Taiwan 2011 : Yangmingshan and Ganbei

On the last day, we visited Yang Ming Shan. To get there, you'll also need to take a train and change to a bus somewhere near Bei Tou stop. On the way there, I spotted this exhibit at the train station which was really interesting. All these little rooms in a box were created in such meticulous details, it awes me!

The interesting exhibits in one of the MRT stations 

Upon arrival at the foot of the mountain, we went to the nearby 7-11 to grab a quick bite as there were no shops around the train station. Taiwan is really a lot like Japan, where you can get breakfast on the go and there is a huge variety of selection from bento boxes to 饭团. I particularly like the 饭团 as they're similar to onigiri which I eat almost daily while I was in Japan.

Our breakfast 

After breakfast, we begin our walk uphill where I spotted this signboard. I never knew that owls cross roads. I always thought birds will fly when they sense someone coming near. Guess I am wrong.

Yang Ming Shan is one of the national parks and this place is really rich in sulphur. You will spot hot springs and from afar, you will be able to smell the sulphur and see this yellowish element on the mountain.

Hot spring and the mountain where I spot the sulphur 

There is also a farmhouse at another lookout spot where you can actually see the rivers merging and the view of Taipei City. I believe if you're an avid fan of panoramic photography, this would be the spot to go apart from Alishan.

Feels a lot like being in Austria - set of Sound of Music 

Like many other touristy areas in Taiwan, you will definitely spot couples taking their wedding photos. To my amazement, they even go to great heights by taking pictures with cows and cow dungs.

Interesting cow dung! 

We took the bus down to Shih Lin stop and tried the chinese pizza. It is really like roti canai except this "pizza" has shallots and uses a machine to flatten it, unlike roti canai. This must be the more popular store as the next door neighbour selling the exact same thing was quiet whilst this store was bustling with customers from the train station.

The making of the Chinese pizza. Check out the machine in the center. 

They also sell dessert like tauhuey, served in peanut soup and iced desserts. 

We made our way back to Taipei city to meet up with some friends for dinner at Ganbei. This is a popular drinking and BBQ place. There was a long queue and each customer will be greeted with a loud Japanese greeting upon arrival.

Part of the crowd waiting to enter the restaurant 

At around 8pm, there would be a performance, where the host will introduce all the first time visitors from table to table while the crew will hold on to whatsoever instruments like wok, wok cover, ladle and other kitchen instrument to make noise. Once that is done, there will be a round of free drinks based on what you've ordered when you first entered.

The items we had for BBQ 

This place also has a "promotion" whereby customers who kisses for a good whole 10 seconds will be entitled to a free plate of beef for BBQ. So, as you enter the restaurant, you'll not miss out the walls filled with photos of people kissing. Nope, it's not a peck on the cheek but a full mouth-to-mouth snogging. There were some customers who were taking up the challenge while we were there as well. So, if you're up for the ambience and looking for some BBQ experience in Taiwan, this is the place to go. Be sure to make an appointment so as not to be disappointed!

Taiwan 2011 : Around Taipei

We started our day by making full use of the goodies we got from the Taiwan Tourism Office in Singapore. After redeeming free coffee and masks from 7-11 convenience store, we visited the National Palace Museum. To get there, we took a train down to Shih Lin stop and took a public bus. Unfortunately, it was a wet day and we didn't get to visit the grounds of the museum which is very green and vast.

Entrance of National Palace Museum 

Within the museum, visitors are not allowed to take pictures. However, this museum is famous for few of its exhibits such as the miniature toy boxes which was used back in the era of the various dynasties in China as well as the well-known carved cabbage and 3-layer pork. It's definitely worth visiting if you've some time to spare in Taipei.

We went to a nearby noodle house for lunch thereafter. It was just a quiet afternoon and the store was relatively quiet. The owner was practising calligraphy and I thought it was a really interesting sight. Had a bowl of simple beef noodles and pork lard rice!

The uncle practising calligraphy in the restaurant 

Following that, we took a train towards Dan Shui to visit the Fisherman's whaft. This place is more like a fishing port, so if you've not been to any, it is definitely a great sight as you will see many fishermen. I realised many buildings in Dan Shui were built like the old English buildings, all in red bricks.

The fishermen association building 

This is the famous Lovers' bridge at the wharf. Apparently, the myth is that if you were there with your beloved, you will be married in the next 6 months. Personally, I don't buy this myth but I'm not sure about you!

