Travel 101 to Taipei 101

Such a serene scenery at Taipei Botanical Park

A glimpse of history at Taiwan History at Chang Kai Shek and Sun Yat Sen Memorial Hall





One on One with the Tallest One - Taipei 101

Though we weren't able to start early, we still tried to make the most out of the day by trying to visit as much sites as possible and with more adept understanding of the Taipei MRT System, we travel from place to place until night fall...

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First stop was the Taipei Botanical Park, which is enveloped in a 9 hectare area. The picturesque view across the pond and the different flowers, plants, lakes and animals in the park made us more interested in the scenery than the information about the different plant species. The best part about the place is the admission is free and that the opportunity of being one with nature is such a pleasant reward at no cost.

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Next, we proceeded to the nearby Chiang Kai Shek Memorial Hall, which is both large and has lots of wonderful sites as well. Chiang Kai Shek was one of the early leaders in Taiwan. At the time during our visit, there was a program and several booths, which served food and sold various items. The Shrine dedicated to Chiang Kai Shek is big and the garden surrounding it is such a nice place to visit and quite relaxing to look at.

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Then we took the MRT to Sun Yat Sen station to visit the Memorial Hall of Sun Yat Sen, who was the first provisional president of Taiwan (Republic of China) when it was founded in 1912 and is revered by both mainland China and Taiwan. The memorial hall is quite big and like Chiang Kai Shek Hall, there were several gardens surrounding the place. A barrage of flowers, lake and fountains provided additional attraction to this historical site.

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We then walked towards Taipei 101, which at 508 meters is the world's tallest sky scraper eclipsing the Petronas Towers of Malaysia (452 meters) and Sears Tower of Chicago (442 meters). Taipei 101, not only holds the record for being the tallest skyscraper it also holds the record of having the world's fastest elevator at 1,010 meters per minute, meaning reaching the observatory at the top of Taipei 101 in just half a minute. We went to the indoor viewing deck at the 89th floor (which cost NTD350) to take a birds eye view of Taipei. The highest point accessible to the public is the 91st floor, which happens to be the outdoor viewing deck of Taipei 101 (which cost and additional NTD100). It was real cold and foggy then so tried to jog a few rounds just for fun. Before leaving Taipei 101, I had coffee at Lavazza at the foot of Taipei 101.

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Before heading home, we took an MRT ride to Ximen, which is a shopping, food and games district enjoyed by both young and old alike. Ximen is a lot similar to Causeway Bay in Hong Kong (though I'd love shopping in Hong Kong better) and Xintiendi in Shanghai (a nice place for foreigners in China). In the spirit of fun, I tried one of the basketball games similar to what we have at time zone though this had a surprising twist at round two, the ring would be a moving target thus increasing the difficulty. After a short stroll along the place, we went back to the hotel and call it a day... and that's my travel 101 class for the day... hehe...

More photos available at http://franckxethee.multiply.com

Come See Tamshui

From the southwestern part of Taipei, we go full swing to the opposite part which is the north east part of Taipei via MRT, Tamshui. I've always love Tamshui since its serene view of the shoreline provide a bit of mysticism and tranquility. Tamshui is a seaside town in Taipei County and is popular for its sunset view and its fishing port.

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From Tamshui, we took a speed boat (it was really fisherman's wharf which has a nice viewing deck and the lover's bridge of Tamshui. The round trip ride from Tamshui wharf to Fisherman's wharf cost NTD 100 (around P150) and it's really reasonable. The seaside view from Fisherman's wharf and Tamshui is really a sight to behold and it was nice watching the sun set and just taking a walk around the vicinity. Tamshui has a lot of shops for food, souvenirs, novelty items and games.

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Since we've past the time awaiting nightfall we decided to have a round of coffee at Starbucks overlooking the sea and as we enjoyed the view, little did we now that the rain was about to come and it has been a long dash to the MRT and we ended up wet from the rainfall. It was a good thing that most of the stalls had shades which we were able to use going back to avoid getting soaking wet... and as the rain went so did this visit in Tamshui.

Zoo's there?

Taipei zoo consist of 165 hectares with 90 hectare viewable to the public (so that's the reason why my legs are so sore... been walking along 90 hectare area) and boast of a combination of museum that features information of animals even way back during the Jingsaur era (Dinosaur pala... hehe... sowee Jing) a zoo featuring a variety from nocturnal animals, reptiles, birds, and various mammals from Asia, Australia, Africa and the rest of the world.

