Free Day!

After a week of scheduled programmes, today is finally our first and last free-and-easy day in Taiwan. A group of us have set our minds on heading to Fulong Beach for a day of water activities. However, it was a bittersweet affair - the process of getting to our destination was a chore! The train was packed to the brim, literally. Richard, Steven, Andria, Vico and I were virtually relegated to the platform right at the entrance of the train for the earlier part of the journey. We totally felt 'trapped' and 'suffocated' for most parts of the journey. It was the first time I've experienced this kind of situation. It was total anarchy, with incoming passengers desperately and frantically attempting to squeeze their way to their designated seats despite the already deeply confined standing space. I heaved a sigh of relief when the train eventually pulled into Fulong station. I felt liberated...

Packed train carriage

The negative effects of the train ride were soon masked by the sheer beauty of the coastline. The crowd did not in any way distort the mesmerizing effect of the beach. It is way, way larger and more extensive than the Siloso Beach in Singapore's Sentosa. The sand sculptures gave an artistic side to the landscape. We had much fun soaking in and 'dunking' one another into the sea water. The gratification was complete with a serving of chicken leg lunch box and 3-flavoured ice-cream.

Light moment with Steven imitating Psy's Gangnam Style

Designated swimming area

Following that, we hopped over to 'Cat City', a place populated by cats and their related merchandise. The beautiful scenery was another highlight to this place. After hanging around the place for an hour or so, it was time to make our way back to Taipei City. The journey back seemed like eternity to me. The train was delayed and the journey was long, in my opinion. I guess, such is the size of Singapore, that explains why I was the only one who seemed pretty impatient that the train doors took a tad too long to shut, the train moved too slowly etc. Andria told me that a 2-hour journey was ordinary back in the United States; they sometimes took 6 hours to travel back home from college to visit their family. I thought to myself, oh gosh, if I were to take that amount of time to get back home, it would be extremely cumbersome and demoralizing! Back in Singapore, even a 2-hour journey is considered way too long - it essentially means you are using a combination of MRT and buses to get from one extreme end of Singapore to the other. I was also surprised that people could endure standing for 2 hours without any source of entertainment. Back home, even a hour hour train ride necessitates a plug-in of MP3s to kill boredom during the ride. To add to the misery, I was already experiencing so much fatigue my legs were about to crumble. Again, I leaped with joy when the train EVENTUALLY pulled into Taipei Main Station.

 Adorable kitten

I ended the day with a re-visit to Shilin Night Market alone, to purchase some gifts for friends back home. Also, to try the remaining food that I haven't had the stomach space to try the previous day. Now, I'm comfortably back in my room relaxing and anticipating the activities scheduled for the next day! Press on! :)

Day at the museums

Time really flies! Today marks the first week of my time here in Taiwan. The first activity of the day was a visit to Shung Ye Museum of Formosan Aborigines. It opened me up to the history of aboriginal tribes and indigenous people in ancient China and Taiwan. What particularly impressed me was how the men in the past inserted two stick-like structures in their ears to carry seeds for planting. It was indeed ingenious but I'm surprised how they managed to endure the pain of piercing such large holes in their ears. Everyone cracked out in laughter when Randy guessed that they were chopsticks. Unfortunately, there are no photos to show as photography is prohibited in the museum. The lunch that followed the museum tour was fantastic. The phenomenon of having Western-styled cuisine in a Chinese-dominated country just serves to depict how much globalization has resulted in the crackdown of international boundaries, where different cuisines are now readily available across the globe.

Lunch

Next up was a visit to the National Palace Museum. It was, in my opinion, the most majestic museum I've seen to date in Taiwan - and it was really crowded! A foreigner would have thought it was owned by the aristocrats. I got to see many ancient structures, equipment and sculptures that are both exquisite and exotic. This can be said so for the souvenirs in the gift shop. They had a Taiwanese feel to it and I felt convinced enough to purchase a box of 32 Chinese Chess cakes for friends back home. Despite the prohibition of photography, I still managed to get one with a statue outside the main exhibition hall.

The evening segment was spent at Shilin night market. I can only exclaim in excitement: WOW!!! It is really humongous! As for the food that I tried, I shall let the photos do the talking. I will probably visit the place again before I leave the country. And alright, tomorrow is our only free day! Hurray! Looking forward to it!!! :) :D

 Coffin board

Escargots

 Smelly tofu

Culture Galore!

