Gastronomic Overload in Taiwan
There is only one answer when your teenage daughter wants to travel with you on her term break. The question that remains is ” Where?” In the end, we went with her preferred choice and it turned out to be 7 frenzied days of food, food and more food. The other activities are purely incidental.
Day 1 – Taichung
Getting to Taipei, then to Taichung
We boarded the red-eye flight from Scoot and landed in Tao Yuan Airport before 6 am. The cabin was cold and I did not manage to catch much sleep. ( Note to self – do not take any budget airline if the flight is more than 2 hours. Otherwise, be prepared with socks, sweater, a good neck pillow and go without any refreshments or entertainment for the ride. ) It is good to do your homework for a data plan and internet access in Taiwan because you are definitely going to need it to navigate your way and there are apps to download for bus and train schedules. I pre-booked the ” Unite Travel 4G SIM card online for pick -up at the airport. They have outlets at both terminals. It cost me S$22 for seven days of unlimited usage.
The good thing about travelling at such an unearthly hour is the light traffic at immigration. Clearance was seamless and smooth. Next was a trip to the conveniece store to purchase the ” Easy Card”. This is akin to a stored value MRT card which allows you to ride on buses, trains, MRT in both Taipei and Taichung. One additional bonus which thrilled me to no end is that bus rides in Taichung are FREE within 10 km.
Getting to Taichung was fast and easy if you take the High Speed Rail ( HSR ) which zips you there in about 30 – 40 minutes. You have 2 options to get to the Taipei HSR station from the airport, either by taking a green Ubus 705 or by MRT. Simply follow the signs to your designated mode of transport. Yes, you can start using your Easy Card.
Once you get to the Tao Yuan HSR Station, purchase your HSR ticket to Taichung at the ticketing counters.
Park City Hotel
Taichung can be challenging to navigate because the places of interest are scattered; taxi rides are appropriately exorbitant to take advantage of clueless tourists, and the buses take 15-30 mins to arrive. Armed with our Easy Cards and determined not to be fleeced, we plodded on foot mostly. Arriving at the Taipei HSR station, we transferred to a local train to Taichung Train Station. Dragging our 4-wheelers, we made it to our hotel after some 10 min walk from the train station. If you are not fazed by walking and long waits for buses, this is the hotel to stay because of its proximity to buses and trains.
The concierge gave excellent directions to get to our planned destinations of the day – Lucce Chapel, Tunghai Art Street, ( Any bus from #300 – #309 ) Gao Mei Wetlands (# 309 only ) and Fengjia Night Market by bus ( #25, #35 ) The soft alternative by taxi will easily set you back by S$100 or more.
Tunghai University and Its Environs
And so the eating begins…..
Day 2 – Taichung
The Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts in Taichung is quite a misnomer as it is more of a Contemporary Art Museum with lovely indoor and outdoor sculptures. It is one of the finest museums I’ve ever visited.
Back to the Food Trail…
At Yizhong Street
At Zhong Xiao ( not for tourists ) Night Market
When we were not otherwise preoccupied with food, we took time to wander around the streets of Taichung, getting lost and waiting for buses. There were some fascinating street art at the CMP Art Blocks located just behind the Eslite Mall.
Day 3 – Beitou
We spent a good part of the day travelling back to Taipei and onwards to Beitou. It was rather tricky getting back to the HSR station from the Taichung Train Station because there were too many local trains headed for different destinations. We asked a couple at the platform if they were headed for Taipei and duly followed them onto a train only to realise afterwards it was a local train heading directly there and the journey would take a good 3 hours or so. Luckily for us, there was a kind lady who saw our distress and got down at the next station with us, directed us to take another train to the Taichung HSR to catch the HSR back to Taipei. On hindsight, I could have kicked myself for asking the wrong question when what I had intended was to take the train back to Taichung HSR, NOT to Taipei!!!
From the Taipei HSR station, it was a simple linked walkway to the MRT line towards Beitou, and a connecting line to Xinbeitou station, where our next destination lies.
