taipei 101

when you visit taipei, be sure to check out the tapei international financial center 101. it's the tallest skyscraper in the world, for now anyway. but right after that, go to the shihlin night market. there are dozens of food stalls to choose from; find one that looks good, and order some spicy fried chicken - fresh out of the fryer. i know that most people think the best fried chicken is probably in kentucky, but i promise it's at this night market.

there's plenty of shopping there, but nothing that interested me as much as shaved ice/cream for dessert, tsua bing. and as it turns out, the night market also has the best. it's kind of a mix between hawaiian shaved ice, fillipino halo-halo, and american ice cream. it's hard to describe the texture, flavor, and especially the appearance, but it's extremely unique and equally enjoyable.

i luckily found the best spot for tsua bing, but it wasn't easy. to get there, you have to wade through a maze of food stalls in a giant market plaza, and swim through the nose piercing smell of fermented tofu. you'll see some duck heads sharing spaces on grills with parts of animals i don't recognize, and large bowls of brown jell-o. but once you get to the ice cream stand, all the other strange smells drift away, and it's only shaved ice and exotic fruits and colorful toppings. i ordered red beans with sweetened condensed milk, served several inches tall over flakes of icy cream on a gigantic plate. of all the things to travel half-way around the world to eat, i had fried chicken and ice cream, and loved it.