I guess a family pic with the Taipei101 building is a good enough pic to start.
Here I am pretending to be standing next to the damper ball, a unique active feature which helps earthquake proof the Taipei101 building. I’m actually posing next to a picture of the ball since I was too cheap to go up and actually see it.
Soooo, we’re gone for roughly two weeks and the main reason we’re visiting Taiwan is to try out a summer Chinese language program for the boys. We’ve visited China a few times and although I studied Chinese history in college this would be my first time to Taiwan.
What did we do? We stayed almost entirely in Taipei. We made a few day trips out but not too far. We ate a whole lot everywhere we went. We did a few cooking classes and went to many major sites- Changkaishek Memorial, National Museum were the big ones. There was lots to fill in also. We went to a few animal cafes. The most adventurous thing I tried was choudofu (stinky tofu). It was terrible. I’m not gonna lie.
8 hrs on JAL. Sky Royal. For those who fly economy but want to drink like royalty. Sky Time peach and grape mix and sparkling wine.
The JAL service is really great. The flight attendants are all patient and good natured. Pax was asleep when our meal first came around. I was going to leave it in front of him as he slept but they said they’ll take his order now and bring it later! Add one Woodley on ice, please.
Compression socks made me feel sporty. Don’t know if they helped me adjust or not.
Here are my expectations of Taiwan…China-like but more trustworthy. (It ended up being SUCH a safe and trustworthy place to visit.) Hopefully affordable food and activities (It was cheaper but not dirt cheap.) And hoping for excellent public transportation. (Yes!) Let’s see! (In the end I think one of the real values was that I never felt gouged or taken advantage of. The people I came across were very honest.)
We landed at roughly 8pm 8/1 Thursday. Not much that can be squeezed in what’s left of today.
The humidity and heat were so thick stepping out of the airport.
After 2 failed Uber drives due to not knowing how a Taiwanese address should look, we finally ended up in our air b and b.
8/2 Friday
Up at 5am on our first day. Hello time difference!
Off to the 7/11 and Carrefour while the kids sleep to get some necessities.
2 fast food tea eggs (really good) and then MRT cards at a nearby Family Mart. I think of these as the Taiwanese version of SPAM Musubi. Check out these cool cards. 120twd/4usd non refundable deposit each.
After laying around soaking up the AC in our room we headed out to a restaurant called Kao Chi for a brunch of Xiao long bao, SJB, lobakgou and a braised pork and bun dish that I decided I would easily make my last meal if I needed to choose one. This place was a 20 minute bus ride from home.
We walked to Syntrend-an “expansive mall for gadgets and electronics.” The entire area was kind of like the Tokyo electronics district of Akibahara but smaller and no maid cafes to make you feel like a creep.
We found this little alleyway of food next to Syntrend. Almost got boba there but then it turns out that TenRen is in the basement of the Syntrend building. June and I used to frequent that place in Waikiki before boba was hipster. Wow most of the milk tea in Taipei are around 2 bucks US.
This place is 6 floors of stuff I’m mostly not interested in. Well maybe it’s too early to say. Gaming equipment, home electronics, massage chairs, a place like Tokyu Hands (Japan), A/V stuff. The 6th floor is what I was expecting with a Nintendo section and lots of game related figurines and console stuff. Neat for the kids but meh for me.
First day and still going…
We’re continuing our bus adventure to the Kitten Coffee Garden, a cat cafe. Apparently it’s the oldest recorded cat cafe lol. So you have them to thank for the animal cafe craze!
We just missed the bus for the Tianmu flea market and would have had to wait 30 minutes for the next one so we decided to walk over to the Shilin Night market instead.
When we arrived it was apparent we were way too early as most stalls were still closed or had just started opening up. I guess the term night market is literal.
We wandered into a shoe place where Pax bought some Taiwanese sneakers for around 30usd, then we got some crack (preserved) seed and tanghulu. Turns out the shoe place was one I actually looked up online. Made in Taiwan. No hiding it lol. (As it turns out, Taiwanese items aren’t the cheap items they used to be in the ’80s)
Here’s an Oreo shave ice for around three bucks US.