In today's segment of the lecture series, we finally moved away from the theme regarding natural landscape of Taiwan. Professor Okuyama taught us the fundamentals of experimental design and hypothesis testing. Although it was a little dry as compared to earlier lectures, it is a useful tool that I believe will come in handy for our project discussions later in this programme. Following that, I was sorry to hear the tragic story of the death of 2 students in a traffic accident. I wish to offer my sincere condolences to their families. Nevertheless, I still had an enjoyable time at the Agricultural Museum, helped particularly by the delicious red bean ice-cream and egg rolls.

The next segment was a tour of the Yingge Ceramics Museum. I felt that it was an exotic one given the absence of such museums in Singapore. I was enlightened on the origins and history of the ceramic industry in Taiwan. We even got an opportunity to have hands-on sculpting of our own masterpiece. Even though creativity is not my strongest attribute, I still accomplished a decent task which I am proud of. I even managed to purchase some beautiful and exquisite souvenirs for my friends back in Singapore.

Thereafter, we had a sumptuous dinner at an eatery within the university itself. What particularly impressed me was this humongous waffle with green tea ice-cream, topped with red bean, that I ordered. Andria, Jessica and Jiling joined in the 'feast' as well. It was intriguing watching us get mesmerized by the sheer size of the waffle. And it's only equivalent to S$3 back in Singaporean currency!!! Too cheap!

Summing up the day was a calligraphy lesson. This struck in me a realization. Jimmy, Jessica and I were the only Chinese that have not had prior experience in calligraphy. This goes to show how Singapore's education system and syllabus have deviated from our traditional culture and roots. It was a great opportunity for us to rekindle ourselves with our past. Had a terrific time writing my name, university and other phrases in Mandarin characters. Ole! :P

The most exhausting day to date!

Today marked our first brush with the scenic Yangmingshan. Watching the introductory video and sitting in during lectures had really made me excited about this trip. Little did I expect that the journey to the peak was so arduous! I totally lost count of he number of steps we covered today; it was so many it seemed like the 'stairway to heaven'. Having served the military back in Singapore, this 'mission' was nostalgic. It was a test of resilience, of mental strength more so than physical capabilities. The occasional observation of insects seemed to take our minds of fatigue instantaneously. However, the fatigue was soon replaced by zeal and excitement as we neared the peak. The breeze soon turned into strong gales and reached its maximum velocity at the pinnacle of Mt. Qixing. It had so much force that it affected by movement tremendously. Nonetheless, we still found time to take beautiful photos, including my trademark 'jump shot'! Following that, the descent was equally as enthralling. We came across the Siaoyoukeng Volcanic Scenic site, which emitted rancid odours of sulphur. Huge patches of yellow crystals and steam filled the area. We ended the day with a tour of Beitou Hot Spring Museum and Thermal valley, the latter being a relaxing place filled with serenity and tranquility. The warmth emitted by the hot spring seemed to have a soothing effect on the sore muscles induced by the hiking.

 The steep ascent which yielded much perspiration

 Trademark 'jump shot' which I'm particularly proud of

 Showing off some high-altitude physical fitness training

Yellow crystals

Thermal valley: HOT!!!

The professor in the Department of Entomology told me: 'If you can survive this trek (which he said is the most challenging trail), you will most likely find the rest of the programme a piece of cake!' My motto is: To strive for adventure, you need to sweat, and you need to love nature. I'm undaunted and am still yearning for more to come. Cheers! :D

A taste of marine biodiversity

To start off, I really wish to compliment the sheer capacity of the bus. It was spacious and did not induce too much claustrophobia, making the long ride a really comfortable one. Little things like this go a long way in enhancing the morale of participants. Kudos to the logistics management and organization! It was a really awesome way to begin the day.

We set off en route to the National Museum of Marine Science and Technology. I got the opportunity to witness for myself the diverse species found off the coasts of Taiwan. The guide was extremely generous with her sharing and it was commendable that she attempted to teach us as much as possible. I particularly found this fish peculiar - its camouflaging expertise totally took me by surprise. I was staring into the tank thinking it was just another ordinary piece of coral; little did I know it was actually a fish staring back at me!!! The cold room housing the deep-sea organisms was way too chilling! It is pretty difficult to imagine why organisms thrive in such dark and freezing environments with little or no activity.

