Exploration Group

The WTIC Exploration Group is a fun way to explore and learn about the many sights, sounds and people of Taipei. Together we learn more about the culture and history of this vibrant and exciting city.

Long time residents and newcomers alike, enjoy spending time exploring old favorites and newly discovered hidden treasures together. The efficient and comprehensive subway system makes traveling to unique and hidden gems throughout the city convenient and easy.

Our trips this year were diverse, learning about organic farming, the railways of Taiwan, the first Presidential Library in Taiwan, and a beautiful old Taiwanese farmhouse, a reminder of Taiwan’s agrarian history. We ended the year touring the underground tunnels of the iconic Grand Hotel.

~Martin’s Organic Strawberry Farm~

This past year, 2022, the Exploration Group began with a trip to Martin’s organic strawberry farm in the hills of Neihu. The weather was chilly, best for sweet delicious strawberries. We all enjoyed picking strawberries off the vines in the greenhouses, even new white strawberries.

Organic strawberries are sweet, with a thin delicate skin, perfect for a special treat for family and friends. Martin also produces organic turnips, so we tried making traditional Taiwanese turnip cakes, a first-time effort for most of us.

~National Taiwan Museum at Railway Department Park~

Our visit to the National Taiwan Museum at Railway Department Park, showed us how Railways have played a crucial role in the modernization of Taiwan. The renovation of the Moriyama Matsunosuke designed building gave us a glimpse of the golden age of rail travel and an appreciation for how it improved the lives of so many in rural Taiwan.

~Ching-Kuo Chi-Hai Cultural Park~

In the spring, we had the privilege of visiting the Chiang Ching Kuo Presidential Library and Cultural Park. Foundation President Fredrick Chien hosted us in the second floor Academic Library, sharing the history, vision and purpose of this magnificent library. Scholarly exchanges with academic institutions around the world help share the Taiwan experience in the twentieth Century. The Cultural Park also houses the private home President Chiang shared with his family. Left as it was, it is now a museum and a monument to his legacy.