20th December – 2nd January
Currency: Taiwanese
Dollar 30 TND to $1 US, note 3$US per ATM transaction
Accommodation: $9 - $20 per night. ($87 for NYE) I generally selected them for their cost as well as
their proximity to the local transportation network. I would recommend the
following hostels:
·
Taipei Hey Bear Capsule Hostel
·
Taipei Here There Hostel – (By Taipei main train
station but noisy and people arriving/ leaving all hours. I would not go back
out of choice)
·
Hualien Wow Hostel
·
Kaohsiung Backpacking Hostel
·
Tainan - Old Man Captain Hostel 2
·
Chiayi - An
Lan Jie Hostel
·
Puli Center Center Hostel
Visa: On entry
Language: Chinese, usually somebody under forty nearby who
can speak English. Several tourists are from China and Korea so translated
happily.
Food: Taiwan is known for its
food so this part of the travels was more about the food than sight seeing.
Street food is cheap and readily available. Maps show the best food
establishments alongside the sights. Fruit is widely available and grown here.
Japan buys its bananas from Taiwan they proudly told me. Milk is shipped in
from New Zealand however soya milk is widely drunk especially in bubble tea.
Convenience stores like Japan are widely available and great for coffee
and snacks.
·
Taipei – 2
night
·
Hualien – 1 nights
·
Kaohsiung – 3 nights (Christmas)
·
Tainan – 1 day no overnights
·
Chiayi –
2 night (Near Alishan National Park, I
had originally planned to stay I the youth hostel in Alishan but they never
received my email so make sure you follow up if they do not respond)
·
Puli– 1 night (Sun Moon Lake) longer here would
have been good and then spent less time
at Chiayi. There is a bus direct from
the lake to Taipei saves time going back to local towns
· Taipei – 3 nights for NYE. Other places
celebrate NYE which may have been a less crowded and cheaper option than
Taipei. My hostel went up from $9 a night to $87 for NYE and this was the
cheapest I could find with availability two weeks before.
TaipeiTaiwan is s a hidden gem; most tourists are from Korea or China at least this time of the year. It is renown for its food however does not possess the Michelin star ratings system. The land is lush and green with plenty of space for locals growing vegetables and rice. In the city people tend to live in apartments whilst in the countryside more houses are prevalent.
There are two airports in Taipei (Songshan and Taoyuan) I arrived at the latter which is furthest from the main town and during rush hour it took about an hour to get through the traffic by bus to the main Taipei train and bus station. I bought a ticket for the bus at the airport quite easily and the bus arrived minutes later from the stop outside the main entrance. Bit of a culture shock coming from Japan. The driver coughed and spluttered throughout the journey and looking on the floor I noticed small cockroaches scurrying around. I was definitely back in Asia but with an air of the West and a modern country about it. English is taught in schools so most people under forty can speak it. This meant knowing where to leave the bus was easy. Getting off the driver found a local to escort me to the metro and get me to the right platform. All the systems are similar to Japan and Korea so travelling around was straight forward. Dinner was at the local night market, these are common throughout Taiwan as rents in the stores are so high. I opted for chicken pieces on a stick then later a crepe covered in chocolate and banana. So thin and crispy with the chocolate baked into the pancake it was delicious.
The hostel is a known as a capsule hostel as the beds are
housed in boxes 200cm x 100cm x 110cm- each guest has their own “room” which
has a television, mirror, lights and plug. This was a new experience for me
although they do have them in Japan but usually situated near train stations
and frequented by locals who have been out drinking, gambling or working late
and have missed the last ride home.
The afternoon was spent with a local friend Hanwen, where
she became the tour guide and showed me around her city. First stop was to
Longshan Temple where I learnt ( for the first time during travelling) about a
visit to a Buddhist temple we got three incense sticks each and prayed first to
the main temple god asking him for what we needed. First, we had to say our
name and address. I gave my full address not sure if it meant anything to them
I can only hope. We left an incense stick in the sand. Next prayed to the sky
our final incense stick was to the
Goddess of the sea who is very important here (as with Korea and Japan) as it
is an island and several people work on the sea or surrounding coast lines. We
then were able to pray to other gods in the temple, we both prayed for work.
