Conquer's娛樂場

        Taiwan, where I come from, is located to the east of Asia in the west of the north Pacific Ocean. The shape of the main island of Taiwan looks like a sweet potato and has an area of 35,801 km2 (13,822.8 sq mi), but its population was estimated in January 2010 at 23,125,514. Taiwan is otherwise known as Formosa, which means “beautiful” in Portuguese. What does Taiwan own special that is? Today, I would like to introduce seven wonders of Taiwan to you.

Night Markets

        In every culture, food is the most important thing, especially in Taiwan. If you want to eat some typical food, going to night markets is a good idea because night markets are highly competitive markets, so only delicious food allows vendors to survive, but the price is not higher than other restaurants. There are all sorts of food and beverages in Taiwan, like pearl tea; a variety of foreign food can be found here as well, for instance Thai food.

24-Hour Restaurants

        In Taipei or some big cities, you can easily find a restaurant and then eat a good and hot night snack anytime you feel hungry. It is very convenient and different from other countries, and you can have a variety of options, for example Hong Kong Yum Cha and Yonghe Soy Milk King, or some snack bars.

Hot Springs

        “In Taiwan, with its peculiar crustal structure and location on the fault line where the Philippine and Euro-Asian continental plates meet in the Circum-Pacific seismic zone, subterranean heat is spread across the island producing hot springs island-wide”, so we own a great variety of springs, including hot springs, cold springs, mud springs, and seabed hot springs. All of them are good for human health.

Butterflies

        Taiwan can see almost 400 different butterflies, fifty of which are endemic to the island. We have been dubbed the kingdom of butterflies because we have “one of the highest concentrations of butterfly species in the world”. There are many different places where you can go to watch them dance in the air.

Temples

        In Taiwan, you can see temples everywhere, and they are different from churches in the West. Some of them are historic and rich in cultural heritage, like Mengjia Longshan Temple which is a famous old temple in Taipei City. Its building, according to Chinese traditional ancient rules including feng shui, and its doors, beams, and poles are beautifully decorated. Temples also present Taiwan’s own characteristics of culture.

Railways

        Taiwan’s railways, which are an extensive network, offer an endless variety of experience, and each line has its own special characteristics. Some of them have left large numbers of historic relics, like old stations which keep the unique faces of past local history, specially, the Alishan Forest Line, which is one of only three mountain railways left in the world. It has four climatic zones, including tropical, subtropical, temperate, and frigid, along the line.

Taipei 101

        Taipei 101 is the highest and biggest building in Taiwan, and it was the world’s tallest building from 2004 to 2009. Every New Year’s Eve, the annual fireworks are shot off from Taipei 101, and since it is a big celebration in Taiwan, many people join the anniversary party. Taipei 101 also owns the first international top brand shopping mall and the highest indoor and outdoor observatories in Taiwan.

        Taiwan has not only created an economic miracle, but it is also home to abundant attractions even though it is a small island. Come to Taiwan, and, then, you can experience and enjoy delicacies, landscapes, lifestyles of health and sustainability, nature, culture, sightseeing and shopping, which are the many faces of Taiwan.

References

Wikipedia. (2010). Taiwan. Retrieved April 24, 2010. From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Formosa

Wikipedia. (2010). Taipei 101. Retrieved April 19, 2010. From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taipei_101

Chung, Oscar. (2003). Kingdom of Burrerflies. Retrieved April 1, 2003. From http://taiwanreview.nat.gov.tw/ct.asp?xItem=836&CtNode=1365

Tourism Bureau, Republic of China. (2010). Taiwn. Retrieved 2010. From http://www.taiwan.net.tw/

Wikipedia. (2010). Rail transport in Taiwan. Retrieved Apirl 5, 2010. From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taiwan_railways

Wikipedia. (2010). Mengjia Longshan Temple. Retrieved February 7, 2010. From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mengjia_Longshan_Temple