Trip Advisor: Eslite Bookstore

The bookstore was very equipped and carries wide genres of books. There were a total of 7 floors and sold other products such as vinyl records, CDs, movies and even had a few stalls selling food. Not only were there Chinese books but also as many English books as well. Due to the wide array of books, I was unable to make my decision on the books I wanted to buy. Furthermore, they were mostly of a more affordable price compared to the price of the same book in Singapore. I purchased the complete Harry Potter series and it only cost around S$60. I thoroughly enjoyed every minute I had shopping there. 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

Rv Trip Advisor: Shifen Old Street

Shifen old street is definitely a sight for sore eyes. You can walk on the magnificent train track, something that is not common in urban cities. Do not worry much about the train as loud signals will be given when a train approaches. Furthermore, the speed at which the train is traveling is quite slow, so you will have ample time to find a safe spot. There are plenty of shops dominating the sides of the train track, selling souvenirs, bubble teas and snacks at affordable prices. For me, I will never forget the main highlight at Shifen old street—releasing sky lanterns. You can get to write down your wishes on sky lanterns. There is a variety of colours, each having a different meaning. The shop assistants were friendly and skillful, helping us to take photos and lighting up the lantern. Feel the joy as the lantern rise towards the sky, together with your wishes. Release the sky lantern in groups, as it is a great bonding session and everyone will experience the joy. Although I think the act of releasing sky lanterns is not very environmental friendly, it is still a once a lifetime opportunity and you definitely must not miss it!

The sight will be more spectacular if you release them at night. However, I will advise you to visit Shifen during the day so as to escape the crowd. All in all, I would rate this place 4 stars.

Our CID group, preparing to release a gigantic sky lantern.

Chua Kheng Lon(22)

Trip Advisor: Ferrary Hotel

We stayed at Ferrary Hotel, Taipei for 2 nights. And personally i felt that those 2 nights were not enjoyable due to the environment of the hotel. I felt that the hotel was not at a very convenient area but that didn't really bother me as we had transportation, but the exterior of the hotel looks very run down, the paint seemed to be fading and also cracks can be seen on the walls. The hotel was still using keys for the room instead of room cards when most hotels have already swtiched from keys to cards long ago, also the interior of the hotel was dark and eerie and did not provide a comforting ambience. It was at the hotel that we experienced slightly eerie occurrences and i would rate the hotel 2/5 and would not visit the hotel again.

^interior of hotel room + mirror selfie LOL

 Clauds (5)

RV Trip Advisor: Fengjia Night Market

Fengjia Night Market is definitely one of the place not to be missed when you visit TaiChung. It's one of the largest night market in Taiwan and is located beside Feng Chia University. So many of the local cuisines can be found there and you are probably gonna stop at every stall to try all of the snacks. One of my favorite snacks would be the doubled layer roll sausage (大肠包小肠). It's like a griddled and glutinous rice "bun" with a sausage being sliced inside. There are many other must try snacks at the night market like the fried squid, stinky tofu, giant chicken cutlet and many more. The stall holders also give out free samples of food and drink to attract customers to their stall. Their bubble teas are also really good. There are also many stores over there that sell many different clothes and accessories at very cheap prices. You definitely have to go to Fengjia Night market to experience the night market life and also do be aware of vehicles when walking on the road! 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Kheng Lon's general reflection

The 7 days and 6 nights trip to Taiwan had certainly been an eye opener for me. I got to experience many things I could not in Singapore. For example, while touring Shih-fen Old Street, we were able to write our wishes on enormous lanterns and then releasing them to the sky. It was a beautiful sight as the sky was filled with purple sky lanterns. However, in Singapore we were not allowed to release sky lanterns due to space constraints and the possibility that it might interfere with planes and aircrafts. I also managed to understand how the Taiwan education works after going to the school located in Hsinchu. Although the school rules and behavior of the students were different from our school, the school still seek to develop students holistically. Although the students may be more carefree and relaxed, we can all learn to show more enthusiasm especially during lessons. Their workload is similar to us, but most of them still put on a smile even during long lessons. I think we could all learn to be happy as them so that our learning could be more effective. Another thing I noticed in Taiwan is that receipts can be donated. These receipts can be used to win some money and the money is used to help the poor. I think this is a great idea as the receipts we receive after a purchase can be out into a good use. Most importantly, I got to bond with the class. We had gone through ups and downs together. We enjoyed our free time and got scolded together. I am sad to say this but we all know that we may not be in the same class together next year. This trip has brought us close together, creating amazing and everlasting memories that will live with us. To sum up, I learnt a lot about the Taiwan culture during the trip and learn to not take some things for granted. 

Jing Yan's Reflection :')

This Taiwan trip taught me lots about the Taiwanese culture such as their way of life, certain behaviors we had to abide by. It also allowed me to compare the differences between Taiwan and Singapore, perhaps also learning to appreciate what we have in Singapore which the Taiwanese do not have. One example is the traffic in Taiwan, comparing to the traffic in Singapore, is much more dangerous and the drivers are less wary of their surroundings. In Singapore, we have to appreciate the fact that the drivers all abide by the traffic rules and allowing the Singapore roads to be much safer for us pedestrians.

