― H. Jackson Brown Jr.
A quote that inspired me and I intend to make it happen! Unlike most blogs, I wrote this post in a diary form to record my thoughts down as and when I had time during this trip. This Taiwan trip was a 21st birthday gift to myself. Being a fan of Chinese Pop and Idol Dramas since Primary school, going to Taiwan to meet my idols was always on my priority list, with 5566 topping the charts. (Come on, I'm sure many of you went through that 5566 craze) After that it was Jolin Tsai, Cyndi Wang, Mayday then Lollipop 棒棒糖 and so forth. Plus I was really hooked to Taiwanese Dramas such as 西街少年, 恶作剧之吻, 微笑Pasta, and 王子变青蛙. Hence travelling to Taiwan is definitely a must. As much as food interests me, the place that housed so much of my childhood fantasy became more enticing.
I roped in ZK and P to come along, the rest of my friends had things on so they couldn't come. I was told that when you actually stick to a person 24/7 then would you be able to better understand him/her. You bet I do now man. ZK was saying that travelling with us was at it's literally meaning "Jit Bai Siao Liao" (Hokkien for: This time I have gone mad/crazy). This became one of our catchphrases during the 4 day trip.
(My parents who came to see me off <3 )
Day 1
Honestly 九份 like many other parts of Taiwan have been highly commercialized, so many tour groups visited while we were there~they are rather famous for their yam balls dessert~so we tried a stall and to be honest it wasn't that bad. The one we tried had a ginger taste in it, something that P didn't take a liking to. But likewise u have many other stores along the way selling it too with little alterations. (my point on commercialization.)
Also another cool thing was the ocarinas that they sell there~they make melodious sounds if you play them right. But as I hear it long enough, it gets irritating as it's rather sharp on my ears. The smaller the ocarinas, the higher the pitch and the cheaper it is :O One reason why I didn't get them.
I managed to get other random shots too^^
0429 on the plane
I am on the plane. Jetstar is really really uncomfortable. There is a huge space constraint which makes sleeping on the plane utterly uncomfortable. Its a budget flight so I doubt I can hardly complain. Since I am awake,I might as well talk about my first four hours of day one. Honestly I'm no frequent flyer. This is like the third time I have rode a plane in my entire 21 years of life. So I didn't know that the boarding gate closes 10mins before the departure time. Well, apparently my friends knew it but we still ended up running for we lingered at Starbucks way too long. Running to a departure gate that was way at the back was definitely no kid. God I was wheezing by the time I reached. Thank goodness we finally made it!!
There is like this baby on board,crying baby;gosh!!!! But thank god the cries only come in reasonable intervals! Omg!!! I'm starting to see a little of a sun rising! I'm off taking photos will get back when i can^^
(The "whew! we managed to board the plane" face)
(The "okay, now we're on the plane let's enjoy" face)
There is like this baby on board,crying baby;gosh!!!! But thank god the cries only come in reasonable intervals! Omg!!! I'm starting to see a little of a sun rising! I'm off taking photos will get back when i can^^
(This was like at 4am when I couldn't sleep, it was like a mini rainbow across the dark sky)
(Absolutely stunning!)
0634 On the bus to taipei main station
Whoooo hooo we managed a safe landing! Awesome pilot, and hence we're officially in TAOYUAN INTETNATIONAL AIRPORT! Honestly, clearance here's so much faster than me trying to enter Johor Bahru,maybe it's the shorter queue thanks to an earlier flight. So the bus to take to Taipei main station is 1819! It's about 120TWD for a ticket!
Some kind man recognized that we weren't local and helped us out with the bus numbers! Great guy! Apparently he just came back from his trip in Singapore and he was really happy with what he experienced! Kudos to us! We bought a hello kitty youyou ca from a connivence store at B1 for 100TWD and topped up 200TWD. The youyou ca functions like an ezlink in singapore! And the plus point is that i get to keep it! And ZK got forced by P and I to get a kitty one too. Hahahahas I foresee him fighting hard to stay saint for the next few days.
