2023.12.07-10 - Taipei Day 3
Saturday, 9 December 2023 21:55![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
elusivekSo with Day 3, I'm starting to look to returning back home already. Short holidays are so exciting before it starts but then you get sad very soon too haha.
The day starting with me making my way to Fu Hang Soy Milk 阜杭豆漿 for breakfast, but then when I saw the queue go around the block, I decided to cut my losses and crossed to the opposite Starbucks. After a short status update on Facebook, my friends tell me the queue goes very fast, so I still have a chance tomorrow to check that out.
Wearing my new glasses already!
I again braved the public bus system. It got me to thinking why I'm always so averse to taking public busses when on holiday. I guess the way my mind somehow sees it is, with a train or tram, there are tracks, so the train will only go along that route. Whereas a bus, the driver can drive the bus anywhere.
My first stop of the day was Museum of World Religions. When I was searching for something different to do, this came up, and I thoroughly enjoyed the visit. Well, very first impressions of the exhibits, I thought it was just a very "surface job" of putting some basic information off of Wiki and then putting together a collection of artifacts of that religion as display. But. That was because those were the 2 religions I knew a bit more of, Christianity and Judaism, and a bit of Ancient Egypt. But then for the other religions that I didn't know anything about, it got more informative, and I even learnt some new tidbits.
Some nifty installations too
They did a floor diagram thing.
So on Buddhaism, it said that "reincarnation" is like just a passage of life. The true target of Buddhaism is not reincarnate. It sounded funny to me because in many Cantonese way of expression, "reincarnate as something better" is the "game". So. It sort of made me think. To want to reincarnate as something better means you still have a want. To be able to achieve "not to reincarnate" would mean you are happy enough with life and there is nothing more for you to chase after.
One of the weird parts was the Mayan religion. Why are there crosses and Mary? There was no explanation on the information card there. So I'm stumped. Best guess is they were putting together how the Mayan religion survived to the current day, so it's somewhat incorporated some other religions into it?
Another part of the exhibitions that I thought was pretty good effort was putting together artifacts of different stages of life in the different religions. So when it's a new-born, there's a set of clothes or things the religions do, growing up, adulthood, marriage, sickness, death. The only weird thing was for marriage they only had an Indian dress (sarong?)
Some nice patterns.
Another part of the museum was some exhibit of oceans and nature and stuff. Here there are some swings. The waves are moving images, and there's this constant sound of waves being played.
I did sit on a swing and let it slowly sway and I'd say it was pretty cool.
I am part of the ocean. But the cool thing here is that the lights have a sequence of dimming/turning stronger and looking at the infinity mirror made it look like moving waves too!
The last part is like those Japanese temples "wishing trees". Write whatever and then stick on these paper rocks.
I braved the bus system again, but it was packed full. So I deviated from the suggested route, and got off the bus when it stopped at some underground station, and I changed my mode of transport. This Japanese place is well known for the thick cut sashimi. It wasn't bad, but I think I prefer a thin cut sashimi. Moreover, I dropped my power bank here and when I tried to get off my seat to pick it up (the staff did see but did not help me) and because of the legs of the chairs are weird (they're curved outwards or something) so I actually tripped and hit my left shoulder on a pillar. I seem to be OK now but I suspect tomorrow I'll be sore.
Oh, the next place is super recommended! Miniatures Museum of Taiwan. I'll admit the very first part of the exhibits was a bit creepy (dolls, creepy looking dolls), but once it got to the models and miniature replica of stuff, it was an amazing visit!
Admit, these are pretty creepy.
But then these others are amazing!
Christine (Phantom of the Opera) and Dinosaur Wonderland hahaha
Some random bookshop that was all frenchi-frenchie
My favorite tea-house in Taiwan: smith&hsu. There used to be so many branches, now there's just this one. I tried a seasonal scone - Cinnamon flavored and it was pretty good.
I paced myself for a bit. I did one last shopping and then returned to the hotel for a bit of a rest, then later at night I went to Liaoning Night Market, and immediately regretted it. Because.
The PEOPLE! It was impossible to walk through. First I got a sweet potato balls snack thing. Was good but not worth it to be open-aired sardines. Then in some stall or another, I saw there was a queue, so it must be good, so I queued for the scallion pancake. I requested the extra option of salted egg sauce. I didn't feel like standing around these people to eat, so I made my way back (after diligently walking down and back up the row of stalls. Yes. The Night Market Experience. Done). Passed by a juice shop and got a cup of watermelon juice.
I returned to my hostel, but since these scallion pancakes are usually very oily, and the added salty egg sauce must be double so, i did not want to eat in my room, so I went to the common room to eat it and type this up... when... when... whennnnnnnn..... THE BEST SURPRISE HAPPENED!
PUPPIES!!!!!!!!! The real Bosses of the place, I suppose LOL. Four Jack Russels and one Shiba Inu. The Shiba Inu, as Shibas go, was aloof. Oh but the Jacks were friendly. I couldn't help myself. I saw abandoned my unlocked iPad and phone and went to sit on the ground and frolicked with the Jacks LOL. I am so happy I went to the horrible night market. If not, I'd just stay holed in my room and not meet these beauties!
