taipei december 2008 - thoughts

if there was some pre-planning prior to going there, i believe some 'show-stoppers' would have been detected:

1. Sweet Dynasty is no longer a 'celebrity' restaurant; Jacky divested his share already

2. Jay Chou didn't open any shop, we couldn't find that Omni shop either.

3. Metro Muzha Line is closed on and off in December for Neihu line integration testing.

4. Maokong cable car is closed due to mudslide in Oct 2008.

5. Shifen Waterfall at Pingsi is closed indefinitely due to land dispute with government.

transportation
those who went to HK would have been spoilt by the friendly tourist maps and direction signposts all over the territory. There are even signposts in Tai-O!

this was the main difference i felt on reaching Taipei - it tried to be tourist friendly, but unfortunately there aren't many signs everywhere. Furthermore, the railway system is quite cumbersome to move around, especially when making transfers. The lack of integration with EasyCard has intensified the confusion.

people
the people i came across was generally helpful, you can trust us on that because we asked for directions along the way. They are different from our local people, who puts on glum faces everywhere. The disappointing episode was obviously on the theft case; although i wouldn't blame the Taiwanese fully for that.

wish list
i missed out on Sun Moon Lake and Taroko Gorge. Hope i can visit them the next time.