Wonderland

Blue Christmas Trees

I love watching real trees decorated in blue lights.

It is a culmination of imagination and fantasy.

Sometimes it is good to revisit lovely things and memories.

These trees are in USJ5 and they never fail to create good feelings.

Thank you good neighbour for lighting up the place.

Christmas 2009

A Quiet Christmas Eve

This year is different from previous ones. The extended family kept to themselves in single family units to remember the birth of Christ. Somehow things were happening too fast a pace and the extended family did not seem to get together. Even Kong Kong and Por Por celebrated on their own with local church friends.

So we celebrated the eve on a quiet note with no prom.

Dad woke up this morning inspired by Astro's Travel Channel ; thanks to chef Jamie and so he stayed home to see to the evening meal. He's a great cook and can emulate Jamie's way of cooking very efficiently.

He marinated the turkey in Jamie's manner ( spreading butter under the skin ) and baked for about 3 hours.

The turkey turned out to be brown and crispy and yummy too and this year he stuffed it.

He wasted not the gravy from baking the turkey and added flour and ingredients to turn it into the perfect sauce for dipping.

Next after boiling the carrots and potatoes, he seasoned it with herbs and vegetable fat and baked them in the oven.

The baked vegetables turned out well and consuming them with the gravy was delicious.

To everyone's delight, Sara chipped in with an apple pie which everyone enjoyed.

Grace prepared some greens as salad and onion soup to accompany the meal. Esther escaped from every task because it was a working day ; plain fortunate.

So, with everyone in the kitchen , ahem... my only task was to lay the table. It's good to have the grown up girls together with the creative daddy taking care of the evening's meal.
But it was a lovely meal as we partook of it after dad's prayer...that we are to have Christmas in our hearts throughout the year and a grateful thanks to the Lord for His provision.

With great excitement, Kong Kong informed that about 30 carollers called at their unit in Muar and sang them the season's greetings. He was pleased to be visted by them. They seemed to have more guests and merriment than us. Was glad they knew how to fill the celebration with meaning and joy.

Good Job

The Results Are Here Again !

Yes, it's Christmas Eve and the good news.

PMR 2009 saw an increase in straight As and an improvement in the average grade of the school.

A special thanks to teachers, parents and students for achieving the grade and doing your school proud.

The anxious wait before the release.

The results have brought joy to many anxious students and parents and teachers too. A special mention for 3 Ilmu for having done a great job in English. Jian Wah ran to me with a great smile - an A for the subject. Amr ; you were great because you kept your promise and scored best in English. Nursyahira ; I am relieved that you did well and for the rest - thank you for the 39As and 4Bs.

Job well done.

It has been a privilege teaching you.

For Natanial Soon , you must be adding great joy to mama and papa over there in the states...Blessed Christmas to you and family.

Persistence Pays

Creativity and Craft

I love school holidays. You feel less guilty as you browse along the streets especially Petaling Street which is a treasure cove. You can get almost anything there and the best part is you can haggle till the cows come home. I am skilful at that.

So I was caught by the persistence of the youngest at home. "Ma, can you please bring me somewhere where I can get stuff to make book marks?" Book marks ? So she gave me a brief description of what she wanted...beads, pearls, chains...no problem. I know the place - our very own Petaling Street.

My crave for this place - to eat and be busy body - has taught me to get to the place without a hitch ; though there were plenty in the beginning. Now, I can drive there with my eyes closed ...haha. Dad I am not joking.



Sara wanted the items seen above. It was not an easy task. We were a little foolish when we tried to draw pictures of it and it got us no where. We found the beads, chains and the other stuff but that shown above was not an easy find. We walked under the hot sun for a couple of hours inquiring about them but to no avail. She was so persistent. I looked at her and knew somehow , somewhere we were gonna find it. But alas, at the end of the day, we gave up unwillingly. But as the saying goes, when there is a will, there is a way. By a stroke of luck, someone texted her about the place to get the item.

So on the very next day, she made a trip there again...and she found it ! Eureka !

