Tainan and the Way Home

Breakfast before Tainan

Today we are heading to Tainan. But before we head to the train station I meet up with Lebron and his daughter for breakfast at a small streetside food stall. We order some radish cake, papaya milk and egg pancake which is tasty and helps us start our day right! 

HSR to Tainan

We set plans to meet at the High Speed Rail station. Since I am heading home after Tainan, I check out of my hotel before heading to the trains. I wish I took more pictures of the train and the ride south, but the station and trip down is very busy. All I get is this photo of the train bento box very kindly purchased by Lebron ‘s mom! Just like in Japan I love train bento boxes and this one is no exception. 

Yoshi Hotel – Tainan Sinmei Branch

Upon Arriving at the train station, we hop into an Uber and head to the area where we have our accommodations. I check into the Yoshi Hotel Sinmei Branch, while Lebron and Antetokounmpo check into their AirBnB. Since I’m only staying for one night, this makes for a comfortable and affordable spot. It offers a shared lounge and the room is really spacious. All for under 100$ a night!

On my way over to meet back up with Lebron and Antetokounmpo I stop by a local convenience store and pick up an interesting looking snack. It’s similar to Crustables in North America, but there are more flavours and are much cheaper too. I get to try various flavours and after this first encounter with them, I’m am on continual look out for different flavours at any of the stores I enter!

Ximen / Asakusa Shopping Centre

After reconnecting with Lebron and Antetokounmpo we head out to explore the neighbourhood around us. One area that stands out to us is the Ximen Asakusa Shopping Centre. It’s like an open air market situated in what looks to be a very upkept historical building. There are all manner of stalls within the market including hand made goods, arts and crafts and many unique and tasty food options as well. We spend some time exploring the building (possibly because there’s good air conditioning inside) and also the small streets and alleys around it. 

Tainan McDonalds

We spot a McDonalds nearby and we decide to stop in. One of the things I love doing is visiting foreign McDonalds and Taiwan is no different. I’m always on the look out for interesting and unique menu items that aren’t available at home. In this case, I order a milk tea and a cup of corn soup. Since Taiwan is known for their milk teas, I wonder what McDonald’s rendition of it will be like. And to be honest, it’s not bad. I’ve had higher quality milk teas before but as a baseline, its certainly acceptable. The corn soup is another unique item on the menu. I’ve had this in various places across Asia. While hot soup on a very hot Taiwanese day isn’t refreshing I still enjoy it as it’s tasty. I really do wish we have something like this back at home in Canada. Especially during the winter months this would be a huge hit!

Yakiniku Shojo

For dinner we all head to Yakinkuku Shojo. While yakiniku is a traditional Japanese style of barbequing meats, this company is entirely Taiwanese and has stores all across the island. We order several menu items and get to barbequing. You can’t really complain about delicious meat freshly grilled! So we have a wonderful time enjoying our meal and chatting about the trip and different parts of life! One thing of note is the store probably noted our “poor” grilling style. Near the end of our session one of the staff comes over to grill the remainder of the meat for us. I guess we were not cooking up to their standards. No complaints here! I’m positive their cooking will trump my cooking any day!

After our meal, we slowly make our way back to our hotels and settle in for the evening. I’m actually flying home tomorrow, so I take some time to properly pack my bags in anticipation of the long journey home. However, I still have a good half day to spend with my friends before I hop on a train headed North!

Tainan Breakfast

For breakfast today we head to a streetside juice stand where we order different fresh fruit smoothies and drinks. Even though its morning, we’re already feeling the heat so the cool fruit drinks are very refreshing and just what the doctors ordered!

Tainan

After our morning snacks, we head to the older Anping area. Our initial thought was to visit the Anping Treehouse. However, after arriving and seeing the charge to enter, we decide to stroll around the neighbourhood as well. I find that Tainan is a nice contrast to Taipei. While there are busy parts of this city, it feels much more chill and relaxed. Understandably its a smaller city, but the lifestyle is enjoyable and the three of us were mentioning how surprised we were with our brief time here. While it is hot which limits an eagerness to explore, the atmosphere is more comfortable and I’d be open to visiting again in the future.

