My Kafkaesque life

Taiwanese Steve Jobs - Action Pad commercial scandal

2012-01-31T22:25:00.000+08:00

Chinese Steve Jobs impersonation

The video below is featuring a commercial, which is running on Taiwanese TV almost nonstop these days. It's main character is a Taiwanese actor, who is impersonating the deceased Steve Jobs with angel wings and a halo, promoting a tablet named "Action Pad", speaking Chinese with an American accent. The commercial is upsetting some foreigners, who feel it's going too far by making fun of a dead person. The ad was a little weird to me at first, but now that I saw it over hundred times, I'm so like "whatever". The problem is, that the impersonation is so bad, I don't really connect Steve Jobs with it. As far as I know, he never talked so fast on stage. Check the video for yourself (sorry for the bad quality, was shot with my wife's smartphone from TV):

Action Pad commercial from My Kafkaesque life on Vimeo.

What do you think?

Tainan Railway Station 臺南車站

2012-01-29T13:01:00.000+08:00

Tainan's entry point

Tainan Railway Station or 臺南車站 is the central and main railway station in Tainan City. If you ever travel to this beautiful city, you will most definitely arrive here at some point. Trains from the north (Taichung, Taipei) as well as trains from the south (Kaohsiung) meet here. The station is also a turning point for buses and cabs. If you plan to rent a scooter, there are a few shops in the area, which is very convenient. Aside from that, it's not the most charming part of Tainan - in order to see more interesting places, you will need to go eastwards. The station was opened in the year 1900 during the Japanese rule over Taiwan, but the construction was wooden at that time. In 1936 the current building was completed (source).

Tainan Station from the side.

To the platforms.

The arrival hall of the station.

Scooter rental shops, at the back is the Shangri La Hotel building.

A big roundabout near the station.

[My TAINAN page][Taiwan Railway Schedule][All photos by MKL, 2012]

Tainan High-Speed Railway Station

2012-01-29T11:42:00.001+08:00

Tainan's ultramodern gateway to the city

Clean and modern is what one thinks, when he alights at the Tainan THSR Station.

View Larger Map (A: Tainan THSR Station, B: Tainan Station)

Tainan High-Speed Railway Station or 高鐵臺南站 is the city's modern entrance point. Located around 15km south from Tainan Railway Station, it's not too far from the city's downtown. Nowadays there is a direct railway connection through the Shalun Line, see a map here. But for your convenience, there are cabs and free shuttle buses right outside the station. My wife and I took one and we needed about 30 mins to reach central Tainan. The bus stops at several stops, which was very convenient for us, because it stopped in the area near our hotel.

Tainan THSR Station inside.

Here you can buy tickets.

Free shuttle bus on the far right.

[My TAINAN page][Taiwan Railway Schedule][All photos by MKL, 2012]

Chinese adverbs of frequency

2011-12-25T23:33:00.000+08:00

Mandarin phrases with adverbs of frequency

Today we will share some examples of Chinese adverbs of frequency, sich as often, sometimes, never, always, usually and every time. These words express how often we do something and are very useful for Chinese learners like me, who is at the beginner stage.

1. 常常 chángcháng: often, usually, frequently

我常常吃巧克力。
Wǒ chángcháng chī qiǎokèlì.
I often eat chocolate.

2. 難得 nándé: seldom, rarely (formal)

難得你做的菜很好吃。
Nándé nǐ zuò de cài hěn hǎochī.
You seldom make tasty food.

3. 很少 hěn shào: seldom (casual)

我很少吃馬鈴薯。
Wǒ hěn shǎo chī mǎlíngshǔ.
I seldom eat potatoes.

4. 有時 yǒushí, 有時候 yǒushíhou: sometimes

有時候你很皮。
Yǒushíhòu nǐ hěn pí.
Sometimes you are very naughty.

5. 總是 zǒngshì: always

我總是喝咖啡。
Wǒ zǒngshì hē kāfēi.
I always drink coffee.

6. 從不 cóngbù: never

Words with the same meaning as 從不 (never) are 從未 cóngwèi, 從來不 cóngláiméi and 從來沒 cóngláibù. They could be used as well in the example below.

從不說從不。
Cóngbù shuō cóngbù.
Never say never.

7. 永遠 yóngyuǎn: forever

我永遠愛你。
Wǒ yóngyuǎn ài nǐ.
I will love you forever.

8. 每次 měicì: every time

每次你都會點果汁。
Měicì nǐ dōu huì diǎn guǒzhī.
Every time you will order juice.

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Please note the rules of pronunciation in standard Chinese phonology. Two 3rd tones in a row make the first syllable become 2nd tone, for example: xiǎng + xiǎng = xiángxiǎng etc. Read more here.

Back to my Learning Chinese page>>

Explaining "think" in Chinese

2011-12-10T23:33:00.001+08:00

Mandarin phrases about thoughts and thinking

I often have a problem understanding how Taiwanese think. So I decided to do a research and asked my wife to tell me which words or phrases, that express thinking, thoughts or ideas, exist in Mandarin. Below is a list with examples, which is narrowed down to the most important and common ones, that are used in daily life. There are many more words in Chinese, that express the same thing, but they are usually used in literary works or special circumstances. For a beginner student of Mandarin, these should suffice. You can use these phrases as a reference.

1. 想 xiǎng: to think, to want, to miss

想 is the most basic word one associates with thinking and thoughts. It's also used in combination with other words and helps to expand the meaning. See some examples below:

你想太多了。
Ní xiǎng tài duō le.
You're thinking too much.

我想妳。
Wǒ xiáng nǐ.
I miss you.

你想什麼/你在想什麼？
Ní xiǎng shénme? Nǐ zài xiǎng shénme?
What's on your mind? What are you thinking now?

我想睡覺。
Wó xiǎng shueì jiào.
I want to sleep. (Lit. I'm thinking about sleeping)

我想要吃水餃。
Wó xiǎngyào chī shueí jiǎo.
I want to eat dumplings.

2. 想想 xiángxiǎng: to think

想想去哪裡走走？
Xiángxiǎng qù nálǐ zóuzǒu?
Where would you like to go?

讓我想想...
Ràng wǒ xiángxiǎng...
Let me think... (Used before thinking about something)

3. 想起 xiǎngqǐ: to think of, to call to mind

我想起我的奶奶。
Wǒ xiángqǐ wǒde nǎinai.
My grandma comes to mind. (When talking about something, that reminds you)

4. 想出 xiǎngchū: to figure out, to think up

我想出這個點子。
Wǒ xiǎngchū zhège diǎnzi.
I came up with this idea. (Lit. I thought out this idea).

5. 休想 xioūxiǎng: don't think about

你休想看電視!
Nǐ xioūxiǎng kàn diànshì!
Don't think about watching TV! (Much firmer as the similar 不要)

6. 認為 rènwéi: to think (indicating a direction)

認為 and 以為, both meaning "to think", are somewhat related, but they are usually used in different contexts. While 認為 indicates a positive note and a thought in a certain direction, 以為 is indicating a disappointment and usually an explanation or a "but" follows.

我認為台北很好玩。
Wǒ rènwéi Táipěi hén hǎowán.
I think Taipei is really interesting.

7. 以為 yǐwéi: to think (indicating a disappointment)

我以為台北很好玩，但是沒有。
Wǒ yǐwéi Táipěi hén hǎowán, dànshì méiyǒu.
I thought Taipei is really interesting, but it's not.

8. 惦記 diànjì: keep thinking, think a lot

我惦記你。
Wǒ diànjì nǐ.
I think about you a lot. (More like: You are always on my mind.)

9. 考慮 kǎolǜ: to seriously consider something

我會考慮。
Wǒ huì kǎolǜ.
I'm seriously considering it.

10. 花心思 huāxīnsi: to think thoroughly

我花了很多心思挑選你的生日禮物。
Wó huāle hěn duō xīnsi tiāoxuǎn nǐde shēngrì lǐwù.
I spent a lot of time thinking about what to pick for your birthday gift.

11. 感到 gǎndào, 覺得 juéde: to feel, to sense, to think

感到 and 覺得 indicate a mix of inner feelings and thoughts, both are very similar in meaning.

我感到/覺得難過。
Wǒ gǎndào/juéde nánguò.
I feel sad.

12. 念頭 niàntou, 點子 diǎnzi, 想法 xiángfǎ: idea, thought

我有想逛夜市的念頭。
Wǒ yóu xiǎng guàng yèshì de niàntou.
I have the idea to go to the night market.

我想出這個點子。
Wó xiǎngchū zhège diǎnzi.
I came up with this idea.

我有這個想法。
Wó yǒu zhège xiángfǎ.
I came up with this idea.

----------------------
Please note the rules of pronunciation in standard Chinese phonology. Two 3rd tones in a row make the first syllable become 2nd tone, for example: xiǎng + xiǎng = xiángxiǎng etc. Read more here.

Back to my Learning Chinese page>>

"Old Time Rock And Roll" - Best Risky Business dance scene videos

2011-12-07T21:30:00.001+08:00

List of best impersonations

Who doesn't know the famous dance scene from the 1983 flick Risky Business, that made Tom Cruise an icon? The scene is so famous and popular, that it was remade in a lot of other occasions, such as spoofs in series and cartoons, commercials and on YouTube. The latter one was done purely for fun. My favorite is the one by Alf. But there are plenty others, that caught my attention and I decided to share them with you below. I'm not sure, what is more interesting, the dance routine or the awesome track "Old Time Rock And Roll" by the legend Bob Seger. Decide for yourself and just enjoy! Btw, the videos below prove, that White girls can be so much of fun. I've forgotten this a bit ever since I'm living here in Asia. I love to see them get wild :-)

This is Tom Cruise's famous movie scene:

Here are the Youtube Remakes:

Two hot girls version

By the brunettes.

By Krystal and Amber.

By Ashley and Lauren.

By the blondies.

By Jenna and Megan.

By Erryca and Laura.

One girl version

By Taylor.

By Heidi Klum.

By blue shirt girl.

By Angel.

By Rhonda.

By Carlita.

By Joey.

By Jess.

By Sara, who redid it exactly like Tom Cruise. Bravo!

One guy version

By Niles from The Nanny.

By Maxim.

By Vegas guy.

By Kevin.

Who's your favorite? Drop a comment below and tell me.

TAG Heuer Link Chronograph Calibre 16 Automatic Watch Review

2011-11-12T12:47:00.001+08:00

TAG Heuer's avant-garde chronograph

TAG Heuer Link Chronograph Calibre 16 Automatic watch is one of TAG Heuer's most famous watches, known to be a sporty and elegant timepiece, that looks great in casual as well as in formal settings. The movement Calibre 16 features a date complication, a self-winding mechanism and a chronograph, which is the most significant part of the watch. This watch is definitely a looker and stands out as one of TAG Heuer's most recognizable and desirable watches. Let me share my impressions.

