Tag: travel

Ramblings

Tips for Apartment Hunting in Taipei

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Now that we have a bit of experience apartment hunting in Taipei, we wanted to share some tips for those who might be in our shoes.

Tip 1: Rent.591.com.tw is the most popular website in Taiwan to search for apartments. You can filter by city, district, number of bedrooms, price, parking, and so much more. There is no English version of the site, but you can use Google to translate the text into English.

I’ve seen people use dd-room.com as well, but 591 is by far the most popular website for apartment listings.


Tip 2: If Chinese is not your native language, it’s best to bring a Taiwanese friend with you to view apartments and negotiate with the landlord. But if you’re like us and don’t have any close friends or family in Taiwan 😅, then work with a real estate agency that caters to expats. We worked with Elegant Realty and UR House (and ultimately found a place with UR House). There is a one-time fee of a half-month’s rent when working with agents.

Note that agencies will typically only show you apartment listings from their inventory. So, you’d have to do your own research on rent.591.com.tw if you want to explore other options.

Tip 3. On top of rent, pay attention to the monthly management fee on the listing. Management fees include general maintenance of the building and security. They can be exorbitant, but can also be negotiable with the landlord.

Tip 4. Reduce the number of pings listed by approximately 30% to get the actual living space. This is because listings often add in common areas like hallways, lobbies, etc. into the total number of pings.

Tip 5: Look for an apartment that uses natural gas or piped propane. Some of the older buildings still use natural gas cans, which means you’ll be taking cold showers if they run out and until you get them replaced.

Tip 6. Get an apartment with an individual electricity meter. If it’s a shared meter, there’s no control over how much you pay per month as the meter is shared by everyone in the building.

Tip 7. If you don’t have a car or scooter, make sure the apartment is close to public transportation (either MRT or bus). Taipei is a huge city, so you’ll need access to public transportation to get around.

Tip 8. This may not be applicable to everyone, but having an apartment with natural light was important to us. Look at whether there is ample light in the living areas. Are there bars over the windows? Are the windows frosted?

Tip 9. As mentioned in my previous post, everything is negotiable in Taiwan. You can negotiate rent, management fees, furniture, etc. I’ve also heard people negotiating for the landlord to pay for the internet and cable fees. Of course, this is dependent on whether the apartment is highly sought after.

Tip 10. This is a great, and much more exhaustive guide for foreigners looking for an apartment in Taiwan: https://www.foreignersintaiwan.com/blog-370963385326684/taiwan-apartment-rental-guide We referenced this guide many times during our apartment hunt.

If I think of any more tips, I’ll add it to this post!

Ramblings

Apartment Hunting in Taipei: Success

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Time was ticking. We realized we had to compromise on some things. First, we increased our budget to find an apartment that was more suitable to our tastes. We started looking for apartments that were ~50 pings after learning that the advertised number of pings is often inflated. We expanded our search to not only Da’an but Songshan and Xinyi districts. Our main goal was to find an apartment with good natural light and within a school’s service district. We didn’t even care whether the apartment was furnished, or near the MRT, or what floor it was on.

Then one day, we saw an apartment in Xinyi district. Xinyi is the financial district of Taipei, with many skyscrapers including Taipei 101, upscale malls and eateries, and newer apartment buildings. This particular apartment is within 4 minutes walking distance to a school that had availability, and the landlord was fine with us using the address for school. The apartment came with only a couple pieces of furniture, but we were willing to overlook it. We immediately reached out to the agent to express our interest.

The interesting thing about Taiwan is that almost everything can be negotiated, including rent. Our agent told us to outline all our demands and he can help us negotiate with the landlord. We asked for a ~12% reduction in rent, including all management and garbage fees. (Most apartments have an monthly management fee on top of your rent. This fee is to pay for things like security and general maintenance of the building.)

Our agent suggested that we ask for furniture as well, but that we’d need to sign a 2-year lease. The commitment-phobe in me was a little hesitant, but I also didn’t want to go through this whole process again in a year. So we agreed and waited for the landlord’s response.

We waited about a day (which felt like an eternity!) but finally, we heard back from the landlord. She agreed to all terms (hurray!!) except we’d have to pay for the garbage fees, which was pretty nominal anyway (about $30/month).

