I've been watching a lot of YouTube lately and most of the views are related to street food. I found this one channel called Migrationology that has pretty good content. He also has a website with city guides on travel and food. The best part of the videos is his reaction when he eats something good. You have to watch to see.
He visits a lot of cities in Asia. There are series of videos for Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, etc. I recognize some of the places he visits in Taipei, especially the night markets. Very cool.
First video in the Taiwan series
Showing posts with label Taiwan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Taiwan. Show all posts
Sunday, December 29, 2019
Tuesday, May 10, 2016
Asia Trip Day 11 - Taipei (November 2015)
Wednesday 11/4
First morning in Taipei. I found a Chinese breakfast place on the way to our first destination. Eating... this is the main reason to visit Taiwan.
First stop was a tour of the Presidential Palace. I registered online and we got a private tour in English. Our tour guide looked an office worker. He went to the same military college as my dad.
Shin Kong Life Tower, the 2nd tallest building in Taiwan after Taipei 101. Our Airbnb is next door to the building.
I researched a lot of beef noodle places in Taipei before the trip. My dad suggested we come to this place for lunch.
Yongkang Beef Noodle: the building is kind of ghetto but the food was good.
After lunch, we got some shaved ice at Smoothie House down the street
Nest stop, Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall
The man himself
National Theater and Concert Hall
National Palace Museum. We had to meet my aunt for dinner so we were kind of rushed. We saw a few exhibits but didn't see the famous jade cabbage.
After dinner, we walked around Shilin night market
First morning in Taipei. I found a Chinese breakfast place on the way to our first destination. Eating... this is the main reason to visit Taiwan.
First stop was a tour of the Presidential Palace. I registered online and we got a private tour in English. Our tour guide looked an office worker. He went to the same military college as my dad.
Shin Kong Life Tower, the 2nd tallest building in Taiwan after Taipei 101. Our Airbnb is next door to the building.
I researched a lot of beef noodle places in Taipei before the trip. My dad suggested we come to this place for lunch.
Yongkang Beef Noodle: the building is kind of ghetto but the food was good.
After lunch, we got some shaved ice at Smoothie House down the street
Nest stop, Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall
The man himself
National Theater and Concert Hall
National Palace Museum. We had to meet my aunt for dinner so we were kind of rushed. We saw a few exhibits but didn't see the famous jade cabbage.
After dinner, we walked around Shilin night market
Asia Trip Day 10 - Osaka > Taipei (November 2015)
Tuesday 11/3
Another travel day, this time from Osaka to Taipei. Kansai airport is pretty far from Namba Station so we had to get up pretty early to catch our flight.
We took the 7am Rapit train to Kansai. It was designed to look like an anime character.
First ride in a 787 Dreamliner. The flight didn't feel any different but the large dimming windows were cool.
We arrived in Taipei and found our driver. I was going to take the high speed rail or an airport bus but decided on getting a van instead. Our driver's name was Double (as in 2x). We asked for an English-speaking driver but I ended up speaking Chinese the whole time. Like Japan, we stayed at an Airbnb near Taipei Station. The building was a commercial building so the "apartment" was kind of weird.
2/28 Peace Park
Longshan Temple
Waterfall inside temple grounds
The temple was pretty chaotic, very different from the temples in Kyoto
Afterwards, we walked several blocks to Modern Toilet, a bathroom themed restaurant. The food was so so but the kids wanted to eat here.
After dinner, we walked around Ximen for a bit, and bought some fresh shredded pork and pork jerky
Another travel day, this time from Osaka to Taipei. Kansai airport is pretty far from Namba Station so we had to get up pretty early to catch our flight.
We took the 7am Rapit train to Kansai. It was designed to look like an anime character.
First ride in a 787 Dreamliner. The flight didn't feel any different but the large dimming windows were cool.
We arrived in Taipei and found our driver. I was going to take the high speed rail or an airport bus but decided on getting a van instead. Our driver's name was Double (as in 2x). We asked for an English-speaking driver but I ended up speaking Chinese the whole time. Like Japan, we stayed at an Airbnb near Taipei Station. The building was a commercial building so the "apartment" was kind of weird.
2/28 Peace Park
Longshan Temple
Waterfall inside temple grounds
The temple was pretty chaotic, very different from the temples in Kyoto
Afterwards, we walked several blocks to Modern Toilet, a bathroom themed restaurant. The food was so so but the kids wanted to eat here.
