Letters to Taiwan: Day 7 + 8

Finally, a little bit of free time! It would also be a good idea for me to not go on long breaks when writing about a trip because... You'll slowly start to forget bits and pieces of what happened along the way. :(

Day #7:

But anyways, on the morning 14th of March, I had the best mianxian I've ever tasted my entire life. Thank goodness Ah-Chung was right round the corner from our home, so it barely took us 10 minutes to get to the stall. It was crowded, with lots of people queueing to order, and some others standing around to finish their bowl of noodles. We all got a large because the small seemed like it wouldn't be enough, but thank goodness I did because those I was sure I could've eaten another bowl then and there. It was so good.....

Day 7 wasn't really filled with much sight-seeing. We visited the Raohe area and shopped for more shoes, because what's new right? The deals in Taiwan are too good to miss out on. But that meant that  I took lesser shots. For a moment I couldn't really recall what we did that day (note to self: reasons why you shouldn't procrastinate when it comes to writing about trips), until I remembered us walking around all day, just entering shoe shop after shoe shop haha.



Photos for that day were pretty awful too.... So please excuse the horrible lighting and framing....

In the night, we went to the Raohe Street Night Market (饒河街觀光夜市) which had one of the biggest range to choose from, out of all the night markets we went to. The food was pretty good too! Raohe is also where the famous Black Pepper Buns were at, but the snaking queue was a huge turn-off, so we ended up not queueing for it, even though it looked pretty promising.

Day #8:

The next day, Alvin suggested we visit the Fisherman's Wharf in Taipei, which was also where the supposed Lover's Bridge was. But it was rainy (as usual) and the bridge seemed a little too far off, so we decided against going all the way there in the end, and settled for this little lookout somewhere along the path. 

It was a pretty sight, and the breeze made for an even better experience. There weren't much people there as well, probably because this spot isn't much of a tourist attraction, but it was nice just hanging around the area for a couple of minutes before we turned back to where we came from.



Photos for Day 8 was pretty shit too. Or it might also be due to the fact that they start to look uglier after you don't look at them for too long...

The weather there was rainy too, which was the reason why we didn't really stick around for long. That, and the fact that there was nothing else to do other than stand at a spot and look out into the choppy waves HAHA.



Afterwards, we made our way to the streets where it was busier, and had our little lunch/early dinner at a McDonalds nearby. They had cute little Gudetama stickers all over the glass windows there! It seems that the Taiwanese are also pretty crazy about their Gudetama decals, which made me very happy hehe. Funny thing - I used to find Gudetama merchandises and stickers pretty silly, but look at me now HAHA.



Oh just ending the post off with some random black eggs, no biggy. :)

Till the next (and last) one?

To always remember why you started on the first place

The past month or so haven't been the easiest, but somewhere amongst the chaos and the emotional rollercoasters, I managed to make it out, with a month and a half more to go. I'm almost there.

But seeing my works out in print gives me a refreshing new surge of energy. I've seen where my efforts can get me now, like a sudden reminder of what I came here for. Sometimes you get so lost in your self-doubt and worries, that the road ahead of you gets blurry. You start to lose sight of your goals, and you start to indulge in your insecurities, but I guess a little push is what we all need sometimes, yes?

-

(Reused this photo from my previous posts but it's nice hehe)

Now, it's just a countdown to the day Lun enlists. It's hard to wrap my mind around it, since it has always been at the back of our heads for the past four years, slowly beckoning and etching closer. But I guess the time has finally come, and my baby is going to serve the nation for 2 years. It still hasn't hit me yet, and I'm forcing myself trying to think about it more, so that the reality wouldn't be so painful once it happens. You know, how you prepare yourself mentally for something before it happens, so the emotions won't be too raw? Yeah, I guess that's what I'm gearing myself up for.

For now, I'll hold on to the days that we can spend together, and make the best of our remaining days being young and free. xx

What's next?

I know, I know. I said I would complete the Taiwan series ASAP, but time has been a luxury that hardly comes by these days. My weekdays are filled only with work, and my weekends are no different. I guess that's the price to pay for taking up two jobs on the sidelines, all for the sake of money and portfolio.

Anyway, I recently graduated. Yes, finally, after three darn long (or seemingly long) years. Poly life for me wasn't what I personally expected. I thought I would come in and leave with irreplaceable memories, a group of really close friends, and that we'll all take stereotypical grad jump shots on Ngee Ann's green grass fields, but that was far from the truth. Last Tuesday, I donned the oversized, highly unflattering grad gown, and got my diploma on stage for all to see, but my heart was full, and I was happy that I can finally say I'm a Mass Communication graduate.

