Reasons Why I Revisit Taiwan for Third Times

Hello blog readers! I just came back from my recent trip to Taiwan!

Instagram @dtdianateo 

Before I embarked my journey to Taiwan, my dad asked me, "How many times already you've been Taiwan?". I know I went not once but twice before but I love to return Taiwan again for more. Frankly speaking, comparing to almost all South East Asia countries I've been with East Asia countries, I prefer the latter one. Countries like Japan, South Korea and Taiwan especially, never failed to amaze me eventhough I went more than once. 

Customised 9D8N Taiwan Itinerary by yours truly

Forget about the language barrier, here are few of the reasons why I love Taiwan so much that I went back for third times:

1) Colourful & Unique Themed Accommodation

The experiences of staying in minsu and motel are completely different and unique comparing staying in a conventional hotel. I love the way how majority of these accommodation in Taiwan are decorated in varierty and colourful themes and decor to light up the atmosphere. Check out my post on

Minsu (民宿) I Stayed in Taiwan

Our room on the first night for recent trip - Superman!

2) 7-Eleven & Family Mart Almost Have Everything

If we can't figure out what and where to eat, convenience stores would always be our choice. Their convenience stores, especially 7-Eleven are like everywhere within our sight. Just grab whatever you want, from bento to spaghetti, we never worry of being hungry whenever we're in Taiwan. Not just foods, you can even buy stamps, purchase train tickets, photocopy documents in the middle of odd hours. Absolutely convenient! Check out my old post on 7-Eleven in Taiwan.

3) Creative Postcards

I love postcards so much and majority countries I went would probably with photo captured from the camera as cover. Unlike in Taiwan, they are not only printed in typical hard cover cards but their postcards are designed and printed on wood, fabrics and even metal license plate.

4) Chop & Stamp Like A Child

When I was in Taiwan, I felt like I was like a young gal. I bought a mini notepad, solely just to collect all those cute chop and stamps whenever I saw around Taiwan. Even Boyfie joined me for this so-called childish activities. Majority of these stamps can be found in train stations, information counters and shops selling postcards. I was indeed a happy gal whenever I saw them.

5) Night Markets

Imagine enormous variety of authentic Taiwanese food, tasty snacks and drinks popped up from no where when the day turns to night. A visit to Taiwan is incomplete without a visit to any of their night markets, which believed there are more than three hundred of them. Almost every nights, I spent most of my night time wandered around the night markets, regardless in which townships including Kenting. Check out my old post on Taiwan's Night Markets & Foods.

Ruiefong Night Market in Kaohsiung

6) Milk Tea Overdosed

Coffee or tea? Of course, I choose the latter as I'm not a coffee lover. I rarely visit Starbucks or Coffee Bean but when comes to order any drinks, tea would always be on top of my choice. I had milk tea in Taiwan more than I drank mineral waters. Imagine milk tea for breakfast, lunch and even during the dinner time. But no worries, milk tea in Taiwan is definitely less sugar and yet, they are so tasty and delicious. Most importantly, there are even cheap. I got a bottle of milk tea from 7-Eleven for only NT$19, that's like less than 2.50 in Ringgit Malaysia. 

7) Sushi For Only NT$10

I'm huge fan of Japanese cuisines and I could have sushi almost every week. Surprisingly in Taiwan, the sushi there is only selling as low as NT$10, roughly around RM1.20 for a fresh piece, including the salmon one. Tell me, how could I ever resist from having them? For cheap sushi, do check out Sushi Take-Out or even at the 7-Eleven stores.

8) Bookstores, Watson, Carrefour Open for 24 Hours
It's like the city of Taipei never sleep. I knew there are few bookstores open for 24/7 but only until my recent trip, I was surprised when I asked the security guard of Watson what time does the shop close and he told me it's opens for 24/7. Even Carrefour in Ximending too.


