Confessions of a Corporate Shopaholic

Taipei is a destination where I don’t mind traveling alone, similar to Bangkok.  The two cities however are very different in the most obvious ways.  Although I have been to Taipei both for business and leisure countless number of times, it’s been a year since my last visit to the city.  I am here for 6 days which I think is the longest consecutive period that I have spent, and hence I have a lot of time to re-acquaint, chill, and take in what the city can offer.

Though it’s always more enjoyable to savor a city’s cuisine with good friends, sometimes I just need to make do when the circumstances don’t allow this to happen.  This time, I have skipped all the sightseeing activities and shopping.  I have done my more than fair share of supporting our economy back home in the last 2 months, and the weak Hong Kong dollar is not making it much fun either.  Instead, I am focusing all my energy in finding local food which I can sample myself, alone.  And it’s not difficult at all, here in Taipei.

There are plenty of street side stores serving the most mouth-watering local delicacies, and I am not even talking about the ever delightable night markets.  I can’t help but notice that none of these eateries operate like what we have in Hong Kong.  They don’t serve 158 different dishes and 37 beverages.  They hardly charge service fees, and they seldom change hands.  Many stores have been in the same business and location for the past 40 years or more.  Most of them stick to the same menu and sometimes even prices.  They always sell what they are specialized in, and very often work on complementing their neighbors.  I find it very refreshing, and at the same time sorry about the depressing food scene at home mainly due to exorbitant rental prices.  I love to return to a simpler time when I can go back to the same place, eat the same food, meet the same owner, and be consistently satisfied in the same way. One dish, is all I need to remember them and to go back again and again.

Maybe it’s a sign that I am really getting old, but I am always thankful to a city which has given me so much joy and comfort, both spiritually and gastronomically.