Thank GOD for saving our day… oops I mean night… when we arrived almost ‘homeless’ near midnight at Jiufen, Taipei, Taiwan on 6th January 2017

As usual, we booked our hotel through Agoda before our recent trip to Taiwan stopping first at Jiufen, a scenic mountain area about an hour’s drive or so from Taipei, for two nights.

We rented a car at the Taipei airport and then drove to Jiufen after stopping in Taipei for the afternoon and evening, arriving at around 10.30pm.

However, no matter how hard we tried, we couldn’t locate the hotel that we booked!

While driving around there, I noticed another hotel: Jiu Fen Xi Lai Yuan B&B which I tried booking before the trip but to no avail as they did not respond to my email (as I found their email address from a previous trip) and yet could not find on Agoda. I happened to stay there about five years ago with my late wife and loved the place very much! Xi Lai Yuen B&B was shut closed and in darkness much like all the other hotels and guest houses around Jiufen at that time of the night…

Finally we gave up searching for the hotel we booked and managed to find their number via google and then called them by IDD!

Much to our horror, the lady at the other end of the line told me that my booking was cancelled!!!

Shocked as this had never happened before in all my years of travel and then it’s already way past 11pm, we stopped by the deserted roadside pondering what to do whether we should drive back to Taipei city and hopefully we can get a room there or simply stay ‘homeless’ and cold in the car for a night…

And then I decided to go online and check Agoda again and see if there’s any room in other hotels here in Jiufen but looks like the chances are quite slim.

I landed on Agoda and the first hotel that appeared on the list was Jiu Fen Xi Lai Yuan B&B!! And there was still one last room left!!!

So my fingers worked at breakneck speed and booked that room without even glancing at the price as the saying goes, ‘Beggars are not choosers’

Phew! Breathing a sigh of relief, I told my fiancée Jane we got the room at this hotel which I wanted to book originally but they didn’t respond to my email…

I drove the car forward for less than 50m and stopped the car right in front of the Xi Lai Yuan B&B and to our amazement a young man just opened the hotel main door…

He was also amazed as we wound down our car window and shouted to him excitedly that we have a booking at this hotel. Scratching his head, he asked us when did we booked and both of us replied, “Just now!”

We can see that he was really surprised! He said that the hotel’s main door are usually closed by 9pm and there was once some Japanese guests who arrived late had to sleep in their car through the night!!

This time, he was waiting for two Korean lady guests who had still not arrived yet so he decided to come down and check. And the moment he opened the door, we drove right in front of him!!

Thank GOD for this double miracle –

Firstly He secured a room for us so we don’t have to sleep in the car through the night after a long day of traveling!

Secondly, He knows my heart and made my wish come true without even asking as I originally wanted to book this beautiful Xi Lai Yuan B&B!!

Praise the LORD Jesus for His goodness and blessings once again! I can’t thank You enough!!!

On the day before we check out I mentioned to the young man I met a senior gentleman five years ago and he said that was his dad…

So he called his dad down and we had a good chat!

From Brother Roger and Sister Jane