The night before, after clubbing, we had gone to a late night congee place that served big bowls of congee and then whatever sides you picked out. It was glorious, and I knew that would become my late night eating place. Of course, the night ended at four or five in the morning so our Sunday started very late.
Daisy and I went to Gongguan again, as I wanted to check out Chen San Ding, rumored to be the best boba in Taipei. Their boba was made with straight milk, no tea, and the boba balls were soaked in brown honey. I’d seen the line before, but as I was quickly learning, lines in Taiwan were mostly a good thing, as they signaled good food. Plus, the lines were always fast moving and well organized, and I find myself suspending the “no lines” rules in Taiwan often. Anyway, Chen San Ding boba turned out to taste basically almost exactly like Half and Half, or Class 302, but without the large chubby cups. Delicious, but not exactly mind blowing.
What was killer, was the gua bao place right across the alley, a spot that Robert pointed out. The buns are filled with fatty pork, lean pork, or a mix of both. I’d swing by for the boba, but definitely go out of the way for the gua bao.
Afterwards, we took a quick detour to the temple where Robert’s mother’s ashes were being kept. It turned out to be a beautiful oasis in the busy city, and the temple was perfectly peaceful and quiet. All the temples in Taipei were of great interest to me, and I liked to know what each one specialized in. Such as the aforementioned Love Temple, or one for students trying to score well on their tests. All of the temples are left open, as nobody would dare steal or desecrate these spaces. Or that was the explanation I was given when I asked why there were never any guards by day or night.
Our afternoon ended with a stop by Ice Monster, which shares much of the same menu as Smoothie House, which Frank and I frequented a lot on our trip. The original Ice Monster was started by a couple but after their acrimonious split, they became two locations. There are probably loyalists for each side, but any shaved mango ice is good shaved mango ice to me.
To wrap up our night, it was a quick visit to the Breeze Center Mall and then a viewing of Gone Girl, which was my second viewing. And I promptly fell asleep through some of it. Whoops.
Daisy and I went to Gongguan again, as I wanted to check out Chen San Ding, rumored to be the best boba in Taipei. Their boba was made with straight milk, no tea, and the boba balls were soaked in brown honey. I’d seen the line before, but as I was quickly learning, lines in Taiwan were mostly a good thing, as they signaled good food. Plus, the lines were always fast moving and well organized, and I find myself suspending the “no lines” rules in Taiwan often. Anyway, Chen San Ding boba turned out to taste basically almost exactly like Half and Half, or Class 302, but without the large chubby cups. Delicious, but not exactly mind blowing.
What was killer, was the gua bao place right across the alley, a spot that Robert pointed out. The buns are filled with fatty pork, lean pork, or a mix of both. I’d swing by for the boba, but definitely go out of the way for the gua bao.
Afterwards, we took a quick detour to the temple where Robert’s mother’s ashes were being kept. It turned out to be a beautiful oasis in the busy city, and the temple was perfectly peaceful and quiet. All the temples in Taipei were of great interest to me, and I liked to know what each one specialized in. Such as the aforementioned Love Temple, or one for students trying to score well on their tests. All of the temples are left open, as nobody would dare steal or desecrate these spaces. Or that was the explanation I was given when I asked why there were never any guards by day or night.
Our afternoon ended with a stop by Ice Monster, which shares much of the same menu as Smoothie House, which Frank and I frequented a lot on our trip. The original Ice Monster was started by a couple but after their acrimonious split, they became two locations. There are probably loyalists for each side, but any shaved mango ice is good shaved mango ice to me.
To wrap up our night, it was a quick visit to the Breeze Center Mall and then a viewing of Gone Girl, which was my second viewing. And I promptly fell asleep through some of it. Whoops.