Jioufen Tea House (九份茶坊)

When visiting Jiufen (九份), taking a break and dropping by the Jioufen Tea House (九份茶坊) to enjoy the beautiful misty scenery around the mountains and sipping the fragrant Oolong Tea of the season is the highlight of the visit. The friendly waitress introduce us to the various tea of the season that we can enjoy and the snacks available. 

If not for the drizzle, we would have sit outside at this
beautiful area :)

She also guided us on how to brew the tea to enjoy it to the maximum. I'd say that the way she taught was very important as we had some tea leaves left over, so we took it back. However, due to a mistake, I left the tea in the teapot, soaking in the tea leaves for too long and it became very strong and bitter, hence destroying the wonderful taste of the tea. After 2 more tries, I finally managed to get the same gentle taste and nice fragrance by ensuring that the tea leaves are only left within the pot for 3 mins or slightly less, 5 mins will make it rather bitter and strong as well.

These fragrant tea and delicious snack costed us about
TWD $980, I think

The handmade Oolong Tea Biscuit in the picture was heavenly when eaten with the Oolong Tea. Originally, I wanted to buy the biscuits back but it wasn't available for sale in packets so it's merely available for consumption in the tea house and a enjoy it while it last experience.

Overall, we had the most relaxing time during our entire trip at the tea house sipping Oolong Tea and nibbling the delicious handmade Oolong Tea Biscuit. I'd go back again during my next trip but perhaps plan for a longer break at this nice and relaxing venue. :P

Note: Be prepared to spend about at least TWD: $600 - $1000 for 2 person depending on what you ordered. I would say that more people would tend to bring the cost down, due to the high tea leave cost involved. Snacks are relatively cheaper.

九份艺术馆 (Art House Area within the Tea House)

Do remember to take a stroll within the tea house after you are done to look at the various tea pot / cups set collection, around the tea house, especially the art area. The gigantic pumpkin teapot is certainly an unique sight.

Website: www.jioufen-teahouse.com.tw
Address: 142 号，瑞芳镇九份基山街
Tel: 886-2-2496-9056
Operating Hours:
Mon - Thus: 9:30am to 10pm
Fri - Sat: 9.30am to 2am
Sun: 9.30am to 12am

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Jioufen (Jiufen - 九份) - Shihfen (十分) Route

Jioufen (九份) is a nice place for both sightseeing and to enjoy high tea / coffee. It's one of my favourite place to be to relax and enjoy life while going on a trip. Most importantly, to avoid the crowd, you must visit this place on a weekday. In fact, all sightseeing venues are strictly weekday only trip if not you'll end up with messed up schedule due to long queues and long waiting times.

There are 2 main type of routes you can take Jioufen (九份) and Jing Gua Shi (金瓜石) or  Jioufen (九份) and Pingsi (平溪). Most importantly, is to leave early in the morning as you'll need to plan such that the trip will end around 7 - 8 pm when the frequency of the trains reduces and also the shop closes as well.

For those interested in getting miniature Skylights, do take note that you should be getting them at Shihfen (十分) and not Jioufen (九份) as they comes with more varieties at a lower price at Shihfen (十分). You can even get the words handwritten on your very own Skylight collection at a better price. Also, you will get to enjoy the nice scenery at Shifen (十分).

For this particular trip, we picked the Jioufen (九份) and Pingsi (平溪) route but we only ended up at Jioufen (九份) and Pingsi (平溪) - Shihfen (十分) only due to me waking up too late in the morning.

Look for this exit to the bus stop

How to get there:

1. Take MRT to Taipei Main Station (台北车站)
2. Take Train (台铁) towards Hua Lian, Taipei East Direction (花莲, 台东 方向) to Ruifang Train Station (瑞芳车站) ~ 45 mins
   Note: There's a faster / express train ride 自强号 and a slower / normal train ride 莒光号
3. Take Bus 1013 (基隆客运) to Jioufen (九份) towards Jioufen (九份) / Jing Gua Shi (金瓜石) ~ 15 mins
   Do take note that you should hold on to the handrails and best to take a seat as the F1 bus uncle will give you the most exciting bus ride ever! (So far, it's the most happening bus ride I've ever took in my life lol)
   
   There are a few bus stops that you can alight, but it's best to ask the bus uncle about it so that he can advise you and remind you when to alight.

The whole trip will take about 1.5 hours to reach including the waiting time.

To go to Shihfen (十分)  from Jioufen (Jiufen - 九份):

1. Take Bus 1013 back to Ruifang Train Station (瑞芳车站) ~ 15 mins
2. If you intend to do station hopping, buy 1 day pass for the Ruifang - Qingtong route (瑞芳 - 青铜)

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Hua Xi Jie Night Market (华西街夜市)

The night market stretches from Guang Zhou Jie (广州街) all the way up to Section 2 of Gui Yang Jie (贵阳街二段) with a length of about 352m. It is the most prominent night market in Xi Men area yet not as commercialized as the Shih Lin Night Market (士林夜市). For those who enjoyed shopping till late night should visit the area, where you can shop till you drop. I think this is where I bought 2 pairs of boots lol!