…and here’s a large noodles with cucumber, pickled veggies and a peanut sesame sauce for 70 ntd for the large bowl which ended up being a little more than 2 dollars. The little stall was called Good Friend Cold Noodle. They were so good that we got another small. This time no spice for hud. The layout and food in the night markets may not look like much but some of these dirty looking places are Michelin rated, Michelin mentioned, Michelin something-ed.
Then we got in line for SJB at Chung Chia Sheng Jian Bao. Much of what we stumbled on prior to this was because June had her sights set on this place and we made many stops while heading that way. There was a small line and we ended up getting 6 meat SJB and ended up eating them at the 7/11 where we got grape green tea and a Taiwan beer to wash it down.
It’s now 7pm and it feels so late. So. Hot.
So today I learned that Taiwan uses all manner of buses in its general public transportation system from what seemed to range from a combination of 80s busses to the cushy long distance ones that tour companies use with the reclining cloth seats.
Today was bus heavy travel. We each ran our cards from 350ntd down to 228ntd including a wasted trip of 20ntd. That means each of us spent under $4 pp to get around town today.
Public transportation is a great way to travel in new places. I like that you get to look at the street action slowly and see local people-how they dress and how they act. As a result of that I also learned that I talk too loud. I guess I’ve been using my China voice, not my Taiwan voice.
One question I had was whether I should have been haggling for the shoes and crack seed I bought today (at the end of the trip I didn’t feel like haggling was a normal thing to do in any circumstances. Maybe at the flea market?)
Saturday-day 2
The plan: Make Chinese Food
June has us scheduled this morning to do some Taiwanese cooking at a place in Datong called CookInn. It should be 3 hours to make xlb, beef noodle soup, cucumber salad, boba.
We arrived early and I asked a lady at the bus stop where to get Chinese breakfast. She pointed us here where we got oil sticks in egg, cold peanut tofu and 2 meat buns. 119ntd or 4 bucks
OK back to cooking class. Our English speaking teacher’s name was Lydia. We learned how to make copycat DinTaiFung xiaolongbao, pickled cucumber, beef soup-a Taiwanese staple, and Taiwan’s signature drink-boba.
For the xiaolongbao we measured the weight and size of each of the fillings and wrappers to achieve what normally is made by people dressed like scientists that look like they’re working in a drug lab.
That’s a pic of the dumpling folks at DinTaiFung! The soup comes from soup gelatin that gets chopped up and mixed in. When it gets steamed, it turns into soup.
We made beef noodle soup-kind of but not completely from scratch. The meat is beef shank fried in oil with dried herbs. The noodles are guanmian-whatever that is. The shape is interesting fun to eat.
A cucumber salad-which we shook the heck out of with sugar then added vinegar, salt and sesame along with garlic and red pepper…came out crispy and delicious.
Oh and the boba. The boba itself is marinated in brown sugar. The brown sugar coats the sides of the glass before adding hand shaken milk with ice.
Really neat to learn about a few of the local foods.
From the cooking class at Datong we walked to the old town of DiHua Jie to explore a little bit.
Surprise, it was pretty hot. The kids got a large shave ice. And Pax walked around practicing his Chinese to ask about growth potion.
Hello Ximending. This place kind of has a younger vibe to it. Reminds us of Harajuku in Tokyo.
Now we are heading to Don Don Donki. Is it like Don quijote? Pretty much.
One difference is people are shuffled in one direction through the store from one end to the other, kind of like an Ikea if you’ve ever visited one.
Yakiniku Like was Hudson’s choice for dinner. Normally found in certain areas of Japan, it turns out that Taipei also has one. Not quite the same value as in Japan but it was still tasty. One downside is that the grills are electric, not gas. At least by a certain point I had the heat high enough to light the pork belly oil on fire.
And to top off the night, a trip to lijiang night market by our place. More eating. So much eating this trip.
That meat bun thing was pretty yum.
Sunday, 3rd full day
Weather’s looking good. We’re off to church. Or June and Hud are anyway. It’s Da’an park across the street for me and Paxton.
