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Saturday, Jan 09, 2010
Overall Thoughts
Taipei is a great place to visit. The US dollar goes a long way there. The priciest thing for me was a private car rental back to the airport ($33 USD). The cheapest things were the meals. You could have lunch for under a buck. A 45-minute back massage was $20 (USD).
Fashion
Fashion there consists mainly of skirts (or sweaters), leggings, and boots. Most people can wear this quite well. I imagine summertime just features the same thing sans the leggings.
A current goofy fashion craze is thick-rimmed glasses with no glass in them--just the rims. Yeah, you read that right. Out of all weird fashion things in the last tens years, that rates #1.
Smoking
So apparently, lung cancer hasn't reached Taiwan yet? No need to say more.
Scooters
Scooters are everywhere. The streets are crazy. Say what you will about Asian drivers, but I saw no accidents over there, and there were ample opportunities. Still, I think the sidewalks were much safer (although the scooters can and do drive all over the sidewalks). What is insane is the risks people take with their kids. I saw families of four on one scooter, zipping down the road. Children aren't supposed to be on them, but they certainly are. Dogs are too. I really, really wanted to snap a photo of a guy racing by with his golden retriever sitting docilely on the footrest of a scooter. It was too funny. While scooters are a lot more economical than cars, the substitution over walking is probably having an undesired effect.
Health
I hear the general population is growing, and not in numbers. A concerned government is now subsidizing programs to try and curb the problem. I'm sure the increase in driving over walking is a prime cause of this since the food doesn't seem to be that bad. Granted, a lot of it does have high calories, but portions are fairly sensible in most cases, and while they do have fast food (McDonalds was just outside our apartment), people weren't exactly forming lines out the door to eat there.
Food
Try as I might, I can't remember all the different foods I ate there. I enjoyed most of them, though I'll never touch the stinky tofu. I don't even like regular tofu. Overall, the Japanese BBQ and the Hot Pot were the best. However, I must say I loved the German pizza.
Rest
I was dead tired every night, sometimes even at 10pm. It's nice to have days where you feel you got everything possible out of them. As well, the down times are also vital. When I toured Central Europe, I had almost no down time, and that exhausted me. In Taipei, I was in one main location with the same comfy bed every evening. That helped immensely.
Standing Out
What was also fun about Taipei was being somewhat unique. In most places in Europe, I don't stand out as being an outsider until I speak (though my French is getting much better). In Taipei, you're pretty obvious from the get-go. This isn't a bad thing, however; it's just interesting. I certainly didn't feel better or worse than anyone else; I just felt somehow different. Sometimes, I'd be the only Caucasian person on a train (well, when not traveling with Lesly) for a long time. Then another Westerner would get on the train, and I'd be thinking, "Hey! What do you think you're doing?!? I'M the white guy here! Get off! Get off!"
But people didn't really treat me differently; they just spoke English when they could.
Another thing we noticed was that people won't usually say, "Excuse me," when bumping into someone. I really don't find a problem with this since I'm sure it's just not a custom, due to necessity. If a society is quite crowded and trains or streets often resemble the county fair bumper cars all day, then "excuse me" isn't going to work very well, having to be constantly repeated. I've noticed the same thing in Europe. The big cities don't have as many good morning's on the street, whereas the smaller towns do. Who wants to walk to work barking out, "Good morning, good morning, good morning," nonstop?
In Summary
Overall, the trip was great and well worth the time and money. What would I recommend? Well, like I said, I can't remember the names of most foods and restaurants. Try everything. Heck, even if your food sucks and you covertly get it into the garbage, you're only out a small deal of money. Note: Avoid eating anywhere near stinky tofu vendors--ruins the taste and the scenery.
As far as places to go...hmmm. Read the full journal. I can't remember it all! But I suppose I can suggest a few offhand:
- Beitou Hot Springs--so nice. Test your fortitude. 1st degree burns heal in time.
- The mountain town. The name fails me, but it starts with an "O." Awesome scenery there. Bring a GOOD camera.
- Japanese BBQ -- so good. If you don't mind kissing your wife in public, bring her. They'll take a photo of it and offer you some free food or drink.
- Taipei 101 Building -- a great view from above. Shoot for a clear day, if possible.
- Room 18--if you love a great dance party, that's the place to be.
One Final Thing
When I return, I'll definitely learn and practice some Chinese first. If anything frustrated me, it was that I hadn't spent any time beforehand learning common phrases. And for someone who loves acquiring knowledge, that bothered me.
What was highly noticeable was how much Lesly had already learned and was able to use. She'd have many conversations in Chinese and I was always impressed. It was like rooting for your favorite football team each time. And when she'd only miss a word or so at the end, I'd think, "Oh. So close! Down to the 5-yard line! Next season, next season."
Next Up
Well, I'm not sure what's next. Perhaps Europe again. All I need is a willing compatriot. Any takers?