Taiwan Day 27: Graduation in Hsinchu!

Day Twenty Seven

Off for another day out of Taipei! This time we went to Hsinchu after Emily so kindly invited us to her hometown to spend two days. We took a bus straight from Taipei and was there in under 1.5 hours.

Bus ride from Taipei to Hsinchu

After Emily met up with her boyfriend, we went to eat tofu pudding and to NTHU where his graduation ceremony will be at night.

These three friends nicknamed themselves the "3 Idiots" after the popular movie from India. They planned to wear their robes to take graduation photos so I volunteered to be the photographer since it seemed fun. I actually quite enjoyed making them do various poses (eg. stand in the middle of the road) while playing photographer!

Tried the famous Hsinchu noodles and it was quite good :) Although I personally still prefer thicker noodles like udon better.

Left bowl: Hsinchu noodles

At night we went to NTHU's graduation event and there was even a red carpet for us to walk on upon entering! That was surely different. There was music playing and a stage but very few people danced unlike at dance events in Canada where the floor is crowded. Instead, the line to the snack buffet was long and crowded with people. We mostly stood around and chatted.

L to R: Hui Chee, Me, Emily

NTHU Principal and staff

We left the event early and went to the local night market in Hsinchu. It was nowhere near as big as Shilin in Taipei but I liked it here because the vendors were friendly. While waiting for the lady to make my papaya milk, she asked where we were from and chatted with us all the while smiling. The papaya milk was super delicious by the way.

Nightmarket

We took our nightmarket food and drove to the seaside to see the stars. Hsinchu is known for their wind and the sea breeze felt fantastic as we sat on the dyke wall overlooking the waves and gazing at the stars. I really felt like it was a movie scene while sitting there!

Night view by the seaside

I've only seen Emily three times and her friends at Hsinchu for the first time but their hospitality really touched me. I had more fun than I expected and Hsinchu is beautiful with its greenery, blue skies and vast seaside.

Take care,