After services, we went to eat at the original Dintaifung near the corner of Da’an park. We’re not normally big fans but decided we had to try it while in Taiwan. We were pleasantly surprised it was way better and much cheaper than our previous visits to locations in the U.S. and other countries! 1400 ntd
Next we stopped in at the Chiang Kai Shek Memorial hall before our animal cafe reservations. This place was huge! Not enough time. Air conditioned though!
Here we are at another animal cafe-Meerkat75 at Songshan airport area.
We each had to buy a minimum of 300ntd of food/drink and got to go in as pairs to play with the meerkats for around 10 minutes in a pen. I don’t think they were super happy. One was very tired and sneezed a few times, another was running around looking for a way out. Pax’s theory is that they like to dig and should have a sand pit or something similar to simulate the wild. Hud was happy though; he says they’re his spirit animal. 1450 ntd
Back home to rest up and let the heat pass. Then out at night for the Raohe night market for dinner since it’s cooler now. We started to see similar offerings at different vendors like oyster omelette and stinky tofu. I told myself I’d have to try some this trip. Tough when it smells so bad.
This city is remarkably clean. Given its population density and ethnic makeup I expected it to be somewhat dirty and the people maybe a little rude. Not so far. Everyone is so nice and it feels so safe. I don’t think I’ve smelled any of the pee smells you’d find in random corners of a big city. I’ve walked in my Jesus slippers from our air b and b through night markets and back home to realize my feet aren’t that dirty. Strange. So far (knock on wood) I’ve haven’t felt unsafe venturing around the streets of Taipei.
Monday- start school for the kids.
The main reason we came to Taipei was for the kids to take some Chinese lessons and brush up on their Mandarin skills. We met upstairs for our first meeting at one of Taipei’s many Louisa coffee shops.
The teachers seem nice and there are two other kids starting this week too. But while the kids are in school, what are the adults to do?
We decided to head to a repurposed tobacco factory nearby called Songshan Cultural and Creative Park. The factory was originally established by the Japanese in the 1930s and has become a space for innovation, art, and mindfulness.
Here are a few examples of the shops there.
Trash kitchen takes 7 types of recyclable plastics that you’d normally throw away and makes a few items like sunglasses, inductive phone chargers and bowls. You can take a class and make your own items if you like.
This place was brimming with cool ideas.
Another shop had jewelry made of cement so you can spritz perfume into it. They think of everything nowadays!
Here’s a place that takes old basketballs and makes bags and name tags out of them. I was surprised that most of the people working here who were relatively young could speak pretty decent English.
Street taking Mona Lisa pics
We walked to the Halal Beef Noodle restaurant for lunch. I noticed that every time I eat something in Taipei, it’s like the best thing I ever had and then I go and eat at another restaurant and it starts all over again.
June’s braised beef noodle soup was 4$ us and mine was 7$, just add pancakes and a plate of niurousi meat.
The noodles were chewy and the meat was really easy to eat. Not that I’m an expert, but I thought it was well deserving of a Michelin mention.
690ntd
Now we’re off to return to the Chiang Kai Shek Memorial to see what else I missed last time
Then to Ximending again-the Harajuku of Taipei for some souvenirs and a short sleeved shirt.
Back to pick up our kids from the coffee shop after their first day at school. Every day after lessons, they eat lunch then go on a field trip somewhere around the city. They said their first day went well and they both made new friends!
But it’s been a long day out for all of us so good thing the Lijiang night market is nearby. Back again and we finally ordered from the salty chicken place. The line was short so we didn’t feel bad about asking how their ordering went. Basically you order individual items from their glass case, the primary thing being chicken. They’ll process the chicken and cut up all your fixins, throw it in a bag. You choose the saltiness which for us newbies was medium. It comes more or less cold and with several skewers to eat on the go. It’s really healthy and a good meal. This bag of stuff was 290ntd or right about 9 bucks.