Taipei Zoo was our first stop for the day, which is accessible via MRT so coming from our hotel in Yong He City, we took the MRT from Dingxi station then transferred to the Bannan Line and eventual transferred to the Taipei Zoo Line (it's more simple, once you get the dynamics of the MRT... hehe). The entrance is very reasonable at just NTD60 (around P100) for a zoo that boast a variety of species and at such a wide area.

The zoo is divided into several areas such as for nocturnal, asian tropical rain forrest, australian, temperate zone, desert and african animals. It also houses an education center, insectarium, amphibian and reptile house, bird world, penguin and koala house and a wetland park. Navigating the zoo is quite an arduous task but being in touch with nature and appreciating wild life makes it a bit easier. Anyhow, there's also a shuttle train that moves around the zoo but, again nothing beats roaming around up close with the different creatures and scenery. But once you've reached the top and have seen all the park has to offer, it's best to take the shuttle bus to the main entrance as you'd be too tired by then.... just like we did.

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Moving forward, the zoo and its vicinity would be having cable cars connected to the different mountains in Taipei for visitors additional viewing experience. It was my third time at the zoo, and I'm still amazed at the variety of the creatures in the zoo... so Zoo's there??? A whole lot of animals that would make it an experience worth remembering... Zoo be it... hehe.

Breaking Point

I've always made it a habit to finish early... In fact even when I used to handle several clients back in audit, I can count the time when I was rushing in the heat of the busy season... I've always been an early bird in getting the job done though I had rough patches of buzzer beating deadlines which is somehow a test of character and wits... That's the situation I'm always at during Annual Report period for Medtecs with a fixed deadline and so many surprises has somehow made a master out of me in crisis management and risk management...

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The past few days has been real tough and probably has almost made me hit breaking point - the point you'd want to give up and just leave... Yet somehow, there's always a fighter in me that never gives up and always find a creative approach in coming up with solutions and managing heartbeat stopping moments... No matter how used you are to these situations, it's always becomes tension-filled and stress-ridden especially if you have a passion on never failing...

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Probably, one peculiarity in me is that I'd rarely throw a tantrum or show I'm affected by the situation but there will be always a time in a year that everything would take its toll and make me erratic and unreasonable... I guess even people close to me would be surprised when I go on this erratic spells... but probably that's a way in maintaining balance... someway or somehow, you have to vent out some emotions, good or bad... it's healthier and makes you human...

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In as much as the difficult part was over, I went for a walk here in Taipei just to shake of the tension... had coffee at Starbucks... tried local delicacies at the night market and somehow, got lost in the process... I really got lost since I went to deep to the night market and ended up in a different street... It's been a common thing for me to get lost anywhere I travel but somehow I always find a way to get back... and at the very least, I may not have exclaimed how much the past few days took its toll on me, but a leisurely walk has made me a ease all the stressful moments the past few days... and also, that's the wonder of blogging... it gives you another outlet to channel your emotions....

A Walk at Yangmingshan Park

Yangmingshan Park is one of Taiwan's National Park with a total square area of 114.56 km and is famous for its cherry blossoms, hot springs, sulfur deposits, and hiking trails, including one over the extinct volcano Seven Star Mountain. It's can be reached thru an MRT Ride to Jiantan MRT Station and taking a long bus ride using Red Bus 5 to Yangmingshan and follows quite a long walk to the entrance of the Park.

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Had the chance to visit the park yesterday and the place was overflowing with flowers, ponds, and quite a few sites within the park. Interestingly, a squirrel crossed my path. More photos are viewable at franckxethee.multiply.com. The long walk to the park is worth it and of course, it's always a welcome exercise to walk under the cool spring breeze of Taiwan. Though, I really don't think it was an exercise since I never had a drop of sweat owing to the cold climate here.

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It's quite amazing that I've been in Taiwan 6 times already and there are still a lot of places to visit. Navigating the park is another uphill climb going to the top of the mountain. On the way down there's a statue of Chang Kai Shek and at the foot of the clock is another landmark, the flower clock. After several hours of walking, I decided to call it a day and head back home. Arrived before 6 pm at my hotel room and after uploading my pics at multiply and yahoo. The exhausting day has taken its toll and moments later, and sleep has finally caught up...

