http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/ Welcome to Been there. Your tips on the places you know - that you love, live in or have just visited - are what make this guide. http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/17136 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/17136 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/6405
This is good old bistro fare. If you want high end Provencale go to Le Jardin in TienMu. Yes you can have foie gras perfectly seared at Bistro L'Olivier, but this is the place for your down to earth French fix. Escargots followed by Cassoulet, Confit De Canard or table mixed Steak Tartare with crispy frites, for example.

If you've got room after that the warm chocolate cake is Maggie's speciality with chocolate sauce oozing from the sides.

OK, it's not very Chinese but then it's hardly TGI Fridays or the Outback Steakhouse either.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/6405 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/5564
I tried the more expensive, private hot springs experience, but preferred the public option. As well as being much cheaper, I felt more comfortable at the outdoor public baths.

While the private baths are segregated according to gender to allow for "uninhibited" nudity, the unisex public baths, where patrons wear swimming costumes, seemed a lot more laid-back and I felt there was a much more genuinely local vibe. Get down and relax with the people, I say.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/5564 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/6441
When Chiang Kai Shek's KMT fled to Taiwan in 1949 at the end of the Chinese civil war he somehow managed to bring with him the most important items of art and culture. These were set up in the National Palace Museum in the Shi Lin district of Taipei, close to Chiang's old residence.

There simply isn't a better collection anywhere. While tours in English are a regular part of the day it's just as rewarding to take yourself off and get lost among the artifacts.

The National Palace Museum's existance probably rankles with mainland China more than the existance of Chen Shiu Bien. And rightly so.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/6441 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/6404
However it's the dumplings you go for. While the older Xin Yi branch is stuffed in to 4 narrow floors the newer Zhongxiao branch is on one level with the tables arranged in a horse-shoe around the dumpling makers. Take some time to watch: the hands never stop moving as dumpling making is turned into an Olympic sport.

They have a numbered English menu and a line up system which means at busy times (you can wait up to 30 mins for a table), but it's worth it.]]> http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/6404 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/5563 http://www.ivebeenthere.co.uk/tips/5563