#5 Taipei 101

I went to Taipei 101. It’s a skyscraper; it used to be the tallest building in the world until the opening of Burj Dubai 2 years ago. The whole area that surrounds Taipei 101 is now called 101 by the locals. It’s different than the rest of the city; it has wide boulevards and tall skyscrapers. I was told that the real estate in 101 is more expensive than anywhere else in Taipei city. Of course, there are many malls, department stores, movie theaters, restaurants and bookstores. Every department store has information desk and you will see the girls who work at the information desk wear pink. I asked one of the girls if I could take her picture and she said they are not allowed. I went across the street and asked the 2 girls you see in the picture, they didn’t speak English. They called someone on the phone who translated to them my request. Of course, they were laughing because they don’t understand why would someone want to take a picture of them, it’s what they do every day 🙂
It’s something worth mentioning, that people here will go out of their way to try to assist you, even when they can’t speak English. I took a taxi when I first arrived and the driver didn’t speak English, so he called his friend and handed me the phone to talk to his friend and I handed him back so he could translate my request. I am really impressed with the friendliness of the people in Taiwan, it’s just outstanding.
On my way to 101, I didn’t take the subway (or as it’s called here the MRT), so I took the city bus and to my surprise they have free internet access on the bus.