Taiwan, the beautiful island with magnificent cliffs and breathtaking sea views, captured my heart during this 15-day graduation trip. I have to admit that on a side note, the rugged tanned-skin surfer boys at Kenting also played a part in making this vacation a memorable one.

Of course, a great company equals to a great trip. My dear university friends are one helluva bunch that are naturally humorous, making the best laughs and companions during our adventures in Taiwan. I cannot be anymore thankful to have them create these wonderful moments together in this amazing place.

Upon arriving in Taoyuan Airport, I was quickly refreshed from our 6-hour flight (supposed to be 4 hours but somehow we were flying longer than supposed and even had a karaoke session in the plane).

Note that I don't speak fluent Chinese which is why I am thankful that my friends not only laugh at my inefficiency with the language but also taught me some of the useful phrases in case I wandered off with some hot Taiwanese guy...ANYWAY, we were quick to get a bus to Taichung which we nearly missed (always so dramatic with this group of people) because there were 12-13 of us, yes, so many of us that I don't remember exactly how many that came along.

After a few hours of bus ride, we finally reached Taichung and started searching for our hostel. We initially dragged our luggage to the supposed place but realized that we were at the wrong landmark. And there we were, 12-13 of us, dragging our luggage across streets, roads, and even the night market where everyone was staring at us.

We were all decked up swag swag, but this sudden exercise made us sweat like pigs in the hot summer night. God, I already knew that this trip would be filled with crazy and nonsense but dragging our luggage across Taichung streets, man, it was some out-of-the-world workout!

Of course we finally reached our destination and was even reluctant to have our dinner at the night market after all the dragging for more than an hour. But still, we were already in Taiwan, so let's just have fun!

I have to admit that the night market food was so damn good that it's shameless to even compare it to the ones at our local night market! The pictures do no justice again, as always, because I have again failed to take nice photos of them.

I bought myself a few T-shirts, a short pants and some socks as souvenirs. I think it was too early to be doing the shopping but you know, when the feeling comes, you just gotta go get it. On a side note, it is best to shop at Taichung as the fashion there is more up to date and not to mention that the prices are quite affordable as well. 

After an impossible night of sleep due to the break down of our air conditioner which was a big boo boo because it was freaking summer in Taiwan so the level of hotness was magma (exaggerating but you get me), we managed to get our sweaty bodies up for breakfast before heading to the first touristy place, Sun Moon Lake!

Had the touristy herbal egg which was okay-okay but highlight was definitely drinking Red Tea with the aboriginals (I hope that's the proper way to address them) at one of our stops. Also, I was flipping when I saw the wall with a poster of all the tribes in Taiwan that I had to be a part of, representing Pocahontas!

We had night market for dinner again, obviously, which I will skip entirely to the next day where we went to Monster Village up in the hills. We had a short stop at a cute castle selling souvenirs and as usual I got my hands on some of it.

I actually quite like Monster Village because the buildings, fog and pine forests really creates the mysterious feeling there. Anyway the highlight food, for me, was the Passion Fruit Milk Ice-Cream which was DA BOMB OH YAS. Even the Taiwanese Braised Pork Rice (滷肉飯) couldn't beat it. The ice-cream obviously had a sweet fragrance but the rice had a pork-ish smell so no thanks. Check out my happy face with my ice-cream below.

The next morning, I was pumped up simply because we were going to Alishan Scenic Area, which if you are Asian enough to know that there is a song about the Alishan Lady, so in regards to that I was excited to go see the mountain instead of the lady.

Before that we visited a temple and were lucky to be able to witness a ceremony going on. It was freaking hot but it couldn't stop us from being curious and gawking at the possessed guy. There were some who were also dressed as a deity walking around performing rituals and what not.

We were unlucky as it rained while we were getting ready to go for a hike. You see, I wanted to surprise myself so I didn't google for all the places in the itinerary. It was a good way to give yourself some excitement but it was extremely silly because you might not be prepared for it.

At this point of time, exercising had long gone from my lifestyle and I was a jelly blob when I arrived at Taiwan. The sudden need to go up and down the mountain was so tedious I thought I was going to fall anytime soon. The drivers who came along kept assuring us that the next turn would be the end but we knew it wasn't because every turn led to another turn, KILL ME.

