Be FrEe To FlY

These few days, I have chosen to bite my tongue and withhold my words. In the short term, it has served to avert quarrels or conflict in general. But in the general picture of work and school or life, I don't think holding my tongue just because someone doesn't want to hear my opinions is going to work well.

On Sunday morning, I opened my door to an overturned laundry basket at the foot of the stairs. That's how I knew, without anyone saying a word, that all was not well between my mum and dad and/or between my mum and sis. Following that, I could hear loud sounds of banging and slamming from the kitchen so for sure, my mum was not having a good day. To keep out of harm's way, I traipsed back to my room to continue watching my drama. Hearing the sounds of Mum hanging the clothes (and bamboo poles crashing onto the ground) at the balcony, I went down to help her. I stupidly asked her to stop frowning since that would make her feel more irritable and hot and slow downher hanging of clothes in a way. She asked me to shut up, I said I'm just helping, she said she didn't ask me (or anyone else for that matter) to help, so go away. Something rooted me to the ground, unable to go back to my room, only able to continue to help in silence. This was good in a way as I didn't actually want to have words with her. The same old happened, she went to her room after that to sleep with the door closed, no cooking, everyone's mood was as black as tar and I couldn't stand it so I asked Vic out to CARC to watch VCDs.

Yesterday (Thurs), the ice thawed and started to melt, which was good to know. Once again, I found myself helping to hang the clothes. I had helped to load the clothes from the washing machine to the basins, which I would use to bring clothes to the balcony. Turns out that my mum would have preferred to load the clothes herself, as she has her system where she places the clothes in the basins so she doesn't have to search hard for them while hanging. To her eyes, I kind of just dumped them haphazardly in the basins. I was incensed, yet the same thing that rooted me to the ground on Sunday withheld the words that were about to pour forth from my lips. At the same time I was incensed, perhaps a deeper realisation was that I was more of a hindrance than a help, which made me squirm. Perhaps that is what held my tongue. Anyway, she wasn't really angry like she was on Sunday, just commenting that she'll load the basins herself in future.

At work these days, I have realised that, whether through others' (little) actions or words, I might also be more of a hindrance/nuisance than a help/someone who adds any kind of value. E.g., Zhi Xiong has changed since that time we had b/f together; he's become more distant (not only on Gtalk but at lunch yesterday too). That day, Taffy commented that I'm still the lunch coordinator. And just this morning, Hui Fang said she's a tad busy now so she'll comment on her reason for liking k-dramas later and asked me to think of the lunch venue for later. Justin also asked me what the lunch venue is. I don't know whether it's because I'm just feeling generally down because of withdrawal from TMETS or whatever reason, but all these things just added up and I can't seem to convince myself that these are probably too trivial for me to keep brooding on. I just hate the fact through no fault (?) of my own, I've become some kind of lunch coordinator (I do not think it's demeaning, just that it's as if people only see me as that and as someone who's very free coz I keep "bothering" them on Gtalk).

Also, yesterday I met with Penny and Satwinder to seek inputs for the survey to airlines. I think I wasn't in the best condition yesterday to receive so much info or organise the info so that it was a more meaningful discussion. I learnt a few things of course, but not so much for the purposes of the airline survey. So I went to update CK. She was ok with them not having any concrete inputs but I wasn't sure if I detected any negative undercurrents when she talked about Penny (or ANS?). I'm not here to deal with the politics between you and your colleagues, I'm just here to do the work that's given. So I wasn't very happy about it, though I was kind of neutral about not getting any inputs from Penny. And since I was not happy, I gave the whole matter some thought, and I went in to ask Cher Keng about the fundamental reason for the survey to airlines because I wanted to confirm my assumptions. She said it's to hear feedback from the other major airport users like the airlines and ground handlers. So I asked her if it was her intention to even consider including airlines into the future service regulation framework or in the fundamental review for service regulation. She sounded kind of exasperated and was like "Simin, don't tell me until now you still don't know what we're going to do for the fundamental review? It's FUNDAMENTAL review right? If it's just focused on the current framework, then it's just a REFINEMENT." In my mind, I was like "Don't lecture me on my English. I'm not an idiot. I'm just confirming my assumptions, since you don't like people to assume." In addition, I don't think the developments have been adding up as I haven't been keeping up with what's done for service regulation since Taffy's the one kind of put in charge now. Or perhaps I haven't been using my brain. Anyway, I just felt like a piece of mud when I came out of her room. Nothing has changed since 2 years ago. The only way to improve my work quality is to read the files. There doesn't to be any need to even talk to her. I FINALLY get it. Now I'll just read the files and also ensure filing on the Z drive and KMS is as complete as I can do. No promotion, never mind. I'm just a yes-dog to you, can't have a 2nd opinion since you've already set your mind on something.

