Taiwan Trip Day 3 - PWS with Cannes Wedding Studio

My boyfriend and I succumbed to sales talk while we were out doing window shopping one fine day, and bought our pre-wedding photo shoot (PWS) package from Cannes Wedding Studio (台湾坎城婚纱摄影). It wasn't an intended purchase, and almost immediately after the purchase, we were quite worried about the quality of the photos, whether we over-paid, is Cannes Wedding really reliable etc etc, as the bridal studio is not well known in Singapore. After looking through Cannes Wedding's Facebook page, we started to gain some trust with the company, and it also comforted us that our questions regarding the arrangements of the photo shoot were always promptly replied.

On the evening before the bridal shoot, we sat down with our coordinator, Nydia, to discuss the style and background we desire for our PWS. Based on the information and my appearance, Nydia selected some gowns for me to try out. True to the online reviews, Nydia is very good in selecting suitable gowns, and we were able to complete the gowns selection within 2 hours. Impressively, the gown alteration was done swiftly, and after dinner, we were already able to try out the altered dresses and make adjustments on the spot.

The start of the exciting day begins at 8am, where I met my makeup artiste (MUA), RuRu at the bridal shop. She was already there doing all the preparation work, and she initiated a discussion prior to the make-up regarding the style I would prefer in order to avoid any disappointment at the end of the day. I knew I was in good hands as I've seen her works, and true to my expectations, she transformed me to a "pretty princess" with her magical hands.

Our photographer, Niu Sir arrived slightly before I finish my make up. Again, we communicated on the style and background of the photos we desire. Since we were more interested to do the wedding shoot with a natural background, it was then decided that we will go to the beaches near Yehliu, Yangmingshan, and then to Bellavita Mall at night. Our MUA RuRu was together with us throughout the 10 hours, helping me change, touch up my make-up, adjust my hairstyle, and took very good care of me (sheltering me from the sun, ensuring that I'm drinking enough water etc). It was a fun experience working with the dedicated team, and it was also a life-time "chance" to be able to change in a tent in the forest of Yangmingshan and along a busy Taipei street.

The next day, we went back to the bridal studio in the evening to view and choose our photos and the frames for the photos. We had take over 280 photos, and we are only able to see the photos one by one on the computer. We started by deleting the photos, and after 2-3 rounds of deletion, we are finally done! Of course, there were some sales talk to try to get us to purchase more photos, but they were not too pushy and did not give us any "black face" for not taking up more photos. At the end of the day, it is still our own money and decision, and nobody can force anything out of it.

Up next: Taiwan Trip Day 4 - Jiufen & Jiaoxi

Previously: Taiwan Trip Day 2 - Keelung & Danshui

Taiwan Trip Day 2 - Keelung & Danshui

The bridal shop arranged for us to stay at K Hotel which is just a 5 minutes walk from the bridal shop. We did not have too much expectations since it is just a 3-4 star hotel, and we are glad that the hotel is clean and the bed is firm.

Since we do not have much things to do before our gown fitting at 5pm, I wanted to go to Danshui to top up my supply of ginger tea. After our breakfast at the hotel, we walked to Keelung Railway station.

According to the Guide to Taipei website, there is a North Coast Shuttle Bus that set off from Keelung Railway station every half and hour to Danshui on weekends. However, after checking with the staffs from the Visitor Information Center, we were told that the bus will only go to Yehliu, and we've to take a public bus from Yehliu to Danshui. On top of that, the next bus will set off only 1.5 hours later. The staff recommended us to either take the train to Taipei Main Station, then take MRT to Danshui, or take public bus 862 directly to Danshui, but this will take us at least 2.5 hours. We decided to take bus 862 since we have some time to kill and to see the scenic Northern Coast Line along the way. After a 3.5 hours bus ride, we finally reach Danshui. Unless you really have a lot of time to kill, this route is not recommended.

We had our lunch at Dark Palace Taiwanese Gourmet (黑殿饭店) which is famous among locals for its pork ribs rice (猪排饭).

After lunch, we roam around Danshui Old Street to look around, and more importantly, to buy ginger tea (黑金传奇姜母茶). I'll always make it a point to visit Danshui whenever I travel to Taiwan to buy this brand of ginger tea, which was recommended by a colleague years ago. You just need to pour hot water to dissolve the solid and drink the mixture. Drinking ginger tea has various health benefits, and I drink it to prevent cold and relieve menstruation cramps.

