Next Stop - China~

At the airport - waiting to board flight to Beijing~~~~
Going on a trip to 北京, 西安, 桂林 for 8 days~
Going to see my family after more than half a year!
Actually, to be exact, it's been exactly 7 months~ =)
I left Toronto January 10th and seeing them July 10th~
Missed them so much~
Wonder what it'll be like?
Let you know more later on!

Anyways, I've still been living a 充實 life in HK this week!
Here's what I've been doing:

July 3
Whole day out with Ivan Chu~~
Transformers 2 at IMAX~~ =)
Then karaoke for a few hours (so gooood...)~~
Shopping and then dinner~~

July 4
Dinner, shopping and sticker pictures with Sarah first time since Taiwan~ =)
A good catch up! hehe*

July 5
Church and then went to watch 林峰's 簽唱會!~
He is like the only artist that I've ever had so much energy to "chase"~
I love Joey, but I guess she's not a guy - it's just different~ xD
華哥 wasn't working today so I didn't get a pictures with him up close and I couldn't get an autograph either~ =(
But it was still nice watching him sing~ wakakak~ so 靚仔~ =)
However, i ran into a perv while watching 林峰... =________=;; grossss...
為咗林峰犧牲色相~ hahahaha~
You can ask me personally for details... lolz~
Did some shopping after the 簽唱會~
Then did my first facial in HK~~~~ so relaxing~ hehe*

July 6
荃灣 with Windy - shopping and dinner~ =)
Another good catch up~ ^-^

July 7
Was supposed to do nails, but appointment was canceled~
Did my photoshoot! =)
No, I didn't get hired by an ad company nor a model agency~
Too ugly and short for that~ hahaha... =P
Just wanted to do a photo shoot for fun since it wasn't expensive~
Pictures later! I still need to choose photos~

July 8
The ONLY chill day I've had so far~
I went out only cuz I had to refill my phone card with money~
Went out to CWB to do that, shop around for a bit and had dinner before going back home~

July 9
Chose pictures from my photo shoot~
Lunch with Ivan~
Stickers pictures with Ivan - going to fill my wallet with new pics~ hehe*
Watched 殺人犯 with Ivan - GOOD movie, interesting concept~
Dinner with Lim and Thomas and then Dickson joined us for desserts @ 旺角~
Good catch up with my friends from back home again~ =)


Currently...
Lovin' life as it is right now~
Putting all the bad things from the past behind and enjoying a new, more mature me~
Chilling with all my good friends all the time~
No boundaries, no hesitations, no limits~
Just me, my friends and my family~


China, here I come! =)

HK - 充實~

Back to HK again - this time completely stress-free (from school, I mean)~ =)

Living at Grandma's, but there's no AC here so I'm literally melting... =_________=;;
No internet in the house either...
I'm the type that doesn't sweat much normally, but I've been doing some major sweating whenever I'm home - and I'm talking about dripping sweat~ gross~ lolz~
The good? I already lost 0.5 lbs in just a few days~ =P yay~~~~
I've also been able to steal some really weak and unstable wireless from a neighbour somewhere~
Better than nothing for sure~ =)

So I've been trying to be out of the house everyday and so far, it's been a blast! =)

Here are some things I've been doing:

• June 26 -> Arrive in HK and settled into Grandma's - thanks to auntie for picking me up and helping me with all my luggage~ would've died under all that weight without her~ =)
• June 27 -> Shopping in MK with Tiff K!~ Haven't seen her in ages, actually~ Replaced my cracked open SD card, bought my 林峰 CD and took sticker pics!
  
• June 28 -> Church - chill in 上水 for the afternoon~
• June 29 -> Dinner at 黃大仙 and desserts at 九龍城 with Lim~ had lots of fun chatting and catching up after more than 1/2 a year~
• June 30 -> My own shopping day - looking for the NDSi and Kingdom Hearts cross-over console, but they were all sold out lu~ =( boo...
  
• July 1 -> HK 回歸 holiday! Speed boat out to a private 魚排 with Sally, Stephanie, Sally's family and her dad's coworker's families for a day out! BBQ, canoe-ing and the beach! It was a hot day, but the swimming and tanning felt so good~ =) Seafood dinner at 西貢~
• July 2 -> Ice Age 1 & 2 marathon in 上水 with Sally and Stephanie and then Ice Age 3 3D at the theatre~ =)
  

時間過得好充實~ =)
I'm really enjoying HK this time~
Been doing a lot of things that I probably wouldn't do if I just came with family - we just don't know of that many places to go and things to eat~
Thanks to all my friends for taking me out! =)

At the Airport...

Last day of my Exchange...
It's a sunny day. =)

I remember sitting at the HK airport feeling both excited and scared at the same time 4 months ago...
Now I feel like I'm going to miss things a lot here...
It was so hard to say all those goodbyes at all those goodbye parties and dinners... =(
It really has been 4 months since day 1...
Yet it seems like yesterday that I was still completely disoriented in Taiwan with my buddies on the first day...
A lot has happened throughout the 4 months - a lot has changed.
I've grown up a lot and learned a lot - in literally every way.
For good or for worse? I guess no one knows tomorrow.
Still going traveling for a bit, but it's only a little over a month's time until I'm back home.
But I think by then, I'll be ready to face what I need to face back home.
And I'm more than ready to see my beloved friends and family again after more than 1/2 a year.
You guys have no idea how much I love you all for being there for me. =)
Things that have happened on exchange have made me truly realize that I have so many wonderful, wonderful people around me~ s2

What I'll miss about Taiwan:

• freedom (haha...)
• all friends and memories made here~~ s2
  
• good FOOOOD! and desserts~~~ hehehe*
• easy joke courses... we'll never get this at Schulich...
• close proximity to all Asia countries for traveling

What I know I've been missing in Toronto:

• my friends and family back home
• CLEAN place to live - mosquito/cockroach free... haha...
• personal space - it's hard to come by in Asia. =P
• clean air!
• home-cooked food - no more fatty unhealthy foods...

Boarding to next stop - HK!
Byee Taipei and Exchange - I'll miss you!

