Despite the best efforts of nature, Taiwan is an amazing place for the senses.
Overview
The Budget
2 people/ $1700AUD per person / 7 days
$100AUD each spending money per day
$100AUD each per night accommodation
$500 return flights each Gold Coast to Taipei via Singapore (Scoot Airlines)
Hotels
Neijiang Hotel (Ximending, Taipei)
City Suites Hotel Taipei
Tainan Hotel
Grand Hyatt Taipei
Star Moon B&B Green Island*
*booked but not stayed at – see details about this in the blog
Destinations
Taipei
This trip was a bit unexpected, I had the travel bug and was trawling through airline websites to see what they had, I stumbled on a cheap flight to Taipei and after a 5 minute chat, we had booked the flights and hotels.
The flight was long and being a low-coster not terribly comfortable, but we landed around six in the morning and after dumping our luggage off at the hotel we set about walking the streets. Severely sleep-deprived we ended up stumbling on the National Chiang Kai Shek Memorial precinct. The first thing that hit us was the scale (see below). We spent some time taking the best selfies we could infront of the Arch of the Libery Square before wandering the grounds. We stopped to have grab a coffee and watch the old people practicing Tai Chi in amongst the trees in the parklands surrounding the precinct.
Chiang Kai Shek Memorial
After this, we headed for the memorial, we watched the changing of the guard, took some hipster profile pic photos and headed in to check out the museum at the base. After this we wandered the streets checking out the everyday sights, before grabbing a early dinner at a local restaurant.
The next day, we decided to checkout Beitou, and climb up Yangmingshan. We used the metro to get there and it wasn’t hard to miss, the hot springs were awesome to see and owe their existence to volcanic activity in Yangmingshan. We caught the bus to the base of Yangmingshan and began our descent up the stairs to the peak, as we headed up we were greeted happily by local climbers, exchanging ‘ni hao, ni hao ma?’ as we headed up. However, the weather started to turn, the winds picked up and clouds and rain began to bucket down. We did make it to the top (the glorious sight as seen below) and began to descend the other side, this side was far more trecherous in the weather, there were open volcanic vents and thin paths between the tall grasses and trees. With one of us being very clumsy in these situations, this was a bit of a concern. We managed to make it to the entry on the other side and caught the bus to the metro. It was here that we learned that a Typhoon was begining to hit the island, explaining some of the crazy weather. The next day we packed up to head to catch the train to Hualien.
A typhoon hit Yangmingshan Peak
Hualien and Green Island
But we were wrong, we arrived at the station in Taipei to find most lines were shut, ours wasn’t confirmed but after a long wait in the lines and talking with many others we learned the line had been ripped up by the winds. We were stuck in Taipei.
Taipei (Round 2)
Stumped for a bit as we didn’t have a hotel we decided to treat ourselves and wandered into the Grand Hyatt, this is what pushed up our budget by about $700 each as it was about $700 per night. But we got to enjoy some luxury accommodation, some great sushi at a restaurant and we were nonethewares of the typhoon blazing across the city. The next day, with our way to Hualien and Green Island blocked we booked a hotel and bullet train to Tainan.
Tainan
The bullet train to Tainan was quick and comfortable comparable to the Japanese Shinkansen . We arrived on the outskirts of the city and caught a taxi to our hotel. Again, we dropped off our luggage and began exploring. Whilst smaller than Taipei, Tainan certainly packs a punch, we checked out the Dutch relics and forts in Anping and on the next day spent some time wandering the streets, checking out the shops, museums and Yongle market. Whilst we were only in Tainan for about two days, this was enough to take it easy and divide our attention between history on one day and shopping and sights on another.
Taipei (Round 3)
We caught the slow train back to Taipei and checked into our hotel in historic Ximending (see below). As a major shopping district, this place was buzzing with life and food but the historical streets added a charming element. That night we decided to hunt down the Raohe Food Market, after google maps misdirecting us and some confused looks by locals, we gave up.
Ximending streets
The next day we headed to Taipei 101, to do the usual touristy thing of checking out the observation deck which was fun and it does provide an amazing view over the city and to the mountians that hug the city. Later in the afternoon we actually managed to find the markets, discovering that ‘he’ is pronounced closer to ‘her’ in Mandarin Chinese. Damn, were we glad we found it though, the food was the best, we just walked up and down trying everything and anything… except stinky tofu.