After dinner, we walked around Ximen for a bit, and bought some fresh shredded pork and pork jerky
Wednesday, February 10, 2016
Crappy Smartphone
My first smartphone was a Samsung Vibrant (aka Galaxy S9000) and it worked well for several years. About two years ago, I replaced it with a HTC One M8. At the time, conventional wisdom was to get a Samsung Galaxy S4 or an Apple iPhone 5; I got the HTC to show some love for Taiwan. I also ended up buying a special case (dot view) and an external camera (HTC Re) for it.
Last weekend, I noticed that the phone was cracked along the edges, and the glass screen had a bulge in it. Most likely the internal battery went bad since the phone wasn't holding much charge either. Lithium ion batteries tend to heat up and swell as they deteriorate. I'm kinda pissed since the phone cost me $650 and only lasted <2 years, while several iPhone 4's and my OG Galaxy is still fine. The HTC phone still works but now I'm afraid it will catch fire or something when the battery finally dies. Debating whether to buy a battery replacement kit online (looks like it will take hours to open case and replace battery), or get a new (expensive) phone. Sigh...
Last weekend, I noticed that the phone was cracked along the edges, and the glass screen had a bulge in it. Most likely the internal battery went bad since the phone wasn't holding much charge either. Lithium ion batteries tend to heat up and swell as they deteriorate. I'm kinda pissed since the phone cost me $650 and only lasted <2 years, while several iPhone 4's and my OG Galaxy is still fine. The HTC phone still works but now I'm afraid it will catch fire or something when the battery finally dies. Debating whether to buy a battery replacement kit online (looks like it will take hours to open case and replace battery), or get a new (expensive) phone. Sigh...
Monday, July 20, 2015
Asia Trip Planning
My sister and I talked about taking my nieces on a trip to Asia for awhile now. Well, we finally decided on dates and bought plane tickets for late October/early November so I guess we're really going. At first I looked at fully guided tours, especially in Japan, but they cost a lot of money. After researching sample itineraries, I've decided to try and plan our own trip.
The plan is to fly from LAX to Japan, stay a few days in Tokyo then Kyoto, and continue to Taipei. Since we have 5 people, which is an odd number for hotel rooms (and taxis), we ended up booking all lodging through Airbnb. In Tokyo, we're staying in an apartment near Inaricho station (near Ueno Park) for 5 nights. This is followed by 3 nights in Osaka near Namba station, and 5 nights in Taipei near the main train station. It was a lot of work to find places big enough within our budget, yet near train/subway stations so we can walk with luggage. In total, the 13 nights will cost us about $2400 with Airbnb booking fees and cleaning charges.
I've also been trying to arrange activities each day, along with all the required public transportation rides. Tokyo has to have the most confusing subway system, primarily because there are several companies, all with their own lines and stations. Just because you see a station next to where you want to go on Google Maps, it doesn't mean it will be cheap nor convenient to get there.
Tokyo Subway Map - Only contains lines/stations for 2 subway companies
I'm still deciding to go with a tour of Mt. Fuji or plan it myself. After that, I think I'm done with Japan itinerary, but still have to figure out what we want to do in Taipei.
The plan is to fly from LAX to Japan, stay a few days in Tokyo then Kyoto, and continue to Taipei. Since we have 5 people, which is an odd number for hotel rooms (and taxis), we ended up booking all lodging through Airbnb. In Tokyo, we're staying in an apartment near Inaricho station (near Ueno Park) for 5 nights. This is followed by 3 nights in Osaka near Namba station, and 5 nights in Taipei near the main train station. It was a lot of work to find places big enough within our budget, yet near train/subway stations so we can walk with luggage. In total, the 13 nights will cost us about $2400 with Airbnb booking fees and cleaning charges.
I've also been trying to arrange activities each day, along with all the required public transportation rides. Tokyo has to have the most confusing subway system, primarily because there are several companies, all with their own lines and stations. Just because you see a station next to where you want to go on Google Maps, it doesn't mean it will be cheap nor convenient to get there.
Tokyo Subway Map - Only contains lines/stations for 2 subway companies
I'm still deciding to go with a tour of Mt. Fuji or plan it myself. After that, I think I'm done with Japan itinerary, but still have to figure out what we want to do in Taipei.
