Taipei is rich in culture and history

Taipei 101 dominates the skyline as the world's second tallest
building  (wikipedia.com)

TAIPEI, TAWAN  — With tourist revenues of more than 11 billion dollars annually, Taipei ranks as the ninth highest economy in the world as well as the most of any Chinese-speaking city. It also welcomes more than 6 million overseas visitors each year making it the 15th most visited city on the planet.

Politically and geographically, the island nation of Taiwan, formerly known as Formosa, has a long and complex history.

Geopark outside New Taipei
(wikipedia.com)

Taipei is the capital of Taiwan Province, a part of the Republic of China (ROC) which designated six special municipalities in the island nation shortly after World War II.

Situated at the northern tip of Taiwan, Taipei also encompasses New Taipei City which is approximately 16 miles southwest of the port city of Keelung.

Thanks in large part to its geographic location combined with its economic, cultural, high tech and educational assets, Taipei is regarded as a major hub of Greater China. About one-third of all Taiwanese citizens reside in the metro district of Taipei.

Chiang Kai-shek Memorial
(en,wikipedia.org)

For clarification purposes, "Taipei" can be used interchangeably to mean the entire metropolitan area or simply the city itself, much like New York City in the U.S.

As with the island of Taiwan, Taipei is comprised of "pockets" of population containing four major ethnic groups: Hoklos, Mainlanders, Hakkas, and aborigines. This diversity however, provides Taipei with much of its cultural character along with a variety of world-class architectural and cultural landmarks.

Daybreak with Taipei 101 in the background (wikipedia.org)

First on the list is notably Taipei 101, the dominating 101-floor skyscraper rising 1,670 feet to the top. When it opened in 2004, Taipei 101 grabbed the honor of being the world's tallest building, a claim it held for six years until the Burj Khalifa in Dubai surpassed it.

Despite that, Taipei 101 became the first building in history to measure over a half of a kilometer in height, and it still ranks as the world's tallest "green" building.

There are other more traditional cultural and natural landmarks dispersed throughout the city as well, making Taipei a rich and diverse place for travelers to explore.

The Chiang Kai-shek Memorial is a popular gathering spot
(wikimedia.org)

Among the other most visited sites, is the National Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall honoring General Chiang Kai-shek the former President of the Republic of China.

The monument stands at the east end of another important Taiwanese landmark known as Liberty Square or Freedom Square. Liberty Square has been the most popular gathering spot in Taipei since its completion in the latter part of the 1970s.

Gateway to Liberty Square which honors Taiwanese democracy
(en.wikipedia.org)

The name refers to the historic role it played in Taiwan's transition to democracy in the 1990s.

Liberty Square also includes the National Concert Hall and National Theater with their adjacent parks making the entire complex an ideal way to visit much of Taipei's architectural and historic treasures in a single outing.

The Chiang Kai-shek Memorial is located in the Zhongzhen District of Taipei which is also in sight of Taiwan's Presidential Building.

Longshan Temple is the most famous temple in Taiwan
(wikipedia.com)

Constructed in 1738, the Longshan Temple of Manka, a religious temple in the Wanhua District of Taipei, has long served as a gathering site and place of worship for Chinese settlers. Though heavily damaged in World War II, it has since been rebuilt and is the best known temple in Taiwan.

Street food vendor at a night
market (wikipedia.com)

Among other attractions in Taipei is the multitude of night markets scattered throughout the city. The markets are as popular with locals as they are with visitors, thus giving travelers an opportunity to mingle with local culture on an up-close-and-personal basis.

Yehliu's eerie rock formations
are fascinating (wikipedia.com)

Arguably one of the most intriguing attractions in Taipei is the Yehliu Geopark along the coast about 15 miles from Keelung Port. The park is comprised of unusual rock formations created when geological forces erupted to push the Datun Mountains out of the sea. The rock formations stretch more than a mile into to ocean, but what is visible on land is intriguing, eerie and fascinating at the same time.

Many of the rock formations have been given names which make them easy to identify with monikers such as "Fairy Shoe", the "Beehive", the "Ginger Rocks", the "Sea Candles" and the best known formation which has become the image of Taiwan and the unofficial emblem of the town of Wanli, the "Queen's Head."

Taipei's presidential office building (commonswikimedia.com)

"Taipei 101" may be the name of the second tallest building in the world, but it's also a good title for a course on the history of Taiwan and this marvelous little known travel treasure.