“You haven't really been anywhere until you've got back home.”
Taipei Taiwan
My second visit to Taipei in 2023, first was in Spring where the weather was pretty chilling.
This round is Autumn which will be much warmer. We visited Taiwan a few years back on the month of September so we know what to expect beside the heat, there will be rain too. Temperatures often exceed 30°C during the summer and it gets uncomfortably humid as well. June till August is the height of typhoon season while September is the rainiest month. Avoid that stretch at all costs for many unforeseen circumstances, so if given a choice, it is good to avoid these months, hahaha which means I got no choice.
However, I am very lucky throughout my week there, there is not really much rain at all BUT the sun is scorching, and I feel sticky all the time!
Taiwan is a place that needs no further introduction in this trip as most of my peeps had already visited before and I had already shared on below blogs on what we had done in Spring 2023...
This round we will be based in Neihu (內湖), which I never explored before, and I am glad that I am been given such opportunity this round. Here I am to share with you what I have been doing there.
Neihu (內湖)
Many mountainous roads and paths, which are ideal for hiking, connect Neihu with the neighboring Shilin District and Yangmingshan National Park.
Neihu District is served by the Taipei Metro's Wenhu Line (Brown Line), there are also many buses that connect to Neihu from other part of Taiwan.
Due to superior living environment like natural resources of lakes, rivers and mountains, the population of this area is more than 260,000 and is due to further increasing in near future.
Here to share what we been doing, playing, shopping and eating here....
Bishanyan Kaizhang Shengwang Temple(碧山巖開漳聖王廟)
Once we reached the top of the stairs, you will meet with the statue of General Chen Yuan Huang who is the main deity of this temple.
The views from the temple’s rear terrace overlooking Taipei (Taipei 101 and Songshan Airport are easily visible on a clear day) and its many hills are breathtaking. What a historic temple with panoramic views of the city.
From exit 1 of Neihu station, we walked to the back for the bus stop to catch NTD15 per person's shuttle bus (二区) up to the mountain.
All the seats were taken so both of us stood at the back of the bus, the bus journey seems fine on the flat road until it goes up to the mountain. Sharp bends and wavy turns are highly received, so older folks must be seated as even younger ones were also challenging to balance properly.
The whole swaying ride took us about 10 minutes before we reached the bus stop of this temple.
Well, there is still a long flight of stairs waiting for us after we crossed this arch.
Once we reached the top of the stairs, you will meet with the statue of General Chen Yuan Huang who is the main deity of this temple.
This temple is a must visit in Neihu, the huge temple is nestled on the side of a mountain and was constructed to blend in perfectly with the natural surroundings.
BiShanYan KaiZhang ShengWang Temple is a temple in Taipei, Taiwan, dedicated to the hero Chen Yuan-kuang and his generals Li Po-yao and Ma Ren. Chen is worshipped as the patron saint “Kaizhang Sheng Wang” by the people of Quanzhou, Fujian Province.
Dating back to 1751, the temple was originally just a small shrine located at the peak of BiShan Mountain.
The legend of "good luck" charms of the shrine attracted a big share of devotees with a lot of donations for a good renovation. These charms seem to work well as there are many sponsorships from the people.
黑記懷舊排骨飯
This is the first place we visit after check into the hotel.
This old school pork chop rice eatery is mere 10 minutes' walk away.
It was pretty crowded during the lunch hours, but the turnover was fast and high.
We ordered 2 chicken thigh rice set and a braised soup though free "soup of the day" is available for diners.
We felt that the marination for the chicken should be longer a little longer.
The soup is starchy based, taste nice and flavorful.
I saw many diners ordered Fried rice with pork chop and it really looks great. It's a regret that we did not get the second chance to try it.
POYA寶雅
My favorite departmental shop since many years ago. I aways find time to visit this pink lady whenever I am here.
This is a chain departmental shop of various sizes (some are big, some are small) that can be found in many places at your connivences. And I can spend hours shopping here in peace without staff watching over me. It is a very localized departmental store that mainky target women of all ages, it sell really everything!! Every time, I will end up bags full of loots spending at least NTD2000.
Glad that this big unit is located just 15 minutes away from my hotel while there is another store located near to Neihu station too.
Limited edition of Kao hot eye mask.
This is a good brand from Japan and the face wash is only availablr in Taiwan!
My favourite instant mee, it cost less than SGD7 here whie in Singapore it cost at least SGD15.
This toothpaste is sakura base and it is in the color of pretty pink.
八方云集
A classic chain store that scattered all over Taiwan and it has been on my "Must Eat" list for many years.
Beside selling different fillings of dumplings are few kinds of cooking, there are noodles, street foods, soup and soya milk. There is an outlet near my hotel, and a cup of chilled red tea, 10 gyozas was my lunch.
Apparently, it seems no longer tasted as great as before, on my previous trip few months back, I already think that it was no longer that delicious, thought to give it another try this round and it turned out same. I guessed I have to find another gyoza shop.