9) Celebrated My Birthday
Two years ago, Boyfie had his birthday celebration in Taiwan, Two years later, I want mine in Taiwan too. I don't mind for not having a birthday cake, even a small piece but as long as I could celebrate abroad is what I wish for my birthday wishes every single year.

Actually there are even more reasons than the above of why I love Taiwan so much. Seriously, I don't mind going back Taiwan for the 4th time. Anyone been to Taiwan more than once?

Last but not least, thanks to Malaysia Airlines for the amazing flight to Taiwan. We flew directly from Kota Kinabalu to Taipei for return only RM650. Thanks for the upgraded to Business class too! #mas #malaysiaarilines

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Siem Reap, Cambodia (2013) Day 3: Apsara Dance

Date Visited: 3rd March 2013

On the third day we woke up in Siem Reap, it was a drizzly morning and we informed our driver to cancel our plan for sightseeing cause majority of them are involved outdoor. After we had our scrumptious breakfast provided by the guest house, we went back to our slumberland again to continue our sweet dreams. 

Once we awoke, the rain stopped and we took tuk-tuk to a nearby shopping complex for lunch. Did nothing much on that day except for lunch and scouted around for souvenir shopping.

Because we have plenty of time to spend in Siem Reap, our guest house suggested to watch traditional Khmer Apsara Dance. The show is performed daily in a large-sized dining hall which I believe can accommodate more than hundreds of people at the same time. The walk-in price for the show is US$12 but we got the discounted ticket from our guest house for only US$8 per pax (approx. to RM26), which comes along with buffet feast, which we think it was pretty affordable and great bargain. 

#1: The Apsara Dance show was held at Angkor Mondial Restaurant. Our guest house even arranged tuk-tuk to pick us up from the guest house to the restaurant itself.

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Sharing Saturday: Seven Great Reasons To Travel With An Auditor

NOTE: Eventually, I came across this article shared by Kaki Berangan and being as ex auditor myself, I found out majority of the points here are indeed so true. After granted permission from the owner herself - Phebe Bay, hereby are the "Seven Great Reasons To Travel with An Auditor". 

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Mention the word “auditor” and the image of a number-loving office worker punching numbers into the calculator until the wee hours of the night comes into mind. You would think that the hectic schedules of auditors would make them less than ideal travel partners, compared to marketing folks who have the chance to wine and dine all over the world while pushing out their regional marketing campaigns.

But I had the good fortune of travelling with two auditors on multiple trips, and I must say, they’re a big asset to travel with. If you have the chance, do acquire them immediately.

With my unqualified opinion on this topic, I hereby present you, seven great reasons to travel with an auditor.

1. Travel with an auditor and you’ll never fear getting cheated by money changers. 

I’m not sure about you, but I’m a klutz when it comes to counting foreign currency denomination bills. It takes me a good three minutes to re-count the amount of money the moneychanger has given me, and it has been proven that my auditor travelling buddies effectively take half the time.

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Siem Reap, Cambodia (2013) Day 2: Part 3 - Ta Prohm Temple

Date Visited: 2nd March 2013

Angkor Wat - Checked!
Bayon Temple - Checked!

So what's next? Once we done with fulfilled our hungry tummy and quick nap (see enjoyable we were), our driver drove us to another Angkor's most popular temples among the visitors, the Ta Prohm Temple. When most of my friends ranked Bayon Temple as their favourite temple in Angkor Archaeological Park, I could say this temple is arguably my most favourite temple comparing the rest.

#1: East Gate - The Main Gate to Ta Prohm

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Siem Reap, Cambodia (2013) Day 2: Part 2 - Angkor Thom; South Gate & Bayon Temple

NOTE: I can' believe my last entry for my Siem Reap travelogue was in October 2014, it's like five months ago. Now the momentum of blogging is back and hopefully I could blog this finish as soon as possible cause I have plenty of backlog travelogues. 

Date Visited: 2nd March 2013

Once we done with one the top list to do in Siem Reap which was watching the sunrise from Angkor Wat, we had quick breakfast which prepared by the guesthouse before moving on to the destination. They prepared the breakfast as early as 4 am before we eventually went out to from the guest house. How thoughtful they were?

