Today was colder than yesterday. It was 15 dec C when we walked from Taipei Railway Station back to the hotel at about 10 pm just now.
This morning, my cousin came up to the dining hall to look for me when I was having breakfast. She came with her son to fetch me at the hotel. The son has grown a lot, and I couldn’t recognize him. Needless to say, he couldn’t recognize me either. He dropped us at their place in Neihu. The house is nice, on the 1st level, with a basement. They have 3 rooms, and my cousin invited me to stay with them the next time I visit Taipei. She brought me for buffet lunch at a restaurant in a building called In Base. We took a bus and walked to the restaurant. There was a crowd who made reservations, and they were waiting to be seated, when we arrived. The restaurant had a nice ambience, and the food was all very fresh. I enjoyed the lunch. It coast about 715 NT dollars per person. After the lunch, my cousin sent me to the nearest MRT station in a taxi. We parted at the station, and I took the train to meet the rest at Danshui.
I had to change train twice, once to get to Taipei Railway Station, and another time to get to Danshui. I took the wrong train, as the trains end up in either Danshui or another place. I got off at Guting and waited for the next right train that took me to Danshui.
We walked around the Fishermen’s Wharf at Danshui. Nice place. There was a large crowd there. There was a cold wind blowing, and made it very very cold. We sampled free food, and bought some snacks to bring back to Singapore.
From Danshui, we took the MRT to Taipei Railway Station, and changed to the Bannan Line to get to Ximen, where Ximen Ding (Ximen Pedestrian Mall) was. I was immediately transported back to Shinjuku in Tokyo when I got out of the underground station. So many young people, and so crowded. We walked around, bought snacks, and stopped at a sweets shop to eat a fruit platter that cost more than 250 NT dollars (more than S$10), but it was nice and refreshing. Before we headed back to the hotel, we had the Ah Chung Mian Xian. There was a long queue. The customers had to stand to eat – no place to sit and eat. Surprisingly, I enjoyed the noodles. After that, we took the MRT back to Taipei Railway Station and walked back to the hotel.
I’m almost done packing. Just some items to put together tomorrow morning. Then it’s home sweet home.
I enjoyed the holidays. Like I said, Taipei reminds me of Tokyo very much, and I like the place. You can get good food easily in many places at most times of the day. The variety is astounding. Come to think of it, I haven’t been taking proper meals the last one week. Just been snacking and eating at odd hours. Also didn’t drink enough water too.
Will I come back again? I think so.
Thank God for the holiday, and for taking care of us when during the flight here, and when we moved around in Taiwan. I hope you enjoyed the pictures too.
Cousin’s House and Lunch
Danshui Fishermen’s Wharf
Danshui Old Street
Ximen Ding