Some kind man recognized that we weren't local and helped us out with the bus numbers! Great guy! Apparently he just came back from his trip in Singapore and he was really happy with what he experienced! Kudos to us! We bought a hello kitty youyou ca from a connivence store at B1 for 100TWD and topped up 200TWD. The youyou ca functions like an ezlink in singapore! And the plus point is that i get to keep it! And ZK got forced by P and I to get a kitty one too. Hahahahas I foresee him fighting hard to stay saint for the next few days.
(On the BUS!!! We're tired, but that's okay~pictures first!)
1057 忠孝 地下街
We left our luggage at the hostel thinking that there were things to do before we can check in~ We met one of my friends MQ! We almost could not meet her thanks to the lack of Wi-Fi and so forth. But she managed to find us! Had my first ever 蛋饼 which tasted good^^
After that MQ left to set on her Journey and we decided to roam around Taipei Main Station. However, nothing opens before 11am!!! Absolutely rotting while waiting for the stores to open that we played hei bai cei to keep ourselves awake~godddd got myself whacked a million times by P *cries* i decided to buy a pair of flats for my sissy~it costs only 390twd! Thats like less than $20!!! Hahahahas looks like i have settled her pressie! Also bought 4 boxes of 10 我的美丽日记's masks for about 940TWD!!! My brother told me the last time he was there he saw none. Apparently he wasn't looking hard enough, any beauty shops like SASA or Watsons should carry it!
After that MQ left to set on her Journey and we decided to roam around Taipei Main Station. However, nothing opens before 11am!!! Absolutely rotting while waiting for the stores to open that we played hei bai cei to keep ourselves awake~godddd got myself whacked a million times by P *cries* i decided to buy a pair of flats for my sissy~it costs only 390twd! Thats like less than $20!!! Hahahahas looks like i have settled her pressie! Also bought 4 boxes of 10 我的美丽日记's masks for about 940TWD!!! My brother told me the last time he was there he saw none. Apparently he wasn't looking hard enough, any beauty shops like SASA or Watsons should carry it!
(A panorama shot of Taipei Main Station area)
(We smacked each other's hands way toooooooooooo hard)
Oh yeah, Starbucks do sell daily Wi-Fi cards at 100TWD and its unlimited access of Wi-Fi. Or for an alternative, you can choose to purchase a prepaid SIM card at 7-Eleven for about 300TWD. We did that, we were also told that local Telecos have their own prepaid SIM cards too. You have to top it up constantly though. They will require your staying address and your passport.
1303 Le Mian Wu @ 西门町
HOMG!!!! Honestly, we finished walking all three buildings of 新光三越,carried back a hell load of 太阳饼 and pineapple tarts. You can only imagine how heavy it was!
Anyways, we came over this Japanese place: Le Mian Wu at 西门町 that looked rather crowded. I have heard from MQ that Taiwan has many authentic Japanese restaurants. Not sure if this one is but we just decided on it. This restaurant allows you to sorta customize your Ramen by how you want your noodles cooked and the level of spiciness or saltiness you want your soup base to be. Zk chose a 6 with additional taste and P chose 7 she requested her noodles to be slightly soft. I feel that the atmosphere here's rather good everyone from the kitchen staff greets you! I had a Original Char Siew rice! Not bad:) The fats are really soft and bloody sinful.
(Pretty wall! Some artist DREW it! It ain't printed!)
(Hence a photo as a memory~~)
(Number 7)
(Number 6)
1400 triple tiger
Checked in! Bed's fine toilet is a so so but at least we have our own! Oh wells we're gonna catch some serious Zs before heading down to 师大夜市!! Gogogogog:)
0234 Holiday KTV
Hoho we did two yolo things. Tried the vending machines that we have to kiap the toys. (something NONE of us would have tried in Singapore) We blatantly gave away 180TWD.
