Discussion of Asian Cities and recommendations on which one to visit next. I've been to Taipei and Tokyo and thought Taipei was the best city I have been to in the world. The food was great, the people were friendly, and the day trips were so much fun. Looking to go there again next year but am unsure of which city to pair it with. My options are Kyoto, Seoul, and Singapore for about 4-5 days. Looking for a place with solid food, somewhere relatively easy to navigate, and something with just good vibes all around.
>>2839034>Taipei>great foodReally? I first flew to Taipei from Chiang Mai and found the night market and restaurant offerings to be nowhere near the price, quality and deliciousness I was accustomed to in Thailand.
>>2839034Great pic anon. I really want to visit Taipei but I just hate the heat and humidity. Is it best visiting in February?
>>2839343Thailand mogs Taipei in terms of most foodStill can't beat Taiwan on dumplings and night markets though
I like Hong Kong.I wouldn't say people are friendly in HK, but i'm kind of a dick myself, so it's freeing to interract with people who are direct.
>>2839433>prison cell sized room>"that'll be $4500 plus tip per month" ;)
>>2839034Is Taipei similar to Tokyo? I hear a lot of comparisons that Taiwan likes to Larp as sort of a mini Japan.
>>2839738no not really. taiwan is like provincial japan, the small cities and the rural aspect of it. taipei is like fukuoka. i've spent 6 months in taipei, one year total in taiwan. taiwan is organised, like japan is organised. but it is poor.
>>2839034Can you spoonfeed me your itinerary for Taipei? For a while I've been considering visiting it before China bombs it into oblivion but I'm too lazy to do my own research and defaulting to destinations where I could just improvise.Seoul is cool, plenty to see, the food is cheap and delicious and the alcohol is great. Easy enough to navigate as long as you install naver maps.Though out of my trip to Korea I liked Jeju much more.
>>2839360Yeah weather there isn't too bad in February probably one of the more tolerable months>>2839738>Is Taipei similar to Tokyo? Yes and no. They're both sprawling metropolises but the scale of Tokyo is way larger.They like to take a lot of cues from Japan but they're still Chinese.Taiwan is what Japan would be like if it were inhabited by (non commie) Chinese people.>>2839754>like japan is organised. but it is poor.This guy is full of shit. Taiwan isn't especially wealthy but it's not poor. It's just Chinese which means it's chaotic, disorganised and not especially clean, but the people are far more laid back and outgoing.And I think that's the main difference between Taiwan and any other East Asian culture, in that most people (especially outside Taipei) are just content to live their lot in life and aren't out chasing money or whatever.
>>2839738I once talked to an extremely beautiful and sweet Taiwanese girl and she outright admitted Japan was better.
>>2839988I heard Taiwan has a similar high school to America.
>>2839738>Is Taipei similar to Tokyo?Not at all. Taiwan in general is similar to Southern China but without the East Bloc grimness and with an element of Japanese influence.
>>2840062It is hard to beat Japan in east Asia. In terms of culture and anything else, the only one who came kinda close is South Korea.
>>2840081>It is hard to beat Japan in east Asia. In terms of culture and anything elseJapan is great but I wouldn't say that it beats all other East Asian destinations by every measure. South Korea and Taiwan beat Japan in food, not that Japanese food isn't good, but the food in Korea and Taiwan is simply better. China has the most interesting historical sites, many of which are largely tourist free outside of the major holidays, and offers a less westernized and more off the beaten path experience. Pretty much any other East Asian country bests Japan in friendliness as the Japanese, while polite, are very reserved and don't seem to be keen on the hordes of tourists that have flooded the country in recent years.
>>2840090>china>historical siteslollmao evenI do like the statues of Qin Hui that they've been seething, slapping, and spitting at for five centuries though
>>2840102Pathetic cope. China has a long history and never lacked manpower. For historic sites no other country in East Asia comes close. The Forbidden City, Great Wall, Longmen Grottoes, Terra Cotta Army. The closest thing in Japan has is Todai-ji in Nara.
>>2840090People in Taipei are very reserved as well, in a good way. I was expecting them to be loud and annoying like Chinese but they were very quiet. This whole 'Japan hates tourists' thing is terminally online rage bait bull shit that doesn't actually play out in real life. Sure there might be one guy in every 1000 who hates foreigners, but you'll never know about it because the Japanese bottle everything up and only talk about you after you leave. There might be one guy in every 100,000 who will confront you about it, but even other japanese think this guy is unhinged.
