travel

A Look Back at 2012, and What to Expect in 2013

/ Fiona Seah / Leave a comment

Hey guys, happy (belated) new year! Hope the first month of 2013 has been good to everyone so far.. 🙂

I spent my first day of 2013 overseas – in Chengdu, China – which officially marked my first country abroad in 2013. I was actually scheduled to fly back to Singapore on that very day. Chengdu was freezing cold in December and I didn’t really enjoy myself there despite the snow (couldn’t believe I saw falling snowflakes!) and the cute pandas. I shall leave this part of the story to another time. For now, I’d like to pen down the events that shaped 2012 and of course, my resolutions for this new year 🙂

Probably what happened most significantly was my acceptance to WKWSCI (NTU) which took me by surprise because I thought I flopped the interview. I can never forget my outburst of joy at work when I receive the call from Bf informing me about my acceptance e-mail from NTU. (He has access to my e-mail inbox to monitor my online shopping spendings hahaha).  Then it was the orientation day where I made new friends (mentioned in the previous post), followed by my first few days getting lost in NTU.

Of course, 2012 also marked the end of my one-year (or more) stint as a full-time supervisor at a tuition centre. I faced many challenges during that mere one year, from handling difficult customers to disciplining stubborn and spiteful subordinates. The most unreasonable and ferocious parent I had come across was one who had an upper-primary son. The mom wanted to enrol his son in classes which he was very weak at (failing grades), but because our curriculum was tougher and faster than school’s and it was a large-grouped tuition, I really had no choice but to break the news to the mom that he wasn’t suitable for our courses. I totally understood the desperation both the mother and son felt but as an employee, there was nothing much I could do, especially when this is a managerial decision that was practised across the board. In fact as a near-EM3 student back in my primary school days, I knew how it was like to be ostracised and turned away especially by an education centre which was supposed to be assisting students in their studies.

So obviously the mom took offence and started making a big fuss in front of other customers. I tried to keep my cool until she took out her phone and wanted to snap a picture of me so that she could lodge a complaint to the headquarters! I dodged and told her it wasn’t needed, telling them my name would suffice. She just went on, so determined to get my picture and finally gave up after I told her firmly to leave. But this feisty young single mom wouldn’t let the matter rest so easily of course.. She publicised my name on a parenting forum (my instinct told me she’d do that) and recounted the whole incident to her favour, conveniently leaving out the part she wanted to snap a shot of me, and many others which are not necessary to be mentioned here, to make me seem like a total villain. Please lor so disgusting can *roll eyes*

If this happened 6 years ago, I would have commented on that thread and cleared my name. But now I thought, what for? Parents would always side parents because I don’t have kids so I’m ignorant ma.. Oh well. And not that I’m against single parents, but erm… especially single mothers, I know you women are dying to show your independence and capability but please, don’t overdo it? So far my worst customers (as in rude, demanding and “know-it-all”) have always been single parents. Just sayin’.

Anyway I digress. So on top of my one-year permanent job position, I had also been abroad for a record-breaking of 3 times! I went to Beijing in May where I successfully climbed the Great Wall of China, followed by Taiwan in July which I fell in love instantly and last but not least, Chengdu, just last month. I’m going to blog it about once I got the pictures from Bf’s DSLR. Out of the three, I enjoyed Taiwan the most and will probably go back again during my term break! Teehee so excited!!

Hopefully in 2013, I’m able to visit Hong Kong which I’ve been dying to go. I want to buy things, eat things, buy things, eat things HAHAHA. If time and money permit, I also want to visit Australia (Melbourne or Sydney.. any is fine) which I hope to do so if Tetrina gets accepted to UQ (then Wenqin and I won’t have to fret over accommodation hahaha). Of course, all this can only happen if I stop splurging on stuff I do not necessary need.. like -okay- clothes. I already have 2 huge wardrobes packed with clothes, so packed to the extent that I can’t take them out anymore, lol. So yeah… I hope, hope, hope I can control my hands. Sigh, online shopping is really evil! But I definitely won’t stop shopping altogether. Perhaps like limit myself to 5 purchases a month? HAHA so recalcitrant.

And in academics… well, I didn’t do as well as I expected for my first term and I’ve experienced the downside of bell curves. Irritating moderating system! Modules which I was so confident in getting an A turned out to be a grade lower -_- So my aim for now is to strive for the best, clinch at least an A.. To meet this, I’m going to do hardcore mugging at least twice a week. Or if I know I’m not gonna do well, just try my best and enjoy what I’m doing since I’m very lucky to get all the modules I wanted! 🙂 So yeah.

Oh did I also mention I’m already a Year 2 student in NTU? Haha because I’ve met the minimum AUs for a sophomore due to my exemptions! But it’s really tough and long-winded for me to explain why I’m in Year 2 when it’s only my first year there. So should I introduce myself as a Year 1 or Year 2 student? :\

Also, I know I’ve screwed my body clock up during the term break by sleeping as late as 5am. So this year, starting from THIS WEEK, I shall sleep by midnight so that I can be fresh and awake for 9am classes (and allow my skin to recover)!! This is super tough (tougher than curbing my online shopping  addiction) but I will do it! I CAN DO IT!! And by doing so, I will NOT be late for 9am classes and will be early instead!

