215 - life update: taiwan edition 🍜⛰️
Hey there, !
I'm back from yet another trip, this time from Taiwan! I feel more refreshed from this one, coming back more re-energised and all, but I feel like I'm falling back into old patterns again anyway. I guess that's just part of coming back from a holiday, right?
Anyway - tell me some good stuff you picked up at your Black Friday sales - in the meantime, lemme show you some pics and give a few cute stories from the trip :)
As always, we start with food. The first one here is from a place called 'Beefull' which was eaten at like 2pm after we spent an entire morning at the National Palace Museum, looking for jade lettuce and meat rocks (don't ask). It was one of the best beef noodles we had - I didn't get a braised one but the clear soup was still DELICIOUS.
Second on this list here is the 'Ay-Chung Flour Noodle' which is a standout place to go in Taipei situated in the heart of Ximending - a shopping district of sorts that has a bunch of food and shops for the #youth. Legit mouth-wateringly umami and reminded me of shark fin soup (but...probably less luxurious).
That was the first day, and probably the best night market we went to in terms of food (a more local one recommended by our hostel) - we got there early, we ate a LOT, and this is me after having our feast and thinking 'hmmm...what else should we have'. We went to a total of 4 night markets (including one where we got there at like 10pm and everything was closing up) but it was a fun time. Tried a bunch of food not pictured here due to space - stinky tofu, scallion egg pancakes, taro balls, duck tongues, deep fried pork ribs, skewers - the works! Absolutely fantastic night market culture WE LOVE IT.
In Taipei, you can go up to these hot springs in a nearby area called Beitou. It's renowned for its hot springs, and there are a bunch of hotels and resorts that take advantage of the natural springs to set up private pools. We actually went to a public bathhouse which was SEARINGLY hot - like...the top pool was 45 - 47 degrees Celsius - I definitely couldn't take it, but it was a pretty fun experience.
Next to one of the sulphur pools that was one of the tourist attractions in the area was this 'Love Seat' which slides couples together when they sit on it - the text says that "The natural energy from the green sulphur spring brings the relationship even closer and offers the blessing of the With of Ketagalan, blessing you with eternal health and love". Hopefully it works for singles too?
Early on in the trip, it was agreed that we would have a 'jar' of sorts (which ended up being this lil cute doggo) - essentially, every time we groaned when reaching down, or sitting back, or settling in our seats - reminding us that we are old and mortal - we would have to pay 100 TWD. A good lesson in keeping the mind young :D
In Su'ao, where the seafood is freshly caught and put on display at every seafood restaurant you pass, you pick out your own fish from their catch and it's the freshest seafood you'll ever eat in your life - steamed fish, clams, shark - whatever you want, however you'd like! I'm drooling just remembering it all...
The day after, though, we went to the local crayon factory which was surprisingly fun - here, we made markers, pressed a crayon together, learnt about light, and sat through a lecture on 'how these things are made' which was fully in Chinese while a classroom full of kids shouted out the answers. At the end we got to paint on each other though which was v v v cute - which one do you reckon is best??
My lovely friend Alex takes some wonderful film shots, right? A deliciously joyous time in the Taroko Gorge, walking through valleys and mountains and studiously avoiding the Microsoft Teams pings that somehow still got through on to my phone.
Great trip, would go again <3 Thank you to Kento and Alex for being great travel buddies!!
Chat soon :)
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✔️Real Life Recommendations
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Chia Te Bakery (Taipei) - go here for your souvenirs, like pineapple biscuits, or chocolate nut things; it's SUPER popular (which I didn't know until later). I went around 7:30pm and it was still super busy; a family friend of ours went during the day and the line was like 60 deep. INSANE. They are super delicious though, so go try them out where you can!
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A Mei Teahouse (Jiufen) - we made it to the teahouse that Spirited Away is allegedly based on - and though it was super touristy it was also super fun! We learned how to make tea the right way, and the mindfulness of being forced to wait for tea to cool a bit, and then making another batch and waiting...and drinking...and waiting...and sipping was quite delightful. Just a note though - getting to Jiufen by car was hella difficult; the roads are winding, narrow, and go up and down the mountain. Perhaps a train would be nicer next time? :D
🚌 Adventures on the Information Super-Highway
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If parrots can talk, why can’t monkeys? - an interesting look into busting the myth that humans can talk because of a descended larynx; what happens when you find out that parrots AND monkeys have 'em, but only one talks!?
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FXRant: The Death Star and the Final Trench Run - before you read this article, visualise the Death Star in your mind and answer this one question: where is the trench that Luke Skywalker flies into?
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Brilliant | Halfsies - a fun little game - can you cut different types of shapes into half? How close can you get? :D