Taipei: Flower Market

We visited the Flower and Jade open markets today. The markets were in separate buildings divided by a crosswalk; both were filled with vendor booths. Like I mentioned in a previous post, I've been on the lookout for some jade jewelrey, so I was excited to check out the jade market. The Jade market was crowded, and the booths, squeezed close to one another, were all lined with rows of shiny jade. We couldn't haggle down the prices to a satisfactory degree, and the atomosphere was a big claustrophobic, so we left without getting anything.


The flower market was much more airy and open, which was a relief after being in the cramped quarters of the jade market. It's such a wonderful feeling to be surrounded by the sights and smells of flowers. The flower market contained much more than just flowers though; there were vendors selling food, kitchenware, glassware, pretty much everything. There was even a pet adoption booth in the middle of the market with the most adorable puppies and kittens. Oh baby animals.






The total length of the flower market must have been almost a mile, so we were pretty tired after shopping the entirety of it. But the walking was worth it as the open markets of Taiwan are a nice change from the grocery stores and shopping malls I'm so used to in the States.