Lastly, okay this is going to sound superficial but I’m just going to say it anyway: TO LOSE WEIGHT, at least 5kg, from a UK8-10 to a UK6-8. I know I’m not the fattest person in the world and should be satisfied with my appearance but clearly I’m not and I want to look even better in everything. I’m not going to drastically change my diet but I’m probably just going to work out more. This shouldn’t be difficult! But the most challenging part of it is probably to shrink my arms -_- Stupid stubborn flabs, refusing to disappear since 2005.

Okay that’s the end of my ramblings. Hope I can find time to blog about Chengdu!

Taiwan, the Heart of Asia

/ Fiona Seah / 1 Comment

Oh my god, guess what? It’s already December and this post was drafted in August! Hahaha oops.

I mentioned on my Beijing post that CTC offered my Bf and I a 1-for-1 trip to Taiwan in July BUT probably because of the bad timing (the June holidays had already ended) and the super warm weather there, they couldn’t get the minimum response to confirm the tour. So we had no choice but to take up their free-and-easy package (because our deposit of $1000 was stuck with them and we didn’t want to go through all the hassle of getting a refund) and explore Taiwan ourselves. It took us a lot of courage – okay maybe just me – to decide to go on our own because we don’t really like planning itineraries and prefer to let a third party settle everything for us. But I was still fine with it because I wanted to experience how it is like in Taiwan, and not travelling from places to places in a coach.

Bf and I have different purposes of going to Taiwan. If I am abroad, I would splurge on accessories or clothes that are probably cheaper or can’t be found here in Singapore. Bf on the other hand prefers to explore scenic places (gosh I hate those.. unless we’re in European countries – that will be a completely different issue) or anything that don’t require much spending. So imagine the bickering we had when we were planning our itinerary..  But ultimately shopping districts like Wu Fen Pu, Xi Men Ding still made it to our list! 😛 Oh and this was our first Taiwan trip!

The date of the flight remained unchanged even though it was no longer the 1-for-1 offer because we had already applied for leaves. But now instead of SIA, we travelled with China Airlines with in-flight entertainment. Nice and polite cabin crew but the experience was bad enough to deter me from flying with them again – especially at the return flight. Flight was delayed for at least 30 mins and air-con didn’t seem to work in the plane. Bf was sweating like a dog cos it was so stuffy! In-flight entertainment took forever to work so I gave up in the end. So yup, no China Airlines for me next time unless the price of the tickets is able to justify the kind of experience I get.

Touched down at Tao Yuan International Airport at 2pm-ish. The airport was undergoing a major makeover so it was a little challenging to get out as there were no visible directions but it’s alright. At the immigration counter, I was greeted by the immigration officer before checking my passport – wow! So unlike the Thai immigration officers the other time I went to Bangkok who were unfriendly and unwelcoming -_-

Taoyuan International Airport

Day 1

Our first plan upon arrival was to apply for internet access for Bf’s Ipad which was VERY IMPORTANT in getting us to places with its very fast, efficient and accurate Google Maps. While he was doing that, I went to apply for Youth Card (it’s a round red card with “aboriginal tribe pattern” that is meant for international youth aged 15-30) that may come in handy when we visit places like Taipei 101 and Taipei Zoo (no time to go both in the end) because the card would entitle us to discounts 🙂 We didn’t use the card in the end but I’m pretty sure it can still be used the next time we visit Taiwan!

Thereafter we were picked up from the airport (shuttle service) to Look Hotel, our lodging place throughout our stay in Taipei. It’s a very small but comfortable 4-star hotel located about 15-20 minutes walk from Taipei Main Station (TMS) with many many food stalls (小吃) around the area! But we didn’t want to be confined in just one area so we spent most of our time outside TMS. After we were done unpacking our luggages, it was already nightfall. We didn’t want to go too far from our hotel so we went to Shilin Night Market, just 5 stations away.

Look Hotel banner

Look Hotel reception

Our hotel surroundings

Food sold around our hotel

Taipei railway station

Station indicators. More accurate than the lousy Christmas lights MRT map in our trains -_-

The train station is probably the best place to understand and observe the locals’ mannerism and culture. It was a little of a culture shock to me when you really see them queueing up for the train and on the escalator (though they stand on their right), and leaving the priority seats vacant (trust me, those who took the seats and don’t seem to be old/handicapped/pregnant are foreigners. More dominantly, the PRCs judging from their accents). I was so amaaaaazed! Xiaoqing once saw a travelogue of Singapore on a Taiwanese channel and they marketed Singapore as a luxurious and well-to-do country. Imagine the Taiwanese’ shock and disgust when they see how we behave especially at MRT stations. -_-

Anyway, back to Shilin Night Market. From what I understand the night market also recently went through a makeover. It looked more organised as compared to the past (from pictures I saw online). Shall let the pictures do the talking:

We're almost there. View from the train station

Shilin Night Market - Welcome!

The revamped Shilin Night Market

Orh jian Taiwanese Version! Yumtums

Other yummy food we have yet to try! The sausages are HUMONGOUS in real life.

