Author: hongsabroad

We are a family of four from San Francisco currently living in Taipei, Taiwan! This blog will catalog our adventures abroad.
Ramblings

Japan

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Over the summer, we went to Tokyo, Japan for 10 days (followed by Australia but more on that later). This would be my third time in Japan, so I wasn’t too keen on visiting again except for a few reasons:

  1. We brought C to Japan when he was only a year old, and O has never been
  2. DisneySea is often called the best Disney park in the world, so we thought it was the perfect place to take the boys for their first Disney experience
  3. We wanted to climb Mt. Fuji
  4. Japan is only a three hour flight from Taiwan – plus, no jet lag!

Japan has always been a favorite destination for many, particularly in the last few years to the point that it’s suffering from overtourism. To be honest, I never understood it. Japan is nice enough – safe, clean and affordable – but I didn’t think it was any more special than other countries. I never got the hype…until this trip.

First, the food. We didn’t seek out the most popular spots, yet even the little restaurants down the street were amazing. I don’t think we ever had a bad meal there, and everything was so affordable! (As you can tell from the pictures below, we ate a LOT of sushi.)

Next up: DisneySea. We’re not huge Disney fans, but could still appreciate their stunning visuals, immersive experiences, and attention to detail. DisneySea felt especially unique, with rides like Soaring Fantastic Flight and Journey to the Center of the Earth that we had never experienced before.

Tickets to DisneySea were about $70 USD for adults, and $60 USD for kids, which is a STEAL compared to the prices for Disneyland in Anaheim. We did splurge on fast passes for Soaring Fantastic Flight and Anna and Elsa’s Frozen Journey, at around $15 USD per person per ride. What would’ve been a 1.5 hour – 2 hour wait ended up being a 10-15 minute wait with the fast passes, so the splurge was worth it!

By the end of a full day at DisneySea, our feet were so sore and our wallets a little lighter, but we had an absolute blast. Disney sure knows how to make your experience there enjoyable!

On a less successful theme park note…

We had also planned to go to Legoland Japan for O’s birthday. We were careful to book tickets for Legoland Resort (the full theme park), not the Legoland Discovery Center (the smaller indoor version). The day before while checking the route, we realized it would take us THREE hours by train to get there. (Why we didn’t notice this earlier, I have no idea.) But since it was O’s birthday and we already had the tickets, we decided to make the trek anyway.

At the crack of dawn, we packed our bags and headed to the train station…only for Baba to discover that round-trip train tickets would cost us $700 USD!! 😱😱 We checked, re-checked, and triple-checked, but it was true. Since Legoland is in Nagoya, the only way to get there was the Shinkansen, and those tickets are pricey. (Planning ahead? Clearly not our strong suit.)

We had to cut our losses short. We gave up our Legoland tickets (about $150 USD) and faced the hardest part– telling the boys. Poor O burst into tears, heartbroken that his birthday trip to Legoland was canceled. My mama heart was crushed.

To soften the blow, we went to the Legoland Discovery Center instead (ironically, the very place we had been so careful not to book initially – ha!). Thankfully, it’s right in central Tokyo, and while it’s nowhere near as comprehensive as the full resort, it still had enough rides, games, and Lego builds to keep the boys entertained for most of the day.

We wrapped up by letting the birthday boy choose dinner — AYCE shabu shabu, which helped turn a disappointing start to a day that was still memorable and fun. Happy birthday O, we love you! ❤️

On our last day in Tokyo, we visited TeamLabs Planets, an immersive exhibit that combines art with technology. The boys and I had already been impressed by a TeamLabs exhibit in Taipei, but since Japan is where TeamLabs originated, we wanted to check it out.

The experience was nothing short of psychedelic and fully immersive, from bouncing among giant ceiling-to-floor spheres, to walking barefoot through water as digital fish swam around us! The “wow” factor never stopped. It was wildly creative, awe-inspiring from start to finish, and highly recommended for kids AND adults!

As you can tell, we didn’t exactly dive into Japan’s cultural side on this trip. 😏 Instead, it was mostly theme parks and art exhibits, but we still had a fantastic time.

As for our Mt. Fuji climb…this post is getting a bit long and I think that deserves a post all its own. So, stay tuned!