Next up was the Northeast coast intertidal zone. After all the lectures emphasizing the myriad of marine species occurring off the coasts of Taiwan, I had expected to see the intertidal area bustling with activity. However, I have to admit a slight disappointment by the relatively poor species diversity as compared to a previous experience back in Singapore. I was hoping to find gigantic sea stars, fiddler crabs and nudibranchs, but they were nowhere to be found. Nevertheless, I still had my virgin handheld experience with the sea cucumber. Thankfully it did not eviscerate!

Me enjoying the sea breeze at the intertidal zone

Everyday is starting to bring new surprises and I believe the adventure will only get better. Yangmingshan, here I come!!! :)

The programme picks up speed!

I have always dreamt of taking up a post-retirement 'career' in farming. My friends never fail to laugh at me when I tell them that because it is simply impractical in Singapore. Nevertheless, my fervent interest in farming and agriculture has never wavered. Today, we got a taste of rice harvesting and farm practice. It was not my first time putting on a traditional farmer's hat but it was nonetheless greeted with great excitement. It was my first experience with the 'rice-beating' machine though. The entire process was not only enjoyable but meaningful. I can finally empathize with the hardship farmers endure to make ends meet. Working under the scorching sun with a plethora of grains to harvest is never an easy task. But it was fulfilling anyway!

The day continued with a series of informative lectures which enlightened us on the geography and flora of Taiwan, and thoroughly explained the factors contributing to the rich endowment of biodiversity in such a small nation. It is pretty strange and ironic to keep hearing lecturers place much emphasis on how small Taiwan is, especially when coming from one of the tiniest nations in the world - Singapore! However, one feature which I can really be proud of my own country is that we are miles ahead of the rest in fern diversity. The final lecture on marine biodiversity was in my opinion, the most captivating. I'm extremely intrigued by the myriad of lifeforms that thrive in the deep benthic zones.

The latter part of the day brought us to participate in some frog observation. It was an eye-opener because I could finally see such huge frog diversity in the wild. In Singapore, the only frog farm holds these creatures in captivity, merely for commercial purposes - such a pity! I truly enjoyed myself hugging those croaky creatures and subsequently watching as they were released back into the wild. Looking forward to the intertidal trip tomorrow and yearning for more adventure ahead! :)

'We have only 21 hours a day, the remaining 3 hours are dedicated to meditation and contemplation'

The day kicked off with an opening ceremony. It was great to meet the distinguished faculty members and professors overseeing the BACT programme. Then came a visit to the Gallery of NTU History. In my opinion, it was a perfect complement to the museum session yesterday. It was fascinating to learn about the origins and developments of the university. The association of the university with former President Fu Si-Nien particularly stood out. In addition, we formally got to orientate ourselves with the NTU campus today. The games we played were reminiscent of those in my home university.

The afternoon segment consisted of 2 entertaining and informative lectures which shared with us the biodiversity and insects of Taiwan. Before I arrived, I was under the impression that Taiwan was solely a food and shopping paradise; a metropolis reeking of urban lifestyles. Little did I know that the attractions of the nation reach out far beyond that. Having learnt a little about insects back in my home university last semester, I'm glad I could relate to some of the details shared by the lecturer. The introduction to endemic species is also one new learning point. After viewing the films on the flora and fauna of Taiwan, I'm now all geared up to visit them in situ!!!

Introduction

Today was the very first introductory session we had with the staff, co-ordinators and participants in this programme. It was really heartening to learn about the fascinating aspects of the programme and the various people and cultures that I will be exposed to in the coming weeks! I'm also very honoured to be given an opportunity to promote my home university and I truly feel proud to fly the flag of NUS. The staff, particularly Jack, and the volunteer students, were amiable and approachable. It was comforting to watch them put in their utmost effort in helping us to settle and adapt to the new environment.

The tour of National Taiwan Museum was an eye-opener. It enabled me to appreciate and familiarize myself with the heritage and livelihood of the nation's past. Possibly the only regret of the day was the inability to visit Chiang Kai-Shek Memorial Hall due to inclement weather.

At night, we had some free time for ourselves, which was spent on roaming the streets and night markets. It is enlightening to discover the vibrancy of the streets of Taipei, bustling with activity. The variety and price of food here is beyond favourable!!!

I am totally looking forward to what is in store for me this summer programme. Hope that it will be a fruitful experience enriched with lasting memories!