>>2840112Himeiji along mogs the Forbidden City, which is empty and somehow lifeless (despite the mass hoards of tourists) due to the looting and destruction over time (cultural revolution lol)A place like Nara could never exist in China because the locals would just kill all the deer and make penis or antler wine for 'traditional chinese medicine' or something
>>2840127>Himeiji along mogs the Forbidden CityRidiculous. I've been to both. Himeji is impressive from the outside but when you go inside it's just a small keep with unadorned wooden paneling.
>>2840129I've also been to both. Himeiji wins hands-down. It looks better both inside and out. The architecture is stunning. The city is kino, clean, and peaceful. If you're a photographer, you'll get way better pictures as well.The Forbidden City feels lifeless with little inside even though it's completely swamped with chinese tourists. Extremely underwhelming, despite being so important to chinese "history" (or whatever little is still left of it). Outside is stinky, smoggy, polluted Tiananmen/Beijing with dirty chinamen ready to scam you. I don't think police will hassle/arrest you for streaming outside Himeiji, either, like they do at Tiananmen.There is a reason nearly everyone wants to go to Japan (almost to a fault by this point) but barely anyone wants to visit china despite heavy shilling from the CCP
>>2840063I'm what sense?
>>2839368I really don't get the obsession with Thai food in Thailand, it's fairly shit in general and has barely any meat.I love Thai food in the west though. Bangkok has amazing variety and quality of Western restaurants though, which you won't really find in Taipei, definitely not elsewhere in Taiwan
>>2839034Tokyo is comfy but significantly overrated in my opinion, especially the food. It's a pretty chill place though and nice for just walking around everywhere. Kinda boring overall.Kyoto is one of the most beautiful places I've ever visited in my life but the tourists unironically ruin it. It's way above "grumpy anon complains there's other white people there" level, it's just fucking crowds and crowds and crowds everywhere and 90% of the people there are loud Americans or loud Chinese who ruin the atmopshere of the place. I would say, try to visit it out of season.Singapore is worth visiting on a stop-over to somewhere else. You can see the majority of places worth seeing in 3 days tops. I quite enjoyed it, very ambitious place and some interesting architecture and infrastructure. I think it's one of those places that look like the pinnacle of the modern world and everyone should see it once.Bangkok is great and fully recommended. The food is some of the best in the world, great nightlife, and very interesting historical sites (temples, palaces), many fun malls to chill in too. If you are into temples and historical stuff then pair it with Chiang Mai.Seoul is significantly underrated in my opinion. A common complaint I see about it here is "uhhh it wasn't like Tokyo" which I don't even understand. It is true that there is nothing that really stands out about it, but it's a lovely example of a modern city that still has a nice lively vibe to it while not being filled with tourists/geriatrics/minorities. The cuisine is unironically top 3 in the world in my opinion, I found even basic cheap dishes interesting and tasty. It feels quite youthful and I found the nightlife to be significantly better than Tokyo, if that's something you're into. Don't expect too many historical sites and instead enjoy the city life, the markets, the many parks, etc.t. lived in Asia for almost 10 years now
>>2839034>>2840390Hong Kong is also a great choice. Fantastic views, very unique architecture and city planning, and an interesting insight into what humanity is capable of when forced to build a city in a place like this. I enjoyed it a lot but you don't need a lot of time to see most of it, and it gets tiring after a while due to the chaos everywhere.You may have realized from my posts that I'm a big fan of cities overall, if city life in general doesn't interest you then take my posts with a grain of salt.
>>2839034>>2840390>>2840393For cities I DON'T recommend:Beijing is depressing (but China overall is great, there are jsut many better choices than Beijing)KL is a boring shithole with weird Muslim lawsJakarta is a mega fucking shithole with weird Muslim lawsI've never been to Vietnam yet, I really need to go there soon as I've been hearing both good and bad things and want to see what it's really like.
I hear its easy as hell to pull in Jakarta.
>>2839034did you get up at 4am in your holidays so that no one is around to take a pic of that stupid dog at shibuya?Out of all the major cities in Asia, I am yet to go to Taipei and Seoul. I will need to tick those places off soon. Shanghai is one place i did quickly but i wish i had more time.
