As I have said a couple of posts back, I had an impromptu snacks tour during my trip to NTU.  And rightly so, my guides ushered me to where the locals buy two (2) of the most popular snacks/treats inside NTU before leading me to the Gongguan Night Market.

     Me and my tour guides, Ms. Annick and Alice, walked towards the right side of the Main Library until we came to a small, cottage-like store packed with people.  The guides told me that NTU sells some produce from the NTU Farm and their by-products, including NTU's very own ice cream!  And they're selling like hotcakes!  When we got into the NTU store, the ice cream wafer/sandwich was sold-out and there were no more ice cream on cups left in the freezer.  Good thing we waited for a while because the staff restocked the ice cream on cups, about half a pint each, and they wiped out in mere minutes!

     After buying the ice creams, we faced a little challenge finding an empty table where we could eat and chill.  There were tables and chairs outside, al fresco style, and a couple of picnic tables.  We found a vacant picnic table, and I had the opportunity to hang out as the locals do.  Not long thereafter, I met the cutest and the smartest Taiwanese I've ever met, pictured here:

      This boy's parents shared our table and the kid and I hit it off immediately.  All he did at first was to glare at me but after some time, he relaxed and even played with me.  He's just 2 years old but he can recite the English alphabet and can count in English.  So cute! And smart!

     While playing peek-a-boo with the toddler, I ate my ice cream, which was vanilla, and it was creamy and delish.  Then after an hour, I quickly forgot about the waffle my guides volunteered to buy.  Apparently, you buy it from a nearby store, if I remember correctly, or is it at the same store?  I forgot because I was buying the ice cream when the guides bought the waffle.  Anyway, our number was in the hundreds and it had a time for pick-up.  Yes, you buy the waffle then wait for an eternity because there are about a hundred people ahead of you.  It was worth the wait, though.  The waffle was perfectly done:  it was crisp outside and soft inside.  It almost melts in the mouth. 

     After we finished off our ice cream and waffles, my guides brought me food tripping at the Gongguan Night Market!  Yay!  

     Ms. Alice asked me if I have ever eaten any of the famous Taiwanese snacks.  I told her no, with the exception of the Hot Star Chicken and the waffle that we just had.  She was so shocked!  So, she and Ms. Annick dragged me to what they tell me is a very famous stall at the Gongguan Night Market selling a thick misua soup of some sorts and stinky tofu.  They swore to make me eat stinky tofu, which I did, and I even ordered the misua soup.  The stinky tofu was not so bad.  It was delicious but the odor is mildly off-putting.  I say mildly because apparently, the stinky tofu served at the stall was not as stinky as the ones I smelled at Jiufen.  I was not able to consume the soup because it was so heavy and the stinky tofu was filling by itself.

     After eating, for the second time in about two hours, we rounded up the streets of Gongguan Night Market and a lot of snacks along the way, including roasted duck heads:

     As the day went darker, the throng of people and cars got thicker.  And yes, there are a lot of young people at the market since it's so near NTU.

     Finally, we reached our ultimate destination, to a hugely popular bubble tea shop.  It's easy to spot.  Just look for rows of some more than 50 people and that'll be it.  There's even chalk marks on the ground to let people know where to line up.  Yes, if you see people lining up in Taipei, it's probably for some famous snacks.

     The guides told me that it's arguably the best bubble milk tea, and the secret? Brown sugar for the tapioca.  I was like, we've been doing that back home since like, forever.  So, the taste was way too familiar for my buds.  And the shop sign has a crazy long explanation why the written logo is long or something.. It's also on the plastic cups, like a logo. The guides told me that it's a strategy to deter copycats to copy the store's logo. Anyway, the bubble tea was yummy and worth the 30-minute wait.

    

     After our Danshui Joyful Life Tour, my tour guides and I rushed to the Beitou MRT station to meet a French male tourist.  But alas!  We ran in late and when we arrived, the French guy apparently joined another tour.  We were just ten minutes late and the French guy thought that the guides bailed out on him.   So, I was the only tourist, too, for the afternoon tour.

     The guides were supposed to bring me to Yangmingshan and to the Calla Lily Festival.  However, another guide told us that she just got out from the mountain and it was really, really traffic.  After all, it was a Sunday, the last weekend before the Flora Festival ends and the last day for the Calla Lily Festival.  So, after much pondering, and not wanting to be stuck in traffic without actually seeing anything, I decided to pick an alternative tour, and I chose the NTU Education tour.  My guides were not really knowledgeable about the tour since their specialty lies with the National Museum and Yangmingshan tours, but what the heck.  I've been to most of the places on the free tours program and really, I have not been to anywhere along the MRT green line where the NTU is located.  So, to NTU we go!

     For most people, National Taiwan University is known as one of Taiwan's best universities.  But for fans of Meteor Garden, NTU provides one of the most recognizable places of the series, the palm-tree lined path leading to the fictional Yingde University, aptly known as the Royal Palm Boulevard.   So, I was more than happy to see the campus.  Teehee.