All my Taipei pictures on Facebook (don't need an account to view)~
Taipei (I)
Taipei (II)
Taipei (III)
Taipei (IV)
Taipei (V)
Taipei (VI)
Taipei (VII)
Taipei (VIII)

For all the albums of my travels during exchange, visit my Facebook or ask me for their links~ ^-^

The death of my laptop cord...

... and the case of incurable insomina (for now, anyways...)

HP Laptop Cord Obituary
-> Certified: Monday, June 15, 2009 around 12pm GMT +08:00 time...
-> Attendees to the funeral: none
-> Condolences offered: mom call me on my cell phone

My cord has been having connection problems for a while (charges only when the cord is placed at a certain angle), but since I decided I wasn't going to get a new laptop until I get back to Toronto, I tried to keep it in the best condition possible. On Monday, it started sparking... =T very scary stuph... unplugged it and there was a hole in the cord. Hence my laptop was rendered useless without the cord.

Now normally, it wouldn't be that bad without my laptop, BUT I had 2 presentations + respective reports due within the following 2 days AND a final exam. Perfect timing, no? =___________=;; Luckily, I had everything backed up on my external drive (cuz I was expecting that my computer/cord might die any day) so I basically bummed at the student lounge computers everyday to finish all my work.

I was planning to be laptop-less for 3 weeks - which is when my family comes to Asia with dad's laptop. I definitely wasn't going to pay for a new cord when I would be ditching my computer in a little over a month's time. I decided to try the limits of my 3-year global warranty and it actually covers the replacement for a new one! =) I used to always joke and complain about this exceptionally long warranty cuz I would've gotten a new laptop in January if I wasn't covered. My motherboard was changed under the warranty back in January and obviously, no one would pay to change a motherboard if they weren't covered~ Needlesstosay, I'm VERY glad for my 3-year warranty at the moment - I won't be bored to death without a laptop for 3 weeks. ^___________^ God has His good plans. hehe*

Incurable Insomnia
Well, it hasn't been cured as of yet - that's all. It's not that bad, I suppose~
I think about a week or two ago, I started having trouble falling asleep. I used to be able to fall asleep within 5 minutes, but lately I've been rolling around for over 30 minutes before finally drifting off into dreamland. =_________=;;
During the time of finals, it's not a such good thing to have.
My brain just won't stop functioning at night - keep thinking about my finals, what I'll do in HK, what I need to pack in TW, what I'll do when my family comes over to TW, where to bring them to eat, shop and play in HK, etc., etc., etc. OH... and course selections for next year... =________=;; that's a biggie...
ERG!... hahaha... such RANDOM thoughts...
There have been interesting suggestions to use sleeping pills or booze to relieve the effects of insomnia, but I prefer not to. Thanks. =P hahaha...

Currently
Despite my insomnia, I managed to survive my 2 hard presentations + respective reports - one day after the next.

My one and only final exam - which was the easiest exam in my life - was a joke. The professor had the class make a total of 100MC questions and he said he'd pick 20 from there for the final. So I finished the exam in 5 minutes and used the remaining 5 to triple check my answers before handing it in. =) My mark will not be any lower than 90% in that class - happiness. =)

So I have one more presentation to go next week, but it's a really easy BS one.
I consider myself pretty much done! ^________^

Starting to pack certain things now - lots to pack!
Now that I'm basically a week away from leaving here, it's starting to feel a little weird...
There's 50% of me that wants to leave and another 50% that wants to stay longer. =(
The good thing is that I'll see my 2 close girl friends back in HK again~ ^________^
As for the guy friends - adios! *sniffs*
Going to enjoy my last week here!!

Follow me on Twitter!
Username: Tiffany_To

Last 2 Weeks of my Exchange.

Only 14 days left of my exchange experience...

*Let that sink in first before continuing...*

Times really flies...
Feels like yesterday that I was still getting settled in my dorm here - complaining about the bugs and the environment... haha...
Mind you, I still check for bugs every time I go to the bathroom or take a shower and I still brush my teeth in the company of mosquitos/moths every morning, but hey, I've gotten used to it.
This is what exchange has taught me - take whatever comes at you (good or bad), suck it up and learn to live with it! =P

Now that I'm almost about to leave, it feels a tad weird, to be honest~
Anyways, had some visitors lately!

June 2 & 3
SChan, Vean and Natalie came to visit Taipei and I hung out with them for 2 days~ =)
First day, I went to 師大 night market with them.
Second day, I shopped with them at 五分埔 and then went to 西門町 for the good 雪花冰 & night snacks~
Oh, oh, and I bought a pair of very comfortable and nice-looking pair of Birkenstock sandals!
They better be a good investment for all the walking I'll be doing in the next month - being flat-footed and all~

June 6
Joan visits Taipei! =)
Took her out to a good beef noodle restaurant at Taipei Main Station for dinner.
Then we went over to 西門町 for the good 雪花冰 again (I take everyone there now)~
Chilled in the area - got our silhouettes cut out of construction paper! =P

June 12
No visitors today, but Sarah, Haley and I just went out for a good Friday night.
Revolving sushi dinner (as a result of my sudden craving), shop around 西門町(again), 美麗華 ferris wheel at night, 士林夜市 shopping~
Really tired afterwards cuz we didn't get home until almost 1am, but it's something that we haven't done as a group in a long time~ =)

Lately
I don't think I've been having quality sleep because I'm constantly tired during the day~~ =(
Even when I know I'm dead tired, my brain doesn't seem to stop turning before I fall asleep.
And it's not even really thinking about anything in particular - just random snippets of the current day.
I've been having quite a few vivid dreams lately - which kinda sucks too~
I think it has something to do with the rainy season here! Grrrrr... =P

Finals
Well, most of my final projects and presentations are all due next week along with 1 final exam.
Times to pay those dues after a rather relaxing semester (compared to Schulich).
Add oil, Tiff! Don't slack! hehe*
(Actually, my 1 and only final exam is quite the joke. Our prof let us create our own 100MC questions and he's picking 20 from those for our exam... =_______=;;)

June 16 -> BP Presentation + Report
June 17 -> M&G Presentation + Report AND WebTech Final Exam
June 23 -> DCM Presentation + Report

