*very long post!
So I shall get down to writing about Taiwan. Had a very enjoyable time because I was well taken care of by friends. Unfortunately for my burgeoning fat deposits, they insisted that Taiwanese hospitality is such that they feel they have been failures as hosts if their guests leave skinnier than when they arrived. But the food was excellent!
Here's what I did for the 4 or 5 days I was there:
Day 1 - Thursday Aug 3Arrived around 9am in the morning and left one of my humongous suitcases at the airport. No way was I gonna lug 2 huge suitcases around. After that I took the shuttle into Taipei. Met my friend 瑶蓉 and she brought me to her 表姐's apartment. Very cool! Flat screen tv, guest rooms and a japanese-styled room with tatami mats. Had a room to myself :)
State of disarray.
Day 2 - Fri Aug 4Spent the whole day out! First thing we did was to have breakfast. I like the food. So interesting. Akin to what we have but with variations. I present...
Clockwise from left: 水煎包， 咸豆浆*，蛋饼，饭团，豆浆。
*咸豆浆 is made from the normal sweet 豆浆 by adding 虾皮，榨菜 and 白醋。The result is a clear solution that tastes like soup and nothing like 豆浆。
I like 蛋饼！
The Taiwanese version of 饭团 is very different from the Japanese version (onigiri おにぎり). Its made of 油条, 萝卜干 and 肉松 which is surrounded by a tightly squeezed layer of 糯米。Yummy!
After breakfast we went over to 7-11 to check out the local convenience store offerings. There were a lot of cutely packaged items but I couldn't buy them all. There was also strawberry and mango-flavoured Calpis. 懐かしいな～
Do we have such flavours in Singapore?
We walked over to a famous temple called 行天宫。Had a brief look see.
瑶蓉 and I went to meet 阿玲，her colleague who was going to take me around for the day. We had lunch in a small shop and I had some yummy 珍珠奶茶。Lunch was 卤味 with vegetables and assorted stuff but I didn't eat much because I was still full from breakfast.
Let me introduce this strange fruit called 百香果. 表姐 said I could help myself to the fruits in the fridge but when I opened it I saw a bunch of shrivelled prune-mangosteen-lookalike things. So when she asked me whether I ate any fruits I politely inquired: Have your fruits been kept there for very long? Both 瑶蓉 and 表姐 burst out laughing. Apparently the fruit is supposed to look like that! And when its broken open its mostly hollow and you eat the liquid contents, which are very sour.
瑶蓉 left to go to work so 阿玲 and I prepared to go to 莺歌，a town which is famous for its pottery. Got a shock when I realised 阿玲 rode a scooter and I'd have to sit on it! I put on the helmet she gave me and we were off. Was pretty scared at first because traffic in Taiwan is crazy. She wove in and out of the cars and lanes and I clung on for dear life. But after a while I learnt to enjoy the ride :) Only problem is that the air was quite polluted - most motorcyclists in Taiwan wear cloth masks to counter that problem. We parked near the train station and walked over.
台北车站。
Interior of the train station.
莺歌车站。
At Yingge, we walked around some pottery shops before deciding to have some 甜品。
黑豆花 and 豆花。I had the 黑豆花 with 爱玉 and 薏仁。黑豆花 isn't really black, it just looks a little darker than the normal one. Taste-wise its quite similar too. 爱玉 is something uniquely found in Taiwan. It is a jelly that is made from seeds and is therefore completely of plant origin unlike the usual jelly that we eat, which is of bovine origin (cows). 薏仁 is supposedly good for girls but I'm not sure exactly how.
Yingge is a very quaint place that I think deserves a visit. Its architecture is kinda European but I'm not sure where that comes from. Here, you can visit numerous pottery shops which sell beautiful ceramics. You can also buy tea, teapots, household ornaments, and you can even make your own pottery! I was too lazy to do it though. At ~SGD5 its not expensive at all.
Here's where you can make your own pottery。
Ornamental chimney which lets off steam every hour.
Just outside 莺歌。
It was back to the city where we went to visit another very famous temple - 龙山寺。Then we walked around the market（华西街夜市）that was in the surrounding area. Had more dessert to cool off from walking in the hot weather. 柠檬爱玉 is my favourite! It is so delicious and refreshing.
Inside 龙山寺。
Part of 华西街夜市。
Stall selling 柠檬爱玉. Its called 怀念爱玉冰 or as they have written in English, Memory Ah Yuh Ice. Apparently its been in business for decades, and when they started, each bowl cost TWD$0.50. Now each bowl costs TWD$30! (~SGD$1.50)
Took the MRT (Metropolitan Rapid Transit) to Taipei City Hall station, which has all the high-end shopping malls, including Taipei 101. Just found its currently the tallest building in the world. TAIPEI 101 is actually an acronym for Technology, Art, Innovation, People, Environment, and Identity. Didn't get a chance to go in. Our main destination was the mega-bookstore called Estrelitte or 诚品。I love bookstores because I am a geek :) Bought 蜡笔小新，面包人 and other comics. 20% discount and free can of Coke with International Student ID!
