Something happened while I was in Taiwan four years ago that made my blood turn cold.

In the fraction of a second, without thought or foreplanning, I accidentally deleted everything on my SD card, right as my days there were about to draw to a close.

Fourteen days. Fourteen days of photos and videos, carefully collected and stored from blazing afternoons spent out in cities, sundowns traipsing countless night markets, misty mornings at villages and townships, getting lost at the countryside… all completely wiped out and unrestorable – simply because I’d recklessly transferred my files from card to hard drive without waiting to check if the process had completed properly. As it turns out, it didn’t; and to further lacquer on to the mess to set it in stone, weeks went by with this botched job completely unnoticed- until eventually, when I finally discovered this horror (to my own horror), the ‘CTRL+Z’ button had become a little to late in the game to employ.

It’s the sort of thing that happens that makes you realize, God does have a sense of humor – except, you’re not the audience and He’s not trying to make you laugh.

Thankfully, in 2019, I was the kind of crazy that would write, edit, and publish my travels all while I was still out on the road – so even though the act in itself bordered on insanity, it did also mean that I had a fair source of platforms to seek solace from recuperating bits and pieces of my time in Taiwan. My precious pictures – albeit now resized, compressed, and not in its original, un-colour graded form.

Consolation. For what would be the very last time in my life I ever chose cutting-and-pasting, over copying-and-pasting.

Still, these salvaged pieces were but a shadow of everything I’d taken; and even as one may argue that these are just photos, just physical, impermanent lil things merely reflective of something even greater (which is my own Memories, and to which I do myself agree)- somehow, it still set me back enough psychologically to not want to talk about Taiwan for a very long time after I returned. It was almost as if these photos were a crutch I used to validate my entire experience in Taiwan- and now that they don’t exist – well, then did any of it ever exist at all?

Welcome to my shallow world.

Recently, while clearing out drafts from an old personal blog (yes, I have a personal blog on top of this travel blog – I did describe myself as crazy in at least two different ways since this post started), I chanced upon this outline- penned years ago- that unexpectedly evoked a torrent of nostalgia in me. It was a funny little format for a post (a list of reflective thoughts!), with bits of random musings and bobs of mental fluff that I found in my head as I made my way through the country – and remarkably, it awakened some really really great memories for me. I’d forgotten how gentle the Taiwan people were, how mindful I found them as a society; how, even in its busiest towns and most bustling cities, there was a village quietude that infused my heart with a restful calm.

Pictures are worth a thousand words, I hear; but I suppose, a thousand words are worth a thousand words too. I might have displaced a huge chunk of memories attached to the photos that I’d lost four years ago; but in retrospect, I am grateful to have found this piece too; because now I realize, memories can attach themselves to more than just photographs. They can be in that little souvenir you brought back, or in an observation you made then that has now become such a integral part of what you know (like how nowhere does better beef cubes than Taipei’s night markets); it can even be in that new word you learned, a new friendship you discovered – or notes you made along the way… … At the end of the day, no matter what the capsule was that made you remember, what is probably more important, is that you do.

Here are my words from 4 years ago, copied and pasted here from my quiet little personal blog; in its original, purely unedited 2019 form for you to get lost in.

23 LOST MUSINGS FROM TAIWAN

1. There are not enough bins in the country.

2. And strangely, there is almost zero litter which, considering the amount of street food establishments littered around the entire nation, truly attests to the impressive civic-minded nature of the Taiwanese people.

3. When you actually do find dustbins, 9.9 out of 10 times, there will always be one recycling bin next to a generic trash bin. (Another win for the country.)

4. There is a perpetual myth which goes that Taiwanese people are generally of a very pleasant and affable disposition. This, is no myth. (It’s legend.)

5. Taichung is really NOT easy to get around by public transport. At all.

6. Night markets are a way of life.

7. But don’t get too used to it because when it all comes to an end (as all great things do), you’ll return to your country with a void nothing back home can ever truly fill.

8. I have new-found respect for travellers who get around Taiwan without knowing Chinese.

9. That said, Taiwan has made me realize that I spent 10 years learning a language that I am now, at best, conversational in.

10. Google Maps can get super misleading here. (Or was it just me?)

11. Signages are not the country’s strongest suit.

12. Tainan is so seriously underrated and so accessible by HSR, it should be attempted as a day trip no matter where you’re based (I’m looking at you, chronic Taipei visitors).

13. Keep to your right.

14. The Taiwanese people are super big on their pets. And I mean, SUPER big. (Every other stroller unveils not a baby beneath – but a dog. Plus, I literally saw someone walk their pet turtle.)

15. Their hipster/indie markets are also truly phenomenal.

16. There are no money changers here. Currency exchange is done only at airports, banks, hotels, and authorized counters mostly found in upscale departmental stores.

17. That said, the best rates you will find is at the airport. Do not walk away thinking you’ll get better in the city. You won’t.

18. Still on this topic, hotels and authorized counters should be sought out as a desperate last attempt. Like, public-holiday/weekends/after-office-hours desperate. The rates can cause you to lose out on as much as 4%. i.e. For every $100 you change, you can lose up to $4 as when compared to banks.

19. Do not be fooled by the magnitude of Singaporeans visiting Taiwan every year. The Singapore Dollar is notoriously challenging to deal with in Taiwan. It’s such a rare commodity that even not all banks will be able to change it. And the further away you traipse from Taipei, the slimmer your chances get. DBS is present in Kaohsiung so that is as reassuring as chicken soup on a cold winter’s night, but in places like Taichung, there is literally only one bank (Mega Commercial Bank) that deals with the SGD.

20. But enough about money woes. Arguably the best way to fully experience any city in this country, is to take an evening stroll anywhere. (You don’t even need to know where you’re going.)

21. If you’re from a city, do not waste your time with malls. (Not in that their malls aren’t good, but that there is just way too much going on out there you shouldn’t dilute your experience by doing or going somewhere so immediately replicable back home.)

22. Perhaps what will impress upon you the most, is how the entire country has somehow managed to evolve over recent decades into some kind of an oriental hipster haven – all without losing any of its historic elegance.

23. It’s almost redundant to ask for street food recommendations but I’ll tell you this: try everything at least once.

24. Taiwan, is basically the kind of country everyone wants on their doorstep.

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Enjoy Taiwan, I know I did (even though I lost all my photos).