Ramblings

Lessons Beyond School

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I know I complained about C’s homework load in my last post, but I want to acknowledge that our school offers amazing opportunities that teach valuable lessons beyond the classroom, some of which were not available to us in the U.S. (especially not in elementary school). Most opportunities are for 4th grade and up, so unfortunately O will have to wait his turn.

Little Diplomat. This year, C was selected to be a “Little Diplomat”. Occasionally, our school has visitors from other countries, and Little Diplomats are responsible for welcoming them, giving tours of the school, and presenting on different topics. C met people from Indonesia, Korea, Japan and the Kingdom of Eswatini. Being a Little Diplomat has allowed C to practice public speaking and learn how to interact with people from different cultures.

International Exchange. Early in the school year, C participated in a school trip to Penghu, one of Taiwan’s outer islands. He wrote about the experience here. Then last month, our school organized a trip to Korea for a week! Students even got to do a homestay for 1 night with a local family – how cool is that?! Hopefully C will be able to write a post about his Korean school trip sometime.

Beyond just having fun, C also learned a lot through this experience. Since he’s a native English speaker and comfortable speaking in front of others, the school often asks him to present or help translate between Taiwanese and Korean students. In the months leading up to the trip, students would also meet on a weekly basis to prepare – writing to Korean students, practicing performances, learning about Korean culture and language, etc.

Badminton Team. C has been on the badminton team since the beginning of the school year. I’ve always been a fan of kids playing sports – they learn about teamwork, get exercise, and develop grit. C absolutely loves playing badminton. And so much to his delight, his team has practices almost everyday, sometimes twice a day. Unlike the elementary school sports in the US, Taiwan school teams take practice very seriously (as with most other things 😅). Students have to run laps if they don’t do well during practices, and can get kicked off the team if they consistently perform poorly or have a bad attitude. It’s a bit harsh compared to U.S. standards but it definitely pushes the kids to work hard and take their responsibilities seriously.

Global Scholars Program. C isn’t part of this program yet, but will be applying for it. It’s a program for 5th and 6th graders that focuses on global issues – like reducing food waste – where students collaborate to develop solutions and create an action plan. They then present their action plan to other students from around the world participating in the same program.

The goal of this program aligns perfectly with what we’ve been encouraging our boys to do: identify a problem, come up with a solution, and take action. We hope this experience will help C build important skills like teamwork, communication, and leadership. To us, these skills are far more important than scoring well on a social studies exam. 😅

The programs I’ve mentioned are not available in every Taipei public school, so we really appreciate that our school has such an international and forward-thinking focus. That’s one of the great things about living on a small island like Taiwan – people are always looking outward and eager to learn from others around the world.

But it would be remiss not to mention C’s role in all of this. Despite a heavy homework load, he’s always excited to participate in activities. He definitely has a bit of FOMO – which, in his case, is a good thing – because he truly wants to make the most of every opportunity.

Ramblings

Homework vs. Happiness

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Oof. I haven’t had the motivation to write anything as of late. But with the school year is slipping away (less than 2 months to go!), I wanted to record our second-year experience at our school in Taiwan.

Students in elementary school have the same teacher, classmates, and schedule for two consecutive years, so there were no changes there. O is in 2nd grade, comes home at noon on most days, and homework is still about 20 minutes each day. This schedule is great because it allows him to relax and pursue his interests. For awhile he was into Rubik’s cube, and now he’s into reading (current favorite genre is fantasy) and coding.

Coding on Scratch.

O also participates in a lot of after-school activities like swimming, Lego, balloon modeling, and Go 圍棋. He enjoys Go so much that we signed him up for a competition outside of school and he won 2nd place in the beginner’s group!

We’ve also been able to tutor O in English and math more at home due to his relaxed schedule. He is progressing a lot faster than C in this regard.

