The jet age traveler differs greatly from his predecessor, the globe trotter who collected scenic wonders the way a philatelist does first-day covers.
Scenery is no longer sufficient reason to visit a country. Almost every country can claim something that's the "most", but the modern Marco Polo isn't satisfied seeing another craggy peak, crystal lake, or tropical beach. He wants to get at the guts of a country ... to see how the people live and work as well as how they play. He wants to find out what makes them tick, and he hasn't a week or two to devote to the process. He may have only 72 hours, and since he's a tourist, not a pioneer, he wants to do it easily and in comfort.
Taiwan, the 13,000-square-mile island that lies athwart the Far East tourist belt, offers what, in travel parlance, might be termed the "ideal package". Taiwan (its name means "terraced bay") has beautiful scenery and something more.
Taiwan is China. A China in microcosm—the only place left in the free world where one can see a people and a way of life that have survived centuries of change.
In Taiwan the tourist finds things genuinely Chinese in a vacationland setting: a China rich in matchless heritage, warm in hospitality, a country at once steeped in ancestral customs and at the same time pulsating with economic vigor and alive with industrial progress.
It's a beautiful island, verdant, steeply mountained, deeply forested; and a dynamic, developing country where farmer, businessman and scholar, Buddhist and Christian, live and work together in peace, harmony and cooperative effort.
Taiwan lies, like a giant tobacco leaf, 90 miles off the southeast coast of continental China. Squarely in the path of the main airlines of Southeast Asia, it is a logical stopping-off place for travelers to and from Japan, Korea, the Philippines, Hongkong, and the Pacific Coast cities of the United States. A stopover in Taiwan requires nothing more than asking your travel agent to include Taipei in your itinerary.
For ticket holders between Tokyo, Hongkong or Manila, there is no extra fare, no visa fees, no troublesome entry regulations. Stay a day or two—up to 72 hours; to stay a week or two, one need only apply to any overseas Chinese consulate.
For a 72-hour look at today's China and a restful, relaxing interlude in a fast-paced world tour, any of the following capsule versions of a tour of Taiwan would provide a rewarding experience for even the most jaded traveler.
Let's imagine you arrive at Sungshan Airport in Taipei, capital city of the Republic of China, on Tuesday, at 11 in the morning. It could just as easily be any other day, at almost any hour.
Having cleared the brief health, customs, and immigration procedures (you must be in possession of a valid health card, properly signed by a health department official, and hold a passport of any friendly nation and an onward confirmed ticket to your next destination), you are ready to change some money at the airport bank. The official rate is NT$40 to US$1. New Taiwan dollars (called NT) come in bills of $1, 5, 10, 50, and 100. Coins range from 10¢ to $1.
Many Good Hotels
If you have no hotel reservations, a Travelers' Aid desk will gladly help you. There's no need to hunt around for a good hotel. At least twenty offer comfortable, clean rooms ranging in price from NT$120 (US$3) for a single with bath to NT$1,500 (US$37.50) for a sumptuous suite.
Almost all rooms are air-conditioned, and all hotels offer the usual auxiliary services. Meals, Western and Chinese, will cost from NT$15 (US32¢) for breakfast to NT$90 (US$2.25) for a delectable dinner. Laundry service is fast, excellent, and inexpensive.
If your travel agent has made hotel arrangements, all you need is a taxi for the brief ride from the airport to the heart of the city. The metered fare shouldn't be more than NT$20-30 (less than US$1). Tipping is optional, although most international travelers give a token sum. Most taxi drivers understand sufficient English to take you to the hotel of your choice. If, however, your destination is more obscure, better ask the Travelers' Aid attendant to write out the address in Chinese to show the driver.
Opulent Oriental splendor combines with modern comfort at Grand Hotel (File photo)
Should your reservation be at the Grand Hotel, Taipei's world-renowned, deluxe hostelry, you'll be surrounded immediately by tangible evidence of Chinese tradition and culture. The Grand is situated atop a hill at the city's edge and boasts authentic palace decor. For those who prefer to be in the heart of the city, the Friends of China Club, First Hotel, Hotel China, Nanking, and Orient all offer first-class accommodations.
After you've settled in your room, rested, freshened up and had some lunch, it's time to go places and see things. If your planned tour does not include local trips, the hotel can arrange them. Taipei has many excellent tourist services and agencies. You may hire a car and have a personalized tour to suit your particular interests, or take advantage of any of several well-planned, economically priced set tours.
Hot Springs Resort
Begin with a pleasant ride into the countryside. Peitou, a hot springs resort that winds its way up a mountain, is only eight miles from downtown Taipei. Those who missed the hot mineral baths of Europe's spas can sample the Chinese (or Japanese) variety, and expert massage, by specially trained blind masseurs is available to soothe travel-weary muscles.
Here, too, is located the Foo Hsing School for training children in Chinese operatic arts. If you're a devotee of the theater or even if you merely would like to see attractive young people hard at work learning centuries-old theater acts, a brief visit will be a pleasant interlude.