She sorted and arranged her hew found love neatly, ready for the bash.

She even with permission took some of my items which I use no more.

Then she began her work. Like baking, she took a serious effort to create book marks worth giving away as gifts. They were to be her expressions of art and craft.

A real transformation. Now I understand what she meant by book marks.

See how versatile the book mark is. For beauty and function. A real book mark in its sense.

A further confirmation of the use of the book marks.

Pretty things, aren't they? Someone has made an order of 12. She is afraid they are not up to mark and not good enough as gifts. I told her they are the perfect thing for gifts especially for Christmas. Wouldn't you purchase for the price of RM10.00 each? You can make an order too. You would not be disappointed.

Creative book marks.

The Quake

No Smoke Without Fire

Tell -tale signs are warnings and symptoms of underlying factors. The sulphur springs in Yangmingshan are not there for mere existence. Taiwan being located in the Pacific Ring of Fire is not spared of this natural happening. I heard and read about the quake that stirred the island of Taiwan at a scale of 6.4 last evening and the epicentre being 25km away from Hualien ; the town we visited. To think that I was there just last week and I would have love to imagine my feelings then.
Malaysia as I have often shared with my students is a blessed land. We have oil - both from the seas and the trees. Incidentally while in Hualien we saw a container load of well-packed boxes containing red palm oil for deep frying purposes outside a MCDonald outlet - and a good guess; it was Malaysian red palm oil. We have ore, rubber, the King of fruits and many many other natural resources. Except for occasional down pours and floods here and there we are spared of many natural catastrophes...outside the earthquake zone ; only sometimes to feel the aftermaths of tremors from surrounding countries. A land favoured by God.

So, the trip to Taipei and Yangmingshan again brought to memory how real impending earthquakes are on the island.

The constant smoke is not to contend with ; it being there for a reason.

Ha, what would have happened and how would we feel if the quake had erupted just beside us? Would my smile still stay?

Back at the scene , it was like a make-believe world. I was privileged to see at such close proximity the natural features related to quakes and they are real ; really ?

Again, the hot springs are concrete evidence of earth movements.

I have just texted my sister a couple of minutes ago to find out about the situation. Like the locals, she is used to the movement and even jokingly said that while sitting beside a 8 m high Christmas tree, the star on top looked like it was going to topple but it did not.

Well, of earthquakes and getting used to them. But honestly, thank God we have left the island and we were blessed with perfect weather with only a drizzle on the last day on the way to the airport for the whole visit.

Sulphur springs and smoke.

Local Practices

Practical Living

Ayi Mee is practical and wise and considered many aspects before choosing a place to reside for the family's stint in Taipei. The practical considerations included distance to the MRT, marketing and convenience stores. It is good to be assisted by convenience in everyday living and bearing in mind that this was just a temporary posting, there was no need to go for aesthetic living ; maybe leaving it for old age in Switzerland? Hahaha...you are not gonna like it in very cold places after the colours in Asia and...Malaysia is truly Asia !

This semi prestigious condominium right in the heart of Kang Qia0 street inthe district of Neihu is home to many expatriates and depending on unit size the rental could be in the region of NT120000.00 per month... a whopping figure; much higher than in Kuala Lumpur.

The security is tight here. The security officers have these in their lips as they see you ' "Ni hao and sieh sieh" . As a matter of fact, the common greeting among the locals is just that...now in Malaysia we say " Selamat Sejatera and Salam 1 Malaysia".

Like Singapore, space is a scarce commodity ; what more in the heart of the city. So parking for each tenant (entitled to 2 each) in the condominium comes in this form - a double decker. I thought it was unique and as the saying goes, if there is a will, there is a way. Neat and smart.