My impression of the TAG Heuer Link Chronograph

I tried this watch on, before I was buying my current darling Link Day-Date Calibre 5. The Chronograph is the most expensive watch in the Link series and is considered its flagship. With the size of 43mm, it's only 1mm wider than the Day-Date, but of course in the mikro-universe of a wristwatch, this makes a huge ifference. The Link Chronograph needs a bigger dial and a bigger case, because the movement consists of more parts and the dial features 3 sub-dials (for counting seconds, minutes and hours).

My TAG Heuer Link Day-Date Calibre 5 Automatic watch.

You could say, that the Link Calibre 16 is a stopwatch added to a normal watch. Because of that, it's about 50% more expensive than the Day-Date I've bought, but it lacks the Day of the week complication. Although design-wise I like the Link Chronograph as much as the Day-Date, but then I was thinking: Do I really want to pay over 3000 Euro for the chronograph complication, which I will rarely use? At this point my answer was no. If I wanted a chronograph, I'd rather choose a model from Link's Carrera or Aquaracer series, but like I said: At this point I don't need it. Sure, when buying this kind of expensive watch, it's not really about need, it's about wanting. I didn't want it, the dial looked less practical to me, the readability of the time was much better on the Day-Date and besides, I love that Day of the week design at 12 o'clock, it always captivates me how beautifully it was done. The Chronograph on the other hand doesn't look too different than various chronographs of other exquisite brands, so I guess in this way I would like to stand out from the crowd. If I judged both watches by photos, I would definitely choose the Link Chronograph, but once you try both watches on and see them from close up, the Day-Date gains in appeal, while the Chronograph loses it's magic a little. Please don't try to tell me otherwise, this is my opinion, I tried both watches on at two dealers and always came to the same conclusion. Nevertheless, this is "criticism" on a very very high level and if you're a watch lover, you know what I mean. In no way I am saying that the TAG Heuer Link Chronograph is a bad watch - to the contrary. It's an awesome timepiece, but I just had to make the choice and decide which one is more suitable for me.

Check the TAG Heuer Link official video:

When the new Link was launched, TAG made this video. Not really my fav though.

TAG Heuer Link Chronograph in concluion

Link Chronograph Calibre 16 is a great watch. Compared to the older 2010 version, the sub-dials were redesigned and are now overlapping each other. That's always a tricky thing to do, as it improves the design and sacrifices the practicality. It is one of TAG Heuer's masterpieces and most notable watches, but it has its price and it will be the best choice for those of you, who like dials with lots of content. If you like simplicity, this one may not be your number 1 choice, but I have to add that the new design is much clearer than its predecessors.

Photo: The Link Chronograph 2010 version

Highlights of the timepiece:

- Fine brushed polished steel case
- Polished steel crown and bezel
- Tachymeter scale on bezel
- Scratch resistant sapphire crystal, double anti-reflective treatment
- Scratch resistant crystal caseback
- Distinctive S-link bracelet with a secure folding clasp
- Hand applied TAG Heuer logo
- Luminescent hour and minute hand, polished
- Sweeping second hand, polished
- Luminescent hour markers
- Water resistant 100m
- Power reserve 42 hours

Complications of the timepiece:

- Self-winding Calibre 5 movement
- Date at 3 o'clock
- Chronograph (3 sub-dials for measuring seconds, minutes and hours)

Ref: CAT2011.BA0952, on TAG Heuer Website

This is truly one of TAG Heuer's most notable and prestigious watches, even though it would not be my first choice. As a chronograph, it's certainly one of the most elegant timepieces I've ever had the pleasure to strap around my wrist. If you look for this type of watch, I would definitely recommend you to consider TAG Heuer Link Calibre 16 as one of the top candidates for your purchase.

Please check my post about TAG Heuer Link Day-Date Calibre 5 here>>

Video of my Link Day-Date: Visual impressions.

[My SWISS WATCHES page][Top photo by TAG Heuer, marked by MKL, 2011]
Related: [2010 Link Review][2011 Link Review][TAG Heuer Website]

My TAG Heuer Link Day-Date Calibre 5 Long-term Review

2011-11-11T00:59:00.001+08:00

My review of one of TAG Heuer's finest watch through time

This post is intended to review my watch through time, to share my experience of wearing it, tell more about how reliable are the functions, which things surprised me, which disappointed me and much much more. I'm not sure, how long I will be updating about this way, but especially in the beginning I will definitely do it a lot and I hope that future owners can take this as a valuable reference. Please come and check out this post in the near future, as I may add some more interesting observations.

Before you read on, please check my review and photos of the watch here>>

The Calibre 5 movement is one of the watche's strongest points.

What TAG Heuer says about their quality

TAG Heuer says on their website: The high level of TAG Heuer quality is fouded on the rigourous choice and continous monitoring of all its suppliers and their products. Throughout the manufacturing process, each component is subjected to numerous tests and controls designed to verify how carefully it has been made.

I will certainly pay attention to every small thing in order to give you the best long-term review of this watch. I hope to help those, who are interested in acquiring one of TAG Heuer's high-end automatic watches, because most of the materials and movements are used across various series, so this could be useful to people, who are not only interested in Links.

1. After the first few days: Solid materials

I have to say, that I have no complaints what so ever. The watch runs with no problems and is very accurate. Maybe she's few seconds too fast, but very few, if you ask me. I'm wearing her to work every day and these days it's very rainy in Taipei, it constantly rains on the sapphire crystal, but that doesn't harm the watch in any way. And have to admit, I knocked with the watch few times at something like the edge of a desk or door, usually on the crystal, but no scratch at all. I know I need to be more careful, but sometimes the S-Link bracelet feels so natural, it's as if I'm not wearing the watch at all. So far the materials have passed the first test, but this doesn't mean anything. I fear that in a year I might have quite more things to criticize, but maybe that's just my expectation, because I've never owned anything as precious as this watch.

2. After the first week: My recklessness

A week is over and I can say that the watch is as awesome as when I first saw her. It is now obvious, that the watch gained some speed, it's 22 seconds faster than 7 days ago, when I bought her. That means it's only +3.14 seconds per day, which is a great result. The dealer told me that 6-10 seconds per day is normal (or 5 mins per month). So far it's better than I've expected and I hope she keeps running that well in the near future. However, something happened, that made me a little sad. The S-Link bracelet got a little scratched (see photo below). These scratches are hard to see, but they are there, most of them around the clasp. I tell you the reason: I work in an office, mostly behind computer, typing with both hands and probably rubbing my left wrist on the laptop or the desktop without knowing it. I need to be more careful, maybe I will put a small soft cushion under my left hand or take the watch off during typing. If you plan to buy watch soon, please keep this in mind and don't make the same mistake as me.

The unfortunate small scratch on my S-Link bracelet.

3. After three weeks: Is it travel proof?

I'm soon going on a trip, that involves flying to a different continent and driving through different countries in a very cold climate. Once I'm back, I will report, how she took it. I hope she will take it well.

In addition, please watch a video of my Link Day-Date, I made for you:

Video of my Link Day-Date: Visual impressions.

[My SWISS WATCHES page][All photos by MKL, 2011, except one by TAG Heuer]
Related: [2010 Link Review][2011 Link Review][TAG Heuer Website]

TAG Heuer Link Date Calibre 6 Automatic Watch Review

2011-11-09T01:17:00.002+08:00

TAG Heuer's stylish entry-level automatic timepiece

TAG Heuer Link Date Calibre 6 Automatic watch is one of TAG Heuer's most elegant entry-level automatic watches and definitely a model worth to consider as your first high-end Swiss watch. The movement Calibre 6 features a date complication as well as a self-winding mechanism. The most significant part is the subdial at 6 o'clock with the small sweeping second hand. Everything else is simplicity in design and exclusivity when it comes to quality. This watch is definitely a great timepiece.

My impression of the TAG Heuer Link Date

This watch was together with the Link Day-Date Calibre 5 one of the two hottest candidates of becoming my first high-end Swiss made wristwatch. In the end I decided to not buy this one, even if it was around 7% cheaper than the Day-Date. Let me tell you why.

My TAG Heuer Link Day-Date Calibre 5 Automatic watch.

The main difference between the Link Day-Date and Link Date is the size. The first one is 42mm, while the latter is only 40mm. That was probably one of the key reasons, that I haven't picked the smaller Link Date. But an even bigger reason to choose the Day-Date was what the name indicates: The day and date complications. And in addition, a more detailed dial of that watch, with a big sweeping second hand, something I have always preferred over a small sweeping second hand placed into a subdial, as it's done in the case of the Link Date Calibre 6. This is of course purely a matter of taste and if you like simplicity, that would probably be a very great choice for you. Most of the other things are very similar, from the bracelet to the design of the bezel, these two watches are definitely cousins, if not brothers. What made the biggest difference for me was when I tried on both watches and saw how they looked on my hand. The Link Date didn't look bad at all and I would buy it, if I hadn't have the option of choosing the Link Day-Date and try it on at the same time. My wife also said, that she liked the latter more, as the first one appeared too simple to her.

But best is you see it for yourself:

I found this video on YouTube and it shows very well, how the Link Date looks like.

TAG Heuer Link Date in concluion

Link Date Calibre 6 is a great watch, however I don't like the direction they are heading design-wise. The watch on the first photo is the one I had on my wrist, but it's from 2010. The 2011 design retouch made the watch even simpler (it removed the second markers on the subdial), you can see this here.

Highlights of the timepiece:

- Fine brushed polished steel case and indexes
- The distinctive S-link bracelet with a secure folding clasp
- Polished steel crown and bezel
- Anti-scratch sapphire crystal, double anti-reflective treatment,
- Anti-scratch sapphire crystal caseback
- Hand applied TAG Heuer logo
- Luminescent markers and hands
- Small second hand and date display at 6 o'clock
- Calibre 6 movement

Complications of the timepiece:

- Self-winding mechanism
- Date window at 6 o'clock

Ref: WJF211G.BA0570, on TAG Heuer website

It's a pity, that TAG Heuer tries to change the sporty, elegant, casual feel of the 2010 Link Day-Date into some kind of elegant exquisite, yet simplistic touch. Some may like it, some may not. I personally would offer the old model as well, in my opinion it looks much better. But I'm not the TAG Heuer CEO, that's why I can't know what is the best direction for the future design of TAG's excellent timepieces of the Link series. If you think you like the old model more, go and buy it now, you might get a great deal from your local AD, if he still has a 2010 model available for you. If not, you might want to wait for 2012, I have a feeling that the model will be redesigned again: And then you'll have a lot of choice, but I think that might not really make your decision easier.

