Last Day in TLF

今天是在農場的最後一天，心情複雜，就像剛離開馬來西亞的時候，那麼不捨。雖然不能一一感謝，可是我會盡量每一位都寫在這裡。

Good bye and Thank you...

Pre-Christmas Day

Today was my "last day" at work before my first "day-off". Before the Christmas day. It was really nice chilly day, I had a good topic to write about in our environmental section where I was trying to emphasize the importance of reconnecting with the nature and stop "hunting" materialistic goals. In late afternoon, after dinner, I was just searching through web...

The best pizza I have ever eaten!

Hello :)

Describing my first day in Taiwan wouldn't be complete without the whole story of getting here. I was supposed to flight out of Calcutta at 00:35 and 20 minutes before estimated departure I was informed that my flight was cancelled and postponed to next morning. Well. in the morning, we were told that it would fly around lunchtime but after all we didn't leave till 6:30 pm!!! In Kunming, China my flight was postponed another 10 hours but to make long story short.. I was late one WHOLE day and arrive to Taipei exhausted, sleeping on my feet and looking like zombie who forgot to drink his coffee in the morning :D

19 Days

I will be leaving Taiwan in 19 days and i have mixed feeling about it. It same with the feeling that when i leaving Malaysia.

Shopping Channel shooting in the farm

Dong Sheng Shopping Channel was underway shooting in the farm and going to promote in the shopping channel.    

 Shooting in progress and it started at 10:30am which together with touring. 

Taipei Zoo + Market Cafe

1 week ago i was planning to visit Taipei Zoo because of Panda 'Yuan Zai'! Guess what, we were there yesterday! =D

 Arrived Taipei Zoo Station.

Stir fry in Taiwan

Stir fry is a rapid way of cooking dishes in food culture. It usually appear in night market and the supper area. There are plenty types of cooking method such as stir fry, sweet and sour, san bei sauce (三杯), braised, steam and etc. The price normally start from 60 to 120 taiwan dollars, and it attract guest easily. 

Half Way Trekking

I started my training yesterday since my friends were asking me to join their jungle trekking team once I back to Malaysia. Toucheng Leisure Farm have a very good environment and hills for training. 

 The entrance of Toucheng Leisure Farm

Rice Paper Butterfly

When I was looking for some idea to put in the interns blog, and I found something interesting in butterfly farm. I am so scared of worm but this is so cute! 

How cute the caterpillar with colorful body!

Wu-Lao-Keng Mountain Stream

Time flies like an arrow and i am leaving in 5 weeks time.

Kumquat Jam Making Day!

Yesterday i was allocated to help making kumquat jam in DIY section. My colleagues told me that kumquat can manufacturing into plenty types of product such as kumquat vinegar, kumquat juice and kumquat jam, and we were making kumquat jam. The way of making kumquat jam is very simple, what we need is just kumquats, malt sugars, and a blender.

Keelung City Trip

Yesterday i was followed my colleagues to Keelung. Keelung is famous for the MiaoKou Night Market. Keelung is the biggest city on the northern coast. The night market offers various types of dishes and most of the foods are my favorite too!

Sky Lantern and Pizza

Just in case the next intern student have to participate in teaching Sky Lantern and translator, here is some of my sharing with you to make your work easier.

Sheng Yang Aquatic Plants Farm + Yilan night market

3 days ago I was accompany my colleague to Sheng Yang Aquatic Plants Farm to attend a talk. This was the second time i come to Sheng Yang.

 They are making some experiments to test the water plants living in different conditions. 

 My favorite water plant! Marimo a.k.a moss ball

Look at the aquarium, how green and lush it is!  

 Wonder what plant it is? It have a pearl on top of the grass.

 It look like a uninhabited island under the water.

 Water plant cuisine, black tea jelly serve with water plants sauce. 

On the way back to Yilan train station, we went for dinner in the night market. The night market is just opposite the train station.   

16 oz of steak! it really big! The staff recommended medium cook and it taste good! 

