Hot, Hot, Hot!!

David took this photo at 10:04pm at Berkeley. The thermometer showed that it was 93 degrees Fahrenheit or 33.8 degrees Celsius! Hard to believe that Berkeley can get hotter than Taipei… :Q

Hot Spring

From my limited knowledge, natural hot springs are all over northern Taipei and eastern Taiwan. There might be more, but you’ll have to check your guide books to find out.

Thanks to Typhoon Kaemi, my sister, her friend, and I were able to enjoy the hot spring in the middle of summer. The temperature dropped about 5 degrees Celsius. The wind blew away the suffocating hot and humid air. Occasionally rain poured down without warning, but plenty of buildings provided the sufficient shields. In short, it was pleasant and cool for enjoying hot spring.

A typical Taipei hotspring contains 1 sauna and 3 covered outdoor pools per gender: hot (usually over 40 degrees Celsius), cold, and warm (normally comes with hot tub like message equipment). Depending on the prices, some come with more beauty facilities, some provide pools for both genders (swimming suit is required), some have individual rooms for more privacy, and etc. This one only contained the basic facilities (just right for us though) and therefore was less expensive. And because it was summer, few customers showed up and we even had half an hour just to ourselves (therefore the photo opportunity . Even though it was relatively cool, it was too much for me to jump in the cold pool. The two kids had no fear moving back and forth between the hot and cold pools, to achieve the ultimate effect of natural hot spring. From time to time, strong wind blew over through the opened roof and dumped a few dry leaves on us.

The hot spring tradition came from Japan, and it’s an excellent way to relax the tension of body and mind. The Western hot tub tries to accomplish the same effects, but it can never get there due to the quality of water. If you have a chance to visit Taiwan, don’t forget to give it a try.

Taipei Metro (台北捷運)

It’s a well-known fact that the metro system completely changes millions of lives in Taipei. It’s clean (very un-Chinese), fast, and affordable (far chaper than JR or the Métro). I don’t know if the trains always run on time, but they run so frequently and reach so many places (unlike the AC Transit in the East Bay) that it’s the preferable transportation for Taipei citizens.

Before it, it was tough for foreigners to travel in Taipei (and even tougher in the rest of Taiwan): No English signs were provided on any bus stops whatsoever, and only selected road signs would included English. (On the other hand, lots of perfect opportunities for foreigners to meet the warm and friendly Taiwanese. With the introduction of Taipei Metro, each station is announced in 3 Chinese dialogs and English, and every sign is in both Chinese and English. Pretty modern, I’ll say!

If you need to take trains to get out of Taipei, you can transfer at Taipei Railway Station, a gigantic eyesore IMHO. Fortunately, inside and underneath it is a well-connected network that I can accomplish my goal without ever looking at it: Transfer from metro to trains and vice versa, shop or eat at hundreds of underground stores and restaurants, walk to various nearby department stores or shops through the well-designed underground passages. Come to think of it, this phenomenon prevails in Taiwanese designs: Engineers pay 99.5% attentions to the cool functionalities but pitiful 0.5% to the beauty. Things, however, have started to change, especially in the electronic gadget world. I hope this progress will continue on, like Taipei Metro, so I can get products with great value and good looks.