Day 12 (24/6): Taipei (Xindian, Zhongxiao Fuxing)

Early that morning, we had our one last breakfast at Ta Shun Hotel, and though they didn't serve our usual favourite foods such as the Ruo Zhaos or the Chai Po Neng, it was still a pretty nostalgic breakfast. Checked out early that morning, at around 1030am, when my friend actually came to fetch us. She drove us around the entire day, so it was really convenient and saved us precious time.

We didn't plan for much that day, so our first stop was, the Xindian magic shop opened by Zong Yi Da Ge Da's Robin lao shi (referred by the street magician called Rich on the very first day I was at Ximending). Took us quite a while to get there, because the GPS ys had in her car was misleading at times... and while yq was the co-navigator... I sat at the back seats with her cute little dog who was so afraid of heights.

When we finally managed to find the magic shop, which by then was already drizzling and it remained that way the entire day... it was like walking into a warehouse.... well hidden, and out of sight. Heard from them that they are only open on fridays and wkends. Spent a great deal of time checking the stuff out and mingling with the local magicians over there and the most surprising thing we found out, was that Robbin's wife was actually standing right in front of us the whole time and we didn't realise it only after yq's enquiry about why the other teenage magicians kept calling her "shi mu"...

She was really a nice lady and we exchanged thoughts on the magic industry in Singapore and in Taiwan. After spending like 2 hours over time, we finally moved on to our next destination, Ding Tai Feng. I wouldn't exactly say its a destination because they have many branches throughout Taipei but it was one restaurant I really wanted to try out... to compare its food with S'pore's, especially the Xiao Long Paos. The outlet we went to was near Zhongxiao Fuxing, and typical of Taiwan, even before stepping into the restaurant, we were greeted by yet another duo of inanimated mascots.

They were really cute and they even had a souvenir shop outside the restaurant. We were lucky because we managed to get in before their "official chef resting time". However, ys couldn't bring her dog in, so she had to make the tough decision of living it outside. The hostress of the restaurant assured us they would look after him and if anything went wrong, they would notify us immediately.

We ordered cold wine chicken, crabmeat xiaolong paos, a yam bao and a pork bao. The wine chicken was way delicious, reminded me of Soup Restaurant's Samsui chicken just that its colder and marinated in wine. Texture is a little tougher than that of Soup Restuarant's and the sad thing about it is that they don't sell it in Singapore!! The crabmeat xiaolongbao didn't taste as good, even though they were made with greater skill (had more zhup inside the paos, almost half of it, while Singapore's ones are only about 1/3), because of the texture of the meat.. tasted rougher. As for the paos, they were really delicious as well but compared to other nice tasting paos, it was sama sama.. nothing too divine.

After the meal, we went out to check on ys's dog and it was one of the most impressionable memories I've had. There was this prim and proper gentleman standing beside it and this other caucasian guy looking at the dog, together with ys. We thought they were just checking out the dog and playing with it, at least it was true only for the caucassian guy, for the other gentleman was actually looking after the dog for us... and he was one of Ding Tai Feng's staff!! Epic!! Would Singapore ever allocate a staff to stand outside of Ding Tai Feng to look after the customer's pets? Never!! The customer service over in Taiwan is highly commendable... they actually believe in going 2 extra miles!!

By then, it was already getting late, about time to head to the airport. Our flight was scheduled at 7.10pm and had to get to the airport by 5pm. Jalan-ed a little more around the orchard road of Taipei, though we didn't get much, just some Sasa face masks and ys got a concealer that can even mask tattoos!!

Had a little jam on the roads en route to the airport and I panicked a little as the time ticked by... but when we finally reached the airport... lo and behold, yet another bomb dropped on us by Jetstar. The flight was postponed by 2 hours!! 2 freaking hours!!! By then, they had lost all credibility in my eyes... we ate the Ruo Zhao fan that we tar paoed on our way to the airport and explored terminals 1 and 2 (even though our ariline was at terminal 1). Nothing much to do or eat at terminal 1, because most of the souvenirs and food they sold were very ex. We did buy super expensive tai yang pings, famous in Taiwan, and after calculating the cost, realised that it was the most expensive souvenirs we bought!!! Geeeze!!!

We walked this long and straight aisle all the way to terminal 2, which was a little more bustling and they even had a Hello Kitty decorated area just before the gate to take a Hong Kong airline. Not like singapore's gates... literallly nothing there. Such biasness or Jetstar just couldn't be bothered...

After which, the time finally came for us to get ready for boarding... but but... guess what... yet another delay!! Everyone was seated, waiting for boarding time but 30 mins after the scheduled boarding time, an announcement was made to advise passengers to check in large and bulky luggage bags. This took another 15 mins... and the staff looked so lost when a queue was actually formed. Christ!! When we did finally board the plane, it was one of the most excruciating rides ever!! I forgot to mention that initially, our seats were an aisle apart... dunno how that could happen even though we booked our plane tickets donkey years in advance (about 4 months!) and the customer service officer kindly and politely told us he would change our seats to be together... you bet he was polite because the seats he had gotten us were the last row seats!!

Last row seats were the "BEST!!" You get to alight the plane last, your seats cannot be inclined, and you have the crampiniest leg room on the entire plane. Throughout the trip, I felt extremely squashed, nauseaus (since I was starting to fall sick by then), and even my muscles seemed to be violently objecting by making me feel extremely restless the entire 4.5h journey back. I thought I could sleep it off, then wala, by the time I woke up, I'll be in Singapore. But no... how could anyone sleep in that freaking position? It was so much worst than sleeping in a shellscrape (a dug up "coffin" in the woods during my army days)!!

