Travelling in Taiwan

21 August

Today was the last day before packing my belongings for Kinmen Islands. I spent the previous night with the South African couple I befriended and I visited the Taipei Grand Mosque in time for midday prayers. It is the holy month of Ramadan in the Islamic calendar, so I am very glad I got to do this.

The mosque is beautiful and caters for women upstairs. It also forms part of the Chinese Islamic cultural and educational foundation. I loved the uniting feeling you get when you perform your prayers. The atmosphere is not the same in South Africa. 

Afterwards, I got back to my host family and made it in time for the events taking place at the Dream Community, which is part of where my host family lives. The Dream Community caters for international artists from all over the world. I witnessed a 2 hour performance of the Brazilian dance Capoeira, which combines martial arts, sports and music. It was very energetic and so cool! It was really awesome to experience such a performance in Taipei.

Later on, there was a little street parade, and fireworks were lit and various performances took place. 

The most fascinating thing for me was the fire dancing! The girl who did it was just amazing. I made a video for you to look at - you just have to see it to believe it. It was a really fantastic “last day” for me. 

Now, I am heading off to pack my bags for Kinmen.

19 & 20 August

On Friday, 19 August, Rachel and I woke up to a very good sleep at the Grand Hotel Taipei. After our very filling buffet breakfast, we hit the shops. As I’ve mentioned before, technology is really cheap in Taiwan, compared to South Africa and the first thing we did, was stop at the Guang Hau digital plaza for an iPod for Rachel. She was just as amazed as I was the first time I went there. It’s like we were in technology heaven! 

Afterwards we headed for the Taipei 101, to go up to the 85th floor to the observatory deck and check out the view of Taipei. It was stunning. We had an excellent view of the city, and saw the Keelung river, the skyscrapers, the mountains, etc. They also had interesting bits of information about the city. We also got to ride one of the fastest elevators in the world! It has the fastest ascending speed: 1010 meters per minute! Which is 16.83 meters per second. How awesome! 

To round off her second night in Taipei, I took Rachel to Ximending Circle. It is such a vibey place, and yes, mostly for youngsters, but we managed to find an awesome little shop hidden in one of the alleys to buy gifts for family and friends. 

Saturday, 20 August was our last morning at the Grand Hotel and Rachel and I said our goodbyes at Taipei Main Station. I then headed back to my host family who took my to Shihfen, which hosts the second largest lantern festival in the world. We got to choose a lantern - after Michael told me what each colour means, I chose pink for happiness.

I wrote down my wishes and so did Michael, Rebecca and their kids drew pictures. It was then lit for us and we let it go up into the air. It was such a wonderful experience! I made a video out of it, which you should check out. 

On the way out, it was really hot, so we had mango shaved ice! It was very very tasty! So far, I love the fruit in Taiwan. Every single fruit I’ve eaten has been really sweet and juicy. So you can imagine that the mango shaved ice was just as good.

If you are reading this blog, and planning a visit to Taiwan, make sure you eat it!

17 & 18 August

On Wednesday, 17 August I woke up a little late after spending a night with the South African couple I befriended. Shahanah and I had a leisure morning and then we headed off to the Japanese department store, Sogo. I bought some watches from here. 

Afterwards we went to the National Palace Museum and we booked an English tour. We were taken into the Bronze, Jade and Ceramic galleries and our tour guide gave us background information about the pieces we viewed. It was very informative and interesting to hear more about how the Taiwanese lived back then. Between 5000-8000 years ago. 

When the tour was done, we headed for some food and Shahanah took me to a popular tourist place called Alleycat’s for a late lunch. A place called Yogurt Art was just around the corner near a night market. Here you choose a flavour of frozen yogurt and and decorate with whatever topping you want: fresh fruit, different nuts and sprinkles. I absolutely loved this place! I headed back to my host family at the end of the day. 

On Thursday, 18 August, I woke up at 9am and headed to the Taipei high speed rail station to fetch Rachel who came from Taichung City for 2 nights. I picked her up and took her to my host family’s home. Michael and Rebecca were at work, so Rebecca’s mother, who doesn’t speak any English, was happy to meet Rachel judging by her smiles. She cut up some fresh fruit and brought it to my room. 

We then made our way to The Grand Hotel in Taipei, where we booked for 2 nights. The hotel is also a landmark. It is a stunning building! At the entrance you are greeted by a majestic staircase. And everything about it, even the ceiling is gorgeous. We checked into our room, had something to eat and headed out to Danshui. 