>>2840389> I really don't get the obsession with Thai food in Thailand, it's fairly shit in general and has barely any meat.I love Thai food in the west though.Fuck’s sake. Retarded tastelet take. You were probably too busy eating ladyboy bussy to eat any good food in Thailand.
>>2840389>barely any meatThan get a few meat skewers. I'll take pad kra pao over stinky tofu or beef noodles any day of the week
>>2839738The wealthier and touristy parts of Taipei CITY (say, the strip from Wanhua to Xinyi) might feel like some off-brand Japanese city, but New Taipei and the rest are a different story.
>>2840473If you order a meat dish and it has all of two bites of meat, you got ripped off. Trying being more likeable next time you greet the cook and place your order.
>>2840473>tasteletwe are about a country which literally puts white sugar on their noodles to mask the shitness of itthe average thai meal is 70% carbs 20% vegetables 10% meat and slathered in oil and sugar to mask how shit it is, it's pleb tier stuff for children and the elderlyTaiwan has fresh healthy food and excellent variety, they don't need to cover the taste.Thai's really don't have that much variety eitherAbsolutely garbage tier ox meat too.Also fucking plastic styrofoam microplastics straight into your balls, no thanks. often questionable chicken food hygeine practices even in upmarket placesI'll take a Thai meal in Sydney over Bangkok any day of the weekMy favourite in the country though would be local bbq houses, give you plates of raw or marinaded meat and you cook it. Better than korean bbq imo
>>2839034Seoul. Kyoto is shit as Tokyo is. Singapore is only good if you are rich and have a girlfriend with you.
Might make my own thread for this but do people under 25 in Tokyo just not go outside or something?I was looking for things to do/subculture scenes etc and everyone in the pictures was in their 30s and 40s, late 20s the absolute youngest. Even overseas touring bands who would usually pull college aged crowds, the Tokyo shows looked like everyone was 27-28+Whereas I researched similar stuff for Seoul and Bangkok and there was young people in all the pictures
>>2841980Not many people under 25 in big cities, lmao more people over 80
>>2840127>>2840131This is either 0/10 bait or just pure deluded and biased ignorance. I've seen both the Forbidden City and Himeji Castle. From a crowd standpoint, the Forbidden City receives around 15-20 million visitors a year while Himeji Castle receives around 1-2 million yearly visitors. I had to reserve a ticket beforehand and wait over an hour to get into the Forbidden City, whereas I could walk onto the Himeji Castle grounds the day of. From a photography standpoint, the main iconic photos I see taken of Himeji Castle are taken from the road outside the nearby JR station where it's usually framed between typical modern buildings or between cherry blossom branches. The main iconic photos I see of the Forbidden City are taken from the front gate or from one of the hills in Jingshan Park where it gives off a better sense of scale because the layout of the buildings are sprawled out horizontally instead of vertically. I think both are worth seeing, but the Forbidden City was more impressive to me and had better photo opportunities. Also, there are multiple deer parks in China by the way. You just don't hear about them because they're considered secondary attractions and not advertised as the main appeal of the cities they're located in. I have nothing against Japan, but it's extremely obvious when someone on this board isn't well travelled and uses that country as their only frame of reference for anything regarding Asia.
>>2842659>forbidden city still looks soulless and smoggy even from a cherry-picked photoassblasted chinaman detected>it has more visitors!No shit, china has 10x the population of Japan. That's also not a good thing and it sucks being around a hoard of chinese>it's bigger!Bigger doesn't mean better, especially when 90% of it is closed to the public anywayBeijing itself is such a depressing and polluted shithole, and that feeling permeates through the forbidden city.>china has deer parks too!Where? Show me a chinese city with thousands of deer that roam freely and interact with tourists. It doesn't exist. A wildlife reserve is not the same thing as Nara.If deer did freely roam in a city in china, the locals would absolutely eat them.I've been a nomad for over 10 years and have been traveling/living abroad for even longer. I can promise you that I've been around far more than you have.
>>2842690I'm not Chinese. I'm writing from the perspective of a tourist who enjoys both China and Japan. The photo I chose is literally the first photo from the Wikipedia article and was taken during the winter. You mention cherrypicking, yet the photo you chose was taken during a specific (one-week) period out of the year when sakura is in full bloom. If you search "deer park China", you will find the cities and locations I'm talking about. It "doesn't exist" to you because you clearly have a personal issue against China and refuse to do the bare minimum of research on anything that can potentially debunk your outdated worldview. The amount of time you've travelled is meaningless because you clearly haven't managed to learn anything about fear-management and open-mindedness. You still talk in the same exact ignorant and paranoid tone that people who refuse to leave their hometown tend to have.