Please check my post about TAG Heuer Link Day-Date Calibre 5 here>>

[My SWISS WATCHES page][Top photo by TAG Heuer, marked by MKL, 2011]
Related: [2010 Link Review][2011 Link Review][TAG Heuer Website]

Prostitution in Taiwan to be legalized?

2011-11-06T18:40:00.002+08:00

Al Jazeera went deep into this issue

I saw this video embedded over at the Grand Narrative and couldn't help but wonder about it. Kudos to Al Jazeera for making this 25min video about one of Taiwan's social issues. They say there are 100.000 illegal prostitutes in Taiwan. They say much more things, it's a very complex issue and I don't want to write to much about it. I just wonder: Do you think prostitution in Taiwan should be legalized? What would be the pros and cons? Share your thoughts in the comment section, but please only after you watch the whole video.

Toothbrush moustache Taiwan style

2011-10-30T11:44:00.001+08:00

No doubt the character above has a distinct toothbrush mousatache, that was very popular in the first half of the twentieth century. But maybe I'm just "thinking too much", like my Taiwanese friends would say, but somehow he reminds me of someone, who was very famous for wearing this kind of moustache in the 1930s. You know, who I'm talking about, right? - Charlie Chaplin of course!

[My UNIQUELY TAIWANESE page][Photo by MKL, 2011]

Songshan Tobacco Factory, Taipei

2011-10-29T19:52:00.000+08:00

A historic factory turned into a museum

Songshan Tobacco Factory 松山菸廠 is an old factory building from the Japanese times. It was build in 1937 and served as the production site of tobacco, which was at that time controlled by the government. Today the whole area is called Songshan Cultural and Creative Park. In the recent two years Taipei City government meticulously renovated the historic architecture and has transformed it into a "gem and green belt of the city", so the official statement (more here). That was because of the 2011 World Design Expo taking place in the former factory and surrounding park, the main reason for that is the Taiwan Design Museum, which is also located here. The whole area is being revitalized. In about three to 4 years the whole area will be next to Taipei's new modern center: Taipei Dome 台北大巨蛋. This will certainly change the old factory's era of decay and throw it into the mainstream. I'm looking forward to that.

See some of my photos from October 2011:

The courtyard.

The entrance to the Taiwan Design Museum.

A park that is inviting tons of visitors.

And a lot of them were taking photos.

A majestic fountain.

The outer eastern part.

I'm really looking forward to see this part of Taipei being redesigned. The plans look promising. We just need to wait for the implementation. If you want to see the Songshan Tobacco Factory, please take the MRT to City Hall Station and walk north. Here is a map for your reference. Additional source on the topic can be found here.

[My TAIPEI SIGHTS page][All photos by MKL, 2011]

Wufenpu, Taipei

2011-10-29T16:48:00.000+08:00

Taipei's clothes paradise

Wufenpu 五分埔, located in Xinyi district, is one of Taipei's biggest shopping areas, famous for wholesale clothing. There are several streets full of shops attracting a lot of young people. It has a bit of a night market charm, but without the food. There are some food stalls, but just to feed the hungry shoppers. You can find all kinds of clothes for affordable prices, but not only that, you can buy all kinds of accessories, shoes and purses. It's definitely a paradise for shoppers and from what I saw, girls were dominating the area.

See some photos of Wufenpu in August, 2011:

This is wholesale in its basic sense.

Long lanes full of stores are common.

A corner shop.

You can also find qipao, traditional Chinese garment.

Nearby is the famous Raohe Night Market, click here to read more>>

To find Wufenpu, please click here for a map. You can exit at Songshan Train Station or Houshanpi MRT Station and go to Wufenpu by foot. It will only take you few minutes. Additional source: Taipei.gov.

[My TAIPEI SIGHTS page][All photos by MKL, 2011]

Ziqiang Night Market, Hualien

2011-10-29T12:51:00.000+08:00

Hualien's food paradise

Ziqiang Night Market 自强夜市 (also Ziqiang Road Night Market) is one of the two famous night markets in Hualien City. It's a fairly small night market by size, but one of the most crowded I've ever seen in the lands of the beautiful island. Judging by the quality of food, I would rank it in the top 10 of all Taiwan's night markets.

MY IMPRESSION: So far, I've only seen two night markets as crowded as this one: Fengjia and Luodong. The only difference is, that Ziqiang is very small and it resembles Kaohsiung's Rueifong Night Market, because the vendors are cramped together on a square, which is covered with tents. And since the food is really tasty and Hualien only offers another night market, Ziqiang is so crowded during the weekends, that you can hardly walk.It's like the whole city and country want to go to this place. And there is one popular stall, where you may need to wait even 2 hours to get the dish. It's just crazy!

WHAT KIND OF FOOD IS COMMON: Since the night market is fairly small, there are individual stalls, that stand out from the crowd. But generally you will find a lot of barbecued and fried food on skewers, steaks on a hot plate and fresh juices. It's a great combination and I'm sure you'll enjoy eating it.

MUST-TRY FOOD AT THE ZIQIANG NIGHT MARKET: The must-try snack would surely be found at the famous stall called First barbecue stall 第一家烤肉串, which serves barbecued meat on skewers. The stall is so famous, that when you order, you get a number and need to wait, sometimes even up to two hours. We had to wait 70min to get ours done, so we were forced to walk around and check other stalls. Another famous stall is Chiang family's coffin sandwich 蔣家官財板, where usually tons of people wait for their sandwich. We skipped this one, though. Next to it is the "Too wonderful for words" fruit juice shop or "妙不可言"果汁店. Their juice is so famous, that people don't mind standing in line for very long as well. The last one I'd like to list here is the Jiang Shun Ji Beefsteak 江順記. I've had the best beef steak in Taiwan here.

Let me show you some of my photos from Ziqiang Night Market in Aug 2011:

The entrance to the night market is not spectacular.

Once inside we saw how crowded it was.

The first part was still ok.

POPULAR STALL: FIRST BARBECUE STALL 第一家烤肉串

This stall had the longest queue. We could peek behind the curtain.

Once it was our turn, we picked various skewers.

It was a tough choice.

We got a number and had to wait about 70 minutes.

And that's how the barbecued meat looks like when it's done. It's delicious, however not worth to wait for it 1 hour or more. Only do that, if you have time to spend elsewhere.

POPULAR STALL: CHIANG FAMILY'S COFFIN SANDWICH 蔣家官財板

I'm not a big fan of coffin sandwiches, but I regret not trying this one.

This stall has several cooks, that make these sandwiches concurrently.

The area at the end is famous for fruit juices.

POPULAR STALL: "TOO WONDERFUL FOR WORDS" JUICE SHOP "妙不可言" 果汁店

This is one of the legendary stalls here. It's so popular like no other drink vendor.

The owner and his wife from close. We had to wait almost 30min to get our juice.

Some people even had to wait longer.

This is the second main lane, much less crowded.

At some stalls people gather more.

This part is full of vendors, who sell steaks.

Finally breathing easier, as the people became less.

A modern and popular oden sausage stall.

POPULAR STALL: JIANG SHUN JI BEEFSTEAK 江順記

I really recommend this place, the food is really good.

One of the best steaks on a hot plate in Taiwan.

To find the night market, it's best you take a taxi from Hualien Main Station, it's not so far from the night market. Follow my map and click on it for a Google map.

IN CONCLUSION: This is definitely one of the best night markets in Eastern Taiwan. Although it's small and crowded, it's worth the hassle just because the food is so tasty. I have hardly found a night market, where so many stalls are so exceptional. Here it's like you can't make a mistake by going to a vendor, that will disappoint you, because almost everybody's quality of food is above average. This surely is one of my favorite night markets in all of Taiwan.

[FOOD in TAIWAN][My TAIWAN page][My TAIPEI page][All photos by MKL, 2011]

[My TAIWAN NIGHT MARKETS list][My MAP of Night Markets in Taipei]

Yongji Road Night Market, Taipei

2011-10-16T01:14:00.000+08:00

The closest night market to Taipei 101

Yongji Road Night Market 永吉路夜市 is small local night market in Taipei, located very close to the Xinyi pedestrian area and Taipei 101. Interestingly this night market is not very known. In fact, my wife argued with me, that it's not really a night market, but just a street with stalls and restaurants. But for me, if something walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, then it must be a duck. And actually it's a pretty decent night market full of good places.

MY IMPRESSION: It's not your typical night market, because it's located on a busy street and it doesn't have a good infrastructure. There's also no signboard marking the entrance or exit, so yeah, it might not be an official night market, but who cares. The street looks like one and that's most important.

WHAT KIND OF FOOD IS COMMON:You have all kinds of food, mostly modern. There's a nice steak house and a Vietnamese restaurant, where I like to go. Of course there's also a wide array of your usual xiao chi such as marinaded food and salty chicken.

MUST-TRY FOOD AT THE YANPING NIGHT MARKET: I would recommend you to visit the Quan Pho Viet Nam restaurant as well as the Banshen 阪神 restaurant, that sells delicious steaks on a hot plate.

Noodles and barbecued meat is sold here.

Noodles shop.

Lots of stalls and shops here.

Fried chicken stall and a tea house.

Cosmed.

Abandoned hotel?

POPULAR STALL: 阪神

This restaurant named Banshen serves delicious steaks on hot plate.

The meal is rich: You get bread, salad and soup as well.

This beef steak was truly top notch.

Kang-fu Buffet Restaurant looks interesting.

Chiayi douhua or tofu pudding.

My wife tried the douhua and it wasn't bad.

POPULAR STALL: Quan Pho Viet Nam

This Vietnamese restaurant was very crowded.

We ordered these spring rolls and they were delish.

I had chicken and rice in curry sauce, very yummy. I recommend this restaurant, but the food has its price here.

The street ends at the Zhongxiao East Road.

To find the night market, it's best you take the MRT and go out at Nanjing East Road Station and then walk south. Follow my map and click on it for a Google map.

IN CONCLUSION: This is definitely a very convenient night market, because it's near a very popular MRT station and located close to Taipei's most fun to be area. You can't expect too much from this place, but there's definitely a good price for good quality eating possible. I would put Yongji in a golden middle of Taipei's night markets.