Friday, February 7, 2014
Province of China
This is from the settings page of the QuizUp app. I wonder if they got a lot of complaints from Taiwanese people because the text changed during the last update.
Hopefully this won't prompt a bunch of mainlanders complaining about how Taiwan is a province of China, blah, blah, blah.
I've also wondered about this before. Why does the average mainlander give a shit whether Taiwan is independent or not. It doesn't make any difference in their lives. Is it a case of misery loves company? Or are they trying to impress the Internet censors so they get brownie points with the party? Disgusting either way.
Before/After
Hopefully this won't prompt a bunch of mainlanders complaining about how Taiwan is a province of China, blah, blah, blah.
I've also wondered about this before. Why does the average mainlander give a shit whether Taiwan is independent or not. It doesn't make any difference in their lives. Is it a case of misery loves company? Or are they trying to impress the Internet censors so they get brownie points with the party? Disgusting either way.
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Geography FAIL
(CBS didn't allow embedding on the video so I had to download it then upload directly to Blogger)
Three clues that it's not Hong Kong...
1. It clearly says "台北101" at the beginning of the video.
2. The reporter is speaking Mandarin instead of Cantonese.
3. Hong Kong skyline at night looks like this:
Monday, September 13, 2010
Taiwan HSR
I tried to take a video while riding the Taiwan high speed rail train from Taipei to Taoyuan. I started the video recording right after leaving Banciao station but for some reason it cut off in the middle. Here is the last 1/3 of the ride.
It's weird how objects close to the train are slanted in each frame but okay the further you go out. I know the real landscape is not like that! It's probably how the video camera app processes each frame since the effect diminishes as the train slows.
On the shuttle bus from the HSR station to the airport, I saw a few betel nut stands with girls in skimpy clothing. This was at around 1pm in the afternoon. I wasn't fast enough with the camera though.
It's weird how objects close to the train are slanted in each frame but okay the further you go out. I know the real landscape is not like that! It's probably how the video camera app processes each frame since the effect diminishes as the train slows.
On the shuttle bus from the HSR station to the airport, I saw a few betel nut stands with girls in skimpy clothing. This was at around 1pm in the afternoon. I wasn't fast enough with the camera though.
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
2010 Asia Trip, Hong Kong Airport (again)
Wahhh! I'm going to be so sad next time I travel to Asia. My Cathay Pacific elite status expires next month and since I haven't traveled that much this year, I don't have enough miles to renew. No more showers in the Hong Kong lounge. :(
Last night, dinner was only me and John. We walked around for 10 minutes behind one of the Sogo department stores while he tried to find a specific noodle shop. Just when I had enough of walking and sweating, he found it. It was pretty good and each bowl of noodle was ~NTD110 or ~$4. Since we got a late start, we finished around 10:00pm and I just went back to the apartment and slept. I think the warm weather wears on you if you're not used to it.
The noodle place also served a lot of dishes but I think everyone just got noodles. We also got some Shanghai-style steamed buns.
Traveling is tiring. I feel like I've been on the go the entire day. I left my friend's apartment ~11:00am this morning. I grabbed some lunch in the underground mall and took the MRT to Taipei train station. There I bought a ticket on the HSR train to Taoyuan and then took the shuttle bus to the airport.
Lunch: hot and sour soup + 10 dumplings (total = NTD80)
When I walked in to terminal 2, I couldn't find my flight on the board... strange. I finally found the Dragonair counter and they said that my flight was canceled, and they need to get me on a Cathay Pacific flight. The only problem was that the CX flight departed from terminal 1. They swore they can get my bags on the flight and since the terminals are connected, I can clear immigrations in terminal 2 and walk to my new gate. I looked at the time and my flight was boarding in 7 minutes. When I went through the immigration counter, the border agent looked at my boarding pass and said I was at the wrong terminal. I told him what happened... he shook his head and said I had a long walk.
I made it to my new gate and the flight was boarding already. Instead of a Airbus 320, the Cathay flight was a Boeing 777-300, the same type that they use on transpacific flights. The flight was only ~70 minutes and they served us a ham/cheese sandwich. Since I need photos for my blog, I tried taking a picture of the flight attendant with my Samsung phone. I was trying to be discreet but I guess it was kinda obvious... she wasn't very happy and yelled at me to delete the photo. That camera is very slow so I didn't get anything in the picture anyway.