Our flight the next day wasn’t until the evening so we headed to catch the Maokong Gondola up the mountain near the zoo. At the top we were greeted by dense forests interspersed by tea plantations, hill-hugging villages and temples (see below). This is a place you have to visit. Especially the temples that open out on to platforms overlooking the forest and valleys below.
Buddhist Temple in the hills surrounding Taipei
Singapore
Our flight to and from Taipei stopped off at Singapore, my favourite stop-over. As someone who lives in Brisbane, Singapore is a bit of familiarity, similar weather, fair bit of English and a fair few Australian stores (not to mention Australians although I have mixed feelings about that). On the way to Taipei, we left the airport to go wander and get Chilli Crab in Marine Parade, we ended up getting pies from a bakery in one of the backstreets. Not quite what we aimed for but good nonetheless. Changi Airport each way is amazing though, we hired out a shower each and cleaned ourselves up, spent time in the free cinema there and wandered the sunflower garden. This is all I’ll go into about Singapore as we’ve visited quite a few times and one of our future blogs will go into detail about our first extended stay in the city.
Escaping from the relative cool of Brisbane, we head to Cairns in June to explore the reef and the rainforest.
Overview
The Budget
2 people/ 4 days/ $1300AUD each
$100AUD each spending money per day
$100AUD each per night
$280AUD each return flights Brisbane to Cairns (Jetstar Airways)
Remainder for internal transport and contingency
Hotel
Rydges Plaza Cairns
Destination:
I’d been to Cairns before but only briefly as a stopover or overnight for a party so I thought it was time to check it out properly and the cool of a Brisbane winter was the perfect excuse.
We took an early flight, so as soon as we landed, we caught an uber into the centre of Cairns, dropped off our luggage and decided to head to Kuranda. We didn’t bother booking a seat and just wandered to the station (far side of the groundfloor carpark, underneath Cairns Central Shopping Centre). The cost was $76AUD per adult for a return trip on the heritage class.
The steep incline up to Kuranda and the picturesque scenery.
The carriages are restored and reminiscent of the old-world charm of rail travels past. And despite being over 90 years old, they were comfortable and the scenery was stunning (see the view above). The journey took us across ravines, beside waterfalls, and between hand-hewn and natural gorges.
The waterfall only metres from the carriage.
Eventually, we arrived in the relative cool of Kuranda, the village is rich with tourist stores and restaurants but of greater interest to us was the rainforest setting. There are a number of short trails (2-6 kms) around the town and we chose two. One took us through tropical rainforests as we were surrounded by the sounds of the forest whilst the second took us along the Barron river, apparently there are crocodiles there (luckily or not, we didn’t see any) and we managed to make our way to Barron Gorge Lookout, being the dry season it wasn’t in full-flow but still a magnificent sight. After a few hours of sight-seeing, we caught the train back down the mountain.
In the early evening, we headed to the Cairns Night Markets for dinner and I am ashamed to admit it but the dodgy all-you can eat fake chinese (mongolian lamb etc) is highly recommended. That being said, you have to get in early as the place was packed.
The Great Barrier Reef
We booked a Great Barrier Reef tour online (as usual, we booked it the night before) and walked from the hotel to the Marlin Jetty bright and early in the morning. The price was a very cheap $109AUD per adult, and whilst the boat was older, I could not recommend it enough (https://greatbarrierreeftourscairns.com.au/tours/1-day-great-barrier-reef-tour/) . The boat set off and we headed for our first stop, Hasting Reef, here we got our snorkel equipment on and swam out over the brilliant colours and vibrant life below and we were fortunate enough to see a loggerhead turtle swim so close below us. After this, the crew served a delvious barbeque and headed to the second reef, which was even larger than our first stop. As the sun began to head towards the horizon, the boat set back to port but that wasn’t the end, on our way back we stumbled on a sleeping whale (thought it was dead but turns out they sleep upside down with their flukes out for short periods). Eventually, we pulled into port shortly after the sun set and, once again we headed towards the markets for ‘chinese’ food.
Paronella Park
The next day we hired a car and headed south to Paronella Park (an hour and a half drive south of the city). The highway drive was easy and the sea of the verdant cane fields up to the mountains was a beautiful sight. We stopped off at the town of Innisfail for lunch before turning off the main road to the quaint country roads that led to the park. The park is quite beautiful with a fascinating history (whilst the price of entry is $45AUD per adult this includes fish food and is valid for all tours and activities).
