Anping Tree House and Former Tait & Co, Tainan, Taiwan (台南安平樹屋 原英商德記洋行)

 

 My Tainan trip starts with Aping District.

 

      Anping Tree House is a combination of nature and man-made stuctures.

      It used to be a warehouse of Tait & Co. After abandoned for many years, a huge banyan tree has grown into countless branches. Actually, I cannot tell they are branches or roots. They have occupied the roof, the walls, and taken over the warehouse.

      Tait & Co, next to Anping Tree House, was one of the top five trading companies in Anping area during the period of Japanese colonization.

      From the magnificent building, you can imagine how prosperous and busy this trading company was.

     
      There are some tourist spots to go in Anping area. You can walk to the old street from Anping Tree House. Roaming the street is a very relaxing way to see this area. An Mutsu Temple, located in the old street, is also a great place to know Taiwanese religion.

Taipei Confucius Temple (台北孔廟)

 

The master said: The wise find pleasure in water; the virtuous find pleasure in hills. The wise are active; the virtuous are tranquil. The wise are joyful; the virtuous are long-lived (知者樂水，仁者樂山。知者動，仁者靜，知者樂，仁者壽). The above is one of my favorite quotes by Confucius.

      Confucius, a Chinese social philosopher, has a profound influence on Chinese. In Taiwan, we pick Confucius's birthday, September 28th, as our Teachers' Day in order to honor this great master.

      Taipei Confucius Temple is a quiet place. When people visit this place, they usually do not speak loudly. The whole atmosphere is very peaceful and quiet. No one wants to spoil the peace and slow pace.

      It is also a tourist spot, and only takes 10-minute walk from Yuanshan MRT Station to here. Besides, it and its neighbor, Bao'an Temple, form this neighborhood a cultural and historical district.

 
      Very often students practice the traditional Chinese instruments in front of the main temple building, and then perform the music at this same spot on Teacher's Day. It is interesting, isn't it?

http://www.ct.taipei.gov.tw/en-us/Home.htm

Taipei Children's Amusement Park (兒童新樂園)

Of couses, kids love amusement parks!

      Taipei Children's Amusement Park is not big, but it has pretty much everything an amusement park should have. 

       My 5-year-old daughter's favorite is Ocean Carousel. She always asks for a ride when we go there.

    If you love spinning, Spinning Tea Cups is your best choice.

     The sandpit is occupied by only two kids, which is really rarely seen at this amusement park. Most of the time, especially on the weekends, the sandpit is packed with kids.

     One of the amazing spots at this amusement park is Indoor Playground. It opens hourly. You can sign up for the hourly sessions through the APP of the amusement park, or the machines close to Indoor Playground. They also let kids in when it is not full. Kids can climb up an down, play balls, slide, etc.

      Also, you can go to the food court, 7-eleven, or the restaurants if you get hungry. For me, it is a very good place for kids to burn off their energy.

http://english.tcap.taipei/

Macao and Qianshan Park at Yangmingshan, Shilin, Taipei (陽明山馬槽，前山公園)

 The mountains are covered in mist.

      Yangmingshan's Macao Hot Spring is a hot spring spot. Macao Bridge, the symbol of Macao, is surrounded by mountains. Just think about walking into the foggy mountains, and soaking in the hot spring, you feel relaxing already.  

     
      This is Quanshan Park.

      You can have some snacks if you are hungry. The food street is across from the park.  

      We order fried sweet potatoes, stinky tofu, and turnip soup from the snack stall. Those are all typical Taiwanese snacks, but honestly, the food here doesn't taste as good as you think they should. 

      If you just want to soak your feet in the hot spring, Quinshan Park is a great place to go.

     Unbelievably, a hot spring area is inside the park; and it is exclusively designed for foot soaks.

      This is what the hot spring looks like when nobody is there.

     This is a hot spring stream!

      Yangmingshan National Park is one of the 9 national parks in Taiwan, and  it is sooo big. You can visit it as many times as you can, and then you will have the chance to see the diversity of beautiful views in different seasons.   

Miniatures Museum of Taiwan (袖珍博物館)

 

Everything here is SMALL!  

 

      Rose Masion: This gorgeous house was built in Los Angeles in 1885. Let's take a look at rich people's mansion. 

     The inside of the mansion:     

 
     One of the rooms:

 
      Venetian House, Italy:  

       Japanese Tudor Style House:

 
      The inside of the house:

 
      A room with a lot of paintings:

 
      Alice in Wonderland:

 

      A close look:

 

      Gulliver's Travels:

 
      The Phantom of the Opera:

 
      The phantom sometimes shows up (see above), and sometimes disappears (see below).

 
      Santa Claus:

       A close look at Santa:

 
      An Egyptian Palace:

 

 
      English Castle:

                                           

 
      Roman Ruins:

 
      Nostalgic Japan: This street represents old good Japanese time.

 
      Buckingham Palace: It is a must-see in London. 

 
     Luxurious interior decorations:

      Everything you see is so exquisite.

      Palace of Versailles: It is the famous tourist attraction in France. The structure is strickly symmetrical.

  
    Hall of Mirrors: It is the most famous room at Palace of Versailles. Of course, there are so many mirrors inside it. 

      We stayed here for nearly 2 hours. It is a great place for adults and children!