Saisaki DInner with Mark, Mads and Donald

For the third straight day, I was able to sneak in another dinner with friends outside of a busy work schedule... Had dinner at Saisaki with Mark, Mads and Donald for a lot of reason... for one another birthday celebration for me... another for Mark's arrival from London (he arrived hours after my Saturday celebration and for Mads despidida to St. Maartens (Wherever that is?... hehe...) Of course, I had to leave early the next day for my trip to Taipei...

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Had so many things to celebrate... so little time... and yet still another get together... Of course, gone were the times that we'd have She (now in Cayman) and Jay Anne (now in New York) would form part of the celebration... and soon Mads would also miss this mini celebration... I always say this when people leave that it's a small world... and a interconnected one at that... so there's always ways and means to communicate... and that's how I always projected myself... someone you won't really miss because I'm always around... an email... a phone call... a text... a chat or friendster message or just a blog away...

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The festivities were short-lived but I'm happy for myself and the rest... for Mads who now can seize the overseas opportunity she'd long for... for Mark who have experienced a fraction of his life living in Europe and its laid back culture and lavish lifestyle (a lifestyle I too once experienced... albeit a different Country... Mark - London, Me - Paris)... and for Donald who can look forward to all the opportunities that life in or outside of SGV has to offer... For Jay Anne and She who has now reaped the joys of being immersed in a different culture and locality...

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Bittersweet as it is... It's great to see send off now... since you're seeing friends move on to greener pastures... and have the comfort that they'll always be your friend no matter the time, the place but there's always boxful of memories you can hold on to... and life always goes on...

Back to the dinner... Saisaki's an all you can eat restaurant so it's quite obvious that we'd ended up very much nourished... hehe... Had to end the festivities early since I had to pack my things for my trip to Taiwan the next day... and have a whole lot of sleep to catch up to as well...

An Arra Dinner with Sharon and FAA

Just as I thought all the celebration relating to my Birthday is over... we still manage to squeeze one more this time with Sharon and FAA who wasn't able to attend last weekend's celebration... This time, the venue was a Korean Restaurant, Arra, located at Malugay in Makati...

It was a different cuisine with combination of meat, vegetable, rice eaten taco style in a lettuce leaf... which is a healthier and at the same time delicious... hehe... though I don't have a very discerning taste in food really...

It was also a mini send off for Me and Sharon, who'd be going on separate out-of-the country business trips for our respective companies... as an added bonus, Sharon's baby Yohannce came along (or rather dragged along) to pick up Sharon... Yohannce has been sick lately and a lot thinner from the last time I saw her last year... Hope she gets well soon...

Another night and another dinner... come to think of it, I really need to hit the gym tomorrow morning as I've also had a full dinner yesterday at the Old Spaghetti house with AGSB friend, Grace... or else, I might start gaining additional pounds amidst all the festivities... Though I guess, It'll be a lot less food for me in Taipei owing to difficulty in ordering food in most Chinese Restaurants there... hehe... really need to start learning Mandarin... but I'd rather catch the gym first tom... hehe...

A Burgoo Dinner with SGV Friends

For the last part of my birthday bash... I had dinner at Burgoo Rockwell with SGV Friends... As expected, there were only few friends who made it... Donald, Ruth, Carol with Jason... Thanks for coming... Among those who missed the event was Sharon who was with a flu-stricken Baby Yohannce (Get well soon Yohannce!!!)... FAA who attended a wedding that day (FAA's always a ninong at weddings), Anna (business related)... Madz (National Artist related)... and Macoy who begged off at the last minute...

Anyway, still have to make the most of the day and the food we had to eat... hehe... We all had a lot to eat since there were only so few who attended... No time was wasted though as we spent a lot of time chatting about vacation (always a favorite topic with ace bakasyonista around), career plans and developments (to leave or not to leave, that is the question), driving (with co-newbie driver Carol) and so on... and as such, we failed to notice that we've been at Burgoo for more than three hours... hehe... No worries though, as they have a bit high end price for food and service charge... At the very least, we might as well maximize the eating time... hehe...

So the festivities related to my birthday have ended... and it's back to those regular days again... Well, just have to be creative to make each moment fun and exciting I guess... Anyway, just wanted to thank all my well wishers who remembered my birthday... I really appreciated every text message, friendster message and greeting I received from family, friends and whoever took some time off to send a message on my birthday... Thanks really, from the bottom of my heart... and 'til next year again folks...