After the included tour, you can wander the grounds, feed the turtles and fish and take in the stunning Mena Creek Falls (see above). We spend a few hours here really enjoying the traquil environs.
Cairns
On the next day, we decdided to have a chill day. We headed to trinity beach, in the northern suburbs of the city. The beach was beautiful and we thoroughly enjoyed the sound of the crashing waves and soaked up the warm sun after which we headed to the the Esplanade, walking along the parklands as the sun set. Oh, and this time, we didn’t get chinese food… we bought McDonalds.
The final day upon us, we checked out the military museum and stopped by Cafe Fika for a snack and to pick up a locally-made Falukorv (a big red Swedish sausage, no entendre intended) for a friend. Before we headed to the airport, we spent our last hour or so wandering the botanic gardens.
A trip with ups and downs but one that will stay with us forever.
Overview
The Budget
2 people/ $4200AUD per person/ 31 days
$50AUD each spending money and transport per day
$50AUD each per person accommodation
$600AUD total flights Gold Coast to Clark via Kuala Lumpur (Air Asia) and Singapore to Gold Coast (Scoot Airlines)
Hotels
Rumi Apartelle (Clark City, Philippines)
The Bayleaf Intramuros (Manila, Philippines)
Cebu Parklane International (Cebu City, Philippines)
Casa Pilar Resort (Boracay, Philippines)
Holiday Inn (now Quest Hotel & conference Center – Clark) (Clark City, Philippines)
Ming Gardens (Kota Kinabalu, Malysia)
Sepilok Forest Resort (Sepilok, Malaysia)
Dorsett Regency (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia)
Strawberry Park Resort (Cameron Highlands, Malaysia)
Perek Hotel (Singapore)
Destinations
Clark City (Round 1)
Originally, we were going to just check out Malaysia and Singapore but one of us is a bit more ‘carpe diem’ than the other and decided to add the Philippines to the agenda. Luckily, as per usual we found some cheap flights but we soon found out there was a price to pay for these flights. We had a transfer through KL and landed in the old international airport with minimal shops and not much else for entertainment and our onward flight to Clark was delayed by 7 hours. But eventually we made it to the Philppines, sleep deprived but in one piece.
As this first stop was just a step into the country we booked a hotel close to the airport and they recognised the look of a crazed sleep-less individual and let me settle the bill the next morning. From there we walked down to the SM Clark and caught a bus headed to Manilla.
Manila
The trip between the two cities isn’t too long but at each stop people come on to sell you trinkets and food which is your choice to buy or not. After pasing the fields and beautiful hills and mountains we began to see the massive billboards and built-up suburbs of Manila.
Boy, is the city dense and full of life. Our bus turned off the highway into the crammed streets before terminating at a slighly ominous looking station. When we got out, we had no sense of where we were. However, a local lady selling rags on the side of the road noticed us standing for a while and called us a taxi after we showed her the address.
Our hotel was in the Intramuras, the original fort built by the Spanish, around which the city grew. The Intramuras is eclectic with out european-style buildings and churchs and cobbled lands mixed with shantys and lanes that you shouldn’t wander down.
Sunset at the Rooftop Bar in Manilla.
On our first full day in the city we explored the churches and wandered the ancient fortifications, again be wary as not all of the fortifications are safe or well-maintained. The next day we caught a passing Jeepney and headed to the harbour, this was an experience as it seems like road rules are more suggestions, just absolute chaos. Whilst Lonely Planet may talk up the harbour, unfortunately when we were there it was covered in a layer of garbage which was a bit disappointing. But wandering the streets back and enjoying the street life back to the hotel was more than enough. And, we ended the day with a beautiful dinner and drinks at the rooftop bar at the hotel.
The next day, we set off to hotel and as soon as we got in the taxi, the driver pulled out a card with American prices on it proceeding to try and charge us $50USD for the short journey to the airport. If this happens to you. get out of the taxi, that money would be better spent given to a charity.
Cebu City
Regardless of the taxi issue, our flight was pleasant enough and we landed in Cebu City, at the heart of the Philippine Archipelago. The system at the airport was well organised to catch a reputable taxi to the horel. As a smaller city, it was a lot easier to get around and once we were settled we explored the sights. The city was were the catholicisation of the Philippines began and had a Spanish presence from as early as the 1500s. We visited the Basilica Minore del Santo Ninõ de Cebu and happend to catch a wedding in progress and enjoyed the exhibits detailing the Christian history of the Islands.
