Jan Trabandt Travel Blog » Taiwan http://blog.jantrabandt.com notes from my travels Fri, 07 Sep 2018 14:49:58 +0000 en-US hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=4.2 Dr Sun Yat-Sen in Vancouver http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?p=2361 http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?p=2361#comments Wed, 05 Sep 2012 17:23:27 +0000 http://jantrabandt.com/wordpress/?p=2361 A classical Chinese garden in Vancouver BC. Entry fee. I didn’t make it there but ran across it in a top20 list.

]]> http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?feed=rss2&p=2361 0 Dr Sun Yat Sen – he’s everywhere! http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?p=1766 http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?p=1766#comments Sat, 05 May 2012 05:21:19 +0000 http://jantrabandt.com/wordpress/?p=1766 Continue reading Dr Sun Yat Sen – he’s everywhere!]]> Well, just about everywhere there are significant Chinese population, it would seem (recall he is the founder of “modern China” who overthrew the last Chinese emperor).

There are monuments/memorials/roads/historical sites in honour of Dr Sun Yat Sen in Taipei (Taiwan), Maui (Hawaii, USA), Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore and Penang (Malaysia)!

Given the large Chinese community in Toronto, I just googled it and found this memorial statue in Riverside Park.

]]> http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?feed=rss2&p=1766 0 Singapore vs Taipei street food http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?p=1445 http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?p=1445#comments Fri, 06 Apr 2012 22:17:25 +0000 http://jantrabandt.com/wordpress/?p=1445 Continue reading Singapore vs Taipei street food]]> http://www.lonelyplanet.com/singapore/travel-tips-and-articles/77041

“Though without question a festival for nose and tastebuds, visually speaking most of Singapore’s centrally planned communal eateries have only slightly more charm than your average parking garage.”

Hmm. Well, I was a little disappointed with Taipei street food, but in a few weeks I’ll be able to compare Singapore (and Hong Kong) street food.

Update: having returned from Singapore now, I definitely give Singapore the win over Hong Kong, which in turn wins over Taipei, for street food.

]]> http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?feed=rss2&p=1445 0 Maui: Sun Yat-Sen park (father of Taiwan) http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?p=1372 http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?p=1372#comments Wed, 21 Dec 2011 01:30:26 +0000 http://jantrabandt.com/wordpress/?p=1372 Apparently Sun Yat-Sen went to school in Hawaii, and his relatives lived in upcountry Maui (near Kula). He even planned some of the Chinese revolution from here.
There is a park with a new statue of him, with a great view of the ocean.

New Sun Yat-Sen statue in park Base of new Sun Yat-Sen statue in park ]]> http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?feed=rss2&p=1372 0 San Francisco: a “rebuttal” to some of my Taiwan comments http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?p=310 http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?p=310#comments Tue, 04 Oct 2011 02:00:48 +0000 http://jantrabandt.com/wordpress/?p=310 It turns out San Francisco has some of the things I found “advanced” in Taipei:

  • Some dedicated motorcycle parking
  • Intelligent transit video screens with arrival times (also, many bus stops have an LED screen that shows the next bus arrival time)
  • Multi-lingual announcements on some transit systems (English, Mandarin and Spanish)
That's a lot of bicycles! Parked for the bluegrass festival in Golden Gate Park Dedicated little motorcycle/scooter parking, with its own meter (behind the blue motorcycle) at $0.60/hr Muni streetcar real time train map showing not just the arrival time of the various cars, but their location at other stations. ]]> http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?feed=rss2&p=310 0 Misc Taipei notes (last ones!) http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?p=298 http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?p=298#comments Sun, 02 Oct 2011 01:40:43 +0000 http://jantrabandt.com/wordpress/?p=298 Continue reading Misc Taipei notes (last ones!)]]> Some final misc notes on Taipei.
This should be the last Taipei note. See www.jantrabandt.com/wordpress/ if you missed the earlier posts.

  •  Some stores (like 7-11 and Family Mart) had a little machine that would heat-seal (in a few seconds) a plastic film on the top of a drink (e.g. coffee), making it spill-proof, at least until you push a straw into it when you are ready to drink it.
  • You could use your EasyCard at some retailers, like 7-11
]]> http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?feed=rss2&p=298 0 Map of Taipei with my points of interest http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?p=256 http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?p=256#comments Sun, 02 Oct 2011 01:38:56 +0000 http://jantrabandt.com/wordpress/?p=256 To put my Taiwan trip into a little perspective, see this google map of Taipei with places I went:

my Taipei map

]]> http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?feed=rss2&p=256 0 Bicycling routes in Taipei http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?p=288 http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?p=288#comments Fri, 30 Sep 2011 18:07:28 +0000 http://jantrabandt.com/wordpress/?p=288 Continue reading Bicycling routes in Taipei]]> There are almost 100km of bicycle trails along 5 river banks in the city, including out to the coast just past Danshui/Tamshui.
Unfortunately I didn’t get to do any bicycling in my limited time; the one day I tried, I found out I couldn’t rent a bicycle at one location and return it at another (as I had been misinformed at the tourist office).

For a detailed bicyling map see www.taipeitravel.net/download.do?fileName=/d_upload_ttn/att/files/10002736.pdf. (5 MB).

There is also a free short-term bicycle hire system called U-bike. Currently it’s only in Xinyi district (i.e. between Taipei City Hall/Sun Ya-sen Memorial Hall and Taipei 101). However, you have to have a smart chip credit card.

See www.taipeitravel.net/en/ for general Taipei visitor info.

]]> http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?feed=rss2&p=288 0 Taipei: Random food photos http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?p=247 http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?p=247#comments Wed, 28 Sep 2011 02:41:10 +0000 http://jantrabandt.com/wordpress/?p=247 Here are some random food photos from around Taipei (some I ate, some I just saw):

How much is that doggie in the bananas? Bun with bacon and butter (mmm, I did grab one of these in a bakery in the metro mall) Gratin hot dog brunch? Alrighty then, moving right along... Little mouse bread (NT$18/US$65) in a fancy bakery Vegetarian buffet (photo of my meal from this place in a separate post) Chocolate racoon bread (NT$37/US1.30) in a fancy bakery Lifelike plastic food display (point to order, like in Japan) ]]> http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?feed=rss2&p=247 0 More MRT signs (Taipei metro) http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?p=258 http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?p=258#comments Wed, 28 Sep 2011 01:59:56 +0000 http://jantrabandt.com/wordpress/?p=258 More signs in the Taipei metro:

Cell phone etiquette on the MRT Sniffling cigarette, cola and gum (not allowed on MRT) I wonder where the washrooms are? (particularly large washroom signs at one MRT station) Stand firm on right side of escalators (oddly, most escalators had up on the right, but a few were on the left side) Cough etiquette (I like the stand 2m (6ft) apart - in a crowded subway!) Escalator didn't seem particularly fast to me, but it needs lots of warnings nonetheless No eating/drinking beyond the yellow line (just before the paid zone in the metro) Real-time (men's) washroom map in Taipei Main Station (because it takes too long to look inside apparently) ]]> http://blog.jantrabandt.com/?feed=rss2&p=258 0