This is my second time visiting 淡水. The last time I came it was super windy, probably because it's near the sea. So this time I came all prepared with triple layer protection and thick leggings. But... it was super hot! The sun was beating down on us as if it were like in Singapore. :(
After figuring out our orientations, off we went. I think lady luck was smiling on us that day coz boy did we cover a lot of places that day. We trudged up a slope surrounded by "sleepy" looking shops when Shu Hui our tour guide for the day pointed out excitedly "文化阿给".
阿给The 阿给was huge in comparison to the one we ate the last time. It was smothered with sweet sauce and stuffed with lots of 冬粉. The taste was a lil tomato-ey and to me I found it a lil peppery. But overall rating ---- GOOD!! So don't be fooled but the signs all around that claim to be the true blue 阿给, go for 文化阿给! (Taiwan shld start paying me commission for actively promoting their tourism industry)
不能说的秘密Hohoho we literally took the unbeaten path and found walked around aimlessly. But we were rewarded when we saw IT - 淡江高中!! Hohoho for the uninitiaed this is where THE MOVIE 不能说的秘密 was filmed and more importantly the ala mater of JAY CHOU!! I'm not exactly a Jay Chou fan, but still.. cheap thrill :) Plus the architecture of the school itself is a tourist attraction itself. The security guard even stopped us to give us a map of the school. Here in Taiwan schools, esp universities are attractions. Honestly if they charged an enterance fee to go into 淡江高中 I think I would have paid for it. Since we were there, of course we took couldn't miss out on this excellent photo taking opportunity. Feast ur eyes!
红毛城Yes 红毛as in Ang Mo! Same as Ang Mo Kio. 红毛城 a fort built by the Spanish but later taken over by the Dutch (Holland). It's one of 淡水's famous sights. It reminds me a bit of the red fort in Malacca. Guess they all stem from the same root. We climbed a steep slope and were awed by the breathtaking scenary that awaited us.
It was rather hard to get good group shots that day coz there was only the three of us there that day. We chanced upon a group of Jap guys and got one of them to take a photo for us. It wasn't a very good shot but he was rather good lookingハンサムな男 !(According to Yiqi he looks a bit like Kokkei Tempei) Later on our way out I turned to Yiqi and bemoaned the fact that I should have taken a picture with the Tempei look alike!! Haha it turned out that we shared the same sentiments. Oh well.. we missed our chance. Oops I digress..
O and we also met a really friendly guide there. He graduated from 台大 and READ THIS is doing his national service as a tour guide at 红毛城. He said that in Taiwan you can choose to do cultural service of sorts. And he was shocked that the guys in Singapore have to do NS for 2 years! I salute the sons of Singapore (yes Ah Hao you included!)
Sent wooden postcards back to Singapore. Hope it reached there. Coz this time it costs much lesser to send it back. It's either the auntie who sold us postcards cheated us or the wooden postcards at 红毛城 are lighter?!
渔人码头Next stop 渔人码头,where celebrities concerts are held. Though I didn't spy any area large enough to hold those concerts I see on TV. 渔人码头is famous for its Lovers' Bridge. And true enough we saw couples cuddling, walking hand in hand all lovey-dovey. So the trio couldn't just sit back and watch them in envy. Haha see for urselfs. I'm amazed at the silly poses we could come up that day.
There were sketch artists who would do ur potrait for NT100 (S$5). Next time before I go back to Singapore I want to go back and have one done. :) Took a bus to and fro coz it was rather late and the pier was rather far away. Next time got to try taking a ferry. (I see a lot of "next time" in my entry here. Hope there will really be a next time)
老街againIt wasn't as crowded as the last time we came, probably coz it wasn't a weekend. So I didn't get to eat the Sotong Balls I was craving for. So we settled for 综合贡丸汤. I remember telling myself to note how silent it was when we were busy slurping our soup and chewing our food. Coz I found that the silence wasn't awkward like it was at the starting. It was comfortable. :)
Not satisfied with just eating 综合贡丸汤 I was on the prowl for more food. Finally found the famous 蓝带起司鸡排but I was simply too full. So I though I'd wait. Who knew I would regret this decision. Coz the next time I found myself eating, I was gobbling down hot Taco Pachi. 狼吞虎咽！Without knowing it, it was already 11pm. Crossed our fingers that we would reach 公馆in time for the last bus. As I said in the beginning Lady Luck was smiling on us, so we took the last bus at 11 50pm. Phew!
Hiroshi TamakiWe were all exhausted by all the walking we had done that day. On the way back on the MRT, the two of them took short naps while I read Kite-Runner.
From the corner of my eyes, I spied a Hiroshi Tamaki look alike. But I told myself that my eyes must have been playing a trick on me coz I just finished watching Nodame Cantabile the day before when Yiqi turned to me and told me "Don't you think he looks like Chiaki Senpai"!! Haha second telepathic moment of the day.
Mister Donut! Had to sneakily take a photo of the poster coz they removed the huge life sized one. I missed the chance when I had it. I still rmb Shu Hui asking me "Eh is that some Jap actor" and I just dismissed him as some model. :(
Today I felt like a true blue tourist on a holiday. Relaxed.Enjoyable.Fulfilling :)P.S: Photos will be up later coz its 2am! And I have to get up real early to catch a train to 十分. So stay tuned!
Meow meow meow ... Ah Mao, Me & YuRu
我猜猜猜
I don't have a lot of good photos, the pro photos are with the person on my right 阿猫. The first two super clear photos are courtesy of her. 
鸭子。阿雅
Jackey Wu! He's really as funny in person. 
Us! The curtain behind is where the contestants "magically" appear from amongst a puff of smoke!
Chu Qiao & Me. The pretty gal who made all this possible. Unfortunately my face is blurred!
Reflection again!