Whatever that is swept under the carpet will one day be revealed,
The feelings that have been buried beneath layers upon layers of delusion will one day surface,
The tears that burn behind my eyes will one day roll down my cheeks.
But not now. The world needs to see a strong facade, nary a crack, nary a fissure.

Inexplicable feelings right now. Sitting in the dark, blogging on my Samsung netbook. Am I stuck between a rock and a hard place right now? What is the hardness of the rock? What is the softness of the rock? Is it really hard or is it really soft? Am I magnifying things again? Am I magnifying things to gargantuan proportions to the extent it blinds me? Is a comfort zone really so hard to leave? Is money really so important? Why, why is it that employers demand experience, experience that one will not obtain if they never get the chance to start somewhere? In this increasingly complex world, one needs to multi-task, deal with the 1001 things that happen, the 1001 people who demand one's attention and emotions. Overwhelmed is perhaps the right word to describe me right now.

I want to sleep. But sleep does not come. It never comes easily. I want to put the glass down. But it remains in my hand. It's close to midnight. I want to sleep.

http://blog.naver.com/PostView.nhn?blogId=nuri6644&logNo=153161373

http://10.asiae.co.kr/Articles/new_view.htm?sec=people11&a_id=2012032910314802946

http://star.mk.co.kr/v2/view.php%3Fsc%3D42300039%26cm%3D%25EB%2582%25A0%25EA%25B0%259C_%25EC%2597%25B0%25EC%2598%2588%26year%3D2012%26no%3D165088%26relatedcode%3D%26category%3Dsports&sa=U&ei=ywd5T6aGOsXYrQfqmKSXDQ&ved=0CCQQqQIwAA&usg=AFQjCNEjU3DQmZVSZ4__TMY15Cz-TkM19A

http://isplus.joinsmsn.com/article/033/7771033.html

http://www.allkpop.com/2012/03/take-a-final-look-at-the-bts-of-the-moon-that-embraces-the-sun

http://www.imbc.com/broad/tv/drama/sunNmoon/sketch/

http://asian-drama.org/jung-il-woo-the-moon-that-embraces-the-sun-let-me-grew-up/

http://serenity4fr.wordpress.com/2012/03/19/photos-the-moon-that-embraces-the-sun-farewell-party/

http://asian-drama.org/the-moon-embracing-the-sun-celebration-party-with-funny-awards/

http://asian-drama.org/all-young-old-actors-and-crews-of-the-moon-embracing-the-sun-gathered-for-dinner/

Today left me with disappointment with Kheng Whee. (Cher Keng, I have long given up hope on.) I told her on Sat when we both went to apply for our PDL that I'd be leaving in May. This afternoon around 5pm her attitude suddenly changed. I hope it's the case where I'm thinking/reading too much into her actions. First, she responded to CK's email about the MOT debrief like how she would have typically. Then afterwards, when she was allocating which parts we were to present, her tone in the sms was quite formal. So I replied and asked if she was alright and all I got was "Yup". No smiley-face, nothing. I hope she's either just feeling tired after the Performance Appraisal Course or just pissed off with the way CK dumped almost the whole debrief on her. Well we'll see, if she continues giving me the cold shoulder, then I suppose she's really pissed off with me because I'm planning to quit. Then I'll practise reciprocity.

Basically I just don't want her to be pissed off with me because I'm planning to resign. On the other hand, I hope my self-righteousness in resigning is justified. I know I alr don't have the right attitude towards work here and I have really been doing less than the bare minimum. But I already have no "heart" to work here any longer. I'm really biding time so I hope I'm not being unfair to the others.