#1: Simple breakfast but enough to satisfy our hungry tummy 

Not far away from the Angkor Wat, we came upon the South Gate of Angkor Thom. Angkor Thom is a walled and most enduring capital city of the Khmer empire. One of the most well-known and greatest temple, Bayon Temple was built right in the center of the city. There are five gates to the city with four are at the cardinal points and the other one was leading to the Royal Palace area. And because each of these gate is crowned with four giant faces, sometimes I was confused which gate was standing in front of me. Among all the gates, the South Gate is often the first stop on a tour before entering the Angkor Thom. No wonder it was pretty crowded when we were there.

#2: A long causeway leading to each entry tower is flanked by a row of 54 stone figures on each side – demons on the right and gods on the left-to make a total of 108 mythical beings guarding the city of Angkor Thom - Source 

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DINTAGE handycraft

Something personal...

Because I'm not going anywhere within this nearer period, I did something which I'm passion about currently - making handmade greeting cards. 

 #1: Sesame Street Inspired Birthday Card 

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Snapshot Sunday: Gardens By The Bay, Singapore

Date Visited: 6th December 2014

When I stumbled upon photos of Gardens By The Bay from social media network two years ago, instantly I added this into the latest "must-visit" attraction for my next upcoming Singapore trip. I went Singapore twice last year; August with my family and December for my friend's wedding but I only managed to go there last month. 

#1: Gardens By The Bay Entrance

Right after I had dinner with my sister and her boyfriend in Chinatown area, we took cab directly to Gardens By The Bay instead of taking MRT as I need to rush to meet my friends who were waiting me there. We decided not to pay for the Entry to Flower Dome and Cloud Forest but spending our time freely roaming around the Supertree Grove as it's free of entrance.

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KSL D' Esplanade Residence, Johor Bahru

Everytime when I visit Singapore, Johor Bahru will definitely be part of my itinerary. It's like hard to separate both of these places for me. So after my family and I spent 2 nights staying in The Southbridge Hotel of Singapore, we hired a private car to travel from Singapore directly to the hotel we booked in Johor Bahru. Although it was pricey comparing taking public transport, but it was absolutely hassle-free, convenient and faster than the latter one. 

I prefer to stay nearby KSL Shopping Mall and since there are 6 of us, hence I booked to stay in KSL D's Esplanade Residence. It is a serviced apartment connected directly to the shopping mall, which making this accomodation another favourable list not just only for me, but also for the rest of my family members.

#1: KSL D' Esplanade Residence

Do take note that D's Esplanade Residence is not located nearby KSL Hotel and therefore, better to inform the driver that you are heading to the serviced apartment type, not the main hotel. Upon check-in, once again we were requested to place a refundable security deposit of RM200 and in return, we were given two different access cards; one to access to the apartment and another one to the shopping mall which later on, I found it was quite troublesome.

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Family Getaway with SuperStar Aquarius Cruises

Unlike the previous three years whereby I started my brand new year by travel abroad; Phuket back in 2012, Johor Bahru & Singapore together with Boyfie in 2013 and travelled to Myanmar last year with a group friends of mine. But for this year itself, I did it differently by having short weekend getaway with my dearest family members by taking cruise vacation with non other than well-known Star Cruises.

 

#1: SuperStar Aquarius Cruises and me! 

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Recap of 2014 & My Plan for 2015

Again, this is my first official blogpost for the year 2015 like what I did for the past 4 years (here, here, here and here). Most bloggers did this kind of post on the final day of last year but for me, I prefer to blog it in a different way somehow. 

