Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall

Chiang Kai-Shek knew how to roll. The black bulletproof Cadillacs he favored would have made an old school gangster proud or more likely green with envy. The one in the photograph below dates from 1955.

You can see the sedans and other mementos from his life on display on the ground floor of the National Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall. The blue and white structure, the colors of the Taiwanese flag, has 89 steps--one for each year the former President of the Republic of China lived. A large statue of him sits at the top.

The memorial resides in the massive square of a compound that also houses Taipei’s National Theater and National Opera House. In the early morning you’ll find people practicing Tai Chi in the compound.

The memorial is located on Hsinyi Road and open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. To get there take one of the Metropolitan Rapid Transit (MRT) trains to the Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial station.