Let's begin my travelogue on the fourth day I have been in Taiwan. We take breakfast at the Shangrila Leisure Farm. Then, we're going back to Taipei City again. We're going to visit the National Palace Museum.
The National Palace Museum has a permanent collection of nearly 700,000 pieces of ancient Chinese imperial artifacts and artworks, making it one of the largest of its type in the world. The collection encompasses 8,000 years of history of Chinese art from the Neolithic age to the modern.
Most of the collections are high-quality pieces collected by the China's emperors. The National Palace Museum shares its roots with the Palace Museum in the Forbidden City, whose extensive collection of artwork and artifacts were built upon the imperial collections of the Ming and Qing dynasties.
The most famous masterpiece collections in the National Palace Museum are Jadeite Cabbage or know as Jadeite Cabbage with Insects. It is a piece of jadeite carved into the shape of a Chinese cabbage head, and with a locust and katydid camouflaged in the leaves.
My tour guide was told me the story about the Jadeite Cabbage. The residence of the Qing Empire's Guangxu Emperor's Consort Jin is who probably received it as a part of her dowry for her wedding to Guangxu, in 1889. The symbol of the Jadeite Cabbage is for she can give many children to her family but during her marriage have a tragic and she can't have children. That is my tour guide told me about it.
Then, we're going to the Halal Beef Noodles Restaurant (清真牛肉麵館) for our lunch. Yes, this time we get chance to taste the famous food in Taiwan; which is Beef Noodles. This time, I not sure the prices of our meal since this meal is changing on last minutes so I don't know the actual price. But I saw the poster of one of the beef noodles prices is NT$ 180 (RM 25.80) per bowl. We are not only eating the Beef Noodles only, but they also serve to us the beef dumpling and beef kebab too. It's full table.
Some information about this restaurant:
Address: No. 23, Yanping S Rd, Zhongzheng District, Taipei City, Taiwan 100 (臺北市中正區延平南路23號)
Business Hours: 10:30 am – 08:00 pm
By MRT: MRT Ximen Station, Exit 5 and walk about 5 minutes.
After lunch, we're going to the Tamsui Fisherman's Wharf (淡水漁人碼頭). The Tamsui Fisherman's Wharf is a scenic spot at the western tip of Tamsui District, New Taipei City, Taiwan. Its predecessor was the "Tamsui Second Fishing Port" on the right bank of the Tamsui River estuary, an important fishing harbor in the early history of north Taiwan.
The Tamsui Fisherman's Wharf is well known for its beautiful sunset and fresh seafood. While having sightseeing and leisure facilities, it still holds its functionality as a harbor for fishing boats.
TIP – The Tamsui Fisherman's Wharf has the Tamsui Lover's Bridge; which famous to the couple. I would like to inform that these places quite pack in the weekend. So if you want to take beautiful photos – just avoid to going there on weekend.
Then, we're proceeding to Tamsui Old Street (淡水老街). The Tamsui Old Street is a street in Tamsui District, New Taipei, Taiwan. The street is accessible within walking distance north-west from the Tamsui Station of Taipei Metro.
This place is a nice place for shopping. They are having a lot of things to you for buying as souvenirs. The average prices in here are okay and reasonable for me.
TIP – The standard souvenirs item in Tamsui Old Street that you can buy are T-shirt "I Love Taiwan" NT$ 250 per t-shirt (RM 35.80) [If you bought five (5) t-shirt so just pay total is NT$ 1,000. That means you can get discount NT$ 50 per shirt.] The lipstick box with small mirror is NT$ 20 per item (RM 2.90). If you would like to try the Taiwan skincare product, just buy it at the Watson Store. They willing to tell you the best brand with the best prices.
We're still continuing our shopping, but this time we're going to the Shilin (Shihlin) Night Market (士林夜市). The Shilin Night Market is a night market in the Shilin District of Taipei, Taiwan. It is often considered to be the largest and most famous night market in the city. The night market encompasses two distinct sections sharing a symbiotic: a section formerly housed in the old Shilin Market building, containing mostly food vendors and small restaurants; and the surrounding businesses and shops selling other nonfood items. The food court holds 539 stalls, and the second floor serves as a parking lot for 400 cars.
In addition to the food court, side streets and alleys are lined with storefronts and roadside stands. Cinemas, video arcades, and karaoke bars are also prevalent in the area. Like most night markets in Taiwan, the local businesses and vendors begin opening around 16:00 pm. As students begin returning home from school, crowds reach their peak between 20:00 pm and 23:00 pm. Businesses continue operating well past midnight, closing around 01:00 am or 02:00 am. Shilin Night Market is accessible via the Taipei Metro Line 2 at the Jiantan Station.
TIP – For me, the most expensive things that sell at the Shilin Market is the fruits. So you need be careful during you looking something at this area and take care also your bag from the pickpocket, especially during the peak hours.
After we're tired shopping, then we're going to the Kunming Islamic Food Restaurant for our dinner. The most of our meals is a Chinese and Malay meal's concept. The price for per pax is NT$ 400 (RM 57.20).
Our last activities of the day are Taipei 101 or also as the Taipei World Financial Center. It is a landmark supertall skyscraper in Xinyi District, Taipei, Taiwan. The building was officially classified as the world's tallest in 2004 and remained such until the completion of the Burj Khalifa in Dubai in 2010. In 2011, the building was awarded the LEED platinum certification, the highest award according to the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating system, and became the tallest and largest green building in the world. In used to have the fastest elevator in the world, traveling at 60.6 km/h and transporting passengers from the 5th to 89th floor in 37 seconds. In 2016, the title for the fastest elevator was given to one in Shanghai Tower.
The construction of the 101-story tower started in 1999 and finished in 2004. The tower has served as an icon of modern Taiwan ever since it's opening. The building was architecturally created as a symbol of the evolution of technology and Asian tradition. Its postmodernist approach to style incorporates traditional design elements and give them modern treatment. The tower is designed to withstand typhoons and earthquakes. A multi-level shopping mall adjoining the tower houses hundreds of stores, restaurants, and clubs. Most of the store in Taipei 101 is a high-class brand.
We're check-in back our hotel at the second day we are staying in Taipei, Taiwan; which is the Sinjhuang Chateau de Chine Hotel. We stay to have the same room like our room on the second day. This is our last hotel that we have to change around Taiwan. We have to stay at this hotel until we're going back to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. In my opinion, this is the best hotel ever among all hotel I have stayed around Taiwan on this trip. That is all my stories in Taiwan for the fourth day. I hope you guys enjoy it.
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