Here's the recap of my travel adventures for the year 2014:

• January - Myanmar. After our successful gathering trip to Cambodia last year, we did it again and this time around we chosen Myanmar as our second college gathering trip. 
• January - Kuching. Went back my so-called second hometown with my family and Boyfie for my twin cousin's wedding. Why I called her as twin cousin cause both of us were born on same day, same month and same year. What a coincidence! Not just that, even her wedding day was also the anniversary day for both Boyfie and I.
• March - South Korea. My mom and sister wanna go South Korea so desperately and because of that, we booked our ticket with Korean Air kinda last minute. No doubt it was pricey but for the sake of my family, it's worth it. Besides Seoul, we took train down to Busan which my first time there. 
• April - Northern Thailand. Joined my friend just for Songkran, the Water Festival. From three hours bus ride to small but lovely town of Pai, we back to Chiang Mai for Songkran festival. Besides that, I also took a day trip to Chiang Mai just to witness the most magnificent and enchanting White Temple.
• June - Putrajaya. Represent Sabah State for Girl Guides Annual General Meeting which held annually. And with this, I unofficially complete visited the whole 13 states and 3 federal territories of Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur, Labuan and Putrajaya). 
• August - Singapore & Johor Bahru. Since ever I revisited Singapore back in year 2011 with Boyfie, thereafter I went Singapore every year without fail. This time around was an assignment given by my dad just to accompany two brothers who wanna go Singapore for their semester break. Plus, we even went to Legoland too cause they wanna go there. Yup, I visited Legoland twice within two years.
• October - Australia. Honestly to say, among all the trips for this year, this is the one I anticipated the most cause besides Japan, Australia is my favourite country since ever I was younger child. Back to Australia for the second time it's like another dream come true. I went with my very close friend who I met when I studied in United Kingdom and also with very good friend of all time. Spending 9 days there, we went Sydney, Brisbane and Gold Coast.
• November - Nepal. Within a year, we have two college gathering trips. Early of the year we went Myanmar (like I mentioned earlier) and 10 months later, we went Nepal. For the very first time, I assigned my friend to become the tour leader for this trip cause I was too busy with my full-time and freelance jobs. Plus, I was pretty busy with family commitment as well. That's explained why I didn't update my blog so frequently lately.
• Novermber - Bhutan. This is another last minute decision and frankly to say, the most expensive trip compare the rest. But by the end of the trip I never regret with my last minute decision to visit this stunning and unique country, in both culturally and enviromentally. Absolutely one of the country should at least visit once in the life (because of this trip, I forgone of buying new compact camera).
• December - Singapore & Johor Bahru. Back to Singapore again for my UK housemate's wedding. It's like another gathering with my friends who used to travel together around Europe for 20 days, including our Korean friend where we met her there. I also took this opportunity to go Johor Premium Outlet but I went home empty handed. It's absolutely still pricey, eventhough after discount was given.
• December - Eastern China. Tagged my mom along for Christmas trip cum my year end trip. I always love and want to celebrate Christmas abroad for no reason. Now thinking where will be my next Christmas list for this year. 

Simplified everything, this year I managed to accomplish few of my bucket list which was visited new countries such Myanmar, Nepal and Bhutan as well as new cities like Busan, Sydney, Brisbane, Gold Coast, Hangzhou and Shanghai. Besides Malaysia Airlines and AirAsia, I took the opportunity to experience other airlines as well such as Korean Air, Druk Air and Silk Air. Looking forward to experience other airlines in future especially Asiana Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Thai Airways, Turkish Airlines, Emirates and more, perhaps. 

What's my plan for this year? Apparently, I have few in my list but I'm so sorry to say, I unable to share with you guys now cause of the so-called jinx. But no worry, I will be delightful to share out when I manage to go there either in blog, Twitter, Instagram and even Dayre. But one thing for sure what I must do for this year is to complete my 2013 and 2014 endlessly travel post.

Once again, I wish each and every of you have a wonderful year ahead in this brand new year. A new year that's sparkling with fun, bursting with joy and cracking with laughter! Have a great weekend, everyone.

"Believe the Unbelievable, Dream the Impossible, Never Take No for an Answer" - Tony Fernandes (Group CEO, AirAsia)

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