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| 1 of our delicious breakfasts: zhong zi (bacang), chicken rice, & hua kao (steamed rice flour cake) |
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| Koggy's first bawan + misua @ Shida market |
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| Shoepping (YES, we girls need our comfy shoes to conquer this new place ;p) |
Monday, May 31, 2010
May I?
The month of May was a very adventurous month for Koggy because of none other than the start of our new adventure. Thus, Koggy's been crazelutely busy with all the cleaning, settling, going around, eating, and having fun. And here's a quick summary of the rest of Koggy's activities which have not yet been posted. Enjoy!
Good Buy (in) May
To celebrate the end of May, Koggy decided to go out and get some taiwanese snacks. Unfortunately, we've only tasted the grape "Puni" which is a tastier version of grape mentos. So, we can't review the other ones just yet.
Later in the evening, we went out and found this cozy lil spot called "Toasteria" in the Shi Da night market area. They serve what seems to look like paninis with interesting toppings combination.
We ordered two different sandwiches: the Apple-Brie and the Red Wine Butter Steak. The Apple-Brie was quite delightful! As you you bite into the crunchy toasted bread you are greeted with the warm melted brie... then as you continue to chew the sweetness of the apples seep through and makes you come back for more ;)
After dinner, Piggy went on a short "exercise" around the night market area and got some goodies with friendly familiar faces ;)
The rest of the night was spent chillin' at Koggyland eating fresh cherries we bought at the fruit market earlier in the morning.
*'0'* & ^'(00)'^
 |
Later in the evening, we went out and found this cozy lil spot called "Toasteria" in the Shi Da night market area. They serve what seems to look like paninis with interesting toppings combination.
 |
| Toasties! |
We ordered two different sandwiches: the Apple-Brie and the Red Wine Butter Steak. The Apple-Brie was quite delightful! As you you bite into the crunchy toasted bread you are greeted with the warm melted brie... then as you continue to chew the sweetness of the apples seep through and makes you come back for more ;)
 |
| Apple-Brie + Red Wine Butter Steak |
After dinner, Piggy went on a short "exercise" around the night market area and got some goodies with friendly familiar faces ;)
 |
| Piggy and the goodies |
The rest of the night was spent chillin' at Koggyland eating fresh cherries we bought at the fruit market earlier in the morning.
 |
| Enjoying the very sweet & plump cherries |
*'0'* & ^'(00)'^
Monday, May 24, 2010
Cousins from Down Under!
Today Koggy had a pleasant surprise! We bumped into some of Koala's distant cousins while strolling down on of the nearby streets. Koala was so happy to finally meet some fellow Aussies! It was almost like a getting a postcard from home ^_^
The cousins were apparently working migrants. They had come to Taipei to do some marketing jobs for a jewelery store. Guess no one can truly "hang" like koalas do, ey? *wink*
We'll be sure to pop around and say hi again whenever we pass by, mates! Keep up the good work!
Cheers!
*'0'*
The cousins were apparently working migrants. They had come to Taipei to do some marketing jobs for a jewelery store. Guess no one can truly "hang" like koalas do, ey? *wink*
 |
| The mates hard at work... |
We'll be sure to pop around and say hi again whenever we pass by, mates! Keep up the good work!
Cheers!
*'0'*
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Koggy's first night out
After a massive day of moving in and cleaning our li'l crib (see Koggyland tags), we took a day off to explore Taipei and meet some new friends. These fun locals treated us to their fun hang outs, like the 346!
346 is a unique bistro located in South Taipei city. The place itself is a converted old factory warehouse lit up with live bands performing their gigs on weekends. People come here for the freshly brewed beers that were made on the same day (the bistro is tucked away in the middle of the Taiwan Beer factory compound).
We ordered a few local dishes but most of 'em were gone before we had a chance to take pics. Here's some of the ones that we managed to "borrow" before they disappeared down our longgg wooden-barreled table...
As the night went on, the crowd grew...
and people got a little more, uhmmm... how should we put it? "energetic"? XD
This was the "fence" around the compound... hundreds of steel brewing barrels lined & stacked!!! Cool, ey?
As you can see, Koggy's tummy AND eyes were very much entertained that night!
Taiwan and her people are certainly fun & friendly!
After all that scrubbing and mopping, it was really refreshing to get out and see the locals behave (without inhibitions) in their natural habitat ;)
*'0'* & ^'(00)'^
 |
| 346 |
346 is a unique bistro located in South Taipei city. The place itself is a converted old factory warehouse lit up with live bands performing their gigs on weekends. People come here for the freshly brewed beers that were made on the same day (the bistro is tucked away in the middle of the Taiwan Beer factory compound).
We ordered a few local dishes but most of 'em were gone before we had a chance to take pics. Here's some of the ones that we managed to "borrow" before they disappeared down our longgg wooden-barreled table...
 |
| Taiwan beer shrimpys! |
 |
| sweet green & red beer cocktails |
As the night went on, the crowd grew...
 |
| the crowds |
and people got a little more, uhmmm... how should we put it? "energetic"? XD
 |
| Fun & friendly ppl (in pink!) |
 |
| Guess what? |
This was the "fence" around the compound... hundreds of steel brewing barrels lined & stacked!!! Cool, ey?
