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Family Trip to Taiwan
5th9th April 2012 (5D4N)
1) Ximending
Background
is easily the shopping district in Taipei. Thats about all,
haha.
Comments
Anyway, has those shops selling celebrities items. You could
easily it compare it
to the idols section in Comics Connection in Singapore, but only
cheaper, and a whole
lot more products. I bought a few items, but was sad to not see
stuff, and I
am sure I am not mistaken about this popularity levels haha.
2) Keelung
Background
is a satellite city, or thats what I read about. I suppose you
can think of it as Johor, in
Singapores terms. My deepest impression of is that itss
hometown.
Historically, is a famous port town and all. From, we booked a
cab and from
there, visited and.
Comments
We enjoyed our visit to, and I think its pretty much worth the
visit especially if you
are staying in like us. And the more exciting part is this I
took a photograph in
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front ofs school in! Okay, this is as introduced by our driver
and I have no
idea what he studied there though. Cool enough for me, in any
case.
3) Yehliu
Background
is probably some famous geological feature, and probably because
I have neverheard of it before I went there. And it is amazing how
forces of nature can form such
interesting and intriguing landforms over time. Oh, and it has
been reported that is
going to disappear over the years, due to the constant and
accelerating weathering
processes and all, so theres the talk about visiting this place
soon before its lost.
Comments
I suppose I was more amazed by the physical aspects of, than the
beauty of science
aspects. Then again, its not like I can understand the specific
weathering and erosion
processes that took place. But I think can be a great case study
for physical
geography, like I dont mind learning it. And my dad raised a
point that I found true the
rocks there are different. The photograph above shows the rock
undergoing more than 1
kind of weathering process; see the straight-lines grid-like
kind of weathering and the
depressions-like kind. And its really interesting and although I
cant remember if this is
the difference between physical and chemical weathering or
something, but I am sure
this is something not exactly common.
And the amount of mainland tourists there were overwhelming. We
were trying to queue
up to take photograph with this renowned feature there and they
were cutting queue
very unabashedly, and I was just feeling plain disgusted at
them. Sometimes, I would like
to think the best of China; with the rise of China and
personally knowing some Chinese
friends, but its just so deterring when such encounters happen.
You cannot blame me for
not wanting to be associated with China at times, like how we
are easily mistaken as
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Chinese foreigners and theres this urge to inform others that Im
sorry but I am from
Singapore, not China.
4) Jiufen
Background
was previously some old town, with the old housings. It probably
underwent some
rejuvenation of sorts, so its now some tourist attraction with a
lot of shops and food.
Comments
It was super crowded, and our cab driver shared with us its
something of a March
holidays for the students there that week. We ate a lot of
things, which I will probably talk
more about later.
5) Miaokou Night Market
Background
is probably the most famous in. And it feels different from
other s
because it feels a whole lot neater, like 2 neat rows of, and
every shop has 1 or 2
benches for their customers as well.
Comments
We visited the temple there, which I am sure the is named after,
and also tried the
local food, which I will again talk about later.
6) Yangmingshan National Park
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Background
Okay, I am reading only about on the Internet now, and I
seriously didnt expect
the place to be so big. It says that is kind of like a mountain
range, so there are a
lot of things there, with many trails and several hotels.
The building is famous because once stayed there, as his
military base or
something. But the whole interior is like just retail now; they
should have preserved hisrooms and something you know.
Comments
Anyway, maybe its because we didnt look at anything like a
trail, we just wanted to walk
around and go back to the same carpark to take the bus back,
thus we saw a few areas.
Half the times, I am wondering the reason for the popularity of,
but my mum sure
enjoyed this place a lot; the flora. And my parents were trying
to figure out if this or that
plant is whatever they think or hope it is. But I think we were
like a week or 2 late for the
blooming season for one of the plants, and I think we didnt
manage to see the flowers or
something.
7)
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Background
is like this far end on the Taipei Metro, think of Punggol, or
Joo Koon. It is well
known for its hot springs, and the hotels there basically market
themselves with their
facilities and all.was once occupied by Japan, I think, and I
think I saw a
pamphlet introducing all the military forts in the area.
Comments
Anyway, is famous for this and theres this straight path leading
the way there.
On the way, theres Beitou Hot Spring Museum and the
Ketagalan Culture Centre which we also visited. The museum was
pretty cool and shares
with us about the formation of hot springs, and theHokutolite
that made this area
such a prime location for hot springs. On the other hand, is a
museum
showcasing the different in Taiwan.