However, one thing Singapore has to learn from Taiwan is the rich culture and heritage Taiwan has preserved. In Singapore everyone has become very modernised due to the advancement in technology, often forgetting our forefathers who have worked hard to build Singapore to where it is now. We should also learn to have these history preserved and educate the future generation about this. We should also learn from their eco-friendly system where they practice recycling more actively, such as throwing their waste food separately before recycling their containers. They also charge for every plastic bag you use after purchasing an item from their stall. We should learn from them and start saving the earth as well.

This trip has really influenced me to start using recycled bags when shopping to reduce the amount of plastic bags we use despite the convenience. Through this trip, we have bonded a lot with not only our classmates but also with our teachers. We have been through 7 days together, having fun together, some of us also sleeping in the same room (roomates) and most importantly, we have also learnt many things together.

Ending off with a class selfie + Uncle Jeff!

Claudia's Reflection ^_^

I've been looking forward to this trip since i was in y1 and now that its over, i really feel like it has surpassed my expectations of fun and also learning :D Before the trip, all i was looking forward to was to have fun and i didn't really think much about the educational component of this trip but i am very glad to say that, putting fun aside, i have learnt a lot through this 7 days, experiencing life in another country with the company of my fellow classmates!
One of the highlights of this trip would definitely have to be the visit to NEHS, it was where i got to experience Taiwan's education. After the brief 2 days there, i could make comparisons between Singapore and Taiwan's education system. I feel that Singapore is much stricter and we have a lot more rules to adhere to than in Taiwanese schools, the Taiwanese students need not wear uniforms on most of the days and they do not have many rules regarding attire. Also, they do not have a heavy workload and they do not have tests regularly, unlike Singapore where we have our CAs and SAs. But they do not have a CCA system where students are able to engage in other activities outside classs, unlike in Singapore where CCAs are mandatory and we can spend time outside of class to do things that we enjoy. But generally i feel that both education systems has its flaws and merits.
In Taiwan, people discourage the use of plastic bags in shops by charging them, food containers in schools are not dumped but instead routinely taken to recycling bins. This isn't anything spectacular to the Taiwanese as it is part of their lifestyle but yet as Singaporeans we do not see this happening often in Singapore, so upon seeing these practices we would take such good habits back to Singapore and practice eco-friendliness here.
The trip to the aboriginal culture village allowed me to witness the aborigines of Taiwan(which are the minority of Taiwan) and also learn more about the Taiwanese culture. I think that the existence of such places is crucial to a country so that culture and tradition won't be lost with time but instead will be preserved and passed on to the younger generation. The visits to the museums and memorial halls have greatly increased my knowledge of Taiwan in many aspects. From fine art, to history, the lives of revolutionaries such as Chiang Kai-Shek and Sun Yat sen and also being able to view artifacts from the ancient Chinese dynasties. Upon gaining knowledge from these places, i understood the importance of preserving culture and artifacts from the past as it is able to educate people or even the younger generation about a particular place or person and not let them be forgotten with time. In conclusion, the culture, traditions and history of a country or place is extremely important as it gives a sense of identity.
Straying away from culture and tradition, we also got to experience what life is like in Taiwan in the present 21st century, where high speed trains are the common mode of transport and shopping streets such as Ximending are regularly frequented.
Through this trip i could see the similarities between Singapore and Taiwan, both being developed nations, but i could also see the differences in the lifestyles in both countries and i also appreciate Singapore for its merits and am proud to be a Singaporean.

That aside, 2L truly bonded a lot as a class in the past 7 days. Spending time together allowed us to know more about each other and understand each other more. We had fun together, got scolded together but most importantly we spent time together and nothing could ever be exchanged for that. We will definitely miss the times we spent together and the memories would remain with us for as long as we can possibly remember :')

p/s: it was fun being one of the photographers of the trip photographing everyone and also taking selfies and stuff ^_^ in case you didn't know, heres the link to the photos i took >> https://www.facebook.com/claudia.chua.7/media_set?set=a.10201038708928524.1073741826.1791733512&type=3

Gladys General Reflection✒️

 After going to Taiwan, I really learnt a lot. I learnt on how to compare the differences between Singapore and Taiwan and got to see if these differences were beneficial or disadvantageous to the country. I learnt how to be more appreciative of Singapore's education system instead of complaining about how stress the system is. I think I wouldn't be able to study well under Taiwan's education system as its more carefree and I wouldnt be so self disciplined to study on my own. I also learnt some of the Taiwanese beliefs like being environmental friendly and being polite to others. Taiwanese pay attention to being environmental friendly and they cultivate this habits in children since young. Like in schools, students are given lunch boxes made out of paper during lunch and they are taught to throw their leftovers in a bin and wash these paper lunch boxes to recycle them. I think Singapore should learn from the Taiwanese so that everyone helps in playing a part of being environmental friendly. Taiwanese shop assistants are really friendly and polite. Even if you didn't purchase anything from the store, they will still say thank you for taking time to browse through their store and I think that is something Singaporeans can learn from the Taiwanese. Taiwanese shop assistants let customers be satisfied with their service and want to return to purchase more goods from the store. This is one of the factor Singapore shop assistants can learn from the Taiwanese to help attract customers to their stores. I got the chance to go to many different kinds of museums to increase my knowledge and learn new things about Taiwan. I also got the chance to experience different things that I won't get to experience in Singapore like sitting in a bullet train or putting sky lanterns or learning about the aboriginal culture. After coming to Taiwan, I learnt how to adapt and change. Their language and currency is different from Singapore. Hence, I need to learn to speak in Chinese instead of English and learn how to use New Taiwan Money (NTD). This is also one of the biggest skill I learnt in Taiwan as I don't usually have a change of surrounding, thus there isn't a need for me to adapt and change. I also got to bond with my classmates and got to know some of them better after going to Taiwan. I gained a lot of new experiences that I will never be able to learn from classroom lessons and I hope I'm able to apply the values or skills I had learned from this trip in my life.

