Heat was coming off the road in waves; oddly, you can feel it most when a slight breeze kicks up. Luckily I didn’t have to wait long for the 235 to show up on An He and transport me along Heping road to Daan Forest, a green slice of botanical planning. I walk through the “forest” and watch groups of people practice martial arts under the the cool of the trees, families bicycling along the packed clay paths, and one lady playing a haunting melody on her flute, under a gazebo. When I reach Xinyi I realize I’ve gone too far and haven’t seen the library (too-shoe-gwahn). But I have discovered the Flower Market! (I’ll go there later; now I’m focused on finding the library.)
I ask one of the policemen directing walkers across the busy streets. He points back the way I’ve come, on the other side of Jiangao. I’m feeling the heat and humidity descend now, wishing I’d brought a bottle of water. I’m not sure what the library’s address is exactly but I figure it should be easily visible – it’s the main one after all. And there it is, all 11 floors of it. I go inside, present my ARC and within a few minutes receive my very own card. Now to check out the books….
The entrance to Taipei's Main Library
On 4F there is one section of books in English, mainly non-fiction (I select a macaron cookbook, despite not having an actual kitchen) but there are a smattering of fiction options as well. One consideration: anything I select must be lugged around so I pick our several paperbacks and go up to 8F to check out the movies. Maybe I was looking in the wrong area but I found nothing of interest. Oh well, it’s hot inside and I still want to make it back to the flower market…
Asia's best kept secret... 