Knowing Taiwan to be a tropical place with hot and humid summers, I was surprised at how pleasant Taiwan was during the winter (冬天 / dong tian). For starters, the weather was pretty temperate. The average high and low is…
Stopped by Tokyo Haneda Airport (HND) on the way to Taiwan. It was everything I thought a Japanese airport would be and more. It was clean, cute, and cold (outside). If you have a layover here and have some time…
Located on Highway 9 between Taipei and Yilan (宜蘭 / yi lan) is the humble district of Pinglin (坪林 / ping lin). Due to the terrain and climate, much of the area is dedicated towards the production of tea. With…
Wandering around the streets of Taiwan, you don’t have to walk very far before you find a bubble tea shop. Like Starbucks in the United States, they’re everywhere. Recently, claw machine (抓物機 / zhua wu ji) shops have been popping…
If there’s one thing that impresses me about Taiwan, it’s the ingenuity (創造力 / chuang zao li) that so many shop keepers exhibit. No matter where you go, if you look for it, there are signs everywhere of people making…
Many say breakfast is the most important meal of the day. People in Taiwan, definitely don’t ignore this fact with many eateries catering specifically to the breakfast crowd. Unlike the United States, breakfast (早餐 / zao can) does not consist…
I had the chance to spend Christmas time in Taiwan. Christmas (聖誕 / sheng dan) in Taiwan is interesting as it’s hardly celebrated (the Christian population is only 3.9%). On the flip side, Christmas is oddly everywhere, as it is…
Coming from a city where the car reins supreme, Los Angeles, my first experience with public transit was eye-opening. In The San Francisco Bay Area, I was surprised just how many people used the bus, trains, ferries, light rail, and…
Growing up, I used to love collecting stickers and stamps (the kinds you would use with paper). With so many things made digital now, talking about stamps and stickers brings to mind online conversations and messaging apps. With how future…
One of the main things that you’ll notice in any large city in Taiwan, are the signs. They’re everywhere, hanging off the sides of buildings, on top of stands, in front of temples even; in all sizes and colors–all trying…
