Beitou Hot Spring, Danshui, Fisherman's Wharf, 27 Dec 2006

On our 2nd last day in Taipei, we decided to have a guided tour since the package that my friend's mother booked is a half tour and half free-and-easy. Well, the advantage of having a guided tour is that the tour guide will drive us around in the mini-van so we do not need to worry about getting lost. :p

1st stop is to pick up our fellow tour members, a family of 4 from a really deeserted hot spring resort in Beitou. I didn't really mind having to travel all the way in since the tour guide is driving us in and on the way we could enjoy the beautiful greeneries and not to mention the smell of sulphur from the numerous hot springs in Beitou.





Finally we arrived at the resort and had to wait for the family to check out before we could go to our 1st destination.
This is the lobby of the resort, really looks high class. Must cost a bomb to stay at this resort I guess.







From Beitou, we travelled to the Fisherman's Wharf, a long pier and harbour that has been forsaken its fishing past and become a tourist attraction.








The highlight of the wharf is its signature pedestrian bridge, an elegant suspended structure that makes a dramatic addition to the visual aesthetics of the area.

Next on the list is an old port city called Danshui which is famous for its Iron Egg （铁蛋），a preserved egg which is rubbery in texture and come in different flavours: original or spicy.
And this is where Jay Chou grew up, and this 35 year old coffee shop in Dan Shui now sells two of Jay’s favorite dishes, Wan Tan Mee and fried Chicken Legs. These dishes are now being named as the “Jay Chou set meal” 「周杰伦餐」. They are now well known and even became a tourist attraction in the eateries in Dan Shui.







Lastly the tour guide brought us to one of the famous pastry shop in Taipei, where we bought pineapple tarts and other kinds.