Both of us had to stand up once in a while to stretch ourselves and it was seriously one of the most gruelling air rides of all time. Even the budget flight I took in UK some years back was way better, at a much cheaper rate of 99cents... and even the plane ride to Taipei, on the same airline was slightly better because we gotten the first 3 rows. But, as what yq asked me... if I would rather sit a seat apart, more comfortably or be cramped up in a corner with her.. I would choose the latter anyday.

And that was it... our trip to Taiwan, to Kaohsiung, to Hualien and last but not least to Taipei. Hope I've helped you to get a better understanding of the country and I hope I've provided you some valuable advice and suggestions to better plan your trip. And to end it off, this time, lemme just try to add in all I've learnt over there, about its culture and its people.

To sum it up:

• when vehicles start honking, it's not like a gesture of "coming through", it literally means "get out of the way!", just like in Singapore. Because we keep hearing honks over there (more excessive than in Singapore) so we thought it could simply be a way of signalling.
• it seems the fashion over there right now (as of during my trip) is that guys like to wear purple, and that females love to wear thick frame specs that have no lens in them.
• the toilet bowls over there all have smaller holes... so you can't throw more than 4 handfuls of toilet paper into them without the high risk of clogging it... even though the signages say that you cannot throw toilet paper in, you can do still, but keep flushing them so prevent clogging... only bigger hotels, shopping malls and airports have bigger toilet bowl flushing holes.
• the resturants over there provide fuller meals than the accumulation of little snacks you get to eat along the streets (duh), but all at a much more expensive rate. But personally, I would rather just go for the little snacks because I get to try more things one shot. Out of the 3 resturants we went, I personally think the Modern Toilet Resturant ranks top, followed by Ding Tai Feng then Mr J's French and Italian Resturant.
• all the local buses are not run by the government, but by many small companies. The buses have 2 payment modes, either payment upon boarding, or payment upon alighting. The rationale for that is that throughout the bus's entire trip, it is divided into 2 parts. Eg. For the first part, you'll have to pay when you board... then when it crosses into the 2nd part (similar to like another "stage" for sbs transit) you'll have to pay when you alight. So it's not like Singapore's ez-link tap-in, tap-out system. There's only 2 fares, and if you take from one end to the other, you'll have to tap-in and tap-out. If you're only travelling a short distance which is still within the first "stage", you just need to tap-in; and tap-out for the second "stage".
• Wu Fen Pu, contrary to beliefs, might not necessarily be the cheapest place to shop. It might sell slightly cheaper, but only if you know how to bargain. You should be able to find the clothes elsewhere, at the same rate because ultimately it all boils down to your bargaining skills.
• Night Markets are almost perfect to walk around at if not for the constant lookout for disrupting motorcyclists... some more polite, while other just honk. The famous stalls might not necessarily, in most cases actually, don't serve the best foods around. It's all a gimmick to boost sales.
• Advisable to book high speed rails but for normal trains, it would seem fairly safe to book on site. But, its always better to be safe than to be sorry... Important to know if you're gonna change your plans because at least you know you'll still be able to get to places.
• Underground train stations have very clean toilets and the distances between each station is very near... normally takes less than 3 minutes between each station so travelling from one end to another might seem long, but in fact, it's actually much much faster than it seems.
• you'll get to find many out-of-production, out-of-stock, rare things in Taiwan which you cannot find in Singapore, a great place to find hidden gems
• True, that there's lotsa UFO catchers all around but the main difference between that of Taiwan and Singapore's is that apart from the guaranteed cost of getting the toy, the toys are usually small-sized ones and the largest you can diaoz's also nothing compared to Singapore's hgue soft toys
• Jetstar asia is my greatest regret for the entire trip, if not for that, the trip would have been near perfect. I would rather pay more for a more comfortable, and secure journey, which would not waste 7 hours of my precious time.

Day 11 (23/6): Taipei (Dan Shui, Longshan, Ximending, Wu Fen Pu)

As advised by the artist whom we drew a joint portrait together at Dan Shui, we went back in the morning as there were supposedly more things to do around there. We saved the last full day we had to revisit the places we thought were nice and that we didn't to get really hang out there long enough.... But it seems that there was a communication breakdown.

Early that morning, at 10.30am, we met my friend, ys at Danshui train station. She was my long time friend whom I have still kept in touch after all these years, and she brought us around Taipei that day. We first took a bus to the Fisherman's Wharf where the Qing Ren Qiao (Lover's bridge) was, which was quite a distance away from the train station (not walkable).

The food there was supposed to be nice... however, until then, I still had no idea where the "nice food" were. I wasn't sure if Fisherman's Wharf referred to the area before or after crossing the Lover's Bridge. There really was nothing special about the Lover's Bridge, though the moment and pose we had was special by itself. Went over to the other side, but most of the stalls were still closed. The only ones opened were the preserved food stalls. We were lured over to one, tried several samples but ended up only ys buying them... 3 heavy packets of preserved stuff.

The famous Hao Da Da Ji Pai was also there, but wasn't open yet as well, and it was the day that we wanted to try it even though we did pass by it at Shilin night market but wanted to save our space for the other night street snacks. We walked along the "dead" stretch of stalls, which was pretty spacious but didn't spend much time there since there wasn't much to do there. We returned to the bus stop, and took the bus back to train station.

The miscommunication like I said before was that Dan Shui was confusing for me. We heard there was the other side, the island across you see in the previous photos... So I thought crossing the bridge would get us there, save us all the trouble of paying for a boat across. However it turned out to be entirely different areas and knowing how Taipei has had its wet spell for the past few days, we decided to give the island a miss. Heard that at the island, its more of hiking, cycling and checking out nature... and it was where the delicious seafood were at (but was told by ys that the seafood wasn't that fantastic).