Alishan was actually not bad but the rain and the lack of stamina really spoiled everything. If you love nature and would like to be amazed by those huge cypress trees that can fit all 13 of us, Alishan is the best place to visit!

Thank goodness we had Alishan to train us for the upcoming days as we were walking and exercising like there was no tomorrow. Half way trekking I even joked that instead of gaining weight like what we were all expecting, we might even lose a few pounds from all these walking and climbing.

We were than transported to Kaohsiung (see how I use 'transported' instead because we were all like dead tuna fishes in the van after Alishan) and headed straight to Liuhe Night Market at Kaohsiung. It was much more colourful there and by the way our Kaohsiung hostel was DA BOMB OH YAS. Anyway, I bought all the masks I needed to throw at my friends' faces back in KL at one of the cute Japanese stores along the streets of the night market.

I also couldn't get over the papaya milk which I think is one of the best drinks in Taiwan, as well as the Bittergourd Milk, which I find simply delicious and satisfying. I can't really remember what we had at the night market but it wasn't exceptionally delicious I think, which is why it wasn't deserved any space in my memory.

Anyhow, after that we said goodbye to one of our drivers who decided that we were too much for him to handle so he quit his job...Nah, actually he had to go pick up another tour so his boss will take over tomorrow onward. By the way, he has a good looking son in Australia working as an engineer so I am gonna miss our driver because he won't be able to show his handsome offspring's picture to us anymore boohoo.

 

The next morning we went to the Pier-2 Art Center where there were art installations and wall arts everywhere. It was fun but the hot sun really killed us all. I managed to get a cuppa when one of the boys went to W Jewelery to get a DIY necklace there.

Right after that we headed to the Hamasan Railway Cultural Park which had really beautiful sculptures made from the railway steels, bolts and nuts! While my friends were all over the place taking photos, I was hiding under a tree because I simply cannot force myself to look decent for photos under those piercing rays of Mr. Sun.

I think the sun really wiped out every happy energy we had which was I think, apparent on all of our faces. So the lovely drivers drove us to a dessert parlor, Da Wan Gong (大碗公) where we had the XXXXXXXL fruit bowl with shaved ice. It was really, really delicious especially during such a weather!

After quenching our thirst, we were on board to Cijin Island which was a 5-minute ferry boat ride from the Kaohsiung Harbour. Alternatively if you are prone to seasickness, you can just drive to the island.

Upon arrival, we quickly scouted for cheap bike rentals as it was much easier to go around the small island with a bike. At the end, I opted for a 4-seater bicycle-slash-trishaw with the other 3 girls while Claudia decided to join the boys on their cute scooters.

The first stop was the humongous art piece of Cijin Sea Pearl. I absolutely love it and also the fact that my flying dab was so successful there. After numerous attempts of jumping which made us perspire so much, we headed over to the really cute love statue for a group photo minus the jumping before heading to Rainbow Church.

After the mandatory group photo we continued our journey to the Starlight Tunnel which was supposed to be filled with glow-in-the-dark stickers. Sadly, due to vandalism, a lot of it were gone so we only had the view and some wind at the other end of the the tunnel for compensation.

And when I thought our Cijin Island tour has ended, we stopped next at the Cihou Fort where we had to walk up a slope which I almost tumbled down due to my jelly legs from cycling. The view of the island at the top was amazing nonetheless but the fort had its own share of creepiness which I shall not explain here. You can go experience for yourself if you are curious.

Please clap for my super-ultra flying dab. Thank you.

After two continuous days of leg day (hiking Alishan and cycling around Cijin Island), I think my legs passed out the moment I went up the van. We were then driven to this temple located on a hill and can only be accessed by a flight of stairs.

At this point of time, the driver said that if we were too tired, we can all just go back but we thought why not go up since we were already there. I cannot tell you how many times I almost fell on the stairs because my legs were already jelly. We rested awhile up there and I managed to take this lovely photo of what used to be a port or harbour.

Next stop was the Formosa Boulevard Station which houses the beautiful and largest glass work in the world, Narcissus Quagliata's "Dome of Light". Thank goodness there were no stairs or slopes because my legs would have just broke on the spot. We took a few shots with this artwork and headed to the famous Love River.