Ham and cheese sandwich... blah.
I asked a flight attendant (the one who's picture I didn't take) for some water and she gave me this. It was only 100mL and a total waste of packaging.
Arriving early, I took a shower in the CX lounge and now have about 2 hours before my flight to Beijing. My friend in Beijing says she will pick me up at the airport and bring me to my hotel. It's only ~5pm and I'm ready to sleep again.
Hong Kong International Airport. Almost every gate has a plane parked.
I just heard an announcement for KA824 to Chengdu. This is the flight I took a week ago. They moved the flight to gate 524 which is a remote gate... poor suckers. My flight leaves in 40 minutes from gate 30... I hope they don't change it. Time to leave the lounge and back behind the GFW again.
Last night, dinner was only me and John. We walked around for 10 minutes behind one of the Sogo department stores while he tried to find a specific noodle shop. Just when I had enough of walking and sweating, he found it. It was pretty good and each bowl of noodle was ~NTD110 or ~$4. Since we got a late start, we finished around 10:00pm and I just went back to the apartment and slept. I think the warm weather wears on you if you're not used to it.
The noodle place also served a lot of dishes but I think everyone just got noodles. We also got some Shanghai-style steamed buns.
Traveling is tiring. I feel like I've been on the go the entire day. I left my friend's apartment ~11:00am this morning. I grabbed some lunch in the underground mall and took the MRT to Taipei train station. There I bought a ticket on the HSR train to Taoyuan and then took the shuttle bus to the airport.
Lunch: hot and sour soup + 10 dumplings (total = NTD80)
When I walked in to terminal 2, I couldn't find my flight on the board... strange. I finally found the Dragonair counter and they said that my flight was canceled, and they need to get me on a Cathay Pacific flight. The only problem was that the CX flight departed from terminal 1. They swore they can get my bags on the flight and since the terminals are connected, I can clear immigrations in terminal 2 and walk to my new gate. I looked at the time and my flight was boarding in 7 minutes. When I went through the immigration counter, the border agent looked at my boarding pass and said I was at the wrong terminal. I told him what happened... he shook his head and said I had a long walk.
I made it to my new gate and the flight was boarding already. Instead of a Airbus 320, the Cathay flight was a Boeing 777-300, the same type that they use on transpacific flights. The flight was only ~70 minutes and they served us a ham/cheese sandwich. Since I need photos for my blog, I tried taking a picture of the flight attendant with my Samsung phone. I was trying to be discreet but I guess it was kinda obvious... she wasn't very happy and yelled at me to delete the photo. That camera is very slow so I didn't get anything in the picture anyway.
Ham and cheese sandwich... blah.
I asked a flight attendant (the one who's picture I didn't take) for some water and she gave me this. It was only 100mL and a total waste of packaging.
Arriving early, I took a shower in the CX lounge and now have about 2 hours before my flight to Beijing. My friend in Beijing says she will pick me up at the airport and bring me to my hotel. It's only ~5pm and I'm ready to sleep again.
Hong Kong International Airport. Almost every gate has a plane parked.
I just heard an announcement for KA824 to Chengdu. This is the flight I took a week ago. They moved the flight to gate 524 which is a remote gate... poor suckers. My flight leaves in 40 minutes from gate 30... I hope they don't change it. Time to leave the lounge and back behind the GFW again.
Monday, September 6, 2010
2010 Asia Trip, Taipei Day #3 Evening
Today has been a relaxing day. After updating my last post, I went back to sleep until John called and woke me up for lunch. Since he wasn't too busy today, we went and had lunch at the food court in the basement of Taipei 101. I also ended up doing laundry this morning. Since my friend does not have a dryer, I had to hang everything on a drying rack. Taiwan is much more humid than California so some of the heavier cotton stuff is still damp.
View from living room window. The apartment is on the sixth floor. Looks like another hot and humid day. I guess the rumors of multiple typhoons hitting Taiwan wasn't true.
Washer... but no dryer.
I took a taxi to Taipei 101 since the MRT doesn't have any stop nearby. The fare was NTD95. Currently there is a free shuttle that runs from the Taipei City Hall MRT stop to Taipei 101, and they're busy constructing an additional MRT line on XinYi Road.