Taiwan OELP Last Day Reflection :(

Gladys:

Today we were suppose to vsit the National revolution Martys' Shrine but we pleaded the teachers and tour guide, thus we went to the Eslite Bookstore, one of the largest retail bookstore chains in Taiwan.

One of the main reason why this bookstore was able to expand to so many branches was because it was one of the first bookstore to open 24/7, thus allowing Taipei's residents access   to the best of books day or night. When I went to the bookstore I was really amazed by the number of books they had and everything was neatly packed. I also notice the machine they have at the bookstore to allow customers to search for books they want, which brings more convenience to them. 

After that, we went to Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall.

There are two sets of white stairs, each with 89 steps to represent Chiang Kai-shek's age at the time of his death, which lead to the main entrance. Inside the hall, we saw Chiang Kai-shek's bronze statue.

There were also guards at the main hall just like what we saw at Dr Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall. The changing of these guards are also one of the main attractions for visitors. In the museum, I saw many paintings of Chiang Kai Shek and the things he used before. I even saw a display of his office.

I learnt more about Chiang Kai Shek after visiting this museum. 

After 7 days at Taiwan, its finally time to return to Singapore. I really enjoyed the culutre and way of life in Taiwan and I also bonded more with my peers. This was definitely a meaningful learning trip and I will never forget all those memories we created together as a class.

Jing Yan:

We went to Eslite Bookstore today. I AM SUPER HAPPY BECAUSE I BOUGHT THE ENTIRE HARRY POTTER SERIES AT A VERY AFFORDABLE PRICE. 

I realised the prices of the books were all relatively cheaper compared to in normal Singapore bookstores. Although it was called a bookstore, they also sold a wide variety of items such as souvenirs, movies, audios cds and vinyl records. There were even many cafes and tea shops(?) there and allowed the shoppers to have a very pleasant experience there. I enjoyed shopping there but felt we could have been given more time to shop it was huge.

After that, we went to the Chiang Kai Shek memorial hall. The main building was blue and white in colour, which symbolises the 青天白日 from the Taiwan flag. The red flowers planted along the sides of the pathway to the main building symbolised the 满地红. It was very creative. The 89 steps of stairs represented Chiang Kai Shek's age when he died. There were also guards stationed at both sides of the statue of Sun Yat Sen. 

Xingjian being retarded

It was finally time to return to Taiwan. I had fun learning with friends about the rich culture of Taiwan that i never thought was so well preserved. I hope Singapore would also preserve our history for the sakes of the future generations. These 7 days were also precious class bonding time where we strengthened our friendship and became closer as a class.

Kheng Lon:

Today was our last day in Taiwan. We went to the National Chiang Kai-shek memorial hall in the morning. We learnt from the tour guide that the 89 steps that led to the entrance of the memorial hall represents the age of Chiang Kai-shek when he died. We raced each other up the stairs and came to the main entrance of the memorial hall. I realized that this was very similar to the Sun Yat-sen memorial hall we went yesterday. At the main entrance, there is a giant statue of Chiang Kai-shek. Like the Sun Yat-sen memorial hall, there are 2 guards guarding the statue, standing completely still. As usual, we were allocated some free time to roam around. We managed to look at some of the works of Chiang Kai-shek. The memorial hall also documented Chiang Kai-shek's life and career and exhibits related to Republic of China and Taiwan's history and development. We can also choose from 4 beautiful postcards and get 1 for free. There is also a small souvenir shop where we can get our hands on key chains, stuffed toys and more. After the visit, I had a greater understanding of the former president of Republic of China.

Afterwards, we made our way to our long awaited Eslite Book Store. The book store was 4 storeys high and provides a variety of books. I was surprised to find out that there were much more than just books there. There are ice cream stores, chocolate stores, bubble tea stores, DVD players and much more. We purchased bubble teas and decided on which books to buy. The prices were quite affordable and I managed to get my hands on a few English and Chinese books. As I am not good at recognising traditional Chinese characters, I wanted to learn more about it. Our friendly tour guide even offered to buy us ice creams which I find extremely delicious. Then, we proceed to have our lunch.