On a Completely Random Note...
Oh, and my craving for a DSLR camera has increased two-fold lately...
Mostly due to looking at my cousin's baby pics, my friend's vacation pics and my other friend's photo blog!
AHH.....! hahahaha...
I'm still waiting to get my baby - sometime in the near future (hopefully)~
Still need to pick a name for it though - Canon or Nikon??? xD

Upcoming
After my exchange, I'm ready to start my travels again! =)
June 20-23 -> 睛 and 嘉 visit Taipei!
June 26 -> Back to HK
July 2-6 -> Haley visits HK - hang out with her and Sarah~
July 10-17 -> 北京, 西安, 桂林 with 2 families
July 17-21 -> Back to Taiwan with my own family
July 21 and onwards -> HK

Paradise Weekend in PengHu (澎湖)

I've been wanting to hit the beaches for a long time cuz I want an escape from the city, but didn't get a chance to go until this weekend.
Sarah, Haley and I chose to go to PengHu (澎湖) County - an area of islands in the southwest part of Taiwan.
It was paradise weekend. =)
Tony, my friend from high school, was staying there for the summer, so I called him up and he took us around.
Thanks so much for everything! ^-^

Saturday, May 30
Took the 7am flight from Taipei to PengHu (澎湖).
Tony came to pick us up at the airport.
Out to the dock to join a tour.
The tour took us to wade within the shallow waters of the sea to find all sorts of sea creatures - fish, sea cucumbers, starfish, crabs, oysters, etc.
We even got to hammer out some oysters to eat on the spot - mmMMmm... =)
Ate lunch to rest from all the tiring walking.
The tour then took us out to an island by boat for water sports - banana boat, water raft, seadoo, swimming, etc.~
Headed back to the main island for dinner at a temple area.
We were lucky and got a chance to attend a festival that happens only once every 10 years or so.
There were food stalls, live performances, parade of floaters (made by the participating temples) and an AMAZING fireworks display~
Guess what I tried for the first time? Cactus ice cream!
It's actually quite good - made from the pink fruit that you find on the cactus~
Apparently cactus-flavoured products are very common in PengHu.
After the festival, we chilled around our hotel area - shopping and eating desserts.

Sunday, May 31
Took another tour that took us out to the surrounding 4 islands of the PengHu County:
- 桶盤嶼 -> 虎井嶼 -> 望安嶼 -> 七美島
Basically, the first 3 islands are for sightseeing - looking at really old houses/buildings and overlooking the sea, etc.~
The last island, 七美 was what we took the tour for~ =)
Finally got to see the famous 雙心石滬 rock formation (see attached picture)~
Went back to the city area after the tour and watched the sunset at the Rainbow Bridge~
Had dinner at a good seafood restaurant.
Bought some snacks and drinks and went back to chill around the Rainbow Bridge area - a really nice and quiet area at night~
Then switched locations and chilled at the pub for a bit~
Headed to our pretty villa - Raid Garden - 北非花園 - for the night~

Monday, June 1
Got more sleep last night cuz we had no plans for today~
Breakfast at the villa~ =)
Chilled at 山水 Beach area - swimming, chilling, eating lunch~
Took 3pm flight to 台中 cuz we couldn't find a flight back to 台北~
We thought the distance between the 台中 airport and the High Speed Rail (HSR) station was close, but it turned out to be an hour bus ride... =_______=;;
HSR back to 台北 and returned to NCCU~

It was a fun weekend~ =)
The lack of sleep again from this trip means it'll be a while before I recover from the sleep debt accumulated over the weekend~ =P

Pics and Video!
PengHu Pictures
Fireworks Video


Upcoming
June 1-4 -> SChan, Vean and Natalie Visit Taipei!
June 16 -> Business Policy Report + Presentation Due
June 17 -> Media & Globalization Report + Presentation Due; Web Technologies Final Exam
June 20-23 -> 睛 & 嘉 visiting Taipei - chill with them~ =)
June 23 -> Demand Chain Management Report + Presentation Due
June 26 -> Leaving Taiwan - Going to HK

12-Day Break - Tokyo & HK

NCCU didn't have a 12-day spring break, but the 2-day university anniversary holiday happened to fall on the same 2 days that I have all my classes, so I got a huge break. =)

So I used these 12 days to go to Tokyo & HK~
Bear with me - this post will be quite long because it sums up 2 weeks. ^-^;;

Tokyo

The destination of this trip was a last minute choice because I knew Tokyo wasn't going to be a cheap trip, but my uncle and aunt were going at the same time coincidentally and I desperately needed a place to travel to, so I decided to go~
It was definitely a good decision~
I love the city, the language and all the cute snacks, toys, souvenirs, etc. that you just can't seem to purchase elsewhere~ =)

May 13-14
Night flight out to HK on the 13th, arrived @ 11pm, Uncle and Sally came to pick me up from the airport and settled my big luggage into 上水 - only took my small one to Japan~
Didn't sleep all night and chatted with auntie until dawn~

Head back out on the morning of the 14th to catch the 8:50am flight to Japan - arrived @ 2pm~
Bussed out to Shinjuku area~
As expected and warned by everyone, it took a while to find my hotel because the subway station was such a huge maze that it took me a while just to get out the right exit (which actually wasn't exactly the right exit in the end)~
But hey, I was told that I did pretty good cuz it didn't take me too long~ =)
After settling into the hotel, I went out to chill around the Shinjuku area for the night~
Had inexpensive ramen as my first meal in Japan - which turned out to one of the best bowls of ramen I had in Tokyo throughout my whole trip~ =)
Just can't go back to ramen back home anymore~ xD
Tried getting some toys from those UFO machines, but I failed horribly~ =(
Met up with Uncle Tony @ 9pm, planned out our next few days, and headed over to a government building observatory that overlooks Tokyo before I headed back to my hotel for the night~

May 15
Mt. Fuji & Hakone 1-Day Tour - took this tour by myself today because Uncle Tony went to pick up Auntie Mimi from the airport~
It was a good break from the busy city life I've been experiencing for the past few months~
Went to the 5th station of Mt. Fuji to take pictures.
Lunch at Hakone Lake Hotel - Soba & Tempura.
Hakone Ropeway cable car ride up to the Owakudanu Boiling Valley.
Had their famous black-coloured shell egg (boiled in sulfurous hot spring water) - which claims to bring an extra 7 years of life per egg that is consumed. =P
Boat Cruise on Lake Ashi - pirate-ship-style~
Shinkansen bullet train back to Tokyo~
Met up with Uncle Tony and Auntie Mimi and we went for ramen dinner again. =)
Picked my first Japanese crepe dessert before heading back to my hotel~

