Seafood at the Four Sisters

On my last trip to Taiwan I visited many interesting places on the outskirts of Taipei.  You can get to those places using public transportation but with a big group like ours, and 3 kids, it would be a challenge.  Besides, the hot weather would make it even more challenging.

I found a guide through a friend in Singapore.  His name is Yong, who is a cousin of my friend's wife.  He is from Singapore but moved to Taiwan a few years ago because his wife is from Hualien, a town on the east coast.  Yong and I went back and forth several times to put together an itinerary.  Eventually, we decided to use him for 1 day to go to places outside of Taipei.  He'd have a van that can sit up to 20 passengers.  We will start in the morning at 9 and finished around 6pm.  We decided on 5 places to go.

Group Photo with the van

Our first stop is Shifen Old Street (十分老街), a small town east of Taipei.   It's well known for its Sky Lantern.  This is how it works:  vendors sell paper lanterns.  You write your wish or anything you want on the paper lantern.  When you are ready, the vendor will light a small candle inside the lantern.  The hot air from the fire propels the lantern upwards.  When the fire goes out it falls back into the nearby forest.  The area is quite wet so there is a very small possibility of forest fire.  

A group photo in Shifen

Doris and Meng ready to launch their lantern

Taylor is helping mom to write on the lantern

Sign to Shifen Old Street

What the colors of the lantern mean

Kids are taking part too

Besides the lanterns, there are many shops selling food and souvenirs.  What is interesting here is there is a railroad track that runs right through the middle of the street.  When the train comes, everyone has to move back from the track.

Eddy and Mai-lon enjoying the local snacks

Steven in front of one of many food stands

Nearby is a suspension bridge.

The Wongs on the suspension bridge.

Also nearby is a popular waterfall but we did not go there because it'd take us too long with the kids.

We had so much fun at Shifen that we spent more time there than we should.  Our next stop was Yehliu Geopark, about an hour away.  We drove to Yehliu, a fishing town, for lunch at the Four Sisters Seafood restaurant.  There were 12 of us so we ordered the priciest combination on the menu.  It was an amazing menu of fresh and the most beautifully decorated seafood dishes we ever had.  Everyone was so impressed with the freshness and the display.  Best of all, the price was only NT$8,000, about US$250.

Four Sisters Seafood Restaurant

Our young waiter,  grandson of the family

A Squid Dish

Sashimi

One of the dishes

Another Dish

More beautiful dishes

It was already 3pm by the time we got to Yehliu Geopark.  As we entered the park it started to rain.  We didn't get very far.  Some of us tried to go see the "Queen's Head" but it was too crowded.  This is a natural formation that resembles a woman's head.  It was very disappointing because we came this far and were not able to see more of the park.  We were a little wet because we were unprepared for the rain.  Below are some pictures that I took of the park when I visited Taiwan in 2018.

Rock formations at Yehliu Geopark

More Rock Formations

"Queen's Head"

Instead of going to 5 places we managed only 2.  But, the important thing is everyone had fun.  Sightseeing is not the most important reason for the trip.  Being together and enjoying new places is what is important.

Going to Night Markets is a "must" in Taiwan.  This is part of the culture, just like Christmas Markets are part of the culture in Europe.  There are night markets all over Taiwan.  In Taipei the two most popular night markets are Shilin and Ningxia.  We were planning to go to one of the two or both.  However, most days, by end of the day, we were quite tired.  Luckily, there is a night market not far from our hotel.  It is a 10-minute walk to the Banqiao Night Market. 

During the day, this is a regular street for cars and pedestrians.  In the late afternoon vendors start setting up their stands or booths.  Most vendors sell food but others also have games, souvenirs, toys, etc.  Each try to be different to attract customers.  After a couple of hours we were tired and walked slowly back to the hotel.  Below are pictures from the Banqiao Night Market

They called it Chinese pizza but it's scallion pancake

There are games too

Esme eyeing some toys

Mai-lon found some food she likes

They found an actual indoor restaurant

Soup Dumplings at Din Tai Fung

 Our plan for the first day in Taipei is to visit the National Palace Museum (NPM). This is the most important and most visited tourist site in Taiwan.  The museum housed artifacts and artwork that were brought over by the Nationalists at the tail-end of the takeover of mainland China by the communists.  Many came from the Palace Museum in the Forbidden City in Beijing and other institutions throughout China.