[FOOD in TAIWAN][My TAIWAN page][My TAIPEI page][All photos by MKL, 2011]

[My TAIWAN NIGHT MARKETS list][My MAP of Night Markets in Taipei]

Liaoning Night Market, Taipei

2011-10-15T22:15:00.000+08:00

A small night market in Zhongshan

Liaoning Street Night Market 遼寧街夜市 is a small night market in Taipei, located in the Zhongshan district. Unfortunately I have not eaten anything here so far, I just passed through and checked, what they have. If I chance to eat something here in the future, I will write a more detailed post. Until then, enjoy my photos:

There's not a lot of space to sit.

The stalls are however very well organized.

There's usually one table per stall.

The food is a good mix of the usual night market food.

A look back. The street is very short.

The signboard.

To find the night market, it's best you take the MRT and go out at Nanjing East Road Station and then walk south. Follow my map and click on it for a Google map.

[FOOD in TAIWAN][My TAIWAN page][My TAIPEI page][All photos by MKL, 2011]

[My TAIWAN NIGHT MARKETS list][My MAP of Night Markets in Taipei]

Food in Hualien

2011-10-10T15:10:00.000+08:00

Eastern Taiwan's food paradise

Food in Hualien is exceptional and very tasty. Just like in most Taiwanese cities, you will be able to find food stalls on every corner, bustling night markets in selected neighborhoods and exquisite upscale restaurants scattered all over the city. However, there is more to Hualien than that and I want to tell you, what else can your taste buds expect, if you come to visit this lovely city. There are three dishes Hualien is especially famous for: Wontons 餛飩, a kind of a delicate dumpling, muachi 麻糬, Japanese rice cake and tiramisu 提拉米蘇, the famous Italian dessert. This shows, that the food is a mix of international and local, something that is well reflected in the lifestyle and atmosphere of the city. But there's even more than these three dishes, that made Hualien famous all over Taiwan. You can find extremely popular restaurants and stalls, where people stand in line for half an hour or more. I have nowhere seen an image like this and believe me, I've seen a lot of Taiwan. Since I had such a good experience with food in Hualien, I've put together a small collection of the must-try food, if you chance to stay in this beautiful city.

My list of recommended food, stalls and restaurants in Hualien:

1. Wontons 餛飩

These wontons are produced in huge numbers every day at many popular stalls.

Everyone, who comes to Hualien, would love to try one.

2. Xiaolongbao 小籠包 at 周家蒸餃

Here are two of the most popular restaurants in Hualien.

We first went to 周家蒸餃 to eat xiaolongbao. The food was delicious and surprisingly cheap. Most people queue for takeaway, so just go inside and have a seat.

These delicate xiaolonngbao are so tasty. Find the restaurant on the map here.

3. Steamed buns at 公正包子

The steamed buns can be bought in the nearby restaurant called 公正包子 or in the same one as above called 周家蒸餃. If you don't know, where to eat, I would recommend you the latter, as I truly enjoyed the xiaolongbao more.

4. Roasted meat at 第一家烤肉串

This is probably the most popular night market vendor in all of Taiwan! We waited 70 minutes to get our dish and some others had to wait over 2 hours. You get a number and then you can walk around and eat something else. Never seen anything like this before.

The roasted meat is delicious, no doubt, but not sure, if I will wait over an hour next time. It's located in Ziqiang Night Market.

5. Steak on hot plate in a pepper sauce 夜市牛排

We had the chance to eat this delicious steak in the same night market . It was so yummy!

6. Hot pot at 三媽臭臭鍋

This shop is called 3rd Mama, you can find the location on this map.

The hot pot was one of the best I've ever had in Taiwan.

7. Tiramisu 提拉米蘇

You should definitely try the tiramisu in Hualien. I had this one in a café near the Pine garden above the Meilun river. It was very tasty.

8. Muachi 麻糬

The muachi is really famous in Hualien and near the main station you can find many gift shops, that only sell this popular dessert.

The photo above was taken a little outside town, it's a muachi chain store, that can be found in other parts of Taiwan as well.

I hope I could help you with finding the right food. I may update this post, when I revisit Hualien in the future.

[My FOOD IN TAIWAN page][My TAIWAN TRAVEL page][All photos by MKL, 2011]

Korean rock band Jaurim - Idol

2011-09-14T00:06:00.001+08:00

Mistified by Kim Yoon-Ah

This is probably Korea's best rock band Jaurim, performing their comeback song "Idol". I have to say I love the song and it's a pleasure to watch the charismatic front woman Kim Yoon-Ah rocking the stage. She's fantastic and so is the song. Enjoy!

The official video: Jaurim - Idol.

An awesome live performance.

Another great performance.

For future updates, follow Jaurim on Twitter here>>

Arguing about Taiwanese identity

2011-09-11T19:49:00.000+08:00

Aboriginal? Chinese? Japanese? Taiwanese!

Interesting, how a movie about Aboriginal Taiwanese sparked a fierce debate on Taiwanese identity on the Hollywood Reporter. I can't wait to see this movie. But the whole debate proves once again, how complicated the Taiwanese identity really is and how hard it is to find a common understanding of the historical events of the 20. century Taiwan. Enjoy some of the interesting comments from the article:

Maybeiamonline1 week ago
After the incident, most of aborigines of Taiwan change their name to Chinese name to avoid Japan military's attack. That's why there are very few aborigines exist in today's Taiwan. In fact, nearly 80% of population in Taiwan are indeed aborigines. I myself is one of them. Thanks a lot U.S.M.G.! And of course.. bow to emperor of Japan.
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12 people liked this.

Ttt66 6 days agoin reply to Maybeiamonline
"nearly 80% of population in Taiwan are indeed aborigines" ?

Actually most Taiwanese were immigrated from China since past 400 years. Some people think they are still Japanese and almost half people hope Japanese still occupied Taiwan. They've never appreciated how KMT made people to get better life after Japan surrendered. I'm one of the other half people who know what is love.
6 people liked this.

Mike Chen 5 days agoin reply to Ttt66
This is certainly not true. Most people here in Taiwan consider themselves "Taiwanese". We are not part of China nor part of Japan, and we would to remain so for the foreseeable future.
25 people liked this.

Ttt66 4 days agoin reply to Mike Chen
Let's bow to emperor of Japan even if Japanese killed so many Chinese and Taiwanese during World War II. Maybeiamonline and you guys are right. Keep to be a slave of Japanese in your mind. That's not human being should do. Japanese killed your people and you guys felt nothing? You win! Born to be a slave.
2 people liked this.

Truth 5 days agoin reply to Ttt66
Life in Taiwan would be much better without the dictatorship of KMT
21 people liked this.

Ttt66 4 days agoin reply to Truth
Yes, You're right. Would be better if Taiwan is still occupied by Japan now. What a slave thought!
3 people liked this.

Justinwarhammer 5 days agoin reply to Ttt66
Actually, Taiwanese had expected KMT's victory on Japanese, and had welcomed KMT's army, calling Mainland China their home country even after 50 years of ruling under Japanese Empire. But KMT make Taiwanese disappointed in both Economy and politics, having destroyed Taiwanese economy basis and killed many Taiwanese local elites (in many areas of subjects) In 228 Incident, calling all these a rebellion but not just a protest.

It is not "Never", but "Since then" that we Taiwanese have never appreciated KMT, even till now. But KMT has indeed contributed to nowaday Taiwan economical development, that is also undeniable, though they have destroyed it once in 228, too.

And, most now so-called Taiwanese are actually Chinese come from southeastern part of Mainland China in past 400 years. Ironically, those who are truly Aborigines of Taiwan before these are now being the lowest of our society, or just blend in with those "Taiwan Chinese". Most of now so-called Taiwanese have more or less some Taiwanese Aboriginal kindred, since when Taiwan still belonged to Qing dynasty, the Qing government had only allowed men to cross the Taiwan Strait, and banned women from crossing the Strait, thus those taiwan Chinese had to look for Taiwan Aboriginal women as wives.
12 people liked this.

Jackie. K 11 minutes agoin reply to Ttt66

and yes about 80% of taiwanese have aboriginal tribal blood. but i guess that doesnt include you since your family came after 1949 i believe. we love japan but that doesnt mean we want to be a part of japan. NO WAY! Taiwan is best being INDEPENDENT! and love my butt! killing our ancestors?? and forcing us to learn mandarin is love?! in a sense, you guys are no better than the japanese, KMT is WORSE than the japanese. why? who would kill their own brothers? We native taiwanese welcomed you guys as brothers, but you guys disappointed us and killed our ancestors. Low.. very low..

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Huatung Valley 花東縱谷, East Taiwan

2011-09-03T06:02:00.000+08:00

Taiwan's most beautiful valley

View Larger MapHuatung Valley 花東縱谷 (Hualien + Taitung, also called East Rift Valley), is one of the most beautiful scenic spots in Taiwan. My wife and I had the pleasure to take the train between Taitung City and Hualien City. It took us 2 hours and 43 minutes to master the distance of 145 kilometers. Below are some snippets of the wonderful spots we saw. I love to share them with you and hope you can find them useful, if you're deciding to go on a similar trip.

Our ride starts at Taitung City railway station and ends at Hualien City railway station:

When a train arrives in Taitung City, there's a lot of commotion.

People inside the Taitung Railway Station waiting to board the 13.10 to Hualien.

This was our train. There are about 25 stations to pass, but we stop only at few of them.

Crossing the Beinan River 卑南溪.

One of the small towns in Taitung County.

Road to Nowhere.

Luscious fields.

Mountains kissed by clouds.

And another village.

I really think this house is like from a fairy tale.

This is like a road from a fairy tale as well.

Crossing the river again. I'd love to go down there and soak my feet.

The remains of centuries of typhoons.

Chishang, one of the bigger villages in the valley.

Clouds blocking the sun and making a part of the field dark.

A temple under construction.

I would like to take a rest under these two trees.

Fuli, a small village.

I love this photo, but I don't envy the person working under the scorching sun.

Crossing another small river.

Finally a river with more water. And what a beautiful scenery.

This looks like a road to somewhere.

Rice fields.

More rice fields near Yuli, another bigger town in the area.

Guangfu Station, already in Hualien County.

Fonglin, a nice little town north of Guangfu.

I saw this at Zhixue Station. It's a pity, that he didn't let her cross over the tracks.

Reaching Hualien's suburbs.

And after nearly 3 hours we reached Hualien Main Station.

Cloudy weather was greeting us, but that didn't stop us to have a blast here.

I have to say that this part of Taiwan is not only good for riding through with the train, there are several beautiful spots found here, from lakes to hot springs to beautiful waterfalls, the area is rich with natural and cultural sites. And Huatung valley is a paradise for bicycle riders, you can follow several routes in and around the valley and have tons of fun cycling. Here's a map of the area and here's a webiste dedicated to toursim in this part of Taiwan. I'm sure, that I will return one day and explore this valley, because it's truly gorgeous.