Danshui was really stunning. We made it in time to catch the sunset. There was also a night market and some places to eat. Lots of tourists. We took a boat to Fisherman’s Wharf, which was amazing. And it was really cheap $100 for a return ticket. We explored the area for a bit before heading back home. 

I had a very comfortable night’s sleep at The Grand Hotel. I didn’t wake up once and I managed to fall off to sleep before 3am. Looks like the jet lag may be over! 

15 & 16 August

My host family work on weekdays so I have free time to explore Taipei during this time. 

On Monday, 15 August I went to the Taipei 101 Mall with 2 other SayTaiwan candidates. It is a very posh mall with brands like Dolce & Gabana, Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Armani. A bit out of the middle class persons budget, so we didn’t actually shop there. 

Afterwards we bumped into other candidates and we all were going to the same place: to check out the Guang Hau digital plaza. We spent hours there, looking at all the electronic goods on offer. I was amazed at how cheap everything is, compared to South Africa. We purchased a few things and then headed to Ximending Circle. 

Ximending Circle is where we felt at home. It has a very young, urban Taipei vibe to it. It has everything from Japanese culture, western styles, other Asian fashion and loads of accessory shops. We explored the area for a bit and then settled to have some Italian Chinese cuisine for supper. Overall, it was a nice long day getting to know the cool spots in Taipei better. 

On Tuesday, 16 August I met a South African girl living in Taipei. We became friends before I left for Taiwan and we finally met! She is studying Mandarin here and told me that in Mandarin, each syllable has multiple tones - sounds complicated for me! But respect to her for learning a difficult language. 

She took me to a nice cosy restaurant called Grandma Nitti’s Kitchen for lunch, which is a popular tourist spot. It offers various international cuisine and serve breakfast the whole day. As I mentioned in my previous blog post, that I am having difficulty finding halaal food but it is okay because I am eating seafood and vegetarian dishes. 

She invited me to spend a night with her, to take me to a highly recommended halaal restaurant which has the best burgers - Enjoy Kitchen. We were not disappointed at all. The owner of the restaurant went out of his way to make us feel comfortable and brought other dishes for us - like Jalapeno cheese sticks - they are DELICIOUS! It is crumbed and served with a dip. He also brought us a tasty soup. The beef cheeseburger that I ordered was by far the best burger I ate! We managed to squeeze in a cheesecake afterwards. 

We then walked around the night market for a while, looking at the stuff on offer, before heading back home.

13 & 14 August

I arrived in Taiwan on Friday, 12 August and was greeted by the friendly SayTaiwan staff. Then my host dad, Michael fetched me from the airport. We got stuck in traffic for about an hour, before getting to our apartment. 

My host family is Michael and his wife Rebecca and they have a son and daughter who are very shy. I also met Rebecca’s parents. It is slightly difficult to communicate because Michael is the only one who speaks some English. We don’t always understand each other but we are getting along fine :) I am very happy with my room, it has air-conditioning and a fan, and I have Internet access. 

They took me out for supper on day 1. It was lovely. Our apartment is a part of the Dream Community and there is a restaurant - Tree House just around the corner. The bakery next door provides coffee and bread, free to all international guests in the Dream Community. 

On Saturday, 13 August, in the morning, while the family attended some religious readings, I took the MRT and learnt how to use it. I walked around City Hall and outside Taipei 101 and got some lunch. 

In the afternoon, my host family took me to the north, by the sea and to a Chinese market, made famous by a movie 20 years ago. I can’t get the name, but it won awards in Europe. We walked around the market and also drove to the sea. 

On Sunday, 14 August we drove an hour out of New Taipei City, to Yilan County, to see traditional Taiwanese performing arts. It showcases culture, history, with shows, activities and interactive exhibits. The dancers really impressed me. We spent several hours there and bumped into another home stay family. I met Kevin from New Caledonia. 

Once we got back to New Taipei City, I enjoyed supper with my host family. Although Rebecca doesn’t speak English, I helped her out in the kitchen and cut up some mango. We had soup, chow faan, sushi, shrimp (prawns) and noodles. 

I have to say that it is not easy to get halal meals in Taipei so I am eating seafood and vegetarian. Michael and his family have been kind and accommodating to this and making sure I have the right food. Thank you Michael and Rebecca! 

I’m going to Taiwan!

I’ve been selected to go to Taiwan’s International Youth Week - Centennial Homestay, taking place from 12-25 August 2011.

Organized by the Taiwanese Council of Cultural Affairs, they’ve invited guests from around the world (250 people from 125 countries) to experience an authentic Taiwanese lifestyle.

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