Less than 5 minutes walk away from the condominium is the MRT station which is super efficient same like the one in Singapore. It takes you to anywhere you want in the city at very affordable rates. Mee Sing kept ranting should my girls visit her, they will have a convenient time around the city with this mode of transport. Grace will definitely be at home here after Singapore. This led me to ponder again about the Malaysian Government's latest thrust on development with the NKRA (New Key Result Areas) of which one of it is on transportation transformation. We long for this efficient MRT mode of movement. Malaysia produces some of the best brains in this whole wide universe...I am sure we can make it...it will come to pass ; soon I hope. Also, in the NKRA we were told that greater concerted effort will be put on reducing crime rates. In Taipei, Mee Sing told me they hardly hear of snatch theft. But in Malaysia , some innocent people die as a result of it. In Taipei too, the locals are involved in construction and menial tasks from restaurants to the farms and the service sector. In Malaysia we are dependent on the immigrant force...is is because we are too arrogant ? Or are we the brainy ones...too high and mighty for menial tasks? I am not excluded from it.


A couple of minutes walk away from her unit is the morning market like the one in Pulau Tikus, Penang where one can get almost any supply of grains, vegetables, meat and household products and not excluding clothes. It was quite chilly and many shopped in warmer attire.

Taiwan boasts of some of the best agricultural practices in Asia and her products are fresh, huge and green.

The seas around her allows her to harvest large supplies of fish and Mee Sing is not want of ready supply each morning. There is no need to use the car...just a pair of legs.

The shell fish family comes in fresh and edible ... no complaint of stale stock.

We bought some deep-fried tiny soft shell crabs and anchovies for taste. Good.

A commendable supply of all forms of noodles and toufu products in all shapes and sizes.

Yummy...if you are lazy to cook for dinner ; just buy off the peg. Living in Taipei is so very convenient for the Chinese people from Singapore, Malaysia, Canada, America, Australia. Everything made to fit wear and taste. After Germany, Mee Sing savours in the conveniences of living here in Taipei. She simply loves the easier way.

This did not escape my eyes and it marked the coming of the "tung chieh" ; the winter solstice festival celebrated by the Chinese community to indicate the end of the old year and the coming of the "Spring Season" - the new year of the Chinese calendar where new hopes and dreams are aspired for. Here they pack it neatly for sale.

Ginger is an old herb loved for its herbal and medicinal remedies and the local people drink them like you would drink soya bean drinks. Oh, the heat from it...how they can bear them.

Taipei is home to all sorts of markets , wet, dry, morning and night and we were brought to Shi Li Night Market where we saw loads of tourist buses lined up for the 'cruising'.

At a particular stall, we saw a local vendor completing the cooking process with a hair dryer. Have you ever seen this form of cooking?

This is how they prepared oysters cooked in eggs. It reminded us of the ones we have in Malaysia in particular the one from Muar. It looked so palatable that we could not resist getting it but to our disappointment, it did not turn out the way we wanted because they added tomato and thousand island sauce in generous amount; not our cup of tea ! So food may look yummy but sometimes it takes a lot to get used to local mix ups.




Sweet potatoes baked over charcoal is out of the world. A primitive way of preparation but the aroma of the sweet vegetable is memorable. They are charged by the weight and I bought one which cost NT450.00.

This lady vendor is most enterprising. She is model cum sales person. The best practice in the streets of the market.

This dodo club offers all products in the shop at NT95 equivalent to RM9.50. Guess what? We saw a Malaysian made shirt at that price. Dad could not stop himself from buying ... so very patriotic...all the way to Taipei to purchase a Malaysian production.

Sweetcorn immersed in salt water and the species is very palatable.

Cherries coated with sugar...for the sweet tooth.

Have you seen the white version of the bitter gourd? When squeezed and prepared as juice, it is meant for veterans ... acquired taste. Definitely not for ordinary taste buds.

I witness them consuming curry-flavoured toufu together with deep-fried crabs ... did not attract me.

This is Celine's favourite...the milky pearl drink. She kept on asking for it but the next time in town, I will bring her to Low Yat where a 'Hong Kong' labelled outlet sells all sorts of sweet drinks like the one served above.