At Dan Shui streets, we came across a famous overhung of thick tree branches which we heard was a popular site for romantic movies. It felt scarier than romantic but what I'm not the expert here... ;p Also came face to face with a traveller, cast in stone and praying for a safe trip. We also passed by a very provocative candy shop. They packaged their candies in what looked pad boxes, condom boxes and other cute packagings. After that, we also ate at a famous street stall selling Ah Gei... beancurd skin wrapped around Tang Hoon. The stall did look highly well receieved by the locals, especially the primary school kids hanging around there and we decided to give it a try.

We sat at the 2nd storey of the mini restaurant (no air-con), with a window seat which overlooks the streets and the shops across. Good view, but only decent food. I thought there wasn't anything fantastic about it. I bought extra fishballs (with meat fillings inside) and beehoon. All tasted nice but it wasn't mind blowing. Didn't quite like the red sauce they used to cover the wrapped beancurd... reminded me of the Ruo Yuans we ate at Jioufen.

At Dan Shui, we also did try the tie dans, but not on that particular day, on our previous visit. I had to rub it in again because I think I left out the difference between the 2 different kinds of tie dans we tried over there... the packed one and the "fresh" ones. The packed ones (could either choose quail eggs or normal sized chicken eggs) were more chewy and had a stronger flavoring for the egg white. As for the fresh ones, we didn't try both because the quail eggs came in quantities of tens (if I didn't remember wrongly) and the shop owner didn't allow us to buy only 1. So we only tried the chicken eggs. They were weaker in flavor, less chewy, and egg yolk was more flavored than the egg white. And of course, it was hot, compared to the cold packed ones. However, I liked the packed ones more because it brought more justice to its Chen Hu, tie dans. The fresh ones tasted similar to Cha Ye Dans (teaeggs) but the packed ones tasted better with that additional bite in them.

Also came across this stall selling ice creams (coned ones) at an astounding low price of $10NT!! And it was as tall as the Effiel Tower! Now, that's something Singapore really need to learn frm, cheap towering ice creams. However, too good as it may sound, it demerited points for its taste and texture. Tasted like frozen flavored shaved ice. Best ice cream I had was still the one at Jinguashi.

Our next stop was Longshan temple, which by then had started raining... Heard from the guide books it was worth a quick visit. However, we ended up spending quite some time there as we tried praying to the Love God for good wishes, which only ys and yq managed to get, red strings to tie around this wrists so that their Mr. Right was right around the corner... The Love God was more catered for singles, who would come to seek help in finding love. They would have to throw this crescent like wooden blocks thrice, and if at any time they were to fall on opposite sides, you can get a red string. But before that, you'll need to take up the blocks, thank the Love God, then take a packet of red strings and circle them around the incense a couple of times. We tried for the fun of it since all 3 of us were already attached but unlike the other 2 lovebirds, I didn't manage to get it... tsk* tsk*

Then we moved on to yet another prayer... a prediction which we could ask the highest ranking deity around there, be it either career-related, studies, love or health. It was the same concept as the previous, just that after the wooden blocks landed on opposite sides, we would proceed to take up a long and thin wooden prediction from a common metal stand. This time, unfortunately, only me and yq got it. Yq got the best and highest prediction, #1, whereas I gotten around #80+, out of 100 possibilities. We tried checking out what it meant by reading the interpretaion books on one side (which were all in chinese and I caught no balls) but decided to get a better interpretation from the the "live" counters over there... behind each of which was seated a person who would interpret them to you. It was indeed an experience to be remembered, esp. that of yq's who attained such a high honor... what are the odds!!! That's my dear!! =p

The temples had many deities located all around, and one could get the best of all worlds simply by visiting it... which explains why it was so packed and well received by the locals. There was the Love God, the Study God, The Business God, The Baby God, and the All-Rounder Gods (of course they don't call them by that by its for explaining purposes only). The architecture was intricate and ancient-like and it was the most grand temple we had been in Taiwan. The compound was as big as half a football field.

Moving on, we finally spent more time hanging around where we stayed at, Ximending. Tried Ah Zong Mian Xian for 1 last time, before that ys also bought this popcorn chicken bits just located outside of the train station exit. We did try it before but though it tasted pretty good, it wasn't well-liked by us because it contained bone bits. Because we bought so many things, we had to return to our hotel to put down our stuff 3 times that day, and even tried an utterly different flavored drink from 50 lan, some super sour drink which ys told me she used to drink it a lot with her friends when they were schooling ages ago. Wasn't my cup of tea.

While eating the mian sian, while I was eating the mian sian, the other 2 girls didn't like the taste of it so they just shopped at a nearby sports shop. It was there ys bought shoes for her bf, and that was where she gotten a apply-on stick of the hungarian flag... and got the both of us applying it on our arms as well.

We jalan-ed a bit yet again and when scouting for Taiwan's famous, uniquely Taiwan's, Taiwan's very own, one and only Modern Toilet Restaurant, Ma Tong Chan Ting. They had several outlets located around Taiwan, and we heard there was one at Ximending. Hunted it like crazy. While doing so, we also did check out other shopping spots, even passed by a magic shop owned by one of the judges of Zong Yi Da Ge Da and a jigsaw puzzle shop where I bought rare puzzles which ran out of stock in Singapore donkey years back.

Also tried looking for CDs, Little Miss Sunshine's soundtrack which was impossible to find in Singapore. Even in Taipei, it was like finding a needle in a haysack... and the odds were diminishing until... like a stroke of miracle, we finally found it at a rather ulu music shop.. selling at $650NT, cost me a bomb!!!