Directions to the National Palace Museum on their website

Looking at the map it seems like the NPM is quite far away from the Hilton Hotel in Banqiao.  It turned out to be relatively easy to get there.  We walked to the Banqiao station, which turns out to be only an easy 5-minute walk from the hotel.  The station turned out to be a big station with three rail lines - 2 MRT lines (yellow and blue), the Taiwan Railway, and the High-Speed Railway. From this station you can go to almost anywhere in Taiwan.

We took the Blue MRT line to the Taipei Main Station, and then changed to the Red Line to the Shilin station.  From there we followed the directions above.  We took the 255 Bus and it took us right across the street from the museum.  But, when we exited the Shilin station we were surprised by many shops that sell our favorite Taiwanese snacks - bobba tea, scallion pancakes, etc.  Even though we had a heavy breakfast that morning we stopped to enjoy ourselves.

Enjoying snacks at Shilin Station

Steven and Taylor stopping at 7-Eleven

Cynthia enjoying Chinese Pizza, which is Scallion Pancake

More snacks for Shawn, Taylor and Cynthia

We had to take a few pictures in front of this famous museum.

The children in front of an incense burner

A Group Photo

The Wongs

Admission to the museum is relatively inexpensive - NT$350 for adults, about US$12.  Anyone under 17 is admitted free.  An audio guide costs an additional NT$150.  We split up and spent about 2 hours at the museum.  One of the highlights of the museum is a jade sculpture of a cabbage.  Unfortunately, it was not on display that day.  Another is a stone sculpture of a braised pork belly.

Mai-lon with picture of Jade Cabbage

Braised Pork, sculpted from banded jasper stone

We were finished with the museum by about 3pm.  What's next?  We decided to go to dinner at Din Tai Fung, a restaurant known for its soup dumplings or Xiaolongbao in Mandarin.  This is one of Taiwan's famous exports.  You can find Din Tai Fung restaurants all over the world, including in the US.  Here is a short History of Din Tai Fung.

There are several in Taipei and we picked the one near the Chiang Kai Shek Memorial.  It's the Xinsheng Branch at No. 277, Section 2, Xinyi Road.  It was crowded, even though it was 4pm.  The wait was 60 minutes.  There was a crowd in front of the restaurant.  Later we learned that there was a Korean pop-star eating inside the restaurant and many in the crowd were waiting to catch a glimpse of him.

Crowd outside restaurant

Some hungry folks

Kitchen where they prepare the dumplings

Xiaolongbao

It was a long day after dinner.  The rest of the group went back to the hotel.  But before they did that, they found a place that sells Mango Shaved Ice, one of the favorite snacks.

Mango Shaved Ice

Doris and I stopped at an area called Ximendi.  It's a popular pedestrian mall, full of shops and street food.  I stayed at a hotel near here when I was in Taiwan 5 years ago.  It's a very popular area among younger folks to hang out and eat.

Doris at Ximendi

Eating a snack from a street vendor

It was a long first day for us.  We were ready for a nice rest at the Hilton Hotel.

Laksa at the Lounge

Today we are flying to Taipei, Taiwan, for the second part of our trip.  We took a Grab from the MBS to Terminal 3 of Changi Airport.  It costs S$30.40, about US$22.34.  The ride took about 30 minutes.

What is Grab?  Grab is like Uber everywhere else.  Grab is partially owned by Uber.  Instead of competing against itself, Uber pull out of the market and let Grab run it.  I've mentioned how efficient and clean Singapore's public transportation system is, especially its MRT.  However, there are times it makes more sense to take Grab because you are not close to a MRT station or it's too hot outside to walk to a MRT station.  With 4 adult passengers and 4 suitcases, the Grab ride to the airport came to a little over US$5 a person.  Taking public transportation would've costs almost that much, not to mention dragging our suitcases up and down the stairs or escalators.  Prior to our trip I've asked almost all in the group to download the Grab app.  The setup, and usage, is almost like Uber.