There were a few hiccups before we signed the contract – e.g., making sure we had enough cash for the deposit and first month’s rent; the landlord kept changing the time and place for the contract signing, which made Baba suspicious; realizing at the last minute that one room at no door 😆, so we had to negotiate with the landlord; getting the landlord to purchase the furniture in time for our move-in.

But ultimately, we signed the contract and finally got the keys to our apartment in Taipei! 🎊 This was a HUGE relief because the check-out date for our Airbnb was coming up, and we can now register for the boys’ school. Woo hoo!

As of writing, we’ve been living in this apartment for about 3 weeks. It’s not perfect – our refrigerator is on the balcony and we’re on the second floor so it’s more prone to getting bugs. 😣 But, we are close to the boys’ school, one short block from the Xinyi Sports Center which has a pool!, close to the MRT and buses, and walking distance to markets and convenience stores. I also like that on one side, there is Taipei 101 with all its fancy shopping and restaurants, but on the other side of our apartment, you can find numerous cheap eats, or 小吃.

The apartment hunt in Taiwan was a roller coaster ride and such an interesting learning experience. In the end, I’m incredibly grateful that we found a great place to live in such a short period of time. Everything worked out in our favor (so far). But I’m even more grateful to have a partner in crime, Baba, to go on these crazy adventures with me! 😘

Ramblings

Apartment Hunting in Taipei: Apartment Features

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While apartment hunting in Taiwan, we came across many interesting apartment features. I hesitate to say “weird” because it’s likely we’re just not used to the style of living here.

Pings. I had mentioned in an earlier post that Taiwan uses pings 坪 as a measurement of floor space. One ping is equivalent to about 35.6 square feet. We searched for apartments between 25-30 pings, or 890-1067 square feet, which is about the same size as our old apartment in San Francisco. Not asking for too much, right?

Well, this brings me back to the theme of “expectations vs. reality” when it comes to apartment hunting in Taiwan. An apartment listing that advertises 30 pings does not mean the actual living space is 30 pings. The 30 pings include common areas like hallways, lobby area, stairwells. So you can imagine our surprise when we showed up to an apartment thinking it was 30 pings and saw a teeny tiny apartment. Apparently, the rule of thumb is to reduce the advertised number of pings by ~30% to get the actual living space.

Old buildings. Taipei is an old city, so many of its buildings are old. We wanted to live in Da’an for its central location but many of available apartments were very dated. Aside from aesthetics, older buildings may not be up to code to withstand earthquakes or fires.

Natural light. Having a good amount of natural light in the apartment was an important factor to us. Unfortunately, this wasn’t super easy to find in Taipei. A lot of the buildings (particularly the older ones) were blocked by other taller buildings, or they had small windows that were often frosted or barred. (The bars are to protect the windows during typhoons.)

Furniture. We were pleasantly surprised that most apartments come fully furnished or at least semi-furnished. This works perfectly for temporary residents like us.

Interesting designs. American luxuries like ovens and dishwashers are not common in Taiwan and we had already accepted that. But we discovered really interesting designs in some apartments. One apartment we saw had a staircase (see picture below), but the agent said we could not go upstairs. When we asked why, he said it’s because a family lives up there! 😮 There is a locked door between the apartment and upstairs, and the family has a separate entrance/exit, but it still freaked us out a bit.

Other apartments had appliances in unexpected places, like refrigerators in the living room or balcony. Another apartment had an upstairs with a bedroom and bathroom, but the ceilings were so low that you could barely stand up straight (and I’m only 5’3″!).

At this point, we were getting a little desperate. Our choices were limited: not only do we have to find an apartment that fit our needs, but one that is within a school’s service area plus a landlord who was willing to let us use the address for school registration.

We also had to work against time. School was starting soon and we needed to find an apartment, sign the contract, and update the boys’ ARC cards with the new address so we could register for school. Then, we had to get settled in and get ready for school before it starts. We had about ~2-3 weeks to do all this. Needless to say, it was pretty nerve-racking.

Next on the blog: the conclusion of our apartment search!

Ramblings

Porto

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It was hard to leave Spain, but we were also looking forward to visiting Portugal. Portugal has been in the news for being one of the most popular countries Americans flock to, so we were curious about it.

We took a 1-hour flight from Madrid to Porto and stayed here for 4 days. Porto is one of those quintessentially charming European cities, with cobblestone streets, narrow alleyways, and beautiful river views. We also got a reprieve from the intense Madrid heat. Porto’s weather was in the mid low to mid 80s while we were there. This is a major reason why Porto is one of C and O’s favorite cities. 😅

Porto is famous for its bridges. It currently has six bridges across the River Douro, with the most famous one being Ponte Dom Luís I (pictured above). The top level of the bridge is for the metro and the bottom is for cars, but pedestrians can walk on either level.