[TRAVEL in TAIWAN][Photo by MKL, 2011]

Taitung County Coastal Tour 2011

2011-08-28T20:44:00.007+08:00

Follow my tour and have fun exploring Taitung's northern coast

The idea is simple: Two people, one scooter and a 60km stretch of one of Taiwan's most beautiful coasts: This is the introduction to my Taitung County coastal tour 2011! If you want to experience our amazing tour, check my tour map and follow my blog through 12 posts by clicking on the links at the bottom of every post, like this:

Flight to Taitung :Before [Taitung Tour 2011] Next: Taitung in the morning>>

My overview of the posts:

01 Taitung City in the morning - starting point of our tour

02 Fugang - small harbour, where people leave for Green island

03 Xiaoyeliou - curious rock formations

04 Jialulan - a plain with a beautiful view

05 Dulan - a village

06 Xinglong - a village

07 Longchang - a village

08 Eastern Taiwan's beautiful coast - my photos

09 Donghe - smaller town, famous for baozi

10 Duli - a village

11 Chenggong - small town, biggest settlement in the area

12 Sanxiantai - a beautiful island with an bridge with 8 arches

Related posts:

01 My Taitung County coastal tour map

02 Flying from Taipei to Taitung

Please start my Taitung tour here>>

[TRAVEL in TAIWAN][Photo by MKL, 2011]

Chenggong 成功, Taitung County

2011-08-28T15:03:00.002+08:00

A township in Taitung County

Chenggong 成功鎮 (lit. "Town of Success) is a bigger township with a fishing port located at Taiwan's Pacific coast in Taitung County. It's somewhere in the middle between Taitung City and Hualien City and one of the more important towns in Taitung county. The size of the town is much bigger than any other in this part of the county and in addition, it also has the biggest port in Taitung. What stood out were the numerous churches and even some factories. But the town looked pretty abandoned, when we visited. Since it was Friday afternoon, they were probably working. Chenggong is famous for being close to Sanxiantai, one of Taiwan's natural wonders - a small island, which is connected by a bridge with 8 arches. Other interesting spots include the Rock umbrella (石雨傘) and the Man rock (男人石).

See some of my photos of Chenggong:

There is a wide plain around the town.

Chenggong's outskirts.

(Former) industrial complex?

A church in the middle of renovations.

The whole town is full lamp posts with shark motives.

One of the main roads.

We made a stop near 7 Eleven and bough some drinks.

Chenggong is surrounded by beautiful mountains.

A road leading out of town - direction Sanxiantai!

Outiside the town and closer to one of Taiwan's famous spots.

Sanxiantai means "Platform of the 3 immortals". More about it here>>

Chenggong was named after Zheng Chenggong 鄭成功, a general from the Ming Dynasty.

This map is part of our Taitung tour - View Larger Map

To continue our tour along Taitung's northern coast, click on the link below or see the map.

Duli :Before [Taitung Tour 2011] Next: Sanxiantai>>

[My TAITUNG TOUR MAP][My TAIWAN TRAVEL page][All photos by MKL, 2011]

Duli 都歷, Taitung County

2011-08-28T12:59:00.002+08:00

Small village in Taitung County

Duli 都歷 is a small village along Taiwan's Pacific coast in Taitung County, next to Chenggong town and right outside Donghe township. We just rode through, because we were headed to Chenggong directly.

The main road is separating this small settlement in two parts.

In less than a minute we were out and rushing off to Chenggong town.

This map is part of my Taitung tour - View Larger Map

To continue our tour along Taitung's northern coast, click on the link below or see the map.

Donghe :Before [Taitung Tour 2011] Next: Chenggong>>

[My TAITUNG TOUR MAP][My TAIWAN TRAVEL page][All photos by MKL, 2011]

Donghe 東河, Taitung County

2011-08-28T12:43:00.005+08:00

A township in Taitung County

Donghe 東河 (lit. East River) is a bigger village along Taiwan's Pacific coast in Taitung County, closer to Chenggong town than Taitung City. The town is famous for a popular baozi shop (東河包子) and an old bridge 東河橋, where you can encounter monkeys. A lot of tourists would make stops at the baozi shop and later at the bridge. We only stopped to take a rest and tried the steam stuffed buns. It turned out that we had to wait over half an hour to be served (the shop is that popular). For more on Donghe, check their website.

Let me show you some photos of Donghe:

The famous Donghe Baozi shop, very popular with tourists.

A 7 Eleven at the main road.

The main road in direction to Chenggong.

One of the streets inside Donghe township, where locals live.

The entrance of the famous baozi shop.

30 min for these steamed buns. One cost 18 NTD, quite expensive.

They can be stuffed with peanuts, pork, veggies.. all kinds. I liked the one with beef the most. However I have to say for me the buns were just normal, I can't relate to the popularity.

After 45min we rode out of the township and in direction to Chenggong.

And then we saw the famous Donghe bridge from afar, however we didn't see any monkeys.

This map is part of my Taitung tour - View Larger Map

To continue our tour along Taitung's northern coast, click on the link below or see the map.

Blue Pacific views :Before [Taitung Tour 2011] Next: Duli>>

[My TAITUNG TOUR MAP][My TAIWAN TRAVEL page][All photos by MKL, 2011]

Longchang 隆昌, Taitung County

2011-08-27T18:46:00.004+08:00

A village in Taitung County

Longchang 隆昌 is a small village along Taiwan's Pacific coast in Taitung County, it's exactly in the middle of Taitung City and Chenggong. There's nothing special to see, just drive through and you'll soon see one of the most breathtaking views in Taiwan.

Mountains nearby.

This is few minutes outside of Longchang.

This is a map of our Taitung tour - View Larger Map

To continue our tour along Taitung's northern coast, click on the link below or see the map.

Xinglong :Before [Taitung Tour 2011] Next: Blue Pacific views>>

[My TAITUNG TOUR MAP][My TAIWAN TRAVEL page][All photos by MKL, 2011]

Xinglong 興隆, Taitung County

2011-08-27T18:34:00.007+08:00

A village in Taitung County

Xinglong 興隆 is a small village along Taiwan's Pacific coast in Taitung County, it lays between the villages Dulan and Longchang. There's nothing special to see and in few seconds you will be through.

This is all there is.

This is a map of my Taitung tour - View Larger Map

To continue our tour along Taitung's northern coast, click on the link below or see the map.

Dulan :Before [Taitung Tour 2011] Next: Longchang>>

[My TAITUNG TOUR MAP][My TAIWAN TRAVEL page][All photos by MKL, 2011]

Dulan 都蘭, Taitung County

2011-08-27T17:56:00.005+08:00

A village in Taitung County

Dulan 都蘭 is a small village along Taiwan's Pacific coast in Taitung County. If you plan to go from Taitung City to Chenggong, like we did, you will most likely drive through. The village itself doesn't offer a lot, the area nearby however is rich with many attractions (read more about that here).

My photos of Dulan:

Approaching the village.

Everything is "happening" on this main road.

Taking a break and looking back.

And in a minute we were out again, driving north in direction to Chenggong.

Very close is the next village - Xinggong.

This map is a map of my Taitung tour - View Larger Map

To continue our tour along Taitung's northern coast, click on the link below or see the map.

Jialulan :Before [Taitung Tour 2011] Next: Xinglong>>

[My TAITUNG TOUR MAP][My TAIWAN TRAVEL page][All photos by MKL, 2011]

Jialulan 伽路蘭, Taitung County

2011-08-27T16:57:00.011+08:00

A plain with a beautiful view

Jialulan Recreational Area or 伽路蘭遊憩區 is one of the beautiful spots close to Taitung City, where you can enjoy wonderful views of the pacific in front of you and the mountains at your back. The name in Chinese 伽路蘭 is merely a transliteration of the Amis tribe's name Kararuan, which means "the place to wash one's hair" (source). It's a small plain, which is often used as a venue for concerts of fairs. That day, when we visited, concerts were scheduled for the afternoon and the next day, but we didn't have time, we had to move on.

Here are some photos from Jialulan:

This is a toilet with an observation deck.

The view south was marvelous.

A mother and daughter were enjoying the views together.

Naughty girls climbing the rocks below.

There's a small house on the right. No idea, what it was.

Jet fighters were still flying above us.

Tents and a stage were being prepared for the concert.

A young boy took a rest on a bench nearby.

This map is part of our Taitung tour - View Larger Map

To continue our tour along Taitung's northern coast, click on the link below or see the map.

Xiaoyeliu :Before [Taitung Tour 2011] Next: Dulan>>

[My TAITUNG TOUR MAP][My TAIWAN TRAVEL page][All photos by MKL, 2011]

Fugang harbour 富岡, Taitung County

2011-08-27T14:28:00.008+08:00

The harbor that brings you to Green Island

Fugang 富岡 is a small village with a harbor, few kilometers east from Taitung City. It's famous for being the point, where most people take ferries to the Green Island. It was our first stop during the tour along Taitung County's northern coast. You can enjoy some beautiful views here, if you stop right before the village. There's a long promenade along the coast reserved for bikes and pedestrians with a view of the Green Island straight ahead and the lovely harbor on the left.

Let me show some photos from that spot:

The Fugang Harbour on the left and the promenade.

The Green Island straight ahead.

The view to the south.

The promenade at the direction of Taitung City.

Then we went on to the central part of Fugang.

We checked out the harbor.

These are the people exiting a ferry from Green Island.

Jet fighters were exercising due to recent threats from China. It was noisy.

And then we left the small village to the famous Xiao Yeliou nearby.

This map is part of our Taitung tour - View Larger Map
To continue our tour along Taitung's northern coast, click on the link below or see the map.

Morning in Taitung City :Before [Taitung Tour 2011] Next: Xiaoyeliu>>

[My TAITUNG TOUR MAP][My TAIWAN TRAVEL page][All photos by MKL, 2011]

Why Taiwanese girls stand outside?

2011-08-14T16:38:00.001+08:00

Do you understand this phenomenon?

There were at least over 100 young girls queuing outside a shop in Zhongshan yesterday. My wife happened to be in the area and took these photos. Do you know, what made all these girls stand in line on this rainy day?

Taiwanese girls can be a mystery.

What's going on here? Do you know?

I have to say I had no idea, before my wife told me the reason. If you haven't been able to figure it out, click here to find the solution. But before you do so, write in the comments your guess, I'd like to see how creative you are.

