We bought our Taiwan Railway train tickets the day before at NT$ 676, approx SGD$ 28.30 each.

There are different types of train - Tze Chiang Limited Express,  Chu-Kuang Express and Fu-Hsing Semi Express. We chose Tze Chiang Limited Express because Tze Chiang is the fastest of all train classes and also because it has got reserved seating meaning that you get a seat reserved for yourself. It is also the highest class of deluxe express passenger train and has the highest ticket price per mile (most expensive). 

Did you know that Tze Chiang was named after Mr. Chiang Kai-Shek, the former President of Taiwan (Republic of China) issued a speech to his military and civilian compatriots to urged the country to respect the homeland, strengthen self (Tzu-Chiang), respond to change without fear. Hence, Tzu-Chiang is sometimes referred to as "Self-Strengthening Express".

As the train tickets that we got from Taipei to Taichung was for 9am in the morning, we woke up super early and took Taipei Metro to Taipei Main Station from Ximen Station. The metro station is connected to the basement of the railway station. 

While waiting for our train, I took a picture of this train conductor. I think he's dressed very smartly, no? 

Don't say I didn't warn you. The trains in Taiwan arrive very punctually and leave after a minute. Our train came at 9am sharp and it left at 9.01am. So make sure that you reach the station early or on time and not late if not you won't be able to catch the train. 

As mentioned earlier, we took the 9am Taiwan railway train from Taipei to Taichung. Check out how crowded the train was early in the morning! It was filled with students, housewives, tourists, the elderly and even businessmen.

We just had to take these obligatory tourist shots. 

While the girls were catching up on sleep, I took the chance to snap some scenic pictures for keepsake and to share with you my lovely readers of SweetestSins. I mean, how often am I on a train (excluding SMRT of course) and how often do I get to look out of the train window and see lush green scenery (excluding the view of Lower Seletar Reservoir between Khatib and Yio Chu Kang train station) and old buildings?

I really like the picture that I took of the girl with her yellow umbrella waiting for her train to come below. Somehow, the picture alone seem to convey a lot of unspoken words. 

Spotted a lot of transmission lines, something we don't really see in Singapore anymore.

These old buildings reminds me so much of those in Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong.

Not long after, we reached Fengyuan Railway Station and that meant that we aren't far from reaching Taichung Railway station.

We finally reached Taichung Railway Station 台中車站 after 2 h 18 mins. 

Check out how orderly the Taiwanese are after getting down from the train. We have got a lot to learn from them!

Spotted this drinks vending machine at the platform of Taichung Railway Station. How convenient, no? 

There's a tourist information centre at Taichung Railway Station hence we went to enquire about how to get to 妖怪村 Monster Village and the girl there told us to take a bus from 南投客運 Nantou Bus Transportation. 南投客運 Nantou Bus Transportation isn't exactly near Taichung Railway Station, its about a 9 minutes walk away from Taichung Railway Station. Thinking back, I'm quite proud of ourselves because we managed to find the place without Google maps or anything and with just the directions that the girl from the tourist information centre gave and us asking an auntie for directions at the wet market that we passed by. 

Here are some street view photos that I took while walking from Taichung Railway Station to 南投客運 Nantou Bus Transportation. 

We passed by this wet market that had live chickens! Its such a rare sight I must say. In Singapore, the chickens that we see in supermarkets and wet markets are all dead and skinned.

We finally arrived at 南投客運 Nantou Bus Transportation.

They offer bus routes to attractions such as Sun Moon Lake and Cingjing farm too!

I know you are probably asking, "So how do I get to 南投客運 Nantou Bus Transportation from Taichung Railway Station?" 

I have included a map below that shows you the route from Taichung Railway Station to 南投客運 Nantou Bus Transportation. 

We got our tickets from 南投客運 Nantou Bus Transportation to Sitou Monster Village 溪头 妖怪村 for NT$ 165, approx SGD$ 6.90. 

As we still have some time to kill before the bus departs, we decided to have brunch at one of the eatery near 南投客運 Nantou Bus Transportation. Yes, you heard me right - I said brunch. We skipped breakfast altogether because we thought that we could get Taiwan Railway bentos 台铁便当 either at Taipei Railway Station or onboard train. Turns out that we were too early and they haven't started selling them at Taipei Railway Station and there wasn't anyone selling them onboard our train. Such a bummer right? T_T

At least our NT$ 50, approx SGD $2.10 fried rice with pork and pork floss made up for it! Its such a simple dish yet its close to heart because it taste like home. The lady boss was very friendly, she offered us free soup which we didn't take because we were already very full given the very generous serving of fried rice.

After brunch, we headed to Hi-Life (convenience store) to get drinks before we headed up to our bus for the 90 minute journey to Sitou 溪头.

This is how our shuttle bus look like from the inside.

And here's how our shuttle bus look like from inside. Its looks very similar to Freego bus 飛狗巴士 (airport shuttle bus) that we took from Taoyuan International Airport to Zhongxiao Fuxing station. 

It is quite spacious and quite comfortable.

After 90 minutes and going round and round the mountains, we finally reached Sitou 溪头!

This is what greeted us when we alighted from the bus.  

It reminds me very much of Genting. Well, its up in the highlands too, probably that explains the similarity!

Monster Village 妖怪村 is about a 5 minute walk from our drop-off point. 

