Nice? My lodgings at Taipei - Sweet Potato Guest House. Near 士林夜市Shihlin Night Market. Photos deceive ya? but if you are not fussy, it's not too bad, cheap and ok and they only accept girls! (unless you come as a couple or family) Jill (the owner) is a VERY nice girl! and yes, I forgot to take pics with her.... But if u r looking for more convenience, look for places nearer the Taipei Main Station - at least you don't really have to travel so much... (obviously pay a little more)
*Tip*: When looking for accommodation on websites- pls don't take pictures online as 100% similar... get it?
ok, onwards to the day itself - which surprisingly, I remember what I did!
It was a cloudy, rainy day(drizzly la), was having second thoughts whether I should go to the Flora Expo ...since I was out really early, I thought I go visit somewhere nearby...
剑潭青年活动中心。
Nothing special about this place right? 17 years and a bit ago, this was where I lived for a month. For some Chinese Immersion program which obviously didn't exactly work. haha. I had trouble expressing myself ok! It was so tempting to mix in a bit of English whenever I have a conversation (not that I had a lot of conversations)
Anyway, back to this place. Almost the same BUT there are now A LOT of cars and activity! (and I think a new building) Last time was like a ghost town. From here, we have a great view of the 圆山大饭店。 This hotel is like the grandest hotel in Taipei at least...
My pictures don't do justice..but it's actually on top of a hill quite far away from where I was la...
So, after walking around, I walked back to 剑潭Jiantan MRT station where I took a free shuttle bus opposite the MRT station, in front of the Shihlin temporary food court (doesn't look very temporary to me) - they are very frequent = I missed like 4 buses while waiting at the traffic junction to cross the road.. Alternatively, you can take the MRT and pay, to 圆山Yuanshan MRT station. The expo is just right in front, you cannot miss it.Entrance fees - NT300- abt SGD 13
There are many ways of getting there - I heard u can go via the Keelung river as well - check the website for that. Expo ends in April!!
I'm thankful that I decided to go anyway, because any later I would have to do some squeezing with the many tourists and Taiwanese from different parts of the island as reported on TV.
Lots of flowery pics ahead!
It was a HUGE place, and erm I didn't finish it all- legs were threatening to break and the constant drizzle didn't really help, and of course, the crowd became worse as the day progressed.
Queue was to somewhere I didn't visit. Too long la.
I like tulips the most!! :)
There were a lot of exhibitions and what nots - I queued up for one - which took maybe 45 minutes....
It's supposed to be a building made up of plastic bottles and it's the only exhibit that is sponsored by some company. That's why it's called Ecopark. Nothing fantastic - more like a go green thing.
They had another area where various countries will show off their '作品‘(can't find english word for that)..and I cannot find Singapore! Maybe because I was sleepy and tired. They said it was terrible anyway so I don't think I missed much.
Clockwise from the left: Philippines, Spain I think, Hongkong and somewhere I forgot..:P
It started to rain. So food time.
-not Tempura! It's like fish cake, with radish... and some sort of sweet bean sauce over. sedap! esp when it's rainy.
Ok, I lied. I can't remember what i did after the flora expo. I think I went to Taipei Main Station.
That place is like a city below a city! MRT, railway train and High Speed Railway ALL THERE! and at least 3 underground malls. (中山地下街，站前地下街，台北地下街 and another one that wasn't open...) It took me a long long time to figure out where I was going man. The picture above is just the railway station. Oh there's a bus terminal as well- that's in a new centre called Q something. They are all linked.
If you get lost, just ask, most Taiwanese are very friendly, they are willing to answer your questions -although they speak a bit too fast..sometimes. :)
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