Sadly, it was drizzling and we were so damn ass tired so we were like, "Err no let's just go to a shopping mall." It is known that the night view along the Love River is really breathtaking. Too bad, nature hated us and decided to pour when we were looking forward to a night cruise.

To the shopping mall we went and surprisingly I didn't feel tired anymore and my legs were sturdy boom boom. I guess shopping really does have a positive effect on anyone no matter the situation and circumstances. Bought souvenirs, again OH YAS I LOVE SHOPPING.

After a good sleep at the hostel, we were all set for Kenting! I was actually very excited because in the whole of Taiwan, summer is most best experienced in Kenting because summer and beaches are a good match, especially when it means hot bod surfer dudes walking around you hehehehe

We first stop at a rest area and the view there was amazing enough to convince me that Kenting is haven because the ocean was so, so blue and clear, I mean even a simple rest stop can make sure that the beach and ocean at their backyard stays clean and untouched. Come on Malaysians, we need to learn how to love our beaches too.

Top: The crazy clear blue ocean behind the cute little rest stop at Kenting. | Middle: Up on the gates of the castle town. | Below: Preparations for the ghost festival is up!

While we were at the Hengchun Old Town, we spotted this structure built for an event known as 'Qiang Gu' (race for the oblation). During the ghost festival, offerings to the hungry spirits will be given away to the poor who fought for the offerings causing accidents and death among themselves.

To solve the problem, the Taiwanese government decided to put these offerings on top of this structure so that only those who can climb to the top will get their share. This activity is furthered made difficult with the poles covered in oil. However that was in the past, now this annual activity became some sort of a festival game that can be participated by anyone as long as they are up for the challenge to climb the oily pole!

After that we headed to Xingsha Bay and decided to take a group photo inspired by the hit high school movie, 'You Are The Apple of My Eye'. 

We also took a glimpse of the light blue water (核三廠出海口) which if I am not mistaken that it's colour is the result of the Maanshan Nuclear Power Plant nearby before heading to Little Bali Rock (小巴里島岩) to get a dip in the cooling water.

After that we visited Maobitou Park (貓鼻頭公園) where the highlight was the shape of the limestone reef which resembles a crouching cat, formed by the strong waves of the sea.

Right after that we went to the famous Cape No. 7 landmark or fondly known as Aga's house in the movie of the the same name to get unique postcards. That was the first time in Taiwan that I realized that they had so many shapes and sizes for the postcards which even came in the form of a mini glass bottle where you can send with your paper message inside. I didn't get any because at that time I wasn't convinced that you could actually send a bottle message oversea!

There was an ice-cream parlor right opposite Aga's house which we never got to try because it looked so classy which we assumed to be expensive. Eventually I looked up about that place after the trip and they seem to serve delicious gelato. Dang, regretted not stopping for a gelato! Check them out here at Terreno Gelato.

The drivers then brought us to Nanwan Beach for awhile but it was just too hot and the sand was burning our poor feet. We then decided to head over to the seaside hill, Guan Shan, to enjoy the breathtaking sunset together. Thank goodness we were there early which means we got to get the best spot! Even though the wait was a little bit painful because there were a lot of mosquitoes and there was nothing to do there except waiting for the sunset to happen. This explains the amount of GIFs I have moving around below:

Though I was saddened by the end of the sunset which lasted for only a few minutes, I couldn't deny that I was famished.

Drivers then dropped us at the end of the Kenting night market where we ate our first night market food of the night, Pizza Swell aka Bobo Pizza! We ordered Hawaiian which had pineapple with bacon and Seafood which comprised of octopus, shrimps, onion, green pepper and olive. Due to the fact that it was baked in a traditional oven made it even more delicious. Not to forget, the cashier boy stole my heart that instance I saw him. That tan and rugged look, plus that cute little man bun, oh boy...

Well I stared at him long enough for him to respond with an annoyed look. Sorry but not sorry.

First night in Kenting ended with us visiting Langkawi Bar, where one of the boys from our group was the chosen one to get a boob slap from one of the trans dancer. We had a great laugh that night though he was clearly disturbed by the whole ordeal! Evil friends we were as we moved away to make way for the dancer to get on to his lap before stripping and slapping his head between her boobs.

