The travel blog for couples - Written by Melanie Waldman
About an hour outside of Taipei, Taiwan, I was smitten (smitten, I tell you) by the historic mountain town of Jiufen.
Pedestrian streets paved with stone, glowing paper lanterns, teahouses with vine-covered patios and twinkling views of the Pacific…it’s enough to make you fall in love all over again, a really long way from home.
Each August at the Taipei World Trade Center, the Taiwan Culinary Exhibition attracts a huge crowd for every one of its four days. It’s a balls-out parade of some of the most elaborate, exciting, artistic, enticing and baffling foods on Mothership Earth.
Oh, and did I mention? It’s entirely in Chinese. [Read more...]
Wood-carved sculpture in the northeast town of Sanyi
Continued from
Ni Hao, Taiwan: Part One
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** Ni hao = “hello” in Mandarin Chinese, the most common dialect in Taiwan **
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It’s been a few weeks since I returned from my first trip to Taiwan, and the sights, sounds, tastes (and even a few smells) seem to be growing stronger rather than fading with time.
I’ve never been anywhere that was so complicated, visually assaulting, gentle, calm, puzzling and yet somehow familiar, sometimes all in a given day.
But just when I thought I had a handle on the situation, Taiwan would surprise me yet again.
Taiwan has the best chrysanthemums I've ever seen
** Ni hao = “hello” in Mandarin Chinese, the most common dialect in Taiwan **
I’ve been back from Taiwan for a couple of weeks now, and I realize I actually miss it. A lot.
While I was there, it was hot and muggy and leafy and full of mopeds and splashy ads for mopeds. The more elaborate the food, the more strange or bland it seemed to taste. Colors were stunningly over-saturated or shimmering in a humid haze. Smells went from divine to bizarre in the turn of a corner.
I was happy to dwell in any oasis of dimly-lit calm.
But now that I’m back in my everyday life, I find myself daydreaming of street food from night markets and lush hillsides with huge golden Buddhas on top of mysterious far-off buildings. I want to perch on rocky, distant coasts and peer into gorges and soak up to my chin in natural hot springs. I want to go and see more Taiwan.
But for now, here’s a sense of what I saw, did and ate…this time around.
Can you say, “dream trip,” boys and girls? Well, I’m leaving tonight to take one of mine.
Ever since I had a brief layover in Taipei (well, technically in the neighboring city of Taoyuan, which is a lot closer to the airport), I’ve been curious about Taiwan, an island country off the southeastern coast of China. It’s full of ornate temples and mountain gorges, hot springs and tea fields, the 2,000-year history of the Hakka tribe and some of the best food to be found in Asia — or possibly anywhere on the planet.
Earlier this year, I was impressed by Taiwan’s vibrant presence at the Los Angeles Times Travel & Adventure Show, which further stoked my desire to see the country; the subsequent post I wrote about the show was read by some folks at the Taiwan Tourism Bureau, and well…here I go to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Taiwanese republic.
Never doubt the power of declaring your intentions, and of the internet.