On the contrary, 4th grade for C has been filled with homework, homework and more homework. Even though he has the same teacher as last year, the volume and difficulty has increased. It also doesn’t help that 4th graders have school until 4pm on most days, and then C has badminton team practices and after-school activities until 5:45pm everyday. By the time he eats dinner, showers, and finishes homework, it’s already time to go to bed. C doesn’t have a lot of free time to relax and just be a kid. If this is what school is like in 4th grade, I’m nervous about what’s to come in 5th and 6th. 😬

Surprisingly, C hasn’t complained much about the long hours of Chinese homework—or even when Baba and I try to squeeze in extra math and English. I’m grateful he’s so diligent, but we still wrestle with how to balance the endless grind of schoolwork with simply letting him be a kid.

We’ve had to postpone projects because he’s busy all the time. Most weeknights, there’s no time for reading or playing because he’s doing homework right up until bedtime. And when he does get a sliver of free time, I feel guilty asking him to do more. Sometimes, people just need the space to switch off.

We’ve considered working with his teacher to reduce homework, but C didn’t want to. He wants to complete every assignment, and do it as well as he possibly can. (Honestly, he spends more time than necessary perfecting every stroke and sentence!) And so we find ourselves stuck again: we don’t want to temper C’s desire to excel, but we also want to make sure he doesn’t burn himself out.

Going to school in Taiwan has undoubtedly been a life-changing experience for the boys, but sometimes I can’t help but wonder how much more carefree their lives might have been if we had stayed in the U.S. No homework, no midterms and finals, just free time to explore. In the end, we’re still trying to strike that everyday balance between homework and happiness.

Ramblings

Thailand

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The last leg of our month-long SE Asia trip was to Bangkok, Thailand. Since we had been bouncing around Vietnam and Cambodia the past few weeks, we decided to station ourselves in Bangkok for the remainder of our trip. Bangkok is one of my favorite cities in the world. There is a special vibe and energy that that’s both comforting and thrilling. There is just so much to do, see, and eat! This is my third time there, and my feelings about the Bangkok remain the same.

It would be negligent to visit Thailand and not eat to our heart’s content. 😊 We love Thai food but as with Vietnamese food, Taipei unfortunately doesn’t have a lot of authentic Thai restaurants and we sorely miss it.

We spent the week in Bangkok eating and eating and eating. Probably gained a few pounds from this trip but boy, was it worth it!

The food prices in Bangkok were not as cheap as Vietnam’s, but more on par with Taipei’s (about $25-$30 for a casual meal for family of four). However, you can also easily find street food that’s much cheaper.

Another “must” when visiting Thailand is getting a Thai massage. Since we didn’t have anyone to watch the boys, Baba stayed at the Airbnb with them while I went to get a 1.5 hour massage. It was a relaxing experience, but not as joint-cracking as I remembered (and hoped for) 😂. At $30, the massage was on the higher-end but still very reasonable compared to the US.

Sightseeing around Bangkok: Chinatown (incredibly chaotic but in a good way!), Icon Siam (the biggest, most fabulous mall in Bangkok), and Wat Arun Temple.

Around the second or third day into the trip, Baba started experiencing GI issues. (We suspect it may have been all that coconut cream from the mounds of Mango Sticky Rice he ate.) So, I decided to book a last-minute Thai cooking class with C, my boy who lives to eat.

We had a total blast!! The class started off at a local wet market, where our teacher showed what some common ingredients are in Thai cooking. We went back to the cooking school via tuk-tuk and cooked four amazing dishes: Tom Yum Goong, Pad Thai, Massaman Curry and Mango Sticky Rice. Every dish was restaurant-quality and surprisingly easy to make! Then again, not having to source ingredients and clean up after ourselves makes a huge difference too 😅.

As the week went on, C caught another stomach bug. 😣 (Or maybe he never fully healed from the last bug in Vietnam?) With two men down, O and I went sightseeing at the Grand Palace and Wat Pho (Reclining Buddha Temple) by ourselves. I remember seeing these grand, opulent temples for the first time 20 years ago and feeling my jaw drop to the floor. It was moving to see O reacting the same way when he laid eyes on the Grand Palace, and I was reminded why we take these trips with our kids.

And that completes our whirlwind trip in SE Asia! Thankfully, Baba and C recovered from their illnesses before we flew back to Taipei. We even got to sneak in some delicious food (but with extra caution) on our last day. We got back to Taipei in the evening and the boys had school the very next morning 😅. Even after a month-long vacation, they whined and wished they could stay in SE Asia a while longer. But you know what? I felt the same way.

