Tilted postboxes become tourist attraction after Typhoon Soudelor

Two postboxes in Taipei have unexpectedly become a hit among tourists and locals after a signboard blown by Typhoon Soudelor bent them into unique shapes over the weekend.

Visitors have flocked downtown to take photos with the postboxes -- one red and the other green -- which they said resemble two people standing shoulder to shoulder while leaning toward the same direction.

Photos of the two boxes immediately went viral on the Internet, attracting hundreds of people to the site over the past two days.

Early in the morning, a young couple from the Chinese mainland took a taxi directly to Longjiang Road where the postboxes are installed.

"It is definitely the hottest tourist destination other than the Taipei 101 Skyscraper or any parks in Taipei," said the husband surnamed Chen.

Mrs. Tsai, a local resident who lives a block away, was one of 20 people waiting to take photos with the boxes.

"My friends told me about it and I did not hesitate to bring my daughter here, to see them as a reminder of the damage inflicted by the recent typhoon," she said.

An Internet user under the name "Max" wrote "they are just so cute and healing, especially after a devastating typhoon that took a toll on all of us."

Yang Chen-kuei, an employee from Chunghwa Post Co., which owns the postboxes, was dressed in his uniform and took photos with tourists while protecting the boxes from further damage.

Two of his colleagues were also busy taking photos for tourists and maintaining order. They took a six-hour shift as arranged by their company.

"The two mailboxes will be kept as they are, and the post office plans to strengthen their supporting bases and turn the site into a tourist attraction with an information board to their side," Yang said.

Chairman of the company Philip Ong said in an earlier interview that the postboxes would continue to be used and the company would consider designing related memorabilia in the future. Endi