After a good night of sleep, we were up and ready for a series of stops along the Kenting National Park. First up was Sail Rock which had an Abraham Lincoln head facing the horizon. The hostels right opposite this place looks really great too with interesting exteriors.

Stop number two was the most southern point of Taiwan (臺灣最南點碑) followed by our third stop at the Longpan Park where we admired the view of the Bashi Channel and beyond. The boys also decided to record a short clip for their music video and it was clearly embarrassing for them to run and take off their shirt in public but nevertheless I felt proud of them for giving all out to make us laugh.

The last stop along the Kenting National Park was Wind Blow Sand, literally I translated it from it's Chinese name, 風吹沙 hahahaha

At this point of time we were already feeling the burnt and I suspected my hair got fried too from this intense exposure to the sun and sea breeze.

Too let us chill a little, our driver took us to one of his favourite places to stay whenever he comes over to Kenting for a holiday, the South Border DeSign Hotel. The moment we saw it from afar, we were already making noise in the van because it was beautifully sitting on top of the hilly meadows and it had those Santorini feels to it!

The 12 of us immediately filled the small area of the porch upon arrival and treated the whole affair as though we were staying for the night. After all the hoo-haa we went upstairs with the drivers and chilled at the balcony.

Last activity for the day was the most painful and torturing one for me, water sports at Nanwan Beach. I rather burn myself by visiting other spots at the Kenting National Park than getting thrown out of floats and jet skis into the deep blue ocean. I can't swim and have a serious fear of the ocean and pools.

But since everyone was so gung-ho and excited, I didn't want to say no and spoil the atmosphere. We were allowed to choose 3 water sports and I somehow managed to convince everyone that banana boat must be out of the list because we can do banana boat back in Malaysia. Secretly, I knew there was no running away from the water if one were to be on that banana boat. Thankfully my group agreed and forgotten about that and moved on to picking the others.

We agreed on two activities that involves all of us on a float which will be dragged by the jet ski (we split into 2 teams just in case you are wondering) with the third activity as jet skiing aka scary scary scary.

I cannot explain how nervous I was for the first two activities especially during the second one where Chai who was right behind me, cling on for his life while his legs were bouncing off the float! I had one hand on the float handle and another holding on to his arm just in case he might fall off. Thankfully the jet ski guy turn back a few times and noticed something was a missed and stop immediately to let Chai get back on the float. This happen twice. And twice is enough to make me feel tired from all the gancheong-ness and screaming. 

Also, not to mention it was arm day because the amount of strength I used to make sure I don't fly off the floats were totally out of the world. I think the float handles were disfigured by my grip (please don't laugh, feel pity for me instead).

Last but not least, it was jet ski time. The moment I got on the jet ski, I shamelessly bear hug the guy which made him cough a little. Claudia sat behind me and I told her that if anything happens, don't drag me into the water. It was much more terrifying than the floats because the sharp turns really made me felt like I was falling off the jet ski. Also, the amount of leg strength used to make sure I stay on the jet ski whenever he made those turns, man...this is leg day again!

When he swerved to the left, my right leg pressed so hard to the side. When he swerved to the right, my trusty left leg made sure I was rooted. At the same time, without realizing, my head was under his right armpit when he swerved left and under the left one when he swerved to the opposite direction. Even though embarrassing but I concluded it as a normal response for a person like me who is afraid of the sea.

The embarrassing part however, continued when he threw us both into the water. As I was bear hugging the guy so tightly, I dragged half of him into the water which he quickly got back up to his jet ski. I couldn't see my friend and kept trying to stay afloat even though I had a life jacket on (I was too shocked) and I kept clinging on to the jet ski. The guy asked me what was wrong and I told him to please save me because I can't swim to save my dear life. I kept bobbing up and down, almost tearing up until:

He asked me to stand up and I told him I couldn't. And then he asked me to straightened my legs.

.....

.....

.....

I was standing alright. Sea level was waist level. Embarrassment level as high as the sky.

He was chuckling and I said thank you and left. Turned and saw Claudia, rolling eyes and saying how embarrassing I was.

