Taipei Part 1.

It's an off day and I feel like typing.
So here it is.
My picture-heavy Taipei trip blog post.

Laptop cannot display Chinese characters
so excuse me for using English for all the Chinese words.
I know it is weird. :/

So, as mentioned,
flight tickets were booked in July
when I accidentally spotted a promotion going on on AirAsia.

For both of us. :)

The 2-way ticket cost us around RM900 each,

including airport tax and luggage fee.

The boyfriend and another 2 travel mates came down to Ipoh from Penang

and we took Yoyo Bus to LCCT in the morning.

When we were happily checking-in,

only we realized Yi Huey's passport was expired,

so she and Say Seng stayed in KL to have her passport renewed 

while me and boyfriend flew to Taipei first.

Not much choice we had, because it was already 4pm+,

the governmental departments were all closing soon 

and they are far from the airport,

so YH and SS bought their new tickets.

Fact Number 1: 

Before travelling, always make sure the expiry date on your passport 

is at least 6 months ahead of the flying date.

The airport crews are very strict on this.

Reached Taoyuan Airport at around 1130pm.

Oh btw, there is no time difference between Taiwan and Malaysia.

Were picked up by the boyfriend's uncle,

and headed straight to his house.

Had microwaved carbonara spaghetti from 7-eleven nearby,

which didn't taste good,

and hit the sack.

Woke up at 9am+ the next morning

and played Battle Ludo with the boyfriend 

until auntie called us down for breakfast at about 1030am.

Fact Number 2:

The Taiwanese people start their day quite late compared to us.

All the shops open around 11am.

We never did our homework well enough

thus we woke up really early almost every morning

and found ourselves looking at empty streets and closed shops.

LOLs.

Auntie was kind enough to cook us breakfast

and she bought so much Taiwanese food for us to try.

Regretted for not taking pictures of all of them.

Most of the time I was super blur in the house 

from all the walking, eating, sight-seeing and shopping.

What auntie bought, I just grabbed and hentam,

and wow-ed at the awesomeness.

Was so so lazy to run upstairs to grab the camera, so yeah.

The train station was 5 minutes away from uncle's house.

The boyfriend and I took the train to Taipei station, and from there,

we took MRT, aka jie yun for the Taiwanese,

to all the other places in the following days.

The public transports are super convenient in Taiwan.

And also very very clean,

plus you don't feel threatened 

because all you can see are Chinese, 

no immigrants in sight AT ALL. Weird.

All the Chinese signs are really welcoming. :)

The first destination was Dan Shui. 

Headed to lao jie (old street) first as it was still early (for the Taiwanese).

Fact Number 3:

Lao Jie (old street) is a street with traditional crafts, souvenirs, and mainly food, 

of which most of them are famous old brands started by their grandpas or fathers.

Almost all the towns in Taiwan has their own lao jie.

In Dan Shui Lao Jie,

the boyfriend couldn't wait to try this nasty food:

which stank like hell and tasted like shit.

This is the famous chou dou fu (smelly toufu).

The old auntie even tried to make it look edible with the vege,

but trust me, it ain't help at all.

I took a bite and the boyfriend finished the rest with funny face

because it really was disgusting.

Hahahahahahaha.

After eating this piece of shit, he didn't feel like eating at all.

Nauseated by it, he said. LMAO.

DAI SEIIIIIII.

This is xia ba (giant prawn?).

Bought it because the travel guide recommended it.

Nothing special. Just fried juicy prawn.

Ke Kou Yu Wan.

Not that ke kou. Hahahaha.

Not elastic at all but had pork filling and the soup was nice.

The mantou came in a set.

Hong Ma suan mei tang (sour plum juice).

I guess sour plum juice is the second favourite drink of the Taiwanese after pearl milk tea.

It was everywhere.

And this, Hong Ma, was really really nice.

The sour plum taste was really strong.

And I like Taiwan for encouraging recycling and loving the environment.

Fact Number 4:

Learn about recycling before you step into Taiwan.

You should know which is recyclable and which is not

or else you would spend hours in front of all their dustbins

figuring which bin you should throw your rubbish into.

The Taiwanese people also practice recycling at home.

They separate their rubbish according to types

before they throw them out.

Bought ferry tickets, and off we went over to Dan Shui Ma Tou (Dan Shui Jetty).

Dan Shui Ma Tou is the trademark of Dan Shui.

It used to be very old and dirty, then the government repaired and cleaned the place,

and built a chio bridge which then became a tourist attraction. LOLs.