Looking up at Taipei 101. I think I have 3 or 4 photos already from this vantage point.
There is a multi-level shopping mall attached to Taipei 101. There are some pretty expensive brand stores: Chanel, Omega, Rolex, Tiffany, etc. Downstairs from the entrance is a Roots store... yay Canada!
In the basement, there is a food court (typical of malls in Taipei). I ended up ordering a bowl of noodles from this place since this was probably my last chance to eat Taiwan beef noodle soup before I leave tomorrow.
I splurged and got the "premium" bowl for NTD188; the regular bowl was only NTD133. Sigh... I think the extra cost was for the other cow parts that I don't eat: stomach and tendon. Probably should have went with the cheaper bowl.
The food court filled up quickly. John said that the people in the office are pretty punctual about lunch. In Irvine, people take lunch at all hours; I see people in the cafeteria from 11:30am to 2:00pm. Here, people are gone at noon sharp. Also, as we were finishing our lunch, people start hovering around our table, ready to claim it when we leave. In the US, people will probably ask us if we will be done soon, and stick around or move on based on our answer. Here, people stand real close to our table but pretend to be doing something else. Just ask! I felt like asking these two girls if they wanted our table, and even to sit down first since we had two empty seats. That probably would have freaked them out though.
After lunch, we walked by a place that sold 豆花 with various toppings. I'm a purist so I got a bowl (cold) with peanuts for NT40. It was good. I remember when I was young that street vendors would carry containers on their shoulder with bamboo poles and sell 豆花 door to door at night. There was also a stinky tofu vendor that would come around as well. Yum! I don't think I can live in Taipei... I'll just be eating stuff all the time.
After lunch, I stopped by the office to check out where John was sitting. We occupy some of the 5th and 6th floor, plus the basement of this building. I brought along my badge and it opened all the access doors I tried. Since I was wearing a t-shirt, shorts, and sandals, we didn't go the the main entrance on the 5th floor. I didn't get a chance to see some of the inappropriately (skimpily) dressed female co-workers. I'm only dressed like a bum since everything else was washed and drying.
I walked back to Taipei 101 and caught the free shuttle back to the MRT station, and got back to the apartment at around 3:00pm. Since the laundry was still damp, I took a nap for ~3 hours and now I'm waiting to have dinner with John before heading off to Beijing tomorrow.
View from living room window. The apartment is on the sixth floor. Looks like another hot and humid day. I guess the rumors of multiple typhoons hitting Taiwan wasn't true.
Washer... but no dryer.
I took a taxi to Taipei 101 since the MRT doesn't have any stop nearby. The fare was NTD95. Currently there is a free shuttle that runs from the Taipei City Hall MRT stop to Taipei 101, and they're busy constructing an additional MRT line on XinYi Road.
Looking up at Taipei 101. I think I have 3 or 4 photos already from this vantage point.
There is a multi-level shopping mall attached to Taipei 101. There are some pretty expensive brand stores: Chanel, Omega, Rolex, Tiffany, etc. Downstairs from the entrance is a Roots store... yay Canada!
In the basement, there is a food court (typical of malls in Taipei). I ended up ordering a bowl of noodles from this place since this was probably my last chance to eat Taiwan beef noodle soup before I leave tomorrow.
I splurged and got the "premium" bowl for NTD188; the regular bowl was only NTD133. Sigh... I think the extra cost was for the other cow parts that I don't eat: stomach and tendon. Probably should have went with the cheaper bowl.
The food court filled up quickly. John said that the people in the office are pretty punctual about lunch. In Irvine, people take lunch at all hours; I see people in the cafeteria from 11:30am to 2:00pm. Here, people are gone at noon sharp. Also, as we were finishing our lunch, people start hovering around our table, ready to claim it when we leave. In the US, people will probably ask us if we will be done soon, and stick around or move on based on our answer. Here, people stand real close to our table but pretend to be doing something else. Just ask! I felt like asking these two girls if they wanted our table, and even to sit down first since we had two empty seats. That probably would have freaked them out though.
