Earlier in the year Albert and Andrew said they were going to Taipei Pride so we decided to go too, tacking it onto the end of our trip to Singapore. I arrived on Wednesday 24 October from Singapore while Glen went home to work for a couple of days and then join us on Saturday for Pride festivities.

I landed late afternoon on Wednesday, joining a very long immigration queue and worrying that the information on the Australian government website about needing a visa was incorrect only to find I didn’t need one and got through without any difficulty. I was also surprised that not knowing any Mandarin wasn’t exactly a hindrance and Taiwan is pretty well set up for us useless white Australians who don’t know any Asian languages despite the continent being on our doorstep.

I caught a taxi into the city, about 40 minutes away, checked into Home Hotel Da-an, which is a well designed and beautiful hotel well situated between two subway stations, and then went for dinner at a Thai restaurant in the nearby department store. I ordered two dishes, neither of which were rice, and then was prodded multiple times by the waiter to order rice. I refused politely multiple times and then he forgot to include a mango smoothie with my order.

I had an early night, feeling down because Glen wasn’t with me and I got news that a friend from high school had died that night after suffering from ovarian cancer. Life really sucks sometimes.

Exploring Taipei with Albert

Andrew had to work so that meant Albert and I went exploring. First up, we bought me an Easycard. They’re kind of like a Myki/Opal/Smartrider card that you put money on and then use on public transport (which is insanely cheap here), but it’s also useful for things like the gym near the hotel (pay by the minute) or for buying food at food courts. So in some ways it’s really like a credit card, which aren’t nearly as ubiquitous as you’d like. Still have to get out a lot of cash but things are relatively cheap so it goes a long way.

Despite getting the card, we walked a long way, going to the Huashan 1914 Creative Park first. This was an old factory that’s been turned into boutique shops. The building’s nice and there are some interesting shops. Bumped into friends from Singapore which was random. 

Then it was more walking to get to supposedly the gay district before realising we’d gone to the wrong Red House and so we walked some more. Got bubble tea and bought some plumcots, looked in some shops, and then caught the train to Taipei 101 for a late lunch at Din Tai Fung with some friends of Andrew and Albert, and then back to the hotel.

In the evening we went to the top restaurant in Taiwan, RAW. Despite the name, the food was cooked. The boys wanted to go because it’s run/owned by a chef they like. The food was excellent, and included interpretations of traditional Taiwanese dishes. A top experience.

Elephant Mountain

Albert and I headed off to climb Elephant Mountain today, a popular location for tourists and locals. Luckily it was a Friday so wasn’t too busy. It was hot and humid and I was incredibly pleased to be wearing gym shorts and a tanktop. 

Being a mountain, it was mostly going up or down. There were lots of steps but we were in the shade of trees most of the time so that was a blessing. We got to the first lookout for a view of the city and Taipei 101 (eighth tallest building in the world) and then kept going up and down. Albert said I got us lost but you can’t trust anything he says.

We walked some more, got to another few viewpoints, and then descended to the bottom. It was a great ‘little’ walk. After that we caught the train to the 2-28 Memorial/Peace Park, took some photos of some very cute and inquisitive squirrels, and then went back to the hotel. 

Taipei Pride – Friday night

I had a glorious nap, then got up and went to the gym before going to meet Adrian. We met him on the Israel tour and as he lives in Taipei at the moment it was a good chance to meet up and meet some of his friends, most of which are all visiting from elsewhere for Taipei Pride.

I went to the restaurant he’d booked which wasn’t far from the hotel but unfortunately the listing wasn’t at the correct address so I walked up and down the street trying to find the place, luckily bumping into Adrian. Having no wifi I was a bit panicked but it all worked out well. 

There were six of us for dinner including Tomy and Pack from Hong Kong, and John and Mark (I think) from Sydney/Hong Kong. We ate a lot of good food and then Adrian, Tommy, Pack and I went to a gay bar called Abrazos. It was packed and small but the music was good and the company fun so we spent a few hours there then caught a taxi to the Formosa party. Adrian went home and I joined the queue. 

I was ambivalent about going in as I didn’t have a ticket and they were about AUD100 on the door but I went and got some cash from the Family Mart next door then joined the queue and watched two sets of large numbers of police enter the club. 

The first time they weren’t in there long but the second time they were in there for about an hour. Streams of people left the club as they didn’t have the appropriate ID. It was a major pain in the arse and many people decided to call it quits, including the guy whose ticket I bought for about AUD50. I then waited and Tommy, Pack and I finally got in. Surprisingly there were still a good number of people inside.

Danced for about an hour and a half, bumped into someone I’d met in Perth, and then about 3am was well and truly done and ready for home. The three of us left the club and I returned to my hotel to sleep forever.

