The Bay is a place I never thought I’d visit because I knew nothing about the country. However, we found some cheap flights to Taipei and after reading some great blog posts, we booked flights to check it out.
I’m so glad we did because we loved our 2 week trip to Taiwan. It is a safe country with diverse and delicious food, friendly people, spectacular scenery, fascinating history, temples and spirituality.
Taiwan should be on everyone’s bucket list. Here are some highlights from our trip to convince you.
The gorgeous temple roofs of Jiufen
About Taiwan
Taiwan, officially known as the Republic of China, is an island in East Asia. It is small, and we completed one lap of the country during our two-week trip to Taiwan. Taipei, the capital, is located in the northwestern part of the island.
A series of mountains stretch from the northern end of the country to the southern end. The mountains are very close to the sea on the east side. As a result, this part of the country is even more rugged, spectacular and sparsely populated.
The vast majority of Taiwan’s 23 million people live on the flat Canaan Plain between the sea and the western edge of the mountains.
Taiwan’s ties to China go back thousands of years. in the 1600s, the Dutch established a stronghold and trading post at Anping. They were expelled 40 years later, and not long after China annexed Taiwan. Japan colonized Taiwan from the late 1800s until the end of World War II, when Taiwan established its own government.
Since then, the country has undergone rapid industrialization and economic development. It has developed into a democratic government with a highly skilled and educated workforce. It is clean and tidy with good infrastructure compared to most of Asia.
Taiwan is a foodie’s paradise
Taiwanese cuisine is heavily influenced by Chinese and Japanese cuisine. Being an island, seafood can be found everywhere.
Street food, or snacks, is the food for which Taiwan is famous. These small, inexpensive snacks come from thousands of street stalls located in every town and city.
We found ourselves snacking on them all day because we couldn’t resist trying all the delicious food!
Taiwanese skewer restaurants
Eat at the night market
Another place to get these snacks is the night markets. On most nights in most cities, food vendors set up their stalls from 5pm or 6pm until late at night, serving up tasty delicacies. Sausages, fermented (stinky) tofu, fried chicken, small sticks of various seafood, meats and vegetables.
There is so much to choose from. The night market’s main customers are locals. Regular dining out is common in Taiwan. Vendors are also very welcoming to tourists looking for a delicious and inexpensive meal.
Taipei Raohe Street Tourist Night Market
We visited night markets in almost every city and town we stopped in and loved the experience of finding and sampling new foods.
The offerings seemed endless. Based on suggestions from friends, bloggers and our Lonely Planet guide, we made a list of things to try.
While many night markets have common foods, each has its own specialties, so it’s worth doing a little research before you go.
Even so, it’s not always easy to find things, as store signs and menu boards are often written in Chinese only. We had to guess a few times, but there was never anything we didn’t like.