We decided to give choudofu a chance when we smelled that unmistakable smell and saw a Michelin sign at Tien Hsiang. We figured if there was a time to try it to would be now. When I first smelled it wafting through the air I thought of sewage. The more I smelled it the more I realized it was stinky tofu. What I read is that it tastes different than it smells. I can do that. I like the smell and taste of durian. We got it deep fried with spice, in a bag to go. A 3 piece stinky tofu ran us 75ntd or $2.35. I was ready to welcome a new flavor profile into my arsenal. I smelled it a few times while still in its plastic bag while walking back home to make sure I was still in. Not bad. It doesn’t smell like how it is on the street. I’m ready.
Guess what? It tasted just like it smelled coming from the vendors on the street. You know those throat nugget things? It was like bad breath in a puck. I tried. We tried.
Tuesday, second day of school for the boys. We grabbed breakfast nearby the school and after drop off, me and June will go out to Tamsui. Train there was fast and easy!
First a hat and Daiso on Old Road.
This place has lots of hilly little curving alleyways. Reminds me of Portovenere.
June told me that a-gei is a regional specialty. I think it’s a ball of rice noodle covered in a tofu skin with sauce. We decided against hot sauce. The noodles are a little dry and chewy. It’s got a nice dense consistency. They put a scoop of some kind of sauce that eventually got absorbed by the ball. The fish ball broth tastes peppery. And the balls have an even smaller ball of savory meat inside of them. And the drink is a soy milk.
I like these cheap kitchen eatery places. 3 bucks for all!
People are flowing in and out of here. Some on mopeds getting food to go in plastic bags. There are a few agei restaurants here all in a row.
We walked around on old street, got some almond milk and found an air conditioned shopping mall near the MRT that had a Uniqlo and other random stores. We bought a lot of random stuff. Iron eggs, pound cake bread, fire blowing tool. You get the idea. After that we got massages back on old street for $12 bucks a person for half an hour. The massage therapists were both men and appeared to be blind.
The last thing we checked out was car rental info. It’s 200ntd ($6) per hour to rental car from Tamsui right next to the MRT station. I’ve got my international driver’s license and ready to take it for a spin!
Today was the furthest out we’ve been. It was nice to ride a rail around the outskirts of town to see the hills and ocean.
Meet the boys after school and to our evening activity at the Meatball Forest Meerkat Cafe. The meerkat cafe was kind of deceiving with the curtains and lights and so we got the hint that we shouldn’t show up before our time. We went to hang out at the skinniest seating area ever in a 7/11.
So back to the meatball Cafe.
The toucans are healthy looking and we got to interact with them. Each group for the time get moved from area to area-toucans, meerkats and then just hanging around in the main area with the cats.
The meerkats were like little dogs. The two-5yrs and 11 months played like siblings. We played with them like they were little dogs. Their favorite food is worms from the reptile store. Apparently Taiwanese people can have meerkats as pets so now Hudson wants to move here.
The (meow) cats were nice looking but aloof.
The minimum spending is 400ntd pp. Our bill was 3421 ntd with tip (non negotiable). Probably because we didn’t realize we had to also order 1 drink per person. Instead of paying 8 bucks us for a soda I spent $11 on a 12 year old scotch. At first I was skeptical thinking we would be overcharged on food. We were but it was pretty unexpectedly worth it. The food was amazing. My garlic chicken sandwich was great in all regards.
Normally if I paid $106 to see nice cats I would flip out. In this case I feel the food, the overall experience and ambiance was worth it. Worth it by Taiwan standards? Don’t know. It was good though. Good perceived value.
This changed my view on meerkat cafes.
The people here are orderly. They wait in line for the metro, no one jaywalks even though there are no cars coming. I don’t think I’ve seen anyone spit on the ground. Even while in busy places like the night markets I don’t see many people drinking alcohol. Also I noticed that almost every time another male bumps into my shoulder while walking in the opposite direction they’ll turn around and apologize.
Today is Wednesday, halfway through our trip 😦
We breakfasted at home with bread and iron eggs from Tamsui which seemed like a regional specialty. I can see why they’re called iron eggs. They are quite dried out and rubbery. The whites are really thin and I bet these are very transportable.
While the kids are in school, June and I have decided to visit Wulai, an aboriginal village south of Taipei known for its hot springs.
First, we MRT out a little to begin with. As far as we can get out of the city using the MRT.
Then we’ll look for a car rental agency. 2250 from xindia district office station.