8) Beitou Thermal Valley
Comments
Its really cool, and pretty. My dad was saying it was only
recently that the government
has stricter regulations at that place, because local people
used to go there and cook
eggs or something. I dont know but it feels pretty amusing to
me.
9) Shilin Night Market
Background
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Probably the most famous in Taiwan, here is the. According to my
dad, it
moved to a new compound recently and is now within a building,
and in the basement.
Comments
Okay, I personally dont really like because its too crowded and
I think the fact
that its indoor just made it seem a little more suffocating or
something. And now, I am
wondering if is just famous because of the size and location
near centre Taipei,
or the food there is really better than all the other.
10) Taipei City Hall -
Comments
is a station on the Taipei Metro, and there is basically the
shopping malls and
office buildings there. We went to, which my mum heard of, and
which I
conclude as Singapores Kinokuniya. But is a way bigger
enterprise, like OG with
many outlets, and selling many products. And at some of the
outlets, they then have the
. I think my mum also loved this place, because its all Chinese
books, and I also
bought 2 English non-fiction books. I actually do want to read
them, which feels like a
first, perhaps I should go to Kinokuniya to check it out once in
a while haha.
11)
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Comments
The funniest thing about this place was that we thought we came
here before, but we
eventually conclude that we didnt and there are more than a few
in Taipei with
regards to.
And there was some change of guards at that time so it kind of
gathered an audience. We
watched the proceedings and it was quite okay, I guess I was
less interested than the
average audience there.
12)Wufenpu
Background
We almost didnt go because it is described as a, but I am so
glad we did.
In Singaporean terms, its Bugis Street, but way cooler with more
stuff; you know how
some clothes are just sold in every few shops in Bugis Street.
Also, I guess it depends on
the period of the year you are visiting, as it happened that
they were selling clothes that
were suitable for Singapore.
Comments
This is the first time I regretted not buying more stuff,
really. I actually recommend this
place for shopping, instead of. The price is not any lower than
Singapore, about
the same I would think. And of course there are the bargain
deals as well, but some
promotional items have no prior fitting available. But simply
based on the range of
clothes, and some uncommon shirt designs, I kind of love this
place.
13) Longshan
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Background
Longshan Temple is where we alighted on the Taipei Metro, and
from there, we
visited, and, made famous as the filming location after the
2010
movieMonga.
Comments
This is really random, but we were saying its some there, like
seriously. My mum
didnt like the place though, like I think theres this
people-lazing-around aura, and
perhaps it may be a little unsafe for young pretty or rich
ladies or something. But as
tourists, visiting with my dad, its still nice and quite a place
with a different feel.
14) Hwahsi Night Market
Background
This is the coolest ever, and not in the very positive sense. I
didnt expect anything
like this, but checking the Internet now, its known as the Snake
Alley and noted for its
bizarre delicacies and many Taiwanese have a negative view of
Snake Alley, which was
once a legalred-light district.Comments
feels a little darker, and broodier, but still as bustling and
rowdy haha.
Compared to other, I think there are less youngsters there too.
And while snake
delicacies are not unheard of, its still blatantly glaring how
there are snakes placed in
cages at the front of several restaurants. Then, theres also
this restaurant with this notice
that it was the filming location for this scene inMonga, and
while the fact is cool, the
act of putting up the notice is funny.
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You know after walking through, my dad was saying that this area
must have
ties to triad members. I find it cool how he seems so convinced
about it simply by
observation, and yet, I dont feel surprised if its really the
case.
15)
Background
Now that I am writing the name out, I have a serious problem
with both the Chinese and
English name of the shopping mall. The official names are and
Shin
Kong Mitsukoshi New Life Square. My mum knows as the famous
shopping mall that
the wife of the ex-Taiwanese president patronizes. And I
previously only know as
the Taiwanese show haha.
Anyway, the wow factor of this mall is that, well, its made up
of 4 shopping malls, each 5-
7 storeys high. See the guide in the photograph, basically, it
tells you the mall directory
of each 4 blocks, like theres supposed to be a great difference.
I think there was 1 block
that specialized in international boutiques and restaurants but
I suppose you knowladies wear can be found in all blocks or
something.
Comments
The only thing that went through my mind, Singapore lost.
