Taiwan

Hello,

I'm heading to Taiwan for about a week in 2 weeks and i've never been there before. Any thoughts on things to see or do?

I haven't been since I was a kid so I don't remember a whole lot, but check out the street markets for sure.

And do you speak fluent mandarin?

I assume you'll be in Taipei?

Honestly there isn't much to do in the city, apart from eating and shopping I guess. Check out the hot springs if that's your thing, pretty cheap there.

Originally Posted by ConcernedParent

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I haven't been since I was a kid so I don't remember a whole lot, but check out the street markets for sure.

And do you speak fluent mandarin?

My gf speaks mandarin so I'm good there. Yes, we are planning to hit the night markets for sure.

Originally Posted by drmmr

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I assume you'll be in Taipei?

Honestly there isn't much to do in the city, apart from eating and shopping I guess. Check out the hot springs if that's your thing, pretty cheap there.

We will be in Taipei. We intend to eat and shop but was hoping for other attractions.

1. you have to see the national art gallary, one of the 10 best museums in the world
2. soup dumplings
3. go to the top of the tallest building there, for a short period, I think that it was the tallest building in the world.

that's all I got

Urgh, didn't know about the National Art Gallery. My mates planned the trip, so I didn't bother doing researching. That tall building is Taipei 101. It's in the heart of the conservative business dress, iirc. Make sure you go on a clear day, you won't be able to see **** otherwise. The day I was at 101, it was cloudy and there were PRC tour groups. Totally fucked my day up.

Originally Posted by globetrotter

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1. you have to see the national art gallary, one of the 10 best museums in the world
2. soup dumplings
3. go to the top of the tallest building there, for a short period, I think that it was the tallest building in the world.

that's all I got

I agree with all of this, but to elaborate a little...

The art gallery that I'm sure he's referring to is the "National Palace Museum - 国立故宫博物院", and anyone who goes to Taipei should be required to go there. It has an incredible collection of Chinese historical artifacts, and is the only collection that rivals (exceeds?) those in Beijing.

For the soup dumplings I recommend "Din Tai Feng - 鼎泰丰. There is one not too far from Taipei 101, so you could probably combine them in to one trip.

The night market is also a must (I forget the exact name off hand but if your gf can speak Chinese any cab driver will know it). I don't know what you like to eat, but there are tons of good snacks there.

There is also a really good seafood market with really fresh fish that you can eat cooked, raw, whatever, all prepared on the spot too. I can't for the life of me remember where exactly it was though.

The mountains also have some cool tea houses. For nightlife there are some pretty sweet clubs, KTVs(like everywhere in Asia), and some cool lounges up in the mountains.

Hope that helps

Hope that helps.

Thanks for all the replies.

Museum, Din Tai Feng and shaved ice at the night market. Last time I was there I spent a couple nights at a cool lounge right by Taipei 101. That stuff changes all the time so who knows. Also prepare yourself for some really uncomfortable climate.

Pics and advice here http://www.styleforum.net/showthread.php?t=156330 http://www.mocataipei.org.tw/blog http://www.huashan1914.com/en/story.html http://www.culture.tw/index.php?opti...881&Itemid=157

Okay, if you don't see the National Museum, you might as well not go. Best collection of Chinese artifacts in the world by a humongous margin. The Nationalists took everything out of China when the lost the war and moved it there.

Then eat. Skip the shopping, unless you want to buy European designer goods at trumped up prices.

There is a chain famous for soup dumplings, but soup dumplings are really more of Hong Kong/Shanghai thing. Same goes for the egg custard tarts, which can be really awesome, but are not indigenous.

Make sure you get a bowl of beef noodle soup, with tendons. The locals will be reluctant to recommend it because they consider it ordinary peasant food and prefer everything shiny, new and imported from Japan or the US. But it is one of the dishes Taipei is best known for, and for good reason.

When you go to the night market, make sure you go to the 'old' one. There is a 'new' night market that is constructed to look like a wealthy Western urban boutique neighborhood (think Georgetown, Greenwhich Village, etc.). It sucks, but the locals will no doubt point you there unless you insist otherwise.

Eat their food. Have become very interested recently in Taiwanese food.

+1 on the beef noodle soup, although that's gonna be brutal to enjoy in the summer. One of my fondest memories was when I lived in Taipei over the summer when I was sixteen. I wandered down the street from my uncle's house to a famous beef noodle soup restaurant (if you could call I that). I ordered a soup and a beer, and consumed both while sweating through my clothes.

The above recommendations are really good ones, but I'd like to add the zoo which is really remarkable, and going to the seaside district danshui.

The food is truly amazing. Make sure to have stinky tofu in addition to the beef noodle soup, and try the bamboo shoots. If you go up into the mountains, you can have dozens and dozens of different types of bamboo shoots all of which taste different. The seafood is also great.

I love Taiwan! Have fun.