My supposedly last leg of my Asian holiday (China – Philippines – Vietnam) was Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam where I have a holiday trip with my direct family. However, there are no direct flights from Ho Chi Minh City to Amsterdam. There is however a flight with KLM from Manila to Amsterdam with a quick layover in Taipei. I prefer to fly with KLM for the Flying Blue points so I was leaning towards this option. However, I thought – Why don’t I take the flight from Taipei instead of Manila? Then I can fly to Taipei from Manila and discover and enjoy the city for a few days. The more I thought about the idea, the more my fingers were itching to book the trip. And so I did!
Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall and Park.
I saw a lot and did a lot in my few days stay in Taipei. I even managed to go to the north, to Shifen and Jiufen for a day. I can’t wait to write my travel experiences and post all my pictures on here.
For starters, Taipei is where most visitors go to, especially for first timers and for city trip visitors. Since the metropolis is massive, it can be very overwhelming and intimidating to decipher it in detail, not to mention that each district has its own special sights and attraction to offer. More importantly, the nagging question a visitor is often saddled is – Where to stay in Taipei? Where to set base that is easy and convenient to go around?
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Don’t fret. Taipei is like Hong Kong and Tokyo, there is really no central point. It does not matter which district you will be staying as long as you walking distance to a metro station. The city is metro wired and you get to the next district and area in just a matter of minutes. But I suggest you choose a central district for travel and sightseeing efficiency.
Taipei City from the observatory of Taipei 101.
Here is a map of the districts in Taipei (picture from Wikitravel):
The name of the 12 districts in Chinese Mandarin with a brief description of its main sights.
1. Shilin 士林區 - Sitting at the foot of the Yangmingshan National Park, this suburb of Taipei is expat land, home to many western and Japanese expatriates. The famous Shilin Night Market is here which I never made to because I got lazy, haha.
2. Beitou 北投區 - This district is very famous for its hot springs. Great for day trippers or a weekend getaway for spa relaxation.
8. Xinyi 信義區 - Is the district that glitters and home to Taiwan’s pride, the Taipei 101 building. Xinyi is the financial hub of the city so there are many stunning tall buildings here, plus the posh shopping, entertainment and lifestyle malls (Neo19, Taipei 101, ATT4FUN, Shin Kong Mitsukoshi) can’t be missed of course.
Xinyi at night.
3. Neihu 內湖區 - There is Dahu park; this place is ideally good for hiking and visit orchard and fruit farms, well I heard.
4. Wenshan 文山區 - The place to go for tea and views of Taipei in Maokong – you will have to take the gondola. There is a zoo here, hiking trails and tea plantations which I wanted to visit, but helaas, I didn’t have much time
5. Nangang 南港區 - This is a research, exhibition centre and software park area. Nothing for the tourist unless you are here for business or conference.
The Taiwan Dollar.
6. Zhongshan 中山區 - The administrative district of Taipei and is located very central in the city. There are many historical buildings and recreational parks here and is home to the underground Zhongshan Metro Mall.
7. Da'an 大安區 - There’s lots of stuff going on in this district, a great combination of culture, commercial and residential. Yongkang Street is a good place to look for food. Night markets are Tonghua and Shida. The famous Din Tai Fung restaurant is also located here which has a long queue of eager customers.
9. Songshan 松山區 - The Ciyou Temple and the famous Raohe Night Market is here. Songshan is north of Zhongshan.
One of the busiest night markets, with a focus on food.
10. Wanhua 萬華區 - The oldest district in Taipei and home to many iconic and historic buildings such as the Longsham Temple, Red House Theater and more. Ximending pedestrian zone (Harajuku of Taipei) is located here which is a must to go, especially in the evening. I have based my stay here in Wanhua because I saw a nice boutique hotel for a good price right in the smack of Ximen area. You can find here the Snake Alley, well I didn’t visit if you ask me, haha. There are many night markets here namely: Huaxi, Xichang, Guangzhou, Wuzhou and Nanjichang. Wanhau is
Ximending pedestrian streets and zone, the Harajuku of Taipei. Non-stop shopping and street food here, very popular amongst the young.
12. Datong 大同區 - Dihua street is the main place to go to see architecture during the Japanese occupation and Qing period. This district has 3 night markets: Ningxia, Yansan and Dalong.
11. Zhongzheng 中正區 - The stately district showcasing most of the national government buildings and home to the Chian Kai-Shek Memorial Hall, 228 Memorial Park, National Museum of History, National Central Library, National Theater and Concert Hall and more. You can witness the changing of guards every day at 12 noon at the Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall.
From the Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall looking out to the gate and park.
Will be blogging more about Taiwan in the coming days, weeks and months.
Travel Period: January 2017
Destination: Taipei, Taiwan
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Happy Travels! Enjoy Life =)
All pictures were taken by a point and shoot pocket camera or a smartphone.
