Part five of the trip around Spain was the last part of the trip. We started along the coast of the Mediterranean and worked our way along the coast to Barcelona. We got to see 3 more UNESCO World Heritage sites along with a beautiful beach. The highlight was seeing more of the Roman influence. The visual of an amphitheater right on the coast was amazing and a great surprise.
Spain is a storied country of stone castles, snowcapped mountains, vast monuments, and sophisticated cities, all of which have made it a favored travel destination. The country is geographically and culturally diverse.
Spain’s countryside is quaint, speckled with castles, aqueducts, and ancient ruins, but its cities are modern.
The many and varied cultures that have gone into the making of Spain, the Castilians, Catalonians, Lusitanians, Galicians, Basques, Romans, Arabs, among other peoples, are renowned for their varied cuisines, customs, and prolific contributions to the countries heritage.
The country’s ...
The National Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall 國立中正紀念堂
The most prominent historical landmark in Taiwan, the CKS Memorial Hall was erected in honor and memory of Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek, the former President of the Republic of China, and was opened in 1980 as part of a national park and gathering area.
The name of the square is officially Liberty Square (自由廣場), as seen above the front gate, however the name change was politically motivated and most people in practice still refer to the entire complex as Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall.
The octagon-shaped white building rises 76 meters and is covered with blue tiles and red accents, echoing the flag of the Republic of China. The eight sides represent the Chinese cultural symbolism of the number eight which is traditionally associated with fortune and wealth. The two sets of 89 steps represent Chiang's age of death and lead up to main hall housing a large bronze statue of Chiang protected by military personnel which change ...
As night markets go in Taipei, Tonghua Night Market certainly isn’t the biggest but its still got a very wide selection of food and stalls.
Known as Linjiang Street Night Market to the locals, it’s the most south-easterly night market in Taipei. It’s easily accessible by the MRT and not too far from Taipei 101. Most locals rate this as their favorite night market in Taipei because it still offers a good variety of quality food.
Tonghua Night Market also has five food stalls that are recommended by the Michelin Guide.
With one long road containing most of the stalls, it has a cross road in the middle with some small restaurants along it as well. If you come during a week night, you’ll find it far less crowded than Shilin Night Market. You will generally find items much cheaper than Shilin as well.
Boasting a large variety of local food stalls and restaurants, there’s everything you would expect from a night market.
While Tonghua Night Market doesn’t quite have the wow ...
Beitou (北投) is a district of Taipei City at the foot of Yangmingshan (陽明山 or Yangming Mountain), a collection of mountain peaks that make up Yangminshan National Park. These include Seven Star Mountain (七星山 or Qixingshan), a dormant volcano that last erupted around 700,000 years ago.
Xinbeitou (新北投), the hot spring village around Xinbeitou MRT station, occupies a lush valley that is home to 1200 species of plants, 110 species of bird, and 160 varieties of butterflies.
Beitou Thermal Valley (also called Beitou Geothermal Valley or Hell Valley) is a second, highly acidic “green sulfur” hot spring that is a major tourist attraction in Beitou and the source of the hot creek running through Beitou Hot Spring Park.
The spring water is high in radium, which in the past underwent a corrosive reaction with the andesite rocks on the river bed about 150 meters downstream, creating layers of cream and white diamond-shaped crystals named Hokutolite or “Beitou stone”, ...