You see, throughout the whole ordeal, my eyes were shut so when he dropped us both at the shallow waters I didn't even realized! Plus, the area that he threw us were much more quiet and not many people were around which made me thought that we were in the middle of the sea.

While the rest continued to play after that, I went back up to our shade and rested. I was done for the day. I was done with water sports and I was done with embarrassing myself. LORD.

Truthfully, the whole water sport activity thing drained every single energy from my body, mind, and soul. I suspect that even an injection of super high-voltage mitochondria would never help regain the energy I needed.

To end the last night in Kenting, our drivers bought us smooth Taiwan Beer and we had a super great time playing drinking games while listening to nice songs by this guy playing drums there. Halfway through, our comrade Ken got drunk and slept on the floor. I swear the pavement was so dirty but he insisted to lie down there, ew.

After flipping for the camera, the drivers and us parted ways to our respected hostels. The tipsy me then told Claudia that..."Maybe I should go give Bobo Pizza boy a kiss. After all, what happens in Taiwan stays in Taiwan."

Being the super supportive friend, Claudia was all ready to go record this crazy idea of mine which was also encouraged by the whole gang. While on the way, I quickly told them that it was stupid for me to even suggest this crazy plan but I was too late. Friends were also drunk and gave no care to what I was mumbling.

Sadly, the pizza truck was already closed when we arrived. To not waste the effort of everyone who was so gung-ho over the whole incident, we went to a truck bar nearby and got a pen and paper from a Cantonese speaking lady to write a letter. It contained descriptions of the guy (there were a few guys working there so I had to be specific) and also my FB name for him to add. The rest of the content were then beautified by Claudia as I couldn't write in Chinese.

So the letter was supposed to be inserted through the slits of the truck but somehow the slits were all blocked. So the drunk Lam Fung suggested that I should put in on the driver seat but I was like, "Bro, if the alarm goes off, I'm not gonna save your ass.." and he opened the door before I could even finish...

...No alarm, no nothing. Left the note, closed the truck door and went back to the hostel.

The next day we left Kenting for Hualien but stopped by at the most beautiful train station at Taitung first. The view was lovely alright but it couldn't stop the sun from melting me and the rest of us so after a series of complains we were of to the next stop, Little Fishes' Home where we can go feed fishes with seaweed bao at the sea.

Back in those days, there were aboriginals who lived by the seaside and caught fishes for a living. But one day they realized that the fishes were getting lesser and lesser which is why they decided to move the mountains so that the little fishies can live in peace and eventually multiply. Aboriginal tribes are known to be stubborn when it comes to their lifestyle. Since they grow up only knowing a certain set of skills, it will never cross their minds to learn something new. So this group of people, love the environment and little fishies too much, shifted up to the mountains and learned how to do agriculture from scratch. 

The last stop at Taitung was the Terrace of the Three Immortals or better known as San Xian Tai which had a beautiful scallop bridge which connects the main land and the island. Not to mention that it was so tiring to walk up and down to the island and back to main land.

Even so, Chloe got to take so many magical pictures of us walking around the island! Before I forget, the photos here are a combination of mine and my friends which explains the difference is lighting and quality because some used the trusty phone camera while others like Chloe had a good camera to snap the moments.

"What happens in Taiwan, stays in Taiwan", a phrase that we had been using shamelessly throughout the trip. Our self-proclaimed holy guy, Ivan, continued reading his daily bible for the first two days but decided to drop it when he realized that "what happens in Taiwan, stays in Taiwan", as though God couldn't see what he was up too during the trip.

For anything that is bad or YOLO, we would use this phrase as an excuse to do it. Previously at Kenting, our driver cheekily suggested that the boys should go get some Taiwanese babes and he will sacrifice his hotel room for them. After all, what happens in Taiwan, stays in Taiwan!

One of the impromptu stops was the aboriginal village where we saw were having a festival. It was a festival where they call out to their ancestors. We were so lucky that we were able to be the audience to this event, allowing us to experience this authentic culture of Taiwan!