"Top", the founder, taught me 2 things:

1. 有得必有失. It's ironic that he lost his love, the one who gave him the inspiration for his successful business/product "Tao Kae Noi".
2. 不要放弃,否则就玩完了. "Top" never gave up. After he couldn't sell chestnuts at the shopping mall because the smoke yellowed the ceilings, he moved to selling seaweed. He and his uncle wasted 100,000 baht of seaweed trying to get the correct taste. All it took was an unfortunate accident, which jumpstarted this whole process. His uncle fell and hit his head on a kerb at home while frying the seaweed. As a result, he dropped a packet of seaweed, which was open, on the floor. It got drenched and the inside of the packet got moist and the seaweed was moistened and dried by the sun subsequently. Yum seaweed! These sold well at the shopping mall. One night, he got inspired by the 7-11 brand, which markets itself worldwide. He decided to sell his product at 7-11 stores worldwide. However, he had to deal with the packaging and marketing his product to 7-11. After that, his factory had to pass the GMP test. All his hard work finally paid off when 7-11 HQ approved of his factory and the rest is history!

Found lists of books that I wanted to read (some of them I own, some of them I don't):

1. House Rules by Jodi Picoult [very popular; I just checked the NLB catalogue and this book's either on loan or reserved at most libraries! Available @ Tamp Lib]
2. Things I want my daughters to know by Elizabeth Noble [Available @ Tamp Lib]
3. What I Love About You by Kate & David Marshall [unavailable in lib]
4. A Gothic Treasure Trove
5. Mars & Venus
6. The Undercover Economist
7. Prozac Nation
8. The Haves & Have-nots
9. Nina Bawden's 3-in-1 in cupboard
10. Over Sea Under Stone
11. Gulliver's Travels
12. A Chain of Voices
13. The Kennedy Curse
14. Kira-Kira by Cynthia Kadohata [Available @ Tamp Lib]
15. Lord of the Flies by William Golding [Available @ Tamp Lib]
16. When My Name was Keoko by Linda Sue Park [unavailable in Tamp Lib but can be reserved]
17. 90 Day Geisha by Chelsea Haywood [Available @ Tamp Lib]
18. A Stolen Life [unavailable in lib]
19. Please Look After Mum [Available @ Tamp Lib]
20. Viewpoint: an introduction to travel, tourism, and hospitality, 2003, by Nona Starr [LKC Lib Lvl 7 English 338.479102373 STA]
21. American Business Values: A Global Perspective, 2010, by Gerald F. Cavanagh [LKC Lib Lvl 7 English 174.40973 CAV]
22. Exploring Best Practices in the Hospitality Industry in Asia, 2008, by Judy A. Sigauw [Available @ Tamp Lib, English 647.94095]
23. Introduction to the Hospitality Industry, 2008, by Clayton W. Barrows [LKC Lib Lvl 7 English 338.4791 BAR]
24. Meetings, expositions, events, and conventions: an introduction to the industry, 2008, by George G. Fenich [LKC Lib Lvl 7 English 647.94 FEN]
25. Global cases on hospitality industry, 2008 [LKC Lib Lvl 7 English 338.4791 GLO]  
26. Exploring the hospitality industry, 2008, John R. Walker [LKC Lib Lvl 7 English 647.94023 WAL]
27. Quality service: what every hospitality manager needs to know, 2002, by William B. Martin [LKC Lib Lvl 7 English 647.95068 MAR]
28.  The international hospitality industry: structure, characteristics and issues, [LKC Lib Lvl 7 English 647.068 INT]
29. Professional management of housekeeping operations, 2008, by Thomas J.A. Jones [LKC Lib Lvl 7 English 647.94068 JON]
30. Principles of food, beverage, and labor cost controls, 2009, by Paul Dittmer [LKC Lib Lvl 7 English 647.950681 DIT]

At home: 

• Mon-Thurs and Sun: Get into bed by 1030pm to ensure that I slp by 11pm.
• Fri and Sat: Get into bed by 1130pm to ensure that I slp by 12 midnight.
• FB for at most an hour.

At work:

• Finish my work in the timeframe between 830am - 6pm. (If I don't get distracted by my emotions towards my work and people walking around, I CAN DO IT!)
• Set daily to-do lists so that there's a sense of achievement every day, no matter how small.

We went for breakfast at IS Coffee at Peace Bell Square today. Ordered the American breakfast set @ NT150 each, which comprised of scrambled eggs, ham, bacon, toast, orange juice and other beverage (奶茶／红茶）．My parents were impressed with the ambience :)

We then caught a cab to Chia Te Bakery, which cost NT100. 1st cab ride in Taipei! It's quite easy to hail a cab in Taiwan since they are yellow and ubiquitous. Think the starting fare is NT70 and Dad said that the meter only started ticking after a fair distance and increased every 5.5 lampposts.