Besides side stalls, Mee brought us to a Hakka outlet to taste the various forms of dumplings. We had to queue for a table outside Din Tai Fung and later to climb some flights of steps to savour their servings.

Simple but a little pricey. The dumplings are finely prepared and tasted good.

Another outlet just along the street of Kang Qiao is Don Don. They are famous for their beef noodles and local preservatives.

Beef noodles

Doesn't that look like roti canai? Vegetable - filled roti canai - different from our mamak stalls but nevertheless worth eating.

In food courts of the malls, they serve food in this form... huge portions for one but meant for 2.

My sister collect all bills and keeps them safely in her drawer for a final draw at the end of each season. The whole nation is involved in this exercise. As consumers of local products they are entitled to winnings in cash. How interesting.

People in Taipei loves pets - in particular, dogs. At the night market, we saw dwarf dogs for sale.

This is how a dog owner and lover takes care of his love. Winter clothes for the season and spaghetti straps for Summer?

Another dog lover treating her dog as a well-loved child and a well-equipped pram for her too.

They pushed their love around in prams...a luxury that some third world countries don't enjoy. If you are a dog, it is good to be born in Taipei.

Along one of the streeets near Taipei's tallest 101 building, bicycles are for rent. The locals love to cycle around.

The Statue of Liberty at New York , New York.

Of course in Taipei as tourists, we found our way to the tallest builidng. The architecture is so different from out Twin Towers. Is it supposed to denote the bamboo shoot with nodes?... a portrait of strength and unity?

The lift that brought us up went at a speed of 101km per min? So fast and soon we were up there and we had a bird's eye view of the capital city. Awesome.

Last evening on the way to Low Yat to get Esther her camera lenses, dad and I gazed at our very own Twin Towers and could not but allow pride to overwhelm us. They are so beautiful. Not the tallest anymore, but definitely a story of aesthetics and engineering feats...and it belongs to our homeland , Malaysia.

Taipei has dad's name etched in one of her local banks... "Yung Fung" in Mandarin and "Eng Hong" in hokkien. A good name as I have always commented. So, a shot for keeps.

So that ends my mini tour of Taipei that I can part with you.

At the end of our stay on the last evening, the insistent Por Por managed to contact her neighbour's daughter studying in Taipei's University of Education in Art and graphics. Ah Fong's parents are Por's neighbours in Muar and Por related that she has seen her grow from a mere few months old to her present age, 22. Ah Fong has a special place in her heart as she reminded Por of her own grand girls whom she did not really have a chance to see them grow into their teens ; they being apart from her. Ah Fong sends her Christmas greetings every year. Grace, Esther and Sara ...please do your part too ; a reminder from Ayi Mee.

At the instant of meeting her, I enquired why she had to travel so far for a course of this nature and she said that another neighbour friend had introduced her to the course here in Taipei. She had a preparatory course in Tao Yuan for 6 months before qualifying herself. She related that the standard of English here is quite deplorable because everyone speaks in Mandarin and Hokkien. So she is queen of the language in her class ; all thanks to the Malaysian SPM system. Fees are affordable ; a mere RM3 k for the whole year and a place in the student's hostel meant large savings. She is a good girl and able to stand hardship. Before Air Asia extended her wings to Taiwan, she would take Jet Star to Singapore to come home. From Changi Airport, she would take a cab to the bus terminal at Bukit Timah. At Bukit Timah she would board a bus to Larkin Bus Terminal in JB and from there she would take a bus to Muar and to home. How many are able to take that challenge? I knew immediately this is one trustworthy child and a parent's dream child. So sensible and able to understand financial standings in the home. How we pamper our own children. And oh yes, they do not like to be compared. Forgot.

Ah Fong shared that after graduation next year, she would probably stay put in Taipei because they are well-paid. Another brain drain but she must get her parents' approval first. Ah Fong fits into the society perfectly because the culture and language are so similar to those back home and needed very little adjustment.

So, ends my last episode about Taipei ; a most enjoyable trip and one for keeps.

Thank you Lou, Mee and Celine for great hospitality.

