Photo Diary: Temple in Taipei

I saw this temple on the side of the road while walking through Taipei. This kind of gorgeousity is merely normal for Taipei, as I was told that such temple exists on every street corner. Well! 

The Watermelon Drink Phenomenon

Let's take a break from Dubai for a moment and take a trip to the other side of the world. My disclaimer is that this post is not about the watermelon drink, which is, by the way, both delicious and plentiful in Taiwan. This is a story about two girls, a 15-year friendship, one near-death experience, and what it means to live life to the fullest.

So what does the watermelon drink have to do with this? Well, when I was a teenager, I went to an all-girl private boarding school. The very best friend I ever made in that school was a Taiwanese-Japanese girl (meaning that she is a Japanese citizen of Taiwanese decent). Many a time she would enchant me with  stories of both Japan and Taiwan, and one food item in particular that I could never forget: "the watermelon drink." This mythical item kept me day-dreaming throughout my teenage years.

"If only I could go to Taiwan and have the watermelon drink..."

Such was the story of my life.

But alas, it took ten years to make that dream a reality. 

It's not that money or time was the issue. I had managed to make it to Japan every year, and in 2007 I even made it my goal to visit a different country every year. But, for some reason, Taiwan kept getting shelved. It seemed like whenever my friend had time, I didn't, and whenever I had time, she didn't. We kept putting it off, saying, "next year we're gonna go, next year."

Then, in July of 2011, my friend was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma. She courageously began blogging her story, which you can read here. 
This was a huge wake-up call for me. 
We're not going to live forever. 
There may not be a next year.

I remembered all those times in my life when old (or older) people would tell me, "take it easy, you have plenty of time." I suddenly became very angry at them for saying that, like they were just lying to my face. The truth is, as we all know, some of us have more time than others.

My friend ended up having to take a leave of absence from graduate school and move back to Japan for treatment. I promised her that when she got better, we would celebrate with a watermelon drink. For months and months I followed her blog from chemotherapy to radiation. 

About 9 months after she was diagnosed with cancer and began treatment, the two of us went to Taiwan. 

She was tired, sick, and her hair was just starting to grow back. 

I was anxious, overweight, and going through a quarter-life crisis. 

But we went. 

Because we didn't have time to wait for perfection, when our lives and our looks are exactly the way we want them to be. When we have all the time and all the money. When we feel good inside and out. That perfect time in one's life to drink the watermelon drink may not come so soon. 

Now I'm back, with another item on the bucket list crossed off. And I am happy to announce that my friend is  back in the states, and cancer free. 

As for those perfect moments in life, I'm not saying they won't come. They'll come alright. But when they come, I won't be waiting for them. I'll be in Taiwan, not far from the watermelon drink, doing what I love.

Din Tai Fung: from East to West

This past year I was honored with the opportunity to visit the notorious dumpling restaurant Din Tai Fung in both Taiwan and the United States.

Din Tai Fung is actually the first restaurant I went to in Taipei. I heard awful stories of the 1-2 hour long waits and crowds, but my savvy friend called ahead and made reservations at 11:00 for lunch. When we arrived, we were practically the only ones there! Granted, this was not the original Din Tai Fung, where supposedly you cannot make reservations. This was the branch at the Taipei 101, which was very uncrowded on a Friday morning.

On the opposite side of the world, Din Tai Fung in Seattle was a mess. Din Tai Fung in Seattle is actually located in a mall in Bellevue, which had a line out the door by the time we arrived at noon on a Friday. Most of the customers were employees of Microsoft on their lunch breaks. Not a fun crowd, let me say.
Fortunately, the staff told people their wait would be 45 minutes, but they started calling names after 20 minutes. Most of the people in front of us on the list were walking around the mall, so because we were standing there we got in fast!

Staff outside the Taipei Din Tai Fung

Din Tai Fung in Seattle. Check out those happy fellows on the left.

Both Din Tai Fungs were very similar in looks and in quality. The chain has really maintained consistency and image. I was expecting that they would offer radically different foods, or that the Seattle branch would not be as good as the  Taipei branch, but you know.....
they were just about the same.

With their mascot in Taipei

Same guy in Seattle.

In Taiwan there were large glass windows where you could see the dumplings being made with scientific precision. Because the restaurant was not crowded, I got to photograph from my seat. 