Between Peitou and Yangmingshan you'll pass the Overseas Chinese Hostel. Its convenient location and attractive rock garden make it an ideal place to break your journey and enjoy a refreshing cup of tea.
Cherry Blossoms
Yangmingshan (or Grass Mountain) is as green and lovely as you'd expect, and boasts a beautiful park with wooded groves, waterfalls, pavilions, rock gardens, and fish ponds, all of which, in addition to being beautiful scenically, are authentically and traditionally Chinese. Here in the spring, thousands come to enjoy the glorious blaze of cherry blossoms and azaleas.
You may be ready to return to your hotel by now. The more indefatigable may prefer to make a swing back by way of the fishing port of Tamsui, once Taiwan's most important northern port but now used only by fishing boats and small vessels. If you've brought your bathing suit or golf clubs, this is the place for either a refreshing swim or 18 holes of golf.
An alternative trip might be to Pitan (Green Lake) for an afternoon of boating, swimming or fishing. Then, cooled and refreshed, proceed along a picturesque highway to Wulai, a rustic village famed for its aboriginal tribal dances and beautiful waterfall. There's a pushcart railway ride that makes a thrilling conversation piece and good pictures.
Visit to aborigine village is tourist favorite (File photo)
It's just an hour's ride back to the city where, depending on your energies, you can enjoy a quiet dinner at your hotel or go out for one of the many varieties of Chinese cooking for which Taipei is famous. Then you may want to explore Taipei's night life. Many hotels have Chinese as well as Western food and their own dance bands and combos. You can have an evening on the town without ever leaving your hotel!
Provincial differences in food preparation are many, but in Taiwan those most commonly available are:
Peiping—the cooking of north China, noted for meat, duck, and roasting; somewhat salty.
Shanghai—east Chinese, and inclining toward both sweet and salty dishes; somewhat rich and utilizing chicken, duck, meats, and seafood.
Cantonese—the style of south China and most familiar to Americans; less rich and not so salty; dishes of chicken, seafood, and beef.
Szechuan—from southwest China, and like the American southwest, hot with chili peppers; chicken, duck, meat, and vegetables; not much seafood.
Hunanese—also highly spiced and famous for steamed dishes.
Taiwanese—the food of the island, mild in seasoning, using little salt, and stressing soups.
Some of the better known hotels and restaurants serve these specialties:
Grand Hotel—Shanghai, Cantonese, and Szechuan.
First Hotel, Park Hotel, Malaya restaurant—Cantonese.
Omei and Yu Yuan restaurants—Szechuan.
January restaurant—Shanghai.
Mau Lin and Lin restaurants—Taiwanese.
Riverside Dining
Mongolian barbecue (pork, mutton, venison, onions, and greens cooked on the grill in a sauce of your own devising) is available at several riverside restaurants, the First Hotel, and the Badminton Court restaurant. Price is from $1 to $1.25 for all you can eat, plus fruit in season.
Hotels maintaining one or more orchestras for dancing include the Grand, First, Nanking, Friends of China Club, and Orient. Several dance halls offer dancing partners at $1.50 an hour. Dancing as well as companionship is to be had at the "girlie" restaurants, of which there are many, but prices are high.
The girlie restaurants are less risque than Pigalle or Las Vegas. They are gay and the girls are there to minister to the tired businessman. But having danced or fed him succulent morsels from a tasty dish, the girl goes on to another table.
Exploration of the island begins on Wednesday, your second day on Taiwan. Taichung, the provincial capital and the largest city in central Taiwan, is only 45 minutes by air from Taipei. CAT flies there daily. Those interested in seeing the accelerated progress of China should visit the newly built Chung Hsing village, seat of the provincial government. Its modern buildings are in striking contrast to the surrounding pastoral scene.
Taichung is also the departure point for several interesting tours. Only three miles away is Wufeng site of the National Palace Museum. Kept here are priceless treasures brought from the Peiping Palace Museum. It is a trove that includes everything from Chou dynasty bronzes (1122-256 B.C.) to paintings of the Sung dynasty (960-1279 A.D.). The museum is open daily except Mondays.
72-Foot Buddha
The biggest Buddha in the Far East is the distinction held by the 72-foot statue that tops a hillside at Changhua, 10 miles south of Taichung. For the military-minded, this is also the site of a battle of resistance when the Japanese took over Taiwan after the Sino-Japanese war of 1895. Several of the guns are still to be seen. For a cool drink and 'a rest in pleasant surroundings, the Pa Kua Shan hostel is at hand. Those preferring to skip the culture and history for a placid lake that lies 2,508 feet above sea level will want to go directly to Sun-Moon Lake, considered Taiwan's top scenic attraction. It is only 45 miles from Taichung, two hours by car along a fine road.