That's the famous bridge, Qing Ren Qiao (Lover's Bridge).

The entrance of the bridge:

My hair was in a mess almost all the time in Taiwan because of the crazy wind.

Mentioned the weather in the previous post

so I am not gonna talk about it anymore.

Just make sure you bring some cardigans and scarves with you

if you are going to Taiwan during autumn.

The sideways of the bridge to nowhere:

So so beautiful.

Dan Shui is really a place for couples.

There was a nice red LOVE sign but I am lazy to download it from my inbox

as it was captured with boyfriend's DSLR.

And also the Lover's Bell: 

And this too:

With wishes and promises cramped on a wooden board.

Fact Number 5:

Plan your Dan Shui trip in the evening.

A hawker said we went there at the wrong hour.

The shops near the Lover's Bridge all open in the evening around 5pm.

Maybe you can go there at around 430pm 

when the sun is still up for photo taking,

then chill at the restaurants with some beers until night.

The hawker said the place is really beautiful at night with all the pretty lights.

After walking around for a bit,

we took LRT to the second destination: 

the famous Shih Lin Ye Shi (Shih Lin Night Market).

It was still early (5pm+) so it wasn't crowded yet.

Walked around and shopped!

Got my first 2 favourite hoodies there with only RM 17 each!

And the boyfriend freaking got 2 Nike pants and a limited edition cap.

Cost him about RM300 which he very much regretted after that.

Hahahaha. Noob ball.

Entered Di Xia Mei Shi Jie (underground food street) at about 8pm.

The underground food street was built lately.

There was an open-aired one at the end of the night market

but we didn't have time to walk that far

plus we were already starving.

The first thing which came in sight:

Juicy and big Taiwanese sausages!!!!!

The jumbo ones vs. the original.

The boy went crazy and bought a garlic jumbo immediately.

It tasted like heaven!!!! So so so so so awesome.

Can totally fight with German sausage.

O-jien (fried oyster omelette). 

A must-try in Taiwan but I dare say Penang has better o-jien.

Seriously. 

Never ordered a second one in other night markets.

Fried crabs.

Saw it on every table so we ordered. 

Also tasted so-so. Quite salty.

Not my thing. Except that it was really crispy.

THIS. THIS WAS THE BOMB.

Called rou zao mian (minced pork noodle).

When the boy ordered noodles I was like

why come to Taiwan night market to order noodles,

but then when I had it, OMG I TELL YOU, IT WAS CRAZILY AWESOME.

Not exaggerating.

I finished 80% of this plate in a few seconds.

This is crazy. The most delicious noodles in the world!! 

And I miss it to bits!!!! OMG.

My boyfriend is a genius. Haha.

Qing Wa Xia Dan (Frog lay eggs?). LMAO.

It is a drink with syrup and many many fen yuan 

which is something like pearls.

Must-have. Stated in travel guide.

Very refreshing. Order the lime one!

Fact Number 6:

Buy small potions in Taiwan night markets and share with friends.

You don't want to make yourself full with only 1 type of food right?

By sharing food, you can try many types of other food

(believe me, you will never want to stop trying),

and at the same time save cost.

After eating, we shopped for a bit

then headed back to uncle's home,

again by MRT and train.

The second day.

After breakfast, uncle and auntie brought us around Zhong Li,

it is a small town located near Taoyuan Airport,

and they drove us to Da Xi, 

which is located like half an hour away from their place.

We reached this place called Ci Hu,

which was once the residence of Jiang Jie Shi.

This Jiang Jie Shi fellow was an influential politician in the 1920s.

He was chased away by China before he went to Taiwan 

and took over the position of Sun Yat Sen.

If you wanna know more, click here.

According to uncle, the Taiwanese people were treated like shit

and Jiang Jie Shi kind of used all the people's money for his own purpose,

so the Taiwanese people hate him, even until now.

This might be true. 

His residence was soooooooooo big.

The bridge that overlooks his park.

His park with all his statues.

I bet there were more than 100.

A lot were transferred from the schools around Taiwan

because many of them were vandalized in their original places.

See how much the Taiwan people hate him. Haha.

A map showing ONLY the park.

There was a walkway in his house area:

He likes jungle trekking?

And who needs a lake in their residence????

Crazy right?

His body and coffin are kept in the area too:

Inside this room.

We were not allowed in, anyway.

Could only look at his giant portrait and the coffin. Pfffff.

