Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, Taipei

Modern architecture with a traditional character

National Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall (國立中正紀念堂, pronounced Guólì Zhōngzhèng Jìniàntáng) is one of the landmark buildings in Taipei. It's a monumental hall, designed by the famous Taiwanese architect Yang Zhuocheng (楊卓成), who also designed the Grand Hotel and the nearby National Theater and National Concert Hall of the Republic of China. The construction of the massive 79m tall hall in traditional Chinese architecture begun in 1976 and was completed in 1980. It opened exactly five years after generalissimo and president Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) has died. It's located at Taipei's biggest public square named Liberty square (自由廣場) in the Zhongzheng district.

The building is a combination of white and blue, which symbolizes freedom and equality. The octagonal roof is covered with glazed tiles in order to reflect the sunlight. The tip on the roof is gold and directed to the sky, symbolizing the connection between heaven and earth. Although the structure was build in a modern way, it wants to show the strength and the spirit of the Chinese culture (Info source).

If you ask me, what I think about the building, I'm not really sure. The architecture is of course stunning and a masterpiece. However, I'm not really a fan of such huge monuments to past leaders, especially if they weren't democrats. I have to say, though, there is a feeling of humility and respect, when you enter that 16m tall gate. The monumentality of the building is something that makes you feel small and portrays the Republic of China big and glorious. It's understandable, that the ROC, when it lost the war on the Mainland, had to recreate something colossal in order to show Beijing, that it continues to thrive and remains a glorious and powerful state. In the 1980s Taiwan was experiencing an economic boom that is comparable to the one China experiences now, but of course on a larger scale. Building landmark buildings was important for the small nation at that time. However, now every mid-sized Chinese city has a forest of skyscrapers and other monumental landmarks and Taiwan can't compete with that. All it can do is focus on preserving the beautiful nature and protecting the democracy, the freedoms, the traditions and historic sites found all over the beautiful island. Taiwan is small, but the power lies within people's hearts, not buildings. This memorial hall shall be a reminder of the past, a past that thought big, but wasn't always good to the people.

These are my best photos of Chiang Kai-shek's Memorial Hall:

89 stairs lead up to the entrance of the hall, marking the 89 years of Chiang Kai-shek's life.

The closer you come to the top, the bigger the building looks like.

The 19m tall main entrance, truly epic proportions.

The arch on top of the entrance is huge.

Former president Chiang Kai-shek, president of the Republic of China from 1948 to 1975.

A soldier has to stand here for 1 hour without moving.

The ceiling is epic. The sun on top is also found on the flag of the Republic of China.

[My TAIWAN page][My TAIPEI page][All photos by MKL, 2010]

Hsinchu City East Gate, Taiwan

One of the most beautiful historic gates in Taiwan

This gate is part of my Gates of Taiwan list.

Hsinchu City East Gate (Chinese 新竹東門城, pronounced Xīnzhú Dōngménchéng) also known as Yingxi gate (Chinese 迎曦門, pronounced Yíngxīmén, literally Sunshine receiving gate) was completed in 1827, when the Qing Dynasty ruled over Taiwan. It's today the only remaining historic gate in Hsinchu (there used to be 8 gates in the 19th century, four were big, four small). In 1901/02 the Japanese destroyed all of the gates except the East gate, because they were redesigning the city, widening some roads. Besides the gates, Hsinchu used to have a wall and a moat surrounding the city (Info: Source 1, Source 2). Today only the moat remains, which can be seen in the gate's vicinity. The whole area is transformed to a park and it's a popular spot for young Taiwanese to hang out, go for a walk, feed the fish. Same goes for the East Gate and the area nearby, which is used as a public square, where concerts are commonly held. I was lucky to see one, when I visited the city for the first time.

See my photos (from May 2010):

Young people listening to a live concert near the Yinxi gate.

Another angle on the gate.

The famous blogger posing near the gate (joking about the famous part).

A view through the gate.

The Hsinchu East Gate from the side.

One of my best shots of the gate. It was a great spring day, I only wish the sky had been blue.

The historic moat. I've seen fish and turtles inside.

This is really one of my favorite historic gates in Taiwan. And the whole area with the old moat and the park along the way is really beautiful. I hope I can explore more of Hsinchu in the future. See also Josh Fahler's East Gate HDR photo>>

[My TAIWAN page][My HSINCHU posts][All photos by MKL, 2010]

The Merlion in 2008, Singapore

The Merlion as seen on December 17, 2008 in Singapore.

[My MERLION post][My Singapore page][Photo by MKL, 2008]

Slavín, Bratislava

A famous war monument dedicated to Soviet Army soldiers


Slavín as seen from the Bratislava Castle. It was built in 1960 and it's dedicated to Soviet Army soldiers, who liberated the city in 1945. The top of the statue of a soldier is 50m tall (the pylon is 39.1m and the statue 11m tall). There is a wonderful view of Bratislava near Slavín. Hope I can go up there one day.

[MAIN post][Bratislava map][Slovakia is not Slovenia][All photos by MKL, 2010]