Scenic Spots

More To See

On the way down from quaint Chiu Fen, the hilltop tourist village, Mr. Soo the tourist guide took us to spots which on our own would have been difficult.

Chiu Fen is surrounded by mountainous landscape and all the windy way down we went past mountains after mountains of which one famous one is Chin San ( the golden mountain).

Chin San apparently is where the evergreen songstress and my all time favourite - Teresa Teng- was buried after a prematured death. Mr. Soo told us that many of her fans made purposeful trips to the spot to pay their respects. As I related in a previous excerpt, Chiu Fen is home to many cemeteries ; it being a perfect spot for San ( mountains) and Sui (water) and is home too to Teresa Teng's final rest place.

Mr. Soo next showed us an ex-Gold Ecological Park which was a gold mining area first exploited by the Japanese using the local work force. The place however has stopped functioning and today traces of the enterprise is marked by the old building shown above.

Another prominent feature related to gold mining endeavour is evident in the 'gold-plated' rocks downstream along the river that is next to the park. The washing and cleaning process could have caused 'gold remnants' to deposit on the stones. We asked Mr. Soo if the local had tried to retrieve any 'gold' from the rocks and he said he was not aware of it. Imagine having gold-plated rocks all along the river beside your home.

The sea beside the gold ecological park also seems to speak of the impact of the gold effluents...apparently it is difficult to find catch in the 'golden portions' . Oh , of gold and her influence in the area.



As we proceeded further away from the hills along the coastal road to Yeliou, (north eastern coast of Taipei) we began to see the effect of wave actions on the cliffs that protruded out into the sea. Some were eroded to produce stumps and remnants with ponding features.

Others revealed steadfast rocks that had undergone massive erosion and sedimentary impacts so obviously seen.

Look at the cliff that has resulted from the pounding effect of the wave. Geography is so real here. We were supposed to walk along the Yeliou park to savour in more scenic views of eroded rocks but were detered as the road was closed for repairs. Many Taiwanese movies ; one of which was the famous 'Yi Nang Wang' of the 70s ; were shot in this spot which boasts of pedestal features. While there, we also saw a couple ; a groom and his bride taking wedding shots and dad shook his head from left to right ; the man who never believes in unnatural poses.

Next, on another day on the way from Hualien to Yilan ; home of the cultural village, we stopped by the harbour of Hualien and came to Cising ( seven stars) Cove.

The waves have again played their eroding roles and deposited rocks, stones and sand along the beach. The long stretch under the morning sky was a spot to behold.

Many meditated along the cove and I should say it could be a daily routine ; gazing into the majestic sea and her horizon for focus and peace.

Adventourous Celine could not resist a throw into the sea and later together with dad selected some stones and made beautiful craft out of them. I should have taken photos of it.

Just beside the coastline is a military base and we were fortunate to witness the taking off of a few fighter jet planes...and in Taiwan, we were informed that many of the pilots are of the female gender...gungho.

When nature in her most natural state is seen ; I recall Psalm 8:1

O Lord, our Lord, How majestic is your name in all the earth !

You have set your glory above the heavens.

Cultural Heritages

Tourist Centres

We have never been more 'touristy' as this before. At every opportunity, Mee Sing made sure our days in Taipei were fully occupied and the daily itineraries excellently arranged. She, being new to the place also thought that she should acquire as much knowledge as possible about the place and was not afraid to ask her new acquaintances for the latest information.

So, on a beautiful morning she took us to Taiwan's Martyrs' Shrine to witness the exchange of guards on duty. Apparently, the routine takes place hourly from 10 am to 6 pm and many tourists were seen catching the routine.

In Chinese, the place is remembered as ' Wan Ku Liu Fang' , a connotation related to memoirs of past heroes who died defending the island.

Dad and I took a shot beside the guard on duty, and we had yet to see his eyes flicker even after a long while observing him. I wondered how he controlled himself. He must be super disciplined.

In this elaborate building the guards marched into it to perform a short ceremony before taking over duty for the day.