After lunch, we walked by a place that sold 豆花 with various toppings. I'm a purist so I got a bowl (cold) with peanuts for NT40. It was good. I remember when I was young that street vendors would carry containers on their shoulder with bamboo poles and sell 豆花 door to door at night. There was also a stinky tofu vendor that would come around as well. Yum! I don't think I can live in Taipei... I'll just be eating stuff all the time.
After lunch, I stopped by the office to check out where John was sitting. We occupy some of the 5th and 6th floor, plus the basement of this building. I brought along my badge and it opened all the access doors I tried. Since I was wearing a t-shirt, shorts, and sandals, we didn't go the the main entrance on the 5th floor. I didn't get a chance to see some of the inappropriately (skimpily) dressed female co-workers. I'm only dressed like a bum since everything else was washed and drying.
I walked back to Taipei 101 and caught the free shuttle back to the MRT station, and got back to the apartment at around 3:00pm. Since the laundry was still damp, I took a nap for ~3 hours and now I'm waiting to have dinner with John before heading off to Beijing tomorrow.
Free Drinks at Work, Taipei Edition
While visiting our Taipei office this afternoon, I stole some drinks out of the refrigerator. It was mainly different types of tea. In Irvine, other than the cafeteria, we only have cans of soda... I like tea better.
Sunday, September 5, 2010
2010 Asia Trip, Taipei Day #3 Morning
This is really a continuation of the previous post; I kept falling asleep while writing the post and it was getting too long anyway.
I'm not sure if I'm still jetlagged but I got up at ~6am. My parents gave me the phone number for my aunt in Taipei. Even though I call her 小姑, she's only ~4 years older than me. I called her up at ~9:30am and it was obvious that I woke her up.
I was worried she wouldn't remember who I was since it's been 33 years since I left Taiwan. Happily, she knew who I was and we arranged to meet for lunch near another MRT station since she wasn't too familiar with where I'm staying.
Small lane outside my friend's apartment. The entrance to the 忠孝敦化 MRT station is a the end.
忠孝敦化 MRT Station
Map of surrounding area. They built an underground mall extending to the next MRT station. My friend's apartment is next to the circular park thing near the bottom of the map.
I got to the designated MRT station a few minutes early. Since there are multiple exits, I waited in the central area wondering how I was going to recognize my aunt. I think because my dad has been sending photos, she recognized me right away. Good thing since I don't remember her at all. We ended up walking to another department where the clothing company she's working for has a retail outlet. It was hot and humid (again) and I was sweating (again) when we got to the Japanese restaurant in the department store.
My aunt ordering food. The waitresses were really really polite... much different from my experience in China.
Roasted cuttlefish and cheese baked on some sort of Japanese potato-like vegetable.
Roasted fish
She ordered a lot of food and we ate for over 2 hours. She is an interesting person and though I couldn't understand what she was saying sometimes, we had a lot to talk about. She treated me to lunch (~$40) and then went back to her store where she asked me to pick out a shirt. Since it was an Italian brand and the style was contemporary, I thought most of the stuff was too flashy. I tried on a few t-shirts and shirts, and even the 3L (equivalent to XXL?) was too small. The clothes were really expensive too. The last shirt I tried on was ~NTD7000 or $200+... dang, that's more then the price of my most expensive Tommy Bahama shirt. I'm sure she gets a big discount but still... anyway, I couldn't find anything that fit so I said that I would go home, lose some weight, and she can get me something next time I'm here. Afterward, we walked around a bit, got some iced coffee, bought some pineapple cakes for my trip to Beijing, and said goodbye.
We walked by the Grand Formosa Regent, which is part of the Four Seasons hotel chain. Cheap rooms start at ~$400/night.
Small coffee house. Two glasses of iced coffee cost NTD330 or ~$10.
I got back to the apartment at ~4:30pm. Even though my friend was leaving for SFO that night, he suggested we go see a movie. We quickly got a taxi downstairs and saw a showing of The Expendables at 5:15pm. The price for two tickets was NTD540 or ~$9/each... pretty similar to US prices. The movie was directed by Sylvester Stallone, featured cameos by a bunch of people, including Arnold, and sucked really really bad. I wasn't sure if it was bad on purpose or Stallone was trying to make a good movie. For dinner, we went to a Japanese style BBQ place, very similar to Gyu-Kaku back home.
Grill with Japanese charcoal. The waitresses would occasionally replace the wire grill with their hands. We got a bunch of different style of beef, staying away from internal organs.
