Travel/Travel Writing/Globetrotters/Taiwan
My Taiwan Hit And Miss Travel Story
My revenge travel goes on
Less than two months after my Japan trip and with backlogs of Japan travel stories, I found myself too weak to resist the call of traveling.
My Aunt wants to travel outside of the country and I can not say no.
And so, Taiwan happened.
And this is my story.
The hit-and-miss of traveling to Taiwan
1️⃣ This is not a solo travel.
My Aunt doesn’t believe in solo traveling or traveling by twos. The other ones who didn’t back-out were my cousin and her husband. Thus, we became a group of 4 adults: a 73-year-old Aunt and three 50ish companions. Four adults who need to compromise with each other’s capability and stamina.
2️⃣ My cousin took care of their flights with a different airline. And I took charge of my Aunt’s flight. (and mine)
The cheapest flight was her request. Unfortunately, the cheapest one will land in Taiwan at past midnight. The loophole: the last service of Taiwan’s buses and trains is at midnight. The options: take a taxi in going to the hotel with an expensive fare or stay at the airport until the resumption of their services which is at 5.30 am.
After calculations, it’s an expensive option. And after numerous computations and explanations, I booked our outbound flight with Airasia (no food and check-in luggage ) and inbound flight with Starlux Airlines (with food and check-in luggage). If only Starlux has a good outbound flight time, I would have booked both flights with them.
3️⃣ Booking of the hotel was on me.
I took extra caution in choosing the hotel. I didn’t want to be criticized. Most of Taiwan’s budget-friendly hotels are old, don’t have a building of their own, are situated on the top floor of a building, don’t have 24-hour reception, and have no soundproof walls.
In the end, I had chosen a new, not cheap, and strategically located hotel. Nothing to complain about except that the rooms are small.
4️⃣ Taiwan has never been on my list.
I perceive it as another Hongkong and a conglomerate of all the Chinatown that I have been to.
I tried to convince my Aunt to change it to a different country. She said Okay -Taiwan or Thailand. I preferred Taiwan.
For several days, I watched videos about Taiwan. To convince myself that it is worth going there. All I saw were street foods and a familiar neighborhood — Chinatown.
5️⃣ On my cousin’s side, she asked her daughter for guidance.
Her daughter’s friend gave her a 4-day itinerary. A step-by-step itinerary. Where to go, how to go there, what to eat, and where to eat. Half of our trip relied on the itinerary made by a 20-ish Gen Z, who has a different interest and taste buds from us old people.
I don’t blame the excitement in every word of that itinerary. It’s just that, we are a case of “been there, done that”.
6️⃣ My relationship with Google Maps was put to the test.
Yeah, the friend of my cousin’s daughter gave the direction to the places to go to but it’s not wise to put our fate and destiny into the hands of a 20-ish Gen Z. You know what I mean, right?
My travel buddies had no choice but to rely on me and my complicated relationship with Google Maps.
Many times it gave me the wrong directions. Every mistake made us go to another bus stop or another street. With the city’s humidity, it’s very tiring for my not-so-young travel buddies.
There were times I went first to where Google Maps directed and if it was correct, I told them to proceed😀😀.
7️⃣ Taiwan has many street foods.
The funny truth is, I ate only a few. I am a little picky in what I eat if peddled in a manner that they are exposed to the elements of nature.
Taiwan is known for its milk tea and I was like a killjoy who didn’t tried even one. I didn’t want to jeopardize my “lactose intolerance” thus, depriving myself of an authentic one.
I don’t have anything against Taiwanese street food, it’s just that they are mostly pork and cholesterol loaded. Whatever I ate, it has this kind of aftertaste that even though I brushed my teeth and gargled with mouthwash many times, the taste stayed.
Food for thought in choosing what to eat: don’t let your gastronomic adventure be influenced by social media influencers or food bloggers or people who have been there or by long queues or Michelin stars. Use your judgment and you will not be disappointed. But for curiosity’s sake, go. There’s no harm in trying.
8️⃣ They say that when you go to Taiwan and it doesn’t rain, you are lucky. And we were. It didn’t rain, cloudy on the first two days and sunny on the last two.
At this time of the year, the temperature rises to 30C at noon. It made me think, why is the 30C in Taiwan tolerable and the 30C in the Philippines is not?
9️⃣ If you have watched Taiwan vlogs, the places they featured are almost the same. Like Jiufen, Shifen, and Yehliu Geopark.
Joining a tour is the practical way of going there. The distance between them is from one hour to two. Commuting eats up precious hours. The downside: it is expensive and you cannot savor every place because of the limited time allotted in each place.
Tours were fully booked at that time. We did a DIY tour instead. It’s a tiring one to cover them all in one day in a DIY way. We just did our best and be contented with what we can achieve. No regrets though. We visited places at our own pace and without pressure from a tour guide who is always in a hurry.
🔟 Taiwan dollars were undersupplied in the banks at that time. Banks have a better buying rate. I bought them from money changers. The rate was more or less the same as the money changers in Taiwan.
If you are planning to go there, money changers can only be found at the airport. If you need more Taiwan dollars halfway through your trip, go to the banks. If possible use a credit card where it is accepted. The conversion rate is better. If only I knew then, I used it for all my supermarket purchases.
1️⃣1️⃣ My late father used to say, “Don’t let a man tastes the finest and the best, you’ll be teaching him to be choosy, picky, and a critic. The bad in me is like this. This does not apply only to food but to places I travel.
I would have appreciated Taiwan more if it was my first time traveling out of the country. There’s no other country to compare with. It is wrong to travel to Japan, Korea, and USA first then to Taiwan.
Taiwan caters more to Gen XYZ and not to the Baby Boomers and Millenials. That’s just my opinion. No offense meant.
1️⃣2️⃣ Like most Asian countries, Taiwan’s train system is efficient and reliable.
At the same time, it requires long walking from one train line to another and from the entrance of the train station to the platform. Some have elevators but some have only escalators and stairs.
Aside from the three of us, my Aunt invited her two high school classmates for this trip. Heaven was on our side, they backed out at the last minute. If not, as my Aunt said, they will sabotage our happiness with their complaints about these long and winding walking.
1️⃣3️⃣ I don’t want a crowd and it’s crowded everywhere.
Every tourist is in Jiufen, Shifen, Chang Kai Shek Memorial Hall, Ximending, night markets and food stores featured in social media.
1️⃣4️⃣ In terms of tourism and being migrant workers, I guess my countrymen have invaded Taiwan. The only languages I heard in every place we went were Mandarin Chinese and Filipino.
There is a need to bring along some Mandarin phrases along. The communication gap is real. Having a Google Translate App on the phone is very helpful. Most menus in restaurants and night markets are in Chinese characters.
Final Thought
However, if you will ask me if I would like to visit Taiwan again, it’s a yes.
Not Taipei, the capital city, but the other cities and municipalities like Taichung, and Kaoshiung. Not when the weather is humid, wintertime is a good time.
As a solo traveler. I guess Dora the Explorer in me was not designed for group traveling. I want to visit museums, themed cafes and less crowded places.
I want to place Taiwan on the same level as the other countries.
