Taroko Gorge, Hualien, Taiwan

Taroko Gorge is located on the eastern coast of Taiwan, about 4 hours drive from the capital Taipei. Taroko has the largest marble gorge in the world. After Taipei, this is the most visited site in Taiwan.

The Park is 36 kilometres from north to south and 42 kilometres from east to west. The park has many high mountains and steep gorges, with many peaks towering above 3,000 metres in height, and with many natural watersheds.



The spectacular Taroko Gorge and the scenic beauty of the Liwu River can be viewed conveniently from the Central Cross-Island Highway. The many waterfalls, diverse forms of plant and animal life, and the indigenous Taroko people, together create the rich texture of this unique natural ecosystem.

The Taroko Gorge is basically the 20km stretch of the Cross Island Highway between Taroko National Park HQ and Tiansiang. The narrowest and most amazing parts of the gorge are at the Swallow's Grotto and Tunnel of Nine Turns. The Eternal Spring Shrine was built to commemorate the 212 workers who lost their lives building the cross island highway. The names of the workers are inscribed in rock on the inside of the shrine.

Adequate Taxis in Taipei

There are plenty of taxis in Taipei. It is easy to get a taxi within 1 minute. The supply is more than adequate to meet demand. The service is excellent.

The taxi fares are at the right level. They are 4 to 8 times of public transport. They are not cheap, but not expensive either.

The taxi drivers work hard to meet their operating expenses and to earn a net income. There seem to be enough people willing to drive a taxi. This ensures that there is a correct balance of supply and demand. It is an excellent source of meaningful work for unemployed people.

The excellent public tranport and taxi service in Taipei probably make it less necessary for the city dwellers to own a private car.

The regulated taxi system in Taipei seems to work extremely well, in getting an efficient system that serves the commuters and taxi drivers well.

Perhaps it is time for Singapore to learn from the experience of Taipei in managing their public transport and taxi service?

Technique to solve Logic Quiz

Try this quiz during the new year holidays.

The original quiz is purported to be created by Einstein. Only 2% of the population could solve it. Most visitors to my blog (like you) probably belong to the 2%.

You can read the quiz in this webpage:
http://www.tankinlian.com/quiz/index.html

Click on "Technique" at the bottom of that page, to learn the steps on how to solve the quiz.
http://www.tankinlian.com/quiz/solution.html

There you are. You now belong to the 2%.

After that, you can try more quizzes here:
http://www.tankinlian.com/logicquiz/

Cost and benefit of health insurance

Dr. Money gives a few practical advice regarding your health insurance. He teaches you how to measure the cost and benefit and make the right choice.

http://newpaper.asia1.com.sg/columnists/story/0,4136,142914,00.html?

More articles from Dr. Money

http://www.tankinlian.com/drmoney/

Existing life insurance policies

Dear Mr. Tan,

I have just retired. I am not sure if I should continue to pay the premium on my current life insurance policies, especially those that require me to pay for the whole of life. I can afford to pay the premium, but I am not sure if the return is worth while. What is your advice to me?

REPLY

If you are able to continue to pay the premium, you can look at the return on your existing policies over the next 5 or 10 years. If the return is higher than other types of investment, then you can continue these policies.

Read this FAQ:

http://www.tankinlian.com/faq/exist.html

Difficult to get a taxi in Singapore

My friend in Taiwan told me that he found it difficult to get a taxi when he was in Singapore. He said politely, "Perhaps Singapore's economy is doing well, that everyone wants to take a taxi."

My first trip on Taipei MRT

I took my first trip on the Taipei MRT today. I bought a stored value ticket for NT 500 (SGD 25). The deposit is NT 100 and the stored value is NT 400.

A trip of up to 6 stops cost NT 20 ($1) cash, NT 16 ($0.80) on the stored value card. The train is not crowded. I was able to get a seat on the forward and return journey.

The experience is better than Singapore MRT. Taipei MRT has received the No 1 award for reliability, safety and quality standards.