taiwan escape part IV: on our own for 2 days

This is my last post on my Taiwan trip. I had to condense my 8 days journey into 4 posts. Not to mentioned having to choose around 20 photos for each post. It was a challenge, really, since I took close to 1000 photos whilst I was in Taiwan.

On our last 2 days in Taiwan, it was free and easy. For our own convenience, we decided to purchase the MRT one day pass, that allows you to ride buses and trains for one whole day by just simply using this pass. Taipei is a good place to travel on your own as the waiting time for trains are brief and even at bus stops, they will notify you how long you will have to wait before the bus arrives. Really, public transportation in Taipei is heaps better than in KL.

For this day, we each chose a place we wanted to go to in Taipei. At Ximending MRT station, we picked up a guide which introduces places of interest in Taipei and even teaches you how to reach there by MRT. That guide practically became our bible in Taipei.

The first place we went to is the place I chose - #Taipei Story House. I absolutely love looking at buildings and the wonderful European feel of this mansion prompt me to pay a visit here. However to visit the house, we have to pay admission fees. Since we did not have much time, we did not go inside. To reach here, we took MRT to Yuanshan station, which coincidentally is also the venue for the International Flora Expo, that was held in Taipei in April. 

After that, we took an extremely long MRT ride to the last station - Danshui to visit Clara's choice, #Fisherman's Wharf, a small fishing town overlooking the sea. It was extremely windy that day, as evident by my horrendous hair in every photo of me :(

We had lunch at McD's opposite Danshui station because we wanted to try their pork burger but they didn't serve any that day. Sad. After lunch, it was shopping time as we visited #Wufenpu, the wholesale market. I could not find anything inexpensive to buy. On day 6, I was extremely broke already. After that, it was off to Sogo to buy Clara's and her sister's sports shoes. Finally, we ended up having dinner nearby Shihlin Night Market as I wanted to get some souvenirs for my mom and aunt. I managed to get a pair of earrings for mom and bag for aunt. For myself, of course, I bought another dress =)

-day 6-

taiwan escape part III: back to taipei again...

Finally after making a journey around Taiwan island, we returned back to Taipei again, our starting point. Taipei is definitely my most favourite place in Taiwan. There are many places to go here, as well as more places to shop! And it doesn't hurt that their MRT is so convenient. 

Day 5 was the last day our tour guide was going to be showing us around in Taipei, bringing us to famous attractions in Taipei. The first place we went to was #Yehliu Geopark, which contains various unique rock formations overlooking the sea. However, unfortunately, that day it was raining heavily and added to that, a very windy day. The weather was so bad, we were forced to buy raincoats as umbrellas were insufficient to protect us.

For lunch, we had it in #Jiufen. This place is a must-go in Taipei. It reminded me of those small narrow streets in China. There were many shops and restaurants here, mainly having Taiwan traditional and famous delicacies. Stinky tofu was my favourite =) Some were really weird, like snails.

After lunch, we went to #Taipei 101, which is the tallest building in Taiwan. This place is kinda like KLCC as it also has a small shopping mall housing some really famous designer brands that I can never afford :(

Although we went to another night market, #Shihlin Night Market, we did not have dinner there. Instead, we did some really good shopping! It was here I found my favourite boutique that had so many lovely clothes. However, due to tight budget, I could only buy this cute pastel pink blazer =)

Dinner was at #Ximending, which was also the place where we stayed at. The shopping here is not as good as Shihlin but apparently it is the most trendiest hang-out place for youngsters. The place is totally flooded with people and very stylish youngsters as well. Really, the Taiwanese dress to the nines. Kpop culture is huge here too as you can hear Kpop songs frequently in Taipei. I also spotted an amazing artist who painted using just spray graffiti paint. Awesome~!

-day 5-

taiwan escape part II: from kaohsiung to nantou to taichung

The reason we went to Taitung is to enjoy the soaking of our bodies at #Chihpen Goya Hot Spring. The 3 of us had such a relaxing time the night before, enjoying ourselves in all the pools available beside our hotel, including one that had temperature of 31 degrees Celsius!

But alas, in the morning we bid goodbye to the hot springs and start our journey towards Kaohsiung, another big city in Taiwan besides Taipei, located way in the south. Halfway there, we stopped by a mango grove to enjoy some delicious fresh mangoes. The guide explained that the farmers use expired milk to water the mango plantations so these were called 'milk mangoes'. 

One of the attractions we went to is the #Hakka Mei Non Village which consisted of many old traditional buildings and restaurants. You can also play some of the traditional games available. After lunch, despite the rain, we made our way to #Fo Guang Shan. It is this whole large area dedicated to all things Buddhism, including a monastery, museum and even an university!

When we reached Kaohsiung city, we went for some window-shopping at #Dream Mall, the largest shopping mall in Taiwan, renowned for its humongous Hello Kitty ferris wheel. For dinner, we visited #Leo Ho Night Market for some famed Taiwan snacks. 

-day 3-

taiwan escape part I: from the city to the countryside

Yes, finally I am blogging about my May trip to Taiwan with my roommate, Suz M and housemates Clara and Ngiik Ling. We managed to book quite cheap tickets to Taiwan last year, around RM400. But due to our hectic schedules in 4th year, we have no time to plan so we decided to join ground tour and extend one day on our own. 

We reach Taoyuan International Aiport and stayed one night at Taoyuan before taking a high-speed rail train to Taipei the very next day. In Taipei, we first went to #Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall before watching changing of the guards ceremony at #Martyr's Shrine. Later, we went to the #National Museum to listen to some boring history about ceramics and various art stuff (no pics allowed in museum, btw). 

Lunch was delicious Taiwan delicacies - dumplings! Nyam nyam =) After lunch we took a long and winding bus journey to Hualien, another province where we stayed a night there.

-day 1-