"昭和橋" VS Golden Gate Bridge

昭和橋 VS Golden Gate Bridge

光復橋 , a suspension bridge crossing the 新店溪 between 板橋 town
and 台北 City in Taiwan, used to be called 昭和橋 during the
Japanese occupation as it was built by the Japanese when "昭和" was
the emperor. It was supposed to be a smaller replica of Golden Gate
Bridge of San Francisco and had the same orange red color. It was
considered to be the most beautiful bridge ever been made in Taiwan.
The bridge was a great place for photo opportunities because of its
charming and graceful look. People who had seen it in their lifetime,
or who have the opportunity to see its old photo, would agree with
me.

It had narrowly escaped form the bombarding by the B29 of the
Allied Air Force during the World War II. The Japanese left the island
when the war was ended and its name was changed to "光復橋" .
In the 1950s, the bridge had a great need for repair due to its natural
wears and tears. The bridge was closed for renovation for several
months. During that period of time, I had to take ferry with my
bicycle crossing the 新店溪 to attend school, 建中, every school day
from the 板橋 side. Although it was very inconvenient, but it was a
unique experience though. On the small ferry boat, I could watch and
follow the renovation work of the bridge. The most impressive
memory of all was the very loud and sharp metal knocking or striking
sound, which could be also heard from mile away.

The original bridge had unfortunately required to be completely torn
down due to its limited carrying capacity and safety issue, and was
replaced with a brand new "modern" one in the 1970s. The image of
the original one, however, has forever imprinted in my mind. Every
time the image of old bridge came back to me, it would also bring
back the good old time, when my father used to take me there under
the bridge catching clams or fishing, or on the bridge watching the
Dragon Boat Contest during the 端午 festival.


Our classmate Y. M. recently posted a “palindrome” in our class
website :

上海自來水來自海上.

classmate D.J. responded by another one:

景美望日落日望美景.

then, I posted this one just for fun:

台北污染氣染污北台.

While I was recalling the 光復橋 story, I seemed to hear the metal
striking sound from the old bridge again.

And this one came along:

板橋打鐵工鐵打橋板


Yeh Tze