When in doubt what to do when arriving at a new destination, go up the highest building you can find. And that seemed like a pretty solid plan in Taipei, as it boasts Taipei 101, the fourth highest building in the world at 509metres (1,667 feet), also housing the world’s fastest lift (1010m/h). Add to that the fact that it’s shaped like a bamboo shoot, and you’ve got your first afternoon destination easily sorted. Waddup, Taipei 101!
After a nice ‘local’ lunch of dumpling soup and a nice ‘local’ dessert of multiple free samples of Taiwanese pineapple cake (I skipped the dried duck tongue though) offered at the shopping centre at the bottom of the 101, I embarked upwards. It was a very surreal hyped-up lift featuring atmospheric space music but also a very hurriedly spoken intro-to-the-lift-and-the-tower both in English and in Chinese which lessened the spacey atmosphere.
There were quite a few rainbows, which were amazing, and the mountains surrounding Taipei were impressive.
You also got various corners of interest in the building itself, I’m sure to make it stand out from other Highest Buildings in the World (HBW) – for example you had the cool ‘Infinity Sky’ mirrors, so both the ceiling and the floor were mirrors. The leaflet is also considerate enough to remind people that “for visitors wearing miniskirts, please be aware that the glass floor may be reflective”.
Another, erm, interesting detail of the Taipei 101 is that it is keen to show off its wind damper, which is apparently the biggest and heaviest in the world. Impressive, right!?
Taipei.
After Taipei 101 we decided to find the nearby Elephant Mountain (#1 on TripAdvisor!), from where you could see a lovely view of the tower and its surroundings. We ended up taking the scenic route up dark, non-illuminated steps and spider-spotting. (I was telling J how I was disappointed by the lack of large spiders during my year in Asia, and ten seconds later he pointed out a rather hefty specimen hanging out in its huge web. “Don’t go wishing for poisonous snakes next,” he told me.)
An excellent day to start off my Taiwan adventure with.
I'm glad you expained what a Damper Baby is… By the way, what shape is a bamboo shoot?
the shape of Taipei 101