Win Chang Beef Soup

One of the local delicacies in Tainan is their beef, or Warm Body Beef to be exact. While it might not sound the most appetizing, the beef is suppose to be incredibly fresh. The concept is that the beef is delivered fresh and never chilled (hence the name). So for lunch we go to a well reviewed restaurant called Win Chang Beef Soup to try this delicacy. We order a variety of dishes included the Beef Soup, several stir fries and even a fried rice. Everything is very tasty, but I have to say the fried rice might be some of the best fried rice I’ve ever head. It’s that good! I wouldn’t hesitate to come back to Tainan just for that rice! It’s also endearing to know that the store is also very busy with locals having the same dishes! So I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend this spot!

Heading North

Sadly, all good things must come to an end. And It’s time for me to start making my way North to catch my flight home. I say good bye to Lebron, Antetokounmpo and their daughter and head to the train station. Due to some traffic and hitting all red lights (which take a very long time in Taiwan I notice) I barely make it in time to catch my HSR train towards Taipei. So again, no photos of the train. However, upon disembarking I see an opportunity for one last Taiwanese chicken snack at Fried Chicken Master. I pick one up as I change trains to get onto the airport express enroute to the airport

Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport

While catching the train feels a bit rushed, I do arrive at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport with some time to spare.  I’m able to check in and get through security and immigration smoothly. This gives me an opportunity to settle myself a little prior to my flight back across the pacific. During this time I decide to do a little lounge hopping.

Oriental Club Lounge

My first stop is the Oriental Club Lounge. This is one of the larger lounges at this airport and is very spacious. There is a generous amount of seating available with some facing outside with views of the tarmac. There is a made to order noodle section and also several self-serve food options, including what I can only imagine are the potato cousins to the minion snacks from the zoo. All in all it’s a comfortable lounge to spend my time.

China Airlines Lounge

Because I’ll be flying home in business class, I have an opportunity to visit the China Airlines Lounges. I take the opportunity to visit two. The first one is in the main departures area and has a very welcoming aesthetic. It features window seats with a view into the general check in area. I stop to have a drink while watching different travellers check into their various flights. I inquire about getting a shower before my flight and am told that the shower is available at the second lounge. This works out perfectly because the other lounge is closer to my gate anyways. I head to the second lounge which is downstairs but has some very cool Chinese calligraphy decorating the walls. While this second lounge is more modern, it doesn’t have windows so there isn’t any opportunity to do any plane spotting. 

After my shower, I indulge in one last Taiwanese beef noodle soup. I also have one last tea egg. While I didn’t mention tea eggs in any of my previous blogs, Antetokounmpo introduced them to me on one of our many convenience store visits. And since then I’ve made it a habit to get one at any chance I get. Since the lounge also supplies them I make sure I get one for the road!

China Airlines Business Class from Taiwan to Vancouver

Soon its time for me to head to my gate and board my flight home. I’m thankful that I have a comfortable spot to spend the next several hours across the pacific in China Airlines Business class. I board my plane and get settled for the 10 hour journey home. 

One of the things I am looking forward to most on this flight is the dining. So for dinner tonight I am having a simmered chicken porridge (congee) with abalone and an Almond Tofu for dessert. Additionally, Whenever I see an option for mid flight snacks I always try for one. I order a hamburger for my midflight snack and it tastes great! Finally for my pre-landing meal I order another congee dish with fresh fruits. I think after all the rich eating for the past few weeks, something a little more “comfortable” like congee really appeal to me at the time. All of these food options hit the mark and I’m very satisfied by the time we start our descent for landing. 

Coming Home

As the flight nears its end, I’m treated so some spectacular views of Canada’s West Coast and the place I call home. A very smooth landing, a quick walk towards customs and immigration and the familiar totem poles of Vancouver International Airport signal to me that I am home. 

It’s been a great past few weeks travelling with so many different groups of friends! I’m glad I’ve shifted my trip to trying to spend more time with friends and family versus always doing solo trips. And that ends my adventure to Japan and Taiwan! Next post will be a wrap up of the entire trip so stay tuned!