I’m in love. This is usually the feeling I get when I come back from a vacation, but this is love on a “whole ‘nother” level. I visited Taipei, Taiwan and got myself into (and out of) some less than predictable situations. I enjoyed the hot weather, (aside from the cut the air level of humidity, uggh) did some shopping at the night markets, ate Thai chicken from a toilet bowl and icecream from a urinal, (Ha!) enjoyed the outdoor hot springs, awed the palm trees (home?!), saw the most beautiful (and tall) Asian men I’ve seen in a minute… well, since Japan, visited the 2nd tallest building in the world (Taipei 101) and admired the all too cool pace of the city- all while sipping on some infamous bubble tea.
Strange as it sounds, Taiwan felt like home. (The States, that is.) I fell in love with the chill vibe of the city, where I saw more scooters and mopeds than cars, more straw hats and tank tops than stilettos and baseball caps (Korea), B boys break dancing in the subway station, (yes, boom boxes and all) and… did I mention the shopping?! The locals weren’t gawking at me because I’m a “foreigner”, and about 90% of the people I came into contact with spoke English. What a change of pace! Needless to say, Taiwan gets 2 thumbs up, esp. since I did NO research prior to heading there, so my expectations were pretty low. I was pleasantly surprised, and I’m glad I didn’t pass up the opportunity to go- I know I’ll def. be arranging another trip soon. 🙂
A note I wrote on a napkin, on the subway, on the way back from dinner after spending over an hour looking for a dinner restaurant lol.: Taiwan, I’m sorry I wasn’t able to stay longer, I promise I’ll be back soon. I just have one question for you: Why are there more hair shops than sit down restaurants in the city? Whomp.
–>Since my 4 day weekend was in honor of Buddah’s Birthday, here are a few pictures I managed to take a few months back in the cultural city of Gyeonju.
Happy Birthday Buddah!