Temperatures are cooling and the city changes. It's once again pleasant to be outside so why not enjoy the silver grass blossoms at Yang Ming Shan which is the mountain closest to Taipei city and is accessible by bus or taxi. It is a national park with a visitor's center, paths for hiking and offers a wonderful view over the city. Everything from 5 star hotel to small local restaurants all with delicious food can be enjoyed here.
The Guandu Nature Park, Guandu Rd., # 55, Beitou is a low-lying land area of 57 hectares with freshwater ponds, brackish ponds, swamps, rice paddies and mounds. Because of the diverse ecological environment, the area is home to numerous varieties of animals and plants. The park has good walkways around the park with a visitor's center from where you easily can watch the birds. An arts festival will take place in Guandu starting Friday, October 8. Please see page 30 for more information.
The nearby Danshui Riverpark, good for both walking and bicycling. You are even allowed to bring your bicycle on MRT which makes it easy to have a nice outing. Danshui is just 30 minutes from the city with MRT and has a nice breeze coming from the sea that you can overlook from Fort Santo Domingo, located at Danshuei Township, Jhongjheng Rd., Ln 28, # 1. Open Tuesday - Sunday 9.30am - 10pm, indoor exhibition open to 6pm, free admission. On Sunday, October 10 at 7.30pm there will be a firework at Danshui water gate # 3. It can bee seen all over Taipei.
There are a number of very interesting museums in Taipei, to mention the most famous of all, the National Palace Museum, located at Chih-Shan Rd., Sec 2, # 221, open 9am - 5pm daily, with an admission of NT$ 160, guided tours in English at 10am and at 3pm. Taipei Fine Arts Museum at Zhong Shan N. Rd., Sec 3, # 181 often has visiting contemporary exhibitions of international artists. National Museum of History, Nan Hai Rd., # 49, admission NT$ 30, open Tuesday - Sunday 10am - 6pm, is an institution concerned with the preservation of cultural artifacts and with many special exhibitions during the year. They also have a unique tea room overlooking the beautiful Botanical Gardens.