Taipei Botanical Garden

The Botanical Garden is a secluded and quiet spot in the middle of the hustle and bustle of Taipei. Students go there regularly for art lessons and adults for a stroll or some other form of exercise in the fresh air. Established in 1894, the garden is one of the oldest public facilities in Taipei. Today, the garden, occupying an area of some eight hectares and run by the Forestry Research Institute of the Taiwan Provincial Government, contains more than 1,400 species of trees, palms and shrubs belonging to the tropical, sub-tropical and temperate zones. The institute has eight departments engaged in research on plant classification and ecology; economic value of plants and breeding techniques; plant marketing; flood prevention; timber processing and plywood manufacturing; chemical make-up of plants and their economic value; paper manufacturing skills; and promotion of planting. The institute exchanges seeds with other countries, or with tourists visiting Taiwan, but does not engage in sales. Visitors to the garden can find greenhouses full of tropical plants and flowers, while in summer months, the beautiful red lotuses are in bloom.

Located within the botanical garden is the "Nanhai Hsueh Yuan" or "Cultural Garden on Nanhai Road," consisting of a cluster of buildings in handsome traditional Chinese architectural style. Here, artists, men of letters and students gather all the year round. The buildings house free China's largest library, a museum and other cultural establishments. The National Central Library contains about one million titles in many languages. Its reading rooms are nearly always crowded with students and scholars. The nearby National Museum of History is the second largest of its kind in the Republic of China, after the National Palace Museum. It contains tens of thousands of cultural treasures from ancient China, while its collection of coins surpasses that even in the National Palace Museum. It also has a gallery for regular exhibitions of paintings.

The most architecturally impressive building in the complex is the Taiwan Science Hall, which is based on a circular building located in Peiping. The design of the hall allows visitors to have an unobstructed view of the many science exhibitions held there. The Taiwan Arts Hall next door is home for dozens of art associations and includes a small theater for staging concerts and dramatic performances. Sometimes, visitors are lucky enough to receive free lessons from one of the famous artists who often frequent the buildings.

Also located in the garden is the Plant Specimens Hall which displays some 6,500 species.