Shilin Night Market

Taiwanese really love their dogs! Another reason for staying there :)

Land of Ji Pa (Chicken Cutlet). Yum yum

Day 2

After reading so many reviews of Hello Kitty Sweets, I was so elated that I finally got the chance to try it! Anyone who has been to Taiwan would have definitely been to this restaurant and I can tell you that it’s not highly raved because of its theme (Hello Kitty) but because of its food! And for the record, I’m not a fan of Hello Kitty. Not at all! Xiaoqing who was there last year warned that the place is very popular even with the locals so reservation is definitely a must! Otherwise you’d have to queue with the rest or dine somewhere else because their waiting list is really MADNESS. Even if you get a table, you only have (I think) 90 minutes to eat? And there is a minimum spending of NT300.

So I heeded her advice and wrote in via e-mail to make a reservation for 2 in my horrible command of (traditional) Mandarin about 5 days in advance! Then I got a confirmation mail from them but if I didn’t turn up 15 minutes after the reservation time, the table would be given up to someone else. Because of this I was so kanchiong, took a cab down instead of the train because I knew I was gonna be late. Hahahaha!!

Hello Kitty Sweet is a VERY PINK restaurant so Bf felt really gay when he entered. But I, on the other hand, was a very happy girl because pink is my favourite colour! Hahaha. There I witnessed a family of 3 getting refused a table because they didn’t make reservation – even when they pleaded and assured that they would be done in 30 minutes – because there was no vacant table! So guys, please make sure you make reservation to avoid disappointment! They seriously don’t care if you travel all the way from America or Singapore to try their food. If there is no seats available, you’d have to dine elsewhere! (Yes I do agree they are pretty hostile)

Me at the entrance

What greet us at the entrance

The menu

Thousand Island Salad

I think this is clam chowder?

Salmon

Duck - don't be deceived by the poor appearance. It's really YUMMY

Apart from the gayness, the food was surprisingly good! Bf and I ordered a set meal each which came with salad, appetiser, soup and dessert (no drink sadly). There were I think 3 choices for the appetiser. Being kiasu Singaporeans, we wanted to try as many different dishes as  we could so I got myself salmon while Bf took duck (I forgot which part of the duck but it’s the only duck appetiser on the menu). Well, let me just summarize the appetisers in 2 words: NOT ENOUGH. Seriously, both were damn good, especially the duck! The salad was super yumtums too and I am not really fond of salad okay!! Oh, the soup also came with bread which is a common practice. BUT look:

HELLO KITTY IMPRINTED BUNS

Buns were soft like cushion and I loved them! I’m pretty sick of the hard, crunchy bread I kept having in Singapore so this was a refreshing change for me!

Even the drinks we ordered (a la carte) have Hello Kitty floating on them

Then came our main course! I had baked rice while Bf had this burger which I forgot what (sorry, it’s been awhile). They did not disappoint at all!

The burger Bf ordered. Even the bun is Hello Kitty shaped

My baked rice!

The carrot in my baked rice! Everything, everything is Hello Kitty

The dessert! The pudding is nice

Our takeaway cake

Us

I swear the food were simply delectable and the overall experience there deserves my 2 thumbs up even though I feel the hostility of the service crew. They were pretty reluctant to help take a photo for us but oh wells! They probably were too busy to entertain us! Nevertheless we left the restaurant with a very satisfied tummy AND a takeaway cake because it was so highly raved online as well! But we regretted later because..

Our next stops were Wu Fen Pu and Raohe Night Market. We tried clearing our bowels (hahaha) before entering into these food zones. When we were there we practically pigged out! I am very sure I gained a few kilos at Raohe. Thankfully as most people know, Wu Fen Pu has more wearables than edibles so by the time we went to Raohe Night Market, I was near bankrupt and couldn’t afford anymore food! But because Bf didn’t buy much stuff at Wu Fen Pu, he was still pretty loaded with NTD so I stole the food that he bought! *facepalm*

Civilised locals queueing up for the train! Singaporeans are getting there too

TW's very own fine notices

Going to Wu Fen Pu...

We're reaching! Do you see Cosmed? That's TW's Watsons! I got all my masks from there

We're near.. Because clothes are everywhere :D

Wu Fen Pu

Anyway Wu Fen Pu is really a shopping haven for girls (and dogs, because they really have nice, cute, CHEAP dog clothings)! You can find Singapore-based blogshop clothes (or potential ones) there at a much lower price but only after scouring the entire site. However I must say that there are still shops out there selling stuff at exorbitant prices, so beware! And do check for defects too. I’m saying this because I bought an ombre maxi skirt  from a makeshift stall without checking because I trusted the old lady that there should be no issues with a brand new piece in an unopened bag 😦 I only discovered the defect when I returned to Singapore -_- I also didn’t think of manufacturing defects at the time of purchase partly because we were in a rush to leave for Raohe.

Road to Raohe Night Market

Entrance

My favourite from Raohe - Sotong!!

What we Singaporeans call Sotong balls!

My sotong snack!

Mango/Strawberry shaved ice! A very popular dessert in Taiwan

Split sausage

Other than filling our mouths with food all the time at Raohe, we also spent some time at their mini arcade. Well, more specifically, on their toy-catching machines! I make it a point to grab some toys whenever I’m abroad (especially in Asian countries) because it’s just too EXPENSIVE to do so in Singapore! I realised I never blogged about my Batam trip that happened last year (because the experience was terrible and I just can’t be bothered to recount. I’ll probably do it one day) but yes, Batam’s toy catchers are mad cheap! The ones in Taiwan too are comparably affordable as well and Bf swept away most of the toys in the machine. Hahaha luck was just with us that day! Even the store assistant was dumbfounded.

