Sun Yat-sen and Chiang Kai-Shek, part 2
Saturday was dedicated to China's history and memorials of its prominent leaders. I stopped by Sun Yat-Sen Hall in the late morning, and left around 1 to head over to the Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial and actually go inside it this time. For those who don't know who Sun Yat-Sen was, here's the Cliff's Notes (actually, wikipedia!) version.
Sun Yat-sen (November 12, 1866–March 12, 1925) was a Chinese revolutionary and political leader who had a significant role in the overthrow of the Qing Dynasty. A founder of the Kuomintang (KMT), Sun was the first provisional president when the Republic of China was founded in 1912. He developed a political philosophy known as the Three Principles of the People which still heavily influences Chinese government today. "Father of the Nation" (Guófù, 國父) is the title officially given to Sun Yat-sen in the Republic of China on Taiwan. It also unofficially refers to Sun Yat-sen the People's Republic of China on mainland China.
Sun Yat-sen (November 12, 1866–March 12, 1925) was a Chinese revolutionary and political leader who had a significant role in the overthrow of the Qing Dynasty. A founder of the Kuomintang (KMT), Sun was the first provisional president when the Republic of China was founded in 1912. He developed a political philosophy known as the Three Principles of the People which still heavily influences Chinese government today. "Father of the Nation" (Guófù, 國父) is the title officially given to Sun Yat-sen in the Republic of China on Taiwan. It also unofficially refers to Sun Yat-sen the People's Republic of China on mainland China.
A statue of Sun Yat-sen in the fountain outside his memorial.
The main memorial, with guards and all. Like Buckingham Palace, but in Taiwan. 
Some of Sun Yat-sen's calligraphy. The first character is "love," but I don't know what the second is.
One of the most massive pieces of jade (or perhaps the most massive) I have ever seen. This was in the gallery of the memorial on the bottom floor, where all kinds of jade and art and artifacts from past times were on display. This was the only picture I took because the lady working there informed me very rapidly that no photography was allowed.
View of the main entrance.
A view of Taipei 101 from the Sun Yat-Sen memorial courtyard. It's the tallest building in the world, and I'll head over there tomorrow.And you all should know who Chiang Kai-Shek is. If you don't, shame on you. Here, I'll throw you a bone:
Chiang Kai-shek (October 31, 1887–April 5, 1975) was a Chinese military and political leader who assumed the leadership of the Kuomintang (KMT) after the 1925 death of Sun Yat-sen. He commanded the Northern Expedition to unify China against the warlords and emerged victorious in 1928 as the overall leader of the Republic of China (ROC). Chiang led China in the Second Sino-Japanese War, during which Chiang's stature within China weakened but his international prominence grew. During the Chinese Civil War (1926–1949), Chiang attempted to eradicate the Chinese Communists but ultimately failed, forcing his government to retreat to Taiwan, where he continued serving as the President of the Republic of China and Director-General of the KMT for the remainder of his life.
Chiang Kai-shek (October 31, 1887–April 5, 1975) was a Chinese military and political leader who assumed the leadership of the Kuomintang (KMT) after the 1925 death of Sun Yat-sen. He commanded the Northern Expedition to unify China against the warlords and emerged victorious in 1928 as the overall leader of the Republic of China (ROC). Chiang led China in the Second Sino-Japanese War, during which Chiang's stature within China weakened but his international prominence grew. During the Chinese Civil War (1926–1949), Chiang attempted to eradicate the Chinese Communists but ultimately failed, forcing his government to retreat to Taiwan, where he continued serving as the President of the Republic of China and Director-General of the KMT for the remainder of his life.
View of one of the entrance arches.
Mr. Chang in all his bronze splendor.
Me, again taking pictures of myself with wind in my face and no sense of direction at the top of the memorial with the plaza in the background. This traveling alone thing is getting old.
I.e., no skanks allowed! This amused me to no end.
Another view of the plaza sans moi. The concert hall and the theatre are on the left and right (I forget which is which). The arch is straight ahead, with a Taiwanese flag in the middle.
This is one of many pictures I took in the memorial, but due to space issues, I'm not going to put them all here. Chiang Kai-shek is posing with Mahatma Gandhi. Is this before or after he decided to flee mainland and violently overthrow the native government of Taiwan? Just asking.In addition to meandering around the memorials, I bought lunch today at this fair-like event. It's my policy (or handicap, really) to only buy food that I can see and point to because well, I can't really do much else. Upon arriving at the Chiang Kai-shek memorial I bought some jade things, and talked with the lady the whole time in Chinese. It was very simple, but after my purchase I realized I used no English. Baby steps, I guess.
In other technological excitement, I managed to upload some short clips of my goings on thus far. The sound and picture may be out of sync, but this is all a work-in-progress. I'm just so surprised I found a site to host videos, even if the limit is just 3 minutes.
In other technological excitement, I managed to upload some short clips of my goings on thus far. The sound and picture may be out of sync, but this is all a work-in-progress. I'm just so surprised I found a site to host videos, even if the limit is just 3 minutes.
posted by Shannon @ 7:37 PM
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