>>2839034 Literally every single East Asian country has its own general on this board.What's the point of this thread?
>>2842727The wikipedia photo is a cherry-picked photo which is why I matched yours with a cherry-picked one of Himeiji>china totally has free-roaming deer cities. No I won't say which, just trust me bro.What an absolute faggot you are. They have deer reservations like this one, which are contained and closely monitored. It's not the same thing at all, because as stated earlier, local chinese would absolutely kill them for meat and TCM at the first opportunity. Nara is (or was) filled with chinese tourists exactly because this kind of thing is unimaginable in china.>noooooo you can't say anything negative about a destination, you're just being closed-minded! You're not a true traveler™!!!It's pretty rare that I do have something negative to say about a destination, but I have no qualms bringing it up if I do. beijing and the forbidden shitty fall under than category. I've had positive experiences elsewhere in china, but that's not what we are discussing.
>>2842755>can't follow basic instructions to google three words >goes out of their way to find some random irrelevant gated exhibit picture that isn't even in the results instead of the countless images of free-roaming deer coexisting with people>doubling down on retarded baseless accusations of Chinese people attempting to hunt deer in public parks surrounded by supermarkets in middle of large citiesYou are illiterate, blind, and beyond saving.
>>2840127>>2842755And about your "hurr Chinese people can't have nice things like Japan because they'll just kill the deer" point: Over 100 deer die annually in Nara. Dozens of these fatalities are attributed to them choking to death from eating litter(pollution) and from being hit by cars. There are also multiple cases of Japanese locals trapping and killing deer that exit the buffer zone of the park and even a case of a local murdering a deer with an axe.
>>2842767That looks like a lovely town. What's the name? :^)>Noooooooooo chinese people don't eat wildlife!! You're illiterate!!!!!!Tell that to the chinese pangolin or white crane, which the chinese have eaten to near extinction because of "medicinal properties" (i.e. make small pee-pee bigger)The government has passed a number of laws since the 2000's telling people not to eat everything that moves, but of course they still do (it's dey culture) and a lot of it just moves underground. >t...they have supermarkets now!And yet you can still visit any night market/wet market in china and find some of the most vile and disgusting animal "dishes" known to man.
>>2842776>Chinese people can't have nice things like Japan because they'll just *eat* the deerftfy>Dozens of these fatalities are attributed to them choking to death from eating litter(pollution) and from being hit by carsSounds like accidental deaths. You think china is going to somehow be less polluted and have better drivers than Japan? LMAO>There are also multiple cases of Japanese locals trapping and killing deer that exit the buffer zone of the park "The number of deer grew in the postwar period to around 1,200 in 2008, leading to concerns about environmental and crop damage and discussion ofculling. In 2016, a record number of 121 people were injured by deer. In 2016 it was announced that the area around Nara would be designated into four different zones, with the outer zones allowing deer to be captured and killed. In August 2017, traps were set to catch deer on the outskirts of Nara. The culling started in 2017, with a limit of 120 deer to be culled during 2017"Funny that you left that part out for some reason...>and even a case of a local murdering a deer with an axeA single schizo is all you've got?chang please
>>2842789You're illiterate because you're incapable of following basic instructions and also incapable of understanding and applying the context of what other people say into a logical direction of thought. You created a hypothetical scenario in your head of what you think would occur in Chinese deer parks, yet you immediately downplay multiple instances of recorded evidence of deer being intentionally and indirectly killed in Nara by Japanese locals after it was presented to you. The ironic part is that this wasn't even the main point of the conversation. My original statement was me agreeing with another anon that the Forbidden City in Beijing was more visually appealing to see in person compared to the Himeji Castle.It's clear that you have a predisposed bias against China that prevents your opinions in this thread from being taken seriously. Hopefully you will find the emotional maturity within you one day that can allow you to be able to fully comprehend what others around you are trying to say. You haven't changed my opinion, you've only reinforced it due to the way you've embarrassed yourself with these posts.