Getting a jump shot at the bridge and I have a few more jump shots during my 2013 trip 

There were some kiosks around the wharf for people to get souvenirs and food. So we had the usual fried chicken and some octopus balls before heading off to the Lao Jie (old street) to get the famous Dan Shui souvenirs like 鱼稣 and 铁蛋.

Our humongous fried chicken 

Something about Dan Shui's railway station really caught my attention. Perhaps it's the size or the old building structure, unlike those in Taipei city. Too bad it was still drizzling outside so I took a picture from the inside.

Dan Shui Railway Station 

For dinner, we went to this old establishment in the city where we had some appetisers sort of food. It was really tasty. I'm not sure if it is very costly but we paid around RM 20 each for the amount of food we had. The place was packed on a weekday, surprisingly. I guess it must be rather famous.

The chef who prepares the rice and noodles to go with the dishes at the entrance of the eatery 

After dinner, we went straight to a coffee shop for supper! Coffee Alley is really the new hype in the city especially with the young crowd and brisk business. The catch is that everyone needs to order at least a cup of beverage on each visit. I wouldn't say that the things are cheap but the concept is definitely interesting. I like the interior design of the place and how they used a newspaper concept for their menu.

The very interesting menu 

The drinks we had and the waffles 

You might want to have a visit if you're a big fan of fanciful tea and waffles. I thought they were quite yummy!

Taiwan 2011 : Sun Moon Lake to Puli

We moved on from Taipei to Sun Moon Lake. We took about a four hours ride by bus from Taipei bus terminal using Kuo Kuang express bus to get to the scenic destination.

The bus we took to Sun Moon Lake 

Since there wasn't a lot to do, we went to hire a bicycle. It costs a lot more than I expect it to be. Nevertheless, I must say it's no ordinary bike as we get one of the best Giant bikes around for a good hour with a GPS device just in case we trail off the route. The rate for the rental is about TWD400/hour.

Our GPS device from our bike rental 

This is what its like around the area. It's a hot spot for wedding photographers. We bumped into 3 couples either taking photos by the lake or getting ready at some restaurant. It is amazing to what extend these newly weds can go just to take photo. I trust that it must have been a very exhausting experience. Nonetheless, the best of memories should come with the "price" paid. :)

Newly weds everywhere 

Sun Moon Lake is a destination known for not just the lake but also the mountain and the sky. The name says it all actually. And you'll definitely hear about this if you do take one of those cruise from the 3 main jetties in that locality. Normally, these cruises package can be obtained at a slightly cheaper price if you do book it with yourminsu or hotel. It is an unlimited day pass which allows you to go around the 3 townships by the lake, of which one is actually a temple.

The sunset view from one of the jetties 

Puli, where one of the aboriginal theme park is located, is about 20-25 minutes drive away from Sun Moon Lake. There is a bus service which departs from the Tourist Information Centre which can ferry you to this theme park. Alternatively, you can take the cable car service.

Entrance of the theme park 

It is actually a really big theme park. At the entrance, there is a magnificent European Garden to entice you into the park. The garden is so big that there is a steam train running in a loop to give you a tour around the area. Apart from the park, there is also an indoor theme park where visitors can take the ferries, roller coasters, swings, teacups and so on. As this aboriginal village and theme park also give exposure of the difference natives living in Sun Moon Lake, this is a famous destination for school trips. During my visit, there were at least 4 schools who were visiting at the same time. Like all cultural village, you'll also be entertained by the aboriginal performances and along the way, there are also many kiosks where you can purchase some authentic aboriginal food such as bamboo rice.

Bird's eye view from the cable car 

We took the cable car back to Sun Moon Lake once more and walk around the quiet little town at night. There we lots of souvenir shops around and I'm sure you can pick some specially made in Sun Moon Lake before you depart. Oh, and I must say that the best fried chicken chop is still from the little green store opposite the jetty at the Shueishe town.

Taiwan 2011 : Taroko Gorge and Hualien

We started the day early for our Taroko Gorge tour. The whole trip takes about 6 hours before we board the train back to Taipei City. Early in the morning, our tour guide takes us to 山东豆浆大王 to taste the local delicacies. 

One of the many different snacks prepared by the staffs 

I love their soya milk. In my opinion, I think it is better than Mr Bean's. We also tried a variety a snacks from ham and omelette, to their popular 烧饼， 油条，萝卜羔. The sumptuous and inexpensive breakfast lasted us for a long while as we start our journey to famous Taroko Gorge.