Ramblings

Cambodia

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After Vietnam, we took a bus from Ho Chi Minh City to Phnom Penh. When Baba suggested taking a bus instead of flying, I was skeptical. The ride would take 8-9 hours long, although Baba reasoned that flying (driving ~1 hour to the airport, checking in, waiting around for ~2+ hours, etc.) was just as much of a nuisance.

We took the Giant Ibis bus, a popular transportation company in SE Asia. And to my surprise, it was a great experience. The seats were large and comfortable, and the driver offered water and snacks. The bus stopped every 2 hours for restroom breaks so the ride didn’t feel long at all. C also caught a stomach bug that morning – vomiting a couple times before leaving HCMC 😓- so it was a relief that he could just rest on the bus. (Luckily his nausea stopped once we departed too.)

Pic taken from Google

Phnom Penh. Baba and I visited Cambodia 15+ years ago but only went to Siem Reap/Angkor Wat. Therefore, our memories of the capital are vague, but we definitely did not remember Phnom Penh being so modern and full of mainland Chinese! We later learned that a lot of mainlanders immigrated to Cambodia to invest in high-rises and casinos.

On our first day, we visited the Central Market, an art-deco market selling everything from fruits to seafood to fried tarantulas. A whirlwind of interesting sights, smells, and sounds, wet markets are one of our favorite things to see while traveling!

Two places I regrettably missed while visiting Cambodia many years ago were the Killing Fields and the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum. From 1975-1979, the Khmer Rouge regime under Pol Pot committed a genocide that killed between 1.5 to 3 million Cambodians. Pol Pot’s goal was to create a completely agrarian, classless society. This led to forced labor, mass purges and executions. Yet, we never learned about the Cambodian Genocide in school and never heard much about it in the media. I always feel it’s important to learn about the history of the places we’re visiting, no matter how horrific it may be. Traveling is not only about luxury resorts and shopping malls.

The Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum was once a high school in the middle of Phnom Penh but under the Khmer Rouge regime, it turned into a torture prison. Inside the prison, you’ll see actual devices and tools that were used to torture people. The rows and rows of black and white photos of prisoners were particularly haunting. Out of the estimated 14,000 to 20,000 people imprisoned there, only 12 known survivors made it out alive. Because of the graphic nature of the museum, we didn’t bring the boys inside but briefly shared with them what we saw.

Many prisoners from torture prisons like Tuol Sleng were taken to the Killing Fields, where they were brutally executed. At a quick glance, the Killing Fields look like a nice, serene park but there, babies’ heads were smashed into trees (often in front of their mothers), and women and men were killed with blunt objects, slashed with knives, etc. in order to save bullets. We rented the audio guide, and it was absolutely gut-wrenching to hear what happened at the Killing Fields.

Many Cambodians today are still scarred by the genocide and you can see the pain in their eyes whenever Khmer Rouge is mentioned. Visiting both the Killing Fields and Tuol Sleng in one day left me heavy-hearted, but I’m grateful we got this opportunity to learn about this important piece of Cambodia’s history.

Siem Reap. We traveled by bus from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap, which took about 6 hours. Siem Reap was no longer the run-down little town we remember from 15+ years ago. Today, it’s a trendy resort town with cafes, pizza shops, and modern hotels.

The food in Siem Reap (and Phnom Penh) was unfortunately not suited to our tastes. There wasn’t a ton of variety, and even the national dish – Fish Amok – was a hit and miss for us. We ended up mostly eating pizza in Siem Reap, which was surprisingly pretty good!

We did, however, stop by a local stall to try a popular local snack – BUGS!

There were beetles, grasshoppers, and worms. They were heavily spiced and deep fried so you won’t be able to taste the “natural” flavor of the bugs, but once I popped a worm into my mouth and felt its guts explode I was DONE. The boys and Baba enjoyed them though.

But like most tourists, our primary goal for visiting Cambodia was to see Angkor Wat. We booked a tuk-tuk to take us around Angkor Wat for a day. This was probably the boys’ favorite part of the trip. 😅

We skipped the sunrise this time (because I just cannot wake up at 4am anymore 😂) but still arrived early enough to avoid the crowds.

