20240104_065113Views of Taipei from Elephant Mountain (January 2024)

Jetlag hit me the following morning, as I ended up waking up at 4h30 and struggled to fall back asleep. I managed to sleep for another hour before I decided to wake up and get ready to head out for my second full day in Taipei. I wanted to hit up many places that day, as it would be my last day in town, so I wanted to start early.

It was still dark out when I left at 6h00, making the walk over to Elephant Mountain (象山); I would be hiking up to the top, where I would get views of Taipei 101 and the city from above. It’s a popular hike, as it’s easily-accessible from the city center and only takes 20-30 minutes to get to the top. The mountain is also popular due to the rise of social media, with numerous photos of it being posted online.

Aside from a few elders and maintenance workers, there were practically no visitors when I began the 500-step ascent to the top. It was still pitch-black, and I reckon the trail gets crowded later in the day. In spite of the cool, refreshing morning, I actually starting to sweat as I climbed the steps! While I’m usually okay with stairs, these steps were pretty short and steep, so it took more effort to climb than usual. Not to be underestimated!

20240104_071702Hiking up…

I made it to the first landing, where you get the iconic views of Taipei 101, surrounded by lush trees and greenery. It was an overcast day, but it made for some somber, but beautiful shots as I took in the scenery. I continued a bit further on, but I got a bit lost in the mountain and decided to turn back and descend the steps back to civilization. It’s incredible that this hike is right in the city center, and I’m glad I finally got to check it out.

20240104_065113Views for days

Next, I took the MRT to Ximending, a hip and trendy neighborhood in western Taipei. It’s a lively and bustling shopping area with high-end boutiques that’s popular among youths. It’s also a notable LGBTQ hub with bars and venue spaces that especially thrive at night– given that Taiwan is one of the very few countries in Asia that is accepting of the LGBTQ community (and the first in Asia to legalize same-sex marriage!), it’s a safe place for people to fully be themselves and love whomever they want.

I arrived around 8h30 to Ximending, so the area was still very quiet and devoid of people, as many of the shops and restaurants hadn’t opened yet– by afternoon, the place would be inundated with locals and tourists out and about. I stopped by the Instagrammable Rainbow Road for a quick photo before I headed to check out some niche 7-Elevens in the neighborhood.

20240104_082211Rainbow Road

Now, 7-Elevens in Asia are nothing like the below sub-par ones in the US. In fact, 7-Elevens in countries like Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan take it a whole new level, with thousands of stores all over each respective country selling snacks, drinks, and warm to-go meals– all for cheap. Even more so, these 7-Elevens have study spaces (popular for students) and a place to buy SIM cards, metro passes, even passport photos. Truly the definition of a convenience store– the US should take notes!

Besides having good-quality 7-Elevens, Taipei has decorated some of theirs in fun and cute designs. I first visited a Hello Kitty-themed 7-Eleven, which was decked floor to ceiling in all things Hello Kitty and Sanrio characters. I got some onigiri and water for breakfast, as well as some Hello Kitty trinkets to bring back home to family. The other one I went to was Peanuts-themed, including its iconic Snoopy. Also got a little souvenir there to bring home. While I wouldn’t have thought twice to visit 7-Elevens in Taipei, I found it a quirky and enjoyable experience!

20240104_083233Hello Kitty/Sanrio 7-Eleven


20240104_091550Peanuts/Snoopy 7-Eleven

Next, I took the bus over the Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall, dedicated to the eponymous president who served as the leader of Taiwan from 1928 to 1931. It’s a massive square with several museums housed inside stately temples, manicured green gardens, and an imposing mausoleum dedicated to Chiang Kai-Shek himself. I’ve visited this site numerous times whenever I visited Taipei, but it never gets old, as I find it important to remember one of the most-influential leaders in Taiwanese history.

20240104_094724Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall

It was another bus ride over to the newly-opened Pokémon Center, located inside the massive mall complex Shin Kong Mitsukoshi (新光三越). This is the first branch to open in Taiwan, and it’d just opened one month prior to my visiting. As the Pokémon Center is wildly popular, I went 20 minutes before it opened at 11h00 to stand in the already-long line. Luckily, I was early enough to be among the first round of people to enter, and soon enough, I was in!

