Solo Trip - Taiwan (July 2023) - Tainan First Day Lunch, Dinner and Garden Night Market

 

As I arrived before the hotel check-in time, my room was not available, so I went in search of my lunch. I know it was in the middle of the summer heat, but winter melon pork rib soup sounded divine to me! And this was the place I had to request for a bowl of rice, and the guy was hesitant to sell it to me. Apparently they don't just sell white rice.... But the winter melon soup was delicious! I actually came back here again the next day, and added the prawn rolls. The prawn rolls were the best I had! I tried to come here again before I left Tainan, but it so happened to be their off day :(

While exploring the hotel surroundings, I wondered into nearby temples and alley, and stopped by for some ice winter melon drink from a small shop. I strike up a conversation with the lady owner, and she asked me to come back for dinner. So I did, at around 5pm. Above was the noodle I ordered along with a bowl of soup (what is with me and hot soup in summer!). Sadly, the food was not very nice. But I guess I made the lady owner happy seeing me back :)  I didn't minded supporting local businesses, even if the food was subpar. Sometimes, it's more than just the food, it is about supporting a culture that has existed there for such a long time....

After dinner, I took a walk to look for Garden Night Market, supposing to be the biggest night market in Tainan. It was a good 20 minutes walk or so away! I did not enjoy the walk at all! But the night market was huge!

They sold all sorts of food. Some I couldn't read what it was, and didn't know how to order either. I like the giant woks in the above stall, cause it reminded me very much of a ramadan bazaar in Penang where they also sell curries in such big wok. Actually, Tainan reminded me very much of Penang. The alleys are charming like Penang, roads are old and small, and there were food almost everywhere! It was a very ancient place, and the people were rather friendly.

Lot's of Taiwanese sausages too. I am strangely quite vegetarian friendly when I travel. I don't really crave meat that much.

The fruit jelly balls were also available here, and cheaper too! But I've already had those in KaohSiung, so I skipped it this time round.

On this day, I was gonna try potato balls! I never buy this anywhere else like Singapore or Malaysia, cause it's a lot more expensive. But in Taiwan, it was cheaper, especially outside of Taipei. So I bought these as snacks.

I also bought these scallion pancakes. I actually can't really read the chinese character at first, but then I saw the English words beneath it. Thank goodness. Still, I went for their recommended original flavoured one. But unlike the usual pancake, these were cut up in to strips. So it's kinda like fries.

The night market area was so huge that there were ample space to sit down and have a proper meal without people banging into you. I think this would be a great place to come with a group of friends. You can just sit down, order a variety of food for sharing. 

Game stall at Taiwan night market was a common sight. Kids playing pin ball games and game of chance was also quite common. I guess it's in the Chinese blood to tempt lady luck....

But the game stall at this night market was quite something else! I've never seen so many stalls! And I didn't know you could play mahjong in a night market game stall! I didn't know how the rule works though....But I found it very facinating.

More game stall, with prizes to be won!

My snacks for the day. I left while it's still light, cause I hate getting lost in a new town when my mobile is out of battery. But I didn't go back yet. I just walk back to where my hotel was at and explored more of the area before calling it a day. Next post will be about that.