Next we collected two half-moon red wooden blocks asking a
specific question which needed a yes or no answer. We asked the question to the
temple God to find out if we were able to ask the question the different
options back would be yes, no or he was laughing at us so we would never know.
My first question came back I’m not able to ask. The second was a yes so I then
went to a set of sticks which were next to it and had to run my hands over them
all three times then pick them up slightly and drop them back into the
container. The highest one was my answer number twenty seven. I then went to a
set of drawers to discover my answer which was in the form of a riddle.
Translated it basically meant let it happened and don’t talk to people about it……
The temple was highly decorative and much more akin to a
Chinese temple than Japanese. The landscape
within the grounds and outside had undergone Feng Sui recommendations so there
was a waterfall in one corner and a park outside. Also outside was a large
amount of homeless and people with disabilities as the office they went to was
local. The government had realised it is a problem and has security patrolling.
We however walked around the edge and I was told to make sure I did not venture
there in the evening.
Next we walked to Bo-Pi-Liao historic street, originating
back to Qing dynasty and the Japanese colonial period. The street has been renovated and was now
used for filming and exhibitions. We wandered around a photography exhibition.
It was fascinating to see photographs of festivals including aboriginal locals.
Taiwanese can trace their roots back to the island of Fuji and there is a
melting pot of nationalities and tribal groups found on the island.
We found a side street market which was mostly closed (open
early closed between 2-4) we bought passion fruit and water fruit which I
hadn’t tried since Indonesia. I also saw Buddha hand fruit, the stall holder
recommended not to buy it as it was eaten when a person is ill to get them back
to full health.
One meat stall was selling black chickens, a local delicacy
people eat in the home but not restaurants unfortunately. Our first pit stop
was for fried snacks, pigs blood with rice (similar make up to black pudding
but not as tasty, tempura, chicken butts on stick aka parsons nose (my
favourite part of the chicken). This was washed down with bubble milk tea
another local delicacy.
We walked through Ximen which is full of fantastic street
art as well as bars and cinemas (4 side by side!!)
We met Shiang at Din Tai Fung restaurant in the basement of a department
store. This restaurant has won accolade from The New York Times (named as one
of ten top notch tables) in 1993. Asia’s best restaurant – The Daily Meal, 2013
and the world’s second best chain for travellers by CNN, 2013. A branch is opening
in London in 2017.
You do not book a table in advance instead take a ticket on
arrival then your number will be called depending on how many people are in
your party. Shiang and Hanwen ordered and we had:
·
Drunken chicken (boiled chicken cooked in Shaoxing wine) It was delicious, when I
spoke to the waiter he said it was due to the rice wine being fifteen years old
which made it more mellow. This is a recipe I will definitely be trying at home
·
Pork egg
fried rice
·
Dim sum
green squash and spring onion
·
Dim sum
pork
·
Poor
cordia dichotoma
The dim sums had a sheen on the skin which is created by the
oil used in the preparation process. It is possible to watch them making the
dim sums as they have a booth at the entrance. The taste is sensational and
definitely moreish.
Dessert consisted of two special dishes which are eaten on
the 21st /22nd December to celebrate ancient Chinese New
Year otherwise known as the Winter Solstice Festival. It was explained that
families or friends go out for dinner on this day. The significance of Mocha
(or sweet dumplings) is they are sweet are stuffed fun of flavouring and there
are always a few of them served in the dish. This relates to the family or
friends getting together and eating a good meal.
Drunken Chicken was my favourite also birds nest fern. Dim
Sums were great and it was good to try other foods which I probably would not
have eaten if on my own. Dessert was nice to try but not ones I would eat
again.
Jiufen was my next on the itinerary. A 30 minute ride away by train then a bus from Ruifang train station up a steep narrow road. Unfortunately the downside for the day was that it was pouring with rain so the views were not as spectacular as they would have been on a clear day over-looking the harbour.