As you can see, Koggy's tummy AND eyes were very much entertained that night!
Taiwan and her people are certainly fun & friendly!
After all that scrubbing and mopping, it was really refreshing to get out and see the locals behave (without inhibitions) in their natural habitat ;)
*'0'* & ^'(00)'^
Piggy's loooong journey to Taipei
Helooo everyone!
Piggy just woke up from a nice long nap + a tub of Haagen Dazs tiramisu ice cream. Anyway, I think I should do the "behind the scene" story (which would be more like a drama) that finally got me to Taipei while I'm still quite awake and not so hungry (yet). I know that a lot of people especially my dearest Koala has been worried for quite some time while I was busy sorting out visa, sleeping, eating, and finishing up some projects.
So here's what happened this month:
At the beginning of the month, daddy finally told me to get myself a ticket and sort out my visa. However, he then said that I should renew my passport since it's expiring in January 2011. This process took quite some times and so I finally got my passport back on May 7th, late in the evening.
On monday, May 10th, I decided to wake up really early to get the ticket and the visa. Although I woke up really early, I didn't want to leave home right away because I thought that it was still rush hour and I would be stuck on traffic for hours! While waiting, I checked and re-checked my documents while chatting with Koala. And when I finally arrived at the embassy, they didn't accept anymore applications because I was "late" by 10 mins according to that 1 clock that they use for visa application.
On the next day, I was determined to wake up earlier and leave a bit earlier and I made it in time. But my application was rejected because they needed my original diploma + a copy of it.
On Wednesday, May 12th, I went again around the same time WITH some extra documents that might be needed and they finally accepted my application. And since thursday was a public holiday they said that it'd be done on monday.
The following week on monday, May 17th, I was supposed to pick up my visa but they wanted more documents (i.e. the official transcript). After arguing for a while, they finally let me off with no transcript but I had to come back the next day to get it.
On Tuesday, May 18th, which was also D-day minus 1, I finally got my visa! I was jumping for JOY all the way home =) and started packing
May 19th was D-day and I was sooo excited that I woke up at around 6.30 AM!!! Head to the airport after lunch and a few hours later, Piggy arrived at TPE and joined Koala to start the new adventure ;)
So, there you have it: Piggy's dramatic life ;p Thank you all for your supports, wishes, and prayers.
We shall continue this new adventure and eat away!!!
(click on the picture below to see it all unfold in color ^_^)
^'(00)'^
Piggy just woke up from a nice long nap + a tub of Haagen Dazs tiramisu ice cream. Anyway, I think I should do the "behind the scene" story (which would be more like a drama) that finally got me to Taipei while I'm still quite awake and not so hungry (yet). I know that a lot of people especially my dearest Koala has been worried for quite some time while I was busy sorting out visa, sleeping, eating, and finishing up some projects.
So here's what happened this month:
At the beginning of the month, daddy finally told me to get myself a ticket and sort out my visa. However, he then said that I should renew my passport since it's expiring in January 2011. This process took quite some times and so I finally got my passport back on May 7th, late in the evening.
On monday, May 10th, I decided to wake up really early to get the ticket and the visa. Although I woke up really early, I didn't want to leave home right away because I thought that it was still rush hour and I would be stuck on traffic for hours! While waiting, I checked and re-checked my documents while chatting with Koala. And when I finally arrived at the embassy, they didn't accept anymore applications because I was "late" by 10 mins according to that 1 clock that they use for visa application.
On the next day, I was determined to wake up earlier and leave a bit earlier and I made it in time. But my application was rejected because they needed my original diploma + a copy of it.
On Wednesday, May 12th, I went again around the same time WITH some extra documents that might be needed and they finally accepted my application. And since thursday was a public holiday they said that it'd be done on monday.
The following week on monday, May 17th, I was supposed to pick up my visa but they wanted more documents (i.e. the official transcript). After arguing for a while, they finally let me off with no transcript but I had to come back the next day to get it.
On Tuesday, May 18th, which was also D-day minus 1, I finally got my visa! I was jumping for JOY all the way home =) and started packing
May 19th was D-day and I was sooo excited that I woke up at around 6.30 AM!!! Head to the airport after lunch and a few hours later, Piggy arrived at TPE and joined Koala to start the new adventure ;)
So, there you have it: Piggy's dramatic life ;p Thank you all for your supports, wishes, and prayers.
We shall continue this new adventure and eat away!!!
(click on the picture below to see it all unfold in color ^_^)
^'(00)'^
Koala's route to Taipei
Hi, everyone!
Koala reporting in for my very first post! Yay!
I guess I'll start with about my journey to this fascinating island!