May 16
The longest day of the trip~But we were able to cover so many areas - 5 in total~
Woke up @ 5:30am and headed out @ 6:30am to Tsukiji Fish Market~
The large tuna auction was over because it was simply too early, but we managed to see some left over ones to take pictures with~
Had lunch at 壽司大 - 1 of the 2 famous sushi restaurants there~
Had to wait over 1 hour to get in, but it was well worth it~ =)
The wait wasn't that bad cuz the guy that was working there kept trying to strike up a conversation with us - his smile never fading and trying to speak phrases of Canto that he learned from other tourists over the years to make us laugh. =P
After lunch, we headed out to Asakusa area to attend the Sanja Matswri Festival and to see the Sensoji Shrine~
Many men in the festival wore very little to cover their legs... =T it was kind of disturbing...
After that, we went to the Akihabara area - known for its electronics and Japanese toys~
The Japanese toy stores were like my heaven I and wish I could bring it all home with me, but I only bought a few things to satisfy my current wants~ =P
We had afternoon tea at a maid cafe in the area - where all the waitresses dressed up like French maids and provided really good service. =)
Then we went to see the Imperial Palace after the sun set, but realized that it would've been much nicer to see it during the day so we didn't stay too long~
Dinner with Liz in the Roppongi area - she took us to a really nice Japanese 小食 restaurant~ =)
It was so nice to see her since she left Toronto 2 years ago~
After dinner, we parted with my aunt and uncle and went to chill with Liz's friends in the Roppongi area - great nightlife there!~
Crashed Liz's place for the night~ Thanks for letting me stay! ^-^

May 17
In contrast to a hectic day yesterday, we had a laid back day today with my aunt & uncle and Liz~
Lunch at a really good 蛋包麵 place and then split up to do some shopping in the Shibuya district~ =)
After shopping, we headed out to the Harajuku area~
Didn't really see any goths out today, but saw some cosplayers~
Visited the Meiji Jingu Shrine before strolling the shopping street of Harajuku~
Ate another good crepe and shopped at Daiso - the famous 100Yen shop~
Went back to Roppongi for a good Shabu Shabu dinner~ hehe*
Liz took us to a good spot to take pictures of the Tokyo Tower and then we parted to go back to Shinjuku and our respective hotels~
Thanks again for bringing us out to all these good food/tour places, Liz~ =)

May 18
Took a 2 hour ride out to a town near Tokyo called Nikko~
Watched the Grand Festival of Toshogu Shrine, had lunch and then visited most of the temples and shrines in the area~
My feet started killing cuz of all the walking over the past few days - the cons of being flat-footed~ =(
As such, I basically passed out on the ride back to Tokyo~
Back in Shinjuku, we had dinner at a ramen place and had some good desserts there too~
Went back to my hotel to pack~

May 19
Last day of the trip~ =(
I really wish I could stay longer, but I shall be back with family next time and travel to other cities like Kyoto, Osaka, Hokkaido, etc~ =)
My aunt and uncle left for another city so I was on my own for the day~
Checked out, stored luggage and went out to shop in the Shinjuku area
Went to another 105Yen store to pick up some last minute things~
Went to have a nice Tea Pork Cutlet brunch near my hotel~
Then I shopped at Tokyu Hands - a department store with a lot of things that you thought you'll never need, but end up having to buy~ =P
I only bought 3 things and 1 of them was a souvenir for someone else so it wasn't that bad~
Bussed out to Narita airport and had a lot of time to kill so I went to buy the 草餅 snack that my family seems to love and watched airplanes take off and land at the observation deck~
Took the 6:50pm flight back to HK and went to 上水~

HK

May 20
Closure day - it's finally all clear and over.
Felt really disappointed and disrespected, but everything was as I expected - no surprises.
After the past month, I felt kind of relieved cuz I was so drained and exhausted.

Out to 沙田 to sing K with 阿妹 (Joyce)~
Back to doing what I love best~ =)
Had dinner and a good long chat~ Miss you so much~ s2
See you in August la~~

May 21
Chill with SChan all day~
Good chat during lunch at Pizza Hut - eating my favourite thin crust thousand island sauce pizza~ =)
Did some shopping in 尖沙咀 and 旺角 - not too much to do with clothing this time~
Got some long-awaited CDs, a bluetooth headset and a nice top from Salad~
Dinner at 沙田圍 大排檔~ =)
Back to 上水 - good first chat with auntie since it all happened.

May 22
Chill with SChan and Vean at Causeway Bay~
Lunch at 許留山 - kinda wrong for lunch, I know~ =P
Bought a pair of Tough jeans and a pair of Salad jeans cuz they were doing a 2-pair promotion and a Salad belt~ hehe* s2
Afternoon tea at Cova - a really nice restaurant that we specifically came out to go to~
I ordered their tea set and had a Blueberry cheesecake and Hot Chocolate~ =)
Shop around some more - got an Agnes B. coin pouch~
Dinner at 九龍唐 with SChan only cuz Vean had dinner plans~
KFC 葡撻 for dessert before going back home~

May 23
Chill with Sally all day~
On our way out, I think we saw the 天賜 guy from 我和殭屍有個約會 TV series on the subway, but we weren't 100% sure (even though he looked exactly like him) cuz the guy we saw had quite the weird style~ =P
We wanted to take a picture of him secretly, but by the time we figured out how to do it, he left the train~ FAIL~ hahaha~
Haircut at 尖沙咀 and bought a pair of earrings (I had them before, but I lost one ear in Japan so I had to buy another pair)~
We had dinner at 王家沙 at 九龍唐 before heading back home~

May 24
Breakfast and then church~
Met up with Ivan for the afternoon~
Watched Angels & Demons - a good movie~
Afternoon tea at Delifrance and had a good chat~ =)
Back to 上水 for dinner with Uncle, Auntie and Sally at a nice Japanese restaurant~
Had raw beef, uni, oysters, fish liver and puffer fish! ...mmMMmm... =P
Wanted to go to 深圳 for the night for a massage, but I didn't have my Visa so we postponed it to next time~ ^-^
Going to miss this family more than anything actually, cuz they've been so nice to me and we've become such good friends over the years~

