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My hometown is Taichung City, which is the third biggest city in Taiwan with over 2.6 million population (please imagine half of population in Finland all live in a area as small as 2,214.8968 km² ! ). However, many people means many entertainments. I have hosted several foreign friends in my hometown and I realized that what they enjoyed the most was not always from what travel guides recommended.

There are my favorite places in my hometown:

1. Yi-zhong Street: it must be surprising for foreigners to understand how this street prospers- due to the afterschool education industry! We Taiwanese believe what you learn from high school is not enough to compete with another students so that private class after school becomes more and more popular. Since thousands of students come to the class right after school, they got to eat. Step by step, more and more shops for food, clothes, hairstyle and so on come to play along with these young people. It is an ideal place to observe our youth culture with some snacks in hand. 
   
2. Feng-jia Night Market: it is one of the biggest night markets in Taiwan with more than 1,000 vendors/shops. The night market is near Feng-jia University, so there are a lot of “older (compared to the previous one)” students wandering around in the night market (If you feel like, you can also visit our university campus). If you want to experience the crowdedness; If you want to buy something, drink something and eat something, Feng-jia Night Market is your best choice. Unlike in Finland, it opens almost 24 hours (it depends on vendors/shops).
3. The Third Market: unlike most western big cities, most Taiwanese tend to shop in traditional markets for fresh vegetables and meat. From morning to noon, you can see how lively our traditional markets are. You can even have your local breakfast here. If you have no clue what to eat, then follow the crowd! That is the tip to find what is the most popular among the local. As the picture shows, during Chinese New Year, there are vendors selling decoration and calligraphy.  
4. Holiday KTV: it opens 24/7 and comes with all-you-can-eat buffet. Unlike in Finland, Taiwanese ,in general, dare not to sing in public ( I cannot picture myself singing in public and torturing people’s ears and appetite… ). Lots of people hang out there in their private rooms. It is a good way to know our pop music better and also bond with people.
5. Eslite Parklane: it is a sort of department store but Eslite Bookstore is the spotlight. There are plenty shops and restaurants. If you feel like having some air-conditioning indoor, and please visit the place. You can observe how Taiwanese read and what kind of books interest us. The reason I like this place so much is because they create such a comfortable place for people to read, shop and eat. The vertical garden on the wall is a huge hit. 
6. The good way to know the local better and save your budget for the trip, I would recommend a website- couchsurfing (http://www.couchsurfing.org/). You can stay in their places for free and make friends with them. Also, it is a great way to experience Taiwanese's hospitality! 

Imagine you plan a trip to Asia, among China and Taiwan these two options, what would you choose?

If people ask me what is the difference between a trip to China and to Taiwan, I would say you could enjoy the warmth and hospitality from Taiwanese and the delicate aspect of Chinese culture that you may not find in China.

As a Taiwanese being eager to share my culture with foreigners, I have been hosting my foreign friends several times for Chinese New Year celebration. No matter where they are from , they were impressed by our people and tradition. There are four must you definitely cannot miss- night markets, temples, (foot) massages and Taiwanese karaoke.

The most popular thing about Taiwan is night markets. Unlike some Western countries, the later you stay outside, the more lively atmosphere you can enjoy in night markets! There are plenty food vendors for unique Taiwanese cuisine, such as stinky tofu (actually it smells quite good to the local), oyster omelet, bubble tea (tapioca with milk tea), seafood ,chopped ice with fruits and sweets and so on and so on! When it comes to Taiwanese food, I can talk about it for pages and pages. You just need to appreciate it yourself! Plus, the price in Taiwan is pretty low for food, so you can satisfy yourself with 5-euro budget in night markets.

Second, Taiwan luckily preserves the tradition of religions. There are temples everywhere in urban and rural areas. The temples themselves are artworks with colorful hand-made crafts on roofs, gates, and altars. The way we worship gods or goddesses shows how Taiwanese are awed by nature or fatalism; also, how grateful we are to the world, society and family.

Third, (foot) massages are not only welcomed by tourists but local people .The masters of foot massages believe that foot massages can help you improve or maintain health. If you suffer a lot from the foot massage, which means there is something wrong with your organs. The master will even tell you which organ by just massaging your foot! There are another choices if you are not comfortable with people touching your foot. A massage on your shoulders would be nice for the rest of your trip!

Last but not least is Taiwanese karaoke. More and more people even install karaoke at home to sing along whenever they feel like. Our businessmen are so smart that they combine all-you-can-eat buffet and karaoke together. You can sing, drink, and eat Taiwanese cuisine or some fast food as much as possible! It is the best way to quickly admire Taiwanese pop music culture and bond with people. For your information, Taiwanese music industry is one of the most important roots for Asian pop music.

If you are adventurous enough, I would suggest you take an independent trip instead of a group trip. However, a local guide would help you so much in Taiwan. There is a really good website called "couchsurfing (http://www.couchsurfing.org/)," where people can make friends around the world. It helped me tremendously while I traveled in Europe for 100 days! On the website, you can find some people to host you or to give you some tours for free. In this case, you absolutely save a lot money and time to experience the authentic Chinese culture in Taiwan!

Taiwan is such a country that you start to appreciate her once you get to know her in person! Wanna an adventure? Come to Taiwan then!