One Night in Taipei

Most people travel to Taipei, the capital city of Taiwan, for business rather than pleasure, or merely as a stopover to another destination. But those who have been there are often surprised to find that the city is actually a vibrant and interesting place with a unique cultural mix of old and new, East and West.

While in some ways it isn’t too different from Japan — smoggy skies, lots of concrete and too many people — it is an opportunity to experience Taiwanese and Chinese culture, surprise your taste buds with entirely different foods, and see some new and different sights.

Once you reach downtown Taipei head to the Topview Taipei Observa-tory, also known as the Shin Kong Life Tower. The high-speed elevator will take you to the 46th floor in an ear-popping thirty seconds. The 244 meter high building has 360-degree panoramic views of the city and helps put the urban sprawl into perspective. On a clear day you can see many of the main sights including the monolithic Taipei 101, the Chiang Kai Shek Memorial, and the Danshui River.

Back on street level, a good place to start sightseeing is the Chiang Kai Shek Memorial compound. Enter through the enormous white arches of the main gate. On either side of the Memorial building is a park with flowers, carp ponds, bonsai, benches, neatly trimmed trees and paths. In the early morning the park is a popular place for tai chi and jogging. The Memorial Hall itself is a massive wedding cake of a building, a hexagon of white concrete with an ornate blue domed roof.

Climb the eighty-nine steps leading to the top (each step represents a year of Chiang Kai Shek’s long life) to see the twenty-five ton bronze seated statue of the revered leader himself, watched over by two honor guards. These guards stand perfectly still and rigid, barely even seeming to blink or breathe. The changing of the guard, done every hour on the hour is worth watching. The lower floor of the Memorial Hall is a museum of Chiang Kai Shek’s life and includes some large historical paintings and personal possessions, including his 1955 bulletproof Cadillac.

On Hsinyi Road, near the compound, is Din Tai Fung, a Chinese and Dim Sum restaurant. Despite long queues, Din Tai Fung has a big reputation both with locals and visitors for the steamed dumplings it sells. Named one of the ten best restaurants in the world by the New York Times, dinner here will set you back less than US$20.
Stay in the southwest part of the city to visit Lungshan Temple, one of the oldest and largest of more than five thousand temples and shrines throughout Taiwan. It is best visited at night and is usually crowded until closing at 10pm. Large paper lanterns illuminate the incredibly detailed and colorful but slightly tarnished decoration. Dedicated to the goddess of mercy, the air in and around the temple is a haze of incense and smoke from burning ghost money. Offerings of fruit, flowers and cookies are piled everywhere. Partly destroyed by an earthquake in 1815, a typhoon in 1867 and American bombing in 1945, it has survived to be one of most popular places of worship in Taipei.

Just a few blocks away is the Hwahsi Night Market, more popularly known as Snake Alley. This area was famous for the number of shops selling snake meat, blood, bile and most other parts made into a variety of medicines and potions. While many of these shops have now gone, the market is still an interesting place to go, with many things to look at, eat or buy. Several snake handlers remain to ‘entertain’ the crowds by aggravating live snakes, including cobras. The market gets going about 7pm and winds down at midnight. If you’re still not ready for bed, head back downtown to one of the many bars, clubs and pubs (expect cover charges nearly everywhere) or try KTV, the Taiwanese version of Karaoke bars.

If you feel like a big breakfast the next morning, try Grandma Nitti's
on Shida Road near the Hsintien River. With free coffee refills and a big selection of western food, it is open from 9am and has 2 floors and a patio. For something more traditional try fried bread or a bowl of noodles from one of the numerous small cafes tucked away on side streets.

Another must-see while in Taipei is the National Palace Museum, which holds the largest collection of Chinese artifacts in the world. The 700,000-piece collection includes wood and jade carvings, lacquer ware, tools and weapons, calligraphy, jewelry, household items, bronze, tapestries, ivory and paintings from as far back as the Sung Dynasty (960 to 1,279). There is also prehistoric pottery and other artifacts dating back over five thousand years. Many pieces in the present collection were previously exhibited in Beijing’s Forbidden City but were shipped to Taiwan by the Kuomintang in 1949 after they were defeated by the Communists in mainland China. English tours of the museum are run twice daily at 10am and 3pm and these are highly recommended. To get to the museum take the Danshui MRT line to Shilin Station and catch a Red 30 bus to the distinctive orange and green museum buildings sprawling at the foot of the mountains.

Long before Western nutritionists began telling people to eat smaller meals and more snacks, the Chinese were already doing it, and doing it well. There are street vendors wherever you turn, priding themselves on fresh, simple and flavorsome food. Each stall usually concentrates on a single dish, whether it is onion pancakes, dumplings, fried rice, spring rolls or roasted chestnuts. Barbecue is a specialty in Taipei, the most popular being squid, pork, corn on the cob and fat garlicky sausages, all basted with tangy sauces and seasonings before being cooked on a sizzling grill. One popular dish specific to Taipei is the oyster omelets, and for some-thing sweet try the candied cherry tomatoes. These stalls are excellent places to try new and delicious Taiwanese and Chinese dishes at very cheap prices.

If you have time to spare or a particular desire to see it close up, head for Taipei 101. This 508 meter high building is currently the worlds tallest. Costing US$1.64 billion to construct, it is designed to look like a stem of bamboo, and is divided into eight segments, eight being an auspicious number for the Chinese. The building is visible all over the city as it towers above the surrounding buildings, but won’t be open to the public until the end of the year. The adjoining shopping mall is already open and has a big selection of popular and top-end shops. There is a free shuttle to Taipei 101 that leaves from City Hall MRT Station every fifteen minutes until 10pm.

A short stay in Taipei can be pleasantly crammed with visits to museums, markets, temples and parks, sampling delicious Chinese and international food along the way. Taiwan is said to be in many ways more Chinese than China itself, with better-preserved traditions, architecture and artifacts. It is a progressively modern city where the temples and shrines sit comfortably side by side with shopping malls and skyscrapers.

While in Taipei make sure you try:

Bubble Tea: Also known as Tapioca Tea, this is a hugely popular drink that originated in Taiwan about 15 years ago. It is an iced drink packed with chewy tapioca balls the size of pearls, served creamed and sweetened in black or green tea with a jumbo straw to suck up the large ‘bubbles’.
Mongolian Barbecue: Choose your own finely sliced meat, seafood and vegetables, add sauces and spices you like and a chef will cook it for you on a large grill right at your table. Many restaurants in Taipei offer ‘All You Can Eat’ Mongolian Barbecue for under US$15
Rose Ice cream: Rose is a popular flavor for things like tea, soft drinks, and even ice cream. The ice cream is usually a cheerful shade of pink and has a sweet but subtle flavor that is very refreshing and makes a nice change from the usual choices.

Text & Photos: Josie Steenhart