Mini arcade.. Or rather, a place full of toy catchers

Bf working hard to catch some toys

And he's got it!!

Day 3

We checked out of Look Hotel and went to take a high-speed train to Kaohsiung! Even though both Taipei and Kaohsiung are in Taiwan, they look like completely different places altogether! Kaohsiung is definitely more laid-back and rural (I mean duh, Taipei is the city after all). When we bought the train passes we were told that we could choose between a super high-speed and a normal high-speed train. I can’t remember if there is any difference in the prices but the normal one definitely took a longer time to reach its destination (I think about 30 minutes more?). Because we were dead beat and wanted a short nap, we took the normal high-speed train! Hahaha. The entire journey took 1.5 hours if I am not wrong! Can you imagine that I take the same amount of time to travel from Bukit Gombak to Pasir Ris? And Singapore is SO SMALL? -_-

When the train bypassed Chia-Yi, I can’t help but to hum the theme song of 意难忘 HAHAHA. If you ever took a peep at your Mom’s TV at around 4.30pm during weekdays 5 years ago, you should know why! Actually 爱 is also relevant if I am not wrong 😛

The HSR station faregate but we used a special exit

the HSR mascot! Cute right!!

What we call EZ link cards. Yes, these are used to tap on the normal train gantry!

Having fun experimenting with the machine! It's about the same as ours

Koi's affiliate!

Hotel font

So upon arrival at Kaohsiung and getting accustomed to the new environment, we tried planning our itinerary! There was nothing much to explore at Kaohsiung so we ended up having dinner at another highly raved seafood place near our hotel (Ambassador Hotel) called Lai Lai Seafood. Contrary to reviews online, Bf and I didn’t find the prices low (probably because we ordered too much HAHA) The service staff were really amiable and welcoming. When one of them knew we were from Singapore (did I mention many thought we were from Hong Kong?), he tried conversing with us in English because our mandarin really couldn’t make it. I was struggling to find the mandarin translation for sting ray, describing it to the best of my ability. Trust me, I even brought in Steve Irwin into the conversation. In the end, he was like, “Oh, ray!” Haha, gosh.

What Lai Lai has (of course that's not all)

Clams

Prawns

What we Singaporeans call Kangkong (cos I forgot what it is called in TW)

Lai Lai's proudest dish because they claimed that the crab has some sort of eggs that other normal crabs don't

Fried fish

After dinner, we took a long walk back to the nearest (but not so near) metro station to get to San Duo Shopping Mall. We stopped by at some gelato store for dessert during our stroll.

:D

At San Duo, we bought movie tickets to watch Street Dance. Bf wanted to watch Ted (yes, it was out in Taiwan like eons before it was screened in Singapore! SO SLOW LOR) but all available timing were SOLD OUT! So we settled for my favourite movie genre – dance! 😀 I am also super glad Kaohsiung had churros (huge ones!) because they seem to be extinct in Singapore -_- Anyway the movie ended pretty late and we missed the last train back to City Council station where our hotel was. So we took the very last train and stop at whatever its terminal was and took a cab back. Hey guess how much their midnight cab surcharge is? It’s 1 FRIGGIN TAIWAN DOLLAR. Not SGD k! It’s NTD!! Walao I want to pack my bags and migrate to Taiwan NOW!!

Churros! Original and chocolate flavours

Day 4

Dream Mall front

Right after breakfast in the hotel we headed to Dream Mall! I think it’s just another mall designed for tourists because there weren’t many locals there. There was nothing special about the place other than their rooftop theme park and Sanrio-themed Ferris wheel.

Statue Man

Snake man!! So cute he even posed for a photo without me asking

Archery at the rooftop theme park

On the Ferris wheel

:3

Bf was finding high and low for a book store in Taiwan and we finally found one there. Why was he so eager to visit a book store there? Singapore don’t have meh? …

You're the Apple of my Eye book

Bf thought that it’d be more memorable and special if the book were to be bought in Taiwan, its origin *rolls eyes* Hahaha okay to be fair I also bought a copy for myself 😛 And from there, Bf and I lugged a huge bag of My Beauty Diary masks back to the hotel, for personal use and NOT for sale HAHA. I SWEAR IT’S DIRT CHEAP THERE. If I ever return to Taiwan (which I probably will! *fingers crossed*) it’s partly because I want to get more masks! (And also because I love the people there! They are really different :))

At night, we took a cab down (lazy tourists who refused to take the train like the locals) to 2 of the many night markets in Kaohsiung – Ruifeng and Liuhe Night Markets! To be honest I found the food there more appetising than those in Taipei! There is this very well-known papaya milk store at Liuhe which is endorsed by the Taiwanese prime minister/president (should be the former, but I don’t think the endorsement is still ongoing hahaha!). Indeed the papaya milk was super yummy! And I also had my first smelly tofu there! Well, it wasn’t as smelly as I thought! But I’m still not a fan of tofu 😦 Oh they also sold super big BBQ prawns! We bought quite a number back to the hotel. Hahaha fat die us.

