the entry ups taiwan part. 2

plucky fashion sense sometimes maketh a macabre fiasco, as demonstrated by this spritely lady who ups the ante further in the following ensemble:

or check out legendary ximen denizen who stakes out in the locale jiggling to his own choreographed spasms. better known as the ximen san bao (literally translated as "ximen's three treasure troves"), this corpulent lad is one third of a famous trio in the locality's site.

it's already day four! i'm off to the suburbs of taipei, dan shui. the hangover from yesterday was terrible. i woke up with a croaking voice, hit the showers, and pigeon-toed in new adidas multi-neon high-kick pumps that was so ludicrously tight, i was limping half the time.

another singaporean friend, jarrell, joined our posse today for a late lunch, and it was late for the mere fact that traveling was a motherf***ing bitch. we were crammed in two korean-fabricated clunkers for almost a whole good two hours of the journey, and that's not counting the time for the voyage back. by the time lunch was over, nightfall had taken over. heartiest meal ever in taipei though.

jarrell cameos for the day.

getting lost and consulting his gps?

nah, just looking at the menu, and something else.

frank's texas bbq, a good two-hour journey drive away.

a hungry man is a puzzled man,

or not.

taiwanese cronies: luke and owen.

a little apparel procurement after a satiated meal.

this ramen could knock your socks off, even on a full stomach.

the broth is doused in garlic through and through. yummy-licious!

another day, another attire.

what's left of my turned-out pockets.. less than 500 NT$.

and the repercussions after knowing it... hapless!

day five started to prove to be an uphill battle against spending senselessly. i had reached into my pockets and shelled out less than five-hundred taiwan buckeroos. i experienced a mild panic attack, while random wild thoughts were coursing through my brains. i was cracking my head hard, thinking what i could have spent all my money on in the course of halfway through the holiday.

my day was beginning to look bleak, until i spotted an envelope, folded neatly in half by the bedside table. it was the same envelope that i kept all my remaining taiwan dollars, and upon fishing it out, there were a few thousand-dollar bills stashed inside. after some csi-esque probings, i gathered it was house-keeping who left it there, because it sure hell wasn't there when i last saw it. thank god for honesty.

moving on then, karaoke!

time for some out-of-tune warbling.

... and some booze, nevertheless.

okay, so we aren't exactly the three tenors.

the sixth day marked the penultimate day of our trip, and it has been a big tired blur of japan-inspired cosplay looks, designer clothes (the haberdasher on my jacket speaks dsquared, albeit on sale), and camwhoring, punctuated by the occasional morsel of divine shopping. tonight was also the last night before our big heave-ho back to singapore.

my taiwanese compadres, seeing it so, wanted to meet up for the last time and gave us a call at ten in the morning. i stumbled onto the phone and answered it; no one was there. paul emerged, disheveled, from the bathroom, a huge quantity of soapsuds lingering behind his ears still unwashed from his shower (it happened a couple times). he asked "who was it?" "it's luke, i guess he's asking us out." "ok, that's great. looking forward to it." he said, as he lumbered himself back into the bed. so much for enthusiasm.

i am tired. whatevz. want to see some japan-inspired cosplay looks, designer clothes and camwhoring? that's all i've got left.

beautiful backdrop on our hotel rooftop.

owen taking us to stake out at taipei's latest mall: q-square.

the last day always sucks. it reeks of luggage, both emotional and physical. luckily, i managed to accomplish some quality stuff, for example: downing my last bubble tea, salvaging more memories with some photo-snapping, and looking supremely scholarly and erudite in my getup, geeky glasses and all.

on another note, i never really got comfortable with the taiwanese currency. every time i made way for the cashier, i would be panic-stricken over what banknotes to hand over that i eventually thrust what would be of a magnitude much larger than the purchase. i may be a financial planner, but my arithmetic intellect inexplicably falls short and i end up scooping the change over the counter every time. by the end of the trip, my pockets would most surely be bulging with the taiwanese token of every denomination.

loving this picture, but not the low-end plastic bag i'm lugging.

back at taoyuan airport once again.

i bumped into another fellow singaporean friend, gavin, at the airport. having been bitten by the love bug whilst here, he was unenthusiastic about leaving taiwan. i felt sorry for the poor dude, accorded him the most peerless looks of commiseration, and bought him a cup of hot cocoa. however, said hot cocoa failed to mitigate the situation, and to appear in our photo. bad photog.

putting up a brave front for the camera, gavin, and i.

layover at klia airport brings us on a jungle boardwalk.

one last picture for the road.

adieu taipei.. till the next hols.

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