>>2842794>Chinese deer parksWhich ones? :^)>you immediately downplay multiple instances of recorded evidence of deer being intentionally and indirectly killed in Nara by Japanese locals Literally government sanctioned and controlled culling to protect the area from environmental and crop damage (which for some reason you omitted). Hardly the same as eating a pangolin to near extinction for muh pee-pee medicine.>the Forbidden shitty in Beijing was more visually appealing to see in person compared to the Himeji Castle. It really isn't though. It's smoggy, filled to the brim with chinese taking selfies, yet feels completely soulless and empty inside the small area you are allowed to explore. The surrounding area is also extremely depressing. Simply put, Himeiji Castle and the city have soul. It's relaxing and kino, pretty much everything that Beijing isn't.
ITT: Japan good, China bad, SEA badlmao
did they ban hocking lougies in public in china yet? I'm only going back if spitting in public is punishable by deathnothing makes me hate an entire nationality more than watching them spit on the ground (their ground) in public, absolutely the most vile habit I have witnessed abroad except for khat chewing and betel nut chewing
>>2841973The hate for Singapore is overblown in my opinion.Accommodation is for expensive for SEA yeah but most only go a few days layover anyway, food is pretty fucking cheap competitively and if you want cheap beers you can get them from local stores.I usually fly through there and stop off each time. Just chilling in Robertson Quay eating and drinking for a couple of nights is just comfy. Also never had an issue getting a date there despite being average as fuck>>2843954I don't think people are saying China is bad, it has some really topnotch cities but Beijing and Shanghai are sorta shit. Maybe it's better now with pollution but was brutal when I visited compared to southern cities. My best memory of Shanghai after a week is catching the 400km/h maglev, all the expats I met there were jaded as fuck after a year
>>2843954>Japan good2002 called, they want their opinions back
>>2844201>The hate for Singapore is overblown in my opinion.it's just poor people.
>>28443432002 called, they want their jokes back
>>2843954ITT: one schizo blindly glazing Japan
>ITT
>>2840090Korean food is dogshit lmao. "I love Korean food" is basically code for "I'm not well-traveled". Also, Korean food is actually better in pretty much every country that isn't Korea. Since 99% of restaurants in Korea source their ingredients from the same low-quality crap supplier, everything ends up tasting the same. It's the same reason Vietnamese food is better outside of Vietnam.
>>2841980The main demographic of Japanese subculture fans consists of middle-aged single men.
>>2844344>>2844430I swear I've eaten horse or donkey in HCMC that was sold as beef, not even a cheap street restaurant either. Something was clearly off with it. Vietnamese cities ironically has some fucking great French restaurants and good quality US type stuff l like ribs and pulled pork due to all the foreigners.Koreans have no fucking variety also, it's depressingly all the same. Korean BBQ is good for the social vibes rather then the food. Cheesy ttekeboki is the only dish I could possibly rate.
>>2844430>Korean food is actually better in pretty much every country that isn't Koreathis is so patently false that you sound like some seething Vietnamese owner of a California-based """Korean""" restaurant
>>2844487Indian food tastes better in Japan than in India, say Zainichi Indians. According to a Indian chef, this is because high-quality ingredients are readily available in Japan.
>>2840393Hong Kong is probably the most cyberpunk city I've visited especially considering I was stayed in Chunking Mansion. Giant wall of neon skyscrapers that light up the night sky from across the bay and extreme luxury just foot steps away from chaotic grimy crowded apartments.
>>2842776>murdering a deermurder is a specific crime committed against another human, anonyou mean killing
>>2844487I don't think it's true for Korean food, but it's true for some countries. Thai food is a big one. Sucks absolute ass in Thailand. Tastes better in basically every other country.
>>2844711>Be in Bangkok>Staying in one of the actual nice expensive suburbs and not around the rampant degeneracy>Retards ITT glazing Thai food>Paid 140 baht for this last night>Half the 40 grams of chicken included with 300 grams of rice is cartilage and inedibleI like their bbq meats and spicy beef or papaya/mango salads but otherwise it's not that great here on average. Really comes down to quality of meat available like that other anon saidSome imported things are just irrationally expensive in Asia due to tarriffs and import license corruption. Cheese always gets me, especially in Vietnam
I have an over 20 day long vacation coming up over Christmas and NYE and am strongly considering spending them in (S)EA.Currently considering the following destinations, as there are direct flight options available from where I live.Singapore/KL HK/Macau/ShenzhenWhat would you recommend to visit? Warm climate and the option to spend some days relaxing at a beach would be great. I will be going solo and would like to avoid renting a car if possible in order to get around.