May 25
Last-minute packing and headed out around 1pm~
It was raining cats and dogs outside and it drained every ounce of energy I had in me in order to successfully drag my big luggage down under the passageway and back up again to get to the other side of the street to the bus stop~
=________=;;
But I made it somehow~
3:35pm flight back out to Taiwan~


Thanks to everyone for making this break truly wonderful~
Went to a place I've always dreamed about going to - and loved it just as I thought I would~
Saw many familiar faces that I haven't seen in a long time~=)


I wish my break was longer - I really enjoyed these 12 days~
This break was the highlight of my exchange cuz it was just so much fun~ =)
Now I'm back to reality and back to tons of awaiting work~
Last month of school - time to pay my dues after 3 months of play~ =P


Pictures on Facebook!
Tokyo (I)
Tokyo (II)
HK Visits - March to June 2009

Upcoming
May 30-June 1 -> PengHu (澎湖) trip with Sarah and Haley - toured around by Tony~ =)
June 1-4 -> SChan & Vean come to Taiwan!
June 20-23 -> 睛 & 嘉 come to Taiwan!
June 23 -> End of term~
June 24/26 -> Pack everything and head back to HK


**pants** that was a long post - my hands are tired and it's getting really late - night!

A Recovering Taipei Weekend.

I'm coughing... Yup - again...
Oh man... I'm so tired of this cycle...
I don't know if I'm sick or if it's allergies anymore...
I don't really have the stuffed nose I normally have with colds, yet I'm coughing.
It didn't help that I had only 1 hour of sleep on Tuesday night because of 2 presentations I had to do on Wednesday either.
Maybe I really can't live in Asia since I've never been sick so many times in a span of 4 months in Toronto.
Not even that many times within a year, actually...
I feel like I've been constantly sick for the past month and a half with a few days rest in between each time. =(

Oh well, that aside, here's my weekend. =)
Didn't do anything too exciting because I was really tired and feeling sick a lot of the time.

Thursday - Ate at the A380 Airbus restaurant - it was just interesting... lolz... felt like it.
Friday - Good dinner at 永康街 area, watched X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Saturday - Was supposed to hit the beach, but felt too sick, so I stayed home... >.<
Sunday - Basically Japan planning all day and barely any work done. lolz. Enough said.

I actually wanted to join this singing competition that they have here, but I realized that I'll be in HK for their final date so I decided not to go audition.
But if I were here, I think I would've tried out. For fun. =)
Need to brush up on my singing - haven't really practiced in a long time.
I want my karaoke discs, my mic and a singing partner~~~~~~~~ >.<

Upcoming
May 13 -> Flight to HK
May 14-19 -> Tokyo, Japan (so excited~~~~~)
May 20-25 -> HK

Seoul, Korea

Sorry for the late update, but here are the details for my trip to Korea from April 19 - May 4 with Sarah! =)

April 29
Went to only 1 of the 2 classes today, packed and left for Seoul, Korea!
Arrived at 9:45pm and Sarah had a friend's uncle's family come pick us up from the airport.
Basically, ever since I left for Korea, I've become clueless like this -> o.O??
Don't understand a word of Korean, except "Hello", "Thank You", and "How Much Is This?"
Sarah's good though - full out convo in Korean all night. And I'm still like o.O?
hahahaha...
After settling in, the uncle's family took us out to eat some snacks and desserts with coffee~ =)
They were goood desserts - especially the Strawberry Crepe Cake. s2

April 30
Tired as heck this morning from lack of sleep... lolz...
Sarah's friend's mom came to help us exchange money, figure out our plans for the next few days and then we ate breakfast together~
We took an hour bus ride to the Korean Folk Village for some touristy stuph.
Took the wrong bus back out so it took us longer than it would've taken to get back to town.
Crazy hungry so we ate snacks along the way. =)
Came across the grand opening of a Krispy Kreme store and Toronto doesn't have it anymore so I had to buy one.
Turns out that I couldn't even order 1 original donut without Sarah's help with the language. =____=;;
But it was a gooooood donut. =)
Went back to the Sinchon area and met up with the Yonsei girls for dinner and make-up shopping! =)
We wanted desserts, but places were closing up so we headed over to Karaoke.
Yes - I did karaoke in Korea too... haha... there are no places that I don't SING~ s2
They mostly had older mandarin songs so they actually brought back a lot of my high school memories.

May 1
Checked out and was out the door by 6am this morning.
The uncle's family drove us down to Busan - southern part of Korea.
6 hour drive - constantly over 140km/hr... craziness... LOL...
Slept a lot and ate a lot throughout the ride down.
Visited the Beomosa temple and then the Taejongdae coastal lookout point.
Dinner in the Guangaali beach area - it was like a Korean 西貢~
Pick your fresh seafood and they prepare - except it was all sashimi~ =)
Stayed at a pretty ghetto hotel for the night cuz we didn't make reservations beforehand and it was a long weekend - many hotels didn't have any rooms available.

May 2
Visited the Fish Market in the morning, ate lunch there and chilled in downtown Busan.
Started our drive back to Seoul, which turned out to be over 7 hours long cuz of traffic and everything.... =______=;;
Dinner at a restaurant with good bulgogi.
Shopping at Dongdaemun - the shops that are open until 4am everyday. =)
Cuz of a mix up (not our fault), we ended up without a hotel for the night, so we hit the 24 hour sauna instead.
It was actually quite nice, although I didn't get much sleep for the night - maybe 3 hours?
Tiredness to the max... lolz~

May 3
Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) Tour - 1/2 day - visited 3 sites~
- 3rd Tunnel - infiltration tunnel the North Korean built that was only 53km from Seoul when it was discovered and blocked by South Korea
The hike back up the tunnel was deadly... lolz... used every ounce of energy and muscle i had in me cuz it was so long and steep...
- Observatory - lookout to North korea, their flag and the propagana village
- Dorasan Station - the station that will be used when the North and South become 1 country again
Back out to the city and shopped in Myeong-dong.
Had a fancy Korean dinner with the family and then settled in our hotel.