Beitou Hot Springs Resort
This is a short 5 minutes walk from the Xinbeitou staion. Weary after 2 exhaustive day of walking and wandering, this is a well-deserved reprieve. Our stay came with a private steam room and a sauna, with a thermal bathtub attached. Within the resort is an Onsen facility segregated by gender. By the time we checked in, it was late in the afternoon and the surrounding attractions were about to close. The next day was a Monday and the surrounding attractions remained closed. This is the hotel to stay to simply relax and soak the aches away.
Day 4 – Tamsui and back to Taipei
Tamsui
We left our luggage at the hotel after checking out to take the MRT to nearby Tamsui for more culinary indulgences.
At Ximending
We picked up our luggage and headed to Ximending, where we will be staying for the next 3 nights after securing a reservation at the famous Mala Hotpot restaurant where you can eat-all-you-can within 2 hours.
Hotel Papa Whale
We love this simply charming industrial-styled retro hotel with its quirky features. It is also conveniently located in the heart of throbbing Ximending and within walking distance to the MRT and train station.
Day 5 – Houtong, Shifen and Jiufen
Another day of intensive commuting by train and bus. It starts with an hour-long train ride from Taipei main station to Ruifang, standing room only. From Ruifang, you need to purchase a round-trip ticket on the Pingxi line. Trains generally run at one-hourly intervals so it is prudent to keep good track of time ( pun unintended )
Our first stop from Ruifang was Houtong, also known as Cat Village. We did not see enough cats for it to qualify. There were more gimmicks and tourist traps than cats. We stopped for an overpriced caffeine and smoothie fix at a cafe which did some justice to the patrons by housing a cute resident with paws.
Next stop was Shifen on the same train line which runs right through the tiny town straddling both sides of the tracks. Activities were abuzz on the tracks until the next train is due and warning shouts issued for the tracks to be cleared.
As for us, we had other pursuits on our minds…
It was another hour-long standing trip back to Ruifang station enroute to our next destination – Jiufen. We walked about 5 minutes from the train station to a bus-stop where a queue had already formed for the bus to Jiufen. Some enterprising taxi-drivers were busy soliciting passengers. One approached us and I settled for what seemed like a reasonable rate. As we sat waiting in his taxi, he left us there and continued his attempts to round up more passengers. We promptly got out of the taxi and resumed our wait in the queue. Not too long after, the bus arrived.
Jiufen
Jiufen is an old mountainous town well-known for its narrow alleyways of street food, snacks and souvenir shops. The view from the top is also lovely.
It was another long bus ride on #1062 all the way back to Taipei. By then we were too exhausted and overstuffed to attempt another night market!
Day 6 – YongKang Street
Despite warnings of an imminent typhoon, we decided to soldier on the streets of Yongkang. After coming all the way here, we had to sample the eponymous Din Tai Feng and its noteworthy Xiao Long Baos. Thankfully there was no queue at all because the crowds stayed away. This is a happy place to be, judging by the expressions of satisfied diners.
Kao Chi, the rival competitor, is just round the corner and we simply had to make a comparison. Alas, their portions were huge and we were nowhere close to finishing an order of another ten dumplings so we had to settle for desserts instead.
The next destination was Wufenpu for some retail therapy. Contrary to forecast, the thunderstorm did not appear. We learnt later from a shopkeeper that Typhoon Talim has shifted course to avoid Taipei completely. It marked a happy end to our day, with a positive expectation of more on the last day of our stay here!
Day 7 – Ximending
What else is there to sample? We managed to sneak in a bite or two of more street food before heading to the train station on foot to catch the MRT to the airport to board our flight back to Singapore.
Home Sweet Home
With so much gluttony and pigging out, we did not even venture to check out the theme cafes and the highly recommended Addiction Aquatic Development. There was simply no more room for more…
As the plane touched down on home soil, I could hear the strains of Dick Lee’s “Home” running through my mind. It had been a wonderful trip and I spent quality time with my daughter. But, this time, like any other time, I am so glad to be back to a place I call home.
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