Taiwan and its cultural quirks: Part I

Posted on by Greta

Has anyone ever been to Taiwan?

My husband and I recently spent 6 days in Taipei, and we weren’t sure what to expect, but I’ll tell you what, we loved every minute of it!

I’m going to tell you about our trip by uncovering our adventures as a series of interrelated ideas. A lot of the time, one thing led to another, which made for a lot of choices on our trip. Isn’t this the best way to travel?

So, let me tell you about our street food tour and hike up Elephant Mountain – two activities which we did not end up doing on the same day, but as promised, they are interrelated.

The streets of Taiwan

We had booked a street food tour for our third day there, which we were pretty excited about. For some reason, which is strange because we both really love our food and we travel overseas at least once a year, we had never been on a tour like this before. It was almost ignorant of us, assuming we knew the best bits about Asian food as a result of our travels through Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore, Cambodia and Japan because as we found out, we most certainly did not!

The food we tasted on the tour was fabulous, but so were the people we met and the cultural quirks of Taiwan that we learned about. It is such a great way to experience a new place. Walking through the busy streets allowed me to take the time to appreciate the beauty of what went on around me. A lady hunched over a bucket of nuts, shelling them to uncover the best bits, a team of pastry chefs working to create a Scallion pancake masterpiece or a fruit stall owner offering the freshest fruit with toothpicks to use as forks so that customers could keep their hands clean.

We ate some tasty and very unusual food, which I will tell you more about another time, but the people we met on the tour and the things we learned about Taipei also made it very memorable.

Market stall

There were 3 fellow Australian’s on tour, along with 2 girls from the US, a girl from Israel and an older guy from Canada. Some people, like us were travelling in pairs, but were just as keen to chat as the solo travellers. We found out about restaurants and must-see attractions that we foolishly had not factored in but luckily, we took their advice and checked out Elephant Mountain.

Where city meets mountain

It was a great hike, and we passed a lot of people on the way who were looking sweaty and accomplished as they stumbled down the steps. It was lucky that the steps had been built, as the slope was quite steep. There air was full of humidity, being April, and we were drenched in sweat. But we had dressed prepared – we made a quick pit stop to the hotel to change into our sports clothes after a busy day of sightseeing.

The views were magnificent. It felt like we could see the whole city, including one of the top 10 tallest towers in the world, Taipei 101, and the brilliant mountains that surrounded us. It was phenomenal – I don’t think I have ever seen such a contrast between a city and the surrounding mountains. It was a different view than we would get from the top of Taipei 101 – but I’ll get to that in another post.

For now, I hope you have begun to realise why this little discovered place is now one of our favourites. It was a short time there, but there is plenty more to tell you about Taiwan. Stay tuned for part II.

Comparing two cities

Posted on by Greta

Isn’t it strange how sometimes when you are in a place you compare it with somewhere else that you’ve already been?

You look around, get an understanding of the people, the weather, the landmarks and reach a conclusion that this place is very similar to somewhere you have been before.

Maybe it is because of the need to feel familiar with our surroundings, despite the fact that a lot of travellers think they would be comfortable anywhere.

Don’t get me wrong; I love exploring new places, but we all know that familiarity breeds comfort, which makes us feel content.

So why do we do it?

What is the point going anywhere if all you’re going to compare it to somewhere else?

Aren’t you there to take it all in; to experience the culture, food and the people? Why does this place need to be likened to somewhere else?

Back to the Golden City

Maybe we like to compare a new place with the most recent location that we have visited. On a trip to Auckland a few weeks ago, I couldn’t help but compare the city to San Francisco. We only returned from our trip to the states in August 2018, so it is relatively fresh in my memory.

We spent quite a bit of time in San Francisco down by the water, exploring the pier and riding bikes over the Golden Gate bridge and through the narrow streets.

In Auckland, we looked out to sea while dining on oysters from a restaurant near the port. The water was relatively still, just as it had been in San Fran.

The ferry to Waiheke Island was not unlike the ferry to Alcatraz, although the destination was indeed different.

Is this something that we only do after reaching a certain level of experience while travelling? I realise I have only recently started diving into my portfolio to compare two cities.

Maybe it is us showing off to ourselves; being proud that we have already been somewhere like this and knowing that upon returning home, we can tell others how this place has similar characteristics to another. It helps paint a picture and allows an understanding for people who have visited one o the places.

Breaky in the Big Apple

On our second day we had breakfast at one of the only places we could find open on a Sunday in the city – and it was such a cool café, with its relaxed vibe.

We walked through a small room with a few tables to an outdoor courtyard with tables and bench seats. We sat ourselves down and looked up – skyscrapers towered over us, visible through the lights which dropped from the roof with a dull yellow glow. There was some rap music playing, and I actually felt like I was in New York City. My bircher muesli took a while to arrive (something about them making it on the spot instead of soaking overnight) but that was fine by me as I sipped my coffee(s) and sat back to take it all in.

To liken to not to liken?

There were at least three instances where I likened Auckland to somewhere else, which I had not expected to do.

