Leaving chilly, rainy Taipei on a winter's day in December, and walking on Chungkang Road under clear skies with the sun lightly caressing your shoulders, it really does seem a little like the West Coast; clean-lined, soaring office blocks show that Taichung is eager to shake off its old image, dress up in contemporary style, and step on to the international cosmopolitan stage.
十二月初冬，離開陰冷多雨的台北，行在蔚藍晴空的中港路上，陽光輕輕灑落肩頭，的確有幾分神似美國西岸；沿路建築線條明快、高聳的辦公大樓，也顯示台中急欲洗脫古樸風貌，換上現代彩妝，躋身國際都會舞台的腳步。