Office of the President Republic of China (Taiwan)
We had been debating whether we should go to the Office of the President Republic of China (Taiwan) or not because we didn't know what to expect. In the end, we were so glad that we went. There were English tours and the tour guide was knowledgeable and engaging. She talked about the history of the building, including little details, like the red exterior bricks, and the height of the doorknobs (apparently, Japanese want people to bow when they reach the doorknob, so they installed it a bit lower than usual). From her presentation, we could tell that she was passionate about the country and wanted to share this passion with the rest of us.
From there, I also learned that Taiwan had only begun universal suffrage in the 1990s. In fact, they were under martial law for 38 years until 1987. This was a huge surprise for me because I always thought that Taiwan's democracy had a much longer history.
Overall, we learned about not just the building itself but also the political development in Taiwan. I would highly recommend taking the time to visit this place.
Today was our last day in Taiwan. We would be flying to Hong Kong in the evening.