The second is to sing till dawn in their KTV, which is what I'm doing now with this two friends. All the sad songs and high songs; just sing em all!!! 400TWD per person for 7 hrs! Super worth it! I think we'd sing till we don't wanna enter a KTV for a month!! And can you believe it, they have a toilet in that room! Like one toilet one room, no wonder Taiwanese really like going to the K-box.
The second is to sing till dawn in their KTV, which is what I'm doing now with this two friends. All the sad songs and high songs; just sing em all!!! 400TWD per person for 7 hrs! Super worth it! I think we'd sing till we don't wanna enter a KTV for a month!! And can you believe it, they have a toilet in that room! Like one toilet one room, no wonder Taiwanese really like going to the K-box.
Okay we went to 师大夜市 today! There were like a million things to see there!!! Here's a warning: many store owners will recognize that you ain't Taiwanese and try to charge you a higher price, so u will have to be a little thick skin and ask for a lower price :)
Food there's fine! There's this crepe place I'd recommend u peeps to go!!! 90TWD only and its bloody good! You wont get prices like this in Singapore for crepes these good~
ohhhh if u boys and girls wanna shop for clothes and accessories~here's a place to go! I parted about 1500TWD in one day~5 pairs of socks, a pair of earrings, 2 keychains, a dress, an iphone 5 casing, a shirt for ma bro~so it ain't that bad if you are able to reduce prices with them! Okay my songs are playing~off to sing them. (we only managed 5 hours in the end)
Food there's fine! There's this crepe place I'd recommend u peeps to go!!! 90TWD only and its bloody good! You wont get prices like this in Singapore for crepes these good~
ohhhh if u boys and girls wanna shop for clothes and accessories~here's a place to go! I parted about 1500TWD in one day~5 pairs of socks, a pair of earrings, 2 keychains, a dress, an iphone 5 casing, a shirt for ma bro~so it ain't that bad if you are able to reduce prices with them! Okay my songs are playing~off to sing them. (we only managed 5 hours in the end)
Day 2
1200 Toilet Restaurant
Mmmmmm~the theme as many of u peeps heard is interesting:) I tried their signature hotpot, looks nice:) Honestly it was really a lot for one person. I forgoed almost the whole bowl of rice and still had trouble finishing just the hot pot~my friends weren't really pleased with their spaghetti, it was baddddd.
(The corn soup that came with the spaghetti)
1524 On the way to 猫空
Just witness a lady fall down from the escalator and having a public news camera chasing after her to get some news on public utilities. How horrible these people are!! But okay maybe the lady would be very happy to give a statement too so yeah.
Just took a mandatory photo at taipei 101. Cliche, but mandatory! The weather in Taipei is rather gloomy today~
ohhhhh! We walked from Ximen to get to Taipei main station and on our way there we passed by a bookstore ( 墊腳石書局) that sells absolutely cheappppp notebooks! They really have absolutely beautiful stuffs there~annnnnd if u peeps heard abt Jimmy, the author they sell his books there! My only regret was nt getting 星空 in fear of having an overweight luggage,sighhhhs maybe i'll go again! But I bought the 向左向右 book! ^^
ohhhhh! We walked from Ximen to get to Taipei main station and on our way there we passed by a bookstore ( 墊腳石書局) that sells absolutely cheappppp notebooks! They really have absolutely beautiful stuffs there~annnnnd if u peeps heard abt Jimmy, the author they sell his books there! My only regret was nt getting 星空 in fear of having an overweight luggage,sighhhhs maybe i'll go again! But I bought the 向左向右 book! ^^
1625 猫空 gondola
We're waiting for then crystal gondola where they have a glass floor!!! The wait is rather long :O Together with the humid weather the wait was a killer. I think the amount I have sweated was enough to fill a bucket! But the crystal gondola offers a glass bottom hence better view, also there ain't a difference in price; the only difference is the wait. So if u have the time, do take the crystal gondola^^
1646 on the gondola
Mmmmm~about 30mins to 猫空 3 station stops in the middle, awesome peaceful view. But sweltering hot! Okay I'm gonna take pictures and more pictures!!!!!
