The Grand Hotel

Aubrey and I in front of the Grand Hotel



Inside the lobby of the Grand Hotel










The Golden Dragon Room at the Grand Hotel

The Grand Hotel is a Taipei landmark. It is featured in any photo or film about the city. I have never been there despite living here for two summers. When my sister came to visit, I made a reservation for us to have dim sum lunch there. It was a delicious splurge and definitely worth going to check out. The room has a beautiful view as the Hotel sits up on a high hill. I suspect there are actually more luxuriously comfortable places to spend the night in Taipei - the Grand Hotel seems a tad bit worn in the lobby - but none with such characteristically "imperial" decor.

Info about the Grand Hotel from Wiki:

The hotel was established in May, 1952 and the main building was completed in October 10, 1973. It is owned by the Duen-Mou Foundation of Taiwan, a non-profit organization, and has played host to many foreign dignitaries that have visited Taipei.

After Chiang Kai-shek's retreat to Taiwan in 1949, Chiang felt it was difficult to accommodate foreign ambassadors, as there weren't any five-star hotels in Taipei. Thus, he wanted to build an extravagant hotel to treat foreign guests. His wife Soong May-ling suggested to build it on the old Taiwan Hotel on Yuanshan Mountain, the site of the ruins of the Taiwan Grand Shrine, a Shinto shrine during the Japanese rule. Chiang decided on a Chinese palace-style architecture to promote Chinese culture to the West through its extravagance. Taipei-based architect Yang Cho-Cheng was responsible for the design of the new hotel.

The hotel was established in the May of 1952, but it was expanded several times before it became the landmark as it is known today. The Golden Dragon Pavilion and Golden Dragon Restaurant opened in 1956. In 1968, the hotel was rated as one of the world's top ten hotels by the US Fortune magazine. And finally, in the Double Tenth Day of 1973, the main Grand Hotel building was completed, making it an instant Taipei icon.

My sister and I also went to town called Wulai. It is up in the mountains and has a very tall and lovely waterfall. You can hike up to the waterfall; or take the "log train." Aubrey and I opted to take the tiny little train due to the hot weather. We walked down the mountain though. Later in the day we found the public hot spring which was ....interesting.



One of the most relaxing things to do in Taiwan is to get your hair shampooed at a salon. It costs about $5 US and lasts at least one full hour. First, someone massages your back, neck and arms. Then, they shampoo your hair for almost one half hour, massaging your scalp. It feels SO good. They pile your hair up on your head, slowly adding more soap and water until you end up with an enormous head of bubbles!