On our second day, we wandered around and found the Cebu Museum, which detailed the history of the city in a former jail. Being the cheap fools we are, we headed to the SM Cebu City mall and bought some dinner from Shakeys Pizza and did some shopping. One thing I noticed that was interesting were the heavily armed guards everywhere we went and the pat downs at the entrances to the malls. It was explained to me that there are issues in the southern part of the country with insurgency, and some crime issues with gangs. However, we did not encounter any issues. We wanted to see the Chocolate hills but we ran out of time
A glimpse of the Basila Minore del Santo Nino de Cebu and the unique electrical wiring in the streets.
Boracay
(Note: Boracay will be closed for environmental remediation for 12 months from April, 2018)
Our next destination required a number of different transport modes and I was hit with an iffy tummy thanks to some mussels I may or may not have been told not to eat twice. Our first leg was a propeller plane to Caticlan, from here we caught a motortrike to the jetty, then a pump boat to the port and a tuk tuk to Casa Pilar at Station three. After a horrifying day and night with my iffy tummy unpleasantness, I awoke to paradise. Our hotel were simple cabins in a compound that faced directly onto the beach. Over the next few days (including Christmas), we would wake up have breakfast and head to the white sands of the beach and read, listen to music, sip beers before heading up the beach to try a different restaurant and bar.
Looking back on it, we realised that this kind of holiday from a holiday was really important as its good to not just be sightseeing and be constantly on the go, you want to break it up.
The journey to the airport, this time Kalibo, was just as transport mode heavy, but this time we got the chance to sit in the mini bus and pass through the small villages, jungles, and steep cliffs on the way.
Clark City (Round 2)
Landing back in Cebu, one of us noticed that the city was very well organised and recognised it as former Airforce housing similar to their experiences in Fiji. Whilst Clark was largely a stop over, we spent a day exploring the streets and markets neat the Mall, and even tried Jollibee.
Kota Kinabalu (Round 1)
We reached Kota Kinabalu (KK) early the next morning and as soon as we landed we noticed a key difference; far more Australians. Our Hotel was great but a bit confronting as it overlooked a large suburb of shantys. But, I also think it’s important to understand the context of the everyday lives of the places you visit.
With some time to spare in the afternnon and evening, so we booked a visit to Mari Mari Cultural Village, we were picked up from the hotel and headed in the hills to the east of the city. At the village we had the chance to experience the traditional homes of all the different clans that occupied the area before the arrival of Malays and Chinese immigrants. We also go the chance to try the locally brewed rice wine, not too bad on a side note. Our guide was great and after the tour, we had a dinner and watched some traditional dancing before being dropped off at our hotel.
The next day we headed to the bus station, for a six hour journey to Sepilok. We On the way we caught a sight of Mount Kinabalu (home to the rafflesia and a mountain I hope to climb one day), however the road was not comfortable, nor was the bus and the perplexing popularity of Pitbull meant that his music was played on loop the entire trip.
Clouds caught on Mount Kinabalu.
Sepilok
We hopped off the bus at a roundabout with an orangutan statue proudly in the middle and was told our lodge was a short walk down the road. Turns out the distance was underestimated and in the heat and humidity of summer it was quite a schlock to get to the lodge. But as soon as we arrived, we were greeted by our hosts who offered us a cool drink and set up our cabin amongst the forst, overlooking lake. I cannot recommmend this place enough, They have a great kitchen that cooks up some delicious Malaysian Roti and Fried Rice and the owners are helpful and supportive.
Our first day at Sepilok was rainy so we relaxed, read a book and enjoyed the sights and sounds of the rainforest from the resort lookout and had a chat with some of the other guests (one of whom indirectly sent me on a new career path). In the afternoon we decided to book a trip through the hotel to see Orangutans in the wild. The next day, we and a few others piled into a utility vehicle which drove us an hour or so south to a pontoon and small canoe-like boat on the wide brown Kinabatangan River, we headed upstream to a base in the jungle to have lunch and we had the chance to wander the jungle around the base before we headed on the boat later in the afternoon. Setting off on a boat two people wide and big enough to only hold five people, we made our way along the river and after a few minutes, we got to see Proboscis Monkeys playing amongst the trees and Hornbills flying overhead.