The final marching procession to the main entrance which was about 200 metres away.

The day was cool and slightly chilly but definitely fine. Kong Kong and Por Por enjoyed the show and they were glad to have the opportunity to witness the ceremony. Kong Kong blabbered and remarked on how fun it was to be there and not to be a 'katak di bawah tempurung'... sheltered to boredom.

Dad took a lovely shot at yet another cultural centre ; the Chiang Kai Shek Memorial Hall where the history of the island is stored. History came alive for Kong Kong as he started to relate non-stop about the struggles of the revolutionaries and how the great General created history away from Mainland China...home away from home. The display of memories, photos and events were clearly depicted there and I encountered a local interpreter blaring away in Japanese to a Japanese tourist about past records. How I wish I could be as fluent in the language too.




In this Memorial Hall, the role and position of General Chiang Kai Shek are given the due recognition . Reconciliation of past history to the present political situation between the island and Mainland China ... I am not in any position to understand and say but the tourist guide quietly reported some soft ways are rendered for reconciliation ; and again I am not in any situation to commend.

This museum piece is the Cadillac used by General Chiang for official purposes and today is proudly displayed here.

Outside the Hall are 2 other important landmarks ; the National Theatre and Concert Hall . However I could not identify which was which but enough for me to know that cultural shows and performances take place there. The architecture is so Chinese and for many moments and instances I felt I was in China but then...the Taiwanese are so related to the Mainland. Hokkien is so well spoken here and dad commented that it is so easy for anyone of Chinese descent to assimilate into the local culture and scenario.

Next, we drove to The National Palace Museum where pottery pieces were displayed in splendour and recognition. Detail expositions were given to the porcelain pieces and a concerted mention by everyone is the Jade Cabbage piece. No photos allowed in this place so none was taken. So nothing to show. You are cordially invited to visit the place. But I must say if you are able to go to Melaka to witness the porcelain pieces in the local museum ; you may have just hit the nail...something like that la. That's why the President of China made his way there during his recent visit to Malaysia ; connection.
Coincidentally I was following the local series 'Little Nyonya' on NTV7 and there was mention about the porcelain pieces and the value attached to them. I came home disappointed that the series had ended and I have no clue to what had happened to Yueh Niang and the rest. Can anyone enlighten me? So sad.







Since we could not take any shots from the inside, we decided to take some outside the Museum for memory's sake. One for our keeps ; my parents with us...our rich heritage.

Being a teacher and thinking that I am writing an essay, I have this thing in me that I want to relate all cultural matters at a go so I am bringing you to another popular cultural centre; this time in a suburban area in the town of Yilan.
On the way home from Hualien last Friday, we detoured into Yilan where a cultural village is located. Just like any other cultural villages found in international tourist spots, this place informs her visitors of what the Taiwanese indulge in ; food, clothes, products and practices.





The entrance has an attractive depiction of wholesome fun and family relationships. Mee sing purchased the tickets and when she mentioned she had 2 elderly parents aged 85 and 91; the ticketing lady asked to see them and opened her mouth in awe when she saw Kong Kong and asked " Is he really 90?".

The semi young and the elderly walking in peace and harmony along the well- carved pathways in the village. If time and patience are with you, one can stay there for the whole day just like when in Disney World. At one point, we could not locate Por Por and it brought memories to Kong and I when we recalled how we 'lost' her in Disney World; Orlando some 10 years ago. Por has this in her ; disappearing on her own and engaging everyone in frantic search. Celine found her roaming in wonderland !

Some DIY products using local tiles.

There; a typical representation of local taste and show. "Hei"...all Chinese folk songs start with it.

Lou mentioned in an earlier conversation that he noticed that the Spring season will see the locals hanging the word 'foo' ( good fortune) at their doorstep and then to turn it upside down just as shown in the above representation. He could only connect the practice to deep superstition and culture and wondered why they would take such great effort to connect good luck with this. We are not too far away too ; many Malaysian Chinese are drawn to this practice too.

