National 228 Memorial Museum

There's a recent review that says they have added English throughout, as of a few weeks ago. This is not true, and I think that reviewer confused this place for something at the 228 Peace Park. There's very little English text, just a pamphlet and the option to do audio via QR code. So I could only look at pictures, and an English book I found in a little library nook. The building is nice though.

As an independent thinker, that museum provides a different side of fact to understand Taiwan History objectively📖Coincidentally there’s a walking tour today, perhaps an individual group by volunteers, who are passionate about an absolutely freedom but can be extremely difficult to achieve it, at least not in reality under any superpowers’ interests!

Great exhibition to understand the way to todays Taiwanese democracy and freedoms. Should be on your list if you want to learn more about the multiple suffering of Taiwanese democracy activists and regular citizens, the wrongdoings and horrific actions and killings by Kuomintang (KMT) Party members, as well as the struggle and the devotion of so many great individuals for real peace and freedom in Taiwan.

Big fan of museums when visiting another country. While I’m looking forward to understand the history of Taiwan, unfortunately, there is not much English translation. 80% of the explanation is in chinese. Fortunately, there’s this booklet at the entrance that sums up everything in English. Much respect to the people who fought their way to freedom.

I visited this place during a school class on transitional justice in Taiwan. It’s a great spot to learn about Taiwan’s history during the KMT era and the start of the martial law period. The venue itself has an interesting past—it used to be a U.S. building, then passed through several authorities, and now it’s been turned into a museum. The exhibition covers the history of the event, including the victims who died or disappeared. It’s a bit tragic, but you definitely come away having learned something important. They also host special exhibitions every few months, featuring art, painting, and human rights films, which keeps things fresh. If someone is visiting Taiwan and wants to understand its history, this is definitely one of the places to check out. Even though the museum is small, it’s worth a stop if you’re in the area. The 228 incident and martial law era played a major role in shaping the Taiwan we know today. Downside—there’s not much English translation, so it might be a bit challenging for non-Mandarin speakers.

I only took a brief visit for collecting stamps. Wish I had more time to take a look and learn more about the 228 event. But the place is peaceful, quiet and beautiful.

Originally, we didn’t really want to visit it because we thought that this museum may have exhibitions full of sad stories of memories. The good thing is that the building itself has so much to say because it’s also well-maintained and the interior design is elegant and slight feeling of grandeur. At the time of our visit, one of the exhibitions is for the paintings of a famous artist who is also a victim of the 228 event. In general, visitors can finish their visit in around an hour, and it’s free for no tickets are required.

If you want to know recent history (~ last 100 years) that shaped Taiwan, this is the place. Out of all the museums I went to, this one felt the most significant (and interesting), and it helped frame how important independence and democracy is to the Taiwanese people. *NOTE: The museum reopened 2 weeks ago and now they have English translations alongside all the displays. (Previous reviews mentioned needing audio guides - that is no longer the case). Enjoy your visit!