Back from Taiwan

I'm back.

Ok, I'm back for more than a week actually. But have been held up by work (as always), and thus the lag in updates.

I brought Wifey and my in-laws to Taiwan some time for a 10-day trip to Taiwan. Taiwan is a place that has everything a visitor wants
(1) Good food
(2) Good scenery
(3) Good shopping

I do not have any ready photos with me to accompany this post. For those of you who have not seen pictures of Taiwan, head on to Nino's blog. I'm leaving the expert to show you the pics. =p

I went to both Taichung and Taipei, with an emphasis on showing my in-laws the more talked about tourist places in Taiwan.

I won't go into details, because I know a long post without pictures can get really boring.

So I will do a quick rundown of my favourite places in Taiwan.

(1) Night Markets
Taiwan has tons of good street food. Unlike the pasar malam in Singapore and Malaysia that sells the same old stuffs, Taiwan night markets sell HUGE variety of food.

The night markets that left a stronger impression on me was the
(a) Fengjia night market at Taichung (it's huge!)
(b) the Shilin market (lots of variety, must try the extra large fried chicken chop)
(c) Keelung night market (a huge one famous for seafood).

We went to many smaller night markets in Taipei, including the one at Huaxi Street (snake meat, yucks!)

(2) Sun Moon Lake
Sun Moon Lake is a famous lake that particularly left me a strong impression. I was originally told it's a boring place, but it turned out to be so much more fun. The lake was beautiful, there was nice street food (tofu with pickled vegetables, yummy!). And even a cable car up to a resort that showcase the various aboriginal tribes, plus a really fun amusement park.

(3) Alishan
So the famous sightseeing trains was out of service due to the earthquake. The only thing left to do is to trek. The mountains were at 10 degree celsius, and we were freezing unprepared. But the place is a great work of nature. Forest tracking, anyone?

(4) Jiufen
A very good shopping street on top of the mountain. Smelly tofu lingers the air, but it has some great dessert and food not found elsewhere in Taipei. It's a must go.

(5) Yehliu
A small fishing town. It is famous for the natural rock formation by the sea that resembles various shapes. One of the most scenic places I have ever been in Taiwan, though it's a pity I didn't get a snapshot of the sunset, as suggested by Nino.

(6) Danshui
Taiwan has alot of old streets. And this is one great old street to walk. Street food here is great, it's particularly known for that tall ice-cream.

(7) Wulai
Famous for the hotsprings and the waterfall. I went on a weekday, and it was pretty deserted. They also have a old style train that is so so fun to sit. There's a cable car and resort in Wulai also, but it looks abandoned, so you can probably give it a pass.

(8) Ximending
The shopping place for hip young people (and uncle like me). Tons of movie theatres and karaoke. And also the unforgettable Modern Toilet restaurant. Haha, we ate "toilet food".

On a side note, I also got the chance to meet up with Nino and Lily. They were our tour guides on one of the days. More about this in the next entry. And I will try to find time to get some photos up too.

Thanks for reading.