After lunch, we sat on the coach on our last trip to the airport. The atmosphere was dull as we knew we would be leaving soon. Uncle Jeff (our tour guide) even sang a farewell song which made us miss him even more. At the airport we bade farewell to Uncle Jeff and 林叔叔(our bus driver). Both of them had gone through a lot with us this week. It was sad and hard to part with them but we all knew this day would come. Thank you Uncle Jeff and 林叔叔. Both of you had done a lot for us and did not even complain or scold us when we are misbehaving. We took 1 last picture together with Uncle Jeff before boarding the plane back to Singapore.

I have to say, I really enjoyed myself with the class. During this trip in Taiwan, we forged stronger friendships and our bonds strenghthened, bringing us closer together. The memories we had together will always be with us. I thank everyone for giving us this once in a lifetime opportunity. Although this is not the first time I visited Taiwan, it is definitely the most memorable one.

Taiwan OELP Day 6 Reflection

Gladys:

Today we visited Shih-fen Old Street.

Shih-fen Old Street is filled with souvenir shops, grocery stores and sky lantern stalls on both sides of the railway. I think this is a really interesting place as we get to light sky lanterns which we will never get to do so in Singapore due to the lack of space. We also get to see the unique scene of trains running right through the old street. This is a really good place for photography and also sampling local snacks. Different colours of the sky lantern had different meaning but since we went there for a learning experience, we were given purple which represented studies. Every CID group was given a sky lantern to write our wishes on. Some of us had one entire side for our own, while others had to share. When we finish writing our wishes on the sky lantern, it was finally time to light the lantern. One of the staff there helped us take photos of us with the sky lantern. I think all of us felt really happy and proud when we released the sky lattern and watched it rise into the sky slowly. Some of us went to walk to the Jingan Suspension Bridge located near the Shihfen Station.

The view from the bridge was really breathtaking and I heard it was originally used for transporting coal.  I really had a great time at Shihfen Old Street and will never forget those wonderful memories.

Next we went to the National Dr. Sun Yat-sen Memorial hall.

This museum was built not only served to provide a place of rememberance of the national founding father but also for culture and artistic education, leisure recreation and academic research. Dr Sun Yat-sen is a universally respected historical figure. Later generations honor his memory in a variety of ways. His theories still continue to be studied and advocated and serve as the foundation of cross-straits peace. His three principles of the people "Nationalism, Democracy and Livelihood" are still put into practice everywhere in Taiwan, awaiting the evalution of history. We can also find a portrait of Dr Sun Yat-sen on Taiwan the front of New Taiwan Dollar today.

After the visit to the museum, I got to learn more about Dr Sun Yat-sen and why he is so important in Taiwan.

Lastly, we went to The National Palace Museum.

It houses the largest collection of priceless Chinese artifects and artwork in the world. I was really fascinated by all the artwork being displayed as all of them look really nice. I think all of the artwork were skilfully made and it would be really rare if anybody still had the skill to make the art pieces with such detailed drawings. The skill for making those art pieces had already been lost, so if the museum don't preserve this art pieces, the younger generation will never get to appreciate and learn the culture. One of the art piece that I remebered vividly was the jade cabbage. It was carved from a single piece of jade that is half grey and half emerald green. The artist used the green part to carve the leaves and the grey part to carve the outter part of the cabbage. It was one of the treasures of the museum  as it was part of the dowry Concubine Jin in the Qing Dynasty. I really learned a lot from this museum and it also taught me that every single art piece has its own story and I learned how to appreciate art better.

Jing Yan:

We visited Shih-fen old street today also known as 十份老街。

We were there to send our wishes up via sky lanterns (放天灯). It was a very meaningful experience as we saw everyone writing their well wishes for their studies/family etc. We saw that the teachers mostly wrote stuff about winning the lottery xD As there were only 4 sides to a lantern and there were 5 people in our CID group, i shared a side with Emily.

We wrote many wishes, including those silly ones like meeting various celebrities. Sky lanterns were invented by Kongming, where he first used it to summon troops for help. Hence till now, it is also known as Kongming lanterns (孔明灯). There were also many souvenirs available for purchase. They sold mostly keychains of mini sky lanterns of different colours/designs and well wishes on it such as 早生贵子，各家平安，十分幸福. Apparently from our tour guide, Uncle Jeff, the phrase 十分幸福 was popular as the place we went to (十份) had people with the sirnames (姓) Foo which had the same pronunciation as the Chinese word (福). 

We went to the Sun Yat Sen memorial hall after that. When we arrived, i found it rather strange to see two guards in the Navy uniform standing very still. I later learnt they were there to guard the statue of Sun Yat Sen and i felt it was a rather strict way to train their discipline as well, due to the fact that they have to stand still for around an hour and then perform some stunts for 15 minutes during the changing of guards. It was really cool and i enjoyed the "performance". We learnt many things about Sun Yat Sen and some of them were also beneficial to our History lessons. We also found a paragraph about the Communist and Kuomintang from our History coursebook there at the memorial (Haha Mr Tan we found out where you got your information). Sun Yat Sen was also really smart and is on the Taiwan note. 