 View from the restaurant in Taipei


Seattle, on the other hand, was ridiculously crowded. I felt embarrassed walking around the restaurant photographing people. I did manage to snap one quick discreet photo.

View from the restaurant in Seattle



The food at both restaurants was really top notch. I seem to remember that Taipei had a different variety of foods, but all the staples were there.
One of my favorite menu items is the pot stickers, which are so crispy that they serve them to you face down, with their oily burnt  crispness on top.

 From Taipei

 From Seattle



Of course, it would not be Din Tai Fung if it didn't have dumplings. In both places I found the dumpling taste and quality to be superb.

From Taipei

 From Seattle


The way to eat the dumplings is to put in on a spoon, then take a small bite, and the dumpling will release its juice. Then you eat the rest of the dumpling in the spoon full of its juice. If you want to add vinegar, soy sauce, ginger, and chili (like I do), that increases the flavor.



This is a picture of the shrimp Shumai which we also had in Seattle. Now, I hate shrimp and I still managed to eat half of these because they were so good.

I thought Din Tai Fung would be all about dumplings, but actually the menu is quite diverse, and everything is delicious. Taiwan has a high standard when it comes to food. No wonder this place is so popular. 

Here are some other amazing foods I had at the Din Tai Fung in Taipei:

 The best damn pork fried rice I've ever had

 Bean Curd

Chinese greens

The Xinbeitou Library

I was first tintroduced to the Xinbeitou Library aka "The Fantasy Treehouse" through the blog "Girl Meets Formosa" when I was searching for things to do in Taipei. Now, my partner happens to be from Taipei, but when I went in March of 2012, I was only accompanied by my Taiwanese-Japanese friend from middle school. My partner gave no advice as to how I should spend my time in the big city. This is either because I didn't ask for advice, or because when you grow up somewhere, you don't really know how tourists spend their time there. My friend, on the other hand, was well-versed in things to do as far as tourism goes....but I'm no ordinary tourist, and I have a particular fetish for libraries. Only after I returned from Taipei did I learn that my partner had full knowledge on the Xinbeitou library and had even been there several times! Then why did I search the Internet to find this place!? Oh well.

The journey begins on the Taipei MRT, where you board the Xinbeitou line from Beitou to Xinbeitou ("New Beitou"). Xinbeitou is famous for its hot springs, and even though it is only a half hour from the city center, it feels like you've entered the wilderness (or I'm just being dramatic). The inside of the train tries (in a cute but cheesy way) to imitate this natural beauty.

The gardens around the library were very well-landscaped. The library is located right in the middle of a crowded public park, which is awesome...on a less crowded day.


The library's roof juts out from the forest. It's wooden frame blends in nicely with the landscape, but its sharp angels also contrasts with it.

I took a lot of pictures outside the library, because the pairing of architecture and nature was so harmonic in this space.

On the other side of the library there were far less tourists, so I could photograph in peace. Some shots don't even contain a single person in them.

A profile shot of the library shows the crooked edges of the balcony mimic the ripples in water in the of a creek nearby. 

Alright, so when I googled the Xinbeitou library, I was surprised to find few photographs of the inside....

Now I know why.

Technically, it is against the library rules to photograph inside the building. The librarians are watching tourists like hawks, ready to reprimand them if they even so much as pull out a camera.  I tried to sneak a photo when I thought no one was looking, but I was caught!

Of course I was so embarrassed that as soon as the librarian walked away, I tried to sneak another photo, this time it was big trouble. I was taken to the front desk, where I explained in the worst Chinese anyone has ever heard that I was a blogger and  I just wanted to take pictures for my blog. They must have understood my message, because I was then required to fill out a form, and presented with a photography pass!

Success!

But now I have to wear this corny pass when I walk around the library, which makes me look so dopey, and I still cannot photograph any people (and people were everywhere) even myself.

View from the top balcony

Taipei: city and jungle

Woops! I guess I missed that rule about not photographing people

 A rare look inside the library!

A walk around the gardens in really worth doing if you have made the a trip to Taipei. My friend thought I was crazy for going all the way up to Xinbeitou just to photograph a library. This however, was one of my favorite parts of the trip. It was the only time I actually rode the trains by myself, and the view from the windows of the train reveals a very different part of Taipei than what you will see from  the 101. I really recommend this trip, if not for the library, then for the hot springs. And if not for the hot springs then just for the chance to experience a metropolis in the heart of a tropical paradise.