[My UNIQUELY TAIWAN page][All photos by MKL, 2011]

Ruifeng Night Market, Kaohsiung

2011-07-30T12:46:00.004+08:00

Kaohsung's second most famous night market

Ruifeng Night Market 瑞豐夜市 (or better Rueifong Night Market) in Kaohsiung is one of the famous night markets in the city. Unfortunately I did not have the chance to fully enjoy this lovely market, because it was raining a lot and heavily that day, so we ended up in a restaurant nearby and had some delicious food. And it wasn't only us, that day the market was almost empty, so I won't have as many food recommendations as usually, but I will give you some basic idea about how the night market looks like.

MY IMPRESSION: The most interesting thing about this night market is its shape. It's not a long street with many side streets like it's common in Taiwan, Rueifong is like a public square covered by food stalls and tents. It had that atmosphere of a festival, only the live music was missing. I have to say I liked it and I felt it was really a pity, that the rain spoiled our mood.

WHAT KIND OF FOOD IS COMMON: The most common food here is seafood 海鲜 (hǎixiān), of which the most popular dish is grilled squid 烤小卷 (kǎo xiǎojuǎn). That dish is almost seen everywhere and dominates the market. Of course the market offers a wide range of standar "little eats" such as oyster omelettes, marinaded meat and tofu and delicious pork chops.

MUST-TRY FOOD AT RUEIFONG NIGHT MARKET: The grilled squid must be very delicious here, because it's very popular. Kaohsiung is Taiwan's biggest port and the sea food is predominant in the local diet, so I think you can't leave this night market without trying some.

Let me show you some photos from Rueifong Night Market in July, 2011:

This is the night market from afar.

This is one of the mail lanes, quite narrow.

The outer part of the market.

Hotpot under a giant tent. I can imagine that all seats are full.

Grilled squid is this market's most popular dish.

SO TAIWANESE: One of the interesting things you can observe in southern Taiwan are the names for dishes, that originate from the Taiwanese language and are written with Han characters. For example 小卷 (xiǎojuǎn) comes from the word "shiogen", while in China, they would use 魷魚 (yóuyú). The Taiwanese language affects the Mandarin a lot in Taiwan.

This stall has been around since 1982, so it claims.

The stalls were still being built up, but then came the rain and we went to a restaurant.

This is called tangga mige in Taiwanese or 筒仔米糕 in Chinese.

This is called kiroufan in Taiwanese and 雞肉飯 in Chinese (chicken with rice). Yummy!

This is 榨菜肉絲乾麵, a type of noodles. Not bad.

And then it rained more and more and we decided to leave.

HOW TO FIND RUEIFONG NIGHT MARKET? SEE MY MAP:

To find the night market is very easy, exit at Kaohsiung Arena Station at Exit 1, walk for 5 minutes straight and you are there. Click on photo for the Google Map and the original source.

IN CONCLUSION: This is definitely the second most known night market in Kaohsiung afterLiuhe. It has its own charm and feels more local, not touristy. If you want to experience a different kind of night market, this one is the right one for you.

[FOOD in TAIWAN][My TAIWAN page][My TAIPEI page][All photos by MKL, 2011]

[My TAIWAN NIGHT MARKETS list][My MAP of Night Markets in Taipei]

Yongkang Street, Daan, Taipei

2011-07-23T18:12:00.006+08:00

Taipei's coffee shop street

Yongkang Street 永康街 in Taipei is one of those very popular streets somewhere outside of Taipei's center, but has its own unique atmosphere and is not yet flooded by tourists. Well, at least not the most part of it. It's located in Daan district, very close to the Daan Forest Park. One of the biggest magnets in the area is the famous and popular restaurant Din Tai Fung, a world famous xiaolongbao restaurant. Many Japanese restaurants like to visit it, as it's heavily advertised as one of the must-see places in Taipei. But also locals and visitors from other countries love to dine here. There's also another restaurant in the area called Golden Chicken Garden, which is cheaper and less crowded, however the food is equally delicious. Aside from famous restaurants and smaller food places, Yongkang Street offers shops and cafés and I usually go there to meet friends for a cup of coffee. Many coffee shops are very famous there and the atmosphere is very relaxed. People in the 20s, 30s love to hang out there, many students, too. The whole area has a very slow pace, not many cars or scooters around there, the noise level is low, too. And a small park in the middle of the area makes it much more interesting.

Enjoy some of my photos of Yongkang street:

A small park in the middle serves as a place to rest for many elder Taipeiers.

Yongkang street is full of small side lanes.

Corner cafés and restaurants are common here.

The street is long and narrow.

A lovely coffe shop offering kopi luwak. I want to try it one day.

My two favorite reasons, why I visit Yongkang street: Coffee and xiaolongbao.

This is close to the end of the area.

And this road leads to the popular Daan Forest Park.

To visit Yongkang Street, take the MRT to Guting Station, go out at Exit 5 and walk straight along Heping East Road 和平路 (eastwards). After 5 mins turn left to Lishui Street 麗水路 and walk another 5 mins and then turn right: You will be at the Yongkang Street. Please refer to the map below:

Click on photo for the Google map and the original source.

[My TAIPEI page][All photos by MKL, 2011]

Explosion in Oslo video: Aftermath

2011-07-23T00:11:00.001+08:00

I really feel sorry for the Norwegian people and especially the people in Oslo, who experienced this horrendous attack from so close. One of them is my blogger friend Carina, who was very shocked of what happened. I worry about her. Although I'm not Norwegian, such attack saddens me as a fellow European. It saddens me as a fellow human.

The video above was shot by one of my twitter friends @morganflame, who is also living in Oslo. I think he captured the aftermath very well, the destruction looks so surreal to me, it's like from a bad Hollywood movie, but sadly it's all so real to the people who live there. My heart goes out to you, I have my deepest sympathy for you.

I would just like to know, who is responsible for this cowardly attack. And dear media, I beg you, please don't look for scapegoats and a story to sell, look for the truth. Who knows what else might happen in the hours ahead. The situation is truly scary and it would be unfair to the people of Oslo to add to the confusion and anxiety.

Norway, stay strong!

China tourists »invade« a school in Taitung

2011-07-04T23:59:00.010+08:00

Marching to their own beat

Tourists from China walking under the ROC flag at the Sun Moon Lake, April 2011.

As some might already know, Taiwan's government recently allowed tourists from China to travel around Taiwan individually (before they had to be in groups). Many people are wondering, how will this work, given the tricky political situation between Taiwan and China. Recently an incident happened in Taitung, Taiwan's biggest southeastern town. Few tourists from China entered a primary school (some of my friends said »invaded«), went into the classroom uninvited, observed a class and justified their intrusion by claiming to be principals in one of the schools in China. They were not invited and not welcome to enter the public school, however they even went to teachers' restroom, browsed through folders on the teacher's desk, as if they're in their own classroom. They even took photos of some things and snatched school magazines. If you ask me, it's a behavior driven by arrogance and ignorance. This is of course a single incident and we should not assume anything broader, however, it will be necessary to monitor these encounters between Mainlanders and Taiwanese with special care, especially because the crucial Taiwan elections are just around the corner.

What's your opinion on this?

Read the source article (in Chinese) here>>

Discussion between Slavoj Žižek, Slovenian philosopher, and Julian Assange, internet activist

2011-07-03T12:52:00.008+08:00

Watch one of the best discussions of the year

Watch live streaming video from democracynow at livestream.com

I was watching a discussion between Slavoj Žižek, world renown Slovenian philosopher and Julian Assange, activist and editor in chief of Wikileaks, yesterday on Democracy Now. It was moderated by Amy Goodman, progressive journalist and author. It was a very interesting discussion about the world we live in today, covering various aspects of the issues and challenges of our times. Žižek was brilliant as usual, but one needs to have a very good knowledge of history, philosophy, politics and the world in general to completely understand him. If you want to get to know Žižek better, please check the videos below, the first one is shorter, the second one a little longer. Žižek is famous in Slovenia, but he is polarizing: He has huge fans but also extreme haters. For me, he's one of the biggest intellectuals of our times and I've also had the pleasure to see him in my faculty. He's the same as in videos, he has a nervous tick and his pronunciation of "s" is not so perfect. However one needs to look past all this and see the genius behind - then you'll find yourself in new amazing intellectual dimensions. Enjoy!

Žižek about Soros and charity and much more...

Living in the end of times.

Zhongshan MRT Station area, Taipei

2011-07-02T14:47:00.002+08:00

One of Taipei's most popular spots

The area around Zhongshan MRT Station 中山站 in Taipei is one of the most popular areas in the city. It lays in the Zhongshan district, just a station away from the Taipei Main Station. You have shopping malls and restaurants, as well as cute little cafés making the area one of the top destinations for Taipeiers. But not only that, this part of Taipei is hugely popular with Japanese, those who live and work here and those who come to visit. Among other things, I have heard that Taipei's unofficial red light district is here as well, in various backstreets with a very limited access. Japanese businessmen like to frequent here according to my friend, who's identity I will keep undisclosed.

I've been to this area a lot of times, I usually go shopping for clothes or just having a drink with friends. Check my photos from June, 2011:

1 Zhongshan MRT Station area at night

A big Shin Kong Mistukoshi shopping mall is in the area.

The inside is very posh, but the prices are affordable.

Above: The famous Nanjing East Road, Below: One of the smaller lanes in the area.

2 Zhongshan MRT Station area at day

Nanjing East Road at day. The area looks better at night, if you ask me.

This is a kind of a Buddhist academy, a place where they meet and read scripts.

This park is right above the MRT line. If you walk that way, you will eventually reach the main station. In a hot summer day it's a pleasure to be covered by trees.

The area with the long green promenade or park is very pleasant for a long walk. Along the way you can see various sculptures and playful installations. On the right and left and various interesting cafés, usually with a special theme. The whole atmosphere is very easygoing here. Underground is one of Taipei's longest shopping malls (815m), the Zhongshan Metro Mall 中山地下街. I'm not a fan of underground malls, but this one is not bad. Especially if it rains, you can hide underground and enjoy shopping or eating in a safe place.

All in all I have to say, that the Zhongshan MRT Station area is one that I truly recommend and I will visit it many times in the future. And if you decided to go out at this station, there are many other interesting parts of Taipei withing some 30 min of walk: You can go further and discover the old Taipei in Tataocheng, the Ningxia Night Market and the very famous Dihua old street. I bet one of these places will be interesting to you.

[My TAIPEI page][All photos by MKL, 2011]

Nanjichang Night Market, Taipei

2011-07-02T11:21:00.007+08:00

A less known small, but interesting night market

Nanjichang Night Market 南機場夜市 is a traditional night market in Taipei, located in the Wanhua district, one of the oldest districts of the city. Unlike the night markets in the Longshan area, this one is located a little bit south, closer to Banqiao. It is a small night market with few popular stalls and not so crowded, it's better to not expect too much. If your expectations are modest, I think you will still enjoy your visit.

