Taipei

I arrived at the airport past 2pm. From here, I took the train going to Taipei Main Station. The train ride was just a little over an hour.

Stayed at Backpacker’s Inn which is right next to Perk & Cafe. Unfortunately, the hostel is now closed but there are lots of other hostels and hotels in this area. Backpacker’s Inn was of the best hostels I’ve stayed at. Location was great with 3 train stations within walking distance and lots of restaurants and convenience stores nearby. It’s also a 10-minute walk from Ximending Shopping District.

For day 2, I joined a free walking tour with a local tour guide. This walking tour is also something you can do without a guide. Just follow Google Maps to go from one place to the next. The meetup of the tour was at Mengxia Park. From here, the Longshan Temple is just a few minutes away. This temple is a Chinese folk religious temple in Wanhua District, Taipei, Taiwan. The temple was built in Taipei in 1738 by settlers from Fujian during Qing rule in honor of Guanyin. Entrance to the temple is free.

Next is Bopiliao Historical Block, which is a historic neighborhood located in the Wanhua District. It features old buildings in the neighborhood with well-preserved structures. This area also features the Ximen Red House.

Next stop is the Presidential Office Building. We took a few minutes to learn some history about it and take photos. We didn’t go inside thought.

The 228 Peace Memorial Park is a historic site and municipal park. This was built as a memorial for the February 28 incident, also called 228 incident, which was an anti-government uprising in Taiwan.

This is the last stop of the walking tour. This memorial hall was built in memory of Chiang Kai-shek, the first president of the Republic of China. Right next to it is the National Concert Hall. After the tour, I had lunch and went to some shops in the area before going back to the hostel to rest for a bit.

Shilin Night Market is Taipei's best-known night market and is one of the city’s top tourist attractions. Here you can find numerous shops for clothes, shoes, accessories, and a lot more. Don’t forget to try authentic street food here!

One thing you shouldn’t miss out while in Taipei is touring the North Coast. For this, I booked a guided small group tour. This tour lasted for about 9 hours. First stop is Yehliu Geopark. It is a cape on the north coast of Taiwan. It’s known for its landscape of honeycomb and mushroom rocks eroded by the sea.

If you’ve seen the Studio Ghibli movie Spirited Away, then this place will look familiar to you. Jiufen is a mountain town in northeastern Taiwan, east of Taipei. It's known for the narrow alleyways of its old town, packed with teahouses, street-food shacks and souvenir shops.

This waterfall is one of the most renowned cascading waterfalls in the country.

Shifen is a quiant little town known for its railroad tracks run through an old street with shops and restaurants. This is also where you can fly a sky-lantern.

For day 4, I decided to go exploring on my own. From my hotel, I took a train going to Dalongdong. The Baoan Temple is a temple devoted to the worshipping of Baosheng Dadi "Great Emperor Protecting Life".

The Taipei Confucius Temple is just a couple of minutes walk from Bao’an Temple. This temple was built in 1879

Also called Taipei Expo Park, this is a multifunctional park in Zhongshan District. After this, I went to a mall near the Central Station for lunch and to walk around. Then I went back to my hostel for a bit to do some online work.

I resumed my sightseeing in the afternoon. The National Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall is located in Xinyi District, Taipei, Taiwan. It is a memorial to the Republic of China's National Father, Dr. Sun Yat-sen, and was completed in 1972. The total building area covers 29,464 square metres in an open space of 115,000 square metres.

Eslite Bookstore is one of the largest retail bookstore chains in Taiwan. It haas some exhibitions which make it a tourist spot.

Xiangshan Park is a small park near the starting point of the hike going up Elephant Mountain. I timed my sightseeing this way so that I can catch the sunset on Elephant Mountain.

If you want the best view of Taipei 101 then this is the place to be. The hike takes about 30-45 minutes depending on your pace, and this is something you can do with regular comfy shoes. The climb was worth it for the views.

This is another popular night market in Taipei with lots of retail shops, souvenir shops, restaurants, and street food stalls.

Last day in Taipei and I decided to do more sightseeing before going to the airport. This was another spontaneous part of my trip. I went to Tamsui, which is a part of Taipei with Spanish influences.

Douglas Lapraik was a British watchmaker, shipbuilder and shipping magnate of Scottish origins. Douglas Lapraik & Co Warehouse is a museum in Tamsui, New Taipei. Douglas Lapraik & Co Warehouse is situated nearby to the arts centre Tamsui Art Gallery and the library. Entrance to the gallery is free.

Fort Santo Domingo is a historical fortress in Tamsui District, New Taipei City, Taiwan. It was originally a wooden fort built in 1628 by the Spanish Empire, who named it "Fort Santo Domingo. This is Tamsui's most prominent monument to foreign involvement in Taiwan. Entry fee is NT$80.

Built in 1934, the Former Residence of Tamsui Township Head Tada Eikichi captures the authentic spirit of Japanese-style wooden house.

After the morning sightseeing, I had lunch at a local restaurant in Tamasui before heading back to my hotel to get my things. Then I went to the airport for my evening flight.