Travelling in Taiwan

I just got back from a 5 day trip in Taiwan and just wanted to post some of the notables. Was there for an exhibition fair and some factory visits, but did get a chance to go around a bit

1. Taipei 101 - 2nd tallest building in the world. Great view of Taipei city especially near dawn. Entrance fee was quite expensive at NT$400 to get to the observatory near the top. (around 600 pesos)

2. Rode a 70 m. tall ferris wheel on the rooftop of the Miramar mall. 1 revolution took 15 minutes.

3. Excellent food - try the xiao long bao(its like a small siopao/dumpling combination with meat and some sauce inside the bun) at the Din Tai Feng restaurant. Very Tasty and the prices were quite reasonable.

4. Betel Nut Girls - scantily clad girls inside small glass structures selling cigarettes and highly stimulating / addictive betel nuts to truck drivers. Hard to explain if you have not seen it firsthand. So I've attached some pictures from the net. These girls earn around NT$30,000 a month just selling the betel nuts. My Taiwanese friend says that for NT$500-1000, some will flash you their boobs. Heheh ... kung meron tayong "only in the Philippines". This is "only in Taiwan". Don't mistake it for some kind of prostitution thing. It's a real job. The girls are basically selling products primarily to male drivers, so if you think about it, baring their bodies to attract customers is just a form of marketing.

Overall, I would have to say that Taipei is nice for a short visit. Traffic is surprisingly good considering that it is a highly populated city. Language barrier may be a bit of a problem as most of the population still cannot speak english. Mandarin and Hokkien are the common language. But there are lots of english signs so it is easy to get around. Taxi drivers are polite and don't try to fleece you.

Since this is still a poker blog, let me just say I did get to play some online SNGs during the night. Hotel offered free internet and the connection was lightning fast. I don't think poker as a game is popular in Taiwan, though. Casinos are currently still illegal but I heard Taiwan is also planning some kind of Macau style casino in one of their small islands. High stakes Mahjong is probably still the game of choice if you're looking for a rush.