Angkor Wat will never not be amazing to me. Built in the 12th century, it’s the largest religious monument in the world, showcasing the incredible skill of the Khmer people. Walking through Angkor Wat feels like stepping back in time – its beauty and history leave you in awe.

Still, after visiting the main temples, you kind of get temple fatigue. There is absolutely no shade at Angkor Wat so we were burning up for most of the day, even though we went in the winter!

We left Cambodia after 7 days. Baba and I sometimes wonder how much the kids will remember from this adventure. But at least for Baba and me – we take with us memories of stunning temples, new experiences, and the joy of seeing it all through our kids’ eyes.

Ramblings

Vietnam

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Hello, it’s been awhile!

But I have an excuse. We had been traveling around SE Asia over the boys’ winter break, visiting 3 countries and 8 cities in 4 weeks. We had such an amazing time there, and surprisingly didn’t find the trip exhausting at all. SE Asia is one of my favorite regions in the world.

I’ve been wanting to visit Vietnam for some time. Baba and I both have connections there, with his parents and siblings being born in Vietnam and my family having lived there for many years. I’ve also been enticed by pictures on social media of the beautiful nature and landscapes around the country. But most of all, we absolutely love Vietnamese food and have been missing it since we moved to Taiwan (the Vietnamese food here is lackluster).

We visited Vietnam from north to south – first Hanoi, then Ha Long Bay, Hoi An, Da Nang and finally Ho Chi Minh City.

Hanoi. Despite the terrible air pollution and nonsensical traffic, we loved Hanoi! I don’t know if it’s because Hanoi was the first place we visited, but the city has that old-world charm that makes you feel like you’ve stepped back in time, with its narrow streets, cozy cafes and roadside restaurants complete with the quintessential small, plastic stools. We stayed in the Old Quarter; most things were within walking distance and every corner had something to be discovered.

The food in Hanoi was also amazing. People have told me northern Vietnamese food is pretty bland but we didn’t think that at all. I don’t think we had one bad meal there, and of course everything is so, so affordable. Our meals were usually around $8-$10 for a family of four. 😱

During our stay in Hanoi, we also booked a day trip to Ninh Binh, a city in the countryside with calm rivers flanked by stunning limestone mountains and caves. It was so scenic! After the boat tour, we hiked to Hang Mua Cave and climbed up the Ngoa Long (Lying Dragon Mountain). The hike was all stairs so it was definitely a work out!

Ha Long Bay. We left Hanoi and took a 2 hour bus ride to Cat Ba Island, a gateway to Ha Long Bay. Originally, we wanted to go on a 2-night cruise to Ha Long Bay but the atrocious prices and lukewarm reviews turned us off. So, Baba found a more economical alternative: stay in Cat Ba Island for 2 nights and book a day cruise to the bay. 🙂

There wasn’t much to do on Cat Ba Island (although the tourism department is trying to build it into a resort town) and the food was mediocre. But we had a wonderful day cruise around Ha Long Bay – the views were beautiful and we got a chance to do some water activities even though the water was freezing. Our tour operator was Cat Ba Express and they were great. They seamlessly organized the cruise and transportation to/from Hanoi.

Hoi An. After Ha Long Bay, we flew to central Vietnam which included Hoi An. Hoi An is an incredibly picturesque city and has become one of Vietnam’s most Instagram-able place.

Hoi An is a very small city so after one day of sightseeing, we were pretty much done. There were so many tourists in the main part of Hoi An that at times it felt like a commercialized tourist trap. The streets were lined with shops selling souvenirs or tourist “experiences” like the lantern release on the river (which we ended up doing anyway 😅).

Nonetheless, we ate some good comfort food in Hoi An like bánh mì (including the shop that Anthony Bourdain visited!), and dishes native to central Vietnam that we’ve never had before, like mì quảng and cao lầu.

Da Nang. Da Nang is just a one hour drive from Hoi An. We only stayed here for 2 nights, but wished we stayed longer because it turned out to be one of our favorite places in Vietnam.

There are two sides to Da Nang. We stayed at the “resort” side, which was next to a really nice beach and tourist-friendly shops and restaurants. The boys loved the beach here and kept wanting to stay. (Taipei has no nearby beaches so the boys miss it immensely.)