70 bucks a day discounted from 100 plus tolls and drive distance which is the gas. This rental agency provides fuel cards to use at gas stations. That gets reflected in the drive distance charge.
A few things I was concerned about-not understanding the drive rules and signs, running over a mopeder which is a very common way to travel in Taiwan. They tend to ride on the outskirts of the cars to the right therefore if you make a right hand turn you need to be careful of cleaning one out accidentally.
Wulai consists of an old street which is lined with food and souvenirs. When you cross the bridge there’s a section of mostly hot spring places you can relax at.
We arrived at Wulai old street and parked at a really nice parking structure. I was surprised how big it was considering how small the town felt.
This drink which I asked for a sample of came in dark or light and I liked the light one more. It was fragrant like medicine and flowers, and the seeds were kind of like passion fruit but less juicy.
We had the bamboo rice which was herby. I liked the wild boar stir fry. We accidentally were brought a fish ball soup which we found out after I tried eating some. June kept saying the menu dishes looked like Filipino food. Later we visited the town museum to learn more about the local aboriginal culture and she kept saying the photos of the people and language resembled Filipinos too. Look at that ladder with handrail on the replica home. That’s a tattooing set at the bottom right.
When we finished lunch, it started pouring. The restaurant owner rummaged around and tried to give us an umbrella to take with us. We tried to protest but she was really insistent and told us to keep it. Plus we scored a free fishball soup. Everyone is so nice here!
We checked out old street and bought some millet wine and hard liquor. We crossed the bridge and hung a left to go to spend some time in the row of hot spring spas which for us was a cement tub with a view that you fill yourself. Google translate called it soup room, ha. Similar to Japanese onsen you shower first but here it was less organized with where you undress, put your clothes etc. Very self-led. The water here is supposedly slightly alkaline and is clear, colorless, and odorless. It is said that bathing in it keeps the skin moist. 9 bucks us for two hours in a tiny private room! Note the fishing float that’s attached to the drain plug so you don’t have to dive down. There’s also a room with a tub and a bed in an adjacent room in case you want to “rest” in-between hot tub dips.
The water is naturally heated from below and if you were wondering what happens to it afterwards, it gets tossed via standard sewage treatment.
On our way back to the car, we passed by the restaurant we had lunch at. It had stopped raining so we gave them their umbrella back to pass on to the next tourists. We had noticed that in some subway stations too, there would be free umbrellas to take but with the caveat that you should return it at the next station once you don’t need it anymore.
As we were about to drive off I saw an enticing bridge and had to go check it out.
After we returned the car I had to pay 104ntd or $3 usd for gasoline and mileage. Worth it!
Thursday
Kids off to school again and National Palace Museum for the adults. If you know a little about China-Taiwan history, then you know that when communism took hold in mainland China, the Nationalists fled across mainland China to Taiwan carrying with them as many works of art and historical items as they could. Many of those items ended up the Palace Museum. There was so much stuff that there’s a second one here in southern Taiwan also.
This place is huge. We signed up for the free English tour then walked around on our own afterward. Supposedly the main attraction is a cabbage carved out of jade but apparently it is not on display today because they rotate. Oh well, we got to see a meat stone and I got a jade cabbage stamp instead chee.
June next to the cabbage cut-out is the equivalent of me next to the Taiwan 101 damper ball.
We wandered over to Zhongshan district to have lunch at Huang Ji Braised Pork at Zhongshan. Nope closed for the 8/8 Father’s Day holiday today.
Good thing there’s other options nearby. There’s a mini night market that’s already bustling. Meat rice 40 and two bowls noodle and soup 185. We savored our mediocre food while it rained all around us.
During the rains we broke down and got an umbrella at the Family Mart for $2.50 and then did some leisure shopping at the covered mall. We got some Jung(sticky rice), we got some bling. A bracelet with jade for June and a wild pig tooth necklace for me. Mine was 200 ntd and originally came with a red string for the necklace part. I asked her to switch out the color and the shop keeper made a new necklace in brown for me. More camouflage that way.
I could see Rambo wearing one of these.