After that, uncle and auntie brought us to Da Xi Lao Jie (Da Xi Old Street).

A temple appeared in the middle of nowhere.

Haha.

It was cramped between the shop lots. 

Free pie for testing.

Nice nice nice.

Taiwanese are really really friendly.

Even if you look with not a tiny bit of the intention of buying their stuff,

they still serve you well and give hell lots of things for you to test.

And they will just say Come back if you feel like buying afterwards.

Really warmhearted. 

Cute mango ice cream. ♪♫

Then auntie stopped by at a stall to buy our lunch.

This was the main reason we go to the old street.

Highly recommended by uncle and auntie.

Especially the huang jin dan (golden egg).
The eggs were kept in the fridge and were cold,
and the egg yolk was in this really deep orange and was really Q.
Weird eggs but the boyfriend loved it.

Apparently it is well known in Taiwan.

We bought 2 big packets of taufu and eggs back home as lunch.

After that we just chilled at uncle's house

and picked up Yi Huey and Say Seng from the airport in the evening.

After they took their showers, we packed our things and headed to Taipei.

Spent the night away from uncle's house.

It was a last-minute plan.

Backpacking is really really fun and exciting.

You wouldn't know where you will be until the last minute. Haha.

Taipei Train Station at night.

Found a hotel to stay near the train station. 

Cute room we found :)

and off we went down to explore Taipei city.

With the love ♥

Fact Number 7:

Taiwan's weather is more humid than Malaysia's

thus people with nose allergy will probably suffer from nose block and flu.

Bring some masks with you if you have nose allergy.

The boyfriend sneezed non-stop in Taiwan 

so auntie gave us like 20 masks. LOLs. Cute auntie.

I love how Taiwan government always think of their people.

A lot of tall buildings have the LED signs showing the time and also temperature.

Really considerate.

And the wide pedestrian lane ♥

I felt like I was in a Taiwanese drama.

Haha.

There were many tall tuition centres like this around the train station.

And also a lot of restaurants with cheap meal sets for the students.

In the morning the place was kinda deserted 

but at night the place was really lively,

mostly with youngsters and students with uniforms.

To be continued with Part 2.
Only Day 1 and 2 in this post.
OMG what have I gotten myself into?! LOLs.
Or am I too long-winded??

The four-letter word.

October 2012 was a fabulous month.
In fact, it was the best month in my 23 years of living on this Earth.

Firstly,
a 1-week trip to Taiwan. FINALLY.
Been wanting to visit Taiwan since 3-4 years ago
but couldn't find the right time and nobody really did plan for it,
until this July, when I was studying for finals in Starbucks with someone,
he randomly suggested the trip.
Of course I was like YES YES YES with my head nodded non-stop like crazy.
So we booked the ticket 2 days after that
and here you go.

Busy Taipei street.

I seriously love the traffic lights, wide pedestrian lanes, the night lights, and the crowds.

We chose October because it would be autumn,

not too cold, not too hot.

Although we didn't see any romantic orange leaves dropping off from trees,

the weather was lovely.

There was sun in the day, but the chilly wind balanced up the warmth.

Perfecto.

Secondly,
my convocation which marked the end of my 3-year degree course.
Went back alone to KK 5 days earlier
and I was surprised by the fact that I actually missed that place.
Went around the city and gasped at the changes in just 3 months,
had all the nice food that can only be found in KK (gosh I miss yu zap mian),
and hung out with the ex-classmates and lecturers.
Then, a day before the event,
picked up family from the airport.

It was a good day, and thank god, 

it started to rain right after we had enough of photo taking sessions.

Haha.

Not to say I am proud that I finally graduated,

because the end of university life means the beginning of society life,

but I was really glad to see that my parents were happy

and my dad, for the first time, 

wanted to take pictures with me for so many times, like,

when we were walking back to the car from the hall,

he spotted a nice tree, then he was like,

stop stop stop, let's take a picture here.

And thanks to my sis,

who still attended my convocation even though she had a test the day after.

Pitiful her gotta take her notes with her everywhere.

And while we were sleeping, she studied with all the lifeless Famous Amos cookies.

And because of her test, she had to leave a day earlier,

so she missed out coconut pudding and the loveliest sunset and resort in Tuaran.

Pity pity.

And thirdly,
a new relationship that was totally unexpected.

Everyone had noticed, apparently,
because we just couldn't hide it.
It sounds incredibly cheesy, but trust me,
when you are showered in bliss and happiness,
nothing seems to matter.