Miramar Mall (美麗華百樂園)
Located just 5 minutes away my hotel, it is a good place for me to do my shopping and unloading back room before coming back for more shopping.
Located just 5 minutes away my hotel, it is a good place for me to do my shopping and unloading back room before coming back for more shopping.
Pretty decent shopping mall. It tends to not be really crowded as compared to the other malls in Taiwan.
Multilevel shopping mall with food court at the basement level, a grocery store, restaurants located in between levels, an IMAX theater, arcade room and a Ferris wheel on the top floor.
天仁喫茶趣ToGo
A chained brand of BBT in Taiwan that is owned by a popular tea company: 天仁茗茶.
Glad that there is an outlet located in Miramar Shopping Mall that ended up 3 visits from us.
Love the Orange Green Tea very much, very refreshing for this weather!
RT-Mart Neihu（大潤發內湖店）
Went for a haircut and the hairdresser suggested this place to me when I mentioned I love to shop in the local supermarkets.This is a hypermarket that sells everything for all needs.
Most of the photos here are grabbed from google as I was too excited while there filling up my shopping cart and totally forgot to take photos.
來來豆漿
This humble shop is located just 5 minutes' walk away from my hotel.
It operates 24hrs, selling Taiwan's street food which is known as "breakfast" like gyoza, egg roll, pancakes, soya milk and etc..
Good spot for supper and breakfast and it is always quite full.
First Visit
He is hungry in the late hours, so we popped by here. It was pretty crowded despite late hours.
Staff are very busy but very friendly, they still guide you how to go about it patiently.
We ordered cold soya milk, warm soya milk, 蛋饼，肉饼 and carrot cake.
Everything is so yummy, and we will come again for the warm salted soya milk.
Second Visit
He said he feel like eating again in the late hours, so we are back here again.
This round, I ordered the salted soya milk which I have never tried before. It is salty based that he does not like it but it is to my taste!
There are alot of ingredients to go with the secret gravy found in this bowl of rich flavour.
He likes the carrot cake and the pork bun very much.
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Third Visit
Again, we are here for a light supper.
I ordered the salted soya milk again while he ordered warm soya milk to go with the dough stick (very big)
And staff started to recognize that this is my third visits.
Fourth Visit
When we are sick of the hotel breakfast, we come to Lai Lai again.
Only during the days, you will be able to see masters at work.
Ordered XLB, Gyoza and 蛋饼 with 2 chilled soya milk.
The XLB is more like mini pork bun to me. Skin is thick and there is no stock within.
做點心過生活 大直店
Those who know me, I am into bread making these days, so I thought a visit to a local bakery supply store would be a good idea for me to enhance my tools.
Indeed, I hunted 2 wonderful tools
1) Cat's Head Baking Pan - looks so cute and "tasty"
2) Unopan bread slicer - it is much cheaper here in Tawan as Unopan is made in Taiwan.
黑美林
Serving local hot stir fry food that served in a relaxed setting, friendly staff and delicious food. It has been here for 35 years and patronized mainly by the locals where you can hear the contents of their chats clearly and loudly. It is like the coffee shop in Singapore.
One of the best Taiwanese food experiences here. Food was just delicious and fast servings; menu is also written in English.
This old shop caught our stomachs and we visited twice!
On our first visit, we ordered:
1)Fried Milk Fish
2)Goose Meat
3)Garlic Shrimps
4)Stir Fried Cabbages
5)Omelette with preserved Radish
6) TWO servings of Squid balls
Total Damage: SGD62 and we cleared all the plates.
During our second visit, we ordered.
1)Pan Fried HorseHead Fish (马头鱼) - common fish in the region.
This is our first try and there are not many bones, meats are firm to our liking.
At first, we wanted to order Milk Fish but the staff told us that the Milk Fish they received today are not very fresh.
2)Garlic Pork
3)Stir fried Shrimp with spices
4)Omelette with preserved Radish
5)Lu rou Fan
Total Damage: SGD68
Dedicated a day to explore the area of Neihu station as this region is the heart of Neihu afterall.
The Neihu train station is connected to a mall named "Citylink" which is more like a food mall.
From Neihu station, all the places I went below are by foot.
湖光市場
Known as Hu Guang Market in English, this is an educating experience for me to learn how the locals does like marketing.
This place is very lively, full of busy shoppers and business owners.
Beside selling the needs for the dining tables, there are also shops and stalls selling clothing, kitchen use items, light snacks and dried food products.
IJySheng Neihu (一之軒內湖店)
Traditional Bakery that is well loved by many people!
Just 6 minutes' walk from Neihu station, I am here for some old school biscuits.
Despite it is not as heavily advertised like other brands, it has not stopped the brand to own 28 stores to date in Taiwan when it first opened the first shop in 1980. I believe this is the main reason for seller to maintain a reasonable prices.
