[여행] 士林官邸 사림관저
장개석 부부가 대만에서의 말년을 함께 한 역사의 현장
Led by the enchanting blue sky, I kept on going.
Searched for something I have not visited around this area and recalled a place I saw on passing where Generalissimo Chiang Kai-Shek and his wife lived.
Can you believe this is the photo I took with an iPhone?
That's how deep and blue the sky was.
I got off the bus near Shilin MRT station.
Along the walk to the residence, I found a witty vintage shack with a painting "sneaking" inside with a antique bike parked in front.
Here I am. At the gate of the Shilin Residence of CKS.
I just love these palm trees. With such azure sky on the backdrop, it gives you all the fantasy of tropical south~!
Upon entering the premise, to your left, there is a parking lot of a Cadillac cedan used by the Chiangs.
You have to take a walk for about 5 minutes before getting to the actual residential building.
You can see nicely furbished gardens here and there.
The residence closed at 5pm and I arrived at like 16:30 so I hurried to inside.
Think the entrance fee was 100 NTD for adult and 50 NTD for student.
On the left dashboard, you can check the brief history of Taiwan's modern history.
Just by looking at this picture, I don't know whether I am in Florida or in Taiwan, maybe more so because of the western style house.
Unfortunately, you are not allowed to take any photo or talk on the phone inside. As I am a "law-abiding" person, I left it without any photographic memory... OTL
But inside, there are many tidy rooms where the Chiang couple used during their stay in Taiwan. Bedroom, reception room, study, etc.
After Generalissimo Chiang passed away, his wife, Song Mei-Ling lived here until she moved to USA.
Another charm of this place was the garden.
Imagine the Chiang couple making their morning stroll in this beautiful garden every day, pondering.
(But I guess Chiang was troubled by his unfinished agenda of taking the Chinese continent back from the Communists.)
There was a really old wooden shack where many plants are grown. It was more like a botanical garden.
The lush trees and the pond made the atmosphere surreal.
This must be a nice place to have a walk with your special one.
So many things to check out here...
English style garden
Rose garden (but too bad it wasn't the blooming season)
Then I decided to check out what's up there on the hill...
I was already all sweaty but heck, why not try after making all the way to here~! Right?
The hill is called Fushan (福山, literally means Lucky Mountain).
The view on the way up.
There was a nice looking terrace on top of the hill. This terrace called 慈雲亭 Purple Cloud Pavilion was built by Chiang in the memoir of his mother.
Nice and tidy bottom floor.
Upper balcony. The scene was somewhat shaded by overarching trees.
But it sure gave some great views.
You can see a bit of Shilin downtown.
The sky that day never disappointed me.
There is a place for holding an outdoor concert.
Are these the Chiang couple? Awww... how cute is that~ such a Taiwanese idea...haha
There was a cafe next to the main entrance which used to be a barrack for soldiers who guarded the premise.It is said that they sell some menus beloved by Mrs.Chiang but didn't try...
You thought I was done?!
No....
The sky is still young, ain't it?
Let me take you to another fabulous place to check out in this weather!
Follow follow me~!