Spent about an hour at Chia Te as everyone was spoilt for choice :) Think Mum and Dad ended up buying about 6 boxes, Sis 2 boxes and I bought 2 boxes. They packed Mum's into a cardboard box and taped it, ready for check in. Think they're used to tourists patronising their store.

Then we caught a cab back to Sogo so we could put down our Chia Te stuff in the rooms. Then we caught another cab to 普鲁士德国猪脚, which was featured on a variety show some time in Oct/Nov. The nearest MRT is 中山国小, but not sure of the way from there so we took a cab. This stall only allows takeaways and is very popular. I called before collection at noon just in case. They even have vacuum-packed services for bringing overseas, but you have to order 1 day in advance. One pork knuckle costs NT350 and is enough for 4 people if there are other dishes to go with it. If not, 2 would suffice. As it started to rain and there were no empty seats around, we took a cab back to Sogo food court and ordered a pizza so they wouldn't chase us away. Sis bought 木瓜奶昔 for both of us and it was great! All in all, it was a fabulous lunch.

Walked around for about 15 minutes more then went back to our place. Surprise surprise, the next tenant already arrived. It was only 330pm! He was supposed to arrive at 6pm and we were planning to leave at 430pm. We had to evacuate :( Then Micky arrived and helped us hail a cab from the main road. The cab driver was a friendly guy and we gleaned some tidbits of info about Taiwan from him:

• Taiwan land was sold to the private developers by Taiwan government so house prices are skyrocketing.
• Taiwan car plates are messy. First they started with 6-digit number plates. The 2nd-generation ones evolved into 4 digits then 2 letters and 3rd-generation ones were the reverse: 2 letters then 4 digits. Now the 4th generation ones have reverted to the 1st generation ones.
• Driving on the road shoulder (路肩) is legal between 4-7pm. Wonder what impact this would have in SG if it were allowed.
• Cars on Taiwanese roads are allowed as long as they are still functional. So they can be 30 years old!
• NIMBY (not in my backyard) syndrome is also evident in Taiwan. E.g. they want convenience, yet they don't want the highway to be near their house coz of noise.
• The runway is being reconstructed to accommodate the arrival of the A380 and T3 is in the works.

Reached the airport at 4.50pm and the Jetstar staff called us for early check-in :) We were the 1st ones to check in hee. Then we went in search of food upstairs. There was only a Mr Brown's Coffee and a 茶楼．The service at Mr Brown's Coffee was crap, only 1 menu at the counter and when I asked the cashier a question, she said it's all written there. I was like "ok, I'm not eating here." The last place one would expect bad service is at the airport. Coupled with the fact that the overall service standard in Taiwan is quite good, her behaviour was unacceptable. I felt like slapping her but I guess the small number of patrons in the shop was sufficent proof that people might have been turned away by her attitude. Went to the 茶楼 which was 200m away and packed. The boss served us personally and food was ok. Other than that, nothing impressive about the airport. :( T1 is undergoing upgrading.

One broad picture/overview thing is whatever happens on the trip / in future, think positive thoughts and control what you can.

Original plan was to go to both Chiang Kai-shek (CKS) Memorial Hall & Martyr's Shrine for change of guards. But the CKS Memorial Hall also has change of guards so we'll be skipping Martyr's Shrine. Halfway through the change of guards ceremony (on the hour), my camera's memory card gave out as it was full :( There were so many tour groups despite the freezing rain. Sis and I wore raincoats while Dad relied on his windbreaker. Mum held an umbrella.

There was an art exhibition in Hall 1 and we took small picture cards of the artwork.

We then ate lunch at Subtropics Cafe: bittergourd soup with pork rice burger. Yum for hot soup in cold weather :) Will proceed to Halls 2 and 3 later.

Hall 3 held the main exhibition concerning the important events in Chiang Kai Shek's life. It was interactive in the sense that the pamphlet held blank spaces for stamps in each portion of the exhibition. This made my parents more interested than they would have been if there were no stamps. The main takeaway is that he was a well-respected and medalled man and his wife was also a woman talented in art.