As we slowly moved on down the river, we sighted crocodiles disturbingly close. It was then that our boat driver caught sight of a rare sight (see below), Asian Elephants. he slowly moved the boat closer to the shore as we watched the family of elephants come closer as well. The baby played with the grass with the parents cautiously watched on before grunting at us and continuing on their way. Already incredibly happy with the animals we had seen, we got moved further along the river seeing various monkeys and birds and as we neared our turn around point, we noticed one side of the river was cleared for the island’s number one crop, palm sugar. It was sad to see the clearing especially as it is the number one reason why the animals we saw that day were so rare. We turned around in the boat back into the reserve reflective when our attention was captured by a lone Orangutan in high in the trees in by the bank, he didn’t linger for long but it was amazing to see one of the apes in the wild. This part of the trip was amazing, if you go to Borneo, book a trip on the Kinabatangan river, it’s stunning and will be one of the key memories I will hold onto for the rest of my life.
Asian Elephants mere metres from our boat on the shore of the Kinabatangan River.
The next day we headed to the Rainforest discovery centre and the whole time it rained torrentially but the cenre is a reserve of jungle you can walk around with stations that are tall lookouts providing an overview of the jungle and Organgutan reserve. One of us was a bit clumsy and managed to slip over on the mud paths and land directly in a leech filled stream in an ill-fated attempt at leaping the waterway. After this, we headed to the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre. Here, we were able to see the Orangutans being cared for and fed in order for their release back into the wild.
Due to one of us not knowing how many days are in December apparently, we had an extra day in the area and headed into Sandakan, as Australian citizens we were aware of this place’s position in history in WW2, as the site of the Sandakan Death Marches. In town, we checked out the moemorials and shops and had lunch before heading back to the hotel.
Kota Kinabalu (Round 2)
Originally, we planned to get the bus back again but after our experience, once was enough (you gotta do it at least once). So we booked $40AUD flights back to KK. This gave us an extra afternoon in KK, so we went down to the central markets by the sea and we were lucky, the seafood there (see below) was amazing, fresh, and cheap ($2AUD for a fresh coal cooked filet). To be honest, we bought more than we needed. Do yourself a favour, check it out with an empty stomach.
Amazing and insanely cheap seafood at the Kota Kinabalu markets
Kuala Lumpur and the Cameron Highlands
We landed in Kuala Lumpur early the next day and spent the morning and afternoon exploring the local china town and, of course, the Petronas Towers. The day after, we booked a tour (through a travel agent, weird I know). The guide took us up to the Cameron Highlands. Which was were the British would retreat to in the hotter months. On the way, up we stopped by a tea plantation to see how its made and to get some samples, and by a strange rose garden filled with chinese godesses.
Even stranger was Bukit Tinggi, a tudor-style village (actually french apparently). We stayed overnight at the a flower covered resort, enjoying the cool and the forested surrounds before heading back down to to KL.
On our last day in KL, we spent some time looking for the Grand Masjid (deciding not to enter as one of us wasn’t dressed in a style that would allow entry) and Little India and the KLCC park.
Singapore
We decided to catch the train from KL to Singapore; as the line is a bit old the journey took most of the day, with us crossing the Johor Strait at night. We caught a taxi to our hotel in little india, on the southern side of Singapore (near the CBD) and crashed.
This was actually our first time in Signapore properly, our first destination was the Marina Bay and the Gardens by the Bay. We spent pretty much the whole day wandering the gardens, stopping only to eat at the near by Marina Bay sands.
The Sky forest in one of the impressive domes in the Gardens by the Bay.
The next day, we embraced our touristyness and headed for Sentosa Island, we spent the day at the Universal Studios, second one to visit and its pretty much what you would expect, a good, fun theme park. Do make sure you get the fast pass though, definitely worth it.
On our final day we wandered through the neighbourhood, exploring Little India and then moved on to Chinatown before hitting up the Singapore Zoo (centre-north of the Island city-state). Of all the animals, the favourite had to be the pandas who, upon hearing a little girl coming in screaming, looked up, put it’s bamboo down and walked into it’s cave. We stuck around after seeing the zoo on foot as we booked the night safari as well. This invoved us leaving the park to a separate section where they put on entertainment and food and then we boarded a small train vehicle whcih took us to the nocturnal sights.
The next day we caught the metro to the Changi, reflecting on a massive trip that had its ups and downs but would definitely do again.
The Other Travel Guide 