April 1–4, 2024 / Tainan, Taiwan
I took the high-speed rail from Taipei and arrived in Tainan in the evening.
This time, I planned a quiet stay — visiting cafes, walking around the city, and doing a little work along the way.
Arriving in Tainan and Finding the Hotel
I arrived in Tainan by high-speed rail in the evening.
It felt less like a typical hotel and more like a guesthouse with self check-in.
On their website, the rooms were shown as wooden interiors inspired by hinoki cypress, but it seems that each room has a slightly different atmosphere.
Finding the place was a bit difficult at first.
When I followed Google Maps, I actually got more confused.
(The map pin and the building entrance are not exactly in the same place.)
Since the hotel is unmanned, the check-in process was also a little complicated.
After a bit of confusion, I finally managed to get inside.
After resting in the room for a while, I decided to go out and walk around Tainan at night.
A Night Walk in Shennong Street
First, I had a bowl of danzai noodles, and then headed to Shennong Street.
At night, the street is lit with lanterns and has a very unique atmosphere.
I walked slowly through the street, taking photos along the way.
Narrow Door Cafe
The next morning, I went for a walk and visited a cafe called Narrow Door Cafe.
This cafe is famous for its extremely narrow entrance.
It is really just wide enough for one person to squeeze through, which surprised me at first.
It seems to be a well-known cafe, but since I arrived early in the morning, it wasn’t very crowded.
I ordered a fruit tea and peanut butter toast, and did a little work there.
At first, the staff member spoke in a very direct tone, and I briefly thought,
“Is she a little scary?”
But a moment later she smiled, and the atmosphere quickly felt comfortable.
Walking in the Park and Louisa Coffee
After leaving the cafe, I walked through a nearby park.
Then I looked for another place where I could work and went to Louisa Coffee.
I did a little work there.
The shop was quite small and didn’t seem to have a restroom (maybe), so I walked to a nearby Mitsukoshi department store to use the restroom.
After that, I took a short walk around Guohua Street, a well-known food area in Tainan.
Tainan’s Famous Beef Soup
On the way back to the hotel, I stopped at a place called Shijingjiu Beef Soup.
I ordered beef soup and braised pork rice.
The owner there was very kind.
He seemed used to Japanese visitors.
Tainan Park and a Small Incident
The next morning, I woke up because of an earthquake.
When I turned on the TV, I learned that there had been a large earthquake near Hualien.
It shook quite a bit in Tainan as well, which honestly surprised me.
After things settled down a little, I went out for a morning walk.
I passed a small park called Weimin Plaza and continued walking to Tainan Park.
While I was taking photos in the park, a man who looked like a photographer approached me.
“Student?”
No way.
Apparently he was trying to sell a photo session.
He was quite persistent, but when I said,
“I have no money,”
he finally gave up.
Cafe Work and More Beef Soup
After walking around the park, I went back to Guohua Street.
The staff were kind, and the place had a warm and homey atmosphere.
A Street Full of Cats?
Later, while walking around the city, I found an interesting street.
There were cat signs and cat illustrations painted on the walls.
The whole place somehow felt like a “cat street.”
Cats and fish
I finally spotted a real cat for the first time in Tainan.
Unfortunately, it was inside a building, so I couldn’t take a good photo.
The Last Cafe Work Session
After walking for a long time, I stopped by another Louisa Coffee (Shuipingwen branch).
This location was spacious and relaxing.
I was able to concentrate on work there.
Later, I walked back to the hotel.
On the way, I took photos of temples and wandered through the quiet streets of Tainan.
Walking through the city while feeling the evening air of Tainan was very pleasant.
Leaving Tainan
On the final morning, I left Tainan.
I headed to Kaohsiung Airport, and in the early afternoon I boarded a flight to Kuala Lumpur.
Beef soup, cafes, and cats.
Those were my few days in Tainan.