May 4
Back to Taipei with an early 9:30am flight - which meant we had to head out of our hotel by 6am.

I think I averaged about 4 hours of sleep each day all weekend.
And I'm the type that needs at least 7 hours to function.
Crazy tired - coffee was my friend all weekend even when I usually don't do coffee.

Regardless, it was a ton of fun~~~

Pictures on Facebook!
Korea (I)
Korea (II)
Korea (III)
Korea (IV)

Back from HK for the 2nd Time

Back from HK again!
Still love that place even though I've gone back so many times lately.
It just feels so much more like home. hehe*

Anyways, here's the recap of my eventful weekend!

April 15
Afternoon class canceled so I took an earlier 4:35pm flight out to HK.
Took China Airlines this time - much worse food compared to Cathay. lolz.
Went to 上水 to settle down.
Was supposed to have dinner with SChan, but we decided that it was getting late so we pushed it to another day.
Cooked up some noodles for dinner and had a nice chat with auntie.

April 16
Shop, dinner and desserts at 尖沙咀 with Windy! =)
It's so nice chatting with her.
Thanks for coming out to see me!
Major shopping day - 2 tops, pair of jean shorts, pair of sandals, small clubbing bag.

April 17
Lunch with Ada at 九龍唐 - haven't seen her in quite a while, even in Toronto.
Then I went back to 上水 myself for a 半日游~ haha...
Actually, I needed to ask travel agencies about airfares to Beijing in July and about tour packages for my trip with SChan in May~
I also needed to take pictures to make the 上水 resident card and I needed to find a 祖兒 magazine.
It's just that everything took me a couple of hours to finish and I was just sort of feeling my way around the area to find the appropriate places so I called it a 半日游.
Dinner at CUHK with SChan cuz she was really busy with projects and exams.

April 18
Chill day!
Went out only in the late afternoon to pick up the pictures that I took yesterday and to book my flight out to Beijing to meet up with my family in July! =)
Auntie cooked a home meal for me dinner and it felt so nice.
I miss home-cooked food so much ever since I left home. =(
Another good chat with auntie after dinner - gained a lot of good insight. ^-^

April 19
Church this morning - really like the church here in HK.
Out to the airport to see Danny for a bit.
Then out to eat and drink a bit with SChan at 九龍唐.
Back to CX City for the night.

April 20
Lunch with Eli at 尖沙咀 and then just walked/chilled around 旺角 area.
Nice to see her too since I haven't seen her in a while.
Back to CX City to pack.
Flight back to Taiwan at 8:05pm.
Felt like I took a shower on the way back to my rez cuz it just had to start pouring rain the moment I step out of the taxi.
I did have an umbrella, luckily, but I still got quite wet.
We all hate Taiwan weather... lolz.

Currently
I feel like I've been continuously sick (with different things) for the past few weeks. >.<

• Food poisoning for a few days.
• Loss of voice for a few days.
• Dry coughing for over 2 weeks - got better and then got worse again.
• Weird increase in loss of hair lately... =T this is the most scary part...
• Growing out wisdom tooth - in the wrong way.
  

I think I need to see a doctor soon. lolz.
But I don't want to take the crazy unknown medicine he prescribes... >.<
I guess I'll see by this Thursday if I need to see a doctor or not.

Coming Up

• April 29 - May 4 -> 6-Day South Korea trip with Sarah!
• May 14/15 - May 18/19 -> 5-Day Tokyo tour with SChan - departing from HK.
  (still saving most other parts of Japan for my grad trip! but I needed a trip with SChan and she preferred Japan so I didn't mind)
• May 19/20 - May 25 -> HK
  (since I have to fly out to HK to meet up with SChan for the tour anyways, might as well stay an extra few days before going back)

Touristy Weekend

After having explored most of Taipei City already, we decided to do some touristy things this weekend to pass time and to satisfy all the planning that Sarah has been doing over the past 2 weeks. haha.

April 9
Went to 野柳 (Yeliou) Geological Park with Mike and Sarah.
The park is known for its natural rock formations.
Touches upon the north coast so it was really nice.
It was too chilly to really feel like we were at the coast though.
Taipei is experiencing one of its coolest springs this year, apparently.
Unlucky us. =(

April 10
Went to 陽明山 for the second time - this time with Sarah, Erica, Tony and Jack.
Only did hot springs last time I came, so we went to other parts of the mountain this time.
Saw some pretty flower gardens in the 竹子湖 area and a volcanic crater at the 小油坑 area. =)
Jack and Erica had to leave early so Sarah, Tony and I hit the hot springs again. ^-^
Clubbing at night with Sarah and the NTU bunch at Room 18~
Fun times. =)

April 12
Nothing touristy today - just karaoke with Jack and Jeff! =)
hehehe... second time in Taiwan - but this time was so much more fun!
Easter Sunday church service at night.
Followed our routine and grabbed a 葡撻 at KFC before going back home.
Work on BP presentation with Sarah and then researched our Korea trip~

Pictures!
Taiwan (VI)
Taiwan (VII)

Upcoming
HK -> April 15-20
Korea -> April 29-May 4
Philippines/Singapore (Thailand's too dangerous) -> sometime between May 14-25

Sick

First time getting sick ever since coming abroad.
And guess what I got?
Food poisoning... lolz...
It's not even from Taiwan though - I think it's from HK food. =T

So I went to see the doc and he gave me 4 types of pills to take 4 times a day = 16 pills a day in total~ =_______=;;
Asian docs are scary...
Along with food poisoning, I have now developed a dry cough as well as a minor loss of voice... >.<
These are the weirdest symptoms EVER, I must say... haha...
But I should be better now in terms of the food poisoning at least~ =)

On the bright side, I've planned more trips out of Taipei~
We've done everything in Taipei so we're looking for places outside of it~ =P

April 11/12 weekend -> not sure, but hopefully somewhere else in Taiwan (but outside of Taipei)
April 15-20 -> HK again... =) to see Lg and to celebrate our anni early this year
April 29-May 4 -> Seoul, Korea! hehe*
May 14-25 -> Singapore/Thailand with SChan and then probably HK in between to see Lg again~

Back from HK

Just back from a 5-day HK trip -March 25 until March 30~
I must say, I'm feeling kinda "bleh" right now... >.< which kinda sucks...
I miss Lg so much, especially after being with him again for so many days~
And it was a lot of fun hanging out with SChan and Angel too~
*sigh... Now I'm back to school and my room/bed...