1833 after 猫空
Sadly we didn't make it to the top, the sky looked dark and the route looked torturous~honestly, with the getup we were in we wouldn't be able to climb~wells as expected of a mountain~it was infested with insects so prepare a repellent. I would also advice you peeps to go in sporty attire instead of some fashion outfit. You'd sweat like hell on their ground level, can u imagine sweating more above ground?
We went to the nearest tea house and tried their tea ice cream. Something unique for me, you peeps should try it out too^^
The ride up was hot~like super hot~the ride down was rather cooling actually:) I'm sure you all will enjoy it^^ I'm looking at the awesome sunset, its beautiful. The little miracles nature provides us. So make sure you all try and catch it~
We went to Raohe 夜市 after that!!! It was SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO crowded~we ate a little and shopped a little and off we went~CROWDED!!!!!!!!!
(HOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
We went to the nearest tea house and tried their tea ice cream. Something unique for me, you peeps should try it out too^^
The ride up was hot~like super hot~the ride down was rather cooling actually:) I'm sure you all will enjoy it^^ I'm looking at the awesome sunset, its beautiful. The little miracles nature provides us. So make sure you all try and catch it~
We went to Raohe 夜市 after that!!! It was SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO crowded~we ate a little and shopped a little and off we went~CROWDED!!!!!!!!!
(Bought my bro another shirt)
(Bought couple tees for my parents; posted it on fb and my dad liked it^^)
Day 3
1130 Brunch place
Their dan bing was so much better than the one we had on the first day~ Recommended tries:
Their dan bings and their peanut butter milk!
(Strawberry toast, I really LOVED this too)
(Look at the filling, sooooooooo much for a cheap price!)
1648 tea house at 九份
We boarded a train from Taipei Train Station (which can be walked to from Taipei Main Station MRT) to Ruifang and then took a bus up to 九份. You can use your youyou ca to get in. Alternatively, a ticket can be purchased too. It is about 45mins to an hour to Ruifang. You can check out with the Tourist Information Counter for the bus numbers!
(A train map which I never managed to understand)
(And we started a chain of spasam photos)
(At Ruifang Station)
(The sign that tells you about the buses)
(HOT!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
(Number of people queuing for the bus :O )
The atmosphere and scenery is something you will really enjoy! Its so peaceful^^
Anyways, back to the tea house.
P ordered a korean barbecue meat rice for 250TWD. Its really flavorful. French beans are sweet and, their cabbage and lettuce are soft enough! Sauce is goooood~meat is reasonable. Rice was pretty little which made the dishes portion to look larger. But, overall it is enough for a person.
(You get a hell load of good views here)
P ordered a korean barbecue meat rice for 250TWD. Its really flavorful. French beans are sweet and, their cabbage and lettuce are soft enough! Sauce is goooood~meat is reasonable. Rice was pretty little which made the dishes portion to look larger. But, overall it is enough for a person.
(Approval smile for good food)
I ordered a Waffles set for 250TWD too! Waffles are fluffy!! Amount of honey was just fine^^ love it! It came together with one jug of milk tea! For me, the milk tea was rather sweet. So i couldn't finish the whole jug:/ hahahahas but its fine~scenery was really awesome!
(Always wanted to take continuous shots of this~one more check off my bucket list)
(This was ZK's coffee by the way!!)
(My jug of milk tea)
2006 Hostel
We are back for a short break! Bought some green bean cake thingy that was apparently really hard to find~it was not bad:) its really near the entrance of 九份老街 they handmade their pineapple tarts~it was sooooo soooooo good that i had to get one box of it!
Also another cool thing was the ocarinas that they sell there~they make melodious sounds if you play them right. But as I hear it long enough, it gets irritating as it's rather sharp on my ears. The smaller the ocarinas, the higher the pitch and the cheaper it is :O One reason why I didn't get them.