Once you see these Japanese lanterns, you are a few steps away from entering Monster Village 妖怪村.

This is the store that we spent most of our time in checking out the merchandise that they have for sale. 

Check out the Marlboro and Pepsi lookalike packaging! 

They have got clinical theme for their packaging as well - think syringes and x-ray machines! 

When I saw the vintage set-up below, I knew that I had to take a picture of it because it reminds me so much of old school provision shops that I used to go to with Grandma when I was younger. I didn't understand why she had to buy groceries from not just one but three different places - the supermarket, wet market and then the provision shop. 

This packaging cracked me up again because it reminded me of Wang Wang rice crackers (旺旺仙贝).

And instead of Salonpas, we have got Salongpass in Xitou Monster Village 溪頭怪物村/松林町.

In Xitou Monster Village 溪頭怪物村/松林町, they have KEC fried chicken instead of KFC.

Check out this lovely vintage tricycle that I spotted outside 久保田 Bakery (久保田面包店) in Xitou Monster Village 溪頭怪物村/松林町. 

Around 2:20, we went to queue for 久保田 Bakery (久保田面包店)'s 咬人猫面包 (literally translates to as human-biting cat bread).

久保田 Bakery (久保田面包店) bakes fresh bread for sale at two intervals (10.30am and 2.30pm) daily. Once the bread is sold out, you can only wait for the next batch if not the next day because they won't bake any more. Not to worry about the supply because the bakery limits each customer to a maximum of 2 咬人猫面包 (literally translates to as human-biting cat bread). 

咬人猫面包 (literally translates to as human-biting cat bread) has got ham and cheese filling in it. While it certainly ain't the best-tasting ham and cheese bread that I have tried so far, it did certainly keep us full and warm from the cold rain. 

There's photo taking opportunity at every corner of Monster Village 妖怪村. They have got lot of huge artifacts on display.

I wasn't lying when I said that Monster Village 妖怪村 looks very serene. Don't you all secretly wish that you can live in somewhere like that in the midst of the woods and near Mother Nature?

I can't remember the name of this store in Monster Village 妖怪村 but its yet another store that we spent most of our time in choosing gifts for family, friends and colleagues. 

They have got a lot of confectionery such as - 

and other food stuffs such as - 

Here's my humble haul from Monster Village 妖怪村. Got these partly because of the cute packaging. I know I'm not supposed to buy things just because of the nice packaging but I guess I wanted to get something from Monster Village 妖怪村 especially after spending such long hours to get there.  

Check out what I spotted, yet another vintage artifact - wheel cart!

They have got foot massage in Monster Village 溪头妖怪村 too!

After we finished touring Monster Village 溪头妖怪村, we took 南投客運 Nantou Bus Transportation shuttle bus back to 台中火車站 Taichung Railway Station.

Back at 台中火車站 Taichung Railway Station, we checked with the girl at the Tourist Information Counter what are the public buses that we can take to Fengjia night market 逢甲夜市. She told us a few buses that we can take and off we went to the bus stop outside 台中火車站 Taichung Railway Station.

We made a big mistake - instead of taking any of the buses that she advised us, we hopped onto Bus 33 (1st bus to arrive at the bus stop) when we saw Fengjia night market 逢甲夜市 on its LED screen.

Interior of Taichung Bus 33 / 台中客運

This was a real bad move because it took us more than 30 stops to get to Fengjia night market 逢甲夜市 and it got most of us real dizzy because we have been traveling on rail and bus for already more than 4 hours before that.

We alighted at Fengjia University (逢甲大学) Fuxing Road (福星路).

What is so special about 86碳烤雞排 is that after deep-frying the chicken cutlet, it is barbecued over charcoal so it retains its juiciness. 

Couldn't resist snapping a picture of these super huge prawns from Thailand.

As we walked down the street, I spotted a shop selling - oyster omelette 蚵仔煎! I love oyster omelette, its one of those local favorites that I will waste my calories on. 

I bought the oyster omelette 蚵仔煎 to try but I guess we were too hungry that we gobbled it up even before taking a picture of it. The oysters are very fresh. What makes it different from the Singapore (local) version is that instead of chili sauce served on the side, sweet sauce is drizzled on it and it comes with one serving of vegetables.

We had to leave Fengjia night market 逢甲夜市 around 9+ as we had to take a bus back to 台中火車站 Taichung Railway Station to catch our train back to Taipei. 

Travel tip #2:

Never ever do a one-day trip to Taichung. Its not advisable because it will be too rushed and you can't simply finish walking or shopping Fengjia night market in a day.

When we finally boarded the train at Taichung, we were relieved that we didn't miss our train. We were so exhausted by our one day trip to Taichung from Taipei that we slept throughout the entire journey back to Taipei. 

Check out how empty the train (Taipei Railway) is at night! 

When we reached Taipei Railway Station, we saw on the LCD panel that the last train back heading back to Ximen Station (heading towards the direction of Yongning station) is approaching Taipei Main Station hence we ran all the way from the exit of Taipei Railway Station to Taipei Main Station.

With that, it sums up our Day 5 in Taiwan, Taichung. 

I hope you like this post and do check back for my Day 6 and Day 7 blog post!

Love,

Patricia

✰ 台湾吃喝玩乐 Taiwan Trip May 2012 Day 6: Shilin Night Market 士林夜市, Ximending 西门町 and 太平洋SOGO忠孝馆

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