So we finally did reach Ma Tong Chan Ting, and the front entrance of it was already living up to my expectations. They had cute mascots welcoming us, stationary ones, and there were 2 levels for that restaurant, I think. It was located on the 2nd floor, but you can't miss it if you were to walk pass it because there's this gigantic toilet bowl sticking out from the building it was located at. I didn't check out the 3rd floor so have no idea if there are also seats up there. The toilet sink was a toilet bowl, and we sat on toilet bowls as seats. Our tables were either sinks combined or a bath tub covered by a transparant glass plane. The souvenirs on displayed really made my day. Not because they were cute, interesting or unique, I mean of course they were, but what really made my day was seeing groups of people taking photo with a pile of soft toy shit and the most ingenious pose they could think of was to pretend eating it... Priceless (why didn't I think of that?!).

We asked for recommendations on the dishes and ended up ordering Ma La soup (ys), normal herbal soup (me) and baked rice (yq). While waiting for our order, I also checked out other decor such as a shower line mounted on the side walls and hanging bath robes. When the food came, woohoo!! The soups were served in toilet bowls, while the baked rice was served in a mini bath tub. They were not only adorably packaged, even the food tasted good, surprisingly. I didn't expect much from the concept restaurant but not only did they serve good food, the food was served in huge quantities (like eating a buffet) and provided excellent service. The cost wasn't that expensive, about S$10-15 per pax and our stomachs were filled to the brim after that. We up-sized to a meal and they came with drinks and ice-cream dessert. The chocolate ice-creams were served in mini tubs and shaped like... you guessed it, DA BIAN!! However, though the main courses tasted better than expected, the drinks and dessert were below average.

I really had a great time and we bought souvenirs from there before leaving. Ys couldn't join us for the rest of the night as her cat was sick and she had to bring her to see the vet so both yq and I had our er ren shi jie once again... this time.. for the last night, we spent it on... SHOPPPPPINNNGGG!!!! To Wu Fen Pu and beyondd!!! But this time, we knew how it worked cos ys told us at Wu Fen Pu you really need to know how to bargain, if not you will lugi.

We spent the entire night walking the streets, and we heard that the streets were even unofficially classified according to designs... Japanese, Korean, Teenager, Adult etc. This time, we didn't check out the $100NT cheap t-shirts but set our taste higher for the more challenging and nicer looking outfits. More challenging because you know the shop owners will rip you off for the prices were not labelled, so you'll have to bargain your way through to get them as low as you can. It was a fruitful shopping night, when I finally got to see my dear actually shopping and buying stuff. I was no exception, saw a couple of good-looking shirts and bought them after sha jia-ing. However, when we got back to our hotel, like I mentioned, it was all about taking risks. Because we couldn't try them on over there so we just have to believe they would fit us. The t-shirts I bought weren't that fitting after all... but yq was satisfied with hers, thankfully not all was lost!!

Then came the hardest and most dreaded part of any trip... the packing. We got ourselves, me especially got myself a whole shit load of stuff and I had so much trouble packing I was perspiring and there was this point where I almost lost hope packing them. Squeezed my luggage like a mad man but still some of the items couldn't get it... And that was when yq's magic bag appeared and saved the day. She had brought another carry on bag, and the toughest item to fit into my luggage was the frames for the jigsaw puzzle which I bought and like a miracle, it fitted perfectly into the carry on bag yq brought.

And the night, the last night in Taipei, was over in a blink of an eye...

To sum it up:
Taipei Ratings: 5/5 (a thriving city filled with fun, life, food and great memories!!)

• Pros and cons staying in Ximending, even though it one of the most happening areas of Taipei, we travelled around often, so only got to see mostly very early in the morning or very late at night... my advice, either Ximending, or staying near Shilin night market would be a good choice as well.
• Dan Shui's fisherman's wharf and Lover's bridge is a little overrated... haven't checking out the other side of the island but if you want, check the weather report before going there, should be like Pulau Ubin.
• Of the only 2 big restarants we did go, Mr J's restaurant was worth it for the concept but not the food and the amount you pay for it, but Modern Restuarant felt like a better place to check out it terms of concept, food and price.
• Of all the night markets, Shiling night market was the best, in terms of what was available, it being the biggest and the liveliness of it. Also, it had the fewest "motorist traffic" (you've to be very careful at all night markets because unlike Singapore's Pasar Malam, the night markets are located along roads and one can never walk along the streets with a peace of mind). Heard that most of the food stalls of Shilin night markets were shifted to this huge sheltered "foodcourt" just opoosite Jiantan mrt station (we didnt check it out because we didn't have time but sounded good). Nothing much to do at Shida, closes early and food wasn't that fantastic.
• Not much to do at Zhongxiao Fuxing area (orchard area) apart from it just being another busy street, but there was a Ding Tai Feng over there which we went on our last day (next post).
• Can check out Sun Yat Sen's memorial hall because apparently he was the "true father" of Taiwan and seeing how Chiang Kai-Shek memorial hall was that grand, it would have been much more impressive for Sun Yat Sen.
• Did most of our apparel shopping at Wu Fen Pu, so make that your 1st and last stop, 1st to check out the price and last after up-ing your bargaining skills (we managed to cut the cost of every single item we bought, just a matter of how much or how low you want it to be).
• Taipei's roads were the safest because the traffic lights were all well organised, had the pedestrian and vehicles' signals and the pedestrian walkways were wide and least clustered.
• You get for what you pay for. The higher priced items were generally of better quality, in terms of clothings and even though the food might seem a wee bit more expensive than Kaohsiung and Hualien, the portion is bigger as well.
• Highly accessible via the underground trains and the railway trains and even bins were the most accessible... you won't have to hold onto your rubbish for more than 50metres.

Day 10 (22/6): Taipei (Yang Ming Shan, Zhong Xiao Fuxing, Taipei 101)

Had ruo chou on our porridge that breakfast once again (yum yum!!), and I know it because we have photos to proof it!! Was the only day we took photos of our breakfast at Ta Shun Hotel. Despite knowing it was gonna rain that day, and that it would too for the next few days, we decided it was time to check out the famous Yang Ming Shan. Yang Ming Shan was where all the hotsprings can be found, or so I thought... Realised it was Beitou instead, but only found out when we actually got there.

