Fathom Asia’s <strong>Taiwan</strong> <strong>Taiwan</strong> lies off the southeastern coast of mainland Asia, across the <strong>Taiwan</strong> Strait from mainland China and on the edge of the Pacific “rim of fire”. Continuous tectonic movements have created majestic peaks, rolling hills, plains, basins, coastlines, and other wonders. Because of it’s location, <strong>Taiwan</strong> is perfect for either a stopover to many other destinations worldwide, or indeed a destination in it’s own right. Explore <strong>Taiwan</strong>, a new holiday destination just waiting to be found, with fantastic scenery and fabulous places to visit, such as Taipei City, the beautiful Sun Moon Lake, the romantic Love River, sunrises at Alishan, the national parks of Kenting and Yushan and the famous Taroko Gorge. The diversity of <strong>Taiwan</strong> offers a rich historical background with a multifaceted culture. People from many different places and backgrounds, such as <strong>Taiwan</strong>’s indigenous people, the southern Fujianese from early China, Hakka immigrants, the Dutch, Spanish, and Japanese. This mix gives the visitor to <strong>Taiwan</strong> a huge option of interests, whether it be folk art, culture, history, architecture, temples or the type of shopping you may be interested in. <strong>Taiwan</strong> will satisfy your interests. The culinary culture of <strong>Taiwan</strong>. The culinary culture of the Chinese people goes back a very long time, so you can enjoy fine authentic cuisine from all the various regions of China. In <strong>Taiwan</strong>, it seems the people live to eat and it is said that there is a snack shop every three steps and a restaurant every five. These establishments serve all kinds of Chinese food. Try roast duck, smoked chicken, lamb hotpot, fish in wine sauce, beef with green peppers, scallop and turnip balls, camphor-tea duck, salty fried chicken with spices, honey ham, stir-fried shrimp, dry-fried eggplant, and spicy bean curd. With the influx of other nationalities Western food and fast food outlets have also become popular. All of this makes <strong>Taiwan</strong> a paradise for food lovers. <strong>Taiwan</strong>’s own native cuisine has become known around the world, and if you try it just once you will remember it forever. Adventure. Though small, <strong>Taiwan</strong> has much to offer in terms of recreational activities, such as diving, snorkeling, surfing, boating, river kayaking or canoeing, hiking, mountain climbing, or even aero-sports, such as parasailing and hang-gliding. Just ask about your interest. <strong>Taiwan</strong> is sure to offer it. Shopping in <strong>Taiwan</strong> is a paradise for shoppers. <strong>Taiwan</strong> has a huge range of large shopping centers. These venues offer designer clothing, lifestyle products, food outlets, bookstores, wholesale warehouses, and amusement centers, providing the ultimate shopping environment. Several theme streets are a must, exhibiting an exciting blend of history and style. Other venues, including the weekend jade markets and computer lane in Taipei’s Guanghua commercial plaza, are very good places to find great and unexpected bargains. Try your hand at the local arts, crafts and cooking. <strong>Taiwan</strong> has many unusual local arts and crafts that are a little different to what you may be used to. Glove Puppetry is a traditional performing art incorporating a range of skills. The puppets are hand crafted and expertly made. Oil paper umbrellas play an important role for the Hakka people who give them away as a gesture of good luck. Dough figures are made into characters from legendary stories. Blowing sugar figurines from melted sugar. True! There are many things one can experience or learn about. Chinese knots, scented sachets, whipping tops, kites, pottery, diabolos and calligraphy - the essence of Chinese culture. ATMs and Credit Cards. Most foreign cards are accepted 24 hours a day with ATMs found in all major districts. Most restaurants, hotels and shops accept credit cards. You may not be able to use credit cards at small businesses, markets or in rural areas. Tipping. Tipping is not customary however, a service charge of about 10% is often added to the bill in many hotels and restaurants. VAT. VAT is payable on goods and services. Fathom Asia includes this in all tour packages. A foreign visitor rebate is given on goods when departing the country if NT$3000 is spent on any given day. Getting Around. MRT: Rapid transport systems in Taipei and Kaohsiung. Bus: Scheduled buses run from the airports to all major cities. Island-wide and regional bus companies operate intercity services that cover the whole island. <strong>Taiwan</strong> High Speed Railway: The THSR covers 345 kilometers, connecting Taipei and Zuoying The route passes through 77 townships en route. Railway: Trains on the ‘round the island’ rail network provide extremely convenient services.