One of the most popular things to do in Taipei, and Taiwan in general, is to visit the various 'night markets.' Night markets are scattered all over Taiwan, with delicious street food and small, pop up shops for clothing and accessories. I'm currently living on the night market at Shida, and I absolutely love the energy it gives off! Stepping outside my building door to hundreds of people chatting, shopping, and eating is fantastic, and provides a vibrant aura for starting the night off. The other two markets I've been to in Taipei are Shilin and Raohe Night Markets. They are a couple of the most popular markets in the city, and at both I got to experience some firsts (and simultaneous lasts).
I'll talk a little bit about Shida first since it's my home market. The scope of Shida is limited in a way, only because other night markets are more diverse. It's mainly geared towards womens clothing and accessories, but even though it's filled with a lot of stuff I'm not interested in, it does have my favorite food in Taipei (so far at least): gua bao. A steamed bun, filled with pork belly, mustard greens, chopped peanuts and sugar, topped off with fresh cilantro. The fluffiness of the bun, texture of the pork belly, and distinct taste of the peanuts and cilantro compliment each other for near perfection. The market also has my second favorite food in Taiwan: the green onion pancake. Imagine a fried bread version of Lay's Sour Cream and Onion chips with a cooked egg underneath, folded onto bacon and a few drizzles of a thicker soy sauce. That's the green onion pancake. Hungry yet? Taiwan was recently voted as having the best food in the world by a
CNN poll! I'm not sure I'm willing to go that far, but it's pretty dang good.
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| Gua bao: 好吃 hao chi. (delicious) |
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Shida Night Market
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Shilin's is the largest in Taipei and the most popular, with the most foreigners going to this market. This was the first market I went to here, and it certainly lived up to expectations. I had the opportunity to try a couple of exotic foods when I asked my Taiwanese friends, "I've gotta get something a little crazy here, what should I get?" They responded with "Hmm, how about chicken feet and duck tongue?" My response: "Welp, alright, let's do it!" You have to be able to say yes to those types of things! Why not!? I wouldn't call them Taiwan delicacies, but you'll see a few people taking 'tongues for the road.' I don't think you'll be seeing me eating those again! They weren't necessarily "bad," they just didn't have any flavor and had a really strange, chewy texture.
The oldest night market in Taipei, Raohe, is my favorite so far. It's much smaller than Shilin, but more diverse considering its size. My firsts here weren't as crazy as duck tongue and chicken feet, but maybe more surprising, as I had grilled oysters right out of the shell after living in city well known for its seafood (Seattle). Love seafood, so I thought they were great. The last thing I had at the market ended up being one of the best deserts I've tasted. The dish contained ice cream, peanut brittle, and cilantro (there it is again), all wrapped up in a thin rice paddy. It might seem like an odd combination, but everything worked well together. The ice cream and peanut brittle make for a sweet touchdown, and the cilantro comes in for an extra point. Might be a little too excited for football season.
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| Seafood Selection |
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| Raohe's Famous Entrance Sign |
A few weekends ago, I experienced my first typhoon (or hurricane, same thing): Typhoon Soudelor. My friends and I actually decided to go out to the pub the night it hit. While we were inside, the worst of the typhoon had taken its toll and we had to dodge trees that had fallen into the road on our way back. The typhoon winds gave the 600 ton damper in Taipei 101 its largest displacement ever, with speeds of over 120 mph. Check it out on Youtube
here. Walking back to the hostel in 80 mph winds was cool, but next time, I think we'll just stay home.
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| "Oh, look out!" |
I've always tried to be open minded to new experiences and foods. I think it's important to live that way. You never want to look back and say "Man, I wish I had tried duck tongue..." Well, maybe not that extreme, but you get my point! Get out of your comfort zone and always be looking for new things to experience no matter where you are in the world!
