Hidden gems, Kung Fu schools, interesting places to visit in Taipei

My gems may be your garbage.
My interests may be your bore.

Please be specific.
What is your budget?
What do you like to do?
How do you plan on getting around?
How old are you and are you M of F?
Have you read through the threads?
Have you read through a guide book?

Please do some home work and come back with answerable questions.

Cheers.

Hi Mark

Of course I have done my home work ;-) I am not looking for what I can read in Lonely Planet and this threads as well. Perhaps I should have stated that. Sorry. However, found nothing about a good Kung Fu school. I would also like to know about a good hot spring/bath/pool in Taipei.

I am just a regular globetrotter who like what we all like - cultural observations of all kinds. Budget is not an issue.

Thanks.

I can't help with a kung fu school, but i can suggest a few things that don't often get mentioned.
Elephant Mountain, the closest hill to Taipei 101, offers some great views of the city and is easy to climb.
Little Jinmian Mountain near Xihu MRT station is pretty fun to climb, and also has good views.
Chengtian Temple, about 40 minutes walk from Yongning MRT station, is quite attractive and, again, has good views.
Ningxia Rd Night Market near Zhongshan MRT station is small but (I think) has some of the best food of any Taipei night market.

Other things worth visiting that I think are a bit underrated are Seven Star Mountain (Mt Cising/ Qixing), with awesome views on a clear day; Dihua St and the Beitou Folk Arts Museum.

Brilliant. Many thanks.

I have not been to Chengtian Temple, but if you're not interested in such a long walk, Longshan Temple is very close to an MRT station (called Longshan Temple) and is probably the most active temple in Taipei. It tends to be crowded, but I think that just adds to the interesting atmosphere.

You should definitely make time to go to the National Palace Museum. And while I wouldn't skip something else to do this, if you happen to be near the Sun Yat Sen Memorial it has a small but nice museum inside that contains various artifacts from his life.