We were together almost everyday after he came back from Australia.
So the whole October was all about him.
He was the one who suggested the Taiwan trip,

and he also attended my convocation with me,
as my ex-course mate and also my boyfriend. Haha.

Although there were doubts,
I am glad that I found him and made him The One,
because without him, I would never know what true happiness and bliss are.
He always gives me the best and treats me like I am the most precious gem.
Although there were some downs,
like I lost my iPod, inevitable gastric, etc.,
everything turned out fine when he was around.
He is my bodyguard, my driver,
my second dad (he feeds me a lot and frowns when I take unhealthy food,
and he hates the Maybelline eye shadow palette with glitters
that always makes me tear, haha),
my BFF, and my love.
He was with me in two of the most significant events in my life,
and I am sure a lot more will come in the future.

Next up, Christmas. :)

I believe he was the reason I had the best October of my life. ♥

Prelude.

Back from Taiwan yesterday morning,
and back to the blogosphere
because I figured it is important to have a travel log.
Beautiful things should be kept
because memories fade with time.

Will blog about my Taipei trip soon after I get all the pictures from Yi Huey.
I am expecting zero readers as I never updated this blog since like gazillion years ago.
Now I write for the sake of memories,
not for the number of readers or how much I could earn from Nuffnang ads.

Regretted for not having a travel log and a pen with me when I was in Taipei.
All I had was my camera which I think didn't do a good job in recording stuff.
Words are still my favourite tool for recording.
Next time I will have a thick travel log and a cute pen with me
when I step into another mesmerizing country
to record everything that I see, listen and learn.

Despite the breathtaking scenery and delicious food in Taipei,
YOU were the one who made everything so great and magical.
I had nothing to worry about when you were around
and I realized how strongly our characteristics matched.
Unbelievable. That I found you.

Ahhhhh. Good life. ♥

Feelings

Hi, old friend.
I know I haven't been updating since forever.
Many things that are worth to be written as stories happened during this semester
but I kept them all to myself.
As I grow older, I realized some memories are not meant to be shared.
Even the good ones.

However, am having emotional swing these few days.
It is too much to bear thus I have to pour some out.

Humans are pathetic animals.
We are always told to appreciate every moment and thing.
We know but we never do, until the time when we have to let something go.

Throughout my 3 years in KK,
I had never appreciated anything that is related to this city.
I had always thought that Peninsular Malaysia is better to be lived in.
I even regretted choosing a course to be studied in KK
because taking flights 6 times every year is a major pain in the ass.
Now that I will be leaving in a few days time,
this time probably forever,
makes me feel a little blue and sad.

Now I realized how lucky I was to be given a chance to be here in KK.
A chance to grow up, to be brave, to explore a new city and culture.
I was the only one among my groups of close friends who study so far away from home.
If I were given a course in peninsular,
I guess I would never have noticed how beautiful KK is
because I would never even consider to travel here.
Islands with clear water in the most amazing shades of blue,
the long roads along the coast of the city lighted with beautiful street lights,
awesome beaches with the most beautiful sunset I'd ever seen,
and the romantic hangout spots all over the city.
I doubt I will forget all these.
Even the Starbucks store that I completed almost all my assignments in,
the nearest mall that all of us claimed to be so bored of because we go there almost everyday,
the Italian restaurant that we always go for birthday and post-exam celebrations
and the pork noodle that we eat every 3 days.
Now I find it so difficult to let go even these boring routines.

Last night, on the way home after a movie,
when I was enjoying the pretty lights along the long coast of the city,
everything came to me all of a sudden,
that it was my last movie here in KK,
my last chance to watch the lights like I always do when I go home from town,
my last outing with my friend in this city,
these few days will be my last chance to hang out with the MCA as course mates,
and that I have to start packing today.

It is not like I am not coming back to KK again,
in fact, I will be back in October for my convocation.
But that time it would feel like a vacation rather than feeling that I am a part of the city.
All these beautiful things in life will all be in my past.
Which is devastating to be thought of.
Course mates will be having their new lives all over the country.
Gathering every year? Mehh.
Eventually the number of attendants will be lesser and lesser every year
until nobody bothers to have any meeting.

Despite all these, life still goes on.
Human's mind is one of the most complicated shit ever.
I am reluctant to let go of the past,
but another part of me is looking forward to the new life awaiting ahead.
Will be staying in a new city that I am totally unfamiliar with,
having new housemates and friends and new routines.
A new relationship too, perhaps? Haha.