Jiufen is famous for its little narrow cobble streets and steps going through the town at night the lights from around the hill are spectacular. “A city of sadness” film was filmed here and I was able to visit the little Shengping 1930’s – 1940’s theatre used in the film. There is a little shop museum dedicated to the originally era showing what could have been bought at that time.
The town historically was used for gold mining and there is a museum dedicated to it as well as a couple of the original exits to the mine. Several tea houses lined the narrow paths along with a temple and food stalls. I tried Chinese sausage which was sweet and delicious (40 dollars). I decided to go back down to Ruifang to eat dinner. Around the train station was full of little stalls selling various offal parts with soup. The stall I selected did not speak English so I pointed at what the next table was eating and asked for the same. It was broth with pork ribs delicious and great for warming me up. Having eaten one delicious bowlful I wanted more unfortunately they had sold out so I was given beef instead which was nowhere near as good. The guy on the next table was given a bowlful of greens. I ordered those, the stall holder was laughing at the amount I was eating. The greens arrived and it was morning glory cooked with garlic. Once again delicious and much needed vitamins which I had lacked in Japan. I’m definitely going to enjoy my food journey in Taiwan. All this food came to less than 100 TND so US $3 a bargain.
Hualien
Next day I caught a train over to Hualien to visit Taroko Gorge which boasted a 19km long canyon.
The hostel was across the road from the train station so I left my bags and got
the next shuttle hop on and off bus to the gorge, the day pass costs 250 TND
and there is an option of 2 days for 400 TND. Definitely one not to miss, I’d
almost go as far as to say it’s the best thing to see in Taiwan. The park area
is looked after by the local Truku aboriginal tribe which the area gets its
name from (magnificent and splendid). The locals sell their local delicacies
including honey and wine along with handicrafts.
Extended tree branch
Views around the gorge
Fantastic rock formations
Birds nest tree fern
Having being wowed by the landscape I caught the bus next to the swallow grotto which was even more spectacular the further up the Liwu River walked. An Indian chef head was one of the shapes to be seen in the rocks. The area got its name from all the swallows which are often flying around between caves. The route is full of gorges, potholes and waterfalls.
I caught an orange bus back (local bus not shuttle) which stopped at all the local villages. Almost two hours later I arrived back, luckily they took the pass. Dinner was across the road at a street stall where I ate milk fish dumplings in soup with two fried egg and greens.
Next day I rented a bicycle and cycled around the town then seafront along the bike path passing points of interests….
A local artist had painted walls with images of whales and dolphins with cats and dogs, the sea creatures can be seen from the shore in season.
A coffee and cake shop called 85 degrees was at the end of the path. I stopped to have a piece of chocolate cake in the shape of a house with a coffee. It was after all Christmas Eve and this was to be my Christmas cake.
Cute house found on route
Cycling back, I took the path next to the sea front past all the Tsunami concrete posts which are in place as the waves get quite high.
That afternoon I caught a flight to Kaohsiung. The bus driver who took me there suggested I must be rich as the average Taiwanese can’t afford the flight. Needs must at times, it only cost US $60 and not only saved me time but it was the only mode of transport to get me to my next destination in time for Christmas.
Kaohsiung – Third largest town in Taiwan
Tourist information are available in all cities in Taiwan so a guide book although useful is not necessary). When I told her I was here to see monkeys she first looked shocked and said in the zoo? Eventually after more digging and me looking through my notes from the Taipei information we worked out I wanted to go walking to Monkey Mountain. She laughed and said I was the first tourist who had ever asked her about this place. The lengths I will go to see monkeys.
Christmas Day I treated myself to a lie in. Since I had not
planned initially to be out this long I was shocked to find that Santa had
brought me gifts overnight. Ok not what most people would want but none the
less he remembered me. I refer to the copious amounts of mosquito bites I had
acquired overnight after getting too hot and removing the covers.
I headed off to catch a bus to Shoushan- Monkey Mountain.
