Taiwan Trip : Beitou Hot Spring

 

 

Taiwan is famous for hot springs. It is now part of Taiwanese culture to relax and recharge their mind and body, the natural way, in the hot springs. The warm waters of these springs, heated and charged by the earth's own energy, are believed to soothe, revitalize and reinvigorate the body.

 

The hot spring nearest to Taipei is Beitou. On the third day of our Taipei trip, we took a quick tour to Beitou. It is accessible on the MRT, via the Red Line towards Danshui direction. From Beitou Station, a one-station branch line runs to Xin Beitou Station (新北投站).

 

 

The special one-station train arrived at the platform.

 

      

 

Once come out of Xin Beitou Station, you will come to this big junction. Cross the road and head straight up the hill towards the apartment direction. On the right, it is the start of Qinshui Park.   

 

 

The Beitou Library, a unique building.

 

 

Beitou Hot Spring Museum (北投温泉博物馆), housed in a Euro style building, was once a public bath.

 

 

Along the hills, there are many hotels, traditional bathhouses, luxury spa. The Thermal Valley (地狱谷) , also known as Hell Valley (地狱谷), is located near the end of Zhongshang Road on the left hand side next to the Park.

 

 

This is the most famous spot, a natural sulphur hot spring where water temperature can reach 100 deg C.

 

 

 

No doubt a green and lush environment. If you can bear the foul odour of sulphur and the constant rising of steam, it is indeed a good place to relax and unwind.

Mr. J & Mr. Qute

My previous post on the quirky toilet restaurant has disturbed a lot of my friends. So, I decided to cheer them up with another food review, but this time at a decent restaurant. But then, you can skip this post if you are not a fan of Jay Chou.

Mr. J is a French-Italian restaurant owned by Taiwan artist Jay Chou. Mr. Qute which is located next door is his latest venture into the dessert/pastry speciality.

Whilst in Taipei, we decided to dine there after visit to Taipei 101. We went to the Guangfu South Road branch. I heard that the university branch has more to offer in terms of ambience and interior, bearing the theme of Jay’s romantic movie, “Secret”.

Address : No 43, Lane 308, Guangfu S. Road, Da-an District, Taipei. It is not easy to find, hidden at some unnoticeable side alley. This is where Jay filmed his “Wo Bu Pei” MV.

Packed with Hong Kong tourist.

A Betty Boop’s umbrella stand. The reception is full of souvenirs and fringe products, posters, stickers, figurines, etc., capitalizing on the owner’s fame.

Decorated with Jay’s portraits and medieval oil paintings

Cocktails named after Jay’s songs.

On the menu, there are choices of affordable set meal, including soup, salad, main course and a yoghurt dessert. This is the pumpkin soup.

Spaghetti Alfredo something something. I remember my order of Fettuccine Alla Carbonara, but can’t find the photo.

Chicken Risotto

The pastry chef’s arty masterpiece

Mr. Qute’s famous for these wonderful fruit tarts.

My babes are as sweet as those pastries.

Food wise, six out of ten. But the desserts fared better. Most people dine here for novelty sake or are avid fans of Jay. Given the chance, we wouldn’t mind going to the university branch. Next trip, ok?

Edible Excretions?

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These days, running a F&B business is no easy job. Even Ferran Adria, chef of the world No. 1 restaurant elBulli, decided to close it down due to fatigue and the need of time to re-structure the business. For those who are thinking of venturing into the world of gastronomy, "creative dining" is the keyword.

One must get creative to attract business. Have you tried dining behind iron bars (jailroom), being served by harajuku lolita girls, or eating out of surgical equipment? Novelty is one thing, but certain concept is over the top for some faint hearted.

There is this Taiwanese popular restaurant chain which takes the restroom out into the dining area. The name of the restaurant is called Modern Toilet. Sounds gross? Well, the locals seem to embrace with enthusiasm with twelve outlets throughout Taiwan and it is expanding into China, Hong Kong and other parts of Asia. As it was raved about so much, we decided to "open our eyes" when we were in Taipei. We went to the Ximending outlet which is situated atop some fashion/apparel shops. Just take a look at the pix below, wouldn't you mistaken it as a real public toilet?

Modern Toilet Restaurant, Ximending, Taipei

Generally, the decor is cute rather than disgusting. Walls are cladded either in bright colours panels or mosaic tiles. Shower faucets are hanged along the walls. One gets to sit around glass table with either sinks or a bathtub underneath as the base. Toilet paper and marker pen are available on the table for patrons to leave notes/messages to be left inside the sink/bathtub. Smashing, even the lights are poo-shaped light fittings.

Patrons will have to plonk their asses on these stylish acrylic toilets, with services disconnected of course, if not, it will be the Chinese saying, "What goes in must come out." The toilet seat covers are designed with images of flowers, leaves, seashells or Renaissance paintings.

It took me quite a while to browse through the somewhat comprehensive menu, while my kids were busy snapping away. Fusion food are served, ranging from Japanese curries, pasta, hot pot, fried chicken, noodles and shaved ice desserts. The names and descriptions of the dishes are disgusting and will definitely freak you out if you are obsessive-compulsive about cleanliness. Ha, I did capture the dessert menu. Diarrhea with dried droppings means chocolate flavour, bloody poo is strawberry whereas green dysentery is Kiwi.

