We were a wee bit reluctant to move on with our itinerary actually. We love the room and we missed home. The thought of travelling relentlessly for another 10 days was terrifying. I was almost afraid to wonder what else could possibly be wrong. I know I'm a horrid pessimists but truly I was very afraid for my kids.
We were driven to yet another temple. In terms of historical or cultural aspect, Taiwan seems to have a great number of important temples for tourists to visit. Perhaps that's how a package tour is put together. Apart from the lovely architecture, I wasn't sure what we were looking at again.
Sophie was recovering so she wasn't in a marvellous mood. And Alfee was happily running up and down the steps which I found a potential hazard. Fortunately, we soon found some interesting 'qian' (divine lot) machine. Basically, you put the coin into the machine and out would come a 'qian'. Then we came across several wishing 'areas', there were wells, ponds, fountains and anything that can serve like a mystical pool to contain your wishes. By the time we left, our pockets were definitely lighter and we felt glad we had contributed to their sinking fund... of some sort.
I still wonder whatever possessed me to agree to the boat ride around the lake... But that we actually did and ended up at a little island for whatever the attraction I couldn't quite recall. I only knew we bought some tasty 'cha ye dan' (hard boiled herbal eggs) near the pier and ate them at the rest area. We didn't even go up the hills because I refused to carry the kids all the way up.
The otherwise boring boat ride was saved by a witty and funny tour guide attached to the cruise. I was laughing at his jokes throughout the trip back. Alfee wasn't as cranky by then so the return trip was a lot more pleasant. I could actually take a few moments to enjoy the scenic side of the lake.
Our next stop was a pottery place. We were told we could make a ceramic bowl on the wheel and it would be shipped back to Singapore for us. Alright, that was familiar turf and I was quite eager to try out my rusty skills at pottery. I was surprised that my brother and his family seemed completely new to this and they thoroughly enjoyed their experience.
Sophie was much too young for the wheel but she was with us as I moulded it into a tea cup. Somehow, I was quite conservative in my approach. I wonder where had all my sense of adventure gone to? Alfee slept through part of the workshop but soon, he woke up and found all this a little boring. There was little he could and the whole area wasn't kids friendly at all.
The master said I did a decent job, considering my inexperience... that made my heart fill with pride. He didn't do any touch up on my work at all. After it was done, we moved it to another area to have designs carved onto it. Of course, I needed to make Sophie happy by writing 'Princess Sophie'.
Everything was running smoothly until I made the gravest mistake... I forced Sophie to go to the toilet. It was a small and dark cubicle. The door was faulty and it swung both ways. After we were done, I couldn't open the door normally, so I pulled it hard before pushing it out again. Somehow, Sophie hand came between the door and the door frame. I sliced her ring finger. It was a big cut, not deep but big enough to bleed a lot.
At first, I didn't even know I cut her and she intended to hide her finger from me. But it was too painful and she started to cry. It was after I asked her that she showed me her injured finger. I was horrified by my own folly. My hear filled with remorse and fear. I could have broken or cut off her finger! Fortunately, I didn't or I would never be able to live with myself.
I washed her finger under a tap and pretended to be brave. By then everyone heard her wail and came to see what was amiss. Papa was equally horrified when he saw her bloody finger. I quickly asked him for some tissue to apply pressure on the wound while the drivers ran back to their vehicle for first aid. Sophie continued to cry during the first aid. My heart was broken. My poor girl! SHe just recovered from her fever!!! Everyone looked distraught even though we knew it was a superficial wound. The skin was still intact so it helped to stop the bleeding.
By late afternoon, she was almost back to her usual self. The pain must have subsided to a dull ache by then. It was then we reached a happier place. It was a tourist friendly, monster themed village. There were all sorts of food and toys around to keep the kids from thinking about their pain or discomfort. Despite her viral infection and cut, Sophie was still holding up pretty well... a little grouchy and challenging for us to manage but she was indeed very resilient.
By dinner time, both kids were sleeping. I stayed in the taxi again while the rest ate at a little restaurant. We were very unhappy because we had wanted to eat at the monster village but my brother said it was too early for them. Well, this was too late for us... Again, they would have to go without dinner. Er.. and I had to takeaway fried rice. I was also very disappointed that everyone took their time and forgot about me or the kids. We really want to get to the hotel asap but they were chit chatting after they were done with dinner. CK had to go hurry them to send us back.
The kids woke up when we reached the Spa hotel we would be staying for the night. Although they were totally unconcerned about dinner, I was worried they might be hungry in the middle of the night. And since there was no lift...again, we only took the luggage with all the essentials to the room. We left our huge suitcases in the taxi. When we reached the room, we were pleasantly greeted with a nice tub with mud water for spa. Right in front of it was a TV set, waterproof and remote controlled. Woo... we jumped in... all four of us and everything was ok again!
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