Impressions of the capital city

Impressions of Taipei

You are unlikely to be greatly disturbed in Taipei. Crime seems nonexistent. Places to eat are so abundant they seem overbearing at times. There is just enough English to allow a Westerner to survive with minimal bumps in the road. There is a Starbucks on every corner…..seemingly. There are neighborhoods where teens and young adults carouse in clubs, bars, and comfortable places to linger over a meal. 

Yet this isn't a place where strangers will come away with great memories. Concerts and plays are scarce if thatś your hope. Beaches are distant (but accessible by public transit). And there is the overbearing presence of the heat. For reasons I can't fathom there is no liberating fog in Taiwan though Taipei is only a few kilometers from the ocean. And the wind…..it is almost entirely absent unless you hie yourself to  the surrounding mountains. Thus Google routinely reports ¨36 degrees, feels like 46¨ (thatś 115 degrees to the English world). 

My biggest disappointment is that the modern effort to reduce the ill effects of the automobile/ICE-vehicle haven't made it here. Cars fly by on the many four-lane and six-lane stroads that bisect the city. But the real hazard for pedestrians are the thousands of scooters that fling themselves in every unoccupied space. The city has many quaint, narrow alleyways that provide a great environment for small shops, restaurants, and barber shops, but these seeming refuges for walkers are just the opposite. Let down your guard for a moment and you are likely to perceive the telltale vroom of a motorized demon about to turn you into chopper liver. Even the sidewalks are fair game for any scooter operator wishing to save 30 seconds on his trip to work. There are a handful of cyclists, all looking slim and athletic, but they constitute a tiny minority of the Taipeians trying to make their way about. The only glimmer of hope for a person on a bicycle are the painted bike paths that sometimes take up the outer margin of the sidewalk. 

The streets are not safe. I never saw a schoolbound kid walking. In fact I don't think any sane parent would allow their child to walk anywhere in Taipei. Which is why every third scooter has a child on it riding behind mommy or daddy. Someday, mark my words, the city of Taipei will wake up and realize they desperately need to slow down all those vehicles and allow pedestrians and bicycle riders to create a more dilatory, humane metropolis. 

The one thing everyone will recommend to you here are the night markets, and I will give them my endorsement. You will be walking the streets at 9pm when suddenly you will find yourself tucked within a cocoon of competing food providers: scallion pancakes, beef & rice, baked eel, every variety of tea combined with every known fruit, tons of chicken dishes, et. al. For three blocks you will not escape the cornucopia, There are about a dozen such places throughout the city, all worth checking out. 

I am headed south now, set to return to the capital on the 20th.