We "relaxed" in the apartment for a couple of hours and it soon became clear to Andy and me that the kids needed to be OUT and about.
So we put on some Eskimo Joe's shirts and headed to the Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall. Chiang ruled China for 22 years and Taiwan for 30. He is a very revered political figure here in Taiwan. His Memorial has amazing architecture and buildings. In the center is a large open square full of tourists, families, and joggers (like on the Mall in D.C.). It was the perfect place to let the kids run off some steam and see another economical (meaning "free") historical site.
I encountered a gentleman from Berkley, CA. He is a professor of Geographical Informational something. He was born in Canada and flew in the Royal Air Force. He noticed my shirt and we talked about my beloved O-State. He told me all about his son who his is traveling with, and that he plays NCAA hockey in Michigan. They are on this trip together and headed down to Tainan tomorrow to see some spotted, spoon-billed something or other that has appeared down on that part of the island for the first time in 37 years. Then, he saw Katelyn and started asking the typical questions. He was fascinated by the entire story and very kind about it all. It's always heartwarming to get such a positive response.
In the taxi on the way home, we freaked out the driver a little. When we piled into the cab I think he hardly glanced at the "American family." Then he heard this little Mandarin speaking girl and unbuckled his seatbelt and whipped around to see who owned that voice. We drove for about 20 minutes (traffic) and then as if he couldn't help himself, he began to speak to her. We caught a few words and realized she told him she was 7, that she was from Taiwan. Then we think he asked basically how she ended up with us. He replied a couple of times "good, good."
I have to say that was nerve racking. We didn't know what he was going to say or ask. And we didn't want him to say something negative or say something that isn't true. He was nice and I think it was fine, but it was an interesting situation that we hadn't thought about in advance.
Anyway, it was a fun afternoon. Our first full day as a family of 5. It was awesome!
Hailing a taxi.
The Great Arch leading into the Memorial
Off and running!
National Memorial Hall
All three wanted to run up the stairs. Sure crazies, please do! Katelyn was leading the pack which seems to be a common occurrence.
In front of the Chiang Kai-Shek statue. Katelyn was mad she had to pose aGAIN for a picture. lol
The view from the Memorial towards the Arch.
Shanahan Family :)
And believe it or not, these are everywhere. I've seen people using them many times. Pretty interesting. :)
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