So we woke up at around 6.30am the following day, and after having our breakfast at the hotel cafe, we waited at the lobby because we were going for a city tour together with a few other tourists from various tour groups as well (we were all going F&E). There was about twenty of us altogether, and the good thing was the agent had assigned a tour guide for the city tour so that means he would introduce us to some places and explain the history of the places as we moved along.
This was the bus we took for the city tour. (My daughter and I were both wearing pink that day, hehe.)
Our first stop - Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall (国立中正纪念堂). It is erected in memory of Chiang Kai-shek, former President of the Republic of China in Taiwan. 
This is the front entrance of Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall.
The Memorial Hall. Such a majestic view!
Our next stop - Jiufen (九份). We actually have to hop onto another smaller bus to get to this place because it is a mountain town and the routes are narrow and there are slopes. This is the view we took from the top.
You will be suprised to see there are lots of shops in this little town. It is one of the tourist attractions but it was too bad that we were only given an hour to shop at this place. I bought a few souvenirs and some local products (i.e. mango jelly & some local pastries).
After lunch, our next stop was Martyrs Shrine (忠烈祠) where we learnt more about its history, and the heroes who sacrificed their lives to the revolution before the establishment of the Republic of China and who fell during the Sino-Japanese war and the Chinese Civil war are worshipped here. As a respect, hats and/or sandals are not allowed to be worn here.
I was impressed with these military police officers. A few of them could be seen guarding the gate and they were like expressionless statues. They were 'oblivious' to their surroundings and no matter how the tourists teased them, they remained stonelike.
Our next stop was the National Palace Museum (国立故宫博物院). Over here we got to see collections of Chinese artifacts and artworks.
An overview of the National Palace Museum.
Rows of banners with Chinese characters are hung from the glass ceilings. I view them as another form of art. ;-) After this visit, it was our free time. We visited Ximending again and had our dinner before we returned to the hotel. End of Day 2. To be continued...
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Ah yes, I think I saw PINK! Another round of interesting photos. Great shots!
Glad to know you're enjoying your trip, Melody! :D
Hmmm we only get to see the "half" pictures of ...your back! ugh! LOL
Love seeing the pictures and I think the place you've seen are really stand out. Love the chinese characters that are hung on glass ceilings. :)
Can't wait to read day 3 of the trip :)
Thanks Alice! I really enjoyed the trip and don't mind visiting again. :)
Hey Julia! At least seeing "half" of my back isn't that bad, hehe...
Thanks for reading, as usual! ;)
Oh Melody, these photos are fabulous! I'm so jealous...it looks like such an incredible vacation!
Thanks, Debi!
I told my husband that I don't mind visiting again in future, hehe.
I have been enjoying reliving your trip through your photos, Melody. I am glad you had such a good time. :-)
Thanks, Wendy! :) I'm already looking forward to visiting Taipei again, hehe.