Explore Dihua Street 迪化街 and the Dadaocheng 大稻埕, one of the historic neighborhoods filled with vibes from mid 19th century Taipei and the most popular market area for Chinese New Year!
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The big party gatherings are not for you? Then come to our Homey Halloween Murder Night!
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One of Asia’s biggest Gay Pride events takes place in Taipei every year at the last Saturday of October. Over 80,000 people attended the event last year, just as much are expected on this year’s 26th to 27th October. Support the LGBT community and come take a look!
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As you may already know, winter in Taipei is not that cold, but you do need to bring an umbrella with you! So after a humid hot summer, be prepared for rainy days (or weeks) winter months. But no worries, there’s still a lot you can do even in winter. Here are some rainy day tips for you!
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One of the biggest reasons people come to Taipei, apart from visiting is that they are trying to study Chinese, our very own Homey hostel, is full of students(me included), hoping to become fluent in the artful tongue that is Chinese. I will list the four best ways you can use once in Taipei to make the most of your studies. 1. Go to school This is the most common and best way to study Chinese. It is also a big help if you come…Continue Reading “Study chinese in Taipei”
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”
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”
My friend Selena, who recommended and booked for us recommended Ding Wang Spicy Hotpot (鼎旺麻辣鍋). She said it looks fancy, famous, good, affordable and quiet for us to enjoy proper hotpot dinner. So I decided to go there together with my local Taiwanese friend, Oliver. There are actually two Ding Wang’s! Ding Wang, with the name in Romanized letters instead of the Chinese name in characters. So I unwittingly googled “Ding Wang” and found a Ding Wang Spicy Hotpot (鼎旺麻辣鍋) with 2 locations and an official FB page.Then a…Continue Reading “鼎王麻辣鍋 Ding Wang Mala Hotpot, Taipei”
One month in Taipei and I’ve learned a lot. A lot about the city, Taiwanese people and myself. I hope to share a few of these lessons in today’s post. In my most recent live show with Homey Hostel, I took a stroll around the block. Starting off at 50 Lan with a classic milk tea bubble tea, owner, Kelly, and I began our journey. We passed by a few local restaurants where you can see the well-known cheap and affordable meals Taiwan is known for. For…Continue Reading “Taiwan From Foreign Eyes”
Kindness is drought level worldwide. Except in Taiwan. It’s abundant here. Taiwanese people take it on themselves to show you, the foreigner, their country as if they were official representatives. While they’re probably more friendly with foreigners than fellow natives, their kindness goes a long way. My latest experience with this high-level kindness was in a Taipei hair salon. My head was massaged to a distant astral plane and my ears were cleaned smooth as a baby’s butt-cheek. Beyond the actual service itself, the smiles …Continue Reading “Why is Taiwan #1? Hair Heaven! Traditional Taiwanese Hair Salon”