Next, we went to the National Palace Museum. It was indeed as beautiful and grand as the photos i saw on google. It looked just like a palace and was really nice. Our very own Uncle Jeff was our 讲解人 for that trip. He explained each artifact and the use of it. Some of them stretched to dates very long ago like the Qing Dynasties. Some artifacts required advanced skills and sadly, not even the best technology could be able to forge the artifacts. It showed that modern technology may not be better than the past. The artifacts were very precious and mostly made of expensive elements such as jade, 琉璃 etc. It was an enriching experience and the artifacts were all very pretty. As photography was not allowed, i could not take any pictures. 

Kheng Lon:

Today was our 6th day in Taiwan, Taipei. We went to Shih-Fen Old Street after having breakfast. On the coach, the tour guide explained that we are going there in the morning instead as Shih-Fen Old Street is more crowded during the night. I was really excited after knowing that we were going to release the sky lanterns into the sky. Before we knew it, we reached Shih-Fen Old Street. The tour guide said that in Shih-Fen, we were able to walk on the train track! We walked on the pebble-filled track, taking pictures and having fun by trying to balance on the rails. It was a totally different experience for me as I had never walked on a train track before. It is really hard to imagine walking on the train tracks in Singapore. Suddenly, we heard a whistle, signifying that a train is approaching. We quickly kept to one side and saw an old train slowly trudging pass. We were given some free time to spare. I saw a lot of shops selling small lanterns as souvenirs, with blessings written. I found them unique and bought some. Most shops sold souvenirs, drinks and food. Before long, we returned to our meeting point to release sky lanterns! There were many lanterns of different colours but we were only allowed purple as it represents doing well in studies. We wrote our wishes on the enormous purple lanterns. Afterwards, it was time to release the lanterns. Someone from the store helped us to light the lantern and offered to take a picture. We then released the lantern and watch it rise higher and higher. It was a splendid sight as our lantern slowly vanish into the vast sky. This was my first time releasing sky lanterns and I enjoyed myself tremendously. In Singapore, we were not allowed to release sky lanterns without permission probably due to space constraint or the possibility that it might affect planes nearby. After all the groups were done releasing the lanterns, we moved to our next destination—the National Dr. Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall. When we arrived, we managed to catch a glimpse of the majestic Taipei 101!

At the memorial hall, we were greeted by an enormous statue of Dr. Sun Yat-sen. I realised there were two guard statues in front of the statue. After closer inspection, I realised that they were real! The guards stood so still that I thought they were statues. I later learn from the guide that there is a formal changing of guards every hour and the guards must keep extremely still for an hour. We managed to witness the changing of guards which I find really cool. I feel that the guards have high levels of discipline in order to stand still for so long. I could not even stand still for a minute! I really admire these guards as it physically and mentally tiring to stand so long. The tour then went on to explain some artifacts and Sun Yat-sen's beliefs. Since we had some general information about Sun Yat-sen during history lessons, we were able to understand the guide's explanation. The trip was interesting and we even got to see a realistic projection of Sun Yat-sen. After the visit, I had a better understanding of Sun Yat-sen's beliefs and noble contributitions as the Father of modern China.

Our third destination was the National Palace Museum. Our tour guide will be our guide in the museum. He explained that the museum will be extremely crowded, thus he will communicating with us through headphones. We saw many priceless artifacts, some of them collected by Chinese emperors. The artifacts were crafted beautifully, some made of precious metals like jade and emerald. Before leaving us some free time, I remembered that the tour guide telling us about the interesting origin of qingming. It happened during 寒食节 when chong er had no food to eat. Jie zitui would cut meat from his own thigh and offer it to chong er. When chong er was enthroned, he wanted to repay Jie. When he could not find Jie in the forest, he ordered his men to set fire, thinking that a filial Jie would escape the forest with his mother. However, he found out that Jie had been killed together with his mother and was extremely remorseful. He then ordered 3 days without fire to honour Jie. Qingming then turned out to be a holiday where people honour their ancestors at burial sites. It was a good learning experience and I learnt a lot from the ancient artifacts.

Today was another amazing day and the dinner was awesome as we had Xiang long bao. It was also the last day we are staying at a hotel as we are going back to Singapore the next day. Nevertheless, we had a wonderful time today.

Taiwan OELP Day 5 Reflection

Gladys:

Today we visited the 921 Earthquake Educational Park.

We learnt about the types of faults that causes earthquake which are mainly: the reverse fault, the
normal fault and the strike-slip fault. We also learnt about the aftershocks of the 921 earthquake and the earthquake energry. We saw the collapsed student artwork gallery, the collapsed south classroom building and the sports field after the earthquake.

We also got a chance to experince how a earthquake feels like in real life. Although it doesn't feel that real we still could imagine how it felt like during the 921 earthquake as there were videos on the screen in the room and I think it was a good experience.

In the afternoon, we went to tour the Lugang old town.

Deer skins wereone of the main products exported by Lugang hence it was named as "Deers Harbor"
which is what we call Lugang today. We saw the Ban Bian Well (half side well). It looks like a half sided well but it is actually a complete well. It belonged to the Wang resident.