The ingredients used here are not inferior at all, as I can see trays of freshly baked are being refilled to the empty shelves.
During my 20 minutes time here, I saw tons of buyer coming in and going out.
Here I ordered 12 boxes of Sun Biscuits and 6 boxes of pineapple cakes.
Reviews that I received are all "Good".
Saw quite a handful of people buying the Polo Bun so I decided to buy 1 to try too.
Crusty outside and soft inside. The pineapple taste is more on the exterior while there is not much butter taste in the fillings. Maybe this is what the local like. For me, I like those Hong Kong style ones.
古早味零食/餅乾/果乾/蜜餞
Stumble upon this gem by accident! Google Map: https://maps.app.goo.gl/EVKx4dLqGCBwVXtA9
Located just 2 minutes' walk from IJySheng, this stall is manned by an old lady where I decided to stop by and buy some preserved fruits.
A good place to hunt for preserved fruits and snacks.
The price is reasonable too, I am glad that I found this place.
源味軒
5 minutes' walk to Neihu Station. The environment is clean and neat though it is a small restaurant that comes with 3 big tables and 6 small tables.
The interior is small and packed wih crowds and the tables were arranged quite near, I cannot find a space to take a photo so here are the 2 I goggled.
Only 1 lady manages the shop front, but she is always busy helping in the kitchen and serving food. Despite being shorthanded, she is still very polite and serves tea when she sees new customers seated. At the same time, she will hand you the menu and order list where you have to write your order in "full words" yourself (Test my Chinese writting). Then a few minutes later, this lady will come by to take your order list, but she will still crossed check the orders again. Her effort of serving is still there despite she is very busy.
I really like the service of Taiwan restaurant where tea was served once you seated.
The food here are awesome which is like 私房菜 style, and we really like them very much.
Most importantly, the price here are very reasonable.
The Pork bellies with preserved vegetables are very nice, it is not THAT salty, and it is very soft.
The Salt Kaked chicken is tender and goes well with the sauce (black pepper+salt)
Stir fried Cabbage - it seems every restaurant in Taiwan selling this dish is particularly amazing and crunchy.
Prawn Balls in Pineapple sauce is acceptable.
This cute Oyen kitty likes me alot, keeps showing me the butt and asking for belly rubs which I gladly gave in
Last but not least, here is the hotel that we stayed in for the week.
Hotel Indigo Taipei North (台北大直英迪格酒店)
It is so thoughtful of the hotel to have a recycle bag for the guests.
And this is the view from my window where 101 is quite a distance away.
Hotel INDIGO, a boutique hotel brand of IHG, is each inspired by the "neighborhood culture" of the city in which it operates, offering a refreshing local feel to all hotel guests.
The hotel's design incorporates local historical scenery such as bricks and tiles, dragon boats, Keelung River and duck farming local's life along the riverbanks.
Located right next to Miramar Mall and the Ferris Wheels, it is easy to find this hotel with 149 guests' rooms.
The nearest metro station in Jian Nan, exit 3, it takes only 5 minutes' walk to reach here.
Our Super King Premier Room
There are three types of rooms: Superior Room, Deluxe Room and Deluxe King Room.
The room is comfortable and well designed, it looks well maintained, it is well equipped with safety deposit box, mini fridge, Hair dryer, Bathrobe, bedroom slippers, Free Wi-Fi, 49" LCD TV, iron and ironing board,
Love our big stylish room which is 40sqm with a super king size bed of 240 x 200 cm, but he still complained that the bed sheets are not as smooth as the one at home because we used Tencel bed sheets.
The bathroom is spacious, with a large mirror, bathtub and standing shower. It comes with full toilet amenities.
Like this hanging lamp very much, this paintings on the lamp are about the life of a fisherman. How I wish it can rotate then it will be a pretty 走马灯.
It is so thoughtful of the hotel to have a recycle bag for the guests.
There are a few nights where we were chilling at the open bar on level 4.
And this is the view from my window where 101 is quite a distance away.
The Breakfast
Here are the photos pf the breakfast, I collected over throughout the stay here. Except for one of the days where we had our breakfast from local breakfast shop.
This is how the hotel looks like, if you noticed, there is a small old shop at the right bottom corner.
This is what the little old quaint shop looks like, it is a drink shop selling some takeaway bento.
We have come to the end of this blog in Neihu, sincerely thanks for reading. Another blog on Taipei can be found here : Taipei @ Autumn 2023 - Part 2
Feel free, you are most welcome to browse through my other blogs to Denmark (we stayed there 6 months as Residents), France, Japan, China, Thailand, Malaysia and cruises etc.
In less than 90 days' time, we will be going to Switzerland for our holidays and back to the north in the middle of January 2024. Please stay tuned for these coming blogs.
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Lastly, thanks for dropping by.
Wish you good luck.
Cheers
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