The food in Porto was delicious, with plentiful, fresh seafood. One of Portugal’s classic dishes is bacalhau (pictured on the far right), which is salted cod. It was tasty when mixed with other ingredients but can be quite intense on its own. The cost for food wasn’t as cheap as Spain; a typical meal costs $15 to $18 per person.

Of course, we also had to try the Portuguese egg tarts (or pasta del nata) while in Portugal! They are filled with an eggy custard with a texture that is similar to crème brulée. The filling is sweeter than the Chinese egg tart, and the crust is an amazingly crispy and layered puff pastry. We munched on these little treats whenever we could.

The Francesinha sandwich is also native to Portugal, specifically from Porto. It is made with layers of bread and meats like steak, ham, bacon. Then, it’s topped with sliced cheese and doused with a tomato and beer sauce. Oh, and it comes with fries too – in case you needed more calories 😏. Honestly, this wasn’t one of our favorite things to eat in Portugal but we had to give it a try.

While in Madrid, we had the idea to send postcards to friends and family back home. We tried to mail postcards from each city we visited, including Porto. It was great for C and O to see what the stamps looked like, and how the post offices operated in each country. (Little did we know that it would take a month for people to receive the postcards, good lord! 😂)

Porto can be a little touristy, but it’s hard to resist its charm and beauty. Thanks for a great time, Porto! 💙

Ramblings

Secret Nun Cookies

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Before going to Madrid, I had watched YouTube videos about buying “secret” cookies from cloistered nuns in a 400 year-old monastery. It seemed like a cool experience, and I made a mental note to visit the monastery when we were in Madrid. Of course, now that this has been posted on YouTube, it’s not much of a secret anymore.

The “secret” nun cookies are sold at Monasterio del Corpus Christi, and this was the line when we got there. 😂

Before the secret was out, cookie buyers have to ring a doorbell that reads “Monjas” (nuns) and say, “Tienes dulces hoy?” (“Do you have sweets today?”). If they do, the door would open and you’d walk along a corridor to the turnstile. But because there were already people ahead of us, we were spared this step.

The corridor leading to the turnstile. We had to wait about 20 minutes for our turn.

Here comes the interesting part. Since the nuns are forbidden from contact with the outside world, the entire transaction is completed using a turnstile/lazy Susan (pictured below). You say your order into the turnstile, place your money on it, and within a few minutes, it would turn and your cookies would appear along with any change! It was so fun to witness. This was also the only time we had to use cash in Spain. Can you imagine if the nuns accepted Apple/Google Pay? 😂

The nuns speak only Spanish so Baba had to ask for the cookies in very, very broken Spanish. 🤣 We used Google translate for help but it was kind of hopeless. Miraculously though, the nuns understood what Baba was asking! (If you want to see a video of Baba speaking “Spanish”, I posted it on Instagram.)

We ordered two types of cookies – one was an iced shortbread cookie and the other was a cinnamon cookie. Honestly, they weren’t the most amazing cookies we’ve had, and they were quite expensive (about €12 for 1/2 a kilo). But it was such a cool and memorable experience!

Ramblings

Meet Me in Madrid

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Madrid was our second choice after Taipei for moving abroad. After spending 10 days there – and despite the terrible heat – we agreed we would be happy to live in this enthralling city.

Madrid seamlessly blends the action of a big metropolis with the charm of a historic place. It is vast but also concentrated. Each neighborhood has plenty of awesome restaurants, shops, and things to see/do. The population is diverse, which means more options for international cuisines. 😋

On our first full day in Madrid, we went to Retiro Park, which is a massive green oasis in the middle of the city. It’s beautiful – perfectly manicured lawns, rose gardens, lakes, playgrounds and even a public library nestled inside! It was a perfect escape from the hustle and bustle of Madrid.

We stopped for lunch at Casa Toni, a restaurant famous for making offal tapas. We munched on spicy pig ears, tripe, sweetbreads, and lamb intestines. Our favorites were the pig ears and sweetbreads. I’m glad C and O have an adventurous appetite.

