Day Thirteen
The weather forecast today specified "Thundershowers." Not something I'd want to experience while on the mountainside, so I planned a city hike to a few "Art parks."
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First breakfast, though. A breakfast place was opposite the hotel, but it was always crowded with a queue outside. In the neighborhood behind the hotel were a few more breakfast places with no lines and the same delicious breakfast pancakes.
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From here, I wandered through the Banqiao neighborhood towards the river park.
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I enjoy wandering through these old neighborhoods with life on the streets—lots of little shops selling everything from meals to vegetables to clothes.
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Next to the river was the "Banqiao 435 Art Zone". A few of these are scattered throughout Taiwan (Art zones, that is). And most of the time, the description sounds cooler than they are.
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At the riverside, there were a ton of bird spotters with huge tele lenses pointed at some bush far away. I couldn't see what they were pointing at and decided not to walk that way and disturb them.
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The other way brought me to a bridge and a metro station nearby, but first lunch, classic Taiwanese beef noodles, delicious!
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Next to the lunch place, a lady was selling custard buns, which seemed like a good after-lunch dessert.
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One metro ride later, I was at the "Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall”. I’ve been here before, but I had to cross it to get to my next destination. I did visit the exhibition this time, because I had time to spare.
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From here I walked to another art zone: "Huashan 1914 Creative Park". This one was a bit more lively, and a few shops sold things ranging from DIY origami to necklaces and other trinkets.
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There were cafes and a park where I sat down for a while. Google Maps showed me that a mall nearby would be a nice place to shelter from the incoming rain.
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This mall was pretty amazing; it was huge, with seven floors selling every product connected with a wire ever invented, from lie-down gaming chairs to washing machines and from outdoor gear to Anime figures.
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An hour or so later, the rain had stopped, and I found an Okonomiyaki place nearby for dinner.
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The day ended with more rain.
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