I had gone to Taipei in autumn last year. It was a business and pleasure trip. I have been raving about Taiwan since the visit to anyone who would listen willingly (and those unwilling were also force fed). I want to document some of my impressions of Taipei.
Before landing, I could book a Wifi router or a sim with unlimited 4G internet on per day basis. It was possible to collect either at the airport. There were also several tips and offers at klook.com. As soon as I landed at Taipei airport, I was blown away by the organisation of the airport — a friendly help desk, where employees were very competent and were willing to go the extra mile to help tourists, a brightly marked klook counter on the same arrival floor, a telephone company office, bus ticket counters and more — all you need to make sure you are well connected and informed as soon as you land.
Next surprise was the network coverage of the 4G — It was EVERYWHERE, literally. I had impeccable network in the underground subway. It was the best network coverage I had ever experienced in any of the countries I have visited/lived (Including “developed” nations such as US, Germany and other EU nations. Probably India’s Jio comes close). It was also very reasonably priced and cost a fraction of my monthly mobile bill. The public transport coverage was also wonderful. There are handy help centers in some of the key stations. I went to one and explained my plan for the next couple of days. The lady not only gave me brochures but also helped me find the bus routes which I can take with the day pass I had bought. Day pass covered Taipei, New Taipei city and selected routes to Keelung.
People were willing to help even without speaking the language. Everyone had an app handy which translated speech in other languages to Taiwanese. One service person at my hotel had an app where I could choose a language and speak, he looked at the translated text and pointed me to the right place. As a vegetarian, I had to communicate more than usual to know my options. At the breakfast buffet, I mentioned to the lady helping me that I liked a particular flavour of steamed bun after thanking her for her help. In a few minutes, I got an extra serving of steamed buns straight from the kitchen. I had experienced similar hospitality only in Japan and in rural India.
Solo travel is not always easy for a woman. In Taipei, I felt really safe wherever I went at whatever time of the day. Public transport, google maps aided by unlimited internet made it really easy to navigate in and around Taipei. Solo travel has a an advantage that I get to interact with people in a way I would never get otherwise. In a temple in Jiufen, I happened to enter along with another Taiwanese couple. I was trying to copy their rituals. Once they noticed it, they took me by hand to each of the shrines, showed me the motions of offering incense sticks and how to pray the right way. We were communicating with smiles, hands and not a word was exchanged between us. I thanked them with the only phrase I knew —”she she” and left with my heart full. Another time I was at a wheel cake shop, I got to chatting with the lady making the cakes in broken English. She even let me try making wheel cakes in her shop. In fact, this lady taught me the couple of phrases I know in Taiwanese including “She She”.
I made day trips from Taipei to Wulai and Jiufen. Wulai has remnants of the old Taiwanese aboriginal culture. Jiufen is famus for its “old street”. It was an endless maze of tiny shops, where you could buy almost everything. I also hiked to the golden waterfalls, near Jiufen. This was a spontaneous decision after looking at my options in maps. Golden waterfalls was well worth the solitary hike.
Before this trip, all I knew about Taiwan was TSMC, the mother of all semiconductor fabs. After the trip, I know that Taiwan is a place where advanced technology, ancient traditions and culture co-exist wonderfully. I would love to visit Taiwan again to explore the length and breadth of this island.
