Blog Entry #3

September 01, 2026

Blog Entry #3

8/30/26~9/1/26

Hello!

The past few days have been our first few days in Taichung! So far the city has been very pretty and I have enjoyed my stay so far. While the streets and scenery are very similar to Taipei, the atmosphere and feel of the city is very different compared to Taipei, which has made me like Taichung more than Taipei so far!

Day 8 - Free day (Taipei 101 & Shopping)

Day eight was our first ever full day of break from the study abroad program! Although the program has been so eventful and fun, it was definitely a delight to be able to sleep in and enjoy free time in Taipei!

We first set off on the bus to Taipei 101 and visited the food courts on the basement floor. The food court consisted of so many varieties of foods which was a little bit intimidating. Additionally, due to the day being Sunday, the food court was filled with people making it a challenge to find seating. We tried and waited for a very long time to find a seat but ended up not being successful… We finally decided to go to a standing table and ate our food there in the busy food court. After surviving the monstrosity of a food court at Taipei 101, we headed our way to the building where we had a reservation for a cat cafe! We have been planning this cat cafe for so long and it was so heartwarming to see so many cute cats while we enjoyed our drink. However, the place was unfortunately packed with little kids which had resulted in scaring away most of the cats in the process… Overall, the experience was very interesting but also very wholesome to enjoy sometime with fluffy cats!

Taipei 101 with friends!

Cat from Cat Cafe!

Towards the end of the day, we had walked around shopping in the same area and I separated from the group to go meet one of my friends who lives in Taipei! He currently attends NTU and has been one of my good friends since high school. I took the train to Zhongshan and we met up at a very popular ramen restaurant where we waited for almost 2 hours! Seeing my friend after not meeting for a very long time was very heartwarming and nostalgic. We spoke about our friends in high school, our current school situation, and everyday events. I had a very enjoyable time and it was a great closure to our last day at Taipei.

Day 9 - Chen’s Wood

For our ninth day we woke up at 7am to ride on the bus to Taichung. During the entire bus ride, many of us took a nap due to tiredness of waking up so early in the morning. After we arrived in Taichung, our first stop was Chen’s Wood shop and our first time meeting up with the NCKU students. Chen’s Wood shop was a very small wood shop that had a very nice vintage atmosphere. Everything in the shop was filled with the wood master’s creations and it was very inspiring to see such delicate works. Additionally, being able to experience the wood carving process with traditional tools and being able to take home the wood shavings was very interesting and entertaining!

Chen's Wood shop

After exploring a few more places in Taichung, we headed to our hotel, Start Hostel Taichung Parklane. This hotel incorporated sustainable and minimal designs inspired by the Home Work Sustainable Studio we had visited previously. The design structure of the hotel and the atmosphere has been absolutely astonishing and is one of my most favorite hotels I have ever stayed in! The wood design, the lobby, the room set up, and the halls. Every element of the hotel is so aesthetically pleasing and I have enjoyed my time staying here.

Museum Tapestry

Day 10 - Nantou & Bamboo Weaving

Day ten of our program was our first full day in Taichung. We met up downstairs at around 9am and headed straight to the National Taiwan Craft Research Institute. Exploring each craft hall was very inspiring and it was very nice to see so many different creations by various other designers/artists. I specifically enjoyed - what I believe was made from indigo dye - the blue fabrics hanging from the ceiling. The cool feel and wavelike atmosphere it created was so refreshing and I loved seeing so many different kinds of patterns being presented in each fabric.

For our last activity in Taichung, we headed to Lin Qun-han Bamboo Weaving Workshop. This bamboo weaving experience was both very entertaining but also something that took a lot of energy to create. I previously had never done something similar to bamboo weaving and attempting it for the first time was definitely one of the most challenging activities I had ever done. I took a very long time towards the beginning to understand how each pattern and weaving technique worked and spent multiple hours being so confused at my own work. However, by the third hour, I had finally understood the pattern and it was very fun doing a very unique craft work.

Overall, my time in Taichung has been very eventful and I have enjoyed every moment of it! Being able to meet new friends from NCKU has been one of the highlights of these past few days and I have met so many people that I am looking forward to working with for the next upcoming project! I hope to keep my relations with my new NCKU friends and also students from UW and further explore new places in Taiwan to learn more about Taiwanese culture.