Now all I can do is cherish every tiny bit of moment in life
and carve it in my head
so when I think of all these when I am old,
I can still laugh at all the silly acts and thoughts,
and remember the warmth of our friendship.

:)

请学会坚强

遇到挫折就打电话回家哭诉的人
我不欣赏

这世界存在着太多难题
就像石头一样 有大有小
如果在路途中遇到一颗挡路的大石
与其对着它哭泣 理怨路多难走
不如静下心来告诉自己 这世界有多大
大不了绕一圈 或者用另一条路
到最后一样可以到达你想到的花园

世界上没有解决不了的问题
是看你如此去看待 如此去面对

Updates.

Have 4 major subjects in total for this final semester.

All 4 of them start at 10 a.m. every morning

but because they fall respectively on Monday to Thursday,

the course mates suggested to cram the 4 classes plus tutorials into 2 days

so all of us have more time to concentrate on our FYP.

For this week I can still wake up at 8 something

but after this week I'll have to change my alarm back to 6 a.m.

FML.

So must get enough sleep this week!

The class tomorrow is still at 10 a.m. for now

so I have time to blog a little before I go to dreamland. :)

Flew back to KK on Monday

but today I feel like I have stayed here for 3 months already.

CNY break feels like a dream to me.

Short breaks always cause illusions like that.

Things are pretty much the same here.

Still having the same bed sheets, electronic devices, stationary, books,

same bedroom smell, same wardrobe with super boring tees, 

the same bottle of the never-ending Schwachkopf shampoo that I have been using for the last 2 years, etc.

It almost seems like I never left.

Creepy.

My car battery died, as expected.

The roommate went to Tawau 

so Phong and I have been using her car these few days

and I am glad to announce that

I FREAKING KNOW HOW TO DRIVE AN AUTO CAR NOW!

Finally I don't panic when I drive an auto car

and I know what PRND123 mean.

LOL.

I feel a bit down now when I think of driving my manual car after tomorrow

but somehow I miss driving manually.

I am complicated as that.

Even I don't understand myself sometimes.

OK 12.20a.m. liao better sleep now.

End this post with my recent pictures.

Having bangs is so convenient leh.

Every photo looks nice with bangs

even when my face looks like shit and even when I wear shit.

As an example:

After dinner, makeup-less, with specs and pajamas.

Awesomeness overload.

Back, for long.

Uh...... hello.
Now that I've not been updating much,
it feels so weird writing in this big white space.
Such a shame.
I was once a hardworking blogger who used to always thought of
I must write this on my blog later
when there were interesting things around.
And now when I decided to update more often,
I then realized it is already my last week in Ipoh.
My 1-month semester break is coming to an end
and this is the last sembreak of my life.
6 months later I am going to experience internship life
and then step into the cruel and cold world, alone.
Time flies huh.
Last two days when I was on the way home in the car with my parents,
we talked about the coming election,
and I said I am going to be 23 this year but I have not registered as a voter,
my mom laughed and she was like You correct or not? You 23 already meh?
She actually thought that I am still 21.
Mummy, I am graduating this year lo.
When are you going to see me as an adult? :)

This is the most happening semester break ever.
Celebrated Chinese New Year, family drama, relationship drama,
traveled to Bali with the besties, and more drama.
Gosh.
I guess the rest of 2012 will not be a good one, as well.
Anyway, I learnt a lot from all these challenges and hardships.
The most important thing in this world, I realize,
is not the 3Cs, but family and health.
Such a cliche, I know, but it is so true.
I wouldn't understand it too if I didn't go though all the drama
that happened to my family and friends in this month.

Wanted to learn more and experience new things
so I escaped out of my comfort zone
and bought this book.

I usually read young adults and chicklits,
stuff like vampires, magic, etc.
but this book is more to adult fiction.
With a good plot, of course.
I learnt the importance of keeping a journal from this book.
Thus I am updating mine now. LOL.
A good book indeed.
Highly recommended.

And and and,
I'd had my haircut.
It is now only a little longer than shoulder length.

From

To

Cut more than half of the total length.
Friends said I finally changed
and I got a lot of positive feedback.
Realized many guys prefer girls with shorter hair.
Might get a shorter hairstyle next time.
People are right, short hair IS addictive.
It is hard to go back to long hair once you have cut it short.
TRUE STORY.
But looking at the pictures, I suddenly miss my long hair.
Urghhhhhh.

Will blog about the Bali trip next. ♥