The year on the calendar turned to 2026. Time for New Year’s resolutions and improving IRL 17 in Taipei, Taiwan.
I got to Taiwan a few days before the IRL, and my first impressions weren’t great. Going from warm, sunny Thailand to cloudy, windy, rainy Taipei wasn’t a pleasant change. Luckily, the weather cleared up in time for the IRL, so we were able to spend some time away from the keyboards out in the sun.
On the work side, we followed the usual IRL format, starting with the State of Niteo presentation and then splitting into work groups. This time, we focused on starting a new project: setting up domains, the initial codebase, hosting, and deployment. We should have something to share soon!
On the fun side, we visited two museums. We couldn’t leave Taiwan without stopping by the TSMC Museum. Sadly, it was a bit of a disappointment for our engineering minds. It focused more on the founder, the business story, and the company’s history than on the hands-on chipmaking process.
The 921 Earthquake Museum of Taiwan couldn’t have been more different. A high school that was built right on the fault was devastated by the earthquake in 1999 and later turned into a museum. It was amazing to see the damage up close. Whole buildings folded like a house of cards. It’s one thing seeing scenes like this on the news, but it really hits differently when you’re standing there, looking at huge piles of rubble and concrete beams twisted like pieces of paper.
We did some sports too! We conquered the top of Mt. Qixing. The landscape and views were amazing; the smell of sulfur fumes, not so much. After the hike, we made the most of that smelly sulfur and hit two hot springs: first, a stream in the woods to soak our feet, then a hot spring resort for a full-body soak.
On workdays, we still squeezed in some fun around Taipei. We enjoyed the view from the Taipei 101 observatory, tried street food, and, yes, appreciated the convenience of the convenience store right across the street from our accommodation. I’m already missing the tea eggs.
On the last day, we did a cycling tour around Taipei. We stashed our luggage in a locker and followed our guide through the city, stopping at the Lin An Tai Historic House and a couple of temples. Along the way, we grabbed some food and, of course, bubble tea, and squeezed in last-minute souvenir shopping on Dihua Street before finishing at the Liberty Square archway.
Afterwards, most of the team headed straight to the airport, while I stayed in Taiwan for a few more days. With the IRL over, the weather turned bad again. This time, I didn’t mind. It gave me a perfect excuse to take it easy and enjoy hot springs after a busy week.
