Elephant Mountain, Is it worth the climb? (Day 1 – MOCA & Huashan 1914, Taipei City)

Our day 1 in Taipei were almost cut in to half wandering the huge hotel we stayed in. I did not regret doing so for the  Hotel it self was already an exploration. After having our brunch, we decided to go out and explore the city.

And because this will be our first day of exploration, we already thought that it will still take some time to familiarize ourselves with the ways of the people, directions as well as the transportation system. With a very flexible itinerary we had, we decided to explore the center part of the city first – we visited Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) in Datong District, Taipei City.

 Museum of Contemporary Art | No. 39, Chang’an West Road, Datong District, Taipei City, Taiwan 103

To better feel being a local, we first try the Taxi service at the hotel we stayed in (Also Read: Hotel Hyatt Taipei). The taxis in Taiwan resembles the ones in New York – those yellow colored taxis. Taking the taxi weren’t really a bad move for the service they gave (and the car itself) was more of like the the usual Uber or Grab services. Well, the price included. So doing an Uber service or a Taxi would just entail you almost the same amount of money.

The failure we had was on the next thing that happen …

MOCA (Museum of Contemporary Art)

Museum of Contemporary Art or shortly known as MOCA is Taiwan’s first contemporary art museum and is housed in a brick former school built in the early 1900s. I recommended to visit this place for I am kind of feeling the vibe of this museum. That is of course basing on what I’ve seen on the photos.

When our taxi was already parking on the side, I already felt excited and attracted seeing a huge car display elevated on top of a trailer truck. But what surprised us was when we entered the vicinity.

90% of the museum was close due to construction! Funny that we didn’t even bother to check it first online if its closed or not or if there are some things happening at the place. Fee was waived on that day due to the construction and we were able to just visit one room.

Either way, getting hiccups along the way is still part of the adventure. At least now, the next time we visit a museum or establishment, checking it first online if its operational or not is on top priority.

With hope to do something better, we decided to look for the nearest MRT station and learn how it works. The nearest station was Zhongshan Station. We were a bit undecided then which kind of MRT card to buy. They got options of either single or reloadable or those which already got a time limit like 3 days or 5 days unlimited used. We decided to buy an MRT card costing NT$200. (To know more about Taiwan, Check it here) 

As usual, doing the first MRT ride here in Taiwan needs a little bit of adjustment. Directions could be a bit difficult to decipher specially that there are so many map directions posted in the wall. Just a tip: Google Maps will make it easier for you to know which one to ride, and also, just follow the color on which direction you are going to.

We decided to visit another contemporary place – the Huashan 1914 Creative Park.