About Taipei City Guide

I first came to Taiwan nearly 20 years ago, which is a frightening thought! I never intended to stay so long, after doing a visa trip from Korea. In fact, I only wanted to have a short worry free vacation before starting my new job. I never expected my vacation to last so long...

But something kept me here: I'm not sure if it was the warmer weather, the friendly people, or the wonderful food... or my charming wife!

This site is intended to be a way of introducing Taipei (and Taiwan) to the outside world, a venue for me to share my own experiences of the island, and as an encouragement to myself to get out and explore even more of Taipei and Taiwan than I have at the moment!

You may have noticed that the site is about Taipei City, hence the name. But a couple of things have caused me to broaden the notion. First, in 2014, Taipei City will be merged with Taipei County (New Taipei City) to form a metropolitan area rivaling many worldwide.

Secondly, one of the big mistakes in my first years here was simply not getting out of Taipei City for trips, excursions and short holidays. Taiwan's infrastructure has dramatically improved in that time, making it possible to enjoy quick, exciting and memorable trips all over the island. As you'll see in the sidebar, I've tried to reflect that in my choice of places.

So, if you are a tourist and your goal is to tour Taipei, or if you are a short-term resident (or longer!), I hope that I'll be able to encourage you to take some of this trips. After all, when you get out of the city, you can really appreciate both what Taiwan offers, and what wonderful things Taipei can offer, too.

In short, this site is about Taipei City (and County); but with lots of suggestions about other places to go that may or may not be in the Taipei Metropolitan Area. For that, I make no apology.