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! :)