Fishball soup at Ruifeng

Chicken cutlet at Ruifeng

Pig pancakes!

I don't know what these are but they sure look appetising

Taiwanese really love their dogs! They bring them everywhere they go

Chop chop chicken cutlet

This is a huge disappointment :( Not nice and too short also

Papaya milk everywhere at Liuhe

Smelly tofu!

The giant prawns!!

Even stallholders bring their dogs along to work!

Day 5

Left Kaohsiung and returned to Taipei via super high-speed train this time! The moment we stepped out of the train we could already feel the hastened pace of the city. We took a train back to our first hotel (Look) where we would spend our last few nights. We also left our luggages there for safekeeping so we only brought our necessities and valuables to Kaohsiung. We didn’t have to drag our heavy luggages back and forth! Yay for convenience 🙂

Then we took the train to Xin Bei Tou because that’s where all the hot spring resorts are in Taipei. Seriously, there was a whole stretch of them and we were spoilt for choice! In the end we patronised this resort which just commenced operations not too long ago (according to the receptionist) so it wasn’t on the map yet! We were led to this small hotel-like room and the hot spring tubs (one for hot water and the other for cold water) were at the balcony!

I can't really read the text so if you see this banner somewhere outside, this is the place!

One of the tubs!

It was a torture at first because the water was either freezing cold or boiling hot. But after staying in the water for more than 5 minutes, you wouldn’t feel like getting out of there. But sadly you have to after 15 minutes, to the next tub of water of the opposite extreme temperature. Oh gosh, it was like self-punishment every 15 minutes. And til today, I still do not comprehend the health benefits of hot springs, hahaha. But it was indeed a relaxation time for me on the overall. If I remember correctly it was a 3-hour package.

My green tea cake and earl grey tea?

Yummeh

Then we were treated to cakes and tea! We only know how to enjoy life there. Hahaha!

According to our (flawed) itinerary, our next stop after hot spring resort is Xi Men Ding. That was my die-die-must-go place in Taiwan and I literally pleaded the MCP Bf to add that into the itinerary. Just like Orchard Road in Singapore, it’s like their main shopping district, so how can you miss that when you’re in Taiwan right!? We also wanted to have dinner at Modern Toilet Restaurant and by the time our hot spring session ended, it was already close to 8pm!

Streets of Xi Men Ding

Xi Men Ding adverts

Xi Men Ding lights

Modern Toilet

One more at the staircase landing

As expected, the restaurant had already stopped taking orders the moment we reached there 😦 The restaurant staff must have seen my disappointed look because she told me that I could still enter and snap some pictures. Hahaha. But I didn’t la. So we took pictures of the exterior! But I told Bf that we die-die also must dine at this restaurant before leaving Taiwan! He said, “No, we have no time.”

The sukiyaki place

We are so pathetic that we requested for menu in English

Everything. Just dump everything inside!

Look at those meat! Free friggin flow

Deesert! This is super nice!

Feeling super famished, we looked around Xi Men Ding for alternative dining places! Then we spotted this sukiyaki restaurant not too far from Modern Toilet! I really think it was a blessing in disguise because WOW! Free-flow of everything on the menu, including meat! I tell you, after this sukiyaki experience you wouldn’t even want to step into any sukiyaki restaurant in Singapore because in comparison, they are so stingy with the meat and so expensive some more. And true enough, since my trip to Taiwan, I have NOT stepped into any one here so far. Hahaha. (Unless it’s someone’s treat)

Day 6

Skipped hotel breakfast for this! Bf went out just to get Dou jiang (bean curd), you tiao (fried fritters) and dou nai (soya milk drink)!

The original plan was to go to Jiufen to light sky lanterns but the next departing train to Jiufen was pretty late so we replaced this plan with..? Modern Toilet 😛 But unlike Hello Kitty Sweets, despite the interesting interior design, food at Modern Toilet was really blah. So you go there solely to camwhore, not for the food okay?

The only thing nice we ate there were the nuggets :/

My dish. Chicken cutlet with cheese

Not-so-nice ice cream :(

It was almost the end of our Taiwan trip but we had not bought anything for our families and friends back home! So our last shopping trip was to Tamsui where you can find all Taiwanese titbits there. Because we bought so many stuff, we actually requested for the items to be delivered to our hotel! 2-3 boxes worth of snacks! HARDCORE OR NOT?!

Tamsui station

Tamsui so happening!

Hi there cutie pie! Dogs, dogs everywhere! I love Taiwan <3

I don't know how to call this but it's pretty common in Singapore, sold in those Korean snack stores

Bf's favourite street food: quail eggs!

More sotongs (they call them Hua1 Zhi1, so chim lor) but I still prefer the one at Raohe :D

This

Tried their

Hong Ma's sour plum juice. Really sour!

At Tamsui we also found the Turkish ice-cream shop hidden near the river. You know, the Turkish guy who is out to embarrass you in public by refusing to give you your ice-cream while you attempt to snatch it from him? HAHA I WAS ONE OF HIS VICTIMS. Damn it!

Turkish ice cream described in chinese characters

Buyers usually get their ice creams after their 3rd attempt. Hahaha but he was really entertaining!