I managed to get other random shots too^^
(Taken cuz it was cute^^)
(I got a 'model' to pose for me, its the very moment that required one)
(A vintage black and white was mandatory too)
(ALL THE PEOPLE :O So crowded)
(This is Guava juice juiced up in a Doremon bottle 80TWD)
(On our way down; we saw Japanese Tourists in heels. Now a small reminder, you don't wanna be climbing up and down these stairs in heels. No, your feet will be very thankful if you do not do so)
2100 西门町
We went to the 红楼. Very vintage and artsy fartsy. They have a lot of little creative shops that sells their designed products for a pricey price.
We went to the 红楼. Very vintage and artsy fartsy. They have a lot of little creative shops that sells their designed products for a pricey price.
(Panorama shot because it was too beautiful)
(西门町 at night)
We found 啊宗面线! Love the soup! Loads of vinegar in it will make it really awesome^^ They have chicken skin inside, i didnt really like it. But apart from that, it wasnt that bad, 60TWD for a big bowl~
We had 小汤包 after that, not bad~but not super good. They don't provide ginger!!!! I love to have some ginger to go with it~but oh wells~ 75TWD for 10! Still rather cheap^^
We had shaved ice later. Honestly~it was kinda hard to locate a store that sells one (We were quite surprised considering how it was supposed to be famous) But we managed after walking a couple of rounds~it was good! But rather expensive~about 120twd each bowl~and we bought 2!! LOL! I would say tt while mango shaved ice is mandatory~u should open yourself to other options too! Cuz there are so many choices.
And honestly, while enjoying dessert P and I were recalling a lot of Taiwanese shows while staying at 西门町 first was 西街少年 and next was 恶作剧之吻~it was really fun and stuff~cuz well u can relate to them^^
Those were my childhood or should I say teenage hood? I'm turning 21 soon hence adulthood is approaching. After that we decided to do another yolo thing~that is to visit the 24/7 Eslite bookstore. We kinda got lost cuz we thought it'd be at Taipei 101~but it was utterly closed so naturally we headed to the nearest Eslite bookstore near 101 to realize it closes at 12 midnight.
Hahaha thankfully we asked the staffs for help and found out that it was the one at 忠孝敦化 mrt station exit 6. I parked myself at the philosophy area while my friends went around to check out their preferred genre~I picked up a book that was talking about utilitarian justice, very interesting. They have a cafe there that serves you alcohol and other beverages too~so you peeps can chill there too! Whats clubbing there when u have a book store that opens its doors for knowledge seekers? ^.- Singapore needs one! I really want one near my place! Hahahahas^^ so I can visit when I'm unable to sleep and chill there without worrying about the taxi fare^^
(One of the staff said that we're just like them, cuz there were three of us too. Maybe we can do their chain in Singapore^^)
And honestly, while enjoying dessert P and I were recalling a lot of Taiwanese shows while staying at 西门町 first was 西街少年 and next was 恶作剧之吻~it was really fun and stuff~cuz well u can relate to them^^
Those were my childhood or should I say teenage hood? I'm turning 21 soon hence adulthood is approaching. After that we decided to do another yolo thing~that is to visit the 24/7 Eslite bookstore. We kinda got lost cuz we thought it'd be at Taipei 101~but it was utterly closed so naturally we headed to the nearest Eslite bookstore near 101 to realize it closes at 12 midnight.
