Years back, my office posse planned on embarking on our first ever short trip abroad. We went to Tapei using our U.S. visas since we could go visa-free to Taiwan with it. We applied online and after a short wait, our Taiwan visas were ready. That time, Cebu Pacific had plane tickets on sale so we took advantage of it, too.
Taipei is my type of city because of its clean surroundings. Everyone observes tidiness whether in the streets or public transports. They all adhere to the rules. Although we had this little scenario that was kind of traumatic. I remember one colleague was still finishing her takeaway coffee while waiting for the train. The guard on duty, struggling to express herself, warned my colleague not to drink while waiting on the platform. Due to the language barrier (many Taiwanese couldn’t speak English), we all thought that she could have that one last gulp and then throw it in the very visible garbage bin. But as she was about to do the bottoms-up, the lady guard waved her hand and hit my colleague’s arm that holds the coffee cup. It almost spilled. Whoah! We were shocked of course. It was a bit of a scene to a few eyewitnesses. So to avoid trouble, and because we finally got what the guard wanted to say, she threw her unfinished coffee. Sayang! Their country, their rules. No worries.
At that time, it was cold in Taipei. There were also frequent drizzles with only a bit of sunshine. Because our trip was short, we only managed to explore some parts of the city and a quick stop to see what was at the famed Xin Bei Tou hot spring. There were lots of tourists enjoying their grand spa experience near the city.
Many places in Taiwan are accessible by train. Unlike Hong Kong City, there is much more order in Taipei. There is less chaos and, as mentioned, a cleaner environment.
Like any other Asian city, Taipei is teeming with street foods which we enjoyed. Even the 7-Eleven chains sell good food on sticks at cheap prices. Almost everything in Taipei is affordable. I could not forget the Swiss brand of dark chocolate truffles I bought from 7-Eleven at a really bargain price! Buying that big box of truffles from Rustan’s would cost PhP 300 at that time. But I got it for only PhP 75 so I purchased two to bring home! If only baggage and storage were not an issue, I would have bought more!
That trip was a time to enjoy each other’s company. So we were not so particular about where we went and what we did. We just hopped on and proceeded where our feet led us. Check out the pictures for some highlights.
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