The Day That I've Been Dreading

Today is the day of the TWICE concert in Kaohsiung. All the TWICE stuff around me made me a little bitter about missing out on tickets, so I had to do something to get my mind off it. I feel like I’ve done most of the interesting things you can do here, so I’m kinda scraping the barrel now. I planned to go to Cijin Island and walk around to see some of the local hotspots. My goal was to get back to the hotel quite late, then visit one of the TWICE-themed bars in the evening to try one of the cocktails. Let’s try and push through the day.

That failed the moment I left my hotel, when I saw a group of ONCEs wearing TWICE merch walk into the very same hotel I was staying at.

Local Landmarks

I walked around the area to see some of the local sights.

I walked to the Public Library — interesting, but not much of a tourist attraction.
I walked to the 85 Sky Tower — it was closed because of construction.
I walked to the Exhibition Center — nothing going on there.
I walked to the Cruise Port — that was closed too.

I had expected this all to be a little more exciting, but since it was all quite close together, it wasn’t that bad. On the bright side, I get to add more cultural points to this blog!

Cijin Island

After an uneventful morning, it was time for the main event: Cijin Island. It’s one giant pier filled with beaches, historical buildings, freight terminals, temples and even more food carts. I took a cute ferry to the other side and docked right in the “Old Street”. I wanted to get some lunch and was looking to order some freshly caught fish. All the food carts and hectic shops gave me option paralysis, so I eventually opted for Sweet & Sour Fried Fish (not exactly the “freshest” dish). But I did get a real “Taiwanese” dining experience. I was ordered to take my own drinks from the fridge, the family sitting at the table next to me must have ordered at least 20 dishes, and on the other side of the room an older gentleman fainted and almost died.

Mount Cihou

After lunch I decided to do some walking — during the hottest part of the day. I had bought sunscreen that morning, but it turned out to be a mist rather than a balm, and the cap was dusty like it had been sitting there for ages. So let’s hope I don’t get sunburned. There was a small hill nearby with a lighthouse and a fort. I got some nice views of the island and the city.

I walked down the “Tunnel of Lights”. When I got there, there were two different tour groups. One was a group of local teens just messing around, the other a gaggle of 50-year-olds in stereotypical “German tourist” outfits. The older group kept taking group photos and laughing loudly, blocking the flow of people through the tunnel. I expressed my annoyance nonverbally to the teens, and they responded in kind — which was funny. At the end of the tunnel there were some dramatic cliffs and a nice cool breeze.

After that, I headed to the beach — ugh, sand — and rented a bike (insert Dutch-person joke here) to explore more of the area. I biked past piers, palm trees and people to soak up more of the atmosphere.

Shell Museum

I biked to the Shell Museum, which I wanted to visit because it had AC. There’s a cute (and free) exhibition of a guy’s personal shell collection. There were quite a lot of them, in many different shapes, sizes and species. A few were misshapen, which made them interesting, and others were cut in half. It gave off real “would-you-wook-at-my-swell-cowwection” vibes, but I enjoyed it more than I expected.

Temples and Temples

Then I continued further south. I saw a ton of temples, but I couldn’t stop easily while biking. Eventually I went a bit too far, because the biking infrastructure suddenly ended. I wanted to take the southern ferry back, but when I arrived the area looked way too empty to still be operating. So I biked all the way back up.

I followed the mopeds in the bike lane until I spotted a sudden increase in street carts — that’s when I knew I was back where I needed to be.
I returned the bike and watched the sunset. It didn’t really do much for me, though to be fair I was exhausted from the biking and the heat.

I left before the sun had fully set to avoid the crowds. Good decision — I reached the ferry just in time.
I rushed back for a sudden call with my parents. I was groggier than I wanted to be, but it had been a long day and I had to shuffle things around to make it on time.
I took a short nap afterwards and felt much better.

The Concert

According to my original plans, I would have attended the TWICE concert tonight. But I missed out on tickets.

I kept refreshing Twitter and saw clip after clip. It was clear the concert was really special.
It was the first time Tzuyu could address the fans in her native language. She read a handwritten letter thanking them for waiting so long, and saying how proud she was to finally perform at home.
The group even prepared a cover of a famous Taiwanese song, with the other members singing in Mandarin.
I also saw photos of hundreds of fans without tickets gathered outside the stadium, listening to the concert together. Some could even see reflections of the stage in nearby windows.

It slowly dawned on me that maybe I wasn’t meant to attend this one. This concert belonged to the Taiwanese fans — the ones who waited ten years for the “Light of Taiwan” to return home. If I had gotten a ticket, that would’ve meant one more person stuck outside. They deserved it more than I did.

I closed my phone and went out to get some dinner and try the TWICE cocktails. The closest one turned out to be inside a hotel — a rooftop bar, actually. There was a live band performing Taiwanese songs for the hotel crowd — a tough audience, but they were giving it their all. I ordered both drinks (1+1 free!) and enjoyed them immensely. It was a nice way to end the night with some live music, a view and a cool breeze.

On my way down in the elevator, a ONCE in a TWICE jersey stepped in. He immediately noticed my TWICE shirt and asked if I went to the concert. I explained my situation, and he was very kind. He even offered me tickets for their Hong Kong shows happening in two weeks. Coincidentally, I’ll be in Hong Kong that week too (for MAMA), but I leave on Thursday — and their concerts are Saturday/Sunday. (That’s what happens when you buy plane tickets before the tour dates are announced). I told him it was okay, since I’ll see them TWICE in May in Amsterdam.

So I walked back to my hotel that evening, past the blue-lit buildings, stores playing TWICE songs, TWICE-themed pedestrian lights and all the fan posters. Happy I still had a great night — but also ready to move on.