Travel Tips Within Taiwan

Traveling in Taiwan is not difficult once you get a hang of it. When I first got there, the question was, where do I start. 

Cards:

• EasyCard

Most commonly used and can be used for public transportation and convenience store purchases. 

• IPass

Mostly used for public transportation

There are a variety of card themes, from Hello Kitty to Dragon Ball Z. There are also keychains that can be used. You can buy them in any convenience store near you where you can refill your cards with money. Also, in the MRT stations, you can refill your cards. 

Convenience Store:

• Hi-Life
• 7 Eleven
• Family Mart

There are more stores, and they are everywhere. 

Apps:

• Taiwan Railway e-booking 

Booking tickets or checking the schedule or delays for the local trains

• Klook: Travel Hotels, Leisure

For bookings and tickets for events and more. It can be used throughout Asia. 

• YouBike

Taiwan promotes healthy living by having public bikes that you can borrow and then put back in a YouBike station. The app can show you where nearby stations are located. It varies, but the 30 minutes of riding is free. You create an account on the app and pay using your EasyCard.

• FindTaxi

• Google Maps

Website:

• YunBus.TW

You can find pretty much all local bus routes in any part of Taiwan. Just look up the route number and the district you are in. It will tell the times, names of stops, and delays. 

Transportation:

• Local Buses ( beginning and stop time varies) 
• MRT (6:00 am - 12:00 pm)
• High-Speed Rail || HSR ( beginning and stop time varies)
• Local Trains (6:00 am - 12:00 pm)

There are maps of the stops for the MRT and HSR in the station. Taiwan is continuously updating the maps as new additions are made. 

• Taxis (most expensive, good if you are in a rush/pinch)
• Uber and Lyft also work in Taiwan

Use what works best for you. Have fun exploring! 

The United Nations

"We didn't realize we were making memories we just knew we were having fun," - Winnie the Pooh.

The United Nations is an international organization made up of representatives from countries around the world to maintain international peace and security. To me, the United Nations is a group of young women from America, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, and Singapore who live life to its fullest together. 

In my short time in Taiwan, I made a group of friends where we would explore Taiwan together. Every time we met, I always learned something new about their cultures, whether that be how to say something in their languages or what an average day looks like for them. After long talks and laughter, stereotypes are broken and proven wrong. Even though we have our differences, there are many bridges of similarities that connect all of us, such as the importance of family and the love for life, to name just a few. We all came from various backgrounds, cultures, and languages, yet being abroad brought us together to create beautiful memories and long-lasting connections.

Frustration Finally Hits

 What do you do when you’re having a meltdown at 3 am in the morning? I don’t know I haven’t had one…yet. But I have been frustrated. 

Now that I was three months into the semester, I could have days where things were frustrating. One week, I was frustrated and exhausted. I was not eating a lot, and I felt like I was not making any progress not only in Chinese class but also in the language overall. At times, it felt like I was just spinning my wheels or my brain did not turn on that day. Somedays, I wanted to climb a mountain to scream my lungs out. When I am frustrated, I am frustrated with myself.  There are several things I like to do when I am frustrated or feeling down, I chat with my parents, I dance or do some exercise, and I make other people smile. All of these things make me feel better. If I still feel frustrated, it means I need to change something. I had to change something, so I started small, and that weekend, I decided to stay in my dorm to regroup. I got 11-plus sleep and felt renewed afterward. I could eat full meals again and felt like I was making progress in Chinese class.

The learning process and being abroad can be rewarding, but for it to be, you must have the ups and downs that come with the process. It's alright to take a step back, reflect, and regroup. Luckily, every day is a new day, so I could return to the learning process more knowledgeable with lessons learned from the previous frustration.