Danshui is also famous for its A-Gei (阿給 - fried toufu stuffed with glass noodles and mushrooms), Ah Po iron egg (阿婆铁蛋 - small egg which has been repeatedly stewed), Xu Yi Yu Shu (许義鱼酥 - fish cracker), and not forgetting the famous Lover's Bridge at Fisherman Wharf (渔人码头情人桥). 

This time, we did not go to Fisherman Wharf since my aim is to buy the ginger tea, so I attached an old photo I took to show you this famous bridge. 

We took a cab back to Keelung, and went for our gown fitting. After the gown fitting, we wanted to have our dinner at Miaokou Night Market, but there was an over-whelming crowd at the night market. In the end, we took away the glutinous oil rice (油饭) from Store 10, corn from a random store, Yan Su Ji  (盐酥鸡 - Fried Chicken seasoned in salt and pepper) from Store 35 and MacDonald's pork burger and had our dinner in our hotel room to stay away from the crowds.

Up Next: Taiwan Trip Day 3 - PWS with Cannes Wedding Studio
Previously: Taiwan Trip Day 1 - Keelung

Taiwan Trip Day 1 - Keelung

We reach Taipei at about 5.45pm. This is the 4th time I'm visiting Taiwan, and I never got tired of coming to this country that offers different experiences in its different season and cities. The first thing that we did after picking up our luggage is to buy the 10 days Chunghwa Telecom prepaid card in order to have Internet connection throughout our holiday. There are counters selling such pre-paid cards before you pass through the immigration counters, but we bought ours at the counters after we came out from the arrival halls.

Our driver arranged by Cannes Wedding Studio (台灣坎城婚紗攝影) picked us up promptly at the airport, and drop us off at the bridal shop which is situated in Keelung. The ride took about 45 minutes, and throughout the journey, we were chatting with the driver regarding the weather, Keelung and anything under the sun. Taiwanese are well known to be warm and friendly, and this was also well evident from the way we were welcomed by the staffs of the bridal shop. After some introductions, Nydia, our coordinator, gave us a map to show us the way to Miaokou Night Market from our hotel, and recommended some must try food from the market.

We made our way to this famous night market in Keelung after depositing our luggage at K Hotel (柯达大饭店) which is a 5 minutes walk from the bridal shop.

The first food that we tried was the Lu Rou Fan (Braised Pork Rice) from Tian Yi Xiang (天一香卤肉饭 - store 31), situated right in the middle of the night market.

Not sure if it was because we were very hungry, but we gobbled down this heavenly Lu Rou Fan in less than 2 minutes. Next, we move on to fill our stomach with Yan Su Ji  (盐酥鸡 - Fried Chicken seasoned in salt and pepper) from Store 35, pork sausage (一口吃香肠) from store 43, oyster omelette (蚵仔煎) from store 36, and drowning all these with the Taiwan milk tea.

With a satisfied stomach, we went back to our hotel and call it a day.

Up Next: Taiwan Trip Day 2 - Keelung & Danshui

Keelung, Yilan, Taipei - Itinerary for Taiwan trip

I just completed my pre wedding photo shot (PWS) in Taiwan. As much as I do not want to jump into the bangwagon of taking my PWS overseas, I was unable to resist the package that was offered to us, and the thoughts of going to Taiwan for a vacation.

Here is the itinerary, and I'll further elaborate the activities in my subsequest posts, including the experience of taking the new Taipei Airport Express Train and Eva Air's Hello Kitty Plane.

