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ABOUT TAIWAN
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currency in Taiwan is
the NEW TAIWAN DOLLARS. The exchange
rate is currently around NTD 30 to USD 1.00 and
is subject to change. |
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| Hotels,
department stores, airlines and major restaurants accept major credit
cards as the rest of the world. Elsewhere such as small food stands
in night markets and small mom-&-pop shops would prefer to use
cash. |
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| In
Taiwan, electricity is 110 volts, 60 cycles throughout the island.
International hotels usually have 240 volt outlets for shavers. |
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| Business
attire is standard for business meetings
in Taiwan . Casual lightweight clothing is acceptable
in the warmer months. From November to April, warmer clothes will
be needed and it is a good idea to bring a raincoat an umbrella. |
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| Banks
open from 9am~3:30 pm Monday to Friday. Close on Saturdays,
Sundays and National Holidays. Guests can exchange their foreign
currency (major currencies) in banks, most of the hotel cashier
and airport. |
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| Most
shops, department stores open from 10am till 10pm, seven days a
week. Offices open from 8:30 am (or 9am) till 5:30 pm with
a mid-day break 12:00-13:30 (mostly), Monday through Friday.
Closes on Saturdays, Sundays and National Holidays. |
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| The
climate is sub-tropical with hot, humid summers when daytime temperatures
range from 27 degree to 35 degrees C ( 80.6 to
95 degrees F ). In spring and autumn, the temperature is more pleasant.
However, it does cool down during the winter. |
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| As
Taiwan is located at the crossroad of some of Asia's most busy air
routes, travel to and from the island is easy and convenient.
Taiwan is served by Airlines from Asia, Europe, Oceania and North
America, including two locally own airlines, the China Airlines
and the Eva Airways. The island has two international airports.
One at Kaohsiung in the south and the other is at Taoyuan in the
north. Chiang Kai-shek International Airport at Taoyuan
is 40 KM (24.8 miles) southwest to Taipei. The trip to Taipei
takes about 50 minutes from the Taoyuan International Airport, depending
on traffic.
International
airlines serving Taiwan include-Eva Airways, China Airlines, Canadian
Airlines International, Cathay Pacific Airways, Japan Asia Airways,
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Malaysian Airlines System, Northwest
Airlines, Philippine Airlines, Singapore Airlines, Thai Airways,
United Airlines and many more. Eight domestic airlines currently
provide daily flights between Taipei and other major cities, as
well as to nearby Green and Orchid islands and the Penghu Archipelago.
Passengers are required to show passports to board domestic flights. |
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| Visas
are required to enter Taiwan, and can be
obtained from ROC embassies, consulates, or designated
representative offices in visitors’ native countries. Citizens of
the following countries holding passport valid for at least six
months without visa and stay for at most 30 days. They
are : Austria, USA, Japan, Canada,
Great Britain, France, Germany, Holland, Belgium, Luxembourg, Australia,
Norway, Malaysia, Malta, Monaco, Portugal, Singapore, Spain, Sweden,
Switzerland and New Zealand.
Citizens
for the following countries holding passport valid for 6 months
may apply visa to stay for 30 days upon arrival at the C.K.S.
Airport, Taoyuan, Hsiaokang International Airport, Kaohsiung,
Keelung and Kaohsiung Harbour. They are: Czech Republic,
Hungary, Poland.
Citizens
for the following countries holding Diplomat passport valid for
6 months may enter without visa and stay for 90 days. They
are: Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala. |
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| Taiwan
is an island of 13,855 square miles lying off the southern coast
of Mainland China. It is separated from the province of Fukien by
the Taiwan Strait which ranges from 90-120 miles in width. Taiwan
island is 255 miles north of the Philippines and 665 miles south
of Japan. It is crossed in the south by the Tropic of Cancer. In
addition, there are 64 islands of the Penghu (or Pescadores) with
an area of about 50 square miles and 13 other islands. Kinmen (Quemoy)
island measures 60 square miles while Matsu consists of 10 square
miles. |
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1
. Chinese New Year
Chinese or Lunar
New Year is the longest and most
important festival in Taiwan. Preparations begin well inadvance,
when people purchase food and new clothing, visit the barber, thoroughly
clean house, and pay off the year's debts. In the weeks leading
up to New Year's Eve, a holiday atmosphere
is evident on city streets as people scurry
about purchasing snacks, candy, and colorful
decorations which have auspicious meanings.
After a family reunion and banquet, the
new year is ushered in with the thunderous roar of exploding firecrackers
and screaming rockets. This cacophony continues until after dawn,
and them sporadically on the following days.
2 . Lantern Festival
The people of ancient China believed
that celestial spirits could be seen flying about in the light of
the first full moon of the new lunar year. Over time, their torch-lit
search for these spirits evolved into the Lantern Festival, now
celebrated in temples and parks with colorful lanterns.
3 . Dragon Boat Festival
The legend behind the colorful Dragon
Boat Festival concerns a famous Chinese poet named Chu Yuan, who
lived during the Warring States period (403-221 BC). A loyal court
official, he was discredited by rivals and lost the trust of his
king. Unable to regain the king’s favor, the despondent poet drowned
himself on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month in the year 277
BC.
The common people who lived in the area respected the exiled official
so much that they jumped into their boats and rushed out to save
Chu Yuan. The annual Dragon Boat Festival commemorates this unsuccessful
rescue attempt.
4 . Moon
Festival
The Moon or Mid-Autumn Festival, on
the 15th day of the eighth lunar month, observes the biggest and
brightest full moon of the year, the harvest moon.
The Moon Festival can be traced back to the legend of Hou Yih, an
expert architect who built a palace of jade for the Goddess of the
Western Heaven. In reward, she gave him a pill with the elixir of
immortality, warning him not to take it until he had fulfilled certain
conditions. Hou Yih’s ever-curious wife, Chang O, found the pill
and promptly swallowed it. As punishment, she was banished to the
moon where, according to tradition, her beauty is at its most radiant
on the day of the Moon Festival.
The festival is a public holiday marked by family reunions, moon
gazing, and eating moon cakes-round pastries stuffed with red bean
paste and an egg yolk, or fruits and preserves.
Moon cakes are frequently given to friends and relatives, and this
widespread custom helped launch a revolution in ancient China. The
Mongols, alien conquerors, established the Yuan dynasty (1279-1368
A.D.) to rule over a weak and divided China. A warrior named Chu
–chang decided to free his of rebelion and had copies placed inside
moon cakes, and in this way led a popular uprising that overthrew
the invaders.
Visitors in Taipei during the moon festival can join hundreds of
other moon-gazers at the Chiang Kai-Shek or Sun Yat-sen Memorials,
as well as at the city’s larger parks such as Yangmingshan, and
Youth Park. |
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Golden
Foundation Tours Corp.
Tel: 886-2-2773-3266
Fax: 886-2-
2772-3449
Address: 5/F, 142 Chung Hsiao E. Road, Sec. 4, Taipei,Taiwan.
ROC
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