(This was absolutely HILARIOUS)
Hahaha thankfully we asked the staffs for help and found out that it was the one at 忠孝敦化 mrt station exit 6. I parked myself at the philosophy area while my friends went around to check out their preferred genre~I picked up a book that was talking about utilitarian justice, very interesting. They have a cafe there that serves you alcohol and other beverages too~so you peeps can chill there too! Whats clubbing there when u have a book store that opens its doors for knowledge seekers? ^.- Singapore needs one! I really want one near my place! Hahahahas^^ so I can visit when I'm unable to sleep and chill there without worrying about the taxi fare^^
Day 4
1016 Breakfast place
We're back!!!! Cuz the boss is awesome and the prices are absolutely reasonable! I ordered a toy milk. They 现做现买 their stuff~absolutely awesome^^ Their carrot cake is yumz! I really love it!! Burger is reasonably huge ass and according to ZK it tastes better than Ramly~P ordered a 蛋饼
Oh wells, we didn't do much but essentially eat breakfast cuz we had to catch an afternoon plane~hence~we left for the hostel to pack our bags and finalize our stuffs. We got the hostel staff to call us a cab, for they could get us better rates compared to the normal quotes other cabbies get for a 1000TWD. The lady at our hostel told us it would cost us 900TWD, but the driver charged us 800TWD in the end. Oh wells its always better to be charged lesser^^ So we weren't complaining~
Oh wells, we didn't do much but essentially eat breakfast cuz we had to catch an afternoon plane~hence~we left for the hostel to pack our bags and finalize our stuffs. We got the hostel staff to call us a cab, for they could get us better rates compared to the normal quotes other cabbies get for a 1000TWD. The lady at our hostel told us it would cost us 900TWD, but the driver charged us 800TWD in the end. Oh wells its always better to be charged lesser^^ So we weren't complaining~
1516 Taoyuan International Airport
Spotted a DFS that sold some good old 太阳饼. They were sold at about $11 for 14 pieces. Do keep a lookout for their expiry dates!
They have free WI-FI at the airport! You can just connect on to it. Most airport staffs there understand basic English so its alright to ask~
To claim tax rebates at the airport, you gotta get a form from the store you shop in~usually, most big shopping malls will have it. you have to approach the staff there to ask for it. Having not traveled enough we did not know that, hence we were unable to claim.
They have a food court there that charge food prices at exorbitant prices~oh wells~i tried their yakult green tea for 50TWD (larger cup) and their boneless chicken for 55TWD (it was kinder little for the price i had to pay)
Wells one always have their first time when it comes to flying. It is the first time for me when it comes to not having a connector from the airport to the airplane. Hence we had to take a bus to the plane and board directly from it. Cool, but very time consuming~oh wells we had uber a lot of fun^^
I'm soooooooo sooooooo tired~okay~~see u Singapore!!!
1845 On the plane
Okay looks like I'm gonna miss the sunset afterall~oh wells u cant have the best of the both worlds~but I got great shots of the sky!!!
I really love Taiwan, think I can really stay there forever. One of my friends told me that I seemed to live there. (not exactly when I wake up early in the morning, I look as dead as any zombie). I really wanna go back there again. To climb 九份 and 猫空!! It's going to my bucket list! Think we were rather lucky, for August is a rainy season with 台风 involved. But we experienced neither! Lucky chaps we are!!! But I came back more tired than ever cuz we walked a hell lot! So much more than I have walked in Singapore!!! My aching legs:O
So yeaps, this was what I have experienced in Taiwan^^ Sorry for the delay, I had to edit my grammar and upload photos :/ Tough stuff! Till next time!!!! I hope to travel more!!!!!!!!!! ^^
<3 FJ
I really love Taiwan, think I can really stay there forever. One of my friends told me that I seemed to live there. (not exactly when I wake up early in the morning, I look as dead as any zombie). I really wanna go back there again. To climb 九份 and 猫空!! It's going to my bucket list! Think we were rather lucky, for August is a rainy season with 台风 involved. But we experienced neither! Lucky chaps we are!!! But I came back more tired than ever cuz we walked a hell lot! So much more than I have walked in Singapore!!! My aching legs:O
So yeaps, this was what I have experienced in Taiwan^^ Sorry for the delay, I had to edit my grammar and upload photos :/ Tough stuff! Till next time!!!! I hope to travel more!!!!!!!!!! ^^
<3 FJ
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