Island eats

At the Longshan Temple entrance, many worshippers armed with incense sticks jockey for space among the children posing for photos. [Photo by Rebecca Lo/For China Daily]

Taipei boasts some of the world's best night markets. Rebecca Lo samples local delicacies in between soaks in the city's natural hot springs.

My fascination with Taiwan began with a boy. Luis and I were in fifth grade together and I thought that he was cute. I finally visited the island of Luis' heritage many years later on a family holiday. My uncle Philip Huang is a former principal in a technical college in Tainan, and he knows the entire island inside out. He and my aunt Georgetta met us in Kaohsiung and we proceeded by minivan to Taichung via the southern routes. We stopped whenever we got hungry, with my uncle ever ready to uncork a bottle of red wine no matter what we were eating.

I hoped to repeat that experience during a return trip, but without all the driving. Taipei is known for its thriving night life and street markets, and I deduced that the best of Taiwan's food scene would be in its capital.

We decided to get an air ticket and hotel package for this trip, and Just Sleep in Ximending was recommended by our travel agent. Although we were surrounded by fellow Hong Kong travelers, I didn't mind hearing Cantonese swirling around me at the breakfast table.

Our room was basic, but had everything that we needed for a long weekend stay. I particularly enjoyed the oversized cartoon graphics that indicated everything from shower and toilet to cup-shaped cutouts in the wall for our mugs.

As I had already been to the somewhat overwhelming Shilin night market, we decided to explore Huaxi, Wuzhou and Guangzhou Street night markets on our first night.

These are somewhat interconnected markets in the city's bustling districts near Ximen. Well traversed by both tourists and locals, within Huaxi's traditional Chinese gates are shops devoted to the restorative properties of turtles and snakes, along with more exotic reptiles.

I wasn't in the mood for snake soup, so we headed to Guangzhou night market for a plate of oyster omelet, among other delicacies. The Fujian specialty is grilled quickly, with the egg batter bubbling away as hungry eyes peered expectantly. I loved its bite of green onion and slurped down my dish almost as soon as it appeared in front of me.

We stopped by Longshan Temple as we continued our journey of food to check out the Chinese New Year decorations. It was resplendently gussied up and many worshippers armed with incense sticks jockeyed for space among the children posing for photos.

The next day dawned bright and sunny, and we decided to walk north from our hotel to Dihua Street market to explore its pre- and post-war architecture. North of Nanjing West Road, there is an eclectic collection of red-brick shop houses and gray concrete buildings with facades ranging from Russian constructivism to pre-war Japanese. Many are on deep lots and reveal a well-manicured courtyard within.