Buzz
There are numerous famous night markets in Taiwan such as Tay Mon Din, Si Lam (Taipei City), Phung Giap (Taichung City), Luc Hop (Kaohsiung City)… They usually start bustling around 5 p.m. and last until midnight. Here, you can easily find typical Chinese dishes like fried fish balls, fried tofu, fried chicken wings, stir-fried noodles, wonton noodles.
The largest night market in Taiwan is Si Lam (Shihlin night market), followed by Tay Mon Din (Ximen night market) in Taipei City… with a wide variety of goods, even fruit stalls with various kinds of fruits…. It serves as both a place for dining and satisfying shopping needs, as well as entertainment for people of all ages.
According to statistics from the Taiwan Tourism Bureau, about 70% of tourists visiting Taiwan will visit night markets at least once. Among them, three hot Facebookers who checked in on Facebook in 2013 in Taiwan have also visited night markets in Taiwan: Southern Flower Night Market; La Dong Night Market; and Feng Chia Night Market.
2. Themed Restaurants
When it comes to restaurants, people often think of them as places that serve delicious and nutritious meals. However, when visiting restaurants in Taiwan, besides enjoying the food, you will also have unforgettable experiences thanks to the unique decorations and serving styles here.
For example, the “Modern Hygiene Restaurant” will address taboos related to eating etiquette, such as placing humorous signs like: “Either eat or use the restroom!” (because you can't do both at the same time!)
Alternatively, you can visit a café called Hello Kitty, where everything from hamburgers to cups and bowls is shaped like the cat from the cartoon; Or a Barbie-themed restaurant called Barbie Cafe, where all the furniture is inspired by Barbie's pink color, making you feel like you're stepping into a fairy tale world.
Previously, there was a restaurant in Taiwan with an airplane theme inspired by the Airbus A380 called Airbus A380 restaurant. The windows, seats, carpets, and even cabin lights are inspired by the Airbus A380. What's special here is that you can choose from many dishes beyond the usual ones on the menu of flights.
3. Free WiFi
Since 2011, Taiwanese citizens have been able to log into iTaiwan – the island's free WiFi network. Taiwan is known to be one of the first places in the world to provide free WiFi on a large scale.
In June 2013, the service was deployed for tourists in the country's 5 largest cities, using over 4,400 hotspots. Tourists only need to register for an iTaiwan account with their passport at the Taiwan Tourism Bureau or offices at transportation hubs, then they can use free WiFi in Taipei, Taichung, and even in Southern Taiwan.
4. Chinese Artifacts
Visiting the National Palace Museum in Taipei, you can comfortably admire the largest collection of Chinese artifacts and ancient artworks with over 650,000 different items.
Chinese history is recounted through bronze statues, jade carvings, calligraphy, lacquerware, and many other historical artifacts – mostly from Chinese royal families. However, only a small portion of these collections are displayed at one time (no more than 10,000 items), making the museum worth revisiting multiple times a year.
5. Next Media Animation
Next Media Animation (NMA), owned by the notorious tycoon Jimmy Lai, provides exclusive 3D animated images, approximately 90 minutes long, produced by themselves, considered as a new era of this country's tabloid journalism.
Just an ordinary news broadcast, but when aired with the NMA logo below, featuring images that only this TV channel can broadcast, you can see its level of sensationalism. With a team of several hundred employees, NMA churns out dozens of clips every day ranging from crime news to celebrities' private lives…
Previously, NMA made global headlines with a news report on Tiger Woods' romantic scandal, which according to insiders, they said, “We just want to tell the full story.” Moreover, last year, NMA was once fined in Taiwan for excessive violence in their images.
6. Mock Meat
Taiwan is known as one of the most vegan-friendly culinary destinations in the world with over 6,000 different restaurants, aiming to help people here stay away from meat.
Certainly, it may not rival India in the richness and diversity of vegetarian cuisine, but Taiwan is the best place to choose when you crave meat but don't really want to eat meat. And mock meat is the solution in this case. They are often made from soy protein or wheat gluten with surprisingly distinctive flavors.
This is considered a thriving industry in Taiwan.
7. Little League Baseball
Little League Baseball (LLB) is the second largest youth baseball association in the world (established in 1939, in the US). And baseball can be said to be the most popular sport in Taiwan as the country holds the record for most Little League World Series championships (17 championships) – nearly double that of the recent runner-up, Japan.
Additionally, a research team from Taiwan also won an award at the Junior League Baseball Junior World Series 2013.
8. National Health Insurance
A year after the collapse of President Barack Obama's healthcare law (commonly known as Obamacare), it can be said that Taiwan is one of the places with the best universal healthcare systems in the world. Residents of Taiwan only need to have a legal residence to 'visit' any specialist doctor in the country. Fees are billed directly and reimbursed at the National Health Insurance Administration of Taiwan with the lowest management cost in the world (2%).
According to statistics from the National Health Insurance Administration of Taiwan, about one million people apply for a replacement health insurance card every year due to loss, damage, change of personal information (name, ID number...) or updating their photo.
9. Hello Kitty Obsession
The cute image of Hello Kitty cat introduced by Sanrio (Japan) to the international market since 1974 makes people think that Hello Kitty is truly an obsession in Taiwan. It is known that until now, the Hello Kitty icon is still attractive enough to captivate consumers worldwide with about 50,000 products using the cat's image for consumption in 60 countries in various fields, from movies, amusement parks, television programs to social media...
Taiwan is considered the first place in the world to be honored with Hello Kitty beer by the Sanrio brand.
Furthermore, you can also encounter the image of this cat at Eva Airways with the Hello Kitty Jets Eva Airways special service or at the Grand Hotel Hi-Lai in Kaohsiung, which also has Hello Kitty-themed rooms...
10. Xiao Long Bao
Xiao Long Bao (steamed bun) is considered a signature dish in Shanghai, and you can also find it in Taiwan at Din Tai Fung restaurant – a modern Taiwanese restaurant located on the ground floor of the Rialto Towers, right in the center of Melbourne CBD. Here, with a diverse collection of traditional dishes and top-notch Taiwanese chefs, you will surely experience authentic Taiwanese cuisine, especially the steamed xiao long bao buns, which are a must-try.
It is known that when Tom Cruise visited Taiwan in 2013 to promote the movie Oblivion, he participated in making steamed buns at a restaurant in Taipei.
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Source: Travel Guide Mytour – As reported by CNN
MytourOctober 19, 2016