To get to Yang Ming Shan, we took a train station to Jiantan, where we caught a red #5 bus ($15NT) nearby (near the Watson, which was around the corner of the train station). Bus came pretty fast, but the distance there wasn't that short. Have no idea why we weren't advised to alight at Beitou station instead because it seemed nearer but we just heeded the advice provided by the guidebook. When we reached the last bus stop (which looked like the terminal), we alighted... but that place was one of the most confusing areas to get around. The bus stop was directly outside a 7-11 and a Starbucks, had to ask around where the nearest visitor's centre was...

Much to our distraught, it was a good 400m uphill walk before we could actually get there. Worst off, we had to bash through a little bush to get onto the pathways because the walking pathways were covered by vegetation and you'll have to be careful not to miss that because if not, you'll have to walk along the dangerously winding roads. It was like a nature park, quite like Bukit Timah Hill, with short descriptions of the plants we could see around... and wooden information boards along the way, informing you of the distance left to the visitor's centre and to remind us to enjoy the scenic and relaxing walk on our way up... (wasn't that scenic, or relaxing for any matter).

When we did reach the visitor's centre at the first stop, we spoke to the personnel over there and he recommended 3 main sites of interest... the Siaoyoukeng Recreation Area (where you could see steaming sulphur vents), the Lengshuikeng Recreational Area (where you could see the milk lake) and Cingtiangang (a huge plain, open field in the midst of the mountain). By foot, it would take ages to get to those 3 places, so we were advised to wait for the moutain's shuttle bus which had a frequency of 30 mins (slower frequency because it was a weekday).

Took a scenic bus ride up the mountains and our first stop, was Siaoyoukeng. At every main attraction, there was another visitor's centre, which one could inquire more from there... we did check it out again but realise they all repeated the same recommendations. Newaz, we witnessed one of the most spectacular sights I've ever seen... steaming vapor rising from the sulphur vents in the midst of the mountains. The vapor supposedly left trails ressembling that of dragon shapes. Even thought it stank quite a lot of sulphur, or rotten eggs as described by yq, the smell didn't turn me off. I captured numerous mental shots of the natural phenomenon, as well as the scenic view one gets to witness at that attraction, before dragging my feet away with a heavy heart.

We didn't explore the area because time didn't allow us... we did still have time, but the weather was against us. Hoping to cover as much ground as we could when it was still dry, we quickly moved on to our next destination, Lengshuikeng. Unfortunately, the weather wasn't that magnanimous that day... even before we could get there, it already started with a downpour. But, once bitten twice shy, twice bitten surely remember, for being drenched on the previous 2 occasions because we forgot to bring our umbrellas out (Kenting and Shifen), we carried a brolly close to us that day. However, the rain was so strong, one brolly wasn't enough... forcing us to seek refuge at a nearby shelter.

Lengshuikeng is also the place at Yang Ming Shan which has a free public hotspring, and it was over there which we sought refuge at. Wasn't inside the hotspring, because they were cleaning the hotsprings then, but right outside where there were 3 main pavilions. We were the youngest couple sitting there, for most of the space was taken up by old folks... whom I assumed were waiting for the chance to use the hotspring. When the rain subsided, we headed to the milk lake to check it out. It was indeed a spectacle, it seemed almost like we could only see it from one angle, its lookout point, for among the mountainous terrain, there was a small white lake in the middle of nowhere.

Moving on, we proceeded to Cingtiangang. Before I forget to add it in, while on our bus ride up to Lengshuikeng, we passed by this other attraction which was a park but wasn't recommended to us (can't remember the name). We later came to know that it was a garden for butterfly-watching, since Taiwan has many rare butterfly species, but during that season when we went there, the butterflies were "hibernating" so there wasn't anything to see. Cingtiangang was a "short" walk from Lengshuikeng, as advised by the visitor's centre... but it was longer and more tedious than I expected. It could also be due to the weather that day, and both of us were wearing slippers so it made walking difficult.

It was still drizzling on our way up there, which was about 1.5-3km and took us a darn long time to get there. On our way up, visibility dropped to a mere 10%, felt like we were in the clouds and we could only see as far as 10-20m ahead. Even though it made navigating a whole lot scarier, it also made the moment more magical. Crossed a dangerous suspension bridge just above the milk lake which said it could hold 10 people max, but there was this group of tourists taking photos on it which caused me to break a sweat as I started counting the total number of people standing on the bridge. *Phew*, no wooden planks gave way... Reached a lookout point (which we had no idea if we even reached Cingtiangang) and it was totally misty all around. Felt like we were in heaven. Air was cool, not humid, didn't have difficulty breathing and the moment was simply surreal.

Caught a breather up there, and carried on with the path. By then, there was no signs and not a single soul, which kinda freaked me out a little, but after walking on, we did come across signages which eased my insecurities. There was a waterfall by the name of Jyuansih waterfall, but was towards a direction leading away from Cingtiengang. So we left it out because our main purpose was to get to Cingtiangang in one piece before we lost ourselves deeper in the mountains. Passed by a cattle ranch, saw several cows grazing the open field, snap a couple of shots and not too far away, we finally reached the much awaited Cingtiangang.

It was ... vast... open, plain, and... and... that was about it. Had a few piles of cowdungs around, and the grass wasn't carpet grass-like, there were patches around. It was... disappointing for me, but it really made yq's day. But after a while, I came to appreciate its beauty for being plain and simple. Wasn't that bad afterall, just that there was too much hype about it. The road turned out to be less rocky and was smoother from then on, where we simply had to follow this wide stony path to who knows where... We tried asking a local "field-keeper" (was trimming the grass) but he mumbled a reply to us. Thinking it was alright to follow the seemingly endless path, an illusion created by the poor visibility, we carried on walking. Visibility was on and off... but majority of the name it was extremely... on one unexpected occasion, visible almost hit 100%, an abrupt clearing of the clouds which lasted no more than 10 seconds!!

