Taichung

So, it's finally hitting me that I really have less than 4 months left in Taiwan, which means I'm suddenly in a big rush to actually see the island. First on my check list was Taichung, which many people know exclusively for it being the birthplace of bubble tea.

I was actually headed that way because of the museums. Someone told me that the Natural Science Museum is the place where progressive thinking in museum education happens in Taiwan, so I naturally (hehe... I'm so punny) had to go there. We took a road trip with one of the local English teachers and her adorable daughter and actually hit three museums in one day. Here are my thoughts on the museums:

Taichung Folklore Park... it was largely a relocated historical house museum with an underground exhibit area as well. I loved the site! It was smack dab in the middle of the city, but had really welcoming grounds that felt like insulation from the skyscrapers next door. Everything was minimally interpreted (in English or Chinese) so you probably had to come in knowing something about the culture. My favorite part was that besides holding traditional games in the exhibit cases (since they are valuable relics of the past) but they also had games laid out on tables to play with.


The Natural Science Museum was HUGE, as promised! They had a huge campus with lots of outdoor experiences that worked well in the beautiful weather that is apparently normal in Taichung. Since it was so huge, I decided to focus on the specifically Chinese parts of the museum, which focused on Chinese traditions and Chinese sciences. Interestingly, one of the key reasons for the Museum building this area was to supplement the Taiwanese public school curriculum! The museum was a little less interactive than the best science museums in the US, but seemed like it worked well for the visitors.

Chinglish in action: One of my favorite exhibit panels (for an exhibit on global warming).
It reads: "Love him, don't hot him!"

We also visited the National Museum of Art. It was pretty much entirely contemporary art, which isn't really my thing. But it had a killer gift shop. AND, they had a huge experience area for children. The map of it looked so cool. But they didn't let adults play without a little person. What the heck is that about--ageists.