Continental Breakfast

I woke up unusually early — and finally, no more headache. After a quiet morning of blog work, the hotel Wi-Fi, which had been blazing fast at dawn, slowed to a crawl once everyone else woke up. Breakfast was a simple continental spread. No eggs, sadly, but the sausages were surprisingly satisfying. I squeezed in some last-minute planning too, since I’d switched a few things around on the fly.

Palace Museum

I began the day at the Palace Museum. Public transit wasn’t ideal from where I was staying, so I grabbed a taxi. The driver didn’t speak English, but showing him the map on my phone worked perfectly.

Inside, the museum was packed with artifacts from the imperial collection — items originally from mainland China, brought over by the KMT during the Chinese Civil War for 'safekeeping'. It was absolutely packed: huge tour groups everywhere, and a surprising number of Korean visitors.

Their most famous piece, the Jadeite Cabbage, wasn’t displayed here; it temporarly in display in another palace.

The galleries were filled with trinket, and much of it was genuinely fascinating. The audio guide helped bring a lot of it to life. I’d planned on taking the 2-hour tour, but I lingered for nearly three hours.

Once I’d had my fill, I headed out. I waited about 30 minutes for a bus to my next stop, only to discover it was the city’s hop-on-hop-off service — about five times the price. But at that point, I just needed to get moving.

Taipei Fine Arts Museum

This museum started off a little underwhelming, but it quickly redeemed itself. A spider-like sculpture caught my attention, and not long after, I stumbled into an incredible art-film installation with layered lighting and sound design.

It was a movie about a Thai folktale about a demonic monkey that could turn ash into gold. It was displayed in a large dark room, and behind the screen on which the movie was projected, there were lights shone trough the screen. Every 'chapter' the artist was able to think of a way to add a new dynamic to the piece. From flashing lights, surround sound, or ineverting the black and white colors. It was so mesmerizing that I stayed for the entire 47-minute piece.

There was cyber-sigilism art, a park installation with ambient audio, even a cardboard airplane — just an abundance of creative and curious works.

I had to rush through the last few exhibits as closing time approached, but that film installation might be the best thing I’ve seen at any museum here so far.

Taipei 101

Next up was the quintessential tourist stop: Taipei 101. Once the second-tallest building in the world, it’s still home to the fastest elevator on Earth, launching visitors to the observation deck in seconds.

Since I’d done Tokyo Tower during the day, I tried this one at night. Bad call — daytime views are clearer, and the crowds are lighter.

My ears popped, and my stomach dropped. There’s even a staff member whose entire job seems to be pressing elevator buttons, which feels like a surreal assignment.

The view didn’t wow me, though being hungry definitely didn’t help. The highlight for me ended up being the mass damper: a massive golden sphere that stabilizes the building during high winds.

I also left wanting to try Din Tai Fung — the line was absolutely wild, with people waiting around 90 minutes for a table.

Raohe Street Market

For dinner I wanted to visit another street market. I know, I know, — but this time I was determined to finally try stinky tofu.

I hopped on a bus and immediately made the classic mistake: got absorbed in a crossword puzzle and didn’t realize I was heading in the wrong direction, until 20 minutes later. I jumped off, spotted the correct-direction bus approaching… and missed it. I walked to the nearest metro station, only to discover there was a bus stop right next to it the whole time, meaning I could have ridden the bus a little longer before getting of. I’m officially swearing off buses in this country.

Thankfully, the metro got me to Raohe without any trouble. I arrived starving, which made the crowds overwhelming at first. But once I got some food in me, everything smoothed out.

Eventually, I found a vendor selling stinky tofu. I bought a boba as a backup, just in case the flavor was too intense — which turned out to be a smart decision.

The smell is extremely sour and pungent — think fermented funk, almost like a strong blue cheese. You can smell it 5 stalls away. The taste, though, is milder: mostly salty and sour. The was hardly and texture as it was very airy and fried.

I was hoping the second bite to be better, but it was worse actually. I had to was it down with the Boba. I finished one of the three pieces before throwing in the towel. I stood up, waved to the server, and she understood immediately. I got better food, and headed back to the hotel.

Another long, full day. The Palace Museum was impressive, the modern art museum was a standout, but Taipei 101 left me a bit underwhelmed. At this point, I’ve hit all the major highlights of Taipei. Tomorrow should be a calmer day — hopefully one that ends a bit earlier too.