In addition to beautiful scenery, at Sun-Moon Lake you can see a dramatic performance of tribal dances by aboriginal lovelies. A peaceful overnight stay at the comfortable Evergreen Hostel is highly recommended, although the Sun-Moon Lake trip can be done in a day, returning via CAT's afternoon flight, which arrives in Taipei at 7:40 p.m.
If you return the same day, there is another chance to sample Chinese cuisine, followed by a pedicab ride through Taipei's colorful nighttime scenes. Pedicabs are an interesting and economical way of getting close to the "man in the street" and seeing more. Arrangements can be made to hire one by the hour, or at a flat rate for the evening's trip. Your travel agent or hotel will gladly make the arrangements.
Thursday, your second full day on Taiwan, might be the best time to tour the city, especially if you journeyed to Taichung the day before. The Taipei city tour is enjoyable, interesting, and not tiring. You can see the Presidential Offices, in the heart of the city, {he nerve center of the Republic of China. Fronting it is a huge square, scene of mammoth celebrations on the Double Tenth, China's National Day. Close by is the Botanical Garden with a rich collection of tropical and subtropical plants.
Colorful makeup, costumes mark Chinese opera (File photo)
In the same garden is the National Historical Museum. With its red pillars, stone lions, and brass-bound red lacquer doors, it is typical of Chinese architecture. Most important of the contents are bronzes of 1700 B.C. vintage; porcelains of the Sung, Ming, and Ching dynasties; and a replica of the Tun Huang cave with murals that give interesting insight into everyday life in China during the fifth century. Here, too, can be seen exhibits of contemporary interest and the work of talented young Chinese artists of the twentieth century.
Also in the Botanical Garden is the National Science Hall, fashioned after the famous Hall of Heaven in Peiping. This is another example of Chinese tradition in architecture. It houses interesting exhibits, specimens, and models of scientific interest.
Temple to Confucius
Taipei's Lungshan Temple with its gilded roof and carved stone pillars is a must. This is one of the most famous Buddhist temples on the island. Besides an image of Buddha, it has statues of Kuan Yin, the Goddess of Mercy, and Matsu, Goddess of the Sea.
Another temple worth seeing is that dedicated to Confucius. A solemn building of classical Chinese architecture, it honors China's revered philosopher and beloved teacher. Here, on his birthday September 28, known as Teachers' Day, there is a colorful memorial service in which small boys clad in authentic costumes dance the ancient "plumage dance" to ancient melodies.
If you've had enough of architecture and serious atmosphere, now would be a good time to visit the Taiwan Handicraft Center, an ideal place to see the finest handiwork of China and to get those souvenirs and remembrances to take home as gifts. You'll find delicate embroideries, baskets, screens, and furniture of bamboo and rattan; table mats, purses, baskets of straw, carved wood, and lacquerware—all of superb workmanship and at low prices. Arrangements can be made to pack and ship your purchases.
Instead of the Taipei city tour, you may prefer the 50-minute flight to Hualien, principal city of eastern Taiwan. Hualien has its own unique attractions, most popular of which is the festival dance performed by the Ami tribesmen who live just outside the city. They have gained the reputation of being the island's best dancers. Performances can be arranged even on non-festival days.
Spectacular Gorge
Less than 20 miles north of the city, Taroko Gorge, one of the most spectacularly scenic spots in the Orient, marks the eastern terminus of the East-West Cross Island Highway. To travel the 12 miles from the mouth of the gorge to Tien Hsiang is a thrilling succession of rock tunnels, suspension bridges and cliffs soaring into the sky above rapids that roar far below. At end of the awe-inspiring ride lies a small valley with a mountain lodge that has become a favorite of weekenders. You may sleep overnight in the spellbound seclusion of this peaceful valley comfortably accommodated in the Tien Hsiang Lodge, or if you prefer, return to Taipei by plane the same day, arriving in time for dinner.
If you chose to fly to Taichung and Hualien on successive days, a restful, quiet evening is indicated. Room service at any hotel is guaranteed to give you that pampered, luxurious feeling. You can dine at ease in your room, perhaps write a few souvenir cards, and pack at your leisure for the next day's departure.
Even the best-planned 72 hours must come to an end. Frequent flights are available, whether you are going to Tokyo or Hongkong, to Osaka or Naha (Okinawa) or Manila. Direct international flights are made to all these cities: to Tokyo and Hongkong daily and usually with choice of flights. Airlines service is by Civil Air Transport (CAT), China's flag carrier; Cathay Pacific, Japan Air Lines, Northwest, and Thai International Airways.
If yours is an afternoon departure, there's still time for a brief ride through the city and a chance to pick up last-minute gifts.
Then a brief taxi ride to Sungshan airport and you're off to another far away place in Southeast Asia, or going home: You'll be happier, richer and wiser for your brief sampling of Chinese culture on the lovely, evergreen island of Taiwan, and in complete agreement with those long ago Portuguese mariners who called it "Ilha Formosa", Island Beautiful.