Shilin Official Residence, Shilin Night Market

Phew...my energy tank is refuelled. Oh my, 4:40 pm!! Shilin Official Residence closes at 5pm. We are never gonna make it. Yet, we decided to give it a gamble. First things first, we had to walk back to the bus stop (very far...), ask for directions and sprint to our destination.  

Oh the asking for directions part, I just enjoy doing that in Taiwan. The people are so friendly and polite. So, we spotted this pleasant looking woman feeding her son on a near by wooden bench. And we decided to approach her.

Ah..before that, do bring along with you a Chinese version of your brochure, they may come in handy. Let me tell you why. I took out an English version of the information guide (displayed outside all metro information counter) and pointed at the picture. She squinted at the brochure looking puzzled. Oopps..my bad. I took out the Chinese version of the brochure and pointed to the same picture. Ting! A light bulb instantly lit up. On second thought I should have just mouthed the Chinese name of that place. =.=

Immediately, she stood up and graciously guided us to the bus stop. Aw..I wasn't expecting that. Showed us the directions - from the bus stop, cross the road, turn right and follow the crowd. Got it!!  

To our slight dismay, the last tour was 4:20 pm, gates were shut, all that was left for us was the exterior of the building. So much of the fuss hah.

Exterior of Chiang Kai Shek's former residence

Ignore the green fences.

Did I mention that there was a rather huge park outside the mansion? 5pm was too early for dinner, hence we decided to stick around and relax.

Small pavilion

Rows of palm trees welcoming visitors

Time passes so fast when you're in a lovely park. After an hour or so. We adjourned to Shilin Night Market  (士林夜市), the largest night market in Taiwan.  Be prepared to eat as you walk and vice versa. The night market is a 5 minutes walk from Jiantan Metro Station or for our case, it's also a 5 minutes walk from Shilin Official Residence.

 Shops, shops and more shops along the way

They call them 'pepper biscuits' (胡椒饼）but they looked more like fried meat bun xD

Not sure what drink this is...but saw this everywhere

Fried milk...Mmmm...yummy

Taiwanese MUST TRY: Tianbula 甜不辣 (left) NTD 30 and noodles 面线 (right) 

We chose to eat at this shop because there are tables for us to sit

Papaya milk NTD 40...delicious and helps improve digestion

Red bean soup, green bean soup, tohua + different kinds of toppings

Pumpkin + tohua + red bean soup

Yam dumplings + tohua + red beans soup

Time to squeeze through the crowd again...bye Shilin!!