Morwing Hotel - Culture Vogue, Taipei

Morwing Hotel - Culture Vogue is conveniently located near the Taipei Main Station. It is  on Nanyang Street, one of the lively streets in Taipei. It is easily reachable by public transportation .
It is just 5 minute walk from Taipei West Station Building A.

If you arrive late at night,  take Kuo-Kuang Bus (1819) from TaoYuan Airport Terminal 1. At the last stop, locate the Shinkong Mitsukoshi Building which is the highest building fronting Taipei Main Station. You can cross the pedestrian lane and turn left to Caesar's Hotel then turn right and you will find the Morwing Hotel.

If the Tao Yuan Airport MRT is still open you can take that up to the last station. Exit at A1 fronting Taipei Main Station , turn right and you will see the Shinkong Mitsukoshi Building.

The lobby reception is located at the 5F and check is is fast. Staff can speak English well.

The double room is a bit small. However, the queen bed is nice, firm and clean. The toilet and bath are clean as well. Amenities are provided - small ref, safety deposit box, electric kettle, cable tv , telephone and free WIFI.

There are so many shops around the hotel and you will find so many food stores to choose from. There is Starbucks, several bubble tea shops, japanese restaurants, street foods, Uniqlo, H&M and other foreign franchises.

Generally, this hotel is nice.

Morwing Hotel - Culture Vogue

Tel：+886 2 2312-3661 (24hr)
FAX：+886 2 2312-3727
5F., No.8, Nanyang St., Zhongzheng Dist., Taipei City 100, Taiwan (R.O.C.)
morwinghotelculture@gmail.com

Taipei - Awesome Food Trip

There are plenty of delicious food in Taipei. Visit night markets and you will be amazed of the variety of food they sell. We have tried a couple of popular snacks and street food during our short stay in Taipei. With the help of some food bloggers, we were able to find them. We hope to try more when we go back to Taipei. Here are our favorites in no particular order:

1- Pan Fried Pork buns
There are many stalls around our hotel selling freshly made pork buns. Selling at NTD15 each, this soft bun has juicy meat fillings. The bun is pan fried at the bottom.

2- Flaky Scallion Pancake NTD35
This pancake is similar to roti. It is flaky and best eaten warm. Plenty of sellers in various streets.

pork bun, gyoza and flaky scallion pancake

3- Beef noodles
We got our beef noodles at Breeze food court 2F of Taipei Main Station. The beef was so tender, the soup has a bit of star anise flavor, the noodles al dente. It is a comfort food. Prices vary but this one cost NTD300

4- Pepper pork bun
This gorgeous crunchy pork bun is filled with moist filling consisted of ground pork and pepper. The popular stall selling the bun can be found right at the entrance to Raohe Night market. You will not miss it due to the long line it creates. It cost NTD50 each. 

cook tandori style

freshly made dough and filling

crunchy bun

5-Misua soup
This bowl of misua ( thin rice noodles) in flavorful soup base with chopped pork intestines is so delicious. 
It's kinda gooey and you can slurp it. It is really good. The most popular seller can be found in Emei street in Ximending . The store name is Ay-Chung Flour Rice Noodles. Soup comes in 3 sizes.

6- Taiwanese sausage
 This sausage is so meaty with smokey flavor. We got ours in Shifen but they can be found in other night markets as well.

7-pineapple cake
Taiwan's most favorite souvenir is this small pineapple cake mostly individually wrapped. This pastry is filled with candied pineapple. It is sweet and the pastry is crumbly and buttery. You can find it almost everywhere. We bought one at Shilin Night market and another one in Sunmerry bake shop in Yong Kang.

8-xiao long bao at Din Tai Fung 101
While Shanghainese in origin, it was said that Taiwanese perfected this dumpling. This bite size xiao long bao has paper thin wrappings which hold the rich hot broth and tender meatball. The soup squirts out upon biting the dumpling. There is an instruction provided by DTF on how to eat and enjoy these soupy dumplings.

9- Ice Shaving
This wonderful dessert of shaved ice can be topped with fresh fruit and flavorings. You can select from mango, strawberry,  kiwi, red beans and a lot more. The presentation is very appealing to the eyes and you will definitely enjoy this dessert. We had ours at King Mango in Yong Kang street.

10- Pork Belly bun: Lan  Jia Gua Bao
It is a steamed bun sandwich with a hearty filling of braised pork belly, pickled Chinese cabbage and powdered peanuts. The filling is chopped into small pieces and mixed together so you can have a bit of everything in every bite. It's salty, sour and sweet flavor combine. A piece cost NTD50. We got ours at Lan Jia gua Bao which is a 7 minute walk from Gongguan MRT station. If you're lost, just seek help from some students as the stall is near National Taiwan University.

11- Blow Torched beef cubes
 The steak cubes are first grilled, and then blow torched to speed up the cooking.Once cooked, it is placed in a takeaway box and you get to choose your seasoning. I chose pepper.

The steak was quite flavorful, and  cooked medium well. It cost NTD100 . You can find them in night markets.

12-Lemon Aiju jelly
 The aiyu juice is made with a type of fig and lemon juice. There's a jelly and it is served ice cold . It is refreshing. Bought one at Shilin Night Market.

13- Tea egg
A batch of tea eggs with shell still on braised in  brew of spices and tea. Tea eggs just like hard boiled eaggs are great for snack. Convenience stores are selling tea eggs. However, we got ours at Jiufen. NTD10

14-Taro and sweet potato balls
 This cold dessert is made up of taro and sweet potato balls with some shaved or crushed ice in a dessert bowl. For variation, condiments like candied red bean, tapioca pearls are added if desired. The balls are chewy and the cold syrup is refreshing. We got one in Jiufen at NTD35

You may be interested in:
yehliu-juifen-shifen-day-tour
raohe-night-market
elephant-mountain-or-nangang-district

Nanya Rock Formation

Located at the northern east coast of Taiwan is Nanya. It is famous for its unique rock formations and coral shore.

 The stone patterns were said have been formed through the weathering of sandstone lining up the shore. The stripes were due to the oxidation of iron ore. One rock is shaped like an ice cream twirl.

 

There is a viewing area where visitors can enjoy the scenic shores. 
Hire a private car for a hassle free travel. Nanya rock formation can be part of your day tour.


Our day tour itinerary
yehliu-juifen-shifen-day-tour

Raohe Night Market

One of the popular night markets in Taipei is Raohe night market. It is one of the oldest night markets and is located in Songshan district. It is 600 meters long and packed with all the night food, snacks, shops and stalls.

A colorful Chinese arch marked the entrance to the night market.

One can not miss the long line for the pepper bun being sold right at the entrance. While the line is long, it is fast moving. The pepper bun is prepared right there and cooked tandori style. There is a big hot clay jar where they stick the bun and let it bake for 3-5 minutes. It has meat and veggie fillings and it is delicious. A piece cost NTD50. Eat it while it's hot to enjoy the juicy filling and crispiness.

Continue walking and more food stalls await you. Be adventurous and try some of the food.

blow torched beef  @NTD100

Aside from food, other merchandise are sold - TShirts, souvenirs etc.

One alley will take you to the nearby Rainbow bridge. It is pretty safe to roam around and just watch the colorful bridge , the river and walkway.

How to get there:
Take the Songshan-Xindian Line to Songshan exit1 . Direction to the market is very clear and one can not miss it. The market is about 20 meters away.

Other things to do when in Taiwan:
Day tour to Yehliu-Juifen-Shifen
Elephant Mountain Trail
Taipei 101- An engineering marvel