Left good ol' Sydney that cold Tuesday morning and flew to the "Lion City" (where I was greeted with super humidity). Had a nice li'l 19-hour transit there. Just enough time to catch up with some ol' mates, get good fill of the local delicacies, quickly check out the new sights, and a good night's sleep ^_^
At around noon the next day I was on that flight to Taipei. Before they served lunch, managed to get teary-eyed watching the inspiring "Invictus" on the in-flight entertainment... then took a quick nap and the next thing I knew, we were making our decent into Taoyuan International Airport! Got so excited I forgot to put on my seat belt! ^_^
Went smoothly through all the formalities and waited in the arrivals for dear Piggy to arrive on her flight from Jakarta... all the while, feeling like it was all still a big dream... it was only after seeing Piggy walk out that arrival gate and hugging her it all started to sink in... Yipee!!! Taiwan here we come!!!
(click on the picture below to see it all unfold in colour ^_^)
Koala, over and out! (for now)
*'0'*
Koala reporting in for my very first post! Yay!
I guess I'll start with about my journey to this fascinating island!
Left good ol' Sydney that cold Tuesday morning and flew to the "Lion City" (where I was greeted with super humidity). Had a nice li'l 19-hour transit there. Just enough time to catch up with some ol' mates, get good fill of the local delicacies, quickly check out the new sights, and a good night's sleep ^_^
At around noon the next day I was on that flight to Taipei. Before they served lunch, managed to get teary-eyed watching the inspiring "Invictus" on the in-flight entertainment... then took a quick nap and the next thing I knew, we were making our decent into Taoyuan International Airport! Got so excited I forgot to put on my seat belt! ^_^
Went smoothly through all the formalities and waited in the arrivals for dear Piggy to arrive on her flight from Jakarta... all the while, feeling like it was all still a big dream... it was only after seeing Piggy walk out that arrival gate and hugging her it all started to sink in... Yipee!!! Taiwan here we come!!!
(click on the picture below to see it all unfold in colour ^_^)
Koala, over and out! (for now)
*'0'*
Friday, May 21, 2010
The first meal(s)!
As you will come to expect, Koggy's joyous reunion at airport on D-day was followed closely with yummy F.O.O.D. (it's not a celebration without food, right? ^_~)
So after dropping our bags off, we headed to downtown Taoyuan to find ourselves some dinner.
We ended up at this little eatery along one of the main roads that were brightly lit with hundreds of colorful signboards. Amazed at the variety and smell (& as usual hungry hungry hungry), we decided to order a couple of the snacky dishes and try the famed fresh soy bean drinks.
We were really happy with those snacks but since we were feeling extra-adventurous and very much re-charged, we decided to walk up into an cute "tea cafe/lounge" to hang out some more... The drink menu was massive!!! We spent about half an hour trying to figure out what we wanted (& work out what everything meant on the menu) AND ended up ordering some more munchies (so that the drinks wouldn't get lonely on the table ^_~).
Then came the "standard" size drinks we ordered...
We may have gone a bit overboard that night... 'coz we wobbled out of that place all the way back to our hotel room...
(BUT this was just a li'l taste of things to come... LOL)
*'0'* & ^'(00)'^
So after dropping our bags off, we headed to downtown Taoyuan to find ourselves some dinner.
 |
| Koggy hitchin' a ride ^_~ |
We ended up at this little eatery along one of the main roads that were brightly lit with hundreds of colorful signboards. Amazed at the variety and smell (& as usual hungry hungry hungry), we decided to order a couple of the snacky dishes and try the famed fresh soy bean drinks.
 |
| Round 1: [Clockwise from top right]: you tiao (fried chinese crullers), kuo tie (pot stickers), tan ping (egg-filled pancake), luo buo kao (chinese carrot cake), special sweet-tangy dipping sauce for everything, dou jiang(fresh soybean milk), and warm soybean milk [middle] to dunk the you tiao into before devouring ^_^ |
We were really happy with those snacks but since we were feeling extra-adventurous and very much re-charged, we decided to walk up into an cute "tea cafe/lounge" to hang out some more... The drink menu was massive!!! We spent about half an hour trying to figure out what we wanted (& work out what everything meant on the menu) AND ended up ordering some more munchies (so that the drinks wouldn't get lonely on the table ^_~).
 |
| Round 2:[Clockwise from top right]deep-fried fish cake sticks, a duo of sweet potato balls, deep-fried milk custard with sweet-corn centers |
Then came the "standard" size drinks we ordered...
 |
| Piggy enjoying her chilled plum green tea |
 |
| Koala "getting a handle" of her warm peach-grapefruit tea |
 |
| Piggy thought Koala's teacup was very comfy |
We may have gone a bit overboard that night... 'coz we wobbled out of that place all the way back to our hotel room...
(BUT this was just a li'l taste of things to come... LOL)
*'0'* & ^'(00)'^
Helloooooo Taipei
Koggy finally arrived in Taipei on May 19, 2010 and started the new adventure right away (to be totally honest, besides being busy settling into Koggyland, koggy has also been having a bit too much fun on the side hehe). Koggy has also been having some troubles uploading new posts due to technical difficulties so Koggy would like to apologize for the delay of the grand launch ;)
Anyway, thank you for all your support, wishes, and patience. We hope that you'll enjoy this post and many more to come.
Anyway, thank you for all your support, wishes, and patience. We hope that you'll enjoy this post and many more to come.
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