In the past, only the rich family could afford a well. Wang's family built a well divided by a wall. The outside half is for the public use and insude is for the family. That was a great way to maintain the neighbourhood harmony. We got to walk through the small winding lane of the Old Market Street. Many of the old wooden houses and shops have been preserved to this day. There were many more places and heritage culture we could have explored at Lugang but deal to time constraint, the tour guide only let us walk to certain places and briefly introduced them to us.

Lastly, we went to our long awaited Ximending. Everyone was really excited and ready to shop amd buy a lot of clothes. However we were only given 1hour and 10min and to make it worse, it was raining! Many of us ended up rushing to stalls without looking at their goods properly and ended up not buying many things. The stall assistants were polite and tried to help us find something suitable. One of my friends was hesitating whether to buy something and she really like it a lot but it was too expensive so the stall owner lowered the price. I think it was a really good experience to get to shop in Ximending and I enjoyed myself although I only bought a snapback.

Claudia:
In the morning, we visited the 921 Earthquake Educational Park. There, we learnt a lot about earthquakes, what causes them, the aftershocks etc. We also got to "experience" an earthquake, it was one of the attractions of the place, we had to be in a room where an earthquake will be stimulated and we could experienced the shaking and vibrations in the event of an earthquake. We also got to witness the condition of a school when the earthquake struck in 1999, after seeing the state of calamity in which an earthquake can cause, i feel thankful that Singapore is safe from natural disasters and that we would not have to go through such devastations.

After that, we proceeded to the Lugang Old Town. I found the place very unique and it was not something that we could see in Singapore. The walkways and alleys were very narrow, only fitting 2 people at a time and the buildings were all very short, the highest levels being only two or three. It is very different from the city, people travelled via bicycles and there were very little vehicles as the streets are very narrow, the things sold there were also very traditional, namely the Malt Sugar Candy, phone charms and also traditional fans.

In the late afternoon, we took the high speed train to Taipei and immediately went to Ximending upon arrival at Taipei. By then, it was already in the evening and we only had one and a half hour(which is extremely little!!) to spent at Ximending, one of Taiwan's largest shopping street. Personally, i felt that Bugis street is somewhat similar to Ximending, except that Ximending is definitely a lot bigger. It was a great shopping experience as the stuff there are very trendy and suitable for teenagers, also, we could bargain for the prices to be lower which is definitely a plus point as this would attract more customers to the shops! :D 

Jing Yan:

We visited the site of the 921 Taipei earthquake which happened in 1999. They preserved actual ruins left from the earthquake as a learning experience and serve as a reminder for the need to prepare for such disasters like this. We learnt many things about plate tectonics which lead to natural disasters and even had a first hand experience on how an earthquake would feel like. Although it was not very violent, it would have been lots of chaos and everything would be worse than what we experienced (including all the dropping of furniture or books). We are fortunate that there are no natural disasters in Singapore as we would all be wept out due to our size. However, this does not mean we can be unprepared in the case of an actual disaster.

We went to lugang old town after that and the weather was terrible. Many of the buildings were very short and not very modernised. They preserved the old shop-houses and some olden day technology. We also had the chance to see the famous alley which could only 70cm wide. Some of us even tried walking through the alley. There were still many shops operating around that area such as stores selling souvenirs or malt candy :D Due to the time constraint, we could not wander further into the streets and had to turn back.

Then, we went to xinmending, a popular and trendy place to shop. They sold many items targeted at teenagers. Many shops sold the same items at the same price and it was because they established a mutual agreement with one another and would not want to be fighting over customers. Customers would then buy their products based on the one with better quality and not by the price. However, we felt the need for more time as it was also raining and it was difficult to shop in the sheltered areas with everyone seeking shelter. The streets had a lot of junctions and we were quite afraid we would get lost.

Kheng Lon:

Today, we took a trip to 921 Earthquake Educational Park. I learnt that the 921 Earthquake was one of the most devastating disasters that happened in Taiwan. When we reached there, we were greeted by a guide who offered to explain more about the earthquake. The guide first brought us to an earthquake site—a running track of the school. She explained the damages that occurred, explaining that the impact causing the track to be uplifted. 

Afterwards, the guide brought us into the museum where there are some interesting technology to enable us to learn about the earthquake. I learnt that it was the aftershocks of the earthquake that caused the most damage. We then went to see some of the collapsed classrooms. The buildings were damaged badly and the classroom was beyond recognition. Luckily, the earthquake happened in the wee hours, so no students or teachers were affected.

Next, we managed to catch a short film relating to the 921 earthquake and even got to experience the earthquake in real life. It was interesting as I got to experience the tremors and learn more about the earthquake. After this visit, I feel that it was necessary to preserve the earthquake site as this will remind people of the tragic consequences of the earthquake. At the same time, this serves as a reminder for everyone the need to prepare for similar disasters. I felt lucky that there are no such similar disasters in Singapore but we also need to be alert and prepare for future disasters. 

