Roumei Boutique Beauty Hotel, Taipei

The Room:

True to it's name, Beauty Hotel Taipei is beautiful.  Located in Jhongshan District, the hotel is few minutes walk from the metro, few fastfood places and banks.  Situated in the financial and commercial district of Taipei, you won't get much of a view but you do get an amazing room, or at least we did.

The Toilet:

It was what I was expecting and more.  Almost as big as the size of the room, it is equipped with jacuzzi which changes light colour depending on the button that you hit, strong shower and electronic toilet bowl you almost don't have to wipe your own ass.  LOL!

The Jacuzzi.  You can bathe and do number 2 whilst watching the telly!  :)

Both the room and the toilet are always neat and tidy during our 7 days stay.  The food is nothing special, at least for me.  I realised that Taiwan food is different from the Chinese food that I'm used to having.  The staffs are very friendly and helpful.  You can ask them anything.  Sometimes though, you will encounter a little language barrier.  But I think that's normal to a non-english speaking country.  Will I recommend this hotel?  Yes!!!

Ocean Park, Hong Kong

I wasn't able to do everything that I wanted to do during my first visit to HK so I asked dear boyfriend if I can do 2 things, first, Ocean Park and second, to visit Lantau Island.  He said "Let's get it done and over with" so we can relax on our remaining days together.  Going to Ocean Park is easy.  There is a direct bus service from Admiralty to Ocean Park where the ticket can also be purchased.  Dear boyfriend's first reaction was, "It is expensive!".  I retaliated with, "Disneyland is more expensive".  I guess he thinks that Ocean Park is just a themed park.  He was later surprised that the park have aviary, fishes and all things geeky for him.  :P

Hong Kong Ocean Park is good value for money.  It's aviary, fish aquariums,zoo and themed park rolled into one.  One day isn't enough to enjoy the whole park.  A definite must go for the whole family.

To know more about Hong Kong Ocean Park, click here - http://www.oceanpark.com.hk/html/en/home/

Lantau Island, Hong Kong

My brother has just been to Hong Kong.  When I went there, I didn't realised that I've experienced one of the longest cable car ride available.  According to the geek engineer brother of mine, it is 2.7km long.  No wonder it felt looooong to me. :P

Luke kept on telling me about his "old" Lantau Island experience.  I was expecting ruins but I saw everything modern.  It felt like they made Lantau for tourism.  Well, it's supposed to be a tourist spot but it doesn't feel authentic to me.  When I visited, they are still constructing a village.  Although I was a bit disappointed, I did like the view from the Buddha and the challenge of going up on the 100+ steps.  Lantau is a breathe of fresh air from the usual shopping centres and markets of Hong Kong.

There are 3 things to do in Lantau Island:

1.  Eat.  Don't worry about restaurants.  There is no way that you won't be able to find restaurants.

2.  Shop.  There are lots of souvenir shops after the restaurants.  Everything is stragetically placed. 

3.  Explore.  Walk up the steps towards the Giant Buddha and take photo of the small village in Lantau Island.

To know more about Lantau, click on link- http://www.np360.com.hk/html/eng/lantau/lantau.html#back

Yung Kee Restaurant

Foreigners are funny.  When they travel, they buy a book for that particular place.  I know cause I'm dating one.  I've been to Europe without buying a single book.  I just research and write down information.  

Luke and I chance upon a Michelin starred restaurant in HongKong.  As we both haven't been, we decided to go.  According to his travel book, they serve dumplings from 2PM.  Perfect as we had heavy breakfast.

The restaurant was packed but since they own the whole building, there were no shortage of tables, I assume.  We were seated on the 4th floor, the VIP Section.  I still don't know the reason why they took us there.  All I know is that, we were lucky to get a table.  :)

 Forcing the tripe on my mouth.  I was feeling adventurous.  I thought Luke will help me finish but I was wrong.  They were thick slices of tripe.  

 Luke eating his century egg.

 I felt like I'm in a mania style setting.  I can hear people playing mah-jong on the adjacent room.  

I hate century eggs.  The combination of slime and moss kills me.  I felt like a contender on fear factor.

