Hong Kong Getaway

Hong Kong and Macau trip - a great getaway. More photos here.

Flowers in Taiwan

Most flowers that I have seen in Taiwan are those that can be found in Singapore except the Lavender flowers that need cooler climates to thrive.

Strawberry flower.

Hollyhock flowers.

Hibiscus.

Lavender.

Bauhinia blakeana.

Lotus.

Iris.

Food I miss

Right now I am craving for this ice-cream poh piah that was sold by an elderly couple in front of Nantian Temple. The equivalent we have here is ice-cream sandwiched between two pieces of thin, rectangular wafer biscuit. This one is better because it has peanut shavings and ice-cream wrapped in poh piah skin is a lot less messy to eat.

 

The only food provided by the tour agent that I like was this sampling of various types of dumplings during one of our lunches.Siao Long Pao, yummy!

Dessert that was light and sweet.

Taipei Botanic Gardens

On the first of our three-day extension, we had to move out of the hotel that the tour agent checked us into the night before to another one nearer to the Ximenting MRT. In between breakfast and check-out time at noon, we managed to visit the Taipei Botanic Gardens that is only one stop away from the Ximenting MRT. When we arrived, the Garden was bustling with groups of kindergarten children with their teachers as well as old folks taking their morning walk and doing their exercises.

It was a very hot morning with the sun blazing down on us and thank goodness for the trees that kept us cool most of the time.

Flowering palms.

A group of photographers were pointing their sophisticated camera lenses at some birds a short distance away and then along came a group of noisy kindergarten kids with their teacher.

The Singapore Botanic Gardens used to have monkeys that preyed on small kids with food in their hands such as packets of kachang puteh (peanuts). In the Taipei Botanic Gardens, there were no monkeys. Instead there were these spritely and bold squirrels scurrying up and down the tree trunks at lightning speed and prancing along railings close to people hoping that they would get some food from the humans eager to see their antics.

Surprise awaits. I saw this bird waiting for its lunch to meet an unfortunate ending in its beak.

The back of the National History Museum.

The National Museum of History where an exhibition of some of Van Gogh's work was held. Unfortunately I did not have time to take a look and forgot about it after I got back from Tainan. What a pity!