Rick's Roadshow from Taipei, Taiwan continues with day two. I spent most of Monday on appointments and had limited time for sight seeing. I did, however get to visit the Taipei 101 landmark skyscraper building. With 101 floors above ground and 5 below ground, it set World Records in 2004 as follows: the structure's height is 508 meters, or 1,667 feet high. It boasts the tallest roof at 448 meters, and the tallest occupied floor at 438 meters. Guinness Records certified it as having the world's fastest elevator speed, moving at 1,010 meters per minute. If you just did the math in your head, then yes, you read that correctly, that does mean it goes from the bottom to the top in less than a minute! It has the world's biggest passive wind damper (see photo further below). The building foundation is fortified by 380 piles, going 80 meters into the ground and 30 meters into bedrock! It can sustain gale winds of 60 meters per second, and also the strongest earthquake on record for the past 2,500 years. It is quite attractive, with a sort of Asian Pagoda motif. Check out these ultra cool photos:
above: ground floor entrance to the building. I like the design.
above: I like the detail like this corner piece, its called a ruyi, an ancient symbol associated with heavenly cloud. They are found around the building from top to bottom.
above: inside the building, at the ground floor you can see these huge cushion supports, which are quite attractive, don't you think?
above: at the top there are these wonderful details, like this one.
above: view from top out and down. The gold roof is a building I posted yesterday, standing in from of it head on.
above: Still looking down from the top; I just liked the contrast of the green mountain sides with the city sprawl in the foothills.
above: standing in front of the Damper. It weighs 660 metric tons, has a diameter of 5.5 meters and was made of 41 layers of 13 cm thick solid steel plates. It cost a whopping $132 million. The giant gold vertical cables are on four sides keeping it balanced.
NOW FOR THE ULTRA FAST ELEVATOR VIDEO CLIP:
Sorry it was taken sideways, just turn your head to enjoy this quick clip. You will be looking at the screen inside the elevator showing the progress of the elevator as it moves back down from the top in about 40 seconds or so. Watch the orange dot int he center move down the middle of the building diagram.
Then onto Lunch....
above: I've been treated to some of the most delicious Chinese/Taiwanese food for the past two and a half days. I missed the name of this place but it has been in business since 1895.
above: when you walk in, these two chefs are busy preparing noodles, rice and other dishes right there before you eyes. It was pretty cool!
Tomorrow I leave Taiwan. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this stop. My business meetings were productive, and equally important I enhanced my business relationships while here. In addition to that, I feel enriched by a dose of Eastern philosophy from an important new friend. Regular readers know that I do not believe in coincidences in this life. I had the exceptional good fortune to spend some quality time with a very prominent, sage man, revered locally for his wisdom. After a private audience with him in his home, followed by a business dinner last night I feel as though I have received valuable life advice that will guide me for years to come. Tomorrow I am headed for yet another exciting destination, so please stop back again for Rick's Roadshow: Hong Kong. I look forward to bringing you lots of photos to share the experience.
-Rick Rockhill
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