Taipei is an interesting place with a little bit of everything for everyone. It seriously amazes me how many people are packed onto this tiny little island. Wherever I've gone-- even when I hiked up Yang Ming Shan (Taipei's tallest mountains, notorious for poisonous snakes)--I've never been completely alone.
So yes, let's start with my hike up Mt. Cising, supposedly the tallest peak on Yang Ming Shan. I decided I needed to start my Taipei adventures with a bang, and so I thought, why not climb a mountain? I thought the way up was going to be the hardest... Whenever I stopped to take a rest, I'd look up and see a million more stairs to climb up. But then, I got to the peak. It felt soooo awesome!!
Unfortunately, the weather was really foggy so I couldn't get a really cool picture looking down into the city. And then, on my way down, I got lost.... Yup, typical me. So I figured as long as I was going "down" the mountain, I was going the right direction. So I kept walking. It seemed like a good idea until it started getting dark... and then even darker. I could hear bugs and animals rustling through the trees but I couldn't see them, and I was getting eaten alive by mosquitoes. The nice thing about doing things like this by yourself is that you can just take your time-- after all, it's only your own time that you're spending. But the bad thing about doing things like this by yourself is that sometimes, you don't have anybody around to tell you that they think you're doing something stupid. Who knows? There may have been poisonous snakes lurking around the corner. But since nobody reminded me of of these possible threats, I kept walking through the trees that i couldn't see until I got scared. Yes, I'll admit it. I get scared sometimes and I figure the best thing to do when you're scared is to just start running. You see a scary monster underneath your bed, what should you do? Someone bigger than you wants to start a fight, so what? Maybe creepy guy starts following you around... Friends, the solution to all of these is to run. Run fast. But enough of my thoughts on this matter, long story short, it took me awhile to find a paved road but I got home safely and lived happily ever after. But I guess I can't say I started my adventures with a bang now. :)So, in my pursuit to make the most of my time in Taipei, I also started working in an office during the week days. One particularly nice lady from work has taken me around (on the back of her bicycle... she really wanted me to "feel local") to most of the famous local shops-- where I've tried all sorts of things including almond shaved ice, tropical fruits I'd never even seen before, and then of course, unidentified-animal intestine soup and stinky tofu.
One of my favorite places to go to is the Shilin Night Market. They sell everything, I kid you not. Basically, the place is rows and rows of shops, and at night little illegal vendors set themselves up in between on the roads and sell all sorts of things. Dangling sausages and chicken feet, fake-brand clothes, you name it, it'll be waiting for you, readily available to you at low NT prices.
One thing that I've noted about this place is how prevalent modern Japanese culture is over here. They have everything a Japanese girl like me could ask for-- which is, basically, good food like katsu and karaoke vendors. I've met a couple of university students (and some just-out-of-university students) and one night, we went for the whole karaoke experience.
All in all, Taipei has been super fun. I will definitely miss this place. I only have a week more, but then, I'm off to Tokyo! I'm so excited, it's been about 2 years since I've been back.Well friends, I hope you are all enjoying the summer days. If you are ever in the area, or want me to bring you back something cool from the far far East, I'm sure you'll let me know. :)
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