I chose Tianan, Taiwan as a destination not because I wanted to actually see it, (though I didn’t not want to see it,) but I chose it because it was the only city south of Taipei that I was able to get a room that was relatively inexpensive. It seems that Taiwan room rates are on par with the US and with Europe, definitely the most expensive that I’ve encountered on this trip.
At first glance there wasn’t too much that stood out for me that would make me consider Tainan a good destination for a traveler. It took at least a day before I started to relax and accept it for what it was, just a small(er) city that can be very relaxing and enjoyable, if one didn’t expect too much. Once I did that, I really had a good time exploring. There are some great little restaurants and food courts that I happened on that were good enough for me to be a regular customer for the remainder of my time there. I still don’t know what I ate, but at one street vendor I had something that was so delicious. It was like a salad with a chicken strips on top. It probably wasn’t very ‘Chinese’ or even healthy, but it was really good. :)
There wasn’t a lot of ‘touristy’ things to see in Tainan, but I still spent most of my exploring the streets and shops. Since I’m writing this at least two weeks from the time I was there, I can’t come up with anything that I think is worthy of adding. It’s a shame but it happens all the time that I wait too long before writing and then can’t think of anything to write about. I remember the fruit stands that I went to about three times a day. It seems that every fruit stand around got to know me in the matter of just a couple of days.
I was in Tainan for about five days in total and in that time I felt a little bit of a connection with it, so much so that I have considered going back for a few days later on.