第三天 : Day 3 // National Palace Museum

Birth of Taiwan...

Chiang Kai-shek left China with his remaining Kuomintang army in flee of the Communists, who had victoriously won the civil war in 1949. Though they had lost the battle, Chiang Kai-shek and his fellow comrades took with them the treasures of the nation. Filling a battleship with national treasures, they sailed off to the island of Taiwan. The wealth they brought along now rest in The National Palace Museum.

The National Palace Museum holds over half a million articles of ancient artifacts that date back to the Neolithic Age. Over 8,000 years worth of history from calligraphy, dated paintings, rare documents, jade carvings and - believe it or not - palace furniture ranging from jewelry boxes to beds. 

We arrived early in the morning along with a handful of people. But by the time Huang Shu Shu, Eric and I left the first exhibition room, the hallways were filled with tour groups from Mainland China and Japan. All you could see down at the bottom lobby were people, people, people. This is what you call 人山人海 ("People Mountain People Sea"). 

國立故宮博物院 : National Palace Museum

Straight ahead was the National Palace Museum. On the west and east of this building were similar looking buildings. I believe they held other exhibitions but we didn't go in to see. The property on which it stood was definitely very large.

Welcome to the National Palace Museum! 

Dragon Guardian - rar!

Well, that's it about the National Palace Museum since I couldn't take any pictures inside. It was a fun trip in and I wouldn't mind going again. They change the artifacts almost every season since there's over half a million things to choose from. The museum also does tours around the world, except for China. Of course. 

Huang Shu Shu was laughing when he told me that China also has a national museum but there's nothing in there because it's all in Taiwan. Now that tourists from Mainland China are allowed into Taiwan, many of them come to visit this museum. It's ironically funny to think that if a Chinese ever wanted to learn and experience the history of his/her nation, they would have to fly to Taiwan to experience it.