The place June got her bracelet from said she could come back to Taiwan next time and get the woven part redone for 100ntd. I asked how she would know it’s from her shop and she said she’d just know. Pretty cool experience.
And on our way to Taipei101. The kids came here with their class the other day and it looked really neat. It costs around $18 to go up for the scenic view and to see the damper ball which is what the tower is known for. Instead I took pictures and went downstairs for food samples and to put in our names for Dintaifung for after we get the boys. We got sat at our table by a robot, which was pretty neat. The grocery store right next to the restaurant also had a robot roaming the aisles with a display of sale items. We mostly ate xiaolongbao.
Since it was only 730 when we finished dinner we decided to walk to the Pokemon center a block or two away from Taipei 101.
Back at home it’s tasting time. This was the beer we got at Wulai small town old street. Infused with a mountain pepper of the aboriginal people. Herby and light. Lightly perfumy. The shopkeeper showed me the makao which looked like Szechuan peppercorns but smelled lemony. Here’s a picture of June with the blurry Makao beer in the foreground.
Kaoliang liquor is a local specialty. It’s a white hard liquor that comes in a few varieties.
Friday
We have some school friends in town so made plans to meet up. Coincidentally their home is right around the corner from our Airbnb. Figured it out when we realized we were both by the cat themed 7-11. Got picked up by Serena and Madison for breakfast at Woolloomooloo quality coffee roasters. It was pretty neat being driven around by their driver. Beats walking the streets but I don’t mind either way.
Taiwan is pretty relaxing. A few of the reasons are-you don’t feel like anyone is out to take advantage of you. Also even the cars on the street yield to pedestrians. They are patient and the streets are very walk friendly. The downside and upside to this is that commuting doesn’t tire you out. If you feel like you’re looking over your shoulders all the time, just getting from place to place feels like an accomplishment.
After breakfast, Fuhe flea market here we come.
The flea market was a bit remote and apparently tomorrow (Saturday) is an even better day to be there. We did get some used clothing though.
The market felt like it was at the edge of the city. There were lots of recreational areas with dance and volleyball going on adjacent to the flea market. What a great use of under-freeway space!
As we left it started to pour again and I realized I didn’t bring the umbrella we bought the other day at Family Mart. We asked a congee vendor where to go and he told us to sit inside and wait it out. The guy in the shop next door brought us two umbrellas and said keep ’em. It’s pretty nice everyone is just so willing to give their umbrellas away to complete strangers.
We stumbled around in the rain to this hole in the wall hair cutting place. 200ntd she said. Done.
Got ditched by our Uber and decided to go to meet the kids around where their field trip is today by Longshan temple. There’s the Bopiliao historic houses nearby and also the original night market which was spurred by the adjacent red light district.
Since it’s 3pm and we haven’t eaten lunch we decided to stop off at Wang’s Broth for some food first. Everything is brown. And yummy. Since we’re here, might as well try Yuan Fang Guabao next door. And why not have some traditional shave ice while we’re at it?
Hudson’s also asking to try the Halal place we’ve been raving about and of course I don’t mind going back there! This time there’s a line outside though but it’s worth the wait.
Next day stay
Most social media will lead you into the false realization that your life isn’t as good as it should be and that everyone else with an online presence is living their best life. Just not you. That’s the draw. What is my life missing?
Today’s the last day of the boys’ classes so instead of lessons, they are on an all-day field trip to an aquarium and June tagged along. I wanted to take it easy so stayed in today to shop and cook. It’s kind of neat. Our apartment is pretty nice and now that we know the city, almost feels like we are living here at this point. Here’s the view from our place:
The kids said the aquarium was ok and June said it reminded her of TeamLab in Japan. Glad I skipped it. At night, June wants to see the summer festival fireworks down by the wharf. Holy moly, talk about crowds! The fireworks are nice but not shoulder to shoulder crowded nice. I’d rather be eating. Good thing there are food trucks nearby.
Sunday rent car and head out of town.
Tried the Family Mart sweet potato for breakfast. Apparently these are the ones to get.
