Taiwan Today

Taiwan is a subtropical island with plenty of rainfall. Gardens and parks should be green with plants and bright with flowers. They are just that and ever-popular with dwellers on the "island beautiful". Each of Taipei's 16 administrative districts has at least one park for a total of more than 20. One of the newest garden-parks is Rong Shing, which was opened last spring near Sungshan International Airport. Koo Wei-fu, a businessman and civic leader who sponsors a children's chorus, developed Rong Shing (Glorious Star) on a spacious site within walking distance of some of the city's largest apartment developments. The gardens are open to the public but with an admission charge to pay for the cost of maintenance. Rong Shing has both highly stylized and less formal areas. There are tables for picnickers and nooks for lovers. A restaurant serves snacks and drinks. A stream runs through the property and many kinds of birds nest in the trees. Peacocks and other tropical birds are on view in a small aviary. Flowers are transplanted into beds along the walks in keeping with the seasonal changes.

Chinese of Taiwan are great parkgoers and picture takers. Rong Shing gives them a quiet retreat in the middle of the city. Walks are made of concrete blocks and flagstones and there are also less formal meadows with plenty of open grassy areas. A part of the park is lighted. Children are welcome and there are no "Keep off the grass" signs. Not all of the Rong Shing area has been developed. Work is still progressing and the gardens will be even more beautiful and popular as trees gain in stature, arbors are covered over and new plantings are introduced.

Pictures on these two pages are of the Botanical Garden on Nanhai Road just to the south of downtown Taipei. Another name is the Nanhai School Garden because primary and high schools are contiguous. Also in the immediate area are the Police Academy, Central Library, USIS Library, Science Hall, Historical Museum and Forestry Research Institute. Students come here for botany field trips and for sketching and painting. The building (top, left) was the office of the Ch'ing dynasty governor of Taiwan before 1895, when the island went to Japan for 50 years as a spoil of war.

One of these parks is in the heart of the Taipei business section and the other is high on cool Grass Mountain in the suburbs. New Park affords greenery and a breathing place for office workers and merchants. Several government buildings are within five minutes' walk. There are pagodas and tennis courts, and band concerts are held here. Yangmingshan is one of the Taipei area's biggest and most attractive parks. Cherry and azalea blossoms draw hundreds of thousands of visitors in the spring. The elevation of about 1,200 feet means cooler temperatures than in Taipei proper during the summer. Nearby are resort hotels, hot springs and swimming pools. This is a favorite destination for school outings and other activities by various youth groups.

Kiddieland is now being developed and improved by the Taipei City Government. It is adjacent to the zoo and to new swimming pools. Plans call for the addition of attractions to make this park into a Taiwan version of Disneyland in California. A small admission charge is levied. Bridge and pagoda at right are in the Kai-shek Park honoring President Chiang Kai-shek and located next to the huge square in front of the Presidential Building. This park was developed only recently on grounds of the First Girls' High School of Taipei