Because you see... Even if I didn't get the massive group of hyper, 'amazing' poly friends, or too many good memories to recount on the school, I still walked away with a handful of people that mean a lot to me. Honestly, that's all that matters to me. They say quality over quantity, and that cannot be more true.

#1: The first (and only) group of friends that I stuck to

Alright, I know I did a shitty job of taking a photo of a photo with my DSLR, but it's the people in the polaroid that matter. Meet Bryan, Deanny, Ashley, Taro and Van, my group of friends from Year 1, Sem 1. We all sat at the back row of the lecture theatre on the very first day of school, barely daring to speak to each other, but fast forward 2 months down the road, we were lunching together everyday, and 3 years later, we celebrated our graduation together in USS (courtesy of our very kind school) all the way till 10pm. The memories I've shared with them might not have seemed very important to me whilst we were still schooling, but now that I look back on it, I cannot be more happy that I met this wild bunch. Our personalities are so vastly different, but it's always a laugh whenever we're together. Somehow, no matter how many different friends everybody had outside this group, we still made it a point to sit down for lunch together after our weekly Monday lectures, and with those lunches came some of the best memories made in my 3 years. So thank you guys. :)

#2: The best friend I've met in 20 years

Woah, quite a load to put on her shoulders aye. But yes, Mirabelle has been the first person to truly understand me inside and out. We've bonded so much over tears, uncontrollable fits of laughter, and even the occasional albeit childish quarrels. But I wouldn't trade anything for this girl. The way we met was actually quite strange, but the moment I met her, I knew we would get along well - and look where we are now: sitting back-to-back in the middle of nowhere, clutching our bears and smiling for the world's cheesiest photo HAHA. Simply and easily put, Belle has been a big pillar of support during our Year 3 days, and even though we both wouldn't want to return to those horrible days of struggling in school, I'm glad that I've met you, even if it was amidst the torturous Mass Comm days. We experienced the same problems, cried over the same things, and had so much more in common. It was just a friendship waiting to happen from the start, wasn't it? Love ya girl. ;)

#3: The best thing that happened to me in 20 years

This, I say with no reservations. Lun has been through it all with me, he's seen me at my worst in Year 1, and he's never failed to support me throughout the rough times, and even the good, all the way to the end. This boy was the encouragement and the push for me to do what I never thought I was able to do. Without him, I'm pretty sure I wouldn't even be designing or writing right now. It made me so proud to see him walk up on his own stage to receive his diploma the day before my turn came, and I can only hope that I'll always make him as proud of me. Sometimes, no words can be enough to describe how much Lun means to me, but I guess "best thing that happened to me in 20 years" should suffice HAHA. I love you so, so much. Here's to more milestones together. :)

So..... Where will I be this time, next year? 

Letters to Taiwan: Day 6

The 13th of March was our first full day in Taiwan city. We bought concession cards, topped it up with 2,000TWD, and took the metro. But first, breakfast!



First, we were strolling the streets looking for some 滷肉飯 (Braised Pork Rice)that Alvin wanted us to try, but we discovered that the store closed down, so we continued walking around for somewhere else to settle down for brunch. We came across this little pancake store along the way, and got some for ourselves. The guys got the custard/milk flavour, while I got the traditional red bean. It was not bad, but I regretted not getting the milk one instead hehe. I actually kinda like red bean (which makes for another reason why I should really visit Japan) desserts, unlike a lot of other people I know.



We alighted at 大安森林公園站 (Daan Park Station), which is apparently one of the richest parts of Taiwan. I only found that out after Googling, but it was no wonder we saw lots of Caucasians jogging around that morning. The area also had a couple of expensive hotels. 


While walking down the streets, we actually came across these litter of pups that were up for sale or adoption, we couldn't be sure. But they were probably up for adoption. They were just squealing and barking at each other, playing around, but there was quite a group of people crowding around them. They were sooooo cute, all wearing doggy clothes because the weather was pretty cold. But my heart went out to them.... It was really hard to walk away without adopting every single one of them. Some were already quite old, but it seemed like there were others who were only maybe a month or two old. I hope whoever adopts these puppies treats them well, and doesn't abandon them halfway. :(



On the way to the Taipei 101 Tower, we popped by the South-side shopping area of Taipei, which is apparently the 'hipster-haven'. There's stores with cool neon sign boards, K-fashion all over the place, and even a Honey Creme! If I'm not wrong, it's the 忠孝敦化商圈 (Dunhua Shopping Area), and you'll need to alight at the 中孝敦化捷运站 (Zhongxiao Dunhua Station), Exit 4 to get to the district. We walked there by foot from Daan Station though, but we were able to catch a glimpse of the city that you wouldn't normally get to see unless you walked.