Afterward, we walked down the block to eat gambas al ajillo, or shrimp with olive oil, garlic and parsley. It was a tapa I absolutely loved when I visited Spain 14 years ago – and it’s still as good as I remembered! It’s one of the pricier tapas at around €12 per plate.

Of course we also had to stop by the Museum of Jamón.

At this point, the heat was getting intense and the kids were complaining. This is where bribes can come in handy! 😆 We brought the boys to the historic San Ginés Chocolate Shop and had churros with chocolate, a favorite treat in Madrid. The churros were airy and light, and the chocolate was silky smooth and not too sweet. The boys were satisfied with this bribe.

We lived in the Moratalaz district of Madrid. It’s a quiet residential neighborhood with mostly locals but it was so far from the city center that we had to commute 30-40 minutes by bus each day. Thankfully, we had 10 days so there was enough time for traveling back and forth, but it’s not a neighborhood we’d recommend for short stays. (There was however, a fabulous outdoor pool near our Airbnb that we loved hanging out at!) If we were to move to Madrid, our neighborhood picks would be either Retiro (we just love Retiro Park!) or Chamberí, also a quiet residential area but very central.

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Menú Del Día

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One of the many things we love about Spain is their menú del día (or daily menu). It’s typically served at lunch and consists of a starter, an entree, dessert or coffee, and a drink. Each menú del día costs anywhere from €11 to €18, which is a steal, considering how large the portions are and the price includes all taxes and tips.

We would order three menú del días for the four of us and we always walk away stuffed. You can choose from 3-4 items for each course, and the items are usually pretty fancy!

Starters (from left to right):

Baby squid, lobster/seafood rice, snails and grilled cuttlefish. Some starters could be a meal by themselves!

Entrees (from left to right):

Seafood paella (that’s three portions in the photo), oxtail stew, and grilled squid. The Spaniards make squid so, so well. It’s perfect every time.

Desserts were usually just ok, hence why I didn’t take many pictures. 😅 But we seek out menú del día wherever we go. Can’t miss out on a good deal and good food!

I remember being worried that we wouldn’t be able to adjust to the late meal times in Spain. (Lunch starts at 1pm – 2pm and dinner is at 8pm. Back in SF, we would eat lunch at 11:30am and dinner at 6pm.) But surprisingly, we adjusted within a week. Sometimes we didn’t get hungry for lunch until 2pm! Dinner can be a challenge because we wanted C and O to sleep early. If we went out to eat, we wouldn’t get back home until 9:30pm – 10pm. So, there were times we just bought groceries and cooked dinner at our Airbnb. It can be a nice break from eating out all the time and also getting more vegetables in our bodies!

P.S. We’re actually in Lisbon now, but I’m still catching up on Spain posts!

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Valencia

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After a wonderful stay in Barcelona, we boarded a 3 hour train to the birthplace of paella. Baba asked me why we decided to visit Valencia and to be honest, I can’t remember why. I think I had also considered Valencia as a potential place to move to, and I can’t say no to good paella!

At the Valencia train station with our massive luggage.

We stayed in Valencia for 6 days. Valencia is the third-largest city in Spain but is very walkable and has a small town feel. For the first couple of days, we visited some of Valencia’s top attractions.

Mercat Central de València. This is a beautifully ornate public market that sells everything from colorful fruits and seafood to pastries and souvenirs. Unlike La Boqueria in Barcelona, this market was less crowded and touristy. You can see locals here shopping for groceries. There is also a popular restaurant in the market called Central Bar, but we arrived too late and the wait was horrendous.

The City of Arts and Sciences. This is a complex of cool, futuristic buildings that include a movie theater, planetarium and science museum. We read that the museums are better suited for older kids, so we didn’t go inside. But it was still fun to see the unique architecture of the buildings.

Old Town. Also the downtown of Valencia, this charming area has a cathedral (believed to have the original Holy Chalice or Holy Grail), a big plaza, historic monuments, and plenty of restaurants and shopping. It was also in Old Town that we came across a long-running café, Horchatería Santa Catalina, and had horchata. Horchata is a refreshing milk drink made from tiger nuts. It tastes similar to soy milk and is very popular in Valencia.

We made sure to eat as much paella as we could in Valencia. We even took a 1 hour bus to the fishing village of El Palmar, known for its paella. The most common type of paella today is seafood paella, but traditional Valencian paella is made with rabbit, chicken or duck, and broad beans. Unfortunately, the rabbit and chicken is usually a bit dry so we still prefer the seafood paella.

