which most people had probably already booked with I checked in the mid-range hotel section I decided to call hotels that weren’t on the first page of Google directly.

First Hotel was located in the mid-range section of Taipei hotels.  I called them and booking a hotel room for a single day was as easy as giving them my credit card number over the phone.  Even though the front desk staff I spoke with had decent English skills when I asked if First Hotel had an airport pick-up they suddenly spoke no English.  I ended up again reading in the Lonely Planet about the best way into the city from the Airport which meant taking an “Airbus” to one of its drop off points then a taxi for a few kilometers to First Hotel.

Checking in was easy as I simply presented my credit card, showed my passport and signed a couple things.  There was no hassle of filling out a bunch of paperwork as they sent me up my room on floor 10 which was the top floor.  Although small, my room (112) was nice as you can see below.  I have read other reviews that stated First Hotel’s top two floors (9 & 10) are renovated and nice while the others are not so be forewarned.  I was satisfied with room 112 and they even left 2 complimentary bananas and oranges on the desk.

First Hotel Location

As you can see from the photo at the top of the post, First Hotel is located in a well populated area called Zhongshan .  I didn’t read too much about the area before hand so after checking in I got out of the hotel and started walking around.  It seemed like I walked around forever and didn’t find anything that interested me enough to check out.  I ended up taking a taxi back to the hotel after a couple hours and get to bed early (on a Friday night) so I could get an early start on Saturday.  I have read other reviews criticizing the location for being 15 minutes away from the closest MRT station.

The Zhongshan Neighborhood next to First Hotel in Taipei

Overall Impression

I didn’t’ really feel like hotel hunting for the next couple of days so I decided to stick it out at First Hotel for the entire weekend.  My plan failed when I asked them for a room the next morning and they were booked.  It turned out to be a blessing in disguise because the next hotel I found over the phone Delamanco Hotel was nicer and in a much better location.  If you’re looking for a room in Taipei and are looking to spend around 2000 NTD ($60 USD) First Hotel is adequate but unless you’re planning to fly from the small airport which is nearby or have specific nearby plans, you can find better hotels in better locations for around the same price.