As we were guests, we were required to drink the rice wine as a sign of respect. Look at the GIF below to see how they serve the wine in the bamboo cup. It was actually very exciting and we were also warned to not take photos during the whole event as we might capture some things that we might not want to see in our photos ooooooohhhhhh

"I want to note down here about this out-of-the world view that I witnessed while we were all on the way to the center of Hualien. It might be hard to imagine but I believe that if I ever read this again in the future, I will instantly recall this beautiful picture in my mind. It was night time and the moon was exceptionally round. It was orange in colour and made a pretty reflection on the sea below it. After a few turns on the Provincial Highway 11, the moon was covered by a huge cluster of clouds which I am positive is a cumulonimbus type which can grow to be very high. The view was simply amazing with the huge clouds followed by a snippet of the sky below it, followed by the sea with a reflection of the orange moon. At this point of time the moon was already covered by the clouds and all that was left was the mirror of it on the ocean. The glowing clouds then morphed into various shapes as we drove along the winding highway. There were so many shapes and I remember getting so excited the whole time. The most significant shape was of Sherlock Holmes with his signature deerstalker hat, holding a magnificent glass as though analyzing a fingerprint on the clouds. That shape, was also approved by everyone in the car who were busily karaoke-ing and ignoring my squeals of excitement before that. The phone camera and a professional one could not capture this beautiful landscape, sadly. But it's okay, like what the driver said, "Amazing things like this cannot be captured on camera, so what you do is you look at it, and captured it in your memory."

Morning came and we were up and about to Taroko National Park. The night before, I googled the place up just in case it was going to be like Alishan. It was really beautiful but really, seeing the cliffs right up in front of you was simply magnificent. It was a very interesting place to be where the rivers were grey in colour because there was a mixture of cement from the rocks causing the river to turn into grey. And then the mountains and cliff were so high up you can't even see it's peak! The fogs were doing a great job in making everything much more magical ♥

I highly recommend Taroko National Park to anyone who loves to see mountainous landscapes and also if you are up for the challenge, you can actually apply to go on a expedition where you get to trek the national park and visit unreachable villages of the aboriginals on the mountain!

Last stop for the day was Seven Star Beach where the entire place is made up of pebbles. It was evening then so it was actually quite chilling there. The most amazing thing was that we saw the sky in two colours, pink and blue. It was definitely not something we see everyday and we were super excited about it and what made it even more special was that that very day was Liew Xian's birthday!

Night time was celebration time at our farm hostel which had snails, ducks, a rabbit, and a dog. We had a drinking game before that which had us all tipsy but the cake after that was so nasty hahaha

So after the singing the birthday song and cake-cutting session. Liew Xian had to participate in a mini activity where he tries to bite a coin out from a bowl of cream which we obviously pushed his head into it.

By the way, there was a working weighing machine at the hostel and most of us weighed ourselves out of curiosity. The joke that I made at the earlier part of the trip came to life. We all lost some weight wowwww 

Though we had a happy night celebrating Liew Xian's birthday, it was also a furious night for some as Lamfung bleached their towel, T-shirts etc. but thankful enough, all belonged to the boys and not the girls or Lamfung would be chopped into pieces and fed to the homestay dog.

After saying bye-bye to our farm hostel, we continued our road trip to Taipei, the last city before we part with Taiwan. Love how the highways were along the mountains which allowed us to admire the clear blue ocean. I had a great time staring at the sea the whole time throughout the journey, and I thought about my silly encounter at Kenting....wish I could turn back time and save myself from embarrassment hurh hurh.

Upon arrival, we were brought to the lookout point to see the Yin Yang Sea that had a sandy tone swirling together with the blue ocean. It is the cause of insoluble iron ions from the heavy concentration of pyrite at that area. Right after that we continued our journey to the Gold Museum where there was a super long queue. We also got to see a huge bar of gold where you need to line up again to take a photo of you touching it. Of course, me being me, sneakily took a picture of someone else touching the gold hahaha 

Who is more handsome? Me or Liew Xian?

Next up, Jiufen, which I didn't know was situated on top of the hill! Really beautiful but the road was too winding. As everyone quickly went into the little restaurants serving famous Jiufen dishes, Claudia and I wanted to take a break from all the Chinese food we have been having lately and opted for this Misty Gelato in Puff or whatever it is called. It was refreshing and delicious. Of course it did satisfied our taste buds and yearn for something not so Chinese!