We thought that was all of Da Nang until we did a Google search and realized there’s another part to the city over the bridge. A part that is a bit grittier and more frenzied, but with much more authentic, delicious food and interesting sites. We loved this part of Da Nang the best and had some of the best bánh xèo of our lives here!

Before leaving Da Nang, we also spent a few hours visiting Marble Mountain, a cluster of five limestone and marble hills/caves. It was a nice break from the usual cityscape.

Ho Chi Minh City. Ho Chi Minh City is the most modern city in Vietnam, with wide boulevards, upscale shopping, and international cuisine. But HCMC is also incredibly vast and scattered. Even though we stayed in District 1 (where most tourists stay), it took us a long time to walk to places or we’d have to take a taxi, and many of the restaurants we wanted to visit were a 20-30 minute car ride away.

We heard that HCMC has the best food in Vietnam but thought the food was average (except for 1 or two dishes), at least compared to what we had in Hanoi and Da Nang. Maybe we went to the wrong places?

The highlight of our visit to HCMC was going to Cu Chi Tunnels and War Remnants Museum. We visited the museum one day, then booked a day tour to Cu Chi Tunnels the day after. They were the perfect complement for learning all about the Vietnam War. The Cu Chi Tunnels were a vast network of secret tunnels that the Vietcong soldiers used to combat the Americans. The living conditions for Vietcong soldiers during that time were terrible; many had to eat rats and snakes while in hiding, and had to live alongside dead bodies in the tunnels.

To accommodate tourists, the tunnels today are built three times larger than the original and equipped with lighting and air conditioning. This is crazy to me because I was already feeling hot and tired after a short trip through the tunnels. 😅 It was incredibly humbling to experience what people’s lives were like only 50 years ago. We discussed the war and Cu Chi Tunnels for days after – so much better than just learning about it in school!

We spent a total of 18 days in Vietnam. This was my first time there, but I strangely felt connected to the place. Perhaps it was the familiar smells, tastes and sounds that reminded me of my upbringing, which was heavily influenced by my parents’ time in Vietnam. For the first time, I wondered what my parents’ life was like there, and what our lives would be like if they never left.

I loved the craziness, familiarity, and of course the food in Vietnam. I can only hope to go back one day.

Ramblings

Volunteering in Taiwan

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I’ve always enjoyed volunteering. It’s a great way to spend time with the family while doing something good, often doesn’t require a huge time commitment, and you get to meet interesting people.

I already knew I wanted to volunteer in Taiwan somehow before moving here. The trouble was finding organizations that speak some English and could accommodate children. I scoped out some non-profits on social media and found two organizations: SALT Collectiv and Mary’s Doggies.

SALT was founded by a group of foreigners living in Taiwan who strive to feed the homeless (among other initiatives). When I first told the boys about SALT, they couldn’t believe there were homeless people in Taiwan. While definitely not as common as in SF, there are indeed homeless people in Taiwan! We want the boys to realize that regardless of where you are, there will always be marginalized people who need help.

At SALT events, we write encouraging notes and prepare 100 bento boxes, which we distribute to the homeless at Taipei Main Station. We’ve participated in 5 or 6 events now and surprisingly, the boys really enjoy it – even O, who normally hates being near the kitchen. 😂 The boys also donated some of their own money to SALT’s fundraiser this year. SALT events can be pretty tiring for Baba and me (they usually take 4-5 hours) but seeing the boys wanting to help others makes it worthwhile.

Mary’s Doggies is an organization that rehabilitates abandoned and abused dogs and prepares them for adoption. I’ve participated in several of their volunteer events like dog walking and socializing dogs, but most events were on school days so the boys couldn’t join. (Or when an event was on a weekend, it was too hot. Weather in Taipei is unfortunately not conducive to outdoor activities.)

But now that the weather has somewhat cooled down, I was able to sign us up for a weekend dog walking event. Many of the dogs are extremely timid, so it took some time for them to get used to us. We played with and walked 3 dogs for about an hour. Like me, C and O love dogs so this was a wonderful way for us to get our dog fix while helping to socialize them.