A ' La Mien' (Noddle Making) or is it 'sweets' demonstration in process ? ; interesting. The longer the pull, the better the taste?

A bead making process by a local tribal lady. Her deft fingers could produce beautiful pieces.

Some weight and balance devices of the Chinese people.

See. I too could not resist balancing them. This brought old memories in good old Muar Town when Por's old friend used to carry something like that selling nyonya kuih in the streets. She has long gone.

Celine and dad are good friends. They played together like father and daughter all the way from Hualien to Yilan at the back of the MPV and are sticklers to each other. Here they attempted the paired clogs and balanced each other.


Kong looked at them ; open-mouthed. Kong ... you are inviting insects to pop in. Be careful.



We ended the Cultural Village tour with reminiscences of the Mandarin ducks swimming in harmony with nature. That's what the village was about ... in tandem with culture and nature.

My eyes have seen culture depicted in various forms here... most enlightened and grateful.

Wholesalers

Everything in X-Large size!

Though my sister has been in Taipei for less than half a year, she has quickly learnt that the Taiwanese are a hardworking lot and they are serious in whatever they do. Things are sold in wholesaler sizes as I was brought around to see some of the goods offered.

Wupenfu is known to every local in town and foreigners and university students are no exception. Wupenfu is a trendy market offering clothes and accessories of every sort under the sun...but most importantly at wholesalers' price. Goods are relatively cheap and affordable and the night market will put one in a daze.
When we were shown the place, we saw winter clothes in display as winter is fast around the corner although it could get chilly even at this time.






The lanes around Wupenfu were packed with customers and goods. See how they unpacked goods that had just arrived . We were told that new products are brought in every Monday and Thursday and by the next day, they would be hung up and displayed.
The girls are all so pretty and I was wondering if they have been trained from young to pick up the trade and they slogged through the nights. Business is on till the wee hours of the morning. How hard they work... Grace ; I know how hard you work too when you are on call. Mama loves you ! I got you a couple of T-shirts and Esther says 'ada gaya ' !






Fashions, fashions, fashions but at one point some of them looked jinjang to me. Dad and I wondered what to get for the girls. Winter clothes for Esther and Sara for Christmas ; as they will be leaving us soon to lands that have the winter moments. But it was not easy. We walked through lanes after lanes figuring what were most likely their taste.




Poor dad fearing that he may not have caught Esther's difficult taste took some shots and sent to her via his hand phone to get approval. See what he does for his girls.

This is not my taste. But who cares about my taste?




After ploughing through the evening, we finally chose some items but you can guess their expressions when we presented to them. Name of the lesson ... don't buy.

Besides Wupenfu , we were shown around the biggest jade market I have ever seen !

There were easily more than 200 stores or maybe definitely more... but this time I felt the prices were not that 'wholesaler'. Grades and varieties of jade ...green, yellow, pink and even coral gems were displayed with great effort. But Kong Kong pours cold water on anything we were keen on...it was either the price, colour, quality ... nothing seemed right. So if we had really wanted to get anything, we must not bring him along ; this jeweller trusts no one except himself.

We had a good experience seeing the items...yen khan sew pu tung... to be seen but not to touch ! Not cheap.

But perhaps, the agriculturalists of Taiwan have their green fingers to boast of. Flower nurseries, floral arrangements - wet and dry - and ferns are spectacular in the floral markets.

Even our Sungei Buluh nurseries look small when in comparison.

Obvious effort and energy are put into the products and the Taiwanese are to be envied of their success .

This bud ; am not too sure what it is...but it is exotic la.



Have you seen chrysanthemums of these kinds?

Savour in the orchids...so many varieties and all so well taken care of. My sister says she loves this flower market and it gives her the greatest pleasure to pop in to get fresh cuts to brighten her home.

Poisettas are aplenty here and they remind us of the forth coming Christmas. Christmas decoration in Taipei is moderate ... Malaysia, I think has a better display. Singapore ... no need to compare la.

Of Wholesalers.

