break the wallet

It is hard to think that, for someone like me who used to not prefer Apple and iPod and think that they are rubbish on a PC, would recently fell in love with my sist’s iPhone. And now to think about getting an iPod touch in future. For myself who doesn’t ever had an mp3 player, to plug in during driving or traveling, and to surf and play.

The best combination would be, instead of getting the all-in-one iPhone, to have a “normal” phone and iPod touch combi. Reason is, if the thing fails, at least it would not mess up your calls. The “normal” phone, however, is far from “basic”. Ideally perhaps the Nokia Navigator, then get a data plan and run the A-GPS, checking location data, weather, mail and etc on the move.

And since that I would be on the move, isn’t that sweet if I have a dSLR with me? Definitely a Canon, and perhaps the mid level 450D? Actually back then with the amount I dumped into my G10 I could have already gotten a 2nd hand dSLR; however I know it’s an endless pit: Filters would be followed by Lens and then Flash & lightings and so on… By then in a blink of the eye, today’s level of funds would be dried up… Thus only way to sustain a SLR is with salary.

With funds really flowing then I would want a PS3 too. After toying with other’s I have re-opened my interest in this thing after so many years… And to grab it so as to run that PS-only Gran Turismo 5: the most realistic racing simulator ever. At least my PS-compatible steering wheel would have another use.

Since the PS3 is in the room, it would need a bigger screen, like a HD LCD monitor…perhaps 21 inch will do. Then might as well also get one more 40 inch LED TV for the living room, since the current 28 inch CRT TV likes to tilt images on its own accord, and my sister newly bought DVD recorder is mocking it by using such smaaalllll fonts on the interface…

Great camera and monitor would be best graced with brilliant images, which would be all taken from beautiful foreign land. The money would be great for another revisit to Taiwan again with great pals, then to the coastal Australia and the snowy Japan…. And with the “buy-switch” wide opened, it would be more perfect with new watch, new wallet, new shoes, new shirts, new pants, etc etc etc.


Thus, for all these day dreams to happen, I need Salary first, feed everything basic before the expenditure begins. So that means I need a job.

However, when you get a job that allows you to buy all these, how on earth am I going to get the time to enjoy them all?

You need a job to afford play but when you play you can’t afford working time…..What an irony.

from the land accessed by planes and bullet trains.

Credits to the excellent facilites provided by Holiday Inn Express Taichung, i'm now able to access the net and post this entry, despite being thousands of miles away from home.

Well, to be very precise, the time now is 42mins pass midnight, and i am alone seated at one of the three computers provided at the hobby lobby, with friends almost asleep twelve storeys above and only few cars driving pass the police road block set up just outside the hotel....

In case you are wondering, this is now the 3rd night of my maiden trip to Taiwan, with 5 more nights left to go. Started at Taipei, now at Taichung, and tomorrow back to the city again..

And right til this minute, i'm truely loving it. There could be lots of issue (work) beforehand, there might be much travelling before the real deal starts, however, now it seems worth it. The fact that we DIY it means total control and choice, and at such a country it is possible and fun.

Fun is the key. Taiwan may not have the best city planning around, however the decentralisation means that every where is an attraction... And Colourful indeed, buzzling with activities and energy....Not the stressful push, but the energy to go out and have fun.

Huge too, from the size of the night-markets to the 4 lane roads to the variety of products to buy to the choice of food to eat to creativity of advertisments/marketing to the warmth of locals...

Especially for the last point: The streets here may be messy, however you will most likely to have someone to help you when you need it. Discount vounchers are shared among strangers, taxi driver and food/shop vendors chat with you when you visit... Contrast that with some service standard we have...or rather, dont even talk about "standards"; such human-touch will never be able to be emulated by some service-procedure or ratings... get it?

Standards also for Transport: The roads here will be hell to any average Singaporean drivers... what rules? Scooters rules the road. Bikes/Cars/Trucks squeeze through any given inches and merge in with the crowds in the Night Market. Picture an Corolla thru pasan malam. On roads/motorways vehicles weave in and out, however never seem Life-threatening, simply because they give way to others, Always on Alert... if only our roads can be so....

Keep left to the right of escalator in Subway, else summon. And you get everyone doing so, not blocking the way. And no ones rushes into the train cabin when the doors open, instead an orderly queue is formed.... Plus the call to let out the priority seats are done so even better...dont even need PCK to rap. (pix will be up) And that brilliant Bullet Train...filled with facitilies on board yet so fast that you wouldnt get to enjoy them...reaches destination on the dot, precisely.

Ulimately, is the total experience. Where meals are not just items that you sat down to chew and fills the stomach. Meals are tasty, senses-triggering treats, purchased and ate as you move from a stall to another, while avoiding scooters and distracted by the nice clothes Unique to every stall/shops. Stomach is filled when you had tried every different items bought by each friends, while laughing hard about some really lame thing. This is throughout the day; meaning that, meal times are actually, never ending until the time you call it a day.

Welcome to Taiwan.