MY IMPRESSION: It's small and intended for locals, who live around there. I was the only foreigner that night, but who knows, maybe it's still visited by some tourists, who are sick of all the famous ones.

WHAT KIND OF FOOD IS COMMON: The most common food here was the marinade 滷味 (lǔwèi), but there are two famous stalls, one sells fried chicken 炸雞 (zhàjī), another dumplings 水餃 (shuǐjiǎo). The rest is all common Taiwanese night market food like stinky tofu, fried sausages and noodles.

MUST-TRY FOOD AT THE NANJICHANG NIGHT MARKET: I would recommend you to try the marinade and the fried chicken , those were my favorite snacks here. The bubble tea is also very good here, definitely a must-try as well.

Let me show you some of my photos of Nanjichang Night Market (Mar 2011):

One of the entry points of the night market, not the main gate.

Scooters whizzing by here is normal.

The famous marinade, very basic Taiwanese food.

The main lane at the Nanjichang Night Market.

POPULAR STALL: 臭豆腐

This stall has a very good fried stinky tofu.

It was cheap and yummy, a very good starter, if you ask me.

The we walked further to some other parts.

POPULAR STALL: 青蛙撞奶

We had bubble tea at this shop.

It looks very yummy and it really was.

POPULAR STALL: 好吃炸雞

The stall's name is Delicious Fried Chicken.

Their fried chicken is very popular, the lines are long. But it's definitely worth to wait, because it's a truly delicious chicken and probably my favorite stall here.

POPULAR STALL: 秀昌水餃

A very friendly lady was greeting me.

And these are her famous dumplings, they were pretty decent. I'd say they were normal, so don't expect too much. But worth the money, so go and try, if you're a dumpling fan.

And then we slowly moved forward and left the night market.

One of the interesting things that I saw was the ROC flag above the gate of the market.

HOW TO FIND NANJICHANG NIGHT MARKET? SEE MY MAP:

Take a cab from Ximending, in 5-10 min you'll arrive to Nanjichang night market (here's the source map).

IN CONCLUSION: This is not a bad, but also not a very exciting night market - it's average, but still good enough to be recommended. You won't be disappointed, if your expectations are modest. So go and visit one of Wanhua's less known local night markets.

[FOOD in TAIWAN][My TAIWAN page][My TAIPEI page][All photos by MKL, 2011]

[My TAIWAN NIGHT MARKETS list][My MAP of Night Markets in Taipei]

在台灣的電子擴音器噪音污染

2011-06-12T12:37:00.004+08:00

Read the same post in English here>>

在台灣，有件事真的讓我很驚訝(尤其在台北市內及其周遭)，台灣人對於噪音污染可以說是毫無抱怨地接受。垃圾車音樂、車聲、摩托車聲、煙火爆竹、宗教慶典遊行、小販大聲呼喊招攬客人等，這種種的噪音在這裡都視為平常，沒有人(除了我)因此覺得困擾。但其中最糟糕的噪音污染非電子擴音器莫屬。這些電子擴音器經常被使用在搖茶店中，有時候會用在夜市。如果讓我站在旁邊聽個半分鐘，我差不多就快瘋了。

下面的影片是我在新莊拍的，看看電子擴音器有多惱人。:

我真懷疑這些搖茶店老闆或者工作人員，怎麼可以每天一直不斷地聽著？

這是在台灣(尤其是大都市裡)讓我很難習慣的地方。我在一個被森林包圍的環境裡長大，每天都是被鳥兒的啁啾聲叫醒。我想，如果我有天回到自己的家鄉，可能也會需要點時間適應那安靜且無噪音污染的環境。我懷疑我的耳朵是否真能適應。

[UNIQUELY TAIWAN][Translation by Lily][Photo and video by MKL, 2011]

Korean girl group sensation f(x): 피노키오 Pinocchio (Danger) Videos

2011-06-11T12:30:00.009+08:00

This song and video are played on Taiwanese MTV a lot and I'm sure it's very popular in Korea as well. The girls kinda remind me of Girls Generation, they're just a bit more into street style and crazy fashion, while GG are obviously playing the seductive Lolita role, trying to appeal to older men. Music is not very different, if you ask me. The song 피노키오 Pinocchio (Danger) is catchy, but I wonder how long will it need for people to get sick of it. My guess is not too long.

Here are some live videos of f(x)'s Pinocchio (Danger):

Read my posts about Korea and Seoul here>>

Golden Chicken Garden 金雞園, Daan, Taipei

2011-06-07T00:54:00.003+08:00

A great alternative to Din Tai Fung

A little while ago my wife and I went to Daan's famous Yongkang Street and we were looking for a nice place to eat. We somehow stumbled upon the Golden Chicken Garden 金雞園, a traditional Chinese restaurant, famous for dumplings and xiaolongbao. My wife said it is a great place and a perfect alternative to the overpriced and very popular Din Tai Fung 鼎泰豐, which is located near by.

Let me show you what we saw and ate that day:

Yummy buns displayed at the restaurants entrance.

The ground floor is the kitchen and you also pay here.

To find your table, you need to go to the first floor.

The restaurant has 62 years of history. That's very long for Taiwanese circumstances.

Click on the small photo on the left to see the menu.

We ordered a lot of food: The sour and spicy soup (40 NTD), two side dishes (60 NTD) and three main dishes, consisting of xiaolongbao (80 NTD), steamed dumplings (80 NTD) and steamed soup dumplings with soup (160 NTD). As for drinks, we had the tea, which they give you for free. For all that together we paid 420 NTD, which is exactly 5 Eur per person. We were so full and really couldn't stop praising the food. So if you look for very tasty xiaolongbao at a reasonable price, the Golden Chicken Garden would be one of the best places to go.

See more of my food photos from Golden Chicken Garden:

The two side dishes weren't bad.

But this was what we were really waiting for.

Steaming xiaolongbao waiting to be eaten by us.

This exquisite steamed bun is one of the most famous Chinese dishes.

It's not a dumpling, even though it looks like one. But it's really tasty!

For more info on how to eat xiaolongbao, read this post>>

And these are steamed dumplings, they were so delicious!

Steamed dumplings from close.

The restaurant's specialty: Steamed soup dumplings. Small, but yummy.

The two soups perfectly complemented the other dishes.

I really can't say anything but words of praise. This restaurant is really good. The interior looks a bit old, but it's not crowded, the people are friendly and the food is top. If you're a foodie, this is the restaurant you shouldn't miss, when you come to Taipei.

You will find the restaurant in Daan, in the Yonkang Street. Easiest way to go there is to take the MRT to Zhongxiao Xinsheng and walk south on the Xinsheng South Road, then turn right to the large Xinyi road and left again into the Yongkang Street. It will take you some time to reach there, but the area is interesting to see, I think it's worth a walk.

Click on photo for the Google map and the original source.

[My TAIPEI FOOD page][All photos by MKL, 2011]

Too busy to update here

2011-05-28T20:33:00.003+08:00

I was so busy these days and I will be similarly busy in the next few weeks. I hope by July things go slower and I can update more here. I have so many things to share, so much to write about. I've visited night markets and interesting places in Taiwan and I still plan to write specific Taipei (and Taiwan) guides here. But I only have time to update my main blog, so if you're my fan and don't follow that one, please subscribe here and follow. Thank you.

Wanhua 萬華區, Taipei

2011-05-14T10:32:00.008+08:00

Taipei's oldest district

Wanhua 萬華區 (from Austronesian Bangca, later called 艋舺 Monga in Taiwanese and 萬華 Mangka in Japanese, source) is the oldest district in Taipei City, located in the southwestern part. It's also one of Taipei's districts with the poorest housing and economic situation and is being revitalized by the government in recent years. Wanhua is home to some of Taipei's oldest temples and market areas. It's been turned into a very popular destination for local and foreign tourists, with the Longshan temple area (and especially Huaxi Street) and Ximending attracting huge crowds of visitors every weekend. If you want to learn more about the area, read my related articles. If you decide to visit this part of Taipei, here are my must see places: Ximending with the Red House Theater, Longshan Temple and the Huaxi Street Night Market.

There are many ways to get to Wanhua. Two MRT Stations are crossing the district, Ximen MRT and Longshan Temple MRT of the Blue line. You also have a train station of the regular train, it's very close to Longshan Temple as well.

Below are my photos of notable buildings and parts in Wanhua district. If possible, please click on photos to read my articles about a particular famous building.

Taipei's oldest temple from 1738, a must see destination, if you visit the city.

Xuehai Academy was established in 1837 during Qing Dynasty.

Recently renovated Bo Pi Liao Street is one of the oldest streets in Taipei (and Taiwan).

The Wanhua Train Station.

The Longshan Temple Night Market Area consists of 4 famous night markets, of which the Huaxi Street Night Market is the most famous and popular among tourists.

Ximending is Taipei's popular area for young people and youth culture.

The Red House Theater is truly an architectural gem from the Japanese times.

[More info will be added in future][My TAIPEI page][All photos by MKL, 2011]

Central Taiwan Tour 2011 observations

2011-05-08T22:54:00.003+08:00

Introduction and overview of the upcoming posts

For those who are interested in traveling to Central Taiwan, I've decided to put together a little post about observations, tips and cost overview. In short: My girlfriend and I traveled from Taipei all the way to Nantou County by train and stayed in Shueili, a lovely small town, for a night and then continued to see the Sun Moon Lake, which was our main destination. We also decided to see the famous Fengjia Night Market in Taichung before going home, but that proved to be a real challenge. Read about this and much more here and below.

1. What to see in Nantou County?

Nantou County is a huge county in central Taiwan and the only one, that has no access to the sea. The area around the famous Sun Moon Lake 日月潭 is just a small part of this huge county, which is the second largest in all of Taiwan. The capital city is Nantou City 南投. Other bigger settlements include Puli 埔里 and Caotun 草屯, the rest are just smaller towns and villages. Among the most interesting we saw were Jiji 集集, a small prosperous town, sadly known as the epicenter of the disastrous earthquake of 1999, Shueili 水里, a lovely small town, where we stayed overnight, Yuchih 魚池, a village famous for its tea and Zongxing New Village 中興新村, a government owned and planned small town, which is used as the administrative center of Taiwan Province of ROC. There's so much more to see in this county, as the area is huge and mostly mountainous. There are so many scenic spots, beautiful valleys, rivers and lakes, temples and cultural heritage on almost every corner. I definitely need to return and see more of this interesting part of Taiwan.

