Treasure Hill Details, Taipei 2012

I am striving to complete this Taiwan travelogue before the end of the year. I have only about 2 more posts left, let's hope I can make it!

Have a good end of the year, folks.

Treasure Hill Artist Village, Taipei 2012

If you enjoy clambering around, searching for hidden nooks and crannies, you are going to love Treasure Hill Artist Village. There is so much to discover! I left it too late and only arrived in the late afternoon when most of the artists' studios were closing or had closed. I heard there were also cafes in the area but I didn't see any. So much so much left to see.

I am quite disappointed with the grainy and gloomy quality of this film, ironically it's theKodak Ultracolour 400. I popped in the only 400ISO film I had with me, thinking that it would help combat the darkening sky but it seems like it wasn't enough. I look forward to going back there again in sunnier weather to capture more of the little details.

On The Way to Treasure Hill, Taipei 2012

I got incredibly lost trying to find my way to the Treasure Hill Artist Village. I exited from the Gong Guan MRT Station and immediately lost myself in the hustle and bustle of the place. It didn't help that Ting Zhou Road was an incredibly long stretch with many different section. It took me quite a few wrong turns before I got myself on the right path. Then all you have to do is follow the murals.

Huashan, Taipei 2012

An abandoned former winery in the middle of Taipei, turned into a cultural centre through stealth and acclaimation, Huashan Cultural Park was a place I looked forward to exploring. On the day I visited, Canada Day was taking place and the compound was teeming with expat Canadians and locals eager to sample a taste of Canada. Don't let my photos fool you, the place was incredibly full of energy, I spied wedding photoshoots in progress, a travel fair, a toy (or perhaps cartoon) convention, an outdoor market, cafes and artist nooks scattered all over the site! Phew, just remembering that day makes me feel tired!

Simple Market, Taipei 2012

A farmer's and craft market set in the heart of Taipei City, Simple Market was a must-visit on my solo day's itinerary. It runs every Sunday at the Xinyi Public Assembly Hall, outside Good Cho's 好丘 and is organised by Simple Life 简单生活, the company that runs Good Cho's 好丘 and the Simple Life Festival 简单生活节. Stall tenants change up regularly and most items are hand-crafted from baked goods, to coffee roasted and brewed on the spot, camera straps, bookmarks and many other little goodies. Not surprisingly, I spent a good amount of my money buying little souvenirs for my friends and family. Many of the shopkeepers are college-aged students and were so friendly. Most of them were surprised to know that I was a foreigner and wanted to know all about how my trip had been and what Singapore was like. I really wished I had more time to stay awhile to talk and to take in the indie music performances that were scheduled for the afternoon. Well, there's always next time. I already know that whenever I am in Taipei, my Sunday will be reserved for a jaunt to Simple Market.

Lomography Home of the Day

I recently found out that two Tuesdays ago, I was selected as Lomography's Home of the Day! (that's the archive shot of the LHOTD write-up). I had missed seeing the tweet announcement and not visited the main Lomography website that day. I only managed to figure it out when I realised I was receiving more likes than usual and I saw the little awards medal in my LomoHome. Thank you, Lomography for thinking me worthy of this prize!

As an LHOTD awardee, Lomography gave me 50 piggies points. For Singaporeans, that translates to a whopping $100! Since Lomography was running a 10% discount on the entire store, I immediately began shopping around, trying to get my money's worth of cameras & accessories. In the end, I got a new Fisheye 2 Python (my original Fisheye had a scratch on it that's why I didn't bring it on trips this year), a Fisheye Submarine Case (for a possible trip to Bali next year!) and a Colorsplash Flash (finally, a proper working flash). I also saved $130! Go me!

I have a little bit of piggies left and with the Lomography Advent Calendar being activated, I am excited to see what other new Lomography goodies I can add to my collection. For now, I am eyeing the Cityguides and more film is always good news!

The Liebster Award

Thank you to Sasha for nominating me for the Liebster Award. This award is for blogs with less than 200 followers to help spread the word about other smaller blogs, to help them gain more readers and followers. A little helping hand to all the little blogs out there who are trying to carve out their space in the internet world. I had seen this floating around the blogosphere and I thought it was a fun little thing. We are supposed to list down 11 random facts about yourself (which is harder than you think), and answer 11 questions set by your nominator. So here goes...

11 random facts about me.

01. I can play the electronic organ. I trained for 8 years. My greatest hits include The Carpenters' I Need To Be In Love, Elton John's Can You Feel The Love Tonight, Ayumi Hamasaki's Seasons and Mainstreet Electrical Parade.

02. The number of movies I watch per year can be counted on 1 hand. My friends don't understand why I don't watch them more often. So far this year, I have watched The Lorax and Brave. I will probably close out 2012 with The Hobbit.

03. I hate wasabi and seaweed.

04. My ambition as a child was to be a doctor.

05. I contracted chicken pox at age 24.

06. I am a kpop fan. I have no shame in admitting that.

07. I am a Apple/Android user. I use a Macbook Pro and a Samsung Galaxy 3.

08. I love repeat travelling. I have been to NZ 3 times, Australia 4 times, Korea 3 times, Taipei 2 times, US 3 times. I just can't enough of these places, there's so much more to explore!

09. I was part of the Girl Guides from age 8 to 18. I camped out every year. I can build a kitchen table, clothes hanger and shoe rack from bamboo poles and twine. I can also build a fire from just 3 match sticks.

10. I ran my first 5k earlier this year.

11. I once tried to make soup by boiling pork bones in water and only adding salt and pepper. True story.

Questions from Sasha.

1. What is the most dangerous thing you have ever done? - Taking 2 rollercoaster rides in succession with no queues to break it up. My heart was still pounding from the first one as we shot up the second.

2. What is the most unfashionable thing you secretly enjoy wearing? Pretty much everything, my wardrobe is made up of variations of teeshirts.

3. If you could invent a Ben and Jerry's ice cream with all your favourite flavours in one, it would contain: Peanut butter, sour cream, cheese and chocolate.

4. Do you cry at movies (of course you do)? Which movies make you cry? - All the time. Any movie that has a family theme to it.

5. If you were another person and you met your current self, what would your first impression be? - Sullen and unsmiling. I have the worse "default" face ever.

6. What is your secret skill that nobody could ever imagine you having? - Playing the electronic organ.

7. If you were a scented candle, what would you smell of? - Fruits!

8. Bad day, you come home late, collapse on your sofa, turn on the telly and watch... - Friends or The Big Bang Theory

9. If you were given the chance to steal one thing and get away with it, what would it be and why? -Nothing. My mind draws a blank.

10. What is the one place in the world you would love to travel to but have not? I would love to explore Washington DC.

11. What is the last thing you regret buying? A pair of croc flats that was one size too small.

Thank you again to Sasha for nominating me. :)

Paper Plane Cafe

Paper Plane Cafe is located on the first floor of the shophouse that also contains Parachute Hostel. Because the interiors of Paper Plane Cafe is so enticing, you may be like me and miss the entrance to Parachute entirely (it's the wooden door on the side with the Parachute logo).

I really love how Paper Plane Cafe is themed. It's the perfect hostel cafe in my mind. As you can see, I really went crazy snapping all the little corners of the cafe. All food and coffee is prepared by Becky and her cafe elves. Side-note: I really love a cafe when you know it's the owners who are behind the counters rather than sitting behind some corporate desk amassing the profits.