Taiwan – the other China

China is not only the largest country in the world by population and a rising economic powerhouse; it is also a great influence in Southeast Asia. All countries in the region have large Chinese cultural influence and most have large percentages of ethnic Chinese population. More than 75% of Singapore’s population is ethnic Chinese and in Hong Kong, the population exceeds 90% easily. But there is even a second Chinese (de-facto) nation, the Republic of China, better known as Taiwan. This island off the coast of mainland China acts as the stage for Ana and Simon’s newest adventure in Asia – a trip to Taiwan.

At this stage of the blog, it should be mentioned that Ana and Simon are very lucky living in Singapore which has a great hub for Asia travels – Changi Airport. Moreover, there are three major low-cost airlines based in Singapore (Air Asia, Tiger Airways and Jetstar) which all make it easy for Ana and Simon to get around efficiently and at relatively low costs.

In October, Singapore celebrates its second Muslim holiday – Hari Raya Haji – and that gave Ana and Simon the chance to have another long weekend. Since they had looked into flights early on, they got a good offer for a Tiger Airways flight to Taipei for a four day weekend. Taiwan is described by the Rough Guide travel book as the “most underrated travel destination in Asia” and at least for Ana and Simon, that described it very well. They had not given much thought to potentially travel to Taiwan until they heard great stories from people that had been there and absolutely loved it.

So off they went.

Taiwan is quite unique. It is well-developed, has a cultural mix that is different from most Southeast Asian countries with a Chinese majority and some cultural and historic influences from Japan that go back to the 50 years of colonial rule. Especially the cuisine in Taiwan reflects this strongly and Ana and Simon were able to experience this. From Chinese hot pots (at a restaurant without an English menu) to Taiwanese dumplings (by the Michelin star winning restaurant chain Din Tai Fung that they knew from Singapore) to an exquisite Japanese dinner – Ana and Simon were quite amazed.

Hmmm, what to order?

Hot pot with veggies, egg, beef and shrimp

The shrimp is done

Best salmon sushi

Taipei as the capital and largest city of Taiwan offers a bunch of cultural highlights. One of the big draws is definitely the largest set of Chinese architecture around Chiang Kai-Shek memorial square. Despite the weather forecasts, Ana and Simon could enjoy the buildings around there and massive gates on a day full of sunshine. The actual memorial hall sees a large statue of Chiang Kai-Shek, former leader of China before the foundation of the People’s Republic and later president of the de-facto independent Taiwan sitting and smiling as if he were at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC.

Chiang Kai-Shek memorial hall

At the park with the National Concert Hall in the background

The entrance gate to the memorial square

Taipei's National Concert Hall

There he sits as if he were Abe Lincoln

View of the whole memorial area

The National Palace museum has the largest collection of ancient Chinese artifacts and artwork, mostly taken from China in the evacuation of the Republican forces to Taiwan in 1949 (and therefore an issue of constant struggle with mainland China). Also, Taipei’s temples were some of the most impressive and colorful artworks that Ana and Simon have seen during their time in Asia. It was also quite interesting to see the mix of people that go to pray at these temples as they seem to reflect a broader mix of the population than churches in Europe. Last but not least, the modern Taipei is represented in the area around Taipei 101, between 2004 and 2009 the largest building on the planet and the first one taller than 500 meters. While they only saw Taipei at night from the top, they could still enjoy riding the world’s fastest elevator – an ear-popping experience at 1010m per minute.

Amazing temple

The inner prayer room in full colors

The dragon is after the moon (or so it seems)

The National Palace Museum from the outside (note all the flags!)

Taipei 101 at sunset

View from the top

What makes Taipei very enjoyable is it’s proximity to a large and beautifully preserved national park. Ana and Simon were well-prepared and brought their hiking boots to Taiwan so they climbed a 1000m hill that gave them great views over Taipei and the nearby sea border. Despite being October, they had warm and sunny weather and were in for quite a challenging overall experience that was rewarding even though the sore muscles could be felt the next days.

Ana the explorer

Almost at the top (Taipei in the background)

Ana, Simon and the sea

The path to Wonderland / Middle Earth / King Arthur?

Before leaving Taiwan, Ana and Simon also paid a visit to Asia’s largest zoo. While this sounds impressive and definitely was in terms of area covered, the zoo needs a bit of upgrading. Nevertheless, it is home of Pandas and being in Asia, you will fall in love with these cute bears :)

There's nothing cuter than a sleeping Koala

Well, maybe a Panda!

Taiwan has more to offer and obviously, Ana and Simon couldn’t see the whole island in four days. In case you are thinking of going there, you should give it at least a week and also explore beaches, mountain villages and more natural parks. For the time they had, however, they were very happy with what they’ve seen and would recommend it to anyone for sure!

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