Hall 2 was about the Glory of Education in the past century. It featured past school uniforms, primers and textbooks and exhibited the different schools of thought throughout the 100 years about how textbooks' contents should be organised and what should be included. At first, it was to unify the primary and secondary school curricula. Then as the years passed, more subjects came up and the variety of textbooks increased. The school of though evolved into one that wanted students to learn things of interest and relevance. As an aside, the exhibit also featured 周杰伦's high school yearbook :) His hair was of course shorter than what it is now but cut in the same style as now. His expression hasn't altered one bit!

Ate breakfast at 华光广场 near 善导寺 MRT Station Exit 4/5/6. (Think Exit 4 is the nearest with escalator and Exit 5 is the nearest without escalator and Exit 6 is across the road from Exit 5). Micky's recommendation of  豆浆油条　& 厚饼夹蛋. Then we went to Taipei 101. Not crowded :) Maybe we were early, around 11am. Quite cloudy so there was poor visibility at certain points. But once the clouds floated away, the city lay before us. :) Shopped at the gift shop and bought damper and magnets and other souvenirs. Also sat down for coffee and ice cream on 89th floor since there were vouchers which came together with our Taipei 101 tickets. Couldn't go to 91/F observatory coz they're preparing for fireworks on New Year's Eve :( But 88th floor was fun, saw damper close up then went back down to 5th floor. Had huge lunch at B1 food court then took free shuttle bus back to Taipei City Hall Station.

Brought everyone to East Metro Mall after that. Stopped at Zhongxiao Dunhua so that we could walk to Zhongxiao Fuxing. Nothing much to buy since it was all winter wear. But there were a couple of cutie-stuff shops and Cosmed. Bought face masks :) Feels good to walk down memory lane literally :)

Today's a tiring day but it got off with a good start with Skylight B&B's breakfast. We were given a choice of western/Chinese breakfast when we checked in. Coupled with the lake view, it was definitely one of the most memorable breakfast I've had. Breakfast is cooked only when one reaches the dining hall.

We then made our way to Wenwu Temple to pray to Confucius, 关公 and 岳飞．Quite a big temple with 1 level for each of the deities. On the 1st level with 关公, there was a box of rosaries and water for taking and you could put a small token of appreciation. Then on the 2nd level with Confucius, there was a corner where you could write wishes. We bought a wishing bell and wrote all our names on it.

Took the lake-surroundings bus to Sun Moon Lake (SML for short) Ropeway Station, where we took ropeway to 九族文化村．Interesting to read about the various tribes in Taiwan (26 in total) but had to rush thru due to lack of time. Watched the performance but couldn't really hear the narrative so didn't understand.

Took the lake-surroundings bus back to our B&B stop and grabbed our luggage and took the lake-surroundings bus to the 水社 Tourist Information Centre again to catch the Nantou Shuttle Bus back to Taichung HSR. The route taken was slightly different from the one when we came to SML. This took us 1hr 45min to reach Taichung HSR :(

Took the HSR back to Taipei and reached Zhongxiao Fuxing Station around 8pm. Met Micky and got settled in our rooms, which had the IKEA bedsheets that I requested. After SML, the rooms seemed a little shabby! But I guess that after a good dinner at Shilin, my family was more accepting of the rooms :)

Left Sanduo Hotel @ 8am and took a cab to Zuoying HSR. Took us about 1/2 hour. The cab driver kept asking to go to Kending and kept shoving betel nut at me haha. Bought tickets quickly and took 8.54am train to Taichung HSR. Good that we have left Kaohsiung. A bit sick of breakfast there :) But breakfast was good, porridge/rice daily with an assortment of side dishes.

Took Nantou Shuttle bus from Taichung HSR Station Exit 5 to Sun Moon Lake at 10.50am. Bought return tickets for 4 @ NT1320; return ticket can be used within the 15 days after I bought the return tickets. [1 way ticket is NT217 each.] The bus stopped at 水社 Tourist Information Centre at Sun Moon Lake. Turned out we had to cross the lake before reaching our B&B. The ferry has 3 stops: 1st one was the Tourist Information Centre, 2nd one, the Xuanguang Temple then the last one Ita Thao, which is our stop lor.