Water droplets condensed on both our hairs and it was quite a phenomenon by itself. We eventually reached the end and out of Cingtiangang where there was a food stall which was about to close shop and a shuttle bus stop. Bought a dumpling and a bao to fill our starving stomachs, after such an intensive hike across Lengshuikeng and Cingtiangang. Took the shuttle bus out back to the base of Yang Ming Shan where we came across a Korean guy asking us for directions to a hotspring.

I directed him up to the public hotspring at Lengshuikeng but was later corrected by a local aunty in her 40s that there was an inhouse hotspring just around the corner. She spoke fluent and impressive English so we tried inquiring more about the hotspring as well. She claimed it was the best hotspring around and was totally value for money. But would cost you around $200NT to get naked and soak yourself in the hotsprings together with I don't know, 20 other naked men? The private hotsprings were way too expensive, costing us $950NT for both of us so after much consideration, we decided not to go for it. Took us a while to come to that decision though, initially we wanted to try the public springs, but according to the local aunty, she said they were washing it then and could only enter it half an hour later. So we chilled out at the nearby Starbucks (where we first asked for directions, yq liked this cute and friendly young chap which was no longer there) and bought ourselves a cup of hot sesame mocha and a plate of cheesecake.

The taste of the beverage didn't quite suit us, and it seeemed the cheesecakes over there were a ted bit on the spongy side compared to Singapore's. We decided not to go for the hotspring because I felt it was a waste of time to spend it by ourselves over there so we went to our next destination, Zhongxiao Fuxing. There were 3 train stations back to back, Zhongxiao Fuxing, Zhongxiao Dunhua and one other station, which was kinda like Orchard Road in Singapore. According to my friend whom we met a day after, she told us most guys liked it there because it was where all the pretty office ladies hanged out at. Ximending was more like a teenager hang out place.

There wasn't much to check out over there, personally, it was just another shopping area with higher end products being sold. Didn't spend too much time over there, before moving on to our 2nd last stop, probably the most important stop of the day... A cafe... located inside the Taipei's medical school... near Taipei 101... called... Mr. J's cafe. Woohoo!!! A cafe set up by taiwanese superstar Jay Chou!! I was so looking forward to it!! Ok, I exaggerated a little, a lot, but the experience did turn out better than I had imagined. It was one of Jay Chou's concept restaurants which had the same wooden, classical looking-like piano featured in his movie, The Secret on display.

Asked one of the volunteer tourist guide at Taipei City Hall train station (which was the closest train station to the cafe, as well as Taipei 101) for directions but he didn't know of it. Even the policeman on petrol had no idea such a cafe even exists... well I guess, it's an unofficial tourist attraction, which only the younger generation would know. Luckily for us, we checked for specific directions to lead us there, even got the name of the street and one very important information, that it was located inside the campus of Taipei Medical University. The volunteer even made a light-hearted comment about giving us feedback about the cafe so he can share it with others in further.

They directed us to Taipei Medical University, where we further asked direction from a younger female teenager who gave us precise directions to its whereabouts. See? What did I tell you? The bus ride there was an eye-opener and a scenic one as well, sheding light on the night scenes of Taipei city. We passed by a food stall selling some bings... but decided to queue for it only after our dinner. Not far from there, lo and behold, right in front of us, we came face to face with Mr J's ca...fee... nope, wasn't a cafe. My mistake, it was his French Restuarant.

I have to admit, the decor and the layout of his restuarant was anything short of elegance. Cool, classy and charismatic (what more to expect from the King of Cool himself?). Had a trendy, brightly litted bar and the ceilings where very high, from which hung long string-like lamps. The toilet was on the 2nd floor, and was just equally designed with class. Took godzillion photos at Mr J French-Italian Restaurant, ate a plate of fish roe-based linguine, topped up to a set meal. The price of the entire meal was quite expensive, close to S$20 per pax and the taste wasn't fantastic. So if you're going there, don't set your expectations too high because its definitely not a place for high-class food, just decent food with high-class decor.

One of the greatest "oddity" of the restuarant was that there was this gigantic Optimus Prime's Head at the top of the entrance... tried asking the sales girl but she gave a very vague answer... Would assume Jay Chou loves transformers. Btw, there were only females working there... So if you're an avid Jay Chou female fan, you might get a chance to work there. The patrons of the restaurant was all taking massive photos of the piano and the decor.. seemed like everyone there was there because they wanted to check it out and not because they were lao gu kes (old customers)... Also had lots of fan stuff displayed near the entrance of the restaurant and heard that the score for the piano piece from The Secret was sold there but was out of stock for a very long time already...

After filling our stomachs, and yq's heart, we left the restaurant and headed towards Taipei 101. On our way there, we wanted to buy the bings we saw previously, but was unfortunately closed by then. Could have been one of the top food in Taipei judging from the length of the queue but we will never find out would we? So we took a romantic stroll to Taipei 101 (which was about 3km) and checked out the night lightings of the famous tower. There was a Taipei 101 shopping mall linked to it which we did enter, but didn't get anything as it was pretty high-end. However, by then, it was getting late but we couldn't find the entrance to the watch tower. Searched high and low for it, not even sure if we did find it but it was already closed... Taipei 101 closes at 9pm, so make sure you get there at least an hour in advance.

We strolled along the streets (one particular street which yq loved a lot was lined with different colored lights of different shapes such as heart shapes and star shapes), enjoyed the night lights and decorations and bathed in the romanticism of our er ren shi jie. Taipei, like what the guidebooks say, is all about food and shopping, but like what they didn't say, is quite a romantic city by itself.

