Taiwan Part 1: Foodstuffs

UGHHH. The blogging. It is endless. But I gotta write all this stuff down before I forget, and I'm sure there are DOZENS of people awaiting my elegantly written posts.

Actually, it's probably more like...8?

Anyway. Don't miss my Hong Kong post with Amy, Ann, and Candace below.

So because last weekend was Easter (and we got a five day weekend), a couple of friends and I booked a trip to Taipei. I was told by numerous people that the only thing to do in Taiwan is shop and eat, and they were absolutely right. We went to as many different night markets (four in all, I think) as memorial parks and temples combined. I think I smelled like stinky tofu by the end of every night.

We flew out of HKG on a two hour flight Saturday afternoon, and weren't all settled in Taipei until maybe 7 that night? So we took it easy and explored the night market right outside the place we were staying. We were staying right in the middle of the Tonghua Night Market, so getting food in the morning (when it was a wet market for fresh veggies and stuff) and late at night as we were coming back from wherever we went to that day was really easy and convenient. They also had cheap clothes, shoes, and other knick knacks there.

Food in Taiwan:

Stinky tofu. The smell. Is SO STINKY. But I guess you get used to it. It's kind of funny, it really doesn't smell bad as you're eating it. I actually haven't tried stinky tofu before (because, seriously, the smell), even though it's pretty abundant in Mong Kok (where I spend 75% of my time), but I suppose if you're gonna eat stinky tofu you might as well eat it in Taiwan. It is pretty tasty. But a mess to eat.

There is nothing inside this guy. I think I paid a dollar US for four of these, in the shape of a cow, a pig, a chicken, and a gun (???).

A mini burger. I think it's supposed to be like a Krabby Patty from Spongebob.

Taiwanese sausage stuffed with cilantro or something.

I don't even remember what this was. Probably because it was kind of bland. I added what I thought was soy sauce to it, but that made it even worse :/


It is reassuring to know that I am the same color as a dorayaki...

Dorayaki with vanilla ice cream filling we had at Jiufen.

More stinky tofu.

Lamb noodles ordered on the way to Yehliu Geopark. We had these next to a bunch of drunken old men. It was 12 noon.



Yes, I ate a boar sausage at Jiufen. It was delicious.

Quail eggs at Ximending. Also delicious.

Onion pancake with egg and basil. Probably the most delicious thing I had in Taiwan.

I think we had Mister Donut every single day we were in Taipei. The donuts here are lighter (and therefore, better) than the ones at home, and I think they're famous for these mochi donuts they make.



We also had boba everyday we were here. I mean, you kind of have to. Taipei is awesome in that there's boba EVERYWHERE, and it's good EVERYWHERE. You really don't have to worry about the quality of it. Didn't buy a boba here that I regretted, unlike home.

Boba in a bag. Yes, this bothered me. But it was supposedly famous (the cart had newspaper clippings and stuff), and the lady making it did some fancy tricks while making it, so I figured I should try it.

Breakfast one day consisted of choosing your own dishes and portions, not unlike a buffet.

We were told that we must absolutely have the beef brisket noodle in Taiwan (Is it famous or something? A specialty? I don't know), so we did. It was mediocre. But the lady we bought it from was nice?

Hot pot.

I <3 pineapple cakes. These came in fancy boxes, but too bad they were crumbly. I don't like crumbly.

So yeah. Those are all the things we ate while in Taiwan. Check back later for the actual touristy parts of the trip. I just figured it'd be easier (for me) to split it up like this instead of the usual day-by-day recap. Those are getting kind of boring.