The Los Angeles Times
Date: Feb 18, 2018
By: Christopher Reynolds

On a three-day visit to Taipei, capital of Taiwan, Christopher Reynolds ate his way through a teeming night market, zipped to the observation deck of a 101-story skyscraper, inspected treasures at the National Palace Museum and released a flaming lantern into a stormy sky.

I stood between two vendors, my belly full of blow-torched beef cubes and sweet potato balls. My neck was wet from rain. The air was thick with scents of fish, fowl and the sizzling, steaming contents of food carts.

My universe was in perfect balance.

Why? Because to my right, one vendor was hawking exotic fruits that looked like festive balloons, and to my left, another was hawking festive balloons that looked like exotic fruits.

Taiwan and its capital, Taipei, are complicated, but I have some strong sensory memories from the four days I spent in the city in the fall.     [FULL  STORY]