Finally, the last day of my Taiwan trip. Plus a little of the following day of the day I boarded on the plane actually. So, since it’s the last day, I’d dedicated it specially for “ching-chai-wanna-go-where-then-go-where, wanna-eat-what-then-eat-what, no schedule, no plan, go with the flow”.
A bit sick of typical Taiwanese breakfast and so we picked the good ol’ McD.
On our way there, passed by the police station and there was a big crowd.
Protesting. About foreign laborers overstaying and basic salary if I’m not wrong.
Breakfast!
Mc Muffin with egg
Mc Bacon eh this one?
Passed by 50嵐 and Bobby wanted to give it a try.
If you’d read Food-Hungry’s post about ordering pearl milk tea there, you should know what am I going to say next. I like to see Bobby’s clueless and helpless face when people talk to him in Chinese and he has no idea what the person is talking about, then turn his head and look at me, hoping some rescue from me. Hahhahaaa.
In short, to order a cup of pearl milk tea, you gotta be really really specific in your order, like..
Ice cubes: Big or Small
Sugar level: Full, 70%, Half, 30% or none.
Pearls: Big or Small
Cup: M or L
Ordering in Brunei is just so much easier, people only ask.. “Mau chili?”, the rest is all standardized. I guess we’re all just used to not having a choice. And when given, we get all puzzled.
The reason why we continued lepak at that area was because we’re waiting for the shoe cobbler, whom we’d been trying to find the previous day but in vain. Rupanya, he only starts working at 10am.
Sifu working, shhhhh, DND.
Instead of spending another thousand of Taiwan dollars on a new luggage, we only paid him NT150 to fix it! He stitched the bag back, used some unknown black thick glue and voilà! Miracle~
It was hard work and I was thinking did he charge a little too cheap for the repair? Then 48 and I went calculating how much he can earn a day and man… better than those teens working in a fast food restaurant I tell you. His business sibeh good okay! We saw like 2 plastic bags of shoes repaired waiting for collection and every 3 minutes, there will be people passed by and asking for his service. A man even asked if he can repair a broken zip of a luggage after seeing him fixing my mom’s.
Put the luggage back to our room and next, Ximending!
Ximending has been called the "Harajuku of Taipei" and the "Shibuya of Taipei". Ximending is the source of Taiwan's fashion, subculture, and Japanese culture. Went there look-see-look-see. Well, there was a big fat reason why it’s a must-visit place though. You’ll know later.
Plastic surgery clinic everywhere. Did you see that before and after photo???
Here here, an enlarged version.
What do you think?
Walked walked walked.. then went in don’t know what building and Bobby found a perfect anniversary gift for me from Mia.
Something like this, but if you’re in my fb, you should have seen mine.
Bumped into Cookie Monster, Thanis.
Seriously, how small can Ximending be? I was there for 7 days already and in Ximending, we (me, mom, Bobby and 48) all met someone we know from Brunei/Miri!
All near Ah Zhong Mee Sua.
Yeap, that’s the big fat reason why I must must must must must go there!
OMG! It was so delicious can! The crowd just kept coming and go, people just stood there and indulged to that little bowl of goodness by the street.
Comes in 2 prices, NT45 (smaller bowl, topped with parsley) and NT60 (bigger bowl, topped with chives).
There, bumped into a bunch of Seria aunties (the famous Chung-lao-shi) and they all know 48. Hahahhhaaa. Ah-Fu’s daughter, what you doing in Taiwan ah?
And Bobby bumped into his ex-uni mates. Small world huh.
Nom nom nom nom!
See, everyone was just eating casually by the road side. If you’re lucky, you might get a chair to sit. After eating, just throw the bowls, spoons and tissues into their respective bins.
After few rounds of shopping in Ximending, next… SOGO. Went to B2 food court to grab a bite again.
A call-waiting buzzer given to us and when it vibrates, that means your food is ready for collection.
Another famous snack of Taiwan, Tian-bu-la, which can be directly translate into English as “Sweet, not spicy”, or more widely known as “Taiwanese tempura”.
It’s like, boiled fried-food (fish cakes, radish, fish balls, and so on) topped with a sweet sauce.
My set .. umm.. brunch.
Barely finished half of those because it’s so starchy!
The soupy Ding-Bian-Zhuo, another tian-bu-la and the super starchy ba-wan (meat ball). 
My mom’s vegetarian kimchi pot was pretty good though.
Pet friendly mall I guess. How often you see a dog in a food court I ask you.
During my stay in Taiwan, I’d not seen a single ugly kurap stray dog.
Mostly cute, fluffy, tame and trained puppies!
My best friend since 1995, who has not emailed me, msn or fb-chat/message me for a really long time!!
Oi! lei chou meh mmm choi ngo? - cantonese
Ngi cho makai mau lau ngai kong fa? – hakka
lu zho hami boh kah wa kong weh? – hokkian
ni zho miang mo kin ngui pang kong? – foochow
Okay, it all means the same anyway… which, I just realized that girl won’t understand hokkian and foochow. Hhahahhahaa.
Starbucks, which both my mom and Bobby (the coffee addicts) need. Basically, I gave my mom a sip and she downed it all and baru realized it was Bobby’s.
Oh ya, I just remember something funny. Can’t remember why and when, Bobby was helping me to ask from some sugar from a counter. And the waitress gave him long string of choice again.
“You want white sugar, brown sugar, fruit sugar or liquid sugar?”,
when all he asked was.. “Wo yao tang” (I want sugar)
This is Sogo, nothing we can afford inside.
Went to Breeze and Bobby was super fascinated by this poster.
*cough* read this bi.