Next, we went to Lugang Old Street. The buildings and shops were very old fashioned. The buildings were short, compared to the HDB flats in Singapore. As it's name suggests, the name Lugang came from the trade of deerskin in the 18th and 19th century. The shops sell affordable goods such as malt candy and souvenirs. They even sell bubble teas. We even got to see some of the narrow alleys in Lugang. As there was not much time left, we did not manage to see much and the tour guide only explained some places briefly. Other than the hot weather, I find it a great experience touring Lugang Old Street and was amazed at how well it was preserved.

Finally, we took a high speed train to Taipei to Ximending. The train journey was about 1hour and 30 minutes and we had time to relax and enjoy the scenery outside. When we reached Ximending, we were given some time to shop. I did not know Ximending had many chains of shops. Most of the goods were sold at affordable prices and I bought many souvenirs. Our eyes lit up when we saw branded shops such as Adidas and Nike. We bought clothes, shoes, stuffed toys and many more. However, it was raining heavily and it was troublesome to carry and umbrella and our shopping goods at the same time. Nonetheless, we enjoyed ourselves thoroughly even though I think we should have more extra time to shop. 

Today was another fun and enjoyable day at Taiwan and I hope that it will be the same for the next 2 days.

Taiwan OELP Day 4 Reflection

Gladys:

Today, we went to National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts.

The guide talked to us about the different art pieces. She talked to us about the artist basic background, what method the artist used to paint the art piece, what kind of inspiration the artist got to paint the art piece, etc. I think after the visit to the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts, I learnt how to appreciate art better and learnt more about the different types of art. I also noticed this umbrella lock before entering the museum and I thought it was pretty interesting as I never seen it in Singapore before. I think its a good invention so that the staff can have an easier time finding their own umbrellas.

Later on in the afternoon, we went to the Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village.

This village was set up as another source of income for the aborigins. The theme park was set up so that people will be attracted to come to the village. The village is being set up in a way that in order to play the rides at the theme park, you need to walk through all the displays set up by the aborigins and as you walk, you will be able to learn more about their culture. I think it is a very sad thing that they have to set the village this way in order for the younger generations to learn the aborigine's culture but it was a really successful method. As I walk pass all those displays, I got to learn more about their culture and their way of life. They make great efforts in updating the amusement facilities and services to attract more people to the village to raise awareness about the aborigins among the younger generation. There was also this display at the village that I saw. I had the words "饮水思源".

I think they are trying to say that they are thankful of what their ancestors did in order for them to have such a culture and they will never forget. We also got a chance to see their aboriginal dance and some of us even got to learn this dance moves.

I think I had a lot of fun learning their culture and playing the rides at the amusement park. 

At the end of the day, we went to Fengjia Night Market. I was really happy as I finally got the chance to try some of their local famous food like 大肠包小肠 and experince the night market life.

The for some of the drink stalls, they would give out free samples in order to attract customers to their buy their drinks and I think this is a really good way to run a business. I think all the stall vendors in Taiwan are really polite, if youenter a stall and didn't buy anything, they will still say thank you for taking time to browse throught their stalls. I think this is something singapore should learn from Taiwan, shop assistants should learn to help promote their stall more instead of waiting for customers to come amd they should also learn to be more polite so that customers would like their service and return to purchase more goods from the stall. I also realise that many stalls in Taiwan sell the same type of shirts with the same prices in different stalls. This is so that customers don't compare the prices and buy the shirt from only one stall. They make all stalls have equivalent chance of selling their goods. I had a really great time eating their culinary delicay and experiencing the night market life, something I will never forget.

Claudia:
Today, we took the high speed train from Hsinchu to Taichung. After arriving at Taichung, we proceeded to the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts. Upon reaching the museum, there was a tour guide to bring us through the place and explain individually who were the artist of each of the artwork and what the artist meant to express through the piece of work. Personally, i felt that the experience was very enriching and interesting, i found it hard to believe that artists could express how they felt or what they were thinking about through such work of art and it wasn't something that anyone could achieve. I think that the tour guide played a crucial part in making our trip there a fulfilling one as without her explanations, we could not have figured out and understood the artwork and the trip there would be very boring.
In the afternoon, we went to the Formosa Aboriginal Culture Village. It was highly anticipated by many of us as there was a theme park inside the culture village and us being playful little kids, we definitely wanted to try out some of the rides!
We first took the cable car to the peak of the hills there and enjoyed the wonderful scenery from above. It was a much better experience than taking a cable car in Singapore as the scenery was a lot more beautiful and the cable car travelled higher above the ground(woop thrilling :D) Then, without hesitation, we dashed for the theme park and took a number of rides, namely the free fall and viking. We had a lot of fun and played til we almost puked, but then again i kind of regret not going to visit the aboriginal parts of the village more as those were the places where we could learn more about the aboriginals, instead of spending our time playing at the theme park. But after that, we went to watch a performance by the aborigines and we also participated and danced their traditional dance with them and that was an eye opening yet embarrassing experience as not many of us could dance very well xD
In the evening, we went to Fengjia Night Market and this was one of the places that i looked forward to going most in Taiwan. We tried many of the local taiwanese street foods, namely the glutinous rice sausage, the bbq squid and the nacho cheese baked potato!! The night market was packed with people and i guess that it is because the food at the night market is delicious and the prices are also very very cheap as compared to the food in Singapore. Also, many stalls gave out samples of their food and i think that this is a very good sales strategy because when people taste the food for free and realize how good it is and they will then go back to the stall to purchase it instead of having to wonder about whether or not the food will be to their liking.
Overall, i had a very fulfilling and fun day and i get to experience Taiwan more today!! :)

