Looking Lost and Making Friends

Today I finally had nothing to do for the school, so I took the chance to travel into Taipei. I have heard so much about how friendly people are in Taiwan, and today I really got to experience it first hand. On the bus this morning, a girl sat down next to me and started talking about Harry Potter and Twilight. On the train the boy next to me talked to me the whole ride and then walked me around the train station and gave me a lesson on how to use the subway. While waiting for another bus an old man came up to me. We rode the bus together and he helped me find the museum I was looking for. At the train station on the way home another old man helped me find my train, and talked to me the whole way home. We talked about America, his daughter, he gave me a talk about not walking down dark streets alone, and then told me I am like a young eagle flying out of the nest. Lesson of the day: when in Taiwan, hold a guide book, look confused, and people will flock.
When I got to Taipei I wandered along the Shuangxi River. Although it had a slight smell, it was very pretty. Under one bridge there was a ballroom dancing class going on, and there was also a really random exercise course complete with a metal elliptical.

Next I made my way to the Zhishan Cultural and Ecological Gardens. It is this hill in the middle of the city with a temple at the top. There are all sorts of wooden boardwalks winding around, some with wandering through the trees, and some with amazing views of the city and mountains. Along the paths were different shrines and statues. It was very separated from the city and was very peaceful, something I needed after the few days constantly surrounded by crowds of people.






I then made a brief visit to the CSK (Chiang Kai-shek, but apparently they are trying to remove his name from all things in Taiwan) Shilin Residence Park. It was one of CSKs homes in Taiwan, and is supposed to have some pretty impressive gardens. I didn't make it too far because there were mobs of people, but what I did see was an odd mix of flowers and cheesy art.
I finished the day at the National Palace Museum, which has an impressive collection of Chinese art. Apparently they have so much stuff that the collection is rotated every few months.