Parties on both sides of town

There are plenty of choices for people who want to count down the 20th century. But among the two government sponsored events that will be most prominent this year will be the parties organized by the Taipei City Government and the Central Government. There is a party at each end of town, one outside City Hall in Taipei's east district, and the other in the forecourt of the presidential palace in the old city.

The central government has drawn on the organizing talent of the Paper Windmill Cultural Foundation (紙風車文教基金會), which has put together a party designed to appeal to all age groups, with lots of activities to keep people occupied in seeing out the old and seeing in the new.

Special emphasis will be placed on children's activities, to which the Chang Kai-shek memorial plaza will be given over. Entertainment will include Taiwan's biggest maze. On the cultural front, Kaitakelan Blvd will be given over to fortune-tellers, a nod to the Chinese passion for knowing what fate has in store for a new year. In all, there will be over 40 stalls with different activities to choose from.

To encompass the diversity of modern Taiwanese culture, the south end of the Presidential Office forecourt will be given over to traditional style performance arts while the northern end will feature over four hours of dance music to allow young people to party. Both areas will have their stars, with important traditional acts such as the Ju Percussion Group (朱宗慶打擊樂團) and the Kuo Kuang Chinese Opera Company (國光劇團), representing cultural heritage, while the turntables to the north of the forecourt will be presided over by pop idol turned DJ Lin Chiang (林強), in a nod to youth culture.

Starting at 10pm a light and sound show will set off the main events of the evening. President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) will review a parade, the first time such a large scale review has been held at night -- with the aim of rivaling Macy's parade in New York.

For all the sound and fury, the highlight of the night will be the countdown to midnight, which will take place directly in front of the clock tower of the Presidential Office.

What: Presidential Office Plaza New Year countdown (總統府前迎接21世紀倒數計時晚會)

When: 10pm Dec. 31 to 12:30am, Jan. 1 (a fireworks display will be staged between 7pm and 7:30pm).

Where: Presidential Office Plaza (總統府), Kaitakelan Blvd. (凱達格蘭大道), Taipei Lodge (台北賓館), Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall (中正紀念館)