Taipei 🇹🇼

Shopping in the Hankyu dept. store (統一阪急) basement food hall is exciting and fun - so much variety, activities and cute mascots too.

I'm in milk-tea-heaven whenever I visit Taipei 😍 My suitcase would always be filled with milk-tea-sachets, face mask sheets, and pineapple tarts! Gotta love Taipei!

One of the most amazing bed & breakfast experiences ever. Secluded hideout in the "middle of nowhere" amidst the Keelung mountains (not too far from JiuFen), so hidden it's very very hard to locate, even the local taxi drivers lost their way each time... but every bit worth its while. Their signature 九宮格早餐: simple pumpkin porridge with a lovely spread of pickled vegetables and side dishes - healthy, refreshing and wholesome. Absolutely adore this place, couldn't get enough, will certainly return for another stay in the near future 💕

A classic scene from Hayao Miyazaki's "Spirited Away"《千與千尋》- rumored to have been inspired by this very tea house (阿妹茶樓). Beautiful and quite magnificent against the hilly slopes and back alleys of 九份老街. Hang around till dark for a much more impressive view. Read more: http://bit.ly/JiuFen

JiuFen (九份) used to be a gold-mining town, so these "Gold" and "Black Coal" lookalike chocolates make really meaningful little souvenirs! Brilliant.

A visit to JiuFen (九份老街/基山街) wouldn't be complete without trying this! Colourful and chewy! There are several stalls selling these JiuFen-signature yam balls, but do make sure you stop by 賴阿婆 for the most authentic experience 🍡🍡🍡

The foodcourt at Shinkong Mitsukoshi (星光三越) has always been one of our favourite places in Taipei. It has just undergone a revamp and re-opened in October 2014, lucky us got the first dips at it. LOVE the udon at Marukame Udon stall, reminds me of the udon shops in Tokyo - choose your soup base, then pick whatever fried toppings to go with it. Fully customisable, and so satisfying! 😊

This must be part of their marketing ploy - the baker dishing out piping hot loaves in front of everyone, so fresh you can still see steam rising from those heavenly pillows! We couldn't resist, just had to grab one of these Red Bean Milk Bread (蜜豆牛奶) and share it on the spot! Crusty on the outside, moist and soft inside 😍 NT$74 for half-loaf (ie. S$3.15).

Simply beautiful... and @ NT$40 only! (ie. less than S$1.80) 👍

The unexplainable appeal of trays-ful of fresh golden bakes, the addictive aroma and appetite-whetting sights.... we so wanted to buy everything off those shelves! 😍

This is quite an interesting combo - fresh meat dumplings served in "Campbell"-style creamed corn soup. Pretty yummy, and filling too. This hearty bowl costs only NT$55 (ie. S$2.35)!

We were exploring the smaller lanes around our hotel for breakfast inspiration, and walked-in to this place. Nothing fancy, but the steamed dumplings and pot stickers are fresh and good! Super cheap too! Each dumpling / pot sticker costs only NT$4 - 5 (ie. S$0.20)?!! Unbelievable. No wonder the locals at other tables all ordered around 20 dumplings per person. Super duper deal! 👍 Several stores in Taiwan. The address for this (near Ximending 西門町): 台北市萬華區漢口街2段56號.