To sum it up:

Yang Ming Shan Ratings: 4/5 (held more surprises than what it looked like from the base)

• the 3 main attractions were indeed worth it; Siaoyoukeng, for the phenomenal experience of coming up close to a natural sulphur steaming vent, Lengshuikeng, for the pure-like milk lake hidden from all views but one, and Cingtiangang, for the "holy", surreal and serene feelings of freedom it gave us
• heard that the free public hotspring at Lengshuikeng was extremely dirty since it was free
• don't have to drop by the bus terminal to get a day shuttle pass at $60NT because overall, we spent less than that, only $45NT (3 rides). Get it only if you have lotsa spare time and intend to cover more places
• terrain was the toughest of all the other places we've been, so advisable to wear shoes since its not recommended to dip yourself in the public hotspring (btw, if you do intend to do so, bring along a small towel or you can get it over there at a low price)

Day 9 (21/6): Shifen and Pingsi

Getting to Shifen was similar to getting to Jioufen. We took the railway train down to Rueifang, but the only difference is this time round, we had to take another railway train called the Pingsi line which would run through Shifen and Pingsi towns.

The sights along the way there was once again, breathtaking as our railway train was moving just above the riverside. Not before long, we reached yet another beautiful town which was unique in that it was situated along the railway track. As long as you are familiar with the timings of the railway trains, you could virtually lay on the tracks and take lotsa daring shots along the way. Although our map shows that the previous Dahua train station was much nearer to the main attraction of Shifen, the waterfall, we were directed to alight at Shifen station instead. Thinking it must be a ploy to give business along the street stalls, I later came to realise that even though Dahua station was much nearer, there wasn't a direct route to Shifen station... so to get there, you'll have no choice but to alight at Shifen station and walk a good 45 mins to get there. Which of course, you won't regret it.

As we were captivated by the uniqueness of Shifen town and its proximity to the railway track, we came across a group of tourists setting off sky lanterns which was quite a sight. One could write well wishes on the lanterns but every one of them was set off by the shop owner (you're don't have to get your hands dirty for it) all at a small price of $250NT. However, thinking that we should try it too but only at Pingsi town since its famous for that, we carried on with our journey towards Shifen waterfall. Ate this delicious stick of black boar kebabs on the way there.

We also came across a suspension bridge called "peaceful bridge" along the way which was decorated with countless sky lanterns, stretching all the way from one end to the next. We didn't walk across to the other side because it looked like it was just the other side of the town which had nothing much going on. Along the way, we also came across an abandoned coal mine, which we climbed a godzillion flights of stairs just to get there.

Don't be deceived when you see the signages encouraging you to hang on as they count down the distance for you... because even though it was 150m, 100m , 50 left ahead, they were all ardous terrain... uphill, uphill and more uphill. Even though the coal mine was "closed", as the main store wasn't open, we decided to explore it by climbing up... and when we did finally reach the top... what a... disappointment. There was nothing interesting there. Just scrap metal and not a single soul. Through the path up there, we only met this 2 other guys who gave up halfway. In the end, only both of us ended up there... the coal dumping station.

Even though the road up wasn't that of a breeze, or fun in any matter, it was a great moment for the both of us because it felt like we tried something, explored somewhere no others would even bother to. And ultimately, what really made the entire trip wasn't the attractions, but each other's companionship... Alright, nuff said about us, so we resumed our journey to the waterfall... along the way, we chanced upon the visitor's centre which further lended us directions to the main attraction.

Crossed bridges once more, this time what laid beneath caught our eye... potholes. Potholes of intriguing shapes and formation. After which, not too far after the bridge, we came face to face with yet another attraction.. the eyeglass waterfall, yan jing dong. Apparently it was called as such because it had two holes underneath a mini waterfall which looked like a pair of glasses. It didn't quite caught the eyes of many, as most simply walked past it since it was along the way up to yet another bridge.

There was a wedding photo shoot going on there, as well as at the mini garden which we would soon explore on our way back. But first (since the "garden" route veered off from the main path), we made our way to the famous Shifen waterfall... finally. We had to pay entrance fees to get in, but the lady at the visitors centre told us we would get cheaper rates if we informed them that we were students (which she assumed we were), which we did of course and each of us saved $20NT. The admission fee was $50-70NT and the guy at the counter didn't check for verifications.

Entering the main gate, one could already hear the thundering splashes of the highly acclaimed waterfall. Shifen waterfall was famous for its rock strata which was similar to that of Nigara falls, hence it is also known as Taiwan's Niagra falls. Indeed, its reputation preceeds it, for the experience I had was one to remember. Grand, gorgeous, and rejeuvenating (there's occasional water droplets on your face because of the blowing wind). There was a mini pool which was filled by the icy cold natural waters from the waterfall and you can dip your feet in there if you want, though nobody did that. They even sold food there, and there was this overhung where you can sit around there while you have your meal to enjoy the scenie view (there was even a rainbow at the base of the waterfall!).

However, the food they served was close to yucky, and expensive. Tried the curry rice, was sweet Japanese curry but not only did it take ages to come, it tasted like pre-cooked oven food. There was a route further down and we explored the entire enclosure. Wasn't much though, because it only led us to this slope where it was lined with 18 hao hans, leading to one buddha statue. The rest of the area was crap, had a couple of barbeque pits, hammocks, and some construction going on. We turned back, came across a mini shrine with a 4-faced buddha, enjoyed the waterfall a little more checking out the "garden" which we skipped the previous time around.