Anyways, here is what I did~

March 25
Had class in Taiwan until 5pm~
Took 8:20pm night flight out to HK and arrived around 10pm~
Lg was there to pick me up and we went back to his place in 上水~
Just settled in for the night and chilled around~
Got hungry and ordered McDonald's delivery at 1am... haha... such a nice service~ =P

March 26
Lunch with Sam and Lg @ 朗豪坊 at my favourite HK restaurant - Cafe Suzuki~ =)
Went with the guys to shop for their toys... lolz~
I ended up buying Athena 公主 too - she was too pretty to pass up~ =P
Dinner with SChan and ran into a Canadian couple who could tell that we were Canadian based on the English we spoke... o.O
Clubbing at LKF (蘭桂坊) for the first time!
It was ladies night so we hopped to 2 places since the 1st club was kinda crappy - feel sorry for Lg and the other guy's wallet~ ^-^;;

March 27
First day of standby for Lg - attempt #1!
I went to 灣仔 to get some admin stuph done for my HKID application so I couldn't go with Lg to the airport~
The process took over 2 hours, but I'm finally approved for it and I have my picture and thumb prints taken... =________=;;
Lg couldn't get on the flight so he joined me again after dinner for karaoke @ CEO with Angel and SChan~
aww, I miss canto karaoke so much (esp with close friends)... hehe*
Red Box next time tho cuz they have good mando and canto songs - CEO doesn't have enough mando~

March 28
Standby day 2 for Lg - attempt #2!
I went with him to the airport this time so we had a nice lunch at the airport revolving sushi~
Still couldn't get on... =( so he was asked got go back past midnight again~
Dinner with his colleagues at a famous 燒鵝 restaurant in 深井 and then desserts at a nearby dessert place~ =)
CX room party back at Headland~
Went with Lg to the airport for standby again past 1am - attempt #3!
Finally got on! =)
I went back to the room party and stayed the night at Headland since they had an extra room for me~

March 29
Got my long awaited haircut - can finally see through my bangs now~ =P
Stayed the day in MK (旺角)~
Shopped a bit with SChan and then took sticker pics with her, Angel and Natalie before we all parted~
I had dinner myself and then started my real shopping in MK~ hehehe*

March 30
Last day in HK... =(
Packed and headed out to the airport to leave for Taiwan~
I shall be back. =P

Bliss... and remembering how to smile~ =)

Taipei -- Been sunny and warm all weekend basically (lucky us)

Danny and Sam arrived on Thursday (March 19) as optimistically planned~

I must say, I loved every minute of my weekend with them. =)

I haven't smiled like I have this weekend in a while (not that I don't smile, but u know it's just not the same)~ =P

And I can finally relate to some canto friends~ I think I just miss my canto friends too much so I feel like automatically hovering close to anyone I hear who speaks canto when I hang out in Taiwan~ =P I need to brush up on my canto too... mixing a lot of it up with mando now... XD

Anyways, here's what we've been doing:

March 19

Picked the both of them up from the airport to settle into our hotel and then went out to 世門町 to eat some snacks and some desserts~
Out hotel was 富順 and it was about a 10 minute walk from Taipei Main Station - they kinda had ghetto dark hallways when we got there, but the room isn't that bad~ =)
Again, anything for an actual bed~ =P
Later on the night, we went out to meet up with Mike, Sarah, Jeff and Jack at 士林 Night Market for some goood food~ =)
Lg got me some cute toys from those machines and games~ ^-^
And we all got a 30 minute foot massage~ hahaha... it wasn't THAT bad, but it did hurt~ =P
Felt really good afterwards though~ =)

March 20
Happy Birthday, Lg!
Went to 淡水 area to eat and just walk around the nice river area~
Then went to 美麗華 mall to go on the Ferris Wheel (watch 換換愛)~ hehehehe* s2
Lovely dinner at Taipei 101 85th Floor to celebrate Lg's birthday~ s2
Good food, good wine and a good chat about life with my favourite man and favourite bro above Taipei City~ hehehe*

March 21
Visit to NCCU and my rez! =) They also used the Internet in the student lounge for a bit~ =P
Taipei Zoo to see the Panda - so cute, but they were only showing one of them~ =T
Out to 忠孝敦化(復興) area to EAT - 草莓工房 all-you-can-eat desserts for 下午茶, A-Z Pasta place for dinner right after~
Desserts again at Taipei Main Station after the guys visited a huge Gundam store~
Back to 世門町 so the guys could go to the batting cage~ =)
Omg... I think I had like 6 meals today, including the 3 main meals and the snacks and desserts...

March 22
陽明山 for hot springs - really relaxing~ hehe*
Loved it and wished we could stay the night~ =)
The last 3 days basically killed our feet from all the walking from day til night so it was a nice change to just relax~
2 dinners at 世門町 - 1 with just the 3 of us at a Jap restaurant and then Curry with Sarah, Haley and Devin~
The guys paid another visit to the batting cage before heading back to an Internet Cafe beside our hotel~ =)

March 23
Happy 3 years and 11 months, Lg! =) Time passes by so quickly~
Last day that they're in Taiwan, but we just chilled around - eating (as usual) and shopping~
The guys shopped in the 地下街's around Taipei Main Station for toys and models - I finally found my Charlie and the Chocolate Factory BearBrick! hehe* not cheap, but worth it~ =)
Spent 2 hours in the Internet cafe cuz we didn't feel like walking around anywhere~
The guys left for the airport around 6pm and I went back to rez~


They had a really nice weekend in terms of weather - barely any rain and it was always warm! =)
I had a lot of fun eating a week's worth of food in like a day, but I was able to walk it off cuz we were walking non-stop~
I'm gonna miss them around here in Taiwan cuz it was just so much fun, but I'll see them again in HK - leaving on March 25! =)


Pics still to come! =)
Sam had the nice DSLR so I didn't take any pics~ hehe*
I'll post some when I get them from him~ ^-^


