1 Awesome Day in Taichung City Centre!

Categories Beyond Taipei, Drink, Food

Taichung is a city on the west coast which has a lot to offer! Read here what you definitely have to check out! Transport to and in Taichung Taichung does have its own airport, but flights from abroad do not land there and it is purely domestic. If you just arrived at Taoyuan airport, there is a bus that will bring you directly to Taichung. If you stay in Homey Hostel in Taipei, you can either use said domestic airport, go by bus or train…Continue Reading “1 Awesome Day in Taichung City Centre!” →

Taiwan’s Exclusive Craft Beer Scene

Categories Drink, Food, Taipei

Prior to arriving to Taiwan, I have lived in Portland, Oregon. Portland is well known for their micro-breweries, upon arriving to Taipei, Taiwan, I was eager to delve into their own world of craft beer. The most well known of Taiwan beers, is of course ‘Taiwan beer’ lager style, but it doesn’t stop there, about a half-hour from homey hostel by taking the green line to Da’an district, 23 Public craft brewery offers a variety of lagers, ales and cider. Here at homey we offer…Continue Reading “Taiwan’s Exclusive Craft Beer Scene” →

Guide to grocery shopping in Taipei

Categories Drink, Food, uncategorized

Grocery shopping! Although Taipei is really cheap when it comes to food. If you plan to stay longer than a few days and would like to do the cooking yourself from time to time, it’s important to know where to shop and to know the different options available to you. 7-11 was always going to be first on the list. It is the most common and most popular convenience store around. They differ in sizes so you can find more or less the same in…Continue Reading “Guide to grocery shopping in Taipei” →

What to do on a hot day in Taipei

Categories Drink, Food, Hiking, Outdoors, Taipei

Amongst many things, Taipei is known for its hot weather. With temperatures very often passed 30 degrees, it is useful to know what to do under the sweltering hot sun.   First of all, any soul brave enough to go through a hot day in Taipei deserves an ice cream and what else than Ice Monster for some shaved ice. Head to Da’an district to taste their myriad of flavors; mango, strawberry, kiwi and more. Head to their website to find out more.   After…Continue Reading “What to do on a hot day in Taipei” →

Oolong tea experience at Homey

Categories Drink, Experiences, Food

Oolong tea experience at Homey       You haven’t really traveled to Taipei if you haven’t done some sort of tea experience. Within so many activities tea tasting is one of my favorite things to do at Homey Hostel. Usually served by our very own Jeffrey (photographed above) the experience includes not only tasting but a whole detailed session explaining how it is served. Lucky for you dear reader I have the whole process here for you. Follow this step by step and you…Continue Reading “Oolong tea experience at Homey” →

The Best Cafés Less Than Two Blocks Away Part 2: On-the-Go

Categories Drink, Homey's Neighborhood

Fun fact: before I came to Taipei, I was not a coffee drinker. At all. On occasion, when I had one of my 12-hour drives from Chicago to South Carolina, I would keep myself awake with a small cup of black coffee, and when I visited Costa Rica I made sure to try locally grown coffee varieties, but other than that my coffee experience was non-existent. So, tea drinker that I am, when I first came to Taipei, I was super excited for the abundance…Continue Reading “The Best Cafés Less Than Two Blocks Away Part 2: On-the-Go” →

The Best Cafés Less Than Two Blocks Away Part 1: Sit-Down Edition

Categories Drink, Food, Homey's Neighborhood

Over the past few weeks, I’ve been on a mission to drink coffee at every café within two blocks of Homey Hostel. Now, a two block radius doesn’t seem that large… I mean, how many cafés can be less than 500m away? 10 at the most right? To my surprise, I discovered that there are actually 30 different cafés within two blocks of Homey Hostel! (And that’s only counting the ones facing the street and not any located inside the Q Square Mall or any…Continue Reading “The Best Cafés Less Than Two Blocks Away Part 1: Sit-Down Edition” →

Best Bubble Tea in Taipei Near Homey Hostel

Categories Drink
Best bubble in taipei

If you Google Search “best bubble tea in Taipei”, dozens of blog posts pop up with lists of the best tea places in Taiwan. However, many of the places included on those lists are located in a distant corner of Taipei and may be difficult to get to if you’re only in Taipei for a short amount of time. Never fear! Even if you’re only in Taipei for one night, Homey Hostel’s neighborhood has several delicious bubble tea shops that allow you to experience one…Continue Reading “Best Bubble Tea in Taipei Near Homey Hostel” →

Bubble Tea and Life: What I learned about myself in Taiwan

Categories Drink, Experiences, Food, Taipei Life

This was the last tapioca ball you’d chew in your hometown. Enough of the watered down, flavorless and utterly fake bubble tea at your local mall. The organic matcha-pumpkin-spice-fusion-massaged-tapioca-loaded drink no longer does it for you. Neither does any of the other plethora of Chinese restaurants flooded with flavors tailored for Western tongues. You’ve been craving an authentic cultural experience for the longest. A place where you can sip some real bubble tea and experience your parents’ roots in person. In this article, you’re going…Continue Reading “Bubble Tea and Life: What I learned about myself in Taiwan” →