Concert Review: Clazziquai (live @ Legacy Taipei - Da'an 大安)

Due to a thing called life, I haven't gotten to see many concerts here in Taiwan.  A lot of my favorite bands and singers have come to Taiwan over the past few months, and but I had to pass up a lot of shows.  However, when I was told Clazziquai was coming, I had to make time to go!

Clazziquai are DJ Clazzi (programmer); Horan (vocals), and Alex (vocals)

I've known of Clazziquai for awhile, especially because of their collaborations with two other groups that I like, Epik High ("Honjarado [Alone]") and m-flo ("Love Me After 12am"; "Love Mode").  Nonetheless, for some reason I didn't really start listening to them until last year.  I fell in love with them instantly.  Clazziquai's music is easy listening, and it's diffiult to resist Alex and Horan's vocals (which I think are some of the best in K-pop).  I think Clazziquai sounds like elevator music "done right".  In other words, it's soothing and other worldly, thanks in part to DJ Clazzi's expert mixing.

I am now 23! (+cafe review)

Drinking my favorite Imperial Earl Grey tea
on my birthday.

As February 7th was my birthday! For some reason, I feel much older than one a turned 22, maybe since this is the first birthday I have celebrated away from home. Also, I now feel like I have more responsibilities and have matured. Mainly, I'm grateful to be alive because many do not live to see 23.

I treat my birthday like New Year's day in that I always make new goals for myself. So here are three things I'd like to accomplish before 24:

1. Be more responsible 

2. Be happy with myself

3. Be proactive and achieve something big

Recently, I've been talking about dreams with many friends, and I feel it's time to develop a feasible long term dream and life goal for myself. Those are things which encourage me to stay motivated. 

The Beautiful Campus of Taida (台大)

The main administrative building.

National Taiwan University, popularly known as Taida (台大), is one of the most beautiful college campuses in Taipei. It was founded in 1928 by the Japanese, and is Taiwan's most prestigious school. On the weekend, it transforms into a park for families and tourists to take a stroll, enjoy a bike ride, or sit down and relax.

Face-off: Xin Fa Ting (辛發亭冰品店) vs. Tai Yi Milk King (臺一牛奶大王) !

In Taipei, two of the biggest names in the iced dessert business are Xin Fa Ting in Shilin and Tai Yi Milk King in Da'an.  Unless you go to either one of these shops during a generally low-traffic time (like late-morning on a Sunday) you're going to meet huge crowds, especially on Saturday night when all the young people are out and about.  Although that may sound daunting, the staff at both shops seem to well accustomed to dealing with the high volumes of customers, and although there often are long lines in both places, the wait never seems to exceed 5-8 minutes.

Xin Fa Ting's peanut shaved ice

Tai Yi Milk King's pudding and chocolate ice

Both shops have their own style of preparing their cold desserts, so let's get down to business and compare the two!

(And just so you know - both shops sell more than iced desserts, but I'll be focusing on that since it is their specialty).