I lived in Taipei for a period of about 10 months in 2001-2010, which was right after undergrad. I went for a visit, 9-11 happened the week I arrived there, and my mom told me to just stay where I was for the next few months. It turned out to be one of the best times of my life. The memories are fuzzy now, but every so often, I’ll have a flashback brought on by a certain food, song, smell or story. Those were the days. I remember:
• taking the buses everywhere, sometimes purposely getting on random ones to explore the city.
• playing hooky with G and spending the day in Danshui enjoying the cafes and waterfront
• walking through the Chiang Kai Shek Memorial Park everyday to take the bus to work
• eating — oh the food — dumplings, shaved ice, hot grass jelly, sausage & rice, papaya milk, fried chicken cutlet, congee, buns, the beef noodle soup, and this list could go on forever and ever.
Now I’m preparing for a trip back and I CANNOT wait to sightsee, visit and EAT.
The Taiwan guidebooks currently being sold are outdated (2004), with the newest Rough Guide coming out in Mar ’11, too late for this trip. But I can always count on the internet!
Food
A Hungry Girl’s Guide to Taipei
Whine & Dine’s Intro to Taiwanese Food
Fash Eccentric’s Best Street Food in Taipei and Kaoshiung
Pace J Miller (posts tagged with Taiwan)
Travel
ihaveanawesomeblog’s post on a 3D2N trip in Taipei
Other Leeetz Posts on Taiwan
Packing for the Trip
Things to Eat in Taiwan: A food wishlist
East 404 