061113

My friends took me to Luo Dong yesterday to extend my Visa. Since we were in Luo Dong, my friends suggested that we should to try the famous meat soup in Luo Dong, Lin Chang meat soup (Rou Geng 肉羹). Rou Geng is a Taiwanese common snack dish consisting mainly of boiled pork and fish paste which is shaped by hand, Chinese white cabbage and bamboo sprouts. Geng (羹) refers to a range of thick soup, usually containing starch which makes the soup translucent and smooth.

                                                

 Taiwanese Lin Chang meat soup (林場肉羹), it is so delicious! If u are greedy like me, one bowl is definitely not enough for us! One more please boss!

We went to The Cottage Village (山寨村) to visit one of our ex-colleague after get my extended Visa. The Cottage Village is a monster legend theme restaurant (Red Giant [赤魁]). with bakery inside. 

Garlic and Herb Potato Wedges

Sunshin spring onion pizza

 Tiramisu from R.Den Bakery, it just located next to The cottage Village.

Dinner time! Single portion of steamboat! It just cost NT100! 

Simple kitchen, simple cuisine

Baking time! We were using the left over ingredients to make some nice dishes such as this pizza with cheesy edge and chocolate pie! The chocolate paste is made by cocoa powder, icing sugar and mix with water. Paste it on the pie and bake approximately 15 minutes. It just so simple and tasty together with a cup of tea! 

Kitchen time!

Yesterday i was helping my colleague to make pizza and some desserts. It remind me of during my university time because we do have kitchen class on every Tuesday and Thursday, and my duty was in charge with roasted chicken and deep fried fillet. And this time, i have learnt something new here, which is the puff pastry and a new dish and i named it Golden Ocean (Sweet potatoes as the first layer and tuna fish with pineapple as the base). The puff pastry can bake into a variety of flavor depends on individual. We were making into kumquat flavor since our farm are abounding in kumquat, but the taste is not ideally because the puff pastry is salted taste and it doesn't match with the sour kumquat. For the Golden Ocean, we are using tuna, sweet potatoes, pineapple and ketchup (according to personal flavor), and it is so tasty and I love it! Pizza is the easiest food to make because the dough recipe can get it from internet and all just taste the same, and the ingredients is just customize by ourselves. I'm so glad that coming back to kitchen after a long time especially to making dessert.

Taipei International Travel Fair 2013

Few days ago i was assigned to work in travel fair again. This travel fair is more larger compare to Taichung travel fair because it is Asia's most important travel fair and Taiwan's largest consolidated display and sales travel expo. 

Every booths are still setting up their own decoration. 

 The Taipei World Trade Center is just next to Taipei 101 Tower and ATT shopping complex. 

And this is our booth.

Surprisingly I saw Grand Hyatt and Grand Millennium in Taipei because i was looking for their internship course during my college time, and they did offered oversea internship in Taiwan! But why they told me the oversea internship is unavailable when i was in Malaysia and it become available once i join TLF? grr....

Trip to Taichung

Few weeks ago i was allocated to working in Taichung international travel fair for 5 days. It was the second time i went to Taichung and there is my favorite Feng Jia night market (逢甲夜市)! We arrived taichung world trade center at 7.30am and start to decorate our booth until 10am.

The booth of Toucheng Leisure Farm in Taichung International Travel Fair

My colleagues suggested that we can pay a visit to Sun Moon Lake (日月潭) since the destination just near by her hometown in Taichung.

At the Sun Moon Lake Harbor

 Lets go! 

 The yacht will pass by 4 stations and landing visitors. 

Lalu Island, this island used to be much bigger, separating the lake into a part shaped like crescent moon and another part shaped like a round sun.

 After working the whole day, my colleagues were took me to Mala sauce steamboat and it was my first time of trying Mala sauce steamboat, and I love it! 

Look what I found in Feng Jia night market! The robot from Laputa! This series of figures are discontinued in the market and I am so lucky to get one! 

MY LAST WEEK IN TOUCHENG LEISURE FARM

WAU, the time runs soo fast! Im now sitting in the office and thinking about all weeks I´ve spent here! Hundreds of flashbacks and experiences cross my mind! :) Uf, where to start?

