I'm continuing from my post on the celebration of western new year here in Taipei. If you didn't read that one already, you should do that first.
Now, allow me to show those last pics of Taipei 101 I promised before I go on.
)
)
)
)
)
Someone else decided to take a video of it instead of spamming snaps:
)
After the show, (and a little bit during too,) you could see Taipei 101 reading 2010 Taiwan UP. Well, gratz everyone.
)
And just minutes later, this happened. Around 10 minutes into 2010, up about 2 million people heads towards the MRT stations at once to get home and sleep.
You can also take a look at this video I took on it
)
I've never imagined this many people at one place in my life. It's a little scary, actually, but luckily they're keeping a good distance.
)
In Denmark it's like being in a war zone when the new year begins. You just can't see the sky for explosions. Or the ground for that matter. And there's this thick smoke that makes it impossible to see 5 meters away. Here there's barely anything. I saw just these fireworks and some kids playing with crackers once during the first 4 hours of 2010. I guess they're saving it for their own Chinese new year.
)
Getting around by car is impossible in this part of the city for a few hours, but at least it's not dangerous as driving on danish roads which will be covered by bombs at this time of the day.
)
Business is good for those who are willing to stay up at this time of the night. 1 am now.
)
Most of these people didn't drink anything since last year, so they're lining up for some quick hydration.
)
Despite the general dislike of sweet things, every phone or camera that's advertised in this corner of the world has some dessert name, such as chocolate, vanilla, strawberry icecream or whatever. Appareantly, the color of your cell phone is now more important than stuff like the camera's resolution or the phone company that you will be forced to go along with.
Which reminds me: Some months ago, I saw a CD for sale in a music shop with two different covers, and you know what? There were a ~30 NT$ difference! That's about 1 US$. (An album usually costs around 400 NT$ in total, if it's new and popular.)
)
No car is going through this place for a while, that's for sure.
)
Got a little hungry from watching all those people for so long, so went to eat my first meal of 2010: Irish potatoes. (They're some sort of french fries, but, as I took it, less greasy, which was good.
)
I just turned around to snap a view of the other people waiting for their Irish potatoes, and this other photographer unknowingly steals the entire focus. I mean, she even turned her head in accordance with my cameras angle.
)
Half an hour later and the big streets all look like this: Less people and lots of garbage. - Or rather - now you can see the road again.
)
Well, it's easier to clean up than used fireworks.
)
Still standing. Still 2010 Taiwan UP.
)
I love this camera.
)
It's not every day you can sit or lie down on a road in Taipei. Of course, pictures must be taken. A few moments later, some men with reflexes on (probably cleanup workers) came and waved them away with those blinking lightsaber thingies everyone working on a road has.
)
I mean: What had you expected? Of course the authorities all have lightsabers over here!
They should be carefull though. The guy hiding behind the couple to the right has a blue lightsaber too!
)
So over here is that nearby concert that you could see on a big screen at the party in the IBM office.
)
What an awesome location. Look at that traffic light pole sticking out in the middle of it all. I doubt that this is good for the feng shuei on the scene.
)
I love this style of photos. They could be sharper, but you can make out what is going on here and get the stuff that really matters: This strange metropolis-by-night feeling of everything being lit up that I've only seen on photos from Tokyo untill now.
)
At 2 am there's still a lot of people out and about.
)
The MRT is still heavily flooded. We didn't take that though. We went to have a look at the presidential office before we went home. Later on that day, about 6 am, the president would come out and raise a taiwanese flag, but I was going to Yang Ming Shan that day, so I went home to sleep instead of waiting another 3 hours.