2. Taiwan's West coast and Changhua County

We took a train from Taipei in the morning and reached Central Taiwan in the afternoon. There are two routes from Taipei to Central Taiwan and we chose the one that avoids Taichung and rides along Taiwan's beautiful West coast, which was a great idea, because the scenery was really beautiful. We had to change trains in a small town called Ershuei 二水, where we spent 1 hour and were lucky to see a religious parade and a glimpse of the daily life in this part of Taiwan. This was still in Changhua County, but very close to Nantou County. That was also a very good experience and I will share with you my photos, so stick around the next days and keep reading.

3. Nantou County Map with most important places

Click on the map for Google Map.

4. Brief summary of our tours and trips

This is how we traveled: We needed about 4 hours to come from Taipei to Ershuei, a small town in Changhua County (not seen on the map). Then we changed trains in Ershui and went to Zhuoshuei, then from Zhuoshuei to Shueili we had to switch to bus, because they were doing some work on the rails. It was already late the first day, so we decided to go from Shueili to Jiji by bus and walk around a little. We returned back to our hostel in Shueili in the evening and went to bed very early. We woke up at 7.30 the next day (it was Sunday), had our breakfast and took the bus from Shueili to Sun Moon Lake. We spent few hours walking around the area and then took a bus to Puli. We had lunch there, walked around a little, but realized, that there's not much to see inside the city. All interesting things are a bit out, like the famous Chung tai Chen Monastery, a 136m tall temple, which we planned to visit, but skipped, because there were no buses to there and the cab was too expensive. Instead we decided to take a bus from Puli to Nantou City and see, if there's anything interesting. We soon realized that apart from the huge curiosity the locals showed for me, there was nothing interesting to see... Well, minus a beautiful temple from the Qing Dynasty, which we visited and then quickly returned to Taichung by bus. It was already past 7 pm, when we reached Taiwan's 3rd largest city and we've got stuck in one of the biggest traffic jams in Taiwan's history. We needed over an hour to reach the famous Fengjia Night Market, only to be nearly squashed to death in the gigantic crowds that day. I've seen extremely crowded night markets, but Fengjia is something else. It's just beyond anything I've seen before. I was completely shocked in that moment and only hoped we won't get hurt. We didn't enjoy the market a bit and couldn't wait to get a cab and escape to the bus station, where we took our bus back to Taipei and reached home around midnight. We were over 13 hours on the road in these two days, but we've seen and experienced a lot, so it was truly worth it.

5. Overview of the time and cost of the trip

PLACE	TRANSPORTATION	TIME	COST PER PERSON
Home - Taipei Main	Subway	15 min	20 NTD
Taipei - Ershuei	Train	4 hours	376 NTD
Ershuei - Shueili	Train	1 hour	40 NTD
Shueili - SM Lake	Bus	1 hour	51 NTD
SM Lake - Puli	Bus	30 min	55 NTD
Puli - Nantou City	Bus	1 hours 20 min	146 NTD
Nantou - Taichung	Bus	1 hour	91 NTD
Taichung - Fengjia	Bus	1 hours 10 min	32 NTD
Fengjia - Bus Station	Taxi	15 min	110 NTD
Taichung - Taipei	Bus	2 hours 10 min	260 NTD
Taipei Main - Home	Taxi	18 min	105 NTD

DURATION OF TRAVEL + COST (ALL TOGETHER)		13 hours	1286 NTD
ACCOMODATION COST (ALL TOGETHER)		1 night	1100 NTD

THE OVERALL COST (PER PERSON)		2386 NTD	Around 60 EUR

6. Things to keep in mind, before going to Central Taiwan

The first thing we noticed was the lack of good public transportation. This part of Taiwan is best to explore by car, bike or scooter, but if you still want to take buses and trains like we do, you have to plan your trip very carefully in advance. During the day there are buses available between all smaller towns (Jiji-Shueili, Shueili-Puli, Puli-Nantou City etc.). The frequency is usually one bus per hour and the price can be a little higher than in Taipei, so keep that in mind. You can waste a lot of time waiting for a bus, so plan your trip in every detail to avoid that. Cabs are even more expensive, so unless you have a big budget, skip them. Another thing common in Nantou Couty are the famous spots, which are usually outside towns and villages and to once again remind you, you need to plan your time and transportation very well. Time literally flew for us. Also keep in mind, that the weather can be very hot in spring and I'm sure even hotter in summer, so don't wear sweaters and long pants during the day, you'll sweat like a horse. For everything else, read my posts.

If you want read all my trip posts, just keep on clicking on the links at the bottom:

Start my Central Taiwan Tour 2011: Here>>

[My Tour MAP][My TAIWAN TRAVEL page][First photo by MKL, 2011]

Nantou City 南投市, Taiwan

2011-05-07T13:36:00.003+08:00

A small city in Central Taiwan

Nantou City 南投市 is the capital of Nantou County, Taiwan's most central county. With something over 100.000 inhabitants (source) it's one of Taiwan's smallest cities. Basically, it looked like a small town to me and I have to say my impression wasn't so good, because people really looked at me a lot and in very weird manners.

Show bigger map

They didn't talk to me directly like the ones in Ilan City, but the looks made me very uncomfortable, especially near the main bus station. There was even one girl pretending to pass by me just to go to her friend and tell him something and they both laughed. Not sure why I was so interesting to the people of Nantou, but the behavior shocked me a little, especially if I compare how nice people were in Puli, Shueili and Ershuei. But even so, Nantou City had few hidden gems and a kind of an indefinable charm. See some photos:

This bridge is famous, you pass by before you enter the city.

The part near the bus station was very crowded and busy. I didn't like it.

A road in central Nantou City.

This is how most roads look like in the center.

But we asked around and someone told us that there's a very beautiful academy from the Qing Dynasty. We decided to see it and then return to Taichung, our last stop before Taipei.

The beautiful complex is called Lantian Academy (also Wenchang Temple).

Here's a nice photo of the main part. Read more about it here.

After walking around the academy, we returned to the bus station.

Nantou City doesn't offer a lot of history or attractions, but there are some hidden gems to explore. I would recommend you follow our way and visit that academy, it's truly beautiful. I wish there was a blue sky when I took the photos, it would've looked amazing. Other than that, it's better to explore the surrounding area, the city itself is just like any other small Taiwanese city.

Puli :Before [Central Taiwan 2011] Next: Fengjia Night Market>>

[My CENTRAL TAIWAN MAP][My TAIWAN TRAVEL page][All photos by MKL, 2011]

Talented Taiwanese girl

2011-05-05T23:31:00.002+08:00

This girl is awesome! She's so talented and looks good at the same time. It's a delight to see her play all these instruments at the same time. It's very typical for Taiwan to have a lot of creative and talented young people.

Puli 埔里, Nantou County

2011-05-01T16:23:00.009+08:00

A lovely small town in Taiwan's center

Puli 埔里 (officially Puli town 埔里鎮 Pǔlǐ zhèn, lit. Wharf village) is a lovely small town in Central Taiwan. It's the biggest town (almost a small city with nearly 90.000 inhabitants) in the vicinity of the geometric center of the Taiwan island. My wife and I arrived here after taking the bus from the Sun Moon Lake (it took us about 30min). Puli was very hot that day, it truly felt like summer to someone like me, who had to suffer under a cold and rainy Taipei in the previous weeks. Apart from the hot weather, the small town had not a lot to offer. It has a certain charm, but compared to some other Taiwanese small towns I've visited, it didn't really excite me. It looks like many other towns in the Western part of the island. However, the Puli Basin 埔里盆地 is probably one of the most beautiful parts of Taiwan.

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We asked some people in town about what to do and see here and most said: "Nothing. You need to go out and visit some temples or scenic spots in the wider area, the town itself is pretty dull." Great. So there we were, with big backpacks in the middle of a hot day in the exact center of Taiwan. This is what we first saw:

A statue of Sun Yat-sen, I think, in the middle of a roundabout.

A street in Puli.

Another street in Puli.

Right next to the central roundabout I spotted a very popular restaurant.

There were like over 50, maybe even close to 100 people waiting or eating at the spacious restaurant. It's called 胡國雄古早麵 and it serves all kinds of dishes, from noodles to rice. We always believe, if a place is popular, the food must be good. It's not always true, but most of the time. Here we had to wait for a while, before we could sit at a table, probably 10 minutes. After getting seated, we had to wait another 10 minutes to get served. The waiting was long, the place was crowded, but I gotta tell you: The food is top! Definitely worth to wait. It was the best meal of our trip, truly delicious. See for yourself:

I took some photos and caught a lot of attention. Hello, cute girl! :)

This is the food we ordered: Everything was really yummy.

The pork was so tender, the soft boiled egg was very tasty (a must-try), but the best must have been the vegetables with some kind of a mayonnaise sauce: Be sure you don't miss to order that. If you wanna find the restaurant, it's very close to that big roundabout and the Sun Yat-sen statue.

After we finished eating, we decided to walk along the main road.

And we soon saw another big roundabout. Very colorful.

This building is the tallest structure in town. I'm sure the tip reaches 100m.

A lovely church nearby.

We decided to take the bus to Nantou City, our next destination.

After we finished our lunch and walked around town, my wife wanted to go to a famous chocolate store, but we realized it was too far, so we decided to have a drink and then find the main bus station and leave. The station is small and doesn't smell good, the stench from the toilet was unbearable (seriously, keep your distance from that place). As for the people in Puli, I found them very nice and not intrusive. They didn't look at me (a foreigner) a lot, everybody mostly minded their own business (unlike people in Nantou City). Life is very slow there and one thing you really need to keep in mind, when you travel to Puli is the lack of good transportation. Some buses to Sun Moon Lake, Nantou City or Taichunng go once in an hour or once in two hours. Better plan well ahead, when you visit here, don't get stuck like we got, because we didn't think that the buses will be so scarce. The cabs are expensive. We wanted to see the famous Chung Tai Chan Monastery 中台禪寺 (tallest Buddhist temple in the world), which is right outside Puli Town, but there were no buses available that day, only expensive cabs. So we skipped it, also because of our tight schedule. But all in all, we had a good experience in Puli and I would probably return here again, but hopefully with a car, so I save money on the transportation cost. Exploring the Puli Basin by car must be the best option.

Sun Moon Lake :Before [Central Taiwan 2011] Next: Nantou City>>

[My CENTRAL TAIWAN MAP][My TAIWAN TRAVEL page][All photos by MKL, 2011]

Zhongshan, Taipei

2011-04-27T19:05:00.000+08:00

More about it soon.

[My TAIPEI page][All photos by MKL, 2011]

[More info will be added in future]