Back from Taiwan Part 1

Well Jason and I have taken our final trip during our time here in Korea. Last Sunday we returned from spending 8 nights in Taiwan! Now we only have a few more short weeks to go and we will be back in California for good! Taiwan was an awesome way to end our adventure (although I do wish we could keep traveling more and more!) Taiwan was beautiful, a lush tropical landscape, filled with fresh fruits and milk tea, kind people and lots of beautiful cultural highlights. If I had to recommend an Asian country for someone to visit for the first time, I would recommend Taiwan, its not as expensive as Japan, but is thoroughly modern and filled with tons to do and see!

From Korea Taiwan was only a short 2 hour plane ride away. Our flight left Saturday at 11am which still meant we had to wake up at 4:30am to get to the Wonju bus terminal by 5:30am and get on the 6:00am bus. The bus didn't make its usual stop on the way to the airport so we got there in only 1 1/2 hours (usually it takes 2 1/2 to three hours) proving again to us how close together things in Korea really are. Although the bus system is great, I am ready to have my own car back. The day before we also had to drop off our adorable little kitten (who we named Twist) at the "cat hotel" that our vet runs. It was bad timing that we found him right before our vacation but good luck that the vet has a "cat hotel" we were able to use. Anyhow, we arrived at the airport and boarded the plane no problem. It was an Asiana Air flight so service was very nice. We even got food on such a short flight!

We arrived in Taipei, the capital of Taiwan, about 1pm (they are ahead one hour) and easy found the right bus to our hostel. Our hostel was conveniently located off of the Taipei metro system called the MRT. The MRT runs four lines throughout the city center, stopping near all the major attractions. It was cheap and very easy to use, even cheaper and easier than Seoul's system. Our hostel was located in a large apartment building and we were given our own key to the room, just like a hotel, and that was it. It was a cute room with two double beds and we could come and go as we pleased, as if we lived in the building. The first few nights we shared our room with our friend Amber, who also teaches English in Wonju. We three had decided to take and plan this vacation together. It was fun to have a third person around and she was good to plan with before the trip started (Jason never wants to help plan.)

Amber and me at the airport

Average street near our hostel

Random street

Lots of fresh tropical fruit!

Walking across the river that runs through Taipei

We settled in, found our maps and decided to walk to some near by temples. The Boan and Confucius Temples. After a few wrong turns we finally found them, nestled in the city streets next to bakeries and bus stops. The Boan Temple was gorgeous. It was covered in decorations, bright gold’s, blues, reds, with large painted figures covering the doors and dragons painted on the columns. The top of the temple was very ornate as well, with multicolored dragons and other figures on each corner. It was very beautiful. The temple was like a little complex, with an outer temple wall concealing an inner courtyard. Inside that courtyard was another structure that housed the temple alter and statues. The back wall of the courtyard also housed more alters and statues. There were also columns decorated in hundreds of gold colored glass stones that made for a beautiful effect. People were buying long sticks of incense and burning them in the many fiery incense pots in front of the alters. It smelled wonderful.

Boan Temple

zoom zoom

Dragons!

Interior courtyard

Art class in the temple, really

Shrine

Stone dragon and lanterns

Modern building right smack next door!

It was very hot, my students in Korea got me that dress as a going away present.

Community park with dragon water feature

After the Boan Temple we checked out the newer and more plainly decorated Confucius Temple before deciding we needed some food. On a near by street we found a row of cheap, tasty looking restaurants. We choose one with boiling pots of seafood and vegetables featured out front. It was a little like eating shabu shabu but was called "hot pot." We ordered two to share between the three of us, sat on toddler sized chairs in the air conditioned interior and waited. Soon the waiter brought over two boiling dishes filled to the brim with egg, shrimp, mushrooms, cabbage and other assorted goodies. Each dish had its own stand with a flame below to keep everything warm. It was tasty and was just what we wanted for our first meal. After that we crossed the street, dodging the many scooters that whizzed by on the narrow passage, to get some boba aka pearl aka tapioca milk tea. I was so excited to get my first milk tea because I had heard Taiwan was famous for them! It tasted wonderful and instead of tapioca we got fresh coconut in the bottom of the glass. Yum yum! One look at the cup and one sip immediately reminded me of UC Irvine and frequenting Cha for Tea and TapEx. It definitely made me nostalgic! But the prices in Taiwan sure beat those of Irvine! $1 for a delicious tea in Taiwan versus $4 in Irvine!

Next we decided it was time to head back to our hostel so we could check out the famed Shilin Night Market that was located right next to us. That was another reason our location was so great, literally around the corner form our room was a huge night market! Taiwan is also known for its night markets and now I understand why! The place was packed, stretched for blocks and had everything you could want from food to clothes! We started down the main crowded path and took in the sights... there were desserts, ice cream, fresh fruit smoothies blended on the spot, tea, hot pot, hamburgers, even tacos and tons of places serving Taiwanese "street food" which were a form of kabob were you could choose from fresh vegetables, meats and sea food and have them grilled in front of you! It was awesome and had so many great smells! There were also vendors everywhere selling cheap clothing and other trinkets, plus places to get massages with packed interiors! After spending over an hour in the night market and visiting everything from the taco stand to a shoe store to a pet store, we decided to head in for the night.

So far our impressions of Taiwan were great!

A little blurry but fresh fruit plus scooters

The biggest watermelon I've ever seen!

hot pot

Dinner yum!

Boba milk tea! So good!

Goose heads at the night market, hungry?

Shilin Night Market

Crowded end to the Night Market