Day 2: Kenting Bound

Awake at 3:30 am. I can't ever seem to sleep on vacation, but I guess we can blame it on the jet lag for this trip.We had a long day ahead of us. Of course, breakfast started off with dropping 'bows and round-house kicking people to get our breakfast. Not really, but people don't seem to care about lines or common courtesy when there's food involved. Good thing we can scrap with the best of them.

Next, we grabbed a taxi to the Taoyuan High Speed Rail station: Destination, Kenting. The last train stop is actually Zuoying, where we will catch the hotel shuttle to our resort in Kenting. Being the planner that I am, we booked the train tickets online. However, we could have just as easily bought tickets from the counter or an electronic kiosk at the station. The kiosks have English available; this is where we picked up our tickets.

Maneuvering through the station and onto the train was an incredibly organized and smooth process. English is available on the signs, as well as over the intercom. We had a bit of time to kill here, so we caught a quick lunch...at the 7 Eleven. Taiwan has about as many 7-Elevens as it does scooters! Of course, products are quite different from the stores in the USA, but we quickly fell in love with it and deemed it ole' faithful for water, snacks, or a quick lunch. Everything is easily marked and the service is great. And Adam can look at the register to see the total amount to pay, lol.

Waiting at the HSR Station, Cha Siu Bao for lunch...

You have about 2-3 minutes to board from the time the train arrives, or else you're SOL. Which, in all reality, is why the process is so efficient. Inside the cabin is where we had a little panic moment.  Luggage restriction is a detail I did not think to research. We tried to place our full size luggage on the overhead storage, and that was not happening. The couple behind us were kind enough to spare us further embarrassment by pointing to the front of the car, where there was enough space for our luggage. Oops! Realistically, the majority of people traveling on the High Speed Rail do not have much luggage, if any; so, luggage should never really be an issue. The train ride is really smooth; you can hardly tell you're on a train. There is also a person that comes through the cars with a cart of snacks.

The train ride was 1.5 hours, and we passed the time by me teaching Adam some Chinese. He decided he is going to start listening to kids when they speak, because they speak slowly and clearly, pretty good idea! While waiting for our shuttle at the Zuoying station, a group of kids approached us and gave us a presentation...in Chinenglish. They suggested 5 things we can do to help save the planet is to use recyclable bags, save electricity, be a vegetarian, carpool/walk/ride bikes...heck, I can't remember the last one and I may have made up the 4th one. Anyway, we agreed to commit to 4 out of 5...(we are certified carnivores).

Our bus ride to the hotel was 2.5 hours, and bumpy and windy one at that (I had to break out the Dramamine). But we got to see a lot of the country side and pass through some of the other big towns. Fortunately, the shuttle gave us one quick 10 minute pit stop. Thank goodness for that, because I have been known to have a small bladder.  

Upon arrival to the Chateau Beach Resort, the reality of being in a foreign country quickly sank in, as we did not have my mom to translate. So, I did the best I could to brush off the dust on a language I once knew so well to get checked in. The hotel is really beautiful and one of the nicest on the island. During our ride here, we found Kenting to be fairly quiet and secluded. The main drag, Kenting Rd, houses only a select few "beach resorts", while the others are smaller local hotels. During our planning process, we narrowed our choices to two hotels. Both boasted good ratings with excellent customer service, good food, and good location. Our decision came down to a beach bar, and the fact that Chateau Beach Resort is one of the only hotels, if not the only, with a private access to the beach. It also comes with its very own Hello Kitty store in the lobby, holler!

Exhausted from travel, we relaxed in a hammock for a while before deciding we really need to get caught up on our sleep. The beach bar that weighed in on our hotel decision, ended up not being that great after all. With very limited selections (I'm pretty sure it was beer only), we ended up paying $300 TWD for two cans of beer. We later paid around $100 TWD for a tall boy at the 7-eleven down the street.

For dinner, we opted for the hotel restaurant to make things easy. Even easier, because it is buffet-style and has endless selections (Western and Eastern). Again, we had to fight through the crowd of hungry people to get our food, but we managed. It was my first time trying Durian, and it wasn't all that bad. However, it was fried, so I may have not experienced the true essence of the popular fruit. The pomegranate looking fruit tasted like a cross between a pomegranate and a grapefruit. It was served everyday for breakfast; I still don't know what it is. After dinner, straight to bed. Blessed.

Buffet

Conch

Fried Durian Ball

Hand Roll

Fruit

Green Tea Custard