Tag Archives: Taipei traffic

My lunch at Sweet Dynasty: won ton soup and fried turnip cake, with jasmine tea

I’m finally here!!  My first day in Taipei was spent eating and not getting hit by cars, not necessarily in that order.

I arrived in Taiwan safely and without too much fuss.  It was 19 hours total travel time, one layover in Anchorage, Alaska, and several hours spent sleeping, thanks to a potent combination of sleep deprivation prior to the trip, a double vodka tonic served up by a bartender in New York (that tasted like rubbing alcohol), and some NyQuil (taken after the layover, NOT with the cocktail, don’t worry). I was met by a friendly woman who works for the Foundation for Scholarly Exchange (Fulbright Taiwan), who made me feel very welcome and helped me check in to the hotel.

Breakfast in the room: carob covered rice cake from Sag Harbor, apple pear from the hotel, water, tea, and books.

I didn’t feel too jetlagged, so after securing some WiFi and checking in with my family via Skype, I decided to take to the Taipei streets and seek out some lunch and temporary groceries, like fruit or snacks, to keep me on the right side of hunger and foreign-country-distress. Continue reading →