Taipei Pride – Glen arrives

I did bugger all on Saturday morning except have breakfast and sleep until midday. Glen arrived about 1pm, tired from his overnight flight from Perth via Hong Kong. He didn’t have long to decompress as the parade was due to start at 2:30 and we needed to get across town. 

We emerged at NTU Hospital station amid a throng of people. Taipei Pride is the biggest pride celebration in Asia and I could well believe it with the number of people there. It was a very chilled and fun vibe, despite the heaving crowds, and set up differently from what we’re used to. 

There were three parade routes because there are so many people and you have the choice of standing on the side and watching, or walking with the ‘floats’ and groups, doing a full circuit and returning back to the main area.

We found Adrian and his friends, stood with them for a while, had some photos taken, and then joined one of the routes…for about fifty metres and then decided we were done and wanted to go home. Albert and Andrew stayed for the whole thing which took hours and involved a lot of walking. I was glad to have seen part of it but didn’t need to stay for the whole thing.

In the evening we went for drinks at a tapas bar with very slow drinks service and then went to the Pride Music Festival party. The venue was smaller than the one I’d been to the night before but it was fashionable and not so heaving as to be awful. It also didn’t get raided by the police; a big bonus. We bought a bottle of vodka and danced the night away until 3am when, sadly, it was time to call it a night. I had a lot of fun and it was a shame to leave but the place was emptying and I didn’t have the energy for the after party.

Mume

Sunday was spent in bed. It was wonderful. In the evening Albert, Andrew, Glen and I went to a Top 50 Asia Restaurant called Mume. Food was delicious and beautifully presented, definitely my favourite out of the two. Even Glen liked it, which means it must be good. We decided not to go out after dinner and instead went to bed relatively early. I guess three nights in a row of partying is a bit excessive.

Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, Taipei 101 and Shilin Night Market

A day of exploring with Glen and Albert. We went to Da-an Forest Park for a bit of a look (it’s a park with a tortoise in a pond) and then to the big national monument, Chiang Kai-shek, with big impressive buildings and a large square to wander around in. Then to Taipei 101 for lunch. Glen and I went up the tower to the observation deck, saw Taipei from up high, saw the big dampener (one of five which stop the building falling over), down to the food court for more food, and then back to the hotel. I went to the gym while Glen had a nap, and in the evening we went to Shilin Night Market.

It’s like a regular market but at night. There are lots of stalls selling cheap stuff you don’t need, as well as lots of mini food stalls, each one specialising in something. All sorts of unfamiliar things for sale. Lots of things with tentacles or overpowering smells. We walked a lot, took some photos, and then went to the gay district near Red House for a drink. We didn’t stay long; neither of us was feeling it very much, so we went home and crawled into bed. It was glorious if a little anticlimactic.

Maoking Gondola Taipei Zoo

Tuesday was our last full day in Taipei. Andrew and Albert left about 11am to fly back to Melbourne, meanwhile Glen needed to get some work done so I went to the gym. Originally I’d wanted to do a day trip to check out some forest and waterfalls but Glen said his back was sore and he wasn’t keen so…

To be fair, I could have gone by myself but I’d had a crap night’s sleep and the prospect of being out all day wasn’t great. Gym it was. At least there’s something I can do for if/when we come back.

Well, two things…

So the alternative was to go to the last MRT station at Taipei Zoo and then catch the Maokong Gondola, a cable car that goes up into the mountains and into the little village of Maokong. Some of the carriages have glass bottoms and the route they take includes 90° turns. I couldn’t wait!

So we caught the train to the final stop with me looking at the cloudy skies and the wind-buffeted trees and thinking, ‘Surely even if it’s that windy they will still be running.’

Stupid wind.

We got out of the train onto the platform to be met by a sign saying the gondola rides were suspended because of the wind. Grrrrr. Northern Lights. Moose. Antelope and Grand Canyons. Maokong Gondola.

Disappointed, we made the most of our trip to the end of the line and visited Taipei Zoo. It’s massive. It has a huge number of species and would be a struggle to cover well in a full day let alone half a day with waning interest.

The majority of exhibits were really good, lots of open space and greenery, and I was really impressed with the number of native species on display like badgers, civets, bears and deer. Looks like the zoo does a lot of conservation work too.

We saw a bunch of species, including swinging white-handed gibbons and giant pandas, as well as a sleeping pangolin and some badger type things. We didn’t get very far around the whole place though as our legs were tired. So after about an hour and a half or thereabouts we went home.

Oh, and it only cost AUD3 to get in.

We caught the train back to the city, bought bubble tea and returned to our hotel to relax. I packed. Glen worked. We leave tomorrow early enough, going home via Singapore and getting in very late Wednesday night. It’s been a fun two weeks. I’m looking forward to getting back into my routine and have a lot to get done…before we go away again in just over a fortnight.