Working and relaxing in the same time :) 

My job in the farm is very pleasant. I´m in charge of posting news and pictures on Toucheng Leisure Farm´s Facebook, writing official articles in Environmental Education section and comunicating with english speaking customers! :) These three activities differ, which is very important for me! I spend half time in the office and half time outside in the farm. I like staying in the office because I can see asians working in their natural conditions, which let me get more into their culture! And being outside is simply amazing. Farm is surrounded by hills and jungle! So my dream to stay in real rich nature came true! :) Every week I´ve got more impressed with possibilities that are possible to do here! I am never bored here. Farm provides a lot of funny activities and I could be part of them quite often! For example making my own sky lantern or doing a big jump from a tall tree! For me it were an unforgettable experiences! :) Sometimes I just walk in the farm, enjoy greennessy and jungle voices, feed animals, do excercises in the riverside or relax in wooden hammocks! :)

 Doing exercises in nature is more than perfect!

 Sky lantern made by Katerina :)

 Love it!

Bite of adrenaline!

 Preparing for rice cultivation! Uff, what all is uder the water? :D

Like a child! :)

I learn a lot of new, interesting information due to my work in Environmenal Education section! Everytime I write about different topic connected with maintaining the environment, which really interests me! :)

Making my own mud oven to prepare delicious sweet potatoes!

I live in a clean, small room with own bathroom and view on the ocean..I call it „lovely room on the roof“..because it is situated „on the roof“! I must admit that during typhoon days I was little bit scared there! :D I am happy for this accommodation. I had a possibility to meet other europeans here in Taiwan and I´ve got a feeling that I´m very lucky to live in such a nice place! 

O:-) Sorry for the mess! 

I went out to travel around the island every weekend! I appreciate a lot that farm´s staff  and owners were very nice to me and drove me/ pick me up at the train station everytime I needed!

Waiting in Guishan train station with my favorite moon cakes! :) Yummy! 

I went to explore North of Taiwan during my first weekend. Unfortunately it was raining all the time, but I visited Taipei, Tamsui, Baisha Bay and amazing Jiufen city! Aieseckers took care of me and made me a company!

 My first time in the coast while raining! :)

 Taiwan, Czech Republic, Germany

 Jiufen city

 We tried a loooot of traditional meals! 

First time I touched real golden cube in Museum of Gold Mining in Jiufen

I spent my second weekend in the farm, relaxing, playing games with owner´s son who has really good sense of humour and is very smart young man! I love doing excercises so he took me up the high hill..I could see the seacoast from there! It was amazing, he was also my guide and introduced me some kinds of trees or insect! :)

 Top of the hill! 

We made many funny moon cakes with Basco! :)

Third weekend I travelled to the South with one czech girl! We visited Taichung city, Kaohsiung city and Kenting city with its national park! We were driving a motorcycle the whole day around South coast, so we got burnt pretty a lot! :D I must say that I enjoyed it a lot and that, in my opinion, it is worth to see the South in every case! For me it is the most beautiful seacoast part of Taiwan!

 Taichung city and taiwaneese style!

 Kaohsiung Lotus Lake! :)

Kenting National Park! Highly Recommended! :)

Next weekend I went to visit one slovakian girl to Hsinchu, which was recommended to me! I was shocked about her accomodation! Horrible is really a weak word for its description! Cockroaches, spiders, stink, disorder,bed= wooden boards….but! It was a great time there, we went to Beipu village with other czech boy, this village is charming! Completely different meals, smells, architecture! We made a very special soup just by ourselves and also spent about 2 hours in a beautiful Teahouse by tasting teas! I was so surprised, all tastes were very soft so I had to buy one big case of Hakka tea to bring it home! :)

 Enjoying typhoon wind from the highest building in Hsinchu city! :)

 Especially those black cubes taste weird! :D

 Tea tasting in Beipu

 Home made soup! :)

Yeah! Finally we understand each other! :)

As you can see, I had a lot to do every day! :) I write my personal diary that has already about 60 pages! :D There are sooo many things and situations I want to remember for the rest of my life! :)

 Excellent Toucheng Leisure Farm´s wines!!!

I also visited beach in Toucheng! :)

I´m now waiting for my last weekend! I invited my european friends to visit Toucheng Leisure Farm and connect it with a trip to Hualien and Taroko National Park! J Hope, that it will be a very nice end of my stay in Taiwan! I would like to thank Tina and all other people working in the farm for all their willingness and help! :) 

Katerina