Day 5/5 Kaohisung back to Hong Kong

9:00am

After enjoying an early breakfast at the Hotel, we did an early check out and then headed to Kaohisung Museum of Fine Arts. The Museum is surrounded by a big park, there are joggers and pedestrians strolling around.  

10:00 am

There is a special exhibit about Man Ray. What is art? the most talented craftsmen might not be the greatest artist. They rather work for top luxury brands. A great artist is similar to an influential politician or a philosopher. Their art piece might not be the most skilled art work, but it sends a message to the world, and remains intact many generations after. I learnt about DaDa movement through this exhibition. A bunch of artists joined world ward I voluntarily.They thought they are fighting for justice, righteousness and a better future. In the middle of the war, they realized that they are fighting for none of the above, but for a bunch of power hungry politicians' own selfish desires and agenda. These artists form a group, withdrew from the war, and started the DaDa movement. They are calling for a change. They threw non conventional art exhibits, and place a signed toilet ceramic in an art center and call it art... why not? They are challenging the majority to think outside the box. And Man Ray is deeply influenced by the DaDa movement. 

One of the shown collection is call "Galaxy".  There are 13 or so photos of milk drips taken by Man Ray when he spilled his milk. Each has a message attached:

• Taste and opinion cannot replace intelligence and knowledge

• Nothing said will be held against you

• The pen is mightier than the sword and ink more indelible than blood

• There is no such thing as being shed (ahead) of the times : the times are always behind

• Misery makes the weak infamous, the strong sublime

• Birth and death are painful not necessarily for the one concerned .It is not death itself but its various causes that are tragic.

• Variety is the vice of life

• Reality is fabricated out of desire

• Do not turn the light for owls

What is art? the greatest artist often send a message. They use art works to draw attention from media and public, they challenge the current system, they provoke alternative solutions, they stimulate people to think otherwise... yet they give you freedom to stay numb to their works and messages. 

12:00nn

Before we leave Kaohisung, we had lunch nearby the museum.

Heading back to HONG KONG 

Day 4/5 Taipei to Kaohisung

12nn

Had a relaxing morning in the hotel, surfing online, making tea...etc. before we leave Taipei City. We bought the 12nn ticket to Kaohisung. 

Check in to Hotel Dua. I highly recommended Hotel Dua, it is perhaps the best hotel in Kaohisung city by far. Their price is very reasonable, one night stay for a bedroom with two single bed is about NT 3,500, which includes free wifi and breakfast on their roof restaurant. Their location is very convenient, it is 2-3 mins walk from Formosa Boulevard MRT stop which is a hub stop. 

Lobby cafe offers self served free tea / coffee counter. It is a very amiable set up especially when the guests are waiting for cab.

3:00 PM

Our first stop in Kaohisung City is Yanchengpu. This is a former government executive district. Now, with the help of the government and volunteer artists, Yanchengpu has successfully transformed into a theater and outdoor art exhibition center.

This "Kaohisung POPO Bing" is highly recommend by the tour book. It has 60+ years history ~~

5:00 PM

Hungry now... find a nice Tonkatsu restaurant to have early dinner ^^

6:00 PM

Time to buy some souvenirs for friends.  

That's enough for today, time to head back to enjoy the hotel facilities and chill

Day 3/5 Taipei

9:30 am 

Started my day with morning coffee, all set for the day!

10:30 am

Headed out to the National Museum. There are a few important art pieces inside the museum that are worth pointing out here. One of them is the jade cabbage. The piece is a jade cabbage with a small locust on the leaves, which is an imperial empress consort's dowry in the Qing dynasty. Locust's 蝗蟲pronounced "huang chong" in mandarin, it sounds similar to 王寵 huang Chong; which means King's favorite. It is a lucky piece of dowry.

1:00 pm

After browsing around the museum for 2 hours, our next mission is to try out the "National Treasures Menu" 國寶宴 at Palace Jing Hua. Each dish at the menu is base off from an antique piece at the national palace museum. 

Each private dining room has a very cool Chinese name, and ours is 大千居 which remains me of one of my favorite Chinese brush painting masters - 張大千。 國寶宴 is around 4200NT per person, it is a pricy lunch. However, it is also one of a kind dining experience that you can't get else where. The service is really royalty like, and we finished our lunch at 3:00 pm - sooo much food for lunch! 

3:00 pm

After the museum tour, we headed down to 中山 for ceramics pottery shopping. Taiwan is definitely the place to get quality tea leafs, tea pots and tools. 

5:00pm

We have a 6:00pm dinner reservation. Since the restaurant is at the top of a mountain, it takes about an hour to cab there from our hotel. The decor, vibe, food and service are impeccable. The theme of the restaurant is longevity, therefore all the ingredients they use are source from organic farms and local farmers. Fresh ingredient makes a huge difference on taste. I am willing to give up eating expensive stuffs for the simple but fresh rice, egg and vegetables. It is totally worth a try! 

9:00pm

We finished dinner, head back to our hotel with a full stomach. 

11:00pm

Went to the 24 hrs eslite - back to the hotel and end of day 3

Day 2/5 in Taipei City

11:00 PM 

We started our day by having a seafood brunch BBQ at the fishermen market in Taipei city.

There are mainly two ways to approach lunch at this fishermen market 1) pick a restaurant ( the one inside the wet market is the most reputable and popular, but long waiting line) 2) buy something in side the market and eat at a booth somewhere. We picked the outdoor BBQ restaurant next to the fish market. Price is reasonable, the calms are around 140 NT each. They also have a variety of food: yakitori , seafood, coconut water, rice ball ... Etc

2:00 PM 

We stayed at the fish market till around 1 ish and then headed down to the Yingge Ceramics Museum in Yingge. Since our hotel is nearby Taipei Train Station, the easiest way is to take the MRT. Ticket is about 30 NT per person, ~20 mins ride from TP station. 

The museum has an outdoor area which is kids friendly :) Many families bring their toddlers here is crawl and "run" around :)

There is a special exhibition going on inside the museum when we visited (4/14/2014). The plate above is from...? Yea, Picasso ! His style is very consistent.

Aside from the special exhibition, Artist Bi Zao's ceramic paintings collection base on H.C. Anderson Story : The Little Match Girl caught my attention. If I were to purchase a set or a piece of art, this collection would be my choice in the ceramics museum.

Another eye catching collection is this ceramic tea pot set. This one is "Crounching tiger and hidden Dragon", the words you are seeing from the magnify glasses are hand craft, amazing!

I learnt so much about pottery techniques and methods through this tour. We ended our time at the museum shop. And I got this tea cup set as souvenir :) It only comes in PIG and COW. The answer is clear , lucky :)

7:00 PM

After so much walking, our legs are tired. Just when we were thinking about dinner, we decided nothing is better than an evening spa in BeiTou :) Be aware that most of the hot spring resorts close at 10pm and restaurants around 8pm. It takes around an hour door to door from TP station to BeiTao. I like taking the MRT, cabbing is about the same time. 

I think we can end our day tour here. 

Bye !