Kap warned us right after our summer vacay: No travelling until 2018 -his 50th birthday. And this time I was actually in sync with him, believe it or not. 😛 Our last month-long trip really drained us financially. Grabeng gastusan talaga yun. Nasabayan pa ng renovations, so we are really on the alanganin side and have to save-save-save before we can live it up again.

He, however, was considering a local trip. Pag sya ang bida, pwede hehe. Magaling, magaling, magaling! Kap was thinking of a 2-week Bicol getaway for the kids’ Christmas break, a road trip, for the entire family. And by entire, I mean with the lolas & yayas in tow. Oh Honey, you really have selective amnesia. Have you forgotten our Davao Trip? Sooobrang dusa ang dinanas natin, nalimutan mo na?

It’s so hard & stressful travelling with a big-sized group coz 1- it’s hard to get big tables in small, local restos. 2- long trips mean multiple weewee breaks. More so for the lolas who need to drain their bladder like every 15 minutes ok. 3- familiarity breeds contempt. Nuff said. 4- too close for comfort, with 14 days to spend in close proximity all day err’day -no escape, I kenat. The kids KENAT!

Seeing their Dad so gung-ho on travelling but limited to local spots coz of his self-imposed rule. The kids computed how much it would cost for a Bicol getaway for the entire fambam, all 10 of us. It came up pretty big, considering. Then they looked for international trips online & found a cheap one bound for Taiwan via Cebu Pacific. Mas mura pa lalabas even after travel tax & accommodations. So they chipped their resources together & came up with the exact amount for a Christmas gift for the family.. a roundtrip airfare to Taiwan at only 5k per person, all in, woohoo! \m/

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The kids made a prop & were so excited to gift this to their Dad.

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They connived with me and of course evil person that I am, I saw a road to freedom hehe. Yeeees, I said. Sagot ko na ang accommodation & pocket money. But that will be the Christmas gift. Meaning no more presents under the Christmas tree & no more major purchases para hindi maimbyerna ng todo-todo si Kap my Kap! ;P

Everybody agreed. We sealed the deal & booked for December 25-30. The problem now is how to tell Daddy. Lagot! @_@

The kids waited for the “right time”, meaning their dad had just eaten, is in a relatively good mood, and paantok na para not so alert HAHAHAHAHA! They found their chance, or so they thought!

Poor kids, they never saw it coming. One sentence in, nakatikim na agad sila ng sabon, with matching kula at banlaw.. may repeat pa! I took a video of their sermon session but they just look too pitiful to share with you hehe. All 3 of them were crying, yup even my manly man. Baka kamuhian nyo ng todo-todo si OTL ko, kaya wag nalang hehe.

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Kap sat them down for a good 60 minutes (o yes, inorasan ko talaga). Sabon, banlaw, repeat again.. 3x over, tapos kula! 😛

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You don’t know Kap. He is pleasant & funny. But when he’s serious, he really means business. Sagad sa buto magsalita, talagang aaray ka. Ayan oh, inupo nya yung 3 bata. All 3 of them were holding hands and crying silently as their dad gave them a 1-hour sermon, I kid you not. Pati ako pinagagalitan. Sabi ko “excuse me, hindi ako kasali jan. Wag mo ako idamay!” Sorry kids, but every man for himself now, lolz.

The kids went to sleep with heavy hearts because Kap said para magsilbing leksyon, hindi kami tutuloy. Nanghinayang ang mga bagets sa ibinayad nila, kawawa. I talked to Kap. “Honey, ilang bata ba ang kilala mo na magsasakripisyo ng allowance nila para ibili ng ticket pa-bakasyon ang buong pamilya? Pwede naman nila ibili ng mga personal na bagay-bagay nila yan pero pinili nilang gamitin sa regalo natin pang-Pasko.” Isip isip sya.

Nahimasmasan siguro, kinabukasan he apologized to the kids & said we will push through with the trip this time, just don’t to do it again. But you know, words hurt. And Kap’s words cut really deep ha. Yung magpepeklat talaga. 😛 The damage has been done. Kaya mej cold sa kanya ang 3 bata for a couple of days. Syempre in the spirit of solidarity, ako din! 😛

I understand where Kap is coming from. Ever since, he has imposed restrictions on himself. He tried it one me too pero wa epek kaya hinayaan nalang nya ako hehe. Meron syang “by age” na basehan. It’s not about what you can afford. It’s what he feels one should have at a certain age. Until now would you believe, he has nice watches but he doesn’t want to wear them. Self-imposed. Pag 50 na daw sya mag-rolex that has been sitting in our vault since our engagement. O Babyson, sayo na yan. Suotin mo bago mangalawang. 😛

Even cars, puro second hand lang daw muna. Pag 60 na mag-brand new. Yung kay Babyson lang ang nailusot ko, pahirapan pa talaga at sangkatutak na diskusyon, hay. Ako naman, Honey, eh kung patay na tayo at 60? Dibaaa? I mean I really don’t undertand these restrictions. If it’s already there, or if you can afford it naman without going broke, why not juts freakin enjoy it? Life is short.

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Anyway.. 4 against 1. Wala naman syang panalo sa amin eh. Compromise nalang. As usual, cheap eats & cheap stays. Public transpo all the way. Ganyan sya eh, I love him, so I have to live with his quirks & all. @_@

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Our flight was on Christmas Day itself, at 11 pm.

Good thing our flight only took 2 hours. Cebupac & Air Asia have the teeniest tiniest seats, I swear! @_@ Pinulikat ako ever!

Finally in Taiwan. Cool, crisp christmassy air, yahoo! <3

First order of business, EAT of course. Taiwan is an eating country, after all.

Early breakfast at 2 am with our local driver who kindly took us around to buy water, and make a brief stopover for hot, steaming noodles to fill our empty bellies before finally dropping us off at our apartment.

495 ntd or 750 php for TWO TRAYS of assorted food. OMG Taiwan is Kap’s country hahaha! ;P

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Our 4-day itinerary in case you want to follow it. Ate did a good job looking up places & getting information. Thank you Ate for mapping it out as always. 

And thank you too, Ate, for booking a nice & clean BnB that’s just 2 minutes away from the Metro & swak sa price range ni Itay. Haaaay Kap, stress ka talaga sa atay!!

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Our BnB at Shida Road, Daan District in Taipei. 35k for 5 nights (Dec 25 3pm – Dec 30 11am). 2 Queen beds, a cot, dining room, 1 toilet & shower, Washing machine. Clean & conveniently near to the Metro. More importantly, with an elevator so we weren’t huffing & puffing up & down with our luggages.

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Up next, our 4 days in detail. 🙂

Our heartfelt thanks to Richard & Irene for all the highlights & tips. And of course to my dear readers @mjchien, Jackie Uy, and Anna Jean for taking the time & messaging us about the most interesting places to see in Taiwan. We truly appreciate the love & concern. :-*

Mahaba-habang kwentuhan ito, I hope you’re ready! 😉