B&B is great! (made a video but can't be uploaded here on LJ) Forgot that we're staying on the main shopping and food street! Went outside to eat chicken wing stuffed with glutinous rice, smelly tofu and 山猪肉串．Took the ferry to Xuanguang Temple. So many Chinese tourists :( Smoking like chimneys and so noisy. Nothing to rave about the Xuanzang Temple. The 茶叶蛋 was so-so. After alighting from the ferry at Ita Thao, we went to 小米酒博物馆．Interesting to read about the process of making wine. Then we went back to Yiyong Street. Right at the end, there was a tea shop where I bought 2 boxes of oolong tea, 1 for Chee Tong and 1 for CK. Then we had dinner at one of the restaurants on the street. Again nothing to rave about. So we went back to our rooms, which are the only things to rave about :) The bed and pillows are comfy! Down in the duvet and pillows, a remote control which can control both TV and lights and a bathtub where you can soak as if in a hot spring.

Taking Dream Mall Shuttle at Kaohsiung MRT R6 Kaisyuan MRT Exit 1. It's free :) Takes 3-5 min! Actually walkable from Exit 3. Maybe we'll walk back.

Haha didn't walk back after all. So tiring walking around the mall which is in the shape of a cross. And as today's a weekend, the mall was quite crowded. Even Daiso didn't entice us to buy anything! Took the shuttle bus back to Kaisyuan and went to Sogo for dinner  and shopping. What a disappointment! 17 floors but all brands so not affordable. Food court food was 菜饭 and quite cheap, NT190 for 2 people. After that, while waiting outside Sogo for the light to change, we saw a wholesaler opposite called 光南大批发．Haven! It's exactly the kind of thing Lois would love! 5 notebooks for NT50! And pretty birthday cards for NT10/15! Felt like buying the whole shop! Bought notebooks and a 2012 schedule book for Lois, cards for David, art & craft stuff for only NT296.

Packing to go check out of Kaohsiung tmr. Tata.

Dilemma to go where today solved, thanks to the Sanduo driver. Taking bus 8503 from 高雄市政府 bus stop to 义大世界. NT55 each. Hope it'll be fun.

FUN! Ate steamboat at 柠檬香茅坊 then walked around the 义大购物世界. Bought so many things :) Face mask, spoon-fork-knife-chopstick combo, earrings, stickers :) There's an ice skating rink at 1/F, so cheap NT239 for weekends just for skating and NT80 for skates rental. Walked the whole place and it was huge! 5 floors of outlet stores and food! Little boutiques selling unique things scattered all over too :) Must go to pintoo.com and see their jigsaws. Took a cab back after dinner at the 4/F of 5/F food court. Cost NT500 so quite worth it.

Bathed and was just in time to watch 你真美丽 (纬来戏剧). :) Finally some progress in the show. 朴社长went to some remote fishing town to avoid having to go to the hospital / surgery. Then after 你真美丽 ended, turned to watch 童颜男女. Think I'll have to catch up with these shows when I go back :)

15th Dec: 0930

0710 pushback/off-block, 0730 takeoff :) 4-5 aircraft queuing on the tarmac behind us. Came on board and fell asleep for about 2 hours. Neckache now :( Wish my throat didn't tickle so. Oh btw, Jetstar Web check-in is good, allowed 17+kg instead of original 15 kg that I'd paid for. Pays to be early, even for web check-in. Reached airport at 0445, checked in by 0500, then had breakfast at T1 Want, and had time to walk around in transit. Gate was at the very end of the finger pier, thankful for travellators :) Love the feel of this pen.

15th Dec: 1300

Landed at 1139. By the time we got to the arrival hall, it was 12+ and we were one of the last ones to get our luggage. Then the numerous hoarding made it hard to find the Ubus counter. It's at T1 B1 巴士乘车处. NT30 each. Got to HSR Taoyuan Station at 1315 then the bus driver helped all pax move the luggage off the bus. Entered by Exit 5 and the ticketing counter was next to it. Just passed my reservation form and collected it. Simpler than expected. No need passport. Ate a sumptuous lunch outside the HSR Taoyuan Station at China Pacific Gourmet Lounge (NT895 = S$40 for 4 ppl)

15th Dec: 1505

On HSR to Kaohsiung now. Such speed & smoothness!
桃园 --> 新竹 --> 台中 --> 嘉仪 --> 台南 --> 左营
Train came and left punctually. I like the politeness of Taiwanese; they know to give way to alighting pax without being told.

Finally reached Sanduo Hotel. We walked past it!! Such a tiny hotel. Very disappointing. But my parents liked it :) Think it's the colour of the decor; ours was brownish-black while theirs was white, which made the room look bigger.