lower east side / 2016

Very overdue post from 2016. We flew from Las Vegas to NYC for a short 3-day stay.

Our second aunt delivered some food over to our airbnb in Lower East Side the day we checked in. 

It's crazy to rethink how grandpa travelled over the hemisphere to reunite with her.

Loquats from aunt - my first time having them.

Good morning NYC (lots of siren).

Aunt brought us some banh mi on their way from Chinatown.

Got some doughnuts from Doughnut Plant in the morning. So sweet!

You can find our airbnb here.

kyoto : the airbnb

Our airbnb located along Shijo-dori was a score given we booked it two weeks before our trip (well- without knowing Book and Bed Tokyo will be opening in December). The ladies running the business did their job really well, the place was a new modern Japanese apartment fully equipped with kitchen/washer/dryer/bath/Bose speakers -they even suggested us to use the yuzu bath, a tradition of the Japanese during winter solstice. One downside of the apartment is the lack of elevators, but everything was perfect apart from that; living in Gion was a dream came true where geishas were just minutes away.

kobe : the airbnb

Our first experience with a superhost couple was beautiful: imagine living in an old Japanese house with narrow stairs, tatami and most importantly with a Japanese family yet still enjoying our own privacy. Kazu and Rie were like our host parents in Kobe making sure our traveling is smooth and even offered to bring us to places where we can't reach by foot. This airbnb was not only a place to stay but to live. Thank you Kazu and Rie-san!

taipei: the airbnb

Post-finals relaxation mode is officially on at the moment we landed in Taipei.

As an Airbnb first-timer (did a research project on Airbnb last semester), it turned out to be a great experience!

Our Airbnb is located in Ximending, and I almost only have good things to say about this place:

• super cute and clean
• host is very friendly and approachable
• very near to XMD and MRT station
• most of the essential items were provided, and the convenience store is right across the road
• very safe with 24hr security controls
• the loft design: essential to separate our only male travel buddy

This is my first time to visit Taiwan, and I find this place so tourist-friendly! I expected lots of rain during winter, but it didn't rain for the first two days. Instead it reached 28 degrees on the day we arrived, and the temperature slowly falls to around 16 degrees on Christmas. We didn't cover a lot of places as it was a free-and-easy trip, but those places can wait till our next visit!

More Taipei posts coming up soon... 

(I hope)