Let us know where the TJs should go...

Yehliu? It's an oceanside park with these crazy rock formations... we can escape the city for a moment. How's that sound?

quote:

Originally posted by tiffstake:
Yehliu? It's an oceanside park with these crazy rock formations... we can escape the city for a moment. How's that sound?

Sounds like a plan.

Another quick trip outside the city is to Beitou Hotsprings...you can get there on the MRT.

A real kick would be to go to the Chinese Culture and Movie Studio....not Universal Studios for sure...but should be a fun trip.

Always fun is just to go on an overpass and watch the traffic. No kidding, it is wild!
Motor scooters weaving every which way, even against traffic.

You can also drop by the nearby Weekend Floral Market and Jade Night Market on Chiankou Road near Da-an Forest Park.

My vote goes for Taipei 101. It officially holds the title for the world's tallest building. Also has the world's fastest elevator and the world's highest outdoor observatory.

Dan

There is a lot of fun things all in and around Taipei- will they be there during DRAGON Boat Season?, Should they take bus 254 or is it 264 from the train station up to Yamingshan park?, PeiToe Hot Springs were closed for a while in 1993- perhaps they've reopened. Beaches? Greenbay is NE of Taipei, FuLong ESE and are a bit nicer than TamShui Beach- Should they DRINK THE Hennesey XO with Snake Blood? (supposed good for your Vitality) I used to see groups practicing everything from Taichi to Arobics at 6:30AM at the Taipei Youth Park, then there are also the Health Stone Walks (painful for me)- and Drink TAIWAN BEER of course. Then there is Scuba- Shore Dives off the East Coast, any diving area beats my Laguna Madre and Western part of the Gulf of Mexico. Of course I think you should put them on a 125CC SANYANG or KWANYANG 4 speed motorcycle and film them going through the trafic- make sure they get a license first. Forget Watching- gotta drive it like I did for a couple of years.

If the SOGO department store is still there, there is a great place for breakfast in the alley- I think it's one or two alleys east of the SOGO, and then head into the alley about 100 to 200 meters/ or yards on the left. I Think the SOGO was on ChungShan east road- anyone care to pitch in on the exact address? There are actually alot of great places to eat that are TINY or really small. -Try the Black Pepper Steak (it usually arrives with some noodles and an egg on top) -also get at least one of ya'll to try the ChoTofu or "stinky" Tofu- that's what you are going to smell in the food areas and go WHATis THAT! Ok, well there are always the Dumplings, Fried or Boiled. and SeaFood, Abalone, Shrimp with the heads on like the Cajans do with Crawdads.
Oh, for breakfast- in winter warm soybean milk with Yo tiao (oil sticks) -I like it with sugar.- or watery rice with some dried shredded pork. -try it.

In Taipei, you can:

Get a 1 hour foot massage for about $5, or a 1 hour body massage for about $15. No pain, no gain!

Hitch a ride on the back of a scooter and watch the cars narrowly miss your knees as you barrel down the highway.

Enjoy any one of the many jing zu nai cha ("pearl milk tea") kiosks throughout the city. See how many tapioca balls you can inhale through the straw at once. I recommend the mint or papaya flavors.

quote:

Originally posted by talltexan2:
If the SOGO department store is still there, there is a great place for breakfast in the alley- I think it's one or two alleys east of the SOGO, and then head into the alley about 100 to 200 meters/ or yards on the left. I Think the SOGO was on ChungShan east road- anyone care to pitch in on the exact address? There are actually alot of great places to eat that are TINY or really small. -Try the Black Pepper Steak (it usually arrives with some noodles and an egg on top) -also get at least one of ya'll to try the ChoTofu or "stinky" Tofu- that's what you are going to smell in the food areas and go WHATis THAT! Ok, well there are always the Dumplings, Fried or Boiled. and SeaFood, Abalone, Shrimp with the heads on like the Cajans do with Crawdads.
Oh, for breakfast- in winter warm soybean milk with Yo tiao (oil sticks) -I like it with sugar.- or watery rice with some dried shredded pork. -try it.

Everything except the stinky tofu wet my appetite.

On the steaks they are going to ask how done you like it, but the system is different- I used to get mine done as a 5 or something like oo fen (like a long o, then fen like hen but with a f fa start) Here I usually get medium rare, so if you like it more medium you could try a 6. 6 sounds a bit like the name Leo- and it's what they call 4th tone or sharp decending. If you need help find a college student, if you run low on money- some may buy you lunch or dinner for a chance to practice their English- or they could help you order!

As a travel spot you may consider visiting the Taroko Gorge in Hualien (north-east of Taiwan), which is something to see if you ever come to Taiwan. As for something "special" to eat, I'd recommend the "1000 year old eggs", it may not LOOK very tasty, but it REALLY is delicious, (it's a boiled chicken egg that is boiled in a special way making it VERY CREAMY). I wasn't very courageous to try that egg when I first went to Taiwan, but I did try it afterward, and now I even "beg" to have a "one thousand year old egg". :-)

Enjoy your stay in Taiwan, (make sure you have some mosquitoes repelant, or you might be yourself the feast that happened to me, so now i'm cautious, because it seems that mosquitoes are wheter racist or partials, seems like they enjoy sucking foreigners blood more than the local inhabitant. I had 7 bites in 1 night, while my girlfriend NONE.)