Just like for Wulai, we’re taking public transportation to the outskirts of town. We head to Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center to where the brown and blue lines meet up and terminate to rent a car. I figured it was far out enough from town center to avoid crazy traffic but close enough to have rental agencies. I sked drive in the city. We tried to find I-rent again but failed twice and ended up at EZ something rental. They had one car, a vintage 2000 something car covered with dents and scratches. It was kind of a piece of junk but hey it’ll suffice as our chariot of the day. The rental was 1600ntd and in the end the gas cost us $15 USD and the tolls were 152ntd which we paid upon returning the car. 30ntd+1USD
We’ve got three towns on our list for today, all in the same area, so a car seemed like our best bet. First Shifen. Town adjacent to a train track. Lantern lighting. This town is the most touristy place we’ve been so far this trip. From the start when we drove in and two ladies tried to sell us parking to the balloon vendors who spoke several languages and would guess your place of origin before speaking to you. Have some class like the rest of Taipei.
Here are the street signs pointing you in the right direction. We parked along a street as there was no huge structure like at Wulai. The first thing I ate was the first thing I saw which were sausages. If you like, you eat em with a piece of raw garlic. See on the left of the table? Legit. Maybe, I dunno lol.
Waving at the train was fun. I guess I only took video of that.
Our balloon was 250ntd. Or around $8. Problem is I don’t know what to write on it. People buy the lanterns to write wishes and launch them off into the sky.
June was the only person who wanted to do the balloon. That’s probably why we had such a hard time deciding what to write on the sides. The boys and I wrote our names and some wishes but June made some special notes to her mom.
The balloon gets loaded with waxy looking paper and when it’s lit gets pretty hot even at the edges of the base ring. We had read the balloons leave litter so took our time to find the biodegradable lanterns.
It all seemed cheesy and pointless. That is until the moment all four of us simultaneously let go of the hot base ring and the balloon floated up into the sky along with my heart. It was cathartic. Not cheesy anymore but suddenly sentimental. We waved and watched until we couldn’t see it anymore.
Next-Houtong cat village
The parking was pretty full. No structure. We ended up going further down past the cars waiting in line for the lot and just picked a spot along the main road. Over and across the tracks to the village, a hilly cat friendly neighborhood. We had to cool off and ended up at a cafe, not a cat cafe per se but it was run like one where everyone had to purchase an overpriced drink. We chose this place because it had Taiwanese food. Odd. Few of the places in cat town had cheap, much less Chinese food. Overpriced tapas, Western desserts and coffee drinks were abundant. So were the cats but there weren’t as many as I thought there’d be. The boys had fun though. They got to pet a bunch and Hudson said it was way better than a cat cafe.
Across the train tracks were places that didn’t try as hard but had decent food. Probably because they didn’t have to live up to the cross tracks cat-town reputation.
Last place-Jiufen or the spirited away town.
As we approached what we had navved to, I realized it was just a windy road where at one point there were kind of plenty people standing around. There was a lot of cars stopped and the GPS was showing a stretch of red. Parking decisions had to be done on the fly with the car window down and using a combination of broken Mandarin and hand motions. Eventually we ended up parking down a dark windy side road for 100 ntd. Where was this place?
We didn’t quite know where to go. I didn’t see anything along the way that mirrored the number of people walking or the lack of parking.
It turns out that along the main road is a nondescript entry to an alleyway marked with a Family Mart and a public bathroom. OK 7-11. I meant 7-11.
You could tell something was there by the greater concentration of bodies. It was like when you see ants going into a tiny hole in the wall. I didn’t know what to expect. How could the Spirited Away house possibly be here?
The entry ended up being the start to a long covered alleyway that was filled end to end with shops and eateries. It seemed to never end. At points it sloped up or down and some times split off into different directions.
After a quick descent I could see why this place is associated with the Spirited Away house!
We hung around and ate random foods before returning our rent a car. We tried a bunch of different pineapple cakes and street foods. Pax got a name chop. I slightly overpaid by accident and the merchant came running after me to give me my change. So honest!
Each of the three towns we visited today were, although as-advertised, not what I imagined. Each place was charming and unique and had something special going on.
Monday! Only a few more days till we leave. 😦
Today is going to be an eating day.