Singapore's Changi Airport has been voted one of the best airport in the world.  It was designed for travelers, whether Singapore is your final destination or you are transiting through.  After dropping off our luggages at the Singapore Airlines counter, we went through Immigration.  Here machines scan your passport and boarding pass, then take a picture of you.  But you don't go through security here.  This is where it is different from almost all airports in the world.  You are inside the airport within a few minutes and then right in front of you are all the airport shops. There are nice restaurants and cafes scattered all over the airport.  The decor here is very nice.  There are quiet areas all over where you can hide, or even sleep.  The airport understands that some travelers don't want to spend money at a hotel but instead sleep on the carpet in the corner.  You go through security only at your departure gate.  No long lines at the airport entrance.

We were to meet the rest of the group at the SATS Premier Lounge.  There are three Priority Pass lounges that we could go but I picked SATS because I've been there and because they serve laksa.  Our Priority Pass membership is through our American Express card membership.  It is only a short walk after we passed through Immigration, and then up the escalator.  

A bowl of laksa

What is laksa?  It's a popular delicacy that is is basically a bowl of noodles steep in a curry and coconut milk-based broth.  The flavor is not a strong curry flavor but does have spiciness to it.  Other ingredients include:  dried shrimp, shrimp paste, garlic, ginger, turmeric, lemon grass, candle nuts, coconut milk, etc.  It's a complex flavor.  A good laksa broth has good quality ingredients in the right amount to make the soup delectable.  The noodles are usually rice noodles the size of spaghetti noodles.  Bean sprouts are also added to the noodles.  To complete the dish you add hard-boiled eggs, fish cake, sometimes cockerels (similar to clams), and deep-fried tofu.  Chopped laksa leaves are added as condiments.  Sambal (a shrimp paste-based chili sauce) is added to make it spicy.

It is not an easy dish to make.  It is time-consuming and labor intensive.  Not many families make it at home, unless they have a big group to enjoy it.  However, you can find it at most hawker centers, selling for S$3-$5 a bowl.  At that price, the hawkers can't afford to use good ingredients.  When you taste a delicious bowl of laksa, you will know it.  The complex flavors come through "loud and clear."  You slurp the noodles and broth.  One bowl is sometimes not enough.  One of the best I had is at the Rise restaurant at MBS.

Singapore Airlines' SQ 878 arrives in Taipei at 1640.  As we walked towards Immigration we saw a booth selling Taiwan SIM cards.  A 7-day card costs NT$1,000, about US$3.30.  We installed them and started to wait in line to go through Immigration.  The passports were checked manually by an Immigration Officer.  For an advanced country like Taiwan I am surprised this is not done by a scanner.  We'd have been through in less than 15 minutes.  Instead it took almost an hour.  In Singapore they scan your passport, then take a photograph of you.  The system compares the two pictures, then let you through.  This is not the only advanced country that I have encountered this problem.  It's the same in Paris.  That took us at least 2 hours to get through Immigration.

After claiming our luggage we went to buy tickets for the train to the city.  First, we need to take the Airport Metro to New Taipei Industrial Park, then we change to the Yellow Line of the Taipei Metro.  We get off at Banqiao station to walk to the Hilton Hotel Sinban.  When we got off at Banqiao we took the first exit we saw.  It was drizzling.  We tried to hail a taxi but none stopped.  Then we decided to walk and found our way to the hotel in about 10 minutes.  Had we taken the correct exit we'd have been only 5 minutes away from the hotel.

Getting ready to hop on the Airport Train

Group Photo in front of our Taipei Hotel

 

Sign showing exits at Banqiao

When I first saw the Hilton Hotel Sinban on the Hilton Hotel website I was not sure if it was right for us.  It is in New Taipei City, not Taipei itself.  The places we wanted to go are not anywhere nearby.  However, staying at a Hilton has an advantage.  Most of us have Hilton Gold Membership through our American Express cards.  This means that we'll have free breakfast at the hotel.  This is significant because not only will it save us money but it will save us a lot of time, not having to look for a place to eat breakfast in the morning.

We were surprised as to how nice the hotel and rooms are.  The service was excellent.  After we checked in we quickly went to look for a place to eat.  By then it was after 8pm and the hotel staff told us most of the restaurants are already closing.  We found one at a shopping center next door.  They were closing in 15 minutes.  We had a quick dinner and went back to our rooms to rest.