Of Mountains, Cliffs and Gorges

Nature Lovers

Before leaving for Taipei, my car mechanic told me that Taipei is boring ; it's just a plain Jane and there's nothing really much to see. After coming home last evening, another friend asked us about the trip. She heard that Taipei has nothing to offer.

When our plane hit the airport and after cruising through the rather old city which we felt needed refurbishment, I told myself perhaps the mechanic was right ... what's there to do here?

The city is definitely bigger than Kuala Lumpur and is more widespread but the MRT is super efficient and is a time saver in city travels. But my clever sister took pains to study some must see spots and made everyone's opinion including mine at the onset irrelevant.

Lou, Mee Sing and Celine ( all of my sisiter's family) took leave from work and school and in a rented MPV took us up the mountains to the very renown Taroko National Park. Even many of the locals have not seen the place. We are blessed for such an opportunity to see nature at its helm and original state. That made dad's visit complete because geology is the love of his heart and the stones brought light and stars to his eyes.

A friend also advised Mee Sing that perhaps we should take the train to Hualien and from there to drive up to Taroko park. She related that the journey along Suhua Highway for 119 km was not really easy because we had to cruise between the cliffs, mountains and the Pacific Ocean. Together with Lou, they decided that the journey itself would give us views, insights, and an experience that cannot be gotten from the train ride. So the arduous journey took place.

We saw many engineering feats as we ploughed through tunnels and Kong Kong kept commenting on the hardships that the locals must have gone through while building the highway as tunnels could stretch for more than 10 km at one go and he jokingly said that he would have reached Parit Jawa from Muar town.
Series of earthquakes and typhoons kept the Taiwan Government hot on their heels to maintain the coastal road and rockfalls are not uncommon here too.





















Before reaching Taroko, we witnessed the Cing Shui cliffs , one of Taiwan's 8 wonders ; 21 km between the town of Heren and Congde .
The cliffs are formed as a result of the collision of 2 massive plates and their subsequent respective ascents and subductions resulted in the formation along the Suhua coastline.












At a look out point, we gazed at the the Pacific Ocean in awe...so blue and far in the horizon.

After 3 hours on the Suhua highway, we stopped at a rest area to have a simple meal but to our astonishment the meal was very palatable for Por Por and she ate...really ate. That meal kept her so full that she had very little for dinner at Hualien. Hooray for the meal.




Dad commented that Celine is sporty and not a softie. She loves trees and missed climbing them. When she found them she climbed without effort and took a rest later on a piece of rock...gneiss? green schist ? Ha, geography teacher I am!








Loads of buses were already here ready to visit the Taroko Park in great anticipation.

The lady at the rest area told us that we must stop at the trail of the 9 Turns @ 1.9km and enjoy the popular marble gorges, potholes, spurs and cliffs.

The shots above speak for themselves. Beautiful and majestic. All geologists must visit Taiwan to study her geography and all understanding subsequently stored. It was indeed a live experience that I will never ever forget.



On the way out of the area, we saw this feature... two cliffs almost touching one another. We laughed when Kong kept insisting that a dynamite tore them apart... he did not think it was platonic movement.

See what an old bridge stood on.

This spot is also known as the Swallow Grotto...the place to harvest bird's nest ; we were wondering how they harvest them among the holes formed in the cliffs.

We were fortunate to see the newly built bridge beside the old one on the right.

A family photo for the album. I must admit once again that this was an experience out of the world. To make a trip like this again with the old folks will not be easy again. Kong Kong ranted that he was very glad he had the chance to see nature so closely and I know these memories will be etched forever. It was indeed very fortunate that they took the walking and travelling so well ; with no fuss.

On the way down to Hualien we stopped at Tien Hsing for nature's call and bought a giant size pear from this local at NT200. It's a huge sum but never mind la..gave that local a treat.








This representation of one of the local tribes ended the day trip up at Taroko National Park as we made our way to Hualien for the night's rest.

A wonderful trip ; forever etched in our memories