The day starting with me making my way to Fu Hang Soy Milk 阜杭豆漿 for breakfast, but then when I saw the queue go around the block, I decided to cut my losses and crossed to the opposite Starbucks. After a short status update on Facebook, my friends tell me the queue goes very fast, so I still have a chance tomorrow to check that out.
Wearing my new glasses already!
I again braved the public bus system. It got me to thinking why I'm always so averse to taking public busses when on holiday. I guess the way my mind somehow sees it is, with a train or tram, there are tracks, so the train will only go along that route. Whereas a bus, the driver can drive the bus anywhere.
My first stop of the day was Museum of World Religions. When I was searching for something different to do, this came up, and I thoroughly enjoyed the visit. Well, very first impressions of the exhibits, I thought it was just a very "surface job" of putting some basic information off of Wiki and then putting together a collection of artifacts of that religion as display. But. That was because those were the 2 religions I knew a bit more of, Christianity and Judaism, and a bit of Ancient Egypt. But then for the other religions that I didn't know anything about, it got more informative, and I even learnt some new tidbits.
Some nifty installations too
They did a floor diagram thing.
So on Buddhaism, it said that "reincarnation" is like just a passage of life. The true target of Buddhaism is not reincarnate. It sounded funny to me because in many Cantonese way of expression, "reincarnate as something better" is the "game". So. It sort of made me think. To want to reincarnate as something better means you still have a want. To be able to achieve "not to reincarnate" would mean you are happy enough with life and there is nothing more for you to chase after.
One of the weird parts was the Mayan religion. Why are there crosses and Mary? There was no explanation on the information card there. So I'm stumped. Best guess is they were putting together how the Mayan religion survived to the current day, so it's somewhat incorporated some other religions into it?
Another part of the exhibitions that I thought was pretty good effort was putting together artifacts of different stages of life in the different religions. So when it's a new-born, there's a set of clothes or things the religions do, growing up, adulthood, marriage, sickness, death. The only weird thing was for marriage they only had an Indian dress (sarong?)
Some nice patterns.
Another part of the museum was some exhibit of oceans and nature and stuff. Here there are some swings. The waves are moving images, and there's this constant sound of waves being played.
I did sit on a swing and let it slowly sway and I'd say it was pretty cool.
I am part of the ocean. But the cool thing here is that the lights have a sequence of dimming/turning stronger and looking at the infinity mirror made it look like moving waves too!
The last part is like those Japanese temples "wishing trees". Write whatever and then stick on these paper rocks.
I braved the bus system again, but it was packed full. So I deviated from the suggested route, and got off the bus when it stopped at some underground station, and I changed my mode of transport. This Japanese place is well known for the thick cut sashimi. It wasn't bad, but I think I prefer a thin cut sashimi. Moreover, I dropped my power bank here and when I tried to get off my seat to pick it up (the staff did see but did not help me) and because of the legs of the chairs are weird (they're curved outwards or something) so I actually tripped and hit my left shoulder on a pillar. I seem to be OK now but I suspect tomorrow I'll be sore.
Oh, the next place is super recommended! Miniatures Museum of Taiwan. I'll admit the very first part of the exhibits was a bit creepy (dolls, creepy looking dolls), but once it got to the models and miniature replica of stuff, it was an amazing visit!
Admit, these are pretty creepy.
But then these others are amazing!
Christine (Phantom of the Opera) and Dinosaur Wonderland hahaha
Some random bookshop that was all frenchi-frenchie
My favorite tea-house in Taiwan: smith&hsu. There used to be so many branches, now there's just this one. I tried a seasonal scone - Cinnamon flavored and it was pretty good.
I paced myself for a bit. I did one last shopping and then returned to the hotel for a bit of a rest, then later at night I went to Liaoning Night Market, and immediately regretted it. Because.
The PEOPLE! It was impossible to walk through. First I got a sweet potato balls snack thing. Was good but not worth it to be open-aired sardines. Then in some stall or another, I saw there was a queue, so it must be good, so I queued for the scallion pancake. I requested the extra option of salted egg sauce. I didn't feel like standing around these people to eat, so I made my way back (after diligently walking down and back up the row of stalls. Yes. The Night Market Experience. Done). Passed by a juice shop and got a cup of watermelon juice.
I returned to my hostel, but since these scallion pancakes are usually very oily, and the added salty egg sauce must be double so, i did not want to eat in my room, so I went to the common room to eat it and type this up... when... when... whennnnnnnn..... THE BEST SURPRISE HAPPENED!
PUPPIES!!!!!!!!! The real Bosses of the place, I suppose LOL. Four Jack Russels and one Shiba Inu. The Shiba Inu, as Shibas go, was aloof. Oh but the Jacks were friendly. I couldn't help myself. I saw abandoned my unlocked iPad and phone and went to sit on the ground and frolicked with the Jacks LOL. I am so happy I went to the horrible night market. If not, I'd just stay holed in my room and not meet these beauties!