Jing Yan:

We first went to the Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts. Some of the art pieces were gross and inappropriate for little children but i guess you have to look in the artistic point of view to appreciate their artwork. However, some of the other artworks were also very interesting and had deep meanings to it. I feel extremely thankful for the guide who explained each artwork to us as some of them were very abstract. I think i would not be able to understand the meaning of the artwork if she was not there. It was a great experience! After that, we went to the long awaited Aboriginal Village. We spent quite a long time there as we could take the exciting and thrilling rides there. Although it was supposed to be a village, there was an amusement park. It was a pity that the Aboriginals had to build an amusement park there to attract people to their cultural village. They could educate the younger generation to show that their presence was sigificant and they would have more people knowing about their culture. The free-fall ride was the most memorable. It dropped at the speed of 107 miles/h and my heart literally stopped. I think that it was a pity that the Aboriginals are an "endangered species" as i felt that they were interesting. The amusement park was also built to attract tourists/people to visit the aboriginal village. It was also an alternative source of income. However, i think it would not be too high as they had to split the earnings among many other tribes. We learnt some simple steps from the traditional aboriginal dance which were included in their performance and it was a joy to learn. 

A photo with one of the lead dancers

Learning the dance :D

At night, we went to fengjia night market. The store owners were all extremely friendly and helpful, helping us throw away our rubbish and allowing us to try samples of their food even though we may have no intention of buying them. This is one point the Singaporeans can learn from. We should all learn from their friendliness and initiative, which would raise the standards of the service we give to our customers. Store owners should all take initiative to approach their customers to provide them with answers to what they need. 

Kheng Lon:

Day 4
Today is the 4th day of our Taiwan Trip. After our breakfast, we brought our luggage along with us as we were staying at a different hotel today. I was quite reluctant to leave the hotel as I find this hotel spacious and unique. The trip to Taichung was nearly 2 hours! It must have been really hard on the bus driver. Along the way, the tour guide briefly explained to us the places that we are visiting today.

After a while we finally reached Taichung. Our first stop, the National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts!

The museum tour guide explained different art pieces to us in detail. We learnt about the history and how these art pieces came about. From the art pieces, we can learn and find out what the illustrator is trying to express. I find this very enriching as some art pieces reveal the histories of different place. I have to say the museum tour guide did a great job in explaining the different art pieces. I find this painting special as it was the work of a Japanese trying to paint a picture based on folk activities held during ghost festival in Keelung. Even though the artwork does not seem like much, it depicts the cheerful atmosphere from a Japanese point of view.

Afterwards, we made our way to Formosa Aboriginal Culture Village. We managed to experience some cable car rides. It was an amazing experience as we were able to enjoy the scenery from a frightening height. We laughed and chatted, having a great time. After the cable car ride, we were given free time to try out some of the rides in the amusement park. The rides were thrilling and our bonds strengthened as a class.

After a while, we returned to our meeting point to watch a performance by a aboriginal tribe. They displayed a culturural dance which captivated us for a long time. The aborigines  wore their tribal clothes which I find colourful and pretty unique. Some of us even got the chance to dance with them. They laughed and danced along with the aborigines. The dance had 4 parts and they learned them quickly. Even though I did not join them, I also had fun and cheered along. Afterwards, we managed to take some selfies with the aboriginals. After this visit, I find it very sad that amusement parks had to be built so as to attract tourists to learn more about the aboriginal tribes. The aborigines were trying to spread awareness about their culture, yet without the amusement parks, would tourists still continue to learn more about them? I felt very guilty as I think I should spend more time, learning their culture instead of having fun with the rides. After all, their culture existed a long time. It is important that we show our respect and learn some of the unique cultures.

Next, we made our way to Fengjia Night Market. We were given some allowance to spend. I heard that Fengjia Night Market is well-known in Taiwan. When we reached there, we can already see hordes of people. We then proceed to buy food for dinner. Even though most of the food were quite oily and unhealthy, they were surprisingly delicious. I guessed there is no harm trying different food once in a while. The chicken cutlet was huge and was one of the popular food in the night market. I tried one and find it really tasty. We even did some shopping in some shops. Some drinks  were really cheap. For example, they sold 1 litre bubble teas for only 45 ntd and they taste as good as the ones in Singapore! The vendors were very kind as they offered to help throw our rubbish. We shopped and ate along the way, having a wonderful together. Finally, it was time to go back and we returned to our new hotel.

We sure had a spectacular time today in Taichung. Today was fun and enriching. On another note, I think that we need to be more considerate to the bus driver. For example, on our journey back to the hotel, one of us found a cockroach scuttling around in the bus. This was the result of us not throwing away our food wrappers and rubbish. The bus driver had to drive long distances but never once complained. I think we can do our part by clearing the rubbish and not make so much noise so that he can concentrate better.