To Come....
March 25 - 30 -> HK trip - visiting my beloved SChan and Angel! =) (and doing some admin things for my HKID card application process)

Back From Tainan Trip

Taipei --- Sunny

Just got back from a 2 days, 1 night trip to Tainan (台南) with Sarah, Haley, Jack, Sean and Devin - hoping to skip the rainy and cold weather in Taipei~
The first day was still quite chilly, to our surprise, but the second day was nice and sunny~ =)
Taiwan has such crazy weather~
Felt so good to have a mattress to sleep on for a night~
And the people there are even more nice and 親切 than the people in Taipei~

March 14
Took a 4.5 hour bus ride @ 8am out to Tainan~
We asked around for directions and tourist attractions at the main train station there and then settled in our hotel before heading out~
Ate some Tainan delicacy food - 擔仔麵 - and then went to the Confucius temple~
On the way back to our hotel, we came across a tea shop and they invited us to mash some tea leaves in the traditional way since we were tourists~
Then the tea 師父 invited us in and personally made us some tea while a girl explained tea traditions to us~
They gave us some bread and guava to go with the tea too - so nice!
Most of us bought some tea as souvenirs for family and they gave us free tea cans and almond snacks to go with what we bought~
Then we went to the biggest night market in Taiwan in Tainan (or so I've heard)~
It's different from the night markets in Taipei because the ones in Taipei are actual streets whereas this was just one HUGE piece of land with all the stands crowded in together.
LOVED the food. =)
I think I gained so much weight just eating that night... =T hahaha~ *sigh...

March 15
Headed out at 8:30am to 安平古堡 area to look at the Old Fort and eat around the streets there~
Two of the guys left for home first and the rest of us went to visit the 安平 Treehouse - which was really cool~
Visited an old street and ate some more Taiwanese snacks before heading out to the harbour area~
Sarah and Haley bought a kite and we spent some time there just chilling since we were all so tired~
Ate another delicacy for dinner, 棺材板 (Coffin Bread), had dessert and then took our 5 hour bus ride back to Taipei~
By the time we got back home, it was around 1:30am~
Tiredddd...

But I had lots of fun and ate lots of good food~ =)

Pics on Facebook! (you don't need an account to view them)
Tainan (台南) 1
Tainan (台南) 2
Tainan (台南) 3

To Come....
March 19 - 23 -> Sam and Danny arriving - 4.5 day tour around Taipei led by ME... hehe*
March 25 - 30 -> HK trip - visiting my beloved SChan and Angel! =) (and doing some admin things for my HKID card application process)

Feelings in Taiwan

Sunny (actually, it has been raining and cold all week, except today...)


I've been lazy to update ever since I got here and my emotions were getting the better of me too. =T


First Thoughts
I must admit that I was taken by surprise when I first arrived in Taiwan.
Everything looked very old to me within the area of my school - NCCU.
My residence was also a shock - very dusty, buggy, smelly, etc.
So my first 2 weeks were very hard to adjust to. =(
Many of us wanted to move out to nearby apartment units, but we decided to suck it up in the end.
I met some friends from NTU and their residences are much nicer and their school is in the city too - *sigh...
I avoid staying home as much as possible nowadays.
Also, even though I understand bits of mandarin, the fact that I couldn't use English anywhere kind of created a language barrier - which I didn't think would've been a problem until I got here.

On the bright side, the city is really nice, things are quite inexpensive and the night life is much cooler than Toronto. =)


Classes
I'm enrolled in the MBA program at the school here and I must say that the classes are still quite easy. lolz.
I only have a total of 4 classes spread out on Tuesday's and Wednesday's - so I have 2 three-hour classes a day. =)
A very nice schedule, I must say, so I have a 5-day weekend to travel around Taiwan and internationally as well.

Here are the courses I'm taking:

• Demand Chain Management - Tuesday 9am-12pm
• Business Policy - Tuesday 2pm-5pm
• Media & Globalization - Wednesday 9am-12pm
  (this is a non-business course and is actually quite hard... =T but it's pass/fail... so w/e)
  
• Web Technologies - Wednesday 2pm-5pm
  

Only thing is that all classes require class participation so I can't really skip...
But I have 10 days off in May because the University Holiday falls exactly on the 2 days that I have class. =P


Currently
I'm just settling into my courses and seeing when it would be best to travel. =)
I've found some friends outside of my school to hang out with - friends of some friends in NCCU who attend NTU or who are just visiting Taiwan.

I went to quite a few lounge and clubs within the first week in Taiwan since all the Europeans are crazy party-ers - they hit the clubs/lounges at least twice a week.
But I don't really like the late-night outs and I don't think Danny likes it much either so I don't go to those parties much now~
I like my chill group now~
We don't go home early every night, but we just do other things rather than clubbing or drinking - like drinking traditional tea, movie-ing, night market-ing, eating good long dinners, shopping, etc.~ =)
Everything here is really cheap, actually - especially food. =P

I'm still a little homesick and feel especially so when I'm alone in my depressing-looking room.
It's ok during the day, but the metal-locker-looking closets and beds really bug me once it gets dark outside - don't ask why.
They just pull down my mood. lolz.
I've already gotten used to the dirtiness and the bugs, though, so it's a good start. =)

I webcam a lot with family and friends so that I feel much better.
I miss them so much!


Coming Soon
We've done a lot within Taipei already so I think we're hitting Tainan this weekend so I can see some artifacts in the southern part of Taiwan and eat some good local food.

Danny and Sam are arriving to find me in a little more than a week's time - March 19!
I miss my bf and bro so much! ^-^
Can't wait to see their familiar faces.

Hitting HK either 2nd or 3rd week of April to visit my beloved SChan~~ =)
We're gonna have a blast!
I need to shop - can't seem to find much clothing I like here - so I haven't really spent much on shopping.
I've spent most of my money so far on necessities and my long d phone bill. =P

Visiting Singapore in May with SChan during my 10 day break~~ yeaa~~


More updates later! =)

At the Airport

Hazy...

I'm sitting at the Hong Kong International Airport right now.
Kind of nervous and quite excited at the same time. =)
I've heard so many thing about Taiwan, but still don't know what to expect.
Update more later.