We caught the first train to Hualian from Taoyuan the following day, after savouring a delightful meal with the Tzu-Chi volunteers. Man, the food they'd prepared for us, albeit vegetarian meal, still are fit for a stately banquet!
The train was packed like a sardine can. Although we bought ourselves sitting tickets, we still had to squeeze and stand amidst the crowd, as anyone can sit on an empty seat unless the owner comes and chase them out from the seats. Mine was occupied by an elderly gentlemen, so I let him rest his gluteus until he arrived at his station before I rest mine on that seat.
The journey took 4 hours and we arrived in Hua-Lian at 11 something, and the whole train by then was saturated by people dressed in Tsu Chi uniforms. Yup, Hua Lian is the nexus for this cult, and it seems that everyone makes at least a pilgrimage trip in their lifetime. We were warmly received by another volunteer and he drove us to the hospital.
Due to the limited accomodation in Tsu Chi hospital, we were given no choice but to rent a room in a nearby hostel. Well, it costs us RM375 but then, there's hot water, internet connection, a refrigerator, a satelite tv, and air condition as well. The best thing is, it's only 10 minutes walk to the hospital! However, the hospital and the hostel itself is not located very near to the city center.
The living expenses in Hualian isn't that cheap as we expected. Everything costs almost twice of what we had in Malaysia. Still, that doesn't deter us from our gastronomical cravings. We managed to borrow some bicycles and have been cycling around to get some food. Well, for instance, I had Milk Tea with Pearls after Beef Soup Noodles. Altogether it costed me RM9!
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