in Photo: There are 2 temples of this kind on the National Palace compound
For the last installment of this 3-part Exploring Taiwan series, I will be sharing the most iconic landmarks of Taipei.The National Palace Museum, also known as the Taipei Palace Museum, is a must see for fans of history. Established in 1965, this houses one of the world’s largest collections of Chinese imperial pieces of arts and artifacts. After experiencing the wonderful and vast collection of Chinese relics, be impressed by the massive structures found on the same compound.
Walking around and enjoying the scenery of the Beitou Thermal Valley can be therapeutic. It features a bubbling pool of hot sulfur spring water, one of only two green sulfur hot springs in the world. Though it may be tempting, bathing in these hot springs are prohibited due to its very high temperatures, ranging from 80-100°C.
The Yangmingshan National park is the only park in Taipei that has volcanic geography and hot springs. One of its famous landmarks is the large clock made of flowers with a diameter of 22 feet and where water runs around the flower clock and music is played every hour. Unfortunately, there no flowers during our visit. Just few steps from the clock is a statue of late president Chiang Kai-Shek.
When in Taipei, another must-do is their street food tripping. We went to three night markets: Raohe night market where we enjoyed the Michelin Gua Bao, a steamed bun filled with pork belly and their stinky tofu served with pork or beef and pig blood; Ximending is a trendy and vibrant shopping district with a mix of fashion, street food and entertainment. This is where we tasted their oyster omelet. And the last was the Shilin Night Market with several stalls of street food. To know which stall is selling the best food stuff in these markets, go to those with the crazy long queues. As expected, there’s milk tea stalls everywhere. It’s like their water here.
There’s still so much to see and do in Taiwan. It deserves a second trip.
