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Published: January 27th 2014
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For this winter break, I decided to take a trip down to Taipei, Taiwan. It was a last minute decision and was well worth it. I had yet to visit the island, and this was a great time to take the trip.
I stayed in Taipei during my adventure, with a day trip down to the southern tip of the island to Kenting, Taiwan. I arrived on a Tuesday and spent my first evening getting acquainted with the neighborhood where my hostel was located. I stayed at the Eight Elephants & Dreaming Dragon near the Guting station. I walked around the neighborhood and found a tiny restaurant. I ordered noodles with pork dumplings. Afterward, I walked to a local night market and experienced the sights and sounds it provided.
I started my first full day in Taipei by visiting the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, which is located only one stop away on the metro from Guting. The day was a bit overcast. The area wasn’t crowded, except for some high school students playing games and a marching band practicing its routine. After 20 minutes of walking around, I made my way to the 2-28 Peace Park. The park is
located a stop away from CKS Memorial Hall at the NTU Hospital metro stop. I came here to see the Taiwan National Museum, which is at the north entrance of the park. I read that the building was an amazing piece of architecture. However, it was under remodeling when I visited. The museum focuses on the anthropology of the island, as well as the fauna and flora. During my visit, the ground floor halls were being set up for two different exhibitions. The top floor had a small, but great and informative, exhibition on Islam.
Next, I made a short walk up to the presidential offices. For lunch, I had a delicious plate of teriyaki chicken over rice and some vegetables. Full and happy, I made my way to Taipei 101—which was the world’s tallest building until the construction of the Burj Khalifa (though other buildings have surpassed Taipei 101’s height since). The main viewing area is on the 89
th floor, and—weather permitting—there is an outdoor viewing space on the 91
st floor. I was lucky on my visit, as part of the 91
st floor was open during my visit. I stayed an hour or so taking in the views.
For dinner, a friend from grad school showed me around the Huashan 1914 Creative Park, where we ate at the Alleycat pizza place. A few metro stops away, I enjoyed some drinks at a place called Beer & Cheese next to Daan Park. Not too far away, I ended the night at Bob’s Wan Daye.
The weather was perfect the following day—sunny and warm, with clear skies. I started by visiting the National Palace Museum. Though the collection presented was amazing and too much to see in one day, I saw as much as I could despite the amount of people visiting. I took a quick respite on the fourth floor’s tea house before finishing the tour in the museum. The next stop was Ximen and its pedestrian area (Ximending). The area was exciting and packed with crowds. After a quick stroll, I went a stop further south on the metro line. There, I visited the Longshan Temple. I stayed there while a prayer service transpired. The late afternoon soon turned into early evening, and I went back to the Ximen stop. Ximending really came alive after sunset. It was marvelous, with people happy to be shopping. I finished
the evening by visiting the market back near Longshan Temple. I ate delicious street food (the highlights being a papaya drink with sugar and milk and a chicken fried dumpling), and there were lots of people out and about.
The following day, I made a trip down to Kenting. It’s around 4.5 hours south of Taipei. It is a small coastal town, which welcomes tourists during weekends and holidays. I enjoyed Little Bay beach, as well as strolling through the town. After a day at the beach, good drinks, and food I headed back to Taipei.
I spent the last day in Taipei visiting the Taiwan History Museum, the Museum of Contemporary Art, Bao’an Temple, and the Confucius Temple. The highlight was definitely the Museum of Contemporary Art. The exhibit was great, with several instillations outside of the building. I spent the last evening with my friend, who took me to a restaurant called Shao Shao Ke. The restaurant offers Shanxi style cuisine. It was amazing and a definite highlight of the food in Taipei.
The next day I left Taipei. I really enjoyed my time. I saw wonderful sights, temples, and beaches. I enjoyed
the food greatly, and every time I passed by a restaurant or food vendor I wanted to stop and try something.
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