Here's a comparison of the online search and my actual experience:
The result of the experiment? Yes, Google Maps Taiwan is reliable! But you still need common sense and a sense of direction to get to your destination. Some suggestions to make the application more helpful: include bus time schedule and add pictures of the surrounding areas. I think the job of updating information in Google Maps seems interesting! (But only in a country with a decent transportation system)
A local also asked me for directions while I myself was looking for the bus stop of my second bus. We even said "請問一下..." (Can I ask...) at the same time! =)
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| Mister Donut Breakfast |
I missed those chewy donuts! The Oriental Beauty milk tea wasn't as fragrant as the one we have in the farm, but it wasn't bad either. I also noted that their tagline here is "Japan's No. 1 Donut Store".
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| 3 countries, 4 languages, 5 times |
A little background on my tour guide for the day: Rhyan is the only friend I've met in 3 countries and can talk to in 4 languages. We've only met 5 times... ever.
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| National Tsing Hua University |
He told me about the school's history while he was showing me around. I asked him a lot of questions about Taiwanese culture, and it was interesting to hear insights and experiences from a foreigner who's been living here for more than 4 years. He would even explain to me why there were a lot of snakes in this country. (It's because in the past, the Japanese used the island as experimental ground for biological weapons, and threw all sorts of species here.)
We had Japanese food for lunch, in a country that absolutely adores that country. I found out from Rhyan that Taiwanese people looked up to them because they "did a lot of good things" for their country. It's basically their version of colonial mentality. (Philippines : US :: Taiwan : Japan)
The bus ride from his university to the city center took about 20 minutes, and it was like a lecture for me. (I can't remember why we ended up talking about economics!) I learned that 20% of our GDP comes from OFWs - enough to affect the exchange rate, and that our country will never progress as long as political clans exist and the Church keeps meddling with everything.
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| "Dongdaemun", Hsinchu Train Station, "Cheonggyecheon" |
We spent the rest of the afternoon walking around, shopping and sitting by a park. Maybe it's because he has a sister who's my age and they've always been together since they were young, so he would also look around, check out clothes and suggest things to buy (e.g. hair color!) while shopping. We went to a Filipino goods store to buy ingredients for graham float, searched for any object that had Auntie's favorite character on it, and saw a store that was trying hard to be H&M. (The tags had D&H in the exact same font!) We also talked about Korea since we both spent a year there as exchange students. I found out that he's watched 49 days and Greatest Love! (Talo pa niya ko~)
We also discovered this pretty restaurant while walking around. It's mainly a tea place, but they also serve food so we decided to have dinner there.
We also had a little bet. He insisted that "dingding" is ceiling, while I said it meant "wall". I won, so this friend owes me a drink on the 6th time we meet!
P.S. I wasn't able to catch the last bus that goes to the theme park near the farm, so little brother picked me up from the city. It was a really quiet, really awkward drive home. We would both ask questions to start a conversation but it just wouldn't work! Thank God it rained that night, or it would've been an even more awkward motorcycle ride instead. >.<
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