Jiufen was also really beautiful in the evening as the sun sets. Many would be crowding around the balcony to watch over the sunset so if you are planning to go, book your spot a little bit earlier before the crowd start pouring in. I managed to get the Brown Sugar Ginger Tea which I was asking about since Day 1 and apparently Jiufen is the best place to get it and if you are lucky, they have promotions for these teas.

Even though exhausted, we quickly got ready after arriving at the hostel as we were going to the night club that very night. OMNI night club, trusted Liew Xian on his choice because we didn't know which one was the best place to be. Anyway, it was a fun night with the bunch because the last time we went to the club together was a few years back and it was great to be crazy again together.

A few days earlier, the birthday boy suggested that all of us should go for paragliding. Everyone said yes so I thought, okay, I don't want to spoil the gung-ho atmosphere hence the yes from me. It was a super YOLO and last minute thing as we woke up after a crazy clubbing night, quickly got ready and off we were to the top of the hill.

When we got out of our sleepy mode upon arrival at the Wanli Paragliding base, it was too late to say no as the trainer started briefing us and gave us the harnesses and all. It was dead serious that I was gonna sprint and jump off the freaking hill... 

My cuteness was further accentuated with a Mario-like mushroom helmet hehe

I was lucky to be able to complete the whole process which was to start from the hill and land on the beach. Some of my friends were unfortunate to have landed on the hill instead. Yehliu Geopark was up next and to be frank, a lot of the rock formations piqued my interest but it was so hot that I was grateful we didn't need to wait too long to take a photo with the most famous rock there, the Queen's Head.

Of course, how could we miss Shifen where it is a must to write your wishes on the colourful lanterns together before setting it off on the railway tracks. We had two lanterns but one burnt off before it could even fly, too bad.

We also had a quick stop at the Happiness Train Station where we weren't doing much except annoying each other and taking group photos. Oh, a lot of people were also laughing at our crazy antics there. So much for not embarrassing each other.

After that, we headed to a park with a mini art gallery before dinner at the night market. While we were on the way back to the hostel, fireworks were up on the sky welcoming us to beautiful Taipei.

Upon reaching the street outside the hostel, we bid farewell to our driver who took care of us along this journey. It was sad to know that he wouldn't be with us till the end of the trip. Anyways, we couldn't be anymore thankful to the both of them for showing us all the places and making sure we have a great time in Taiwan!

Not only was I fantastical at doing a flying dab at Kaohsiung, my on-point tiptoe was also a hidden talent.

When my nose-picking, handsome-V and swag kid poses were too cool, my squad had to join in. 

Love how the Taiwanese go all out just to tell us what they are serving. 

Best night market decoration of the whole trip. 

I have to admit that at this point of time I already started to miss nature's wonders; the sea and the mountains. But what is a Taiwan trip without exploring Taipei City as well right?

So the first day without our drivers were spent at Jay Chou's Mr. J Cafe which serves delicious French-Italian dishes and I had a yummy Caeser Salad there too. There was the iconic Bu Neng Shuo De Mi Mi piano which still had that old flare to it.

After lunch, we headed to Taipei 101 and I bought a pair of jeans at ZARA. Though they said I looked like those dudes wearing the lion dance pants but na-ah, ain't gonna change my mind plus I don't think I saw that pair at the Malaysia outlets, so of course I was gonna get it!

At this point of time, filters and edits can't change that sunkissed or rather, sunburnt tanned that we have, hurh hurh. 

Also, we visited the Eslite 24 Hour Bookstore where everything from the stickers to the postcards, washi tapes to the plushies were all so pretty! If I could, I would have bought back every single washi tape I saw there, serious. Unless you are looking for Chinese novels, this would be the best place to get them. Other than that, English books don't take up a lot of space there.

First activity the next morning was to take the MRT to the Taipei Zoo station where the cable car up to Maokong Hill was located. As the sun was burning our already tanned skin, we went to have a tea flavoured ice-cream at the cafe up there. Right after the guy handed me the ice-cream which was freshly scooped a few seconds ago, I could already see the sides melting and after one shot of the cute ice-cream, it started to melt into my hands. That was how hot Taiwan was, even on the hilltop!