Fried milk? How is it even possible? Apparently it is possible in Taiwan! And it really tasted NOT BAD!! It's like fried balls with milk inside. WARMTH IN YOUR MOUTH!

There were many portrait artists at Tamsui and we went to the one offering the lowest rates! He was a very humble guy who wasn't really happy living in Taiwan, and kept saying how envious he was of Singaporeans (that our government treat us well). Had a conversation with him while he drew both of us on his canvas!

The last few kilos gained were from Tamsui because there were really just too many irresistible food around in that little town. I don’t know why this place isn’t featured in the Lonely Planet book but it’s really a place worth visiting!

Day 7

TGIF

Before heading to the airport, we had our final meal in Taiwan at T.G.I.F! The pricing is pretty standard like Starbucks and I blew a little more than a SG$100 there. 😦

Pricey but food was good! We were trying to eat as fast as we could because we were running late for our flight back to Singapore

It’s been 4 months and I still miss Taiwan. I will definitely be back again! 🙂

Hopefully in the near future, I’m also able to get a house there 😛

 

Read also:
Revisiting Taiwan, the Land of Smiles 2013 (PART 1)
Revisiting Taiwan, the Land of Smiles 2013 (PART 2)

6-hour Flight to Beijing

/ Fiona Seah / 2 Comments

Hello guys! Many things happened while I was on hiatus so I’m going to pen them down one-by-one slowly on this space 🙂

Two weeks back I went on a tour with CTC to Beijing which marked my first holiday trip in 2012. I know many would frown upon the words “Beijing” and “Tour” because yes, I do agree that China isn’t the most ideal place to go since we already have a taste of the people here in Singapore (if you know what I mean) and that was also my initial reaction before booking the tour. BUT my 7-day stay there proved me wrong. More on that as we go along!

So why did I choose to go on a tour instead of roaming around on my own (free and easy)? Simple. I was lazy (and busy) as hell and I’m seriously bad at planning and directions and I wouldn’t want to be lost in a foreign land because of that. On top of that reason, CTC was offering a 1-for-1 promotion at that period so I thought, why not? Bf and I paid up immediately (before that I was super reluctant because of the destination, lol) for both this Beijing trip and the upcoming Taiwan trip in July, all for less than SGD1000 per person (including all relevant taxes) for an 8-day event via Singapore Airlines. What’s more, the hotel we were/are going to stay is/will be a five-star one! What a steal right? Teehee!

Who is excited?? Me!! Finally a break from work 🙂

DEPARTING slightly after 5.30pm!

Bf and I were undoubtedly the youngest in the tour so naturally all attention was shone on us with many others (including the Singapore-based and Chinese tour guides) wondering why we chose China. Hahaha! But those who went with us were really really nice people which added on to the pleasant experience I was already having in Beijing. Absolutely not awkward with these older people at all while dining together. We talked and joked about everything! 🙂

On 5 April, Bf and I boarded an afternoon SQ flight at T3 and only touched down in Beijing after midnight so the tired us only visited our rooms at Sheraton Hotel that day. Let me first comment on my virgin flight with SQ! I can say I’m pretty lucky to have boarded the newer SQ plane as it’s less cramped with only 2 seats by the window (as compared to 3 in the older ones)! So less difficult to get to the toilet – hooray! And they have awesome collection of music on their entertainment system because they have Enya! Oh my, you don’t know how that helped to much in getting me to sleep soundly LOL. Sadly the older plane (which I took on my return flight) didn’t have her 😦

Hihi we are aliens – at Beijing Airport

As weather was pretty cold there (it was towards the end of winter at that time but still chilly), the hotel felt there was no need to switch on the air-conditioner. The room wasn’t particularly stuffy but can be a little warm at times. But opening the windows slightly could do the trick. Our hotel was smacked in the middle of nowhere with no malls nearby but thank God there was a clean & reasonably-priced (still cheaper than those in Singapore) foot reflexology parlour about 7-10 minutes walk away which we could escape to after a long day outside! And there was a Hard Rock Cafe just beside the hotel which we did not visit because we were usually bloated by the time we reached our room 😦 Next time, maybe.

I shall skip the mundane parts of the trip but honestly, what made me feel not that bad about going to China (besides the awesome offer) was the chance to climb the Great Wall of China （万里长城）! It was one of the highlights of the tour and I was definitely looking forward to it :)! I’ve heard soooo much about it during Sec 1 History lesson (Burma Railway a.k.a Death Railway as well) and it’s been etched in my mind since then. And not forgetting Forbidden City （紫禁城）which I yearned to go after countless ancient Hong Kong drama I’ve watched. It was a surreal experience and I really feel that all Chinese should go on a cultural tour to Beijing at least once in their lives!

Enough of words, let the pictures do the talking!

Only the Great Emperor has access to anything in Gold/Yellow so no one was allowed to use that colour!

Boarding the boat to view the scenery around Long Qing Xia! Too bad I was dead sleepy that day so I was dozing off most of the time on the boat 😦

At Tiananmen Square (with Mao Zedong’s huge portrait at the entrance of Forbidden City) which can occupy a million people!

Entrance of Forbidden City! All excited already!

At the exit of The Forbidden City!