I love Pokémon, and I grew up watching the anime and playing the video games– that said, I was living my childhood dream inside the store, which was filled with practically all of the Pokémon plushes, figurines, and other toys to make any child (or adult) happy. As much as I enjoyed the store, it was also overwhelming with tons of people inside– that said, I bought a few plushes and stickers before I dipped out. While I would later on also visit the Pokémon Center in Singapore, funny enough I didn’t visit any of them in Japan, where it originated from– I’ll have to return to Japan just to visit its Pokémon Centers!

20240104_111909Pokémon Center

It was lunchtime, so I met up with my aunt for lunch at Mos Burger, a Japanese burger chain that’s popular in Taiwan. I’ve had it before on my previous visits, and my go-to order is the pork (or beef) burger with rice patties. Definitely something I don’t get to have often, and it’s absolutely delicious. Forget bread buns: rice buns are where it’s at!

Following lunch, my aunt and I grabbed some boba milk tea at one of the millions of boba shops in Taipei. Boba originated in Taiwan and has spread to the rest of the world– what I especially like about getting boba in Taiwan is not just that the quality is good, but it’s also really inexpensive. Whereas it’d cost at minimum $5 USD in the US, it costs $1.50 USD in Taiwan! The cup sizes are generous, too, and I happily enjoyed my boba milk tea after a lovely meal.

I said goodbye to my aunt afterwards and spent the afternoon at the basement of Taipei 101, which is home to a food court serving delicious and quality cuisines like Japanese, Korean, Taiwanese, even American. It’s also a major shopping maze filled with items like make-up, loose leaf tea, and snacks that are perfect as souvenirs to take home. I bought some pineapple cakes (a must-try Taiwanese snack) to bring back to my family and partner, and I enjoyed a latte at a Swedish-inspired café inside the mall.

Just before sunset, I paid a visit to the Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Hall, also dedicated to an important figure in Taiwanese history. Sun Yat-Sen was the first president of the prototypical nation in 1912. Compared to the Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall, Sun Yat-Sen’s is smaller, a single building that had a little exhibition recounting the leader’s life, a symbol of the Taiwanese patriotism that permeates throughout the country and its people today.

20240104_161516Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Hall

Around 18h30, I made it over to the Linjiang Night Market (臨江街觀光夜市). Also called the Tonghua Night Market, it’s a local night market that’s smaller than the bigger ones like Shilin or Raohe in Taipei, but just as busy and thriving. I actually liked Tonghua more than Raohe, as I found it more authentic and less gimmicky. It was a food-filled evening, as I feasted on 蚵仔煎 (oyster omelet, an iconic Taiwanese dish), 豬血粿 (pig’s blood cake, aka black pudding), 贯肠 (Taiwanese sausage), and 冰淇淋花生卷 (peanut ice cream burrito). So many good eats, and overall, a great end to another long day of exploring.

20240104_192330Linjiang/Tonghua Night Market


20240104_190126Oyster omelet (蚵仔煎)


20240104_191300Pig’s blood cake (豬血粿) and bean curd


20240104_193144Taiwanese sausage (贯肠)


20240104_195408Peanut ice cream burrito (冰淇淋花生卷)

That was my second and last full day in Taipei, as I would be waking up super early to head back to the airport to catch my flight to Malaysia. It was a brief, but much-needed stay in town, as it’d been almost eight years since I last visited family. A lot has changed in my life since then, which is both incredible and bittersweet– this trip back reminded me the importance of family, and I intend to return more frequently back to my parent’s home country.

Thanks for reading, and more of my adventures to come soon. Until then! 🙂

— Rebecca

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Published by Rebecca

Blogger, world traveler, poet, foodie, part-time penguin. Welcome!

41 thoughts on “Destination: Taipei, Taiwan (Climbing Elephant Mountain, Hello Kitty 7-Eleven, and Tonghua Night Market– DAY 2)”

  4. It looks like you covered a lot of ground while in Taipei. It sounds like your time with family was extra special. We noticed the same thing about the quality of the 7-11 stores in Japan; like you mentioned, they’re not at all similar to what we have here in the US. Thanks for sharing!