Too tired to walk anymore and had a nice tea break in Kinokuniya.
My wafer! This is really nice.
48’s macha ice cream and condiments.
Remember me saying that the building I stayed is a little dodgy? This is how it looks like from the main entrance.
With a fortune teller who charges NT100 for a question, snooker place, massage parlor in the basement and 1st floor. But, there’s a whole lot of minsu in that building. I wouldn’t mind staying there again because the location is simply the best!
Then at night, our last dinner in Taiwan.. we went for something more luxurious.
You see the size of the oyster????
I asked the chef which of the sushi are vegetarian one and she pointed out a few for me, and later made a vegetarian handroll without me asking!
Seriously, there’s just nothing to complain when it comes to the service provided in Taiwan.
Bobby’s first round, got 2 plates there you noticed?
Mine and 48’s first round. Just so many food, so many choices!
Big kan? But after a bite, 48 gave up.
My second round. I love those deep fried have-no-idea-what-balls!
Sashimis! All you can eat!
Just go to the counter, choose your fish and the chef will slice it for you.
The bar counter.
Again, all you can drink!
Not just bandung, orange syrup mixed with plenty of ice and plain water.
Can you see that menu?! I was ecstatic with all those choices!
For alcoholic beverages, there’s:
1) Taiwan beer
2) Plum Honey wine
3) White wine
4) Red wine
Coffee:
1) Italian Coffee
2) Latte
3) American Coffee
4) Cappucino
Ice Cream:
1) Red bean and vanilla
2) Strawberry
3) Macha with red bean
Fruit juice:
1) Watermelon
2) Cranberries
3) Orange
Others:
1) Calpis
2) Coke
3) Sprite
4) Apple Cidar
5) Red tea
6) Milk tea
Steady or not? A lot leh!!!
And when I was admiring the bar counter thinking what should I order, the female chef tapped my shoulder from behind and I was shocked. I quickly turned my head and asked, “Err.. I cannot take picture here is it?”
She smiled and said, “Of course you can. Just that I’m worried that your mom will have nothing much to eat and still get hungry, so I made some more vegetarian sushi for her. Enjoy your meal here.”
So nice kan? She did it on her own without me asking.
This baru is called good customer service mah!
My mom’s special sushi.
That’s the lady chef who made those lovely sushi, the one on the right.
And that’s the made-to-order counter. Just go there and order any handroll sushi you want.
Fruits and chocolate fountain.
Grill and deep fry food.
Soups. Miso soup, herbal soup, chicken soup and I can’t remember what else.
Chawan mushi and Dobin Mushi on hot steamy tray.
Passion fruit, star fruit, dragon fruit, grapes and a whole lot more of other stuffs.
Chocolate fountain with marshmellows and guava slices.
Desserts!
More cakes, pudding and mousse!
Even macarons!
Wen and I sharing this plate of goodies.
Ice cream, to end the perfect meal.
So yeah, if you’re going to Taipei, give Shin Yeh a try. How much is the buffet? Have a wild guess.
Good service, good food, no “wastage charges”, nice environment… And it’s cheaper than Empire’s seafood buffet (and way better too).
| Meal | Time | Monday to | Friday | Saturday to | Sunday |
| Lunch | 1130 - 1400 | NT620 (Adult) | NT250 (Kid) | NT750 (Adult) | NT330 (Kid) |
| Brunch | 1430 - 1630 | NT460 (Adult) | NT200 (Kid) | NT460 (Adult) | NT200 (Kid) |
| Dinner | 1730 - 2200 | NT750 (Adult) | NT330 (Kid) | NT750 (Adult) | NT330 (Kid) |
Price inclusive of service charges.
The receipts I kept during the trip.
Don’t throw it away yet! It’s LOTTERY! Yes, no kidding! LOTTERY!
Read this if you don’t believe me.
If you don’t want them, donate them to those charity. The boxes are everywhere in MRT stations.
And, my cute Doraemon clock pen from 7-11. The one you have to collect stickers and exchange.
Gonna use them in the cinema later. Show off~ Hahahaha
Took a bus to Taoyuan airport. The cheapest mode of transportation. Available every 15mins from 5am in the morning. Can you spell C.O.N.V.E.N.I.E.N.C.E? And the bus terminal is just right next to the Taipei Main station.
Goodbye Taiwan.
Hello crowded airport with no proper signage and instructions.
Wah.. look so thin eh Bobby here. 
Our last meal in Taiwan.
The famous Hello Kitty gift shop.
My birthday gift from Bobby, bought last minute when we’re about to board.
I don’t know why the Chinese name of the company is “Phoenix” but in English, it becomes Pinoy.
All the ojipalas I bought…
Shoes and apparels
Someone going to Taiwan or Singapore soon? Get me these!
Phew… that’s all folks. All the tiny details of my trip blogged, for the sake of my own memories.
Related Post:
Day 6 (12.09.2010) : Jinguashi, Jiufen & more of Taipei
Day 5: Longshan Temple, CKS Memorial Hall, Jian-Guo Weekend Flower Market, Danshui, WuFenPu, RaoHe Night Market
Day 4: Taiwan Storyland, NPM and Hello Hebe
Day 3: Taipei 101, Eslite, Shihlin Night Market (part 2)
Day 3: Alishan sunrise (Part 1)
Day 2 : Up up and away to Alishan
Day 1 : Kao Hsiung
How much to travel to Taiwan?
My Taiwan Itineraries
3 comments:
The services in Taiwan seriously too good liao compared to Brunei's standards ... :(
And that sushi restaurant looks delicious! I should had visited that when I was in Taipei .. where's the location again - next time I go taiwan lagi will visit~
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