	Saturday	Sunday	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday
Breakfast		Hotel Breakfast	Hotel Breakfast	Hotel Breakfast	Hotel Breakfast (MOS Burger) + Scallion Pancake (礁溪柯氏葱油饼)	Hotel Breakfast (MOS Burger) + Xiao Long Bao (正常鮮肉小籠包)	永和豆浆	永和豆浆
Morning		Bus to Danshui	Wedding Photo shoot	Cab to Jiufen	Train to Yilan	Bus to Taipei, Check in City Inn Hotel Ximending	ChiaTe Bakery Shop	Bus to Shen Keng (via Muzha)
Lunch		Pork Ribs Rics @ 黑殿饭店 (Dark Palace)	Wedding Photo shoot	Local snacks @ Jiufen Old Street	Duck Mee Sua @ 蒜味鸭赏面线	Braised Pork Rice @ 金峰魯肉飯 (Jin Feng Ru Rou Fan)	Braised Pork Rice @ 天天利 (Tian Tian Li)	古早厝 (Gu Zao Cuo) @ Shen Keng
Early Afternoon		Danshui Old Street	Wedding Photo shoot	Jiufen Old Street	Jimmy's Park	Ximending	Taipei 101	Shen Keng Old Street
Late Afternoon	Reach Taipei, pick up by drive, check in K Hotel, KeeLung	Gown Choosing & Fitting @ Cannes Wedding Bridal Shop (台湾坎城婚纱摄影）	Wedding Photo shoot	Photo Choosing @ Cannes Wedding Bridal Shop (台湾坎城婚纱摄影）	Factory Visiting at CP Cheese Factory, Agrioz, R.Den Dessert Factory, Village Churrasco	Taipei Main Station, Wufenpu	Shuang Lian	Shifen Old Street
Night	Miaokou Night Market	Miaokou Night Market	Wedding Photo shoot	Train to Jiaoxi, check in 58˚ Hotspring Hotel (58度溫泉湯苑會館)	Luodong Night Market	Rouhe Night Market & Ximending	Shilin Night Market	Ningxia Night Market, Shida Night Market, Ximending
Dinner	Dinner @ Miaokou Night Market	Dinner @ Miaokou Night Market	Steam boat dinner at 義美石头火锅	Snacks from 7-11	Local food @ Luodong Night Market, Noodles @ 有面者	Local food @ Rouhe Night Market & Ximending	Local food @ Shilin Night Market	Local food @ Ningxia Night Market, Shida Night Market, Ximending

Taiwan Trip Day 1: Keelung
Taiwan Trip Day 2: Keelung & Danshui
Taiwan Trip Day 3 - PWS with Cannes Wedding Studio
Taiwan Trip Day 4 - Jiufen & Jiaoxi
Taiwan Trip Day 5 Part 1 - Yilan & Factories Tour
Taiwan Trip Day 5 Part 2 - Luodong Night Market & Jiaoxi
Taiwan Trip Day 6 & 7 - Back to Taipei & Review of City Inn Hotel Ximending
Taiwan Trip Day 8 - Travelling to Shen Keng & Shifen by bus
Taiwan Trip Day 9 - Express train to the airport & Hello Kitty Plane

See also: 8 food you cannot miss in Ximending

1 Day Island Hopping Trip - St John's Island & Kusu Island

There are 60 over islands in Singapore, and sad to say, as a Singaporean, I've been to less than a quarter of them. Hence, I was looking very forward to this team bonding event, where we embark on an island hopping trip St John's Island & Kusu Island.

We bought our tickets for the 2pm ferry from a bright orange counter of the Singapore Island Cruise and Ferry Services at Marina South Pier, which is accessible by MRT (Marina South Pier MRT station). 

The ferry (on the right)

Bye bye sky scrappers

The ferry ride to St John's Island took 30mins, and as this is the last ferry of the day, we only have 15mins to explore the island. We went around taking quick snap shots of this tranquil island surrounded by clear green sea. Before the island is open for the public to visit in the 1970s, St John's Island was previously a quarantine station, then a drug rehabilitation centre.

If you intend to stay longer to explore the island or visit Lazarus Island, which is connected to St John's Island by a bridge, you can plan your trip based on the ferry's schedule. 

We literally hop back to the ferry to hop to the next stop, Kusu Island, which is a 10mins ferry ride away. "Kusu" means tortoise, and legend says that this island was transform from a magical tortoise which did so to save 2 shipwrecked sailors. 

Again, the clear green sea welcome us, and this time, we had 1 hour to spend on the island. We spent the first 30mins playing old-school team bonding games like dodge ball and 7-up, before visiting the nearby Da Bong Gong temple to pray for good health, fortune and luck.

It's time to bade farewell to the island. We board the ferry to go back to the main island, and I look forward to another trip to the southern islands soon, this time, with more time allocated so as to fully explore the beauty of the islands.