Other than volunteering with these organizations, Baba and I continue to volunteer at the boys’ school. Baba still volunteers as a crossing guard and this year, I’m volunteering as a “school lunch taste tester.” 😂 There is really such a thing!

Unlike the US, public schools in Taiwan take nutrition in lunches very seriously. They invite parents to taste the lunch and then fill out a form where you detail whether the food is too salty or not salty enough, too fibrous, too soft, etc. You also have to take photos of the food and upload them along with the completed form to a central system.

I find this fascinating as it’s so different than in the US. The lunches are pretty good too! The food is not unlike the simple mom-and-pop restaurants in Taipei. There’s always some kind of protein, carb, lots of vegetables, soup and fruit. Lunches aren’t free though – families have to pay $2 per meal but I’d still say it’s a good deal!

Ramblings

A Weekend in Yilan 宜蘭

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Since moving to Taiwan, we’ve heard a lot about Yilan, a county in the northeast part of the country. Apparently it’s a very popular weekend getaway for families.

Earlier this month, we finally took a trip to Yilan for a weekend. It was so easy to get there! Friday after school, we walked 15 minutes from our place to the Taipei City Hall bus station, then boarded a bus to Luodong 羅東. The buses depart every 10-15 minutes and we simply paid the fare on board with our Easy Card. Within an hour, we arrived at Luodong – easy peasy!

I decided to stay in the city of Luodong because it’s close to a few of the family farms Yilan is famous for. I booked a room at Check Inn Magi and it was a HUGE hit with the boys. It has video games, ball pit room, a large indoor slide and motorized toy cars. The boys seriously wanted to live there. 😂 The best part was that Baba and I could rest in our room while they played downstairs.

Our hotel was also close to the Luodong Night Market, which we visited on Friday night. It was a pretty big market but nothing stood out in particular, at least nothing that we tried.

On Saturday morning, we went to Zhang Mei Ama Farm 張美阿嬤農場, about a 20 minute taxi ride from Luodong. Buses don’t run very frequently in Yilan, so most people either drive, hire a driver, or take a taxi.

Zhang Mei Ama Farm is a popular petting farm located in Sanxing. Visitors can get up close and personal with animals like alpacas, capybaras, sheep, wallabies, etc. But first, we signed up for a short cooking class at the farm, where we got to make (and later eat) sweet potato and taro balls. The balls are fairly easy to make: just mash up soft taro and sweet potato with rice flour, then boil in water.

After the cooking class, we headed to the petting farm. The worker gave us a bunch of grass to feed the animals. It can be pretty overwhelming at first because the animals charged at anyone with food. The taller animals like alpacas and deer would grab the food right out of C and O’s hands, so Baba and I had to hold it with our arms held high. 😂 But aside from the animals being ravenous, they were generally very tame and seemed to be well taken care of. We all loved seeing the variety of animals here! We paid $10.75 per person for both the cooking class and farm experience, and booked our tickets here.

Nearby Zhang Mei Ama Farm are a couple of scallion farms. The one we went to is Cong Bao Bao 葱抱抱體驗農場. It was about a 30 minute walk from the farm. You could take a taxi there but since the weather was comfortable, we decided to walk.

At Cong Bao Bao, you can make scallion pancakes and/or harvest scallions. Unfortunately, the scallion fields were destroyed by Typhoon Kong-rey the weekend prior. But all was not lost! The farm also grew dragon fruit so we were able to pick those.

Interestingly, dragon fruit grows on long prickly vines. The dragon fruits at the farm had pink flesh and were wrapped in bags to prevent bugs and animals from eating them. We each got to take one home.

On our last day in Yilan, we took the local train to Jiaoxi 礁溪, another small town in Yilan famous for hot springs. Streets are literally lined with hot springs spas. We bought a day pass at Chuan Tang Spring Spa Hotel 川湯春天溫泉飯店 for about $10 per person. (On weekdays, it’s about $7 per person.)

The resort is a little dated but we still had a lot of fun because of the variety of facilities. They had different scented and colored baths; a kids’ section with water slides; scented steam rooms; fish pedicure; and even a bath with a mahjong table! 😂 We stayed here for 4 hours – definitely got our money’s worth!

