Business Mirror
Date: May 13, 2018
By: Bernard Joseph Esposo Guerrero –
Story & photos by Bernard Joseph Esposo Guerrero
In Photo: Taipei 101 as seen from the top of Elephant Mountain
I started traveling very early—even before the advent of travel blogging—yet it took me eleven years to finally take myself to Taiwan.
The tiny country is so close to the Philippines that it even makes flying to Thailand or Singapore seem so much longer. However, going there is not the easiest, as one has to go through the hassle of obtaining a tourist visa, and flight options are also very limited. So, when the Taiwanese government relaxed their immigration policy toward tourists, my family and I just had to take advantage of the pass.
Taipei is hard to describe, but is quite easy to love. I was subconsciously always comparing it with Hong Kong and Shanghai, two equally modern metros that I have been to several times before that share the same textures as Taipei, but the culture of Taiwan’s capital is very different and refreshing. Strolling around old Taipei is easy, and provides a sneak peek into the soul of the nation. Anyone can just take any of the recommended walking routes, often available upon request in most hotels, to see various aspects of the historic precinct. Given that I only had two days to explore Taipei proper, I combined various itineraries to get to the Longshan Temple, a Chinese folk religious temple first built in the early-1700s by Fujian immigrants and is now a designated second-grade heritage building. In doing so, I passed through other important and interesting sites, such as the Taiwan 228 Peace Memorial and the National Museum inside a well-manicured public park and the Red House right beside the Ximending shopping district, among others. [FULL STORY]