MRT.
Travel section inside Eslite.
Malls outside Estrelitte.
We were all pooped so it was time to head home.
Day 3 - Sat Aug 5The best day of all! 瑶蓉 got her younger brother to drive us around. 好幸福哦~ We went out to buy breakfast at the neighbourhood shop and 7-11. Taiwan has such a dazzling array of colourful juice cartons and bottles. A lot of emphasis is placed on packaging and it is kind of like a Chinese version of Japan sometimes. US influences can also be seen here eg. in the road system where drivers' seats are on the left of the car and they drive on the left side of the road.
Source of morning nourishment.
Endless variety of drinks.
Instant noodles.
Part of my breakfast - Yoplait strawberry yoghurt with whole strawberries and a jelly called しらたき shirataki in japanese or ju3 ruo4 in chinese. Endorsed by 杨丞琳！
凤梨酥 - crumbly and flaky with pineapple jam inside.
The Honda SUV arrived and we piled in to go to 金山。It was a pleasant drive and when we drove along the coastal road I realised how nice Taiwan was. Didn't realise they had such nice stretches of water. 金山 was a very interesting and bustling place with small shopholdings lining the narrow walkway. There were food and drink samples everywhere and most of them were really delicious.
Time for lunch! 金山 has famous duck and a special eatery where you have to carry your own plates of food to the seating area because the area where the main kitchen is is too small to accomodate the people who come in droves. Quite funny to see the stream of people walking through the street laden with dishes.
阿玲
Lunch = Clockwise from top left: 金山鸭肉，小卷（内有黑汁），沙拉芦笋，海瓜子 + 炒面 (not in picture) We also had 麦茶 from a carton. Love the taste.
People commonly bring their kids to catch little fishes.
Side street.
This drink is called 石花冻 and the little frog egg-like things inside are called 山粉圆。很好喝！
Drove to 翡翠湾 to have a look at the paragliders at my request. It was a super steep road leading up to the top of the mountain. But it was super exciting to watch the paragliders. And the ride was only TWD800/SGD40 a pop! Super cheap so we all decided to have a go. Very cool experience. My dream was actually to go hang-gliding but there wasn't any here so I had to go with paragliding. After all the straps were in place, my instructor 飞鹰 and I simply ran off the cliff and soared up in the air. Amazing experience. You wouldn't know what the phrase "bird's eye view" means until you've paraglided! Its rather different from being in a plane. Another thing, I was wearing slippers, which would easily have fallen off and been impossible to recover, so I went barefoot. Hahaha. This was of great amusement to the instructors and my friends. (When they were trying to locate me in the air, they looked for the "barefoot person")
瑶蓉 gearing up.
With 飞鹰, the owner of the company. He's supposedly part of some national level organisation which does stunts. Been paragliding for 16 years.
Aerial views of the bay:
偷拍！
Amusing shot of me in mid-air, coming in to land.
Drove further along the northern coast of Taiwan and stopped at one of those beach-side cafes for a drink. Atmosphere was very good but it was a little hot. Lots of youngsters out enjoying the school holidays.
Giant yam statue along the road.
Cafe was called Bossa Nova.
喂喂？
童真
阿玲请问你在干嘛？：）
我要买！
Originally intended to drive to 淡水 to see the sunset but the traffic jam was horrible so we went to the other side, 八里。There was a huge 孙悟空 statue that changed colour. There are a lot of nice restaurants along the stretch of road and bike/trishaw rentals.
Next stop: the very famous Shihlin Night Market/士林夜市。This is the biggest night market of all and the crowds on a Saturday night can kill. But it was very rich in atmosphere. Not very different from our pasar malams, with lots of food, toys and clothes on sale, and games to play. Had some food and shopped around before returning home for a much needed bath. Stinky!
Day 4 - Sun Aug 6Last day of being overseas! Sob. 瑶蓉 + 表姐 took me to a restaurant 边田庄 near their house. Reservations were made in my name because I had an uncommon last name (尹) and they said I was from Singapore. So when we arrived there was a Singapore flag to mark our table! Very funny.
Lunch is served.
纸锅豆腐
炒山蘇。 I remember the translation is Bird's Nest Fern. Cannot help but wonder whether its the same one we see around. Tastes good though, with those fried peanuts. Yum.
汤包 with shrimp inside.
豆酥鳕鱼。But where is the 鳕鱼？
Buried underneath of course! The 豆酥 was very nice.
