Flavorwire named the Beitou Branch of Taipei Public Library one of the most beautiful libraries in the world a couple of years ago. It's also well-known for being extremely eco-friendly, in terms of the building materials (mostly wood, glass, and recycled materials), as well as energy and resource efficiency (uses solar energy, and is also designed so that recycled rainwater flushes the toilets!).
Here's a shot of it during the day (a very overcast day, but):
And here's a shot of it in the evening (it cleared up):
The inside looks really cool too, especially the sinks. Wish I had gotten a picture...
And now let's take a look at the Lanyang Musem in Yilan County. I'm not exactly sure if the museum features cedar tree forest exhibitions all the time, but definitely when I was there. (Okay, I looked into it, and I think it generally just covers the history/geography of the area.) There were three stories dedicated just to the ecology, foresting, logging and history of the cedar trees of the area.
I couldn't even tell what it was when we drove up to it; the building is much lower than the road, so you just see the roof peak out a bit. Anyway, both the building itself and the surrounding area are gorgeous.
The building looks like it's sinking unevenly into the lake, like the other tiny islands barely rising out of the water.
And here's a couple of more shots.
I guess I really liked this side of the building...
Hah, this time I got a shot from inside. Dunno how I managed to get a picture without anyone in it, but alright. giggidy
Mmkay hope you guys liked it, and if you did, upvote and follow, goodnight!