Saturday, January 07, 2012

Ground Floors

The entrance to the Taipei 101 mall is packed with foodies, shoppers, and tourists throughout the day.


Foodies head to the basement level's Grand Market to satisfy their appetite in a 1,200-seat food court.
There's even a eatery named after me!


Dozens of food vendors stacked next to each other ready to sell you noodles, rice dishes, fruit drinks, desserts, and everything in-between.
We had to walk around several times to decide what we wanted. And once we decided on a vendor, we had to decide on the food.
Talk about choices!


No, I did not eat at the restaurant named after me. By the time I was hungry, the place was packed.
I instead ate this combo plate consisting of noodles, vegetables, and a soup.
All for the unbelievable price of $110 NT (approximately $3.64 USD). The food court's napkins and soup spoons bear the famous building's namesake.
Serious foodies who have more expensive taste can head to the 35th, 85th, or 86th floor for more refined dining.


Shoppers head to the upper levels to buy the latest designer fashions at high-end brand name stores.


Tourists make their way to the 5th floor to purchase tickets to the building's 89th floor indoor observatory. The tickets are $400 NT per adult and $370 NT per child ($13.24 USD and $12.25 USD, respectively).
Unfortunately, the 91st floor outdoor observatory was closed due to strong winds on the day of our visit.


Here is a long line of tourists waiting for the elevators to go northbound to the 89th floor. The line moved fairly quickly because the elevator operator really jammed as many people in there as possible. I do not know the elevator's maximum capacity, but I sure felt like a sardine during the journey. Luckily, it is the world's fastest elevator reaching the 89th floor in 37 seconds as seen in this video taken by another tourist.


- Karen

8 comments:

Maddy said...

I have shopping to do today. I hate shopping, however, that would be a must more interesting environment.

Filip said...

Like the picture of the atrium.

Greetings,
Filip

lina said...

An eatery named after you. Cool! ;)

I think I would not like being jammed into the lift to the observatory, no matter how fast it goes up or down. o.O

betchai said...

the foods look so delicious, I think I would prefer that one that very expensive dining :)

LifeRamblings said...

i didn't manage to visit the mall during my short trip to Taiwan, so it's great to see the interior of the building thru your lens. it's hard to avoid crowds when visiting popular destinations, so take extra care of your belongings when in crowded areas Karen. i can't wait to see your photos at the observatory.

rainfield61 said...

Can I have one named after me?

eileeninmd said...

It looks like an awesome place to do some shopping and to eat out. Wonderful photos. It would be cool to see the observatory. Great pics, have a wonderful week!

Emm said...

Oh yummy, Taiwanese food is one of the main reasons I want to visit! My friend is always posting photos of her meals and they look mouthwatering. Funny how every city visit, we always land up in a mall!