Another pretty shot (not me lah) at Long Qing Xia! Blooming flowers indicating that Spring is coming!

Olympic Park (Bird Nest) exterior!

They need to space out the 2 destination names!! (And I am holding on to an elongated kite that can be bought anywhere in Beijing! Planning to fly it at Marina Barrage some day!)

Artsy Fartsy shot by Bf! 😛 (though I gave the creative direction)

Trishaw ride to Hutongs and local Siheyuan Houses

At the doorstep of a traditional Beijing home! Antique feel 🙂

Meet one of the locals’ pet dogs! I can’t remember his/her name but it’s something really cute-sounding like Ling Ling. THEY ARE MAD ADORABLEEEE and they DON’T BITE! In fact they were so friendly and welcoming 🙂

Hehee close-up of this cutie

See!! Enjoying my touch. ^^

At Ming Tombs! Despite the name, no tombs to see there except the huge one belonging to an Emperor

At Chengde Imperial Summer Resort! Nothing much though, just huge portraits of Kang Xi and his people

Temple of Heaven! As beautiful as the Forbidden City

Another picture with the flowers! Aren’t they prettyyyyyy

…Yeap, it’s a cannon.

Decided to dedicate one part of this blog entry just for The Great Wall of China to celebrate our successful climb!

It’s just the beginning!

Our target – the topmost beacon! *pants*

Steep and uneven steps! Extremely dangerous for people with wobbly legs! If you miss a step and fall, you’re probably going to spend hours limping back to the bottom!

Halfway there! See how far we have gone! Not recommended for those who are afraid of heights! But I’m so proud of Bf who made it with me even though he felt nauseated on his way up but did not surrender *woohoo*

Just and few more climbs and we are done! And look, we got ourselves some medals! But must buy lah of course.. Wow I swear the people there are super smart in milking money from tourists lol (and I wonder how they get the energy to climb up and down everyday to man the stalls, seriously)

AND WE ARE HERE ERRBARDDY!! *pops champagne* Basically no reward other than the huge sense of satisfaction for climbing to the top. Nope, not even someone who gives out balloons as a congratulatory present

But I’ve got to admit that after exploring so many historic landmarks and commercial museums I grew a little sick of it! Probably if I was some retired hag I wouldn’t mind going on a full-fledged cultural tour but nay, at my age, shopping is definitely a MUST! So we were brought to 3 major shopping destinations: Silk Market, Ya Show and Wangfujing (王府井 Beijing’s Orchard Road with established brands all over) which we spent a fortune there.

All smiles at China’s Orchard Road – Wangfujing!

RAWRRRR

Beijing Nike and their nice display!

Went home broke because of Silk Market as we were.. *ashamed* ripped off. Only found out about it when we chanced upon a similar – or can I say DUPLICATE – dress, which I bought for 430RMB at Silk Market, going at 100RMB at Ya Show BEFORE PRICE-SLASHING. And worst of all, 430RMB was the price after intense bargaining with the very-persistent shop owner who initially offered to sell it to me at 1200RMB (INSANE) and also bragged about exclusivity -_- Exclusivity mah arse!! I so wanted to leave the store as I was running out of shopping time but the woman kept stopping me and praising my body shape sky-high, saying that I’d look so awesome in her maxi dress (weakness!!). HAHA but the dress is really pretty! From 1200RMB, to 800RMB, to 500RMB, to 480RMB, we finally settled upon 430RMB (she was almost on her knees, lol) which still burned a huge hole in my pocket. With such a huge leap from the original price, who would have taught that I was still overcharged? -_-

At Silk Market, shop assistants would offer you 朋友价 (literally means Friend Price) to trick you into thinking that you’ve got a very good deal. While making our purchase, we also had friendly chats with shop assistants there and surprisingly they appeared rather envious of Singaporeans. In fact before I decided to show my amiable side, I was quite worried that we’d get hostile treatment from them in return because of how *we* Singaporeans treat their people here (e.g. despising them and trying so hard to get rid of them). So I behaved like some westernized bitch and spoke English all the way, attempting to hide my nationality.. until Bf gave up comprehending them. But despite us admitting we were from Singapore in Singlish-Mandarin (you could see their faces lit up immediately like FINALLY A MANDARIN-SPEAKING ASIAN!!), they remained hospitable towards us.

Some whom we spoke to looked pretty young and they told us how much they hated English language in their schools because they struggled a lot to understand it (they only started learning at Primary 3 or 1-2 years earlier which in my opinion is a bit too late?), but nonetheless they still TRIED to speak it because of their job nature.

The huge Apple store that is rather near to Ya Show, at Sanlitun. Was so disappointed upon realizing we got ripped off before that we roamed around the area instead of staying at Ya Show, haha!

Thank God we did – Simple yet tasty Butter crepe found at Sanlitun Village Shopping Mall!

A tip to those who have never been to Beijing before: Never go to Ya Show after Silk Market or you’d walk out of the former feeling extremely cheated, disappointed and furious!! But I’d have to warn you that Ya Show is pretty boring with limited variety. However if you look really closely you should be able to find great apparels which Silk Market may not have (and definitely way cheaper!)

Oh oh I realized I have not talked anything about my meals in Beijing!

