@Chiang: congrats :) I never did figure out what the problem was earlier.. glad it works now. Taiwanese history. For the purpose of my article, the KMT’s version?

@duringmyheyday thanks! it helped a lot. How good is the Wifly, and how much does it cost?

@nonchann going early half of dec :)

I think there is good vegetarian food, just ask a local.

The weather is currently crappy. Yang Ming Mountain is interesting, some good restaurants up there.

Taipei is embarking on free WiFi access along Chunghsiao E Rd, but I donno how extensive it is yet. u can try coffee bean, IS coffee etc. there are many outlets

for Taiwanese history, just email me…cheers!

I’m Thomas Jian, a member of GV Chinese translation team.
Welcome to Taipei!
I’ve lived in Taipei for 7 years. I’m glad to suggest some interesting places.

MASK is right. it’s not difficult to shop female clothing in Taipei.
If you want to visit Taiwan’s night market, I suggest you come to Shilin Night Market(士æžâ��å¤Å�å¸â��) or Gongguan Night market(Ã¥â�¦Â¬Ã©Â¤Â¨).

Shilin Night Market is near the MRT station, Jiantan station(�潭).
(Here’s MRT’s route map:
http://www.trtc.com.tw/e/service.asp?catid=%E4%B9%98%E8%BB%8A%E6%8C%87%E5%8D%97&small=%E8%B7%AF%E7%B7%9A%E5%9C%96%E6%9A%A8%E8%BB%8A%E7%AB%99%E8%B3%87%E8%A8%8A)
You could check the following links:
http://www.taiwanfun.com/north/taipei/articles/0201/0201CoverShiLin.htm
or
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shilin_Night_Market

Gongguan night market is near Gongguan station.
There are a lot of Taiwanese foods and sports goods stores over there.
You could also check the link below:
http://taipeitravel.net/article.asp?pcode=2&indexId=46&mrtId=-1&uId=2801&pageNo=1

Besides, if you want to touch more Taiwan’s local culture, Huaxi Street Night Market(èÂ�¯è¥¿è¡â��) and Wufenpu(äºâ��Ã¥Ë�â� Ã¥Å¸â��) are good choices. However, you can’t get over there by MRT but by bus or taxi.

Information about Huaxi Street Night Market:
http://taipeitravel.net/article.asp?pcode=2&indexId=46&mrtId=-1&uId=2803&pageNo=1
Information about Wufenpu: (zh)
http://www.syda.taipei.gov.tw/cgi-bin/SM_theme?page=438300f5

If you don’t mind the budget, Hsin- Yi Dstrict would be a great place for shopping, ’cause there are a lot of department stores there, including Hsin Kong Mitsukoshi(æâ��°åâ�¦â�°Ã¤Â¸â�°Ã¨Â¶Å ) and Taipei 101. They are near the MRT station, Taipei City Hall station(Ã¥Â�°åÅ�â��å¸â��æâ��¿åºÅ�ç«â�¢).

And Hsin Kong Mitsukoshi A9 building now have a photo exhibition, I think you might be interested in that. :)
http://culture.skm.com.tw/event/2007photo/display.htm (zh)

Here’s the map around Taipei City Hall station:
http://home.trtc.com.tw/INFO92/Lmap.asp?SID=093

There are also some shops near Zhongxiao Fuxing station(忠�復��), such as SOGO Department Store. Many shops are in the valleys and you may enjoy the shopping process.

About the cofee shops providing free wifi, here’s a long list: (zh)
http://www.oranges.idv.tw/wp/?p=56

I think duringmyheyday’s suggestion is good. æµ·éâ��Šçšâ��Ã¥Â�¡å¤«åÂ�¡ often plays some good music, and you could enjoy your time there. It’s also easy to find because it’s near the MRT station, Taipower Building Station.

As for the contemporary Taiwanese celebrities, the most popular celebrity in Taiwan must be Chien Ming Wang(�建�), a pitcher of New York Yankees in Major League.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chien-Ming_Wang.
The other one would be Ang Lee(��), a movie director who won Best Director of Academy Awards with Breakback Mountain.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ang_Lee

About the pop music star, you have to know Jay Chou(���), Jolin Tsai(���), and David Tao(��). Taiwan also has a popular TV show recenly, Taiwan Idol(�級��大�). It is a singing competition programme.

I hope the information above might help you.

About the military history of Taiwan and the vegetarian food in Taiwan, I still have to find more information and I’ll have some suggestions later.ãâ�¬â�¬Ã¯Â¼Å¡Ã¯Â¼â�°

2. Almost no free wifi except in schools and public libraries, one place I know is 3C Cafe (http://tx.shu.edu.tw/GCot04/cafe/cafe4.htm) but you’d be obliged to order from the otherwise negligible menu. There is wifi everywhere (they call it Wifly) - MacDonalds, Starbucks etc etc, you just need to purchase credits from a convenience store.

3. Cute cafes are usually found in the alleys but there is a considerable number of them. Just a few examples: 海���夫� (http://kafka.myweb.hinet.net/), �巷��館 (http://www.ipeen.com.tw/shop/shop.php?id=27452)

4. Best vegetarian I’ve come across so far: æË�¥å¤©ç´ é£Ÿ. It’s buffet style.
(http://tw.lifestyle.yahoo.com/biz.html?bizid=87e81df62d80a9a8)

I’ve been in Taipei for a little over a year now, couldn’t help but offer a few ideas. Hope they help!

And this time of the year, you might not find suitable clothes for sunny Singapore…now you sigh…