The trip from Jiaoxi back to Taipei was seamless as well. As with Luodong, there is a direct bus linking Jiaoxi and Taipei. We took the bus for about an hour and the first stop was just a 5 minute walk from our apartment. Can’t get any more convenient than that!

We had a great time in Yilan. It’s family-friendly, easy to get to, and has tons of fun, affordable activities. It really makes a perfect weekend getaway.

Ramblings

A Family Affair

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This past April, my sister and BIL visited for a week, followed by my SIL who visited for two months over the summer. Then in mid-October, my other sister and BIL visited for 10 days. How lucky are we to have so many family members visit us this year?!

My sister and BIL have been to Taiwan a couple times before, so they’ve visited most of the major sites in Taipei. I had arranged a day trip to Yangmingshan 陽明山 but it was pouring rain so our driver took a detour and drove us to Tamsui 淡水 instead. We had the most delicious blueberry cream castella cake, explored the old street, and took a ferry across to Bali 八里, a small coastal town. Bali was very similar to Tamsui across the river in terms of look and feel, but less busy.

My sister and BIL’s visit also coincided with the Halloween festivities in Taipei. We took them to Yong Kong Street to trick or treat, but also to eat of course! Our “must-eat” places at Yong Kang have always been the Tian Jin Onion Pancake 天津葱抓餅 and Yong Kong Beef Noodle Soup 永康牛肉麵。 But we recently discovered Jingimoo Cafe 金鷄母, which has amazing shaved ice – in my opinion, better than the famous Smoothie House!

Because the boys still had school during their visit, we weren’t able to accompany my sister and BIL to a few places, but I’m glad they got to explore Alishan 阿里山, Jiufen 九分, Shifen 十分, and Hsu’s Noodles 許家麵線 on their own. They were lucky to have had good weather during their visits too!

We also took this time to have an early celebration for my sister’s birthday. After all, can’t say no to eating cake!

Life is really about the simple things. We had so much fun just eating (a lot!), chatting and laughing. In fact, I didn’t even take that many pictures – which is always a sign of good times!

When my sister and BIL left, we were all feeling a little down. Being apart from family is truly the hardest thing about living abroad, but the short time we do have together is even more cherished than before.

Ramblings

Typhoon Days in Taiwan

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In early October, Typhoon Krathon hit Taiwan. The eye of the storm was mostly in southern Taiwan but as a precaution, the Taipei city government decided to close offices and schools for two days on October 2-3.

Naturally, the boys were ecstatic. There was still homework assigned, because well, it’s Taiwan. 😂 Coming from California, we never had snow days but now we get to experience typhoon days or 颱風日!

Except, typhoon days aren’t as fun. People are advised to stay indoors because of high winds and rain. And with two active boys, staying indoors all day can be a challenge! Restaurants are closed. Grocery stores are cleared out the day before as people prepare to shelter in place.

But Typhoon Krathon turned out to be more of your average rainstorm, at least in Taipei. By the second day of closure, most businesses reopened and many people were out and about. (Which was for the best because we were running out of food. 😂) We started to wonder if cancelling school and businesses for two days was necessary at all.

Eating lunch at the food court in Taipei 101 during the second typhoon day.

Then in early November, another typhoon – Typhoon Kong-rey – hit Taiwan and other parts of Asia. This was a super typhoon and the strongest in 30 years. Normally, typhoons in Taiwan occur during the summer months when the air is the warmest. It is rare to to have typhoons in October, and even rarer in November so you know it was going to be a wild one. Schools and businesses closed again. This time we made sure to have enough food to last a few days.

We’ve experienced a few typhoons by this point, but most of them turned out to be rather tame. Typhoon Kong-rey however, was a real beast.

The rain and high winds howled for most of the day, but thankfully stopped before bedtime. Otherwise, I don’t think we’d be able to sleep!

The morning after:

Despite the strong wind, most of the damage was just fallen trees in our area. Although this typhoon was much stronger than Typhoon Krathon in October, the boys had to go back to school the next day. Maybe the fact that midterms were coming up had something to do with it! 😅

All of the debris was cleared out within a few days. As with the earthquake earlier this year, buildings in Taipei remained intact, and we never experienced any power or internet outages. Taiwan has its fair share of natural disasters but they are impressively well prepared!