Patrons are given a printed menu to tick their orders. For drinks, they are either served in an ordinary mug, a urinal, a plastic portable urinal or plastic commercial detergent (Kao bleach, for example) container. Pick your choice.

The plastic urinal with lid is given to patrons as a souvenir.

This is my sour plum juice. The 2 sour plums do resemble goats' dropping swimming in the yellowish liquid ... eeewww

Spaghetti with meatballs served in a mini wash hand basin.











The Japanese hotpot served atop a mini toilet bowl. The serving dishes/plates all resemble some aspect of the bathroom, albeit them being not actually to scale.

The southern fried chicken with chips and corn fritters served in a mini bathtub.






Two happy faces, having a jolly time, eating out of toilet bowls.

A mega portion of rainbow colour shaved ice, laced with ice-cream, nato de coco, pineapple cubes, marshmallows etc. served in a mini squat toilet.

The dual coloured faeces-shaped soft swirled ice-cream.

Reasonably priced food. Among the three of us, we only ordered 2 sets and ended up so bloated! All these food for RM70!

Okay, I am mean and disgusting. I show you the real toilet. But, hang on. This is NOT a toilet. This is indeed a wash hand basin in the ladies. Note the tap. Amazing, isn't it?


Overall, it is a unique dining experience although the food is mediocre, nothing to shout about. The toilet humour does appeal to the youngsters and the restaurant was packed with students and office workers. The Modern Toilet chain has been "flush" with success ever since. For your info, a toilet-themed cafe was opened recently in Sungai Wang, if I am not mistaken, it is called T-Bowl.



Let me quote what the owner said,


"It is supposed to shock and confuse the senses."

In The Eye Of The Beholder

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The latest TVB drama series "In The Eye of the Beholder" has come to a happy albeit ridiculous ending. Well, it is supposed to be a comedy, so take it with a pinch of salt.

- Credits -

For those who understand the Chinese language would definitely know the story about the acclaimed scholar Tong Bak Fu and his beloved Chau Heung. This drama, however, contains some plot modifications and twists. It changed the original story of the three smiles marriage destiny between the flirtatious talented scholar and Chau Heung.

Chau Heung, as we have known, was a gentle and soft-spoken beauty. Tong Bak Fu was mesmerized by her beauty and fell in love with her at the first sight. This version of Chau Heung (starred Myolie Wu) is no longer the traditional type! She had transformed into a highly-skilled martial arts fighter.

Now, under the enlightenment of the angry Chau Heung, it made Tong Bak Fu (starred Moses Chan) realize the reason behind doing a part for the country.

The level of humour in this drama is definitely the witty Tong Bak Fu, accompanied by his ardent disciple Wat Kei (starred Johnson Lee) went about in solving problems. Moses and Johnson, what a comedic pair, they totally cracked me up throughout the drama. Wish to see more of them in the future.

- credits -

Purple With Passion

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Purple is an intriguing colour.

It is derived from the mixing of a strong warm (red) and strong cool colour (blue).

It is royality.

It signifies nobility.

It is associated with spirituality.

It can boost one's imagination and creativity.

It is a colour reminiscent of puberty.

Purple is romantic, purple is PASSION.

Purple is my favourite colour coz I love lavender, orchid, amethyst, violet, lilac, wine ... ...

Putting aside the normal mediocre flavours/fillings, I decided to give my cheesecake a special touch, umm... something PURPLE. Yes! RIBENA, my son's comfort cordial drink. But, I was not going to do a Ribena jelly layer over the cheesecake. What I had in mind was just putting a dash of purple in the creamy white cheesecake.

See what I have come up with. A Ribena Marble Cheesecake.

It was fun doing the swirl to create the marbled effect. Nothing technical, just run the tip of a knife randomly in the dual tone cream cheese mixture.

Looking at the soft purple swirl. Can you now feel the passion running through your veins?

Bring Back the Smiles, Please

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Turning the clock back to same time last year, we were having such a wonderful, relaxing time in the Land of Smiles, Thailand - Bangkok.

A while ago, was thinking of returning for another shopping spree. But since beginning of March, the Red Shirted anti-government protesters had weaved through the city key routes causing traffic paralysed, splattered blood at the government buildings, clashed with the government supporters, all in an effort to topple the present government. Endless talks were held, but until now failed to produce a fruitful agreement. Thailand has endured this widespread political unrest for years now, causing the capital coming to a virtual standstill, resulting in a huge decline in tourism relating revenues and at the same time taking away the smiles from the Thais' faces, etc. when can this be ended?

I have promised my kids to try and visit Bangkok as much as we possibly can, er, probably every other year. You must be thinking “Bangkok again? Are you keeping someone there?” Ha, how I wish I am.

So, Why I love Bangkok so dearly?

It is rather difficult to single it out.

May be it is ...The holistic shrines, the religious Thais.

The taxis in rainbow colours.

The Grand Palace

The shopping heaven - Platinum Fashion Mall in Pratunam

The roller coaster ride in a 'tut-tut'

The mystical Wat Arun.



The tallest building in Bangkok - The Baiyoke Tower

Bustling Siam Square area, MBK, Siam Paragon, etc

Rejuvenating foot reflexology and body massage

The sweet, succulent mango sticky rice

The cholesterol-laden pork trotter rice.

The Black Canyon Coffee.

The night markets...

Just hope that everything will be back to normal in Bangkok by end of the year.