11/20-24/09
Taiwan

Our flight problems continue when we arrive in San Francisco. We go through a long line to get to the security area entrance to be told we have to go all the way back to the China Air ticket counters to get a boarding pass as those issued to us by Delta aren’t acceptable. The security line is fairly long, but we eventually get through in time for the flight. Once we’re on the airplane, it’s a routine, smooth, nearly 14-hour flight to Taiwan. Having left just after midnight on the 20th and crossing the International Dateline, it is the 21st when we arrive. We are met by Hans Song, the Director of the Overseas Liaison Department, Veterans Affairs Commission, Republic of China. He escorts us through customs and immigration and for our entire visit. The Agora Garden Taipei Hotel will be home for our time here, and it is a beautiful hotel. My room looks out on the tallest building in the world, the 101 Building-so named because it has 101 floors. It will be reduced to the second tallest when the Dubai building is completed at the end of this year.

The day is rainy, cold and nasty, which pretty much describes the weather for the entire visit-it’s the rainy season. We do a quick change for the trip to the World War II/POW Allied Memorial to lay a wreath. The final road is narrow with many hairpin 180-degree turns, and we are frequently looking straight down into a valley. It is similar to tours I’ve taken in the French Alps, and to the final 130 miles to the north of Scotland and Liz’s hometown. After the wreath ceremony, we proceed to the Chuan Jii Temple at the top of this mountain. It is a very short visit to the temple, then we proceed to the Jade market, which entails going through a 10-mile tunnel, one of the longest in the world. The Jade market is a huge flea market, except it is Jade and has other expensive items here. Dinner is at the Mongolian BBQ, an all you can eat restaurant, which is exactly what we do.

Sunday begins with more shopping at a local mall type area. Lunch is at the Grand Hotel which was founded by Madame Chiang Kai-shek and built in an area called the Pond of the Sword. There are many tributes to the general and his wife in this hotel, and lunch is a superb Chinese meal. After lunch, we visit the Martyrs’ Shrine which is dedicated to those military and civilian heroes who lost their lives for the Republic. Their names are engraved in side buildings. We watch the changing of the guard, which is impressive. There are two guards at the front entrance to the area, then a huge courtyard leading to the shrine, which has two guards in front of the entrance. No one goes into the Shrine. A phalanx-shaped precession of five military personnel, ours is led by the Air Force with two Army and two Navy following, but it rotates between all the services. They stop about half way to the Shrine and perform a complicated manual of arms before proceeding to the Shrine. The turnover ritual between the two Army off-going and two Navy on-coming is complicated and done in slow motion. The phalanx then repeats the process back to the main gate where the two Army guards replace the two Air Force guards.

From there, we go to General Chiang Kai-shek’s residence and extensive gardens. No one goes into the residence, so we wander the gardens. They are maintained by the city and no entrance fee is collected, so a lot of people enjoy the gardens. We then have a pizza and beer night at a karaoke place. It is embarrassing how well everyone there sings compared to us. We mostly enjoy the show, as they sing everything from country and oldies to Chinese ballads. Our final stop is at the 101 Building, where we go to the observation deck on the 91st floor. They give you a recorder which tells you what you can see from each of the numbered stations around the building. The counterweight to prevent the building from swaying when the wind is high, which it frequently is, is an impressive piece of engineering. The sights would probably be more impressive in the daytime, as we can’t see any of the parks or gardens at night.

Monday the 23rd starts with a courtesy call on the Minister of the Veterans Affairs Commission, Tseng, Jing-Ling. They have a great video briefing on a huge screen with all the services they offer veterans. The picture that Hans had taken with me at the Louisville Convention is included in the show. Most of the VA facilities were built to accommodate the two million soldiers that accompanied Chiang Kai-shek from the mainland. They have largely died out, so they have more capacity than veterans and provide services to the public. They estimate that the hospitals serve 20 percent veterans and 80 percent public. Rita and I were both presented the Medal of Honor with Cravat and Certificate.

We next paid a courtesy call on Vice President Vincent Siew. He had both an Army and Navy two-star officer and too many one-star officers to count in the room for our visit. He gave a fairly lengthy review praising the close relationship between the United States and the Republic of China as well as the very close relationship with The American Legion and our strong support of the ROC. I had prepared about a five-minute speech about our relationship and our resolution of support. It was very well received both by the Vice President and the flag officers, many of whom were nodding their heads at various points in the speech.

Our final call was on the Minister of National Defense, Kao, Hua-chu. Again, he gave a summary speech about the importance of The American Legion’s support to ROC in keeping the support of the U.S. government strong. I presented him with the plaque that Fang Wong asked me to deliver, and hopefully that picture will be on the website. I have been carrying that plaque since my New York visit, and the piece of luggage it was in had been searched at every airport I’ve flown out of since I’ve been carrying it. I received a book of coins for every branch of their services, a MOD lapel pin and a freshly minted appreciation pin for the U.S. aid during the recent typhoon. He said they had just finished the pins, and we were the first to receive them as he pinned one on each of us.

We next visited the Taipei Veterans General Hospital and were greeted and briefed by the superintendant. We again watched an excellent video on the services they provide to veterans. We then went with a doctor who practices Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), and were given a primer in herbal medicines and acupuncture. Rita volunteered to try it on her knee and received one needle. Liz also volunteered for her shoulder. After 15 minutes, the needle was removed from Rita, and she said she did feel some relief in her knee. Liz’s needle was only in for about 5 minutes before we left and she didn’t feel any different.

Our last stop today was at the VA Ministry Building for a 12-course meal, which I described in a facebook entry. I didn’t recognize some of the food and couldn’t match it to the menu, but I ate it all and it was very good. They had little tiny thimble-like cups which they continuously used to toast anything and everything. We were drinking White Lightning, or as most of them referred to it: moonshine. I thought it tasted quite nice. This was an excellent meal and has set the standard for the rest of the trip.

Tuesday, we are packed and ready for the day’s flight. First, we stop at the Ba De Veterans Domiciliary, and have yet another excellent video briefing. We meet Irene Lee, a veteran and resident, who has lived here for 17 years and lost her husband a couple of years ago. She is also block captain where her room is. We also get our picture taken with an Air Force veteran who is wearing his coat and tie and invites us into his room. He has pictures of himself with PNC Bock and PNC Conatser posted, and I will soon join them. There are three buildings in this facility, and they take care of all the needs of the veterans. They provide entertainment & tours, game rooms, computer rooms and socializing opportunities. There are TVs in every room, and the food serving areas are popular gathering points.

Next it is time to say goodbye to Taiwan as we head for the airport and the Korean Air flight to Incheon for our visit to Korea.