Photo:  http://www.yungkee.com.hk

Nearest MTR:  Pedder Street

To know more visit their website - http://www.yungkee.com.hk

Taipei Day Trip

Things that we did in one afternoon in Taipei.  I am a filo so I like to cover as much places as possible.  :P

1.  Longshan Temple - one of the oldest temple in Taiwan.

Train:  Wanhua Station

2.  Red House at Ximen
Train:  Ximen Station

3.  CKS (Chiang Kai-Shek)  Memorial - one of the best tourist spot in Taipei.
Train:  CKS Memorial Station

 The place was massive.  They've got theatre, big gardens and cafe inside.  You can do hiking too.  We actually did that for a bit which we both regret.  We were saying I hate you throughout the hike.  We were very very sweaty and tired.  To be honest,NOTHING interesting will be seen there.  We went for ice cream before going to the night market.  I know, another night market.

4.  Shilin Presidential Residence


 The place was massive.  They've got theatre, big gardens and cafe inside.  You can do hiking too.  We actually did that for a bit which we both regret.  We were saying I hate you throughout the hike.  We were very very sweaty and tired.  To be honest,NOTHING interesting will be seen there.  We went for ice cream before going to the night market.  I know, another night market.

To plan your trip better, please visit this website - http://eng.taiwan.net.tw/

Modern Toilet Restaurant, Taiwan

 Luke broke the toilet seat and they laughed at him.  Embarrassed, he gave out a big tip.

I like themed restaurants. I especially like it when it's an odd combination.  Imagine toilet and food.  Growing up, I was only taught to eat in the table.  Eating in front of the TV is a big no-no.  I wonder what will my granny say if I tell her that I ate in the toilet.  Hmmmm.

We had difficulty finding the Modern Toilet Restaurant despite writing all the details down. I just remember getting off from the Ximen Station and passing the high street, left to the tattoo parlours and walking straight til I see the parking space.  On your right, the sign Modern Toilet Restaurant will welcome you.

For more information about Modern Toilet Restaurant, click here - http://www.moderntoilet.com.tw/en/store.asp

Photo:  moderntoilet.com

Cycling at Danshui, Taiwan

I cycle whenever I can.  In Jan 2010, Luke and I cycled through Bangkok and Ayutthaya in Thailand.  In 2009, I cycled in Amsterdam.  I really enjoyed cycling and whenever the opportunity arise, I like to travel by bike.

We got off at the Danshui Station which is the last stop on the Red Metro Line.  We don't know where to go to rent bikes then so we asked the Info Desk at the station.  Good thing that he can speak English and there is a bike rental 5 minutes away from the station.  To be honest, I just do my research but I don't do enough.  Good thing I am lucky with life.  LOL!  

We rented our bike for 2 hours for 150NTD each.  BTW, if you want to rent bikes, you should bring a proper ID with you as it is a must.  For 2 hours, we cycled for 12 KM.  I think that's a good achievement.  It was fun cycling from Danshui to Taipei but from Taipei to Danshui is a bit of hell.  We were both hot(we started to cycle at 1PM) and thirsty.  The view gets uglier and uglier the nearer you get to Danshui Station too.  I am just being honest here.

If you are interested to do your own cycling tour, this website may be of help - http://www.taipeitravel.net/frontsite/en/sceneryEnListAction.do?method=doFindAll&menuId=1030501&typeId=8

There are lots of options to choose from.

Photos from our 2 hour cycling tour:

Lengshuikeng Naked Hot Spring, Taiwan

One of the must-do in Taiwan is to go to the indoor hot springs. The problem is, which hot spring to go to?  I wanted an authentic local feel so I chose Lengshuikeng.  The hot spring is in the middle of the mountain surrounded by lush green trees and plants.  The road to Lengshuikeng is breath-taking.  Luke and I enjoyed it so much.

Thing to do before going to the hot spring:

1.  Shower.  Shower.  Shower.  They will know if you haven't showered yet.  I thought I can fool them but they asked me to wash myself first as I might contaminate the water.  True story.

2.  Bring your own towel, shampoo and soap.  

3.  Wash your feet before going to the spring.

4.  Don't be self-conscious.  Everyone is naked in the hot spring.  You will see everyone with different shapes and sizes.

A little reminder, you are not allowed to go if you are on your period.  Water is sacred to them.  Menstruation  is contamination.

If you are planning to go to Lengshuikeng, make sure you leave your accommodation early.  There is a big chance that you might get lost as the bus system is a bit tricky.  Ask your concierge to write in chinese characters too.  Plus better ask the visitor centre how to get there.  I think we asked in Jintian Visitor Centre for help.  

Read my blog entry here as this might help you a bit - http://missailema.blogspot.com/2010/08/day-5-lengshuikeng-hot-springs.html