Some weird dumpling with lotsa veggies inside

How could we miss their famous delicacy PEKING DUCK? The one that we were brought to wasn’t that great coz as we roamed the streets (鬼街) one night, we found and tasted BETTER Peking Duck (scroll down)!! And very value-for-money too! 🙂

Every other day we had zhi char for lunch and dinner. Nice but so boring! So this individual steamboat differentiated itself from the rest! Yumz!!

And the food that went with the steamboat!

Last breakfast in Beijing and decided not to have it in the hotel! Had ours in this restaurant (Jackpot) just a stone throw away from our hotel! Came in very small portion but it’s cheap too! So we ended up ordering the pork chop a-la-carte after we were done with this set meal 🙂

Took a stroll at an eatery street 15 minutes drive away (by taxi) with a few other tour mates one night..

I love the interior of the restaurant! Very authentic and ancient feel..

This, I swear, is the nicest Peking Duck tasted there. Unlike the previous one we tried, THIS had its skin and meat separated! The real deal!

Custard bun but not very rich with custard. Prefer the Singapore version with overflowing custard 🙂

Fried Oyster? Something like Orh Jian I guess..

Was craving for anything custard so we ordered this coz of its colour. But was disappointed when we found out it’s just yellow-coloured buns -_-

And I ordered century egg porridge as I wanted something hot and soupy to soothe my bloated stomach (from dinner earlier on)! It came in such a huge pot that I couldn’t finish it, so the porridge ended up being shared by everyone! Anyways it was delicious! 🙂

Absolutely value for money! There were eight of us and we only paid SG$6 each for the bill (and bear in mind I only took pictures of SOME food. There were 1 or 2 more dishes which I forgot to snap pictures of as I was happily eating, haha!!)! Dirt cheap and it’s in a RESTAURANT!! Moreover there was Peking Duck which probably costed the most among the dishes we ordered. Oh gosh because of this I’m definitely going back!!

And we also caught some amazing shows! I’m probably just like you, thinking that I’d be brought to boring Chinese opera or some plays that only the elderly would enjoy but NO!! Their performances were AMAZEBALLZXSZ! Their props were like whoa, unbelievable! Makes one wonder how they hell they achieved those effects! For example:

Dafuq?!! It’s a stage filled with WATER coming out from NOWHERE!! The audience were just as surprised and we thought we were going to die in the flood HAHA. But no the water didn’t hit us. At all. (how the hell??)

For interested parties, that was the Golden Mask Dynasty.

The final stop before we headed to the airport to catch our flight home was the renowned high-speed railway from Tianjin to Beijing! Our coach driver brought us to Tianjin earlier for some last-minute shopping (where I got my supplies of Shan Zha Pian, yumyumz) and then to save travelling time, we took the bullet train back to Beijing and met the driver there. All it took was an hour which is the time I always take to travel from Bukit Batok to Pasir Ris (like 1/30 of the distance from Tianjin to Beijing I reckon??) -_- Oh boy how I wish MRT were as fast as this. It probably won’t happen so oh wells…

Train is coming train is coming

Here it is!

Boarding pass!

Off we go!!

The interior! Nice right?

The interior of the train is pretty much like one of a plane, complete with train attendants with UNIFORMS. The passageway is just right for the merchandise/food trolleys to be pushed through. Yes, they serve titbits and beverages in there! While the train was moving we were admiring the picturesque view by the window. It felt as if my Geography textbooks had gone live as you could see rice and other plantations everywhere, lol!

The nicest grass picture taken in the fast-moving train with my slow-in-capturing-pictures camera! Turns out to be not too bad~

Back in Beijing!

Bf and I touched down in Singapore weighing 1-2kg heavier due to excessive eating in Beijing (you could see my chubbier face in most pictures anyway) and poor us had to lug our 20kg luggages + boxes of goodies back home. We let loose too much in Beijing that we ate even when our stomachs felt like they were going to explode because of the thinking that we wouldn’t be back so soon (so better gobble down as much as we could otherwise it’d be too late to regret)! So putting our newly-bought Li-Ning running shoes to good use, we ran our first rounds ever in 3-4 years and burned some calories. Whoot it felt so good sweating out those fats!!

(and then we took in a large bowl of Prawn Mee at Redhill Market later that night…)

Okay so I pretty much summarized my 8-day stay in Beijing! I don’t mind going back again if there happens to be similar promotions in the future by any tour agencies 😉 I loved what I saw in Beijing and the people there definitely conducted themselves WAY BETTER than those in Singapore! Well, except for some 北京人 who probably couldn’t get used to toilet doors so many a time I would see stuff I wouldn’t want to see -_- But having said that, though I have met nice Chinese people, I’m sorry but I’d still distance myself from the uncouth and disrespectful ones here :\

I’d probably go back to Beijing again (hopefully Forever21 and many other unopened stores would be ready by then!) but I would love to visit Shanghai before doing so!

And now that I’m done with my Beijing, I shall look forward to my Taiwan trip coming up in July!! Another good deal from CTC *hehehe*

Will be back with more updates on my Uni application (yes you people flocking in to view my post on NTU Linguistic application and interview last year, hope you guys got something out of it! :)) as well as my dearest Shih Tzu, Angel‘s 11th birthday celebration happening tomorrow!

xx