To the Taipei I loved

by Ermioni Vlachidou (Greece)

I didn't expect to find Taiwan

This story is written more as I love letter to a city I truly loved... I expected to like Taipei. I didn't have as high expectations as I did for Japan or Korea, but it was a modern city with high buildings and nice architecture, mixing traditional with modern, just my cup of tea. Taipei did, however, exceeded them by miles. Arriving at the airport I was thrilled to be surrounded by characters in a language I couldn't read. There is a certain beauty in being embraced by the unknown. Going to my airbnb I was welcomed by streets with neon signs and colorful lights, just like I have seen in many photos and a light breeze that gave me the first chill of the year. The next day was even better. It was New Years Eve and I was planning to spend it at the Taipei 101 light show. Prior to that I walked around the city, saw the 2/28 Peace Park and Chaing Kai-shek Memorial Hall. I was overwhelmed with joy and beauty and happy that it was finally cold. At night I went up the Taipei 101, which given the price of admission was the only disappointment, and then went to the street to wait for the show. The streets were naturally packed with people celebrating with friends or getting their cameras ready to capture magic. Although it was the first New Year's I would be spending alone, I never felt like it at all. Many people were also on their own and the sheer number of total strangers around me, made sure I never felt like I was solo. Soon enough the light show came and it was fantastic. In this case a video of it on YouTube will convince you more than words on paper. Even the one hour I had to wait to get in the metro after didn't make the experience any worse. On the contrary it gave me time to breath in all that happened that day. The first day of the year began with a hike on elephant mountain. The view was covered with mist giving glimpses of the high buildings in the city, where they were mixed together with the green of the mountain. I followed that with a trip in the Miniature Museum, which was quite the amusing experience. Who doesn't want to see a tiny bakery anyway? My last day in Taipei I visited the Beitou Hot Springs, which was an oasis right next to the MRT, the National Palace Museum, which has a tiny cabbage as its most prized possession and the Shilin Night Market, where I ate stinky tofu and it wasn't bad at all. After that I left Taipei feeling somber that I couldn't stay more as it was a city I now truly admired. Boarding my next flight I knew I had to be back.