Lunch was rounded off by some of the mango pudding you see in the glass case. The picture was taken before lunch, but by the time lunch was over, the case was empty!
Took the bus and MRT to Ximending, that famous and popular youngsters' hangout. Found , to my disappointment, that nothing was that cheap or nice, and kind of felt too old for the place sometimes. Hah! The things sold there are like the things you see in Far East. On the whole, Ximending reminded me of Shenzhen and even Tokyo.
Went to the local hypermart to see what shopping is like. Similar to Singapore's but of course with a Taiwanese twist. (Huge trays of stewing innards on sale!) Saw some cute toiletries:
Gives new meaning to the phrase "milk bath".
Spent quite a few hours packing at home. Woke up early to catch my flight and it was a near-death experience trying to handle 2 huge suitcases, 1 small suitcase, 1 backpack, 1 laptop bag and 1 shoulder bag. Thank goodness 瑶蓉 + 表姐 were there to help me get the stuff to the airport shuttle. But at the airport I was on my own... ended up having to pay for excess baggage. I think this is a sign that I should curb my shopping. I keep coming back with more suitcases than I left home with.
Aerial shots of Taiwan:
Windmills by the sea!
And planes are getting more and more well-equipped: A year ago I don't recall having a mirror with closeable flap, coat hanger and cellphone holder on top of the usuals like a tv screen. I've decided that I like Airbus more than Boeing from now on :) The foot rest is even made of massaging rollers now!
I think I am acting swakoo.
Anyway, 我想跟瑶蓉姐姐，表姐，阿玲 + 陈冠臻说声谢谢！我能够很肯定地说我玩得那么开心全都是因为你们。非常想念你们哦！好想回台湾继续玩个痛快。如果有时间就来新加坡一趟吧，我会尽全力把你们喂到白白胖胖的。：）
State of disarray.
Clockwise from left: 水煎包， 咸豆浆*，蛋饼，饭团，豆浆。
The Taiwanese version of 饭团 is very different from the Japanese version (onigiri おにぎり). Its made of 油条, 萝卜干 and 肉松 which is surrounded by a tightly squeezed layer of 糯米。Yummy!
Do we have such flavours in Singapore?
台北车站。
Interior of the train station.
莺歌车站。
黑豆花 and 豆花。I had the 黑豆花 with 爱玉 and 薏仁。黑豆花 isn't really black, it just looks a little darker than the normal one. Taste-wise its quite similar too. 爱玉 is something uniquely found in Taiwan. It is a jelly that is made from seeds and is therefore completely of plant origin unlike the usual jelly that we eat, which is of bovine origin (cows). 薏仁 is supposedly good for girls but I'm not sure exactly how.
Here's where you can make your own pottery。
Ornamental chimney which lets off steam every hour.
Just outside 莺歌。
Inside 龙山寺。
Part of 华西街夜市。
Stall selling 柠檬爱玉. Its called 怀念爱玉冰 or as they have written in English, Memory Ah Yuh Ice. Apparently its been in business for decades, and when they started, each bowl cost TWD$0.50. Now each bowl costs TWD$30! (~SGD$1.50)
MRT.
Travel section inside Eslite.
Malls outside Estrelitte.
Source of morning nourishment.
Endless variety of drinks.
Instant noodles.
Part of my breakfast - Yoplait strawberry yoghurt with whole strawberries and a jelly called しらたき shirataki in japanese or ju3 ruo4 in chinese. Endorsed by 杨丞琳！
凤梨酥 - crumbly and flaky with pineapple jam inside.
阿玲
Lunch = Clockwise from top left: 金山鸭肉，小卷（内有黑汁），沙拉芦笋，海瓜子 + 炒面 (not in picture) We also had 麦茶 from a carton. Love the taste.
People commonly bring their kids to catch little fishes.
Side street.
This drink is called 石花冻 and the little frog egg-like things inside are called 山粉圆。很好喝！
瑶蓉 gearing up.
With 飞鹰, the owner of the company. He's supposedly part of some national level organisation which does stunts. Been paragliding for 16 years.
偷拍！
Amusing shot of me in mid-air, coming in to land.
Giant yam statue along the road.
Cafe was called Bossa Nova.
喂喂？
童真
阿玲请问你在干嘛？：）
我要买！
纸锅豆腐
炒山蘇。 I remember the translation is Bird's Nest Fern. Cannot help but wonder whether its the same one we see around. Tastes good though, with those fried peanuts. Yum.
汤包 with shrimp inside.
豆酥鳕鱼。But where is the 鳕鱼？
Buried underneath of course! The 豆酥 was very nice.
Lunch was rounded off by some of the mango pudding you see in the glass case. The picture was taken before lunch, but by the time lunch was over, the case was empty!
Gives new meaning to the phrase "milk bath".
Windmills by the sea!