Paella restaurants charge per person and require a minimum of two orders. We usually order for three people, and it’s SO MUCH FOOD. All good though! 😋

The rest of our time in Valencia was spent swimming or going to the beach (which was beautiful but crowded) and discovering amazing playgrounds like Parc Gulliver. The whimsical playground is made up of slides in the shape of the character Gulliver.

Valencia was nice, but a tad slow for us city folk. Most of the charm and action was in Old Town, but it didn’t quite reach the rest of the city. What can I say? We have the attention spans of a flea. 😅

On to Madrid next!

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A Hike to Montserrat

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(Another overdue post. I am running behind on my blogging!)

A popular day trip from Barcelona is to Montserrat, a mountain range that’s about a 1-hour train ride from the city. The Benedictine monastery of Santa María also sits at the top of the mountain.

To get there from Barcelona, take the metro to Espanya station, then follow the FGC train signs for Montserrat. You’ll need to take the FGC train (line R5) and tickets can be purchased at the ticket machines. Roundtrip train tickets cost about $50 for the 4 of us.

Quick nap on the train.

We got off at Aeri Montserrat station. Once there, you take a cable car up the mountain but of course Baba chose the hardest route: hiking. The hike itself isn’t long (about 2.5 miles up) but it is strenuous, and made even more challenging with the heat.

Near the trailhead.

The path was unpaved so required lots of scrambling up rocks. Trail markers were spray-painted arrows on rocks, which were thankfully fairly easy to spot.

C and O have some experience with challenging hikes after going to Arches and Canyonlands earlier this year. Though they were drenched in sweat, the hike was relatively easy for them – even while carrying their backpacks! We did make sure to make many stops for snacks and water.

The last half of the hike was the most painful (for me). There were SO. MANY. STAIRS. Just when you thought you reached the top, you round a corner and there were more flights of stairs. 😭

With burning calves and tired feet, we finally made it to the top! The views were gorgeous. I’m so proud of the boys for making the hike look easy and keeping complaints to a minimum. 😂

Amusing story: After the hike, we went to eat at one of the restaurants at the top of the mountain. Within five minutes of walking into the restaurant, it started POURING RAIN. We didn’t think much of it, so we started to order food.

But then, all the restaurant staff rushed from the kitchen into a smaller room just outside the restaurant. They were gesturing towards the ceiling. We couldn’t understand what they were saying, but judging by their tones and expressions they seem worried. Firemen started arriving, and shortly after, the restaurant manager told all guests to leave immediately because of an emergency.

Apparently, the torrential rain had caused a rockslide! The restaurant is nestled against the mountain and the barrier that was used to catch any rockfall was breaking apart. The surrounding area was flooded as well.

We went home without eating lunch. Because of the rain, we were concerned about the trail being too slick so ended up taking the train back down the mountain. Another fun day in Spain!

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La Boqueria

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(An overdue post)

Baba and I have reached an age where grocery shopping has become our hobby. 😅 We love to explore markets – supermarkets, wet markets, farmers markets – it’s our favorite type of shopping!

So naturally, we had to visit Mercado de La Boqueria, a huge public market in Barcelona. The market is a labyrinth of vendors selling fruits, seafood, jamón, and tapas. It’s crowded and touristy, but a definite must if you love food. You could spend hours getting lost in there. Just show up early! We showed up at around 9:30am and it was packed an hour later.

Jamón is a staple in Spain and found everywhere in La Boqueria. Many stalls even sell jamón in paper cones for easy handling! (Of course I had to get one.) O wasn’t a huge fan but C loved it.

The boys were drawn to the colorful fruits and fruit drinks at the market. We were surprised to see a few exotic fruits there, like mangosteen and passion fruit.

But the highlight of our visit to La Boqueria was eating at El Quim, a food stall with bar only seating. Their specialty is baby squid with eggs, and it did not disappoint! The squid was so savory and delicious – I just wish the eggs were more runny. Even O, who is a notoriously picky eater, loved the dish. We also ordered padrón green peppers but thought it was a bit too salty.

We had plans to eat at Bar Pinotxo too, but had so much trouble finding it. By the time we found the place, there was a wait and we realized we weren’t that hungry anymore. Bar Pinotxo is supposedly popular for their chickpeas and blood sausage and oxtail stew. If you ever go, let me know how it tastes!