Go to Shilin Night Market after 6:30PM and get some hu jiao ping. Or go to Huahsi Night Market! Just remember the phrases, "duoshao qian? (how much is it?)" and "tai gui le (that's too expensive)" for any markets you go to.

Or maybe a trip to the Ping Lin Tea Museum?

What a shame - to go to Taiwan and only see Taipei! Just going to Taipei is like going to New York City and thinking that is what the United States is like. Taipei is great, but it is so different than the rest of Taiwan. When I think of Taipei I think of bright lights, big buildings, tons of foriegn restaurants, (and foriegnors for that matter), but not the Taiwan that I grew to love while living there.
However, if Taipei is going to be it, you should absolutely go to the National Palace Museum. It is one of the top ranked museums in the world. They have unbelieveable amounts of artifacts there. I went to China (on vacation while living in Taiwan) thinking I was going to see all this great history in their museums, only to find out they were in my own back yard! Taiwan acquired artifacts of great Chinese history during the cultural revolution, so there is tons to see.
There are so many interesting things to do outside of Taipei.
Taroko Gorge (Hualien) is an all marble gorge on the East coast. Also on the East coast you can go to one of the world's few natural salt water hot springs. The interior has mountains where you can learn about native Taiwanese cultures and even about current environmental issues. All the way at the southern tip, there are even some very pretty beaches.
The best part about Taiwan is their people. My experiences there always included warm, open, eager to help and talk Taiwanese people.

About Yehliu -
Honestly, I didn't find it so impressive. The beach is nice, but it's not blow your hair back amazing. And the Sea-World-style park there is not so good. I might use your time to go somewhere else if you want to escape the city.

lots of good suggestions hey were the thousand year eggs the ones on Fear Factor last spring? I'd say just visiting only Taipei is more like going to NYC and only going to Manhatten. Anyway, there are a bunch of things even hidden in and around the city to find and shoot video- The PeiKing Opera (BeiJing) would be really cool too- there is a great deal of symbolism like if there is a horse on stage they will not actually have a horse, but will be holding the lead or whip I forget which one. I also like the more modern art museum in the NE part of Taipei proper (before ShrLin night market, that people have recommened to you) It's all white square tube sections criss crossed ontop of each other. Have fun, eat, and enjoy the culture.

I just thought of something else that could be interesting while in Taipei. There's a morning Tai Chi gathering in Nan Kang District, if you could be somewhere by dawn. Starts at dawn, daily.

The address is: 21 Chungshan South Road, Taipei, Taiwan Region. And I'm fairly certain it's free.

Be sure to try some "Pee Joe" a.k.a. Beer- You can see the same Bird Walking in the Taipei Parks that someone mentioned over in the Hong Kong list. Old men walk their bird out to get some fresh air and sunshine- hang the cages up and sit and talk a while. -Most of the major parks will have several morning groups doing different things- I used to train with the Masters Swimmers at Taiepi Youth Park 5:30am to about 7:00 or 7:30 small fee for the pool. I also ended up competing in several Masters Swim Meets- (age group swimming for old folks 25-30, 30-35 etc.) Ciao Brad

oops I meant North West! just before you cross the river and get closer to the ShrLin night market area. -Very nice Museum- Newer Art, nice building and grounds too.
Ciao,

W.R.T. my earlier comment about the white modern art -ShrLin is also NW of the central part of TaiPei.

I definitely second the National Palace Museum in Taipei. I didn't get a chance to go to the top of Taipei 101 the last time I was there because it wasn't open yet. There is also the Chaing Kai Shek Memorial and Opera Houses. Damshui is the last stop on the MRT next to the water, and it has some interesting things to do. WuLai is a village with a large Aborigine population in the mountains that has an amusement park and showcases their culture. There is a waterfall and some hot springs, if I recall correctly. Yang Ming Mountain National Park in the northern part of Taipei has some nice sceneray and hiking opportunities. Taipei also offers a large number of temples, many of which are in the mountains (I think in the Muzha area).

quote:

Originally posted by talltexan2:
If the SOGO department store is still there, there is a great place for breakfast in the alley- I think it's one or two alleys east of the SOGO, and then head into the alley about 100 to 200 meters/ or yards on the left. I Think the SOGO was on ChungShan east road- anyone care to pitch in on the exact address? There are actually alot of great places to eat that are TINY or really small. -Try the Black Pepper Steak (it usually arrives with some noodles and an egg on top) -also get at least one of ya'll to try the ChoTofu or "stinky" Tofu- that's what you are going to smell in the food areas and go WHATis THAT! Ok, well there are always the Dumplings, Fried or Boiled. and SeaFood, Abalone, Shrimp with the heads on like the Cajans do with Crawdads.
Oh, for breakfast- in winter warm soybean milk with Yo tiao (oil sticks) -I like it with sugar.- or watery rice with some dried shredded pork. -try it.

SOGO still exists. The question is, which one do you want to go to? They are EVERYWHERE in Taipei.