Jun-ChengYi-EnSi-NingChi-HengHsuan-Wei Wen-HanYu-TungHsuan-ChungYu-Ting　 Instructors & Parents

by Jun-Cheng Lee
During the summer to winter of 2005, my classmates and I explored Taipei 101. Together, we climbed up to the tallest peak in the world.
My house is right next to Taipei 101. My dad once took me there when it was still an empty parking lot; I was only 3 years old at the time. It was not till I attended elementary school that I realized Taipei 101 is the world’s tallest building.

I like computers and the Internet thus my parents decided to talk to my school instructor and help kids do something meaningful with the computers. We invited classmates who shared a common interest and spent 6 months to get to know Taipei 101 in order to introduce it to the public.

Ever since I was little, I have always been a shy and reserved person. Thus my classmates picked me for the group leader so that I got to take on more responsibilities. The project has been a huge challenge for me from the beginning when Si-Ning and I was assigned the tasks to interview foreign visitors near the Taipei 101 building. At first, we did not even know how to begin. Thanks to the friendliness of these foreigners, we were able to gain confidence in ourselves.

For the past 6 months, each student has at least come into some contact with more than 100 people, including strangers, businesses or employees. We were all determined to complete this project. Rejections during the interview process were inevitable. However, thanks to the arrangements made by teachers and parents, we even got to interview Mr. Chung-Ping Wang, a world-renowned architect, Mr. Hong-Ming Lin, president of Taipei Financial Center Corp., Ms. Diana Chen, chairwoman of the Taipei Financial Center, Mr. Dou-Sheng Chen, president of Sino Geotechnology Inc., Mr. Wen Shieh, PR manager of Taipei 101 Mall, and Mr. Ying-Jeou Ma, mayor of Taipei City. We also interviewed President Chen Shui-Bian and Taipei City Government via e-mail.

In addition, we interviewed more than 100 stores. What is worth mentioning is that we were able to distribute duties among ourselves and overcome all difficulties to interview supermarkets, bookstores, toy stores, gift shops, etc. On October 10th, we all attended the food fair held at Taipei 101. I tried Southeast Asian food without knowing any allergic reaction to its ingredients. As a result, my eyes were all swollen like a frog; I was taken to the emergency at the hospital and returned to Taipei 101 afterward. To me, this was the most memorable experience I have ever had.

In order to interview Chairwoman Diana Chen, we even participated in the Taipei 101 Climbing Competition. Although I was too young to participate, my father spent a lot of time training his endurance and successfully climbed Taipei 101.

In order to cultivate team tacit coordination and interview Mayor Ma, we participated in the online instant messaging contest of the frontline support competition. Though we did not win the $50,000 reward, Wen-Han Wang completed the mission to interview Mayor Ma in the shortest time frame.

I would like to thank all the teachers and classmates, the parents that accompanied us along the way, and my mischievous little brother, Jun-Hong Li. I hope this Taipei 101 research project will not only win honor for our Ren Ai Elementary School but also allow more foreigners to know the pride of the Taipei City.