The bus stopped two minutes from the entrance and within five minutes of the
start of the trail I had seen a monkey. Fantastic I had achieved my objective
for the day. I walked around a couple of trails for about an hour and came
across three monkeys who were sitting near a group of locals hoping to steal or
be given food. At one point I dipped into my bag to get my camera but the nun
who was amongst the people said no don’t move the monkey who had watched me
backed off when I removed an empty hand. 
Stealing food offerings
Getting hungry I headed back along the trails to find a number of monkeys had come down to the entrance to the trail to be near the visitors. One woman pushing her pet pooch in its buggy had a plastic bag with two drinks in straight away the monkey came over from his seat on the scooter and tried to relief her of it, luckily the husband got to the bag first and whisked it away
Two buses later I headed over to Sizihwan on the Pacific coast. The British Consulate at Takao on a hill to watch sunset over the harbour and in the meantime have a look around the disused building which had been turned into a museum. With its links to Britain they had photographs of the royal family who had visited the site including The Queen, Camilla and Kate and William. Commerative plates from Charles /Diana and William/Kate wedding were proudly displayed on the wall. The quintessential coffee shop with staff dressed in black and white maid outfits offered afternoon tea however at $60 US.
I walked around the area on the way back to the train station
stopping off at a chemist to buy bug spray as a Christmas present to myself. I
tried Longan and sweet plum tea which was really sweet. I think they had added
the maximum amount of sugar when usually I would ask for no sugar, something
the locals find strange as it is so bitter.
On the way home I ventured out to two night markets, one was
more for tourists whilst the other more for locals. Reifeng,
the local one was much busier which I
went to first. As I had eaten so much during my stay in Taiwan I decided to go
for something light and found chicken satay wrap with beansprouts.
Stuffed squid
The market featured clothes, shoes, phone accessories as well as rows of food stalls. A couple of stalls were for pets selling pet outfits and toys. Like Japan they are crazy about dogs over here. In the far corner was the gaming area including dart throwing and shooting I watched people playing Majong, the first time I had ever seen people playing it. They were using cute hello kitty pink blocks which even the men were using. Gaming starts young over in Taiwan and there was gaming areas for children.
Dim sums
Battered prawns
Next I went to Liuhe night market for tourists which had a lot less people. Maybe because it is winter so fewer tourists or maybe because it is more expensive. Although full I decided to finish the night with seafood congee. Which I thought was going to be a bowl of seafood soup. It was soup with a large helping of rice and a small helping of seafood. Well I managed the seafood and some soup and left the rest.
Boxing Day morning was spent trying to find an ATM machine that did not charge $3 US. I failed and ended up at 7-11. Whilst walking around the area I came across a man and woman who ran a shop selling wheatgrass for pets and humans. He made for me. Verdict, very sweet and grassy, not really to my taste regardless how good it is for you.
I caught a bus from the main station over to
Lotus Lake, a large manmade lake North of Kaohsiung dotted with temples and
pagodas The bus drops off at the tourist
information centre and next to this building is the large dragon and tiger
pavilions. It is aptly named since their entrance is by going through these
animals mouths. The pavilions were 5 storeys high and on the walls featured
paintings of birds and animals loved by Buddhists whilst the bottom floor had
murals depicting past rulers causing harm to locals. Yuandi Temple doubled up as a fun park with a
karaoke stage on your left, this something the locals love and think they are
good at…. Not sure if the three murdering songs whilst I was there. As you walk
towards the temple there are fairground games – hook the soft toy and also game
machines.
Across the road from the temple I stopped to have lunch consisting of the areas famous beef noodles in soup with greens. I sat and watched the world go by before continuing walking around the lake past a bridge and a few odd statues before coming back down the bottom of the lake to watch people on a circuit wake boarding. It looked fun especially as they were hooked onto a metal rope circuit so no need for boat. I watched a few go round and they kept falling in. One looked a pro as he easily maneuverer the course.
Taiwanese love a cute animal. This bear is all over the country
temple, you walk inside the mouths
Lunch was simple but divine - beef noodles
Park bench