After a tiring try on the electric bike (I think I almost flew out of it for gripping the wrong brakes and by the way I am not gonna ride on any electric bike anymore), we took the MRT to Tanshui which we were greeted again by the sun. We walked along the riverbank and quickly got ourselves a scooter before heading to the first stop, Fort San Domingo where we also got to admire the beautiful architecture of the Former British Consular Residence.

We also visited the place where Jay Chou's movie was filmed at but sadly as the school was still in operation, they did not allow visitors to enter for visiting purposes. But we still took a photo outside of the school.

We also walked up the hills to Oxford College which is located in Aletheia University. That area on the hilltop really brought us into another world with lovely architectures that reminded us of those colonial buildings back in Malaysia.

So many beautiful spots at the Fort San Domingo area! 

Right after a rare windy stroll on the hills, we were on our way to Fisherman's Wharf where the famed Love Bridge was located. It was our last stop of the day as we watched the sunset together again for the second time in Taiwan. Romantic much! Plus the street busker with his cute puppy, OMG...perfect evening. Minus the heat that is.

Top: The Love Bridge at Tanshui | Below Left: Street busker with his little woof woof, too cute | Below Right: Singing to Westlife while our tummies were growling. 

The following day was spent at Mitsui which basically was a lazy shopping day which took up the whole day. And by that time, I already got so lazy of going out and just wanted to stay at the hostel forever.

I was planning to stay in for the rest of Thursday right after I bought the pineapple tarts with my girls. I also posted postcards back home to Malaysia and kinda regret that I didn't buy more postcards to keep because the postcards there were so pretty! Everyone went out and I was home alone. But I didn't care and napped till 5:00PM until it occurred to me that it was my last night in Taiwan.

Of course I'm not going to be pathetic and spent it in the hostel alone.

So I took the MRT alone, without data or wifi, and got myself to the Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall. The place was so big and there were so many people. I was like, how am I going to make myself obvious so that my friends can see/find/spot me?????

Thank goodness Chai was wearing a chilli red T-shirt which I immediately spotted and ran to him. Soon we were all gathered except for a few who went to another venue for steamboat. The remaining of the group which I was with, watched the last Taiwan sunset together before heading to Miramar Mall where it was filled with Peppa Pig.

The night ended with David and I playing LEGO at the kids' store, building an "I ♥ TW", just to leave a mark there before leaving. Before that we also got on the Ferris Wheel to take a glimpse of this beautiful city of Taipei for the very last time.

The next morning, we decided to go to the bus station separately due to some who wanted to do a little bit of last minute shopping and what not. As we gathered at the bus station, we realized that we were short of one guy. He had no Taiwan number, no wifi or data, and most of all, he was a blur fellow.

By that time we already bought the bus tickets so we said whoever is going up the next bus shall wait for the missing Lamfung. After a good 15 mins, those with the Taiwanese number called each other and said that everyone was up on the bus and that Lamfung was no where to be seen.

We all then waited near the entrance at the airport in hopes that he will find his way. We even tried calling his Malaysian number but to no avail. Luckily after an hour or so, he appeared! He said he bumped into our friend's sister who accompanied us to the bus station. She told him that everyone already left and that we were all looking for him.

Thank goodness he could recognize her given his blur nature. While he was missing, I was thinking, "Shit, my convocation is tomorrow, so should I go back alone or miss the flight with everyone?" Well, so grateful none of that situation had to happen!

What a way to end the Taiwan trip.

I remember us watching the sunset at the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall together while listening and singing to Jay Chou's songs. It really made me tear up because I cannot believe that this wonderful trip was coming to an end.

I never really listened to his songs, needless to say know how to sing any of it, which is why whenever I hear those songs we loop every single day in Taiwan since day one, it brings me to tears (joyful ones) and reminds me about the fond memories in Taiwan.

We sang the same songs together throughout the 15 days and since each van had a walkie talkie, we used to sing to the other van and they would sing back to us. So memorable.

Can't believe we are graduating too. Hopefully we can still find time to go crazy again like how we did for this trip even though everyone will be busy working now.

Thank you to every single one of you for making this trip so memorable for all of us, you crazy monkeys know who you are ♥

15/7/2016 - 29/7/2016