     The National Taiwan University has sprawling grounds.  You really need to use a bicycle, or a car, to go around the campus.  You can, of course, just walk from the gate to that huge building in the horizon and beyond.  But if you're a student, you might run late getting to your classes.

     As to places of interest, the NTU has a lot to offer.  Just to the right from the gates near the MRT exit, you could see a Parthenon-like architecture, or something, which seems unusual, amidst a classical garden. It's really pretty in it's white, marbled glory, at least I think it's made of marble.  But, it's also creepy, too, considering that the structure houses the grave of NTU's First President, Mr. Fu Si-Nian. In short, it's a mausoleum. Anyway, the garden itself is named after Fu Si Nian.

     We rounded up a part of the campus grounds from the gates near the MRT exit and I've found out that NTU is a favorite  location for photo shoots.  We've seen a couple having their prenup pictorial, which is hugely popular in Taiwan, there.

     Other places of interest includes the Fu Bell and the Main Library, among others.  Definitely, architecture buffs will be delighted to tour the campus.  And what do you know?  There's a farm on campus and an ecological pond (Liugongjun Pool)!  Although I wasn't able too see it, there's another pond called the Drunken Moon Lake, which despite its crazy name, is reputedly a very lovely and romantic lake, especially at night.

 Main Library

 Inside the library.  Reminds me of UST Main Library.

 Red bricks and archways of the Main Library.

     Here's a map of NTU for your reference (click on the photo for full resolution):

     In part 2 of my NTU tour, I'd show you where to buy two of the most famous treats on campus as well as how to spend a weekend afternoon like a local.

     This is the first tour lined up for the day.  I was supposed to meet my guide, Ms. Alice, at the Danshui MRT station at 8:00 a.m. and I just made it in time though I thought I was going to be late.  When I got there, Ms. Alice introduced me to another guide, Ms. Annick.  I was surprised to have two guides for the day.  I guess I was just lucky!

     We spared no time and then we headed off to the bus station to catch bus R26 going to Fort San Domingo.  I bought a Taipei one-day tourist pass, and what do you know?  The bus we rode doesn't accept payment from the pass so I had to pay coins.  I offered to pay the fare for my guides by they politely declined and told me they're supposed to pay for their own.

     Once we got to the Fort, we learned it was still closed and will not open until mid-morning.  A kind lady who works for the Fort told us so, and we asked her where to get some breakfast because we're all hungry.  We were told that there are a lot of eateries at the other side of the Aletheia University and so, we went to find those eateries.

     Well, we entered Aletheia University and it seems as if school's out because there were no students milling around.  It was a school holiday, I think.  The school grounds are well-maintained and it's quite a walk from end to end.  It was tiring to walk under the sun but the tree-lined campus grounds made up for it; the school's definitely pretty.

     When we reached the other side of the university, we tried to find an open eatery, and we were lucky!  My guides told me that there are always cheap but delicious food near campuses.  Yup, they're right and it is true in Taiwan as it is true in the Philippines, too!  But little did I know that my venture into finding something to eat will continue until dinner time.  Yes, my tour became a culinary tour of Taipei. Lol!

     So, for breakfast, since I could not understand the menu at all, Ms. Annick and Ms. Alice translated it for me.  We were given a piece of paper and we had to tick the items we want.  They ordered for me and it was egg-based, like an omelet, but more of a spring roll with egg and ham.  It was sort of heavy. I saw people eating it, so I wanted to eat those, too.

     After having some light snacks, we went back to the Fort and passed through the University again.  Outside, we saw a red, foreign looking bus with a of caucasian models shooting a beer commercial.  Lucky!  We pretended that we were not interested at all with the shooting but I managed to snap a couple of shots.

     Finally, we arrived at the Fort San Domingo.  It's on a steep hill, mind you, but an easy climb nonetheless. It's harder to walk going towards the University because it is steeper.  The Fort is one of the best places to view Danshui and the sunset.  There's even a marker telling visitors where to stand for picture taking to get the best panorama.  Cool, right?

     When we got into the Fort, we followed a Chinese-speaking guide and my tour guides translated the history of the Fort for me.  Apparently, it was called Hongmao Castle because the Dutch had red hair.  We toured the Fort and went to see the prison where we saw a rather large group of caucasian tourists with an English-speaking Taiwanese guide and  followed them around.  The guide had an American accent and for the rest of the tour, we stuck around with their group.  It appears that if you're in a large group, you can arrange for an English tour of Fort San Domingo with their administration office.

     Later on, we went to another museum, the Customs Officer's Residence, also known as Little White House, which was nearby.  There wasn't much to see, at least for me, but you can collect stamps and it's great for picture taking.  Besides, the garden is well maintained and the view's great.  Just look at this century-old tree.  What a beauty.

     We arrived at the Tamsui Old Street around 11 a.m. and it was teeming with people.  My guides led me to some food stalls and I ate a Taiwanese sausage for lunch, which I downed with milk tea and plum juice.  The plum juice was surprisingly great!  Apparently, you shouldn't leave the old street without drinking one.

     Since we were running late for the next tour, we rushed to the MRT station to meet another tourist for the Yangmingshan tour.