Built and designed by world-renowned Italian artist, Narcissus Quagliata, the Dome of Light is the world’s largest public art installation made by individual pieces of colored glass. Made out of 4,500 glass panels, the project took four and a half years to complete and is the main reason why many are calling Formosa Boulevard one of the world’s most beautiful subway stations. The dome’s design is divided into four themes that tells of the different phases of human life: water (womb of life), earth (prosperity and growth), light (the creative spirit), and fire (destruction and rebirth).

Once a former mining village with a population of 6,000, the population of Houtong drastically decreased to around 100 in the 1990s as the younger generations packed up and left for “greener pastures”. Over time though, more residents have flocked to the village - albeit the four-legged kind. Nowadays, Houtong has become a cat sanctuary of some sort with more than 100 cats that roam around the village freely - which is what attracts tourists foreign and local alike.

Modern Toilet is slowly making its way across Southeast Asia with branches already open in Hong Kong and Taiwan. From menu-items being served in mini toilet bowls or bath tubs, to guests sitting on seat-down toilets - you’d think this novelty restaurant would fizzle out over time, but the silly and unusual joint has held its own - serving customers curries, hotpot and dessert selections.

Made with 320 tainted glass panels, this 55-foot glass church was built in an attempt to cater to female visitors - hence, the high heel shape apparently. Now, although it’s called The High Heel Church, it doesn’t necessarily hold any religious services. Instead, it’s meant to be a wedding hall or location for a photo shoot.

Known as the Sky Lantern Capital of Taiwan, tourists flock here during January 15 for the Pingshi Sky Lantern Festival. During this time, hundreds of lanterns carrying wishes and prayers are released into the sky. Beyond that though, tourists are still welcome to come over and to visit a sky lantern shop where you can actually make one yourself (with a little help from the pros, of course).

Formerly known as the Taipei World Financial Center, the 101-story tower began construction in 1999 and was finished in 2004. It has a four-story observatory (89th to 91st floor) that provides guests with an unobstructed view of Taipei, that houses a museum that shows how the building was built and more.

Exploding with Japanese influence, the quaint village may be familiar to fans of the anime movie “Spirited Away”. What once was a gold mining town has not become a tourist spot filled with street food, tea houses and Japanese and Chinese cafes. Because of its proximity to Taipei, tourists usually visit Jiufen as part of a day tour. However, guests can also stay overnight in one of their boutique b&b’s called “Minsu”. With the limited number rooms available and large number of tourists that visit, it is advisable that one books a room in advance.

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