I wonder if I’ll feel the need to liken my next holiday to Auckland, or to America as well? After reflecting on this post, I think I’ll just take it as it comes.

The vivid lens of travel

Posted on by Greta

I love that travel really makes me think.

I’m glad we went to America when we did this year because it helped me see things for what they were. I had a fantastic three weeks away with my favourite travel partner – my husband. Our trip was action packed and we saw so many magnificent things.

On the plane over there I thought about my core values in life. After some time, I came to the conclusion that happiness, honesty and direction are what keep me going. If one of these is lacking, I feel off centre, and spend a large chunk of my time trying to regain my balance. I know that by putting in the effort and going after what I want, they can all be achieved.

In this post I’m going to break these values down and look at how taking time from day to day life to explore somewhere new affected my thought process and overall mood.

Happiness

Traveling generally makes people happy. While traveling, we are constantly learning, challenging ourselves with our surroundings and keeping ourselves busy. We are trying new food, seeing how different cultures interact and opening our minds to somewhere completely new. It is a feeling of freedom that you don’t get at home, because at every corner, there will be something new and untouched. One of my favourite things to do is to try out as many different restaurants as I can because this is the perfect way to get a sense of the culture. And who doesn’t feel happy while eating a tasty local feed? No matter what the cuisine, each suburb, town or country has their own unique flavour that stays with you for a long time.

Honesty

Travel reveals an honesty to both yourself and to your travel companion, and in discovering what is around you. There is nothing more genuine than spending every waking hour (almost) with one person and learning more about them. Finding mutual ground can feel as though it might be a struggle but, this can be avoided by removing all barriers and opening up. We all have our moments, whether we are tired, hungry, cold, hot or confused, sometimes we are not the best version of ourselves. When you have found that travel partner or group that allows you to discover a new world in your own time, is when you have allowed yourself to experience a form of honesty that doesn’t happen at home.

Direction

Traveling makes you think about where you are headed to next. Usually, you go with some sort of a plan about what you want to see, what you want to do, and how you are going to do it. You may also be left considering your direction (or lack of) back at home. What are you doing with your life and how is it helping you achieve our goals? Are you happy? Is there anything immediate you can do to change your situation? Being in a new environment allows for a fresh perspective on something that you may not think about back at home. Are you happy in your current situation? Are you satisfied with the amount of time you spend with your friends and/or family?

These values have become increasingly important to me over the last few years, and I have been able to appreciate them through the vivid lens of travel. Without happiness, there would be no energy to put into my goals. Without honesty there would be no clarity. Without direction there would be no vision.

So think about what is really important to you and how this can be brought out because active thinking can help you in more ways than one.

Whether the best way for you to consider your core values is through travel or something else, I encourage you to find out as soon as you can.

L I V E A B L E

Posted on by Greta

Last week I learned that Vienna is now the world’s most liveable city.

Melbourne was bumped down a spot after 7 years at the top, which I am not overly upset about, but this news got me thinking; what constitutes the world’s most liveable city?

A Google search lead me to a report, ‘The Global Liveability Index’, and I quickly learned of the ‘Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU)’, an organisation which provides country, risk and industry analysis.

In a world that is rapidly changing, it seems strange that the EIU only conduct this specific ‘liveability’ analysis once a year.

It is also interesting that there are only four countries featured in the top ten, maybe the EUI should create a rule that the same country cannot be featured more than once in the top ten, or at least in the top five.

  1. Vienna
  2. Melbourne
  3. Osaka
  4. Calgary
  5. Sydney
  6. Vancouver
  7. Toronto
  8. Tokyo
  9. Copenhagen
  10. Adelaide

Japan is top pick out of Asian countries, which is somewhat understandable. The craziness of Siem Reap (Cambodia), Bangkok (Thailand) and Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam) leave these developing cities out of the top ten, which almost makes me wonder why the EIU doesn’t split the list up with a ‘developing’ or ‘developed’ criteria?

These cities and the countries they reside in have taught so many travellers more about the world than they may ever learn in a developed area.

Watching people go about their day to day lives in these foreign lands is so different to what most of us know. Travelling to these countries allows for levels of personal development that can not be achieved elsewhere.

But as travellers, do we really need an annual report to tell us where we should flock to next, or could this report be more useful?

I can tell you that I have never witnessed the value of humility to such an extreme in any developed country that I have been to so far.

To put this value into perspective, let’s talk about children. We all know that kids have an innocence that allows their imagination to run wild.

But many children are not in an environment where they learn humility quickly.

Take a child to Vietnam, they will see things that they have never imagined; people cooking food in the streets, busy markets, scooters transporting a room full of furniture and a family of four, flooded streets and people with masks protecting their faces from the fumes.

Or, choose the safe road and take a child to Los Angeles, where they will still be amazed at what they see, just not in the same way.

So, let’s shake things up a little, step outside of our comfort zone. Because we need to give as much support as we can to these incredible countries and show people just how special they are.

These countries need as much as we can give them.