Unlike Hong Kong, the Taipei's night market has small stores along the streets and small stalls between the streets. Most importantly the permanent stores along the street have much more variety than those in the Hong Kong Street that I saw during my last trip. At least, that's my impression. But then again, I'm not familiar with Hong Kong, so we didn't actually visited much night market in there. Whichever the case, I would say that all Taipei's night markets that are convenient should be visited as they are really an eye opener for me!

How to get there: Take the MRT 搭捷运 (Bannan line 板南线) to 到 Long Shan Si 龙山寺, alight at Exit 1 一号出口下车. Turn right 右转, walk along Xi Yuan Road until 沿着西园路走到 Guang Zhou Jie (广州街) Long Shan Si 龙山寺, Turn left 左转, walk until you see the night market 至到夜市.

Est. Walking Duration: 3 Mins

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Red House Creative Market (西门红楼创意市集)

Although the Red House looks rather plain and simple most of the time, there's actually a creative market held in front of it only during weekends around late morning till evening time. As I didn't know of its present until I got home, I didn't notice it opening as I sort of missed the timing that it was opened. Hence, I didn't know exactly what is the duration of the market other than the following information I've got from my little book on Taipei. I certainly would drop by the market during my next visit as my colleague also promoted that place.

Address: 台北市成都路10号
Activity Days: Weekends (Sat 星期六 / Sun 星期天)
Website: redhousetaipei.blogspot.com

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Carrefour (家乐福) - Cup Noodles & Grocery

If you do visit Taiwan, don't forget to try out their cup noodles as I felt that the cup noodles from Taiwan is best tasting cup noodles I've ever eaten. Most importantly, you can find all kind of instant food and cup noodles at Carrefour. In fact bought 2 packs back to Singapore. 2 x Beef Noodles and 2 x Spaghetti. Of course there's also the healthier snacks / breakfast type of instant food.

Almond Lian Zi Cereal (Healthier Snack)
I love the taste!

Normal Beef Cup Noodles

Spicy Beef Cup Noodles

Addr: 台北市桂林路1号 (1 Guilin Road)
Operating Hrs: 24hrs
Tel: (02)2388 9877 / 0809001365
Website: www.carrefour.com.tw


How to get there?
Take the blue Bannan Line (板南线) MRT to Ximen Station (西门站) Exit 1 then walk along Xi Ning North Road (西宁南路) towards Long Shan Si (龙山寺) direction until Guilin Road's (桂林路) junction and you will see Carrefour (家乐福) in front of you (across the street).  
Estimated walking time: 7mins

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Fish Almond (Ikan Bilis - 小鱼杏仁) @ Family Mart

My favorite snack in Taiwan was the Imei Brand Fish Almond (小鱼杏仁) which I got from Family Mart. In fact there are many other snacks available. For almond snacks, there's 2 types: Fish Almond (小鱼杏仁)  and Prawn Almond (小虾杏仁). But I would say that the fish almond had a unforgettable great taste, so much so that I bought 2 small packets home after finishing 2 packs in Taipei but the prawn one tasted so-so.

Fish Almond (Ikan Bilis - 小鱼杏仁)

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Watson's (屈臣氏)

Watson's in Xi Men area (西门町) is a rather huge place,  it is about 4 storeys high with various products, from facial mask, makeup to common household products. It is a place I felt is worth shopping at, whether you are buying its products or not doesn't matter but just to take a look at the product range was already much of an eye-opener for me. 

The hello kitty mask is one of the many products that it has in store. But now, I realised that Singapore does carry this type of mask too at S$13 per box, which is almost the same price as what I bought in Taipei. During a promotion, I even saw the same mask selling at just S$10! Almost most masks are about half our price, not all of them are indeed cheaper than Singapore. Only those made in Taiwan are sold at a much better price in the area, with the exception of the hello kitty mask.

Addr: 武昌街二段39号

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Daiso at Cheng Ping 116 (诚品116)

Perhaps not as big as the one at 信义区 (Xin Yi Area), still the Daiso at Xi Men Ding's Cheng Ping 116 is pretty big as well. Most importantly, it's located at a easily accessible building at the heart of Xi Men Ding. The main highlight of the Daiso in Taiwan is that it is way bigger and had a lot more things sold at TWD $38 which is about SGD $1.7 after conversion. From nail polish to makeup to household products, it's almost you name it and they have it. 

Of course don't expect those expensive house hold applicants to be available for sale there.

Address: 台北市汉中街116号 (I can't remember which level is it located at so look out for the sign board)

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