The area was surreal and serene, and the waters were close to crystal clear, wee bit green at the start of the source. We climbed over the barricades of the eyeglass waterfall because I saw the wedding photoshoot being taken as such and wanted to steal those shots as well... As long as we were careful with our footing, it wasn't that dangerous to begin with. Took several great scenic shots there before returning. Heading advice from the stall owner who sold me the pork kebab at the start, and the lady at the visitor's centre, we decided it was time to quickly head back to the train station... because... they told us it would rain at around 3pm... which by then, was around there. Both of them asked if we had an umbrella, which we 4got to bring that day and expressed concern about us getting drenched...

Well, how bad could it be? I thought... we passed the visitor's centre, no rain.. so we proceeded to get back to town... which was about 20 mins walk away. When we were neither here nor there, where the nearest shelter was either the town, or the visitor's centre (which required us to head back), that was when... it started to rain. A pretty darn heavy downpour if you ask me... for once again, we were all soaked like drenched chickens. It started out small, but predicting it to get bigger, we started running... but no matter how fast we ran, the rain beat us to it... which resulted in us running in the heavy rain for a food 10 mins minimal.

We finally sought shelter at the stalls near the station, but the shelters there were "leaky" and minimal... they only sheltered part of the walkway and one shelter was not linked to another. Waiting for the rain to subside, we dashed through it yet again to another more sheltered area. That was when we saw a group of Hongkongers setting off a sky lantern. I'm not sure why they were setting it off in the middle of the rain, but can only assume so because when they paid for it, it was still dry... but took forever to think up and write the well wishes on the lanterns before setting them off... They tried setting off 2 lanterns, but 1 didn't quite make it up because they wanted to take photos with it which they kinda delayed, ending up with lesser fuel for the lift off and by then the rain got heavier... so it was too wet, too heavy for take off.

We didn't see the aftermath of it, whether they would have to just make do with it (because letting off the sky lanterns would only be good if they do actually make fly off) or did the shopowner allow them to do up another one. Retracing our steps back to the train station, we waited for the next train down to Pingsi town. Calculating the train timings, I thought it was feasible to head down to another quick stop, the Jingtong station which was unique because of its architecture. Was said it was a level 3 protected heritage site, I think... because it preserved a Japanese-like wooden architecture.

It was the last stop, and Jingtong was supposedly another coal mining attraction which we weren't too interested in. We alighted the train, took a quick good snaps of the station and hurried back to the train which would then head to Pingsi town (2nd last stop). After finally alighting at Pingsi station, we were... utterly disappointed. We were stranded at the station because there were no shelters along the streets of Pingsi, which looked like a dead town... we could only move around a short stretch of stalls which was along the railway track. That was where we bought our sky lanterns souvenir (much cheaper than if you were to buy it in Taipei, standard price in Shifen and Pingsi).

Also bought this stitch figurine in a stitch-designed bubble (the same one we saw in Kaohsiung). It was the same price!!! Of all places to get that, you must think, but there were only 2 places which we saw the toy, one at Kaohsiung main station, the other at Pingsi... So like my previous advice, if you really like something, just get it. Chances are, you might not come across it again, contrary to what you believe. We asked the shop owner about the deadness of the town, and she said it was because it was a weekday, weekends would see more stalls being opened. Stranded, cold and nothing much to do, we waited for the next train back and hopped onto it, bound for Rueifang station. But before that, since we didn't get the chance to set off sky lanterns, we pretended to do so (cheap thrills) at the train station which hung sky lantern lamps.... (o.O")

That night, instead of checking Rueifang night market, we headed back to Taipei where we checked out Shilin night market instead. It was a good choice because of all the night markets we've been to, I must say, Shilin is the best. In terms of "bustlingness", food, shops, size, and it was the only night market which didn't have irritating motorcyclists passing through all the time. Tried a "rojak" potato dish which had a concortion of peeled corns, ham, cheese, mayo, potatoes, onion flakes etc. That snack won its way to yq's choice awards, and mine and also tried MSG coated small fishballs which tasted like the other ones I've tried. The next snack which really won our hearts was the Chou Tofu (smell tofu) we ate at one of the stalls around there.

Seeing how packed it was, we decided to give it a try. The chou tofu took quite a while to come, and we also ordered this peanut-sauced cold noodles which tasted ok. But when the chou tofu finally came, with its salted lettuce, faint pungency of stinkiness and the crispiness of the skin, together with the nicely salted sauce, we were blew away. That was our first, and best chou tofu we tried there which I can confidently say will remain as such even if we were to try the other stalls around. The smell wasn't as strong as the rest, and instead of spoiling your appetite, it increases it. Even now as I view my photos, my saliva won't stop flowing... That's how good it was!! Luckily, we remembered to take a photo of the shop this time so good luck finding it in Shilin night market!! =)

Was getting late, and by then we were all dried up. Checked out a couple more streets along the night market, ate a bowl of Mee Sua, which tasted horrible compared to Ah Zong's Mian Xian, before heading back to our cosy Ta Shun Hotel to turn in for the night...

To sum it up:

Shifen Ratings: 5/5 (a unique and elegant street along the railway track)

• though the waterfall's quite a walk, there are many other sites to check out along the way, and the entrance fee isn't that ex, just remember to pretend to be students for that additional $20NT discount per pax
• coal mine not worth climbing up for, the eyeglass waterfall is on the way so you don't have to walk out of the way to see it, and the potholes along the way were satisfying enough (heard there was also the Dahua potholes which we assumed you would have to alight at Dahua station instead)
• not much food to eat there, even if there was, its expensive and doesnt taste good... several vending machines at the entrance of Shifen waterfall, so get some spare change for a cheap and refreshing relief
• remember to bring umbrellas and sunblock because hardly any shelter there
• the walk to and fro the waterfall was beautiful and romantic, so its a full 5/5 must-see, must-go place for me
• last bit of advice, schedule your visit there to be on a weekend so Pingsi will be more lively and you might be able to get a better feel of the countryside life over there