Another Birthday Bash with Medtecs Finance and SGV

Managed to sneak in another birthday celebration at Dencio's this lunch with Medtecs finance and SGV Audit team... Technically, it wasn't really my celebration but more of a post financial result announcement lunch with auditors but we timed it to coincide with my Birthday... sa wahlah... another celebration in the books...

Anyway, quite a heavy meal for all of us... since we did order a lot... and in one rare opportunity, we were able to have the SGV audit team big bosses this time... MFG, Peps and ASS... Well, it was also some sort of despidida for our controller who's leaving at the end of the month... No comment on this part but if you're one of my close friend you'd know how I'd react over this departure.... hehe...

Though the audit is not yet over... hopefully we were able to gather up enough momentun to finish ahead of time... and that I guess is wishful thinking... probably on time should do... hehe... but I do hope I get some sleep when I do get to finalize the annual report in Taiwan in the next few weeks... unlike last year when I rarely had the chance to enjoy the comfort of my hotel room... Though it was a crash course in crisis management...Since what happened last year, proof reading Annual Report in Taiwan is not something I look forward to but as they say... a job is a job and somebody has to do it... and I guess that somebody is me...

It's a Good Earth Birthday with AGSB Friends

As the clock turned over a new day yesterday (March 8) - officially switching to March 9, my birthday... I was in the company of my friends from AGSB in Good Earth at Rockwell...

The party started hours before with early birds Mascy, Diane, Blue and Owen arriving earlier than me... and as the night went along and so were the other guests... Grace, Anton, Jan, Sig, Chelsea, Bogz, Nikki, Rocky, Jay and MJ... It was a time for a lot of catching up... and having another chance to get together again...

It was fun getting to see each other again and for me it's a welcome relief after all the stress with all my deadlines lately... A great way to welcome a birth day... in the Company of great people called friends...

Happy Birthday To Me!!!

In a few hours, I'll be turning a year older... a lot can happen in a year... and I am really so blessed in the past year and as things go, I will be keeping my momentum this year... Things are a lot better and every thing is quite different now... in all aspects...

Quite exciting though that in a few hours, I'll be reuniting with friends from Ateneo as I await the turn of the time... and this Saturday, with friends from SGV... somehow... a bitter sweet affair since I'll get to touch base with the few who's still in the country yet I'll be missing quite a handful who's out of the country...

Somehow, I got to contradict myself since I planned all my celebrations... I'm always the methodical one... wherein I was hoping for a lot of surprises... Somethings never change I guess in this diverse times... Anyway, as long as i get to enjoy the day then I guess, it would be well worth it... I've always valued my birthday compared to any other holidays since this is an event I can call my own... As the clock ticks closer, well... it's happy birthday to me time once again!!!

Advance Birthday Bash at Baguio City

Had an advance birthday celebration last Saturday in Baguio with my family... Preparation was hush hush and short notice... The afternoon before the party... Each time, I go home to Baguio, it's almost always last minute decisions since someway or somehow, something always gets in the way... But after meeting my deadline, I guess it was time to feel the chill of the cool Baguio climate once again and at the same time celebrating in advance my birthday; as well as, catching the tail end of the Penagbenga (flower festival) celebration... Ahh... forget about the Penagbenga celebration since except for a short stroll in Session Road and a glance at a car show in SM Baguio, I wasn't able to witness much of the festival...

Arriving early morning at Saturday, I attended to the first order of business, which was to catch some sleep... hehe... The whole afternoon was spent on buying and preparing food for the party... The party was simple but it was really the joy of celebrating with your family and relatives... The party was a simple dinner and everybody was full and satisfied after... Of course, the guest list is small since most of my relative is scattered around the world...

I've never written anything about Baguio without a tinge of nostalgia as I've spent my first 21 years living in the country's summer capital... fully immersed in the simple lifestyle and low cost of living here... More on nostalgia... I've spent my lunch last Sunday at one of our favorite eating places, Marosans, which is now conveniently located a few blocks from our house... Their pork chop fried rice is timeless, which provides you with a scrumptious and affordable meal... I guess s420 people can attest to this...

After another round of afternoon sleep... hehe... We went to John Hay with my Cousins to see what's new there... Not much really but the skating rink is back... I miss skating... and the recreation area known as Scout Hill is now half occupied by fully developed log homes... So much for the John Hay of old... Anyway, we wrapped up the day with a round of coffee at one of the new coffee houses in John Hay...

And in a few hours... it was my trip back to Makati... to end a short yet relaxing vacation at home in Baguio... and now, it’s back to business... once again...