NHI and newcomers

04 Aug 2011 Leave a comment

by twgurl54 in Foreign Food, Taiwan Tags: , , , , ,

I got my NHI card today – that’s National Health Insurance for you out in blogland. This means that for around 1500NT (50 USD) per month, I’m able to go any doctor or dentist (Western or Chinese style) accepting this insurance  for a 4.00US co-pay! Wow! Guess I’d better get going on the dental work I’ve put off for years (thanks to Melaleuca for keeping my teeth and gums healthy in the meantime). Interestingly enough, they include your birth date YEAR as a number representing how many years Taiwan had been a nation at the time of your birth (mine = 46).

We welcomed a new team member today with a welcome lunch at a lovely vegetarian restaurant: King Join.

King Join Restaurant

The meal was 4 courses served by white-gloved wait staff onto a lazy susan in the middle of the table. You are going to love this: dessert was also 4 courses, with the final one being hawthorne berry gelee, complete with an actual hawthorne blossom,  served over a bed of dry ice. What an unusual effect – and I don’t usually eat anything  jello-y.

Hawthorne Gelee

IKEA comes through

02 Aug 2011 Leave a comment

by twgurl54 in Shopping, Taipei Tags: ,

Amazing: IKEA said they’d deliver the furniture purchased last Friday, today between 1pm and 5pm, and they did! One lone delivery setup person (all 5’7” of him) arrived around 3pm. I buzzed him in and he dragged five packages up to the fourth floor, asked to wash his hands, and then diligently went to work. He was obviously a pro, and after setting my new mattress (yeah, no more sleeping on a mattress-like-a-box spring) assembled all my items and was done by 4:30pm. He was even kind enough to hang the painting I’d obtained in Taichung AND as an extra added bonus he cleaned up, including removing all the boxes and wrapping materials – which is surprising because there is a definite advantage to NOT having to take out the trash here!

Monday, Monday

01 Aug 2011 4 Comments

by twgurl54 in Taipei Tags: , , ,

That hugely colorful “temple” I saw on yesterday’s adventure?  Turns out it’s a hotel! The Grand Hotel no less, according to one intrepid reader (an in-the-know co-worker).  As a hotel, the building seems a bit less intimidating to visit than a temple. I’ll definitely go back (photo op city), if only for a meal. Certainly there’s even a world-class restaurant within…

Speaking of meals, another co-worker introduced me to a hip, happening cafe creatively named Cafe Cafe.

Taipei at night

Afterwards, we checked out the 39NT store (Daiso, from Japan) for strange and wonderful bargains. I mean, who couldn’t use a Scum Skimmer!

Just what I needed!

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As for me, I will take the road less travelled…