The group next to us ordered these huge prawns.
The restaurant was pretty small but had two groups with white guy-Chinese girl couples. John (co-worker) and I noticed this last night too while walking around. Not sure what, if anything, they find different about dating a foreigner in Taiwan. Possibility to leave the country? A chance to practice their English? Dating someone from a culture that respects women more? Once again, I'm disadvantaged because I look like an ordinary local person... without the man purse.
Okay, one more day left in Taipei... what to do?
I'm not sure if I'm still jetlagged but I got up at ~6am. My parents gave me the phone number for my aunt in Taipei. Even though I call her 小姑, she's only ~4 years older than me. I called her up at ~9:30am and it was obvious that I woke her up.
Her: hello (in Chinese)
Me: Can I speak to xxx (her Chinese name)
Her: Speaking (or something like that... I couldn't understand what she said)
Me: Umm, this is xxx (my Chinese name)
Silence...
Me: I'm visiting from America
Silence...
Me: I'm xxx (my dad's Chinese name) son
Her: Oh! blah, blah, blah...
I was worried she wouldn't remember who I was since it's been 33 years since I left Taiwan. Happily, she knew who I was and we arranged to meet for lunch near another MRT station since she wasn't too familiar with where I'm staying.
Small lane outside my friend's apartment. The entrance to the 忠孝敦化 MRT station is a the end.
忠孝敦化 MRT Station
Map of surrounding area. They built an underground mall extending to the next MRT station. My friend's apartment is next to the circular park thing near the bottom of the map.
I got to the designated MRT station a few minutes early. Since there are multiple exits, I waited in the central area wondering how I was going to recognize my aunt. I think because my dad has been sending photos, she recognized me right away. Good thing since I don't remember her at all. We ended up walking to another department where the clothing company she's working for has a retail outlet. It was hot and humid (again) and I was sweating (again) when we got to the Japanese restaurant in the department store.
My aunt ordering food. The waitresses were really really polite... much different from my experience in China.
Roasted cuttlefish and cheese baked on some sort of Japanese potato-like vegetable.
Roasted fish
She ordered a lot of food and we ate for over 2 hours. She is an interesting person and though I couldn't understand what she was saying sometimes, we had a lot to talk about. She treated me to lunch (~$40) and then went back to her store where she asked me to pick out a shirt. Since it was an Italian brand and the style was contemporary, I thought most of the stuff was too flashy. I tried on a few t-shirts and shirts, and even the 3L (equivalent to XXL?) was too small. The clothes were really expensive too. The last shirt I tried on was ~NTD7000 or $200+... dang, that's more then the price of my most expensive Tommy Bahama shirt. I'm sure she gets a big discount but still... anyway, I couldn't find anything that fit so I said that I would go home, lose some weight, and she can get me something next time I'm here. Afterward, we walked around a bit, got some iced coffee, bought some pineapple cakes for my trip to Beijing, and said goodbye.
We walked by the Grand Formosa Regent, which is part of the Four Seasons hotel chain. Cheap rooms start at ~$400/night.
Small coffee house. Two glasses of iced coffee cost NTD330 or ~$10.
I got back to the apartment at ~4:30pm. Even though my friend was leaving for SFO that night, he suggested we go see a movie. We quickly got a taxi downstairs and saw a showing of The Expendables at 5:15pm. The price for two tickets was NTD540 or ~$9/each... pretty similar to US prices. The movie was directed by Sylvester Stallone, featured cameos by a bunch of people, including Arnold, and sucked really really bad. I wasn't sure if it was bad on purpose or Stallone was trying to make a good movie. For dinner, we went to a Japanese style BBQ place, very similar to Gyu-Kaku back home.
Grill with Japanese charcoal. The waitresses would occasionally replace the wire grill with their hands. We got a bunch of different style of beef, staying away from internal organs.
The group next to us ordered these huge prawns.
The restaurant was pretty small but had two groups with white guy-Chinese girl couples. John (co-worker) and I noticed this last night too while walking around. Not sure what, if anything, they find different about dating a foreigner in Taiwan. Possibility to leave the country? A chance to practice their English? Dating someone from a culture that respects women more? Once again, I'm disadvantaged because I look like an ordinary local person... without the man purse.
Okay, one more day left in Taipei... what to do?
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