I mean just look at how cool the streets looked! There were loads of young people there too, so I assumed that this was were they usually come to hang out. It was a Sunday that day, so the streets were super crowded. There were shops there that sold stuff from Stussy and Cheap Monday, just to name a few. I wish I shopped more hehe. There was also a massive Forever 21 right outside Zhongxiao Dunhua Station, so obviously, some damage was done. I actually regretted not buying more, because the stuff there seems to be cheaper as compared to Singapore's F21 outlets.

After a while of walking, we finally made it to Taipei 101! We didn't go in though, because it was expensive, and because it's just an aerial view of the city. But we snapped some shots outside. After which, we just strolled around the area (because it rained) and settled at a night market. I can't remember the name of the place already, but I remembered eating a hot plate steak hehe. 

Anyways, I guess that's it for now. I've been really busy these past few weeks with work, so the updates have been really slow. I really just want to be more regular with my posting (also so I can just edit all the photos, post them, and stop procrastinating), but time really hasn't been on my side these days. But it's alright, at least I'm doing something else that's more productive. :)

Letters to Taiwan: Day 5

Leaving Hualien on the 12th of March felt like leaving home. We stayed just two nights there, but I felt used to the life there. Well.... The comfortable room was 70% of the reason why I never wanted to leave haha.

We said our goodbyes, petted the animals on the compound one last time, and took a walk around the area before we went on our way, back to Hualien Train Station.




I was honestly so in awe with the beauty that surrounded us in Hualien. The streets rarely had cars passing by, it was almost as if we had the whole street to ourselves. Mountains were also in view wherever you looked, and the was chilly but comfortable. It also didn't really rain that morning, much to our delight!



The ride from Hualien to Taipei city was about 2 hours long, and I was falling in and out of sleep the entire time.... Something about train rides just take me right to Snoozeville.



The Taiwan Metro was surprisingly clean! Living in Singapore definitely sets high standards for the other train stations and general public areas all around the globe, but Taiwan didn't disappoint. In fact, I would go so close as to say it is almost like Singapore. The route maps for the Metro was also quite easy to understand. We got from Taipei station to Ximending pretty quickly.


One of the worst feelings is staying underground where its warm, and then coming out to 12 deg weather. Complete with chilly winds, and a slight drizzle. But Ximending was beautiful nevertheless, we were finally back in the city! That meant there are toilets all over the place and we don't need to worry about having a full bladder haha.



Our Airbnb was pretty close to the Ximending market, about 5 minutes away. The apartment is also surrounded by quite a couple of convenience stores, a Starbucks outlet (which we never bought from), and a couple of Gua Gua Le stores.



The weather was, as usual, rainy. But thinking back, I'd rather have it be cold and wet rather than scorching hot. It made walking around a little bit inconvenient, but at least we weren't sweating buckets.

Ximending was full of so many stores, shopping opportunities are endless. If you're feeling for some Western food, there's Saizeriya, or some A++++++ Ramen if you're feeling more Japanese. As for shoes, Nike, Adidas, and ABC Marts (a brand carrying loads of sport shoe brands) lined the streets. We walked around for a little while, before sending Yong Jie home. He felt a little under the weather, thanks to.... well, the weather LOL. So he had to rest at home, while we continued walking around the streets of Ximending.

About the A++++++ ramen I just mentioned....... It was called Negi Ramen, and it was in the building that you'll see the gigantic Uniqlo outlet at. I forgot which floor it was on (was it 6th?), but their ramen is a MUST-TRY while you're in Ximending. MUST. TRY. It must've been one of the best ramen I've ever tasted, and I'm not even exaggerating. I went for the Basil Cheese ramen, and everything from the broth, to the texture of the noodle, to the taste of the chashu pork was.... heaven, to say the least. This is the only shitty picture I took, but Google it for more proof.



Here's the address to make life easier:
108, Taiwan, Taipei City, Wanhua District, Hanzhong St, 52號6樓

Ximending was crowded, probably because we first visited on a Saturday afternoon. There was little to no space to walk around the walkway areas, especially with tons of umbrellas knocking us from all over the place, but hey, we were surrounded by so much shopping, so all was good.


And we also stumbled across this store called Mini Melts, which I knew I had to try. They were these little mini ice cream balls that we used to have in Singapore. I remember there being a little store in Lot One, many many years ago, before it finally disappeared and we couldn't find these anywhere in Singapore anymore... It was good to finally taste them again! I got the mixed fruit one, which I regret a little, considering I wanted to go for something more creamy. Maybe I should be less adventurous the next time and just stick to Cotton Candy haha.

We didn't take much photos after that, mainly because the streets were too. Damn. Crowded. After which, we went back home and chilled while watching TV before going to sleep.

Having nothing else to do besides resting and fully relaxing felt amazing.