Last night we told the kids they could sleep in. This morning June and I went to get mini mantou a few blocks away, based on Serena’s suggestion.
Lunch is at a Taiwanese Michelin star place Lunch Shin Yeah Taiwanese Signature.
Ok we overate. I thought the portions would be tiny at this one star Michelin place. It was expensive but the portions were decent. It was in a hotel so I felt under dressed. Service was awesome.
Then for some shopping at Uniqlo, Muji and Donki. More importantly, a quick boba stop at the Tech Park at the original boba place. (The original company, not the original location.) Chun Shui Tang is credited with inventing boba and it was honestly the best boba any of us had ever had.
For dinner we’re meeting Maddie and Serena for dim sum and Peking duck at The Dragon. They also invited some friends who’d be joining the boys’ school in the fall. Good food, great company.
Tuesday-Second to the last full day.
Start off with hotpot for lunch.
Then we’re off to Beitou hot springs just outside the city.
Ride to the end of the line then transfer. The Xinbeitou line is one stop and the shortest line in the system. Also probably the slowest.
The outer part of the city looks just like that-a city. But then as you walk a block or two in and the buildings fade away a bit, you are faced with a park with a river through it nestled in a valley. The first place we checked out is the place we decided to stay at-the JBG Hot Spring Resort. It actually looked like a mini hotel! Being that this was a weekday, the price for 3 hours in a private room here is 52 usd.
There’s two beds and a hot spring tub with a spigot labeled…
There’s a mini fridge and water and a kettle for hot tea.
The water smells like sulfur at first and then it dissipates like how cat owners don’t realize their home smells like cat.
Supposedly there are trace amounts of radium in the water which is said to provide healing benefits.
It’s nice and cozy here being that it’s rainy and thundering outside and we’re here in the room with the lights turned down low.
Close to our 3 hr end we got a 10 minute warning phone call that our time was coming to an end. Our tickets included afternoon tea and drinks where I loaded up on century old egg jook, ice cream and coffee. The kids got cakes and cookies too.
On our way back home we plan on stopping off at the Linjiang night market one more time.
So. Much. Food.
Last full day
Dumplings for brunch. June found a place off of the Chiang Kai Shek Memorial MRT stop where we bought something like shenjiangbao. This place only sells three types. Meat, cabbage and chives. We ate 11 in two visits and washed it down with some Daydaydrink teas from across the street. You know it’s gonna be good if you only have 3 items on your menu.
Looking stormy today…
For lunch part 2 we went to the restaurant across from Louisa coffee for xiaolongbao for Hud.
And… Dessert of douhua-tofu and toppings which can be had hot or cold. I got mine with grass jelly, red beans and sweet potato mochi.
Check it out, you can add more ice or sugar water as needed.
Cooking class part 2. CookInn Taiwan-Pineapple cake. Hudson has been asking to make it and they luckily had openings on short notice.
Winter melon and pineapple filling mixed together.
Cook for 15 min at 180c them flip and cook for 5 min more
Then eat.
..and I got my Japan hat back! Apparently I left it at the CookInn place last time we went there. June had guessed as much but I didn’t believe her. I thought I left it on a bus.
Asked the kids what they wanted to do before we had to fly back home. They voted for a return to the most expensive animal cafe in Taiwan. Food was still good but overall not as memorable as the first time because the meerkats were mostly sleepy.
Now it’s nighttime. Ximending walk through and a quick bus ride to the Dadaucheng container wharf for more food. We are making the most of our last few hours here. It’s weird how comfortable we got in such a short amount of time. Definitely hope to be back soon.
A few things about Taipei. It’s the little things that make a place have a great vibe. It was so clean and everyone was so nice. The few times we were caught without an umbrella, random people gave us some. The people are honest. One time I thought I was overcharged but didn’t bring it up, a minute later the host came up to me to return my missing change. As a tourist, not feeling like you’re going to be overcharged or tricked is an amazing feeling. We felt so safe and there was so much to see, this was overall one of our favorite trips.
In a nutshell, Taipei was a place I’d recommend to anyone to visit, definitely underrated and off the radar.
The WOO family page 