Taiwan was called the Ilha Formosa, or the beautiful island, because the Portuguese sailors who first saw Taiwan thought it beautiful. That it still is, but for those of us who are avid tea drinkers, this is more like the Teashop island.
I just got here yesterday for a very quick trip, and stayinag in the heart of Taipei last night, we went out for dinner around our hotel. Just on the pre and post dinner walk alone, in the space of about a few blocks, I think I saw a dozen teashops. Not all of them are necessarily worth visiting, especially when there are many fine shops to go to, but I think it is safe to say that nobody will die of caffeine deprivation here. In fact, I wonder if Taiwan might not have the highest concentration of teashop per capita in the world.
Now I am sitting here in the middle of Taroko national park. It is stunning, and more than validates Taiwan’s former name. More on that later.
5 responses so far ↓
A pile of aged oolong | A Tea Addict's Journal // June 13, 2012 at 4:46 am |
[…] trip to Taiwan, this time having a few days between work and tea hunting. Taiwan really is the island of teashops, and the kicker is, quite a few of them are very decent places, with good tea and run by good […]
Taiwanese Tea Compendium | TeaDB // August 4, 2013 at 1:33 am |
[…] has been described by Marshaln as “The Tea Shop Island†and is truly a tea lover’s heaven. Like Japan and unlike China, the standards for authentic […]
Back to the Island of Tea | A Tea Addict's Journal // December 12, 2013 at 9:03 am |
[…] How do you know you’re in the Island of Tea? […]
Z // March 8, 2014 at 8:13 am |
Enjoyed reading your blog – Any good tea shops to recommend in Taipei?
MarshalN // March 19, 2014 at 1:12 am |
Um…. Wisteria? Otherwise, there are a ton of good stores, and honestly half the fun is exploring