Japan Journal: China Day 11

The main reason we came to Taipei is because my dad highly recommended seeing the National Palace Museum here. For him to highly recommend it, I thought it would be worth the stop over between China and Okinawa. So today we headed over to the museum to check it out. The consensus: very impressive!

Here’s the history: Originally established in 1925 in the Forbidden City after the fall of the last Chinese emperor, the Palace Museum was the collection of the artifacts and personal property of the imperial family. Then in 1931, when the Japanese Imperial Army was advancing, Chiang Kai-Shek ordered the quick evacuation of the most valuable pieces to the South of China to three different cities. Almost 13,500 boxes were sent by train to the South. After World War II, China’s Civil War continued and around 1948 Chiang Kai-Shek and the museum director decided to evacuate some of the collection to Taiwan for safe keeping. Almost 3,000 crates of valuables were shipped over to Taiwan and by the time these 3,000 crates arrived, the Communist Army had already seized control of the Forbidden City. Only 25% of the original collection sent to the South was evacuated. Still, that collection represented some of the most valuable and rare pieces. A mere 677,687 pieces! These artifacts date back to Neolithic times – 8,000 years ago! Yes, today we saw a ceramic vase that was 5,000 years old. Incredible.

You were not allowed to take photos in the museum so I can’t share with you any of the impressive works, but I can describe my favorites with stolen photos from the internet. My all time favorite were probably the ivory carvings. Artists have meticulously carved ivory into intricate scenes that really escape my paltry descriptions. The piece de la resistance would be the four tiered (about 2-3 foot tall) food carrier which was carved in the most beautiful designs with texture so fine you would think it was done in thread, not ivory.

This most talented artistic skill was not just performed on ivory, but also rhinoceros horn (yes, there used to be rhinos in China)

...and various fruit stones (like olive pits). I was fascinated with the unbelievable patience and skill it must take to make these designs.

This little gem is 1.6 cm high, 1.4 cm long and 3.4 cm wide!

There were also some fascinating bronze water and wine carriers made in the shapes of oxes and other animals that were from 2,500 years ago. Can you imagine that people were making such crafts that long ago? It has really given me a new perspective on history and a new appreciation for Chinese culture. Thank goodness these relics were saved because who knows if they would have survived the Cultural Revolution. The museum also housed an impressive array of paintings, calligraphy, jade, ceramics.

For our last night in Taiwan, Stevie really wanted to visit the famous “Snake Alley”, but after hearing my dad’s descriptions and reading a few reviews of the area, we decided it might not be wholly appropriate for the kids. I’m all for exposing them to culture, just not that kind of culture! So instead we opted for another night market that promised great street food and lots of interesting shops.

Now we’ve done night markets in Thailand and China, but this one was a little different in that it was mainly permanent stores that were pushing all kinds of cheap wares. I think most of the stuff was actually authentic, not knock-off, but at pretty good prices. Stevie and I were both sucked in by the shoe stores since shoe shopping on Okinawa is very limited. I was enticed by the Italian shoes and Stevie by the Birkenstocks, but alas we kept our senses and didn’t buy any!

The food selection was another story. We had read about all the tasty (and non-tasty) treats available at the night market which Stevie and I were game to try, but by this point in the trip the kids had had enough of our experimentation and their little systems shut down. Sprite for them for dinner! But Stevie had an oyster omelet (a specialty), and I had roasted mushrooms and a corn on the cob that had been roasted earlier in the day and then re-roasted while being basted with some kind of sauce. It was yummy! Stevie and I would have stayed for more, but the noise, hustle and bustle of the street was getting to Cannon so we bugged out and headed for home.