Chiang Kai-shek I used to believe was just a famous city
somewhere in Asia however the beauty of travelling has once again proved the
most educational experience one can have. I quickly learned hours after landing
that Chiang Kai-shek was actually a person. Not just any person, but a power
house of 20th century China, whom the wartime leader of The Republic
of China would break communist ties with China and become a great leader of
Taiwan.
His memorial exists just as other famous leaders’ global
memorials are presented on a grand chair as a great bronze statue in the center
of the Peace Park, just like the Lincoln Memorial overlooks the reflecting pool.
He sits tall on his pedestal overlooking the National Theatre, National Concert
Hall and Gate to the Peace Park, all of which exhibit stunning architecture and
house Taiwanese culture in its’ grandeur. Atop the footsteps of both the
Theatre and Concert Hall the youth of Taiwan practice their dance moves in
small groups of ambitious pop dancers blaring their music from boom-boxes.
I arrived with perfect timing as always for the lowering of
the Taiwanese flag, the retirement of the guards and the closing of the
memorial. The all in white, from head to toe, troops proceeded in a grand march
providing the hundreds of onlookers with a display with bayonets drawn and guns
twirling. The entire experience from the steps of the memorial left me with a
most sensational feeling of warmth and welcoming to a new country!
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