Day 86 -- August 18

Today was a slow day. I really just sat around a goofed off until I went out to go meet Jillian. We decided that instead of heading out of Taipei we would go the the National Palace Museum. It’s one of the largest tourist attractions in Taipei. But not for Western people but Chinese people. Here is where all the historical artifacts taken by the Nationalist on their escape to Taiwan. which turned out to be a smart move as the Cultural Revolution would have destroyed many of these things. So people from China go to Taiwan to see their national treasures. It’s a very complicated system on that Jillian and I continued to marvel at. We had a little bit of trouble because the tour groups moving through the museum were very good at blocking our way. We managed our way through the madness, we actually saw some really interesting things on the not crowded floors. A little piece of me always wonders if I couldn’t work at a museum, I think getting to deal with physical history everyday would be awesome.

    The grounds around the museum were also quite beautiful. There was a garden section, not quite as crowded as the rest of the grounds. We think there was an entry fee of some kind but no ever stopped us from going anywhere so who knows. I really liked the area it was quite peaceful. After running around the gardens we decided we were done for now and headed back to the MRT station. We swung into a little shop and got dinner. It was another skillet meal tat was fantastic and quite filling. The ride home I ended up on the train that was terminal the stop before where I needed to be so I took the bus the rest of the way home. It was actually amusing to me because I realize I now know all the buses I can take to get home. I have become one with the public bus system and now understand why they are a good convenient thing. Tomorrow I will have class for three days though I think Loashi is going to call it quits a day early. So possibly only two days for me, then I will sleep for a whole day probably. Alright Bed time, enjoy the picture of the grounds around the National Palace Museum!