台湾浓厚的人情味 Taiwan's hospitality

It was my first time to go to Taiwan.

We were making our way to the mountain town “Jiufen” 九份 made famous by the movie “City of Sadness” and the anime movie “Spirited Away”.

The bus ride on the steep, curving roads from Ruifang to Jiufen was both a scary and harrowing experience, with two-way traffic all cramped on a tiny single-lane road. The massive traffic made things worse when the bus had to stop at a sharp bend on uneven road surfaces, I was so worried that the bus was going to topple over!

We checked into a lovely guesthouse “Rita’s House” tucked away from the hustle and bustle of the main old town overlooking the magnificent view (below).

Rita’s House is a family-run guesthouse. The owner’s mother is so warm and friendly that she reminds me of my aunt or grandmother 🙂

Little did I know the typhoon Fung Wong “pheonix” is making its way to Taiwan from the Philippines! As the news on TV was reporting about the damage caused by the typhoon all across Taiwan, they kindly advised us about the imminent typhoon and how to maximise our day around Jiufen in this kind of weather.

We also realised that we’ve bought the train pass for the wrong day, thinking that the pass would be valid for the whole week! The owner was kind enough to offer help to request for a refund for us. I was really touched by her act of kindness.

On our last day, she even offered to drive us back to Ruifang as she was also on her way there. Again, we were truly touched.

I am constantly amazed at how far people would go to help others even if they are total strangers. It is this act of kindness like hers that keeps me grounded and reminds me that being kind and helpful to others helps spreading the love to others, making the world a better place 🙂