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  5. That’s what I call a packed day – I was tired just reading about it 😆 I like the city views from the mountain and the Rainbow Road, while the peanut ice cream burrito sounds delicious!

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    1. I’m surprised I did so much with the short amount of time I had in Taipei! Elephant Mountain has incredible (and free) views of the city, and night market food are truly tasty! Thanks for reading, Sarah 🙂

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  6. What a great day! Starting with beautiful views, lots of delicious food, quirky stores, cultural sites, and family time… sounds like a wonderful way to spend your last day in Taiwan.

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  7. More great memories of my own trip to Taiwan. I managed to do all the things you listed with the exception of the Pokemon Centre. We walked up Elephant Mountain twice, one during the day and a second time to witness the sunset so it was dark when we came back down. We must have been lucky as it was quiet on both occasions.

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    1. Nice! The views from Elephant Mountain are gorgeous, and I’m glad I finally got to climb to the top! Glad you have fond memories of your time in Taiwan, and I hope you can return sometime soon, Marion!

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  9. The view from Elephant Mountain is beautiful, it kind of reminds me of The Peak in Hong Kong a little bit 🙂 The Pokemon store looks like fun, as do the 7/11s with their themes! I really can’t wait to visit Taiwan one day.

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    1. I’ve not been to Hong Kong to see The Peak, but I’ve seen photos, and I agree that and Elephant Mountain look similar! Hope you get to visit Taiwan some day, Han: it really is beautiful!

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  10. The hike to Elephant Mountain is definitely something I wouldn’t want to miss the next time I go to Taipei. The views of Taipei 101 framed by the greenery is of course the main reason to go there. I always envy cities with green hills that are easily reachable from the downtown area. Speaking of boba, I swear the ones I had in Taiwan tasted much better than those I’ve had back at home.

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    1. The hike up Elephant Mountain is very accessible, so it’s definitely worth a climb! One of the best (and free) views overlooking Taipei. Although I’m spoiled here in a multicultural city with multiple boba shops, I agree with you that boba just tastes better in Taiwan, not to forget less expensive! Thanks for reading, Bama 😊

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    1. Absolutely! I’m surprised I even did all of the activities I wanted to do in such a short amount of time. 7-11s in Asia just hit differently; they’re definitely worth a pop in should you go some day!

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    1. Jetlag got the best of me, so I just decided to get up early and maximize the short time I had in Taipei! Elephant Mountain was gorgeous from the top, and it’s a must-see while in town. Hope you can return to the Taiwanese capital to discover more!

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  13. Lord, you really packed it in here! I agree with Han that the Elephant Mountain views have a Hong Kongy feel to them. I have never seen such cute and thoughtfully decorated 7 Elevens, plus Charlie Brown and co always male me smile so I’m sure I’d find myself wandering in there. I was curious to see the Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Hall as I have visited his spectacular mausoleum in Nanjing. You were very bold with your food choices, and now I am positively craving a Peanut ice cream burrito. Great piece Rebecca.

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    1. Thanks, Leighton! Given I’ve not been to Hong Kong before, I now hope to head over and check out its similar views in the near future. 7-11s in Asia are just on a different level than its US counterpart, and you can’t go wrong with inventive night market food while in town. Hope you can head over to Taipei sometime soon!

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  18. Oh great!
    By the way Rebecca have you heard anything from Vee on WordPress? Or Insta… It’s been a while nothing popped up on my blog reader from her…

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  20. I found the embracement (apparently that is a word) of Japanese culture from a place that suffered under Japanese occupation a little odd but boy, they have nearly as many Family Marts per square inch as Japan!

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  21. Taipei seems like such a cool city! I love the 7 Elevens with a theme and for sure would have stopped by them too! The price of boba is also amazing… I feel like here in Belgium I struggle to find good boba and, when I find it, it is definitely on the pricy side (maybe around 7 euros?)

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    1. Taipei is a lovely and underrated city! 7-Elevens are on another level in Asia, much different than the subpar ones in the US! It boggles my mind that boba costs $1.50USD in Taiwan…here in the US, it’s at least $4USD or more!

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