1:18pm, Taiwan MRT (subway)
On the subway, 7 more stops to go until Xindian. The bed at the hotel was super hard. Kind of like sleeping on a carpeted floor, or box springs. Slept alright though. We were up at 8:20am to head down to the breakfast buffet at the hotel. It had several veggie and tofu platters, along with chicken and green pepper curry, a lady making fried eggs, rice porridge, white bread toast, soy milk, and orange juice. The place was large and crowded. We had 2 big plates worth before returning back to our rooms.
Then we got back into bed and napped for another couple hours, before starting to prepare for the day. It had been raining all night and morning, and the drizzle still persisted. When we finally left the hotel after noon, we were surprised how cold it was out, but were prepared with our layers.
We walked around the block, our first taste of Taipei, and saw some people wearing face masks (common in Asia if you have a cold, or don't want to catch one). Wendy spotted a "hole in the wall" eatery that had a line of people waiting, and figured it must be good, so we bought a soup and bowl of rice with egg. ~$2.66US, good deal, and tasty.
Then we spotted the MRT stop (subway), and bought tickets for Xindian, where we'll catch a bus and head to Walui.
1:49pm, bus to Walui The garbage trucks make an ice cream chime here. The toilets flush Amerian style. The electrical outlets are the same as US also. We're sitting on the right side of the bus, thanks to a wikipedia suggestion. Views of the river. Too rainy for pics though. Very chilly out. 6:37pm, Taipei MRT Feet are cold and wet… We bought umbrellas when we got off the bus, as the rain was stabilizing above the town of Walui. There were plenty of shops selling umbrellas, flip flops, and sun hats, perfect for any weather situation. We walked along a narrow street lined with food vendors, selling lots of appealing items on sticks, among other tasty morsels. My feet were getting wet, but we continued on along the Lover's Trail walk for 30 minutes until we reached the big waterfall.
Serene Walui Falls...
On the way back we stopped at several of the spa facilities that lined the road, since it was too cold and rainy to want to scramble out to the natural hot pools along the river. We ended up finding a hot bath for 300NT/hr. Great deal! And great way to warm up…
Afterwards, we browsed the food vendors and bought some squid and chicken on a stick, followed by a rice bun filled with pork and green onions. Good stuff.
It would be the first of many "foods on a stick" in Taiwan...
We didn't try any pig, but there certainly was a lot available...
The bus ride back was long, due to rush hour traffic, and also very crowded. After standing for the 1st half, I lapped up with Wendy.
Now we ride the subway back to our hotel. Wonder if Wendy's mom and sis will make it to the hotel before we do. Public transportation here is cheap. 10:27pm, Hero House Hotel, Taipei Still no word from Irene and Betsy. We can't remember what time there were supposed to get in this evening, but looks like we'll meet up in the morning. We get lots of movie channels on TV. They're all in English with chinese subtitles. HBO included. For tonight, we put our sleeping bags on the bed to help make it more cushy.