This entry is for the entire week. My friend's cousin is coming in for the week and she wants to see Taipei. But unfortunately my friend has classes. So being unemployed, as well as out of school, I had the advantage of plenty of time. Of course I can show her around! I wouldn't pass up exploring Taipei! Although I have visited most of the places already, I didn't mind seeing it again. Who knows, perhaps there was something I missed the first time around. But I will skip through the details to avoid repeating what I may have already said in previous blog entries. Enjoy!
Pictures of our feet on the crystal floored gondola at Maokong. Since we went on a weekday afternoon, it was pretty empty there. We still had to wait in line, but only 5 minutes.
As usual, I always order the bamboo in tea oil dish. We also ordered this dish. I'm not sure what it is, I think KungPao chicken (宮保雞丁) or ginger chicken. It came in a clay pot and was absolutely delicious. Super strong in flavor and sizzling hot!
The following day we went to Afternoon Tea at old Sogo. The cakes and drinks were great there! I avoided this place before, because it's a little bit pricey. So since we'll be eating here, I ordered the fruity drink because it was the prettiest...i mean photogenic drink to take a picture of. The cakes were killer too.
The best for last. My friend's cousin made some home made lolly cakes and brought it with her on the plane ride over here. I'll refer to the Wiki definition if you don't know what it is. "A lolly cake or lolly log is a New Zealand cake which features "lollies" in the ingredients; in New Zealand English, "lolly" is a piece of candy.
The traditional lollies used are Fruit Puffs which are like firm, slightly chewy marshmallows and are obviously fruity. Malt biscuits and coconut are also used and other ingredients can be added or substituted. This is very similar to fifteens."
Possible the new micro 4/3s format that's recently been so popular. And to conclude, that means no photos today obviously. Edit: Actually it looks like I save two to my computer before heading off to Maokong. We went to Din Tai Fung in the afternoon for lunch and had the red oil dumplings (紅油餛飩). Always a winner in my books. I'll leave with you the other photo of the original Din Tai Fung kitchen.
Today, I tagged along with Yuki showing her friend from Japan around Maokong. We headed to the Maokong Gondola station and headed back up the mountain to the same tea house as last time. It's called Yao Yue (邀月茶坊) teahouse. They remembered us from a few weeks ago, which was nice. So they gave us a 10% discount. The waiter, same as last time also, escorted us to another picnic table with a view and an umbrella. Out of all the dishes we ordered, the blackened chicken with ginger and fried tofu were by far the best! I'm usually not a fan of ginger. But the spices they used to cook the ginger made it taste salty/sweet. We ended up eating ginger pieces like potato chips! Of course, we ordered the bamboo in tea oil dish too. Thats a must and one of Yuki and I's favorites. Afterwards, I joined my family and relatives for another AYCE stomach busting adventure at the Shin Yeh japanese buffet on the 5th floor of the Shin Yi Shin Kong Mitsukoshi(新光三越) A11 building. I'm still thinking about that ginger chicken..hehe. I want some more!
Finally took the long trip down to the Maokong Gondola and up the mountain to the tea roads. There was a large line for the Crystal glass gondola ride, so in the essence of time we chose to take the normal gondola. Same great view, but without a glass floor. Next time, I'll have to head over there earlier for the Crystal glass gondola, like before 10AM. The MRT fare is $35 to Taipei Zoo and the Gondola fare is $40 (normal car). So it's not that expensive to revisit. Once at the top, there are a lot of food stalls (like a night market) and about 40 tea shops. I didn't try any of the stalls out. What's the point..it's the same as any night market down the mountain. But certainly a cheaper option if your looking for lunch on a budget instead of eating at the tea house. In addition, there are a lot of walking trails. Miles and miles of tea roads. You could use it as a hiking trip if you wanted to. But that about it. Food stalls, tea houses and lots of roads.
I visited the Yao Yue (邀月茶坊) teahouse and drank Tieguanyin tea (鐵觀音), because thats what was recommended in a book I read. That's one of the more popular teas the Maokong region produces. Everything was great. Especially the Bamboo in Tea Oil. It's exceptional! A must order! Besides the food, though, the view was so-so. There were a few smaller shops I passed on the way to Yao Yue that had a better view. So if you enjoy chatting over several pots of tea, relaxing and hiking...this is your place. It's cheap enough and convenient enough to revisit over and over. Try new tea houses and try new teas. Like Yuan Xu Yuan Teahouse (緣續緣茶坊), 16-2, Lane 38, Zhinan Road, Sec 3. Yao Yue teahouse is #6, Lane 40, Zhinan Road, Sec 3