Our breakfast 

On our way to Taroko Gorge, our tour guide gave us a suggestion to stop by Cingshui Cliffs considering the fine weather that we're blessed with. Little did we know that such detour would have cost us TWD1000 more for a group of 5 as he sounded as though it is along the way and we're not going through a lot of hassle by stopping by at this scenic place. Nonetheless, it was quite a nice place to be at. The route to the cliffs somewhat resembles the Great Ocean Road drive but less windy. It was interesting as we get to see trains pass by the tunnel from afar because we missed the view on our way to Hualien.

CingShui Cliffs 

During our trip to Taroko Gorge, there were many parts of the gorge which were actually closed to visitors due to the wet season and multiple rockfall incidents. Therefore, as part of safety and precautionary measures, all visitors are required to wear helmets in the area once we're out of the car. However, the local tour guides were exempted from wearing the helmets. I wonder why. Upon arrival at the national park entrance, our tour guide picked up the helmets for us before we make our way to several popular viewing area. The place is mainly filled with rocks which is magnificent. 

Taroko Gorge 

The water which flows through the valleys and the many streams at the area was actually rather dirty, filled with sand and grit. It looks a lot like cement mixture from afar. According to the tour guide, this water will be purified later. The scenic place is also filled with a lot of waterfalls. 

Waterfall at Taroko Gorge

After the tour to Taroko Gorge, as per all trip handled by tour guides, we were brought to the souvenir shops to purchase some special local snacks. Our tour guide must be quite well-known amongst the workers in the souvenir shop as they hastily prepare new samples for us to taste upon our arrival. I noticed the difference in treatment only because a tour group arrived after us but they were tasting the leftover samples, unlike us.

All the different types of snacks available for munch munch

After spending 2D1N at Hualien, we head back to Taipei by train once again. This time around, we stood throughout the journey as we changed our initial ticket to head back to Taipei on an earlier train. So, take note if you've gotten yourself a later train ticket. You can head to any train station to get the train master to change your ticket. The only downside is that you'll have to cram through the empty spaces in between the coaches instead of having one comfy seat for yourself. Upon arrival, we wasted no time in looking for food once again. We headed straight to the much-acclaimed night market, 士林夜市. There were definitely a lot more food that I envisage and a lot more stalls available! For one, visitors will need to learn how to defy all manners of dining by eating while you walk. That is quite a feat to achieve especially when you're consuming things like noodles! Nonetheless, the night market experience was really good and we did return to the same place a few times during the whole trip! =)

The various things you can find at Shilin night market

Taiwan 2011 : Arrival at Taipei and a visit to Hualien

First trip to Taiwan and the purpose of this trip is sole to visit a friend and his wife as well as to do some sight-seeing. Seeing it's our first time, our nice friends kindly allow us to bunk in with them and took us along on a trip to Hualien.

Upon arrival at Taoyuan airport, you can board different types of transport to the city. We took a direct bus which costs TWD150 to the city where our friends live. The residences in Taipei is different from the HDB blocks in Singapore. For one, the 6-level building is not equipped with lift and there is no rubbish chute facility for the residents. The bins are put at the ground floor and residents will segregate their garbage accordingly. To be able to survive in this country, I reckon you would need to be educated in Chinese because every single notice posted on the community notice board at the ground level is written in Chinese!

Milk delivery

In front of my friends mailbox, there is a plastic box insulated with styrofoam which is used to store warm milk that they order for the day. The little glass milk bottles come in various flavour. It feels as though you're waiting for surprise each morning as you get the milk bottles! =)

Free MRT card from the Taiwan Tourist Association

Taiwan has always been a well-known tourist destination for many. This is not without the effort of the various Taiwan Tourist Association around the world, in addition to the many other channel of promotion such as documentaries and media advertisements. If you intend to go to Taiwan, do remember to make a visit to the nearest Taiwan Tourist Association with your passport, proof of stay at any lodging places be it hotel or minsu and your flight ticket itinerary. For that tiny bit of effort, you'll receive freebies which will differ each quarter. For me, I managed to get a free MRT card (with $0 cash value), vouchers to collect freebies from 7-11(which is all over Taiwan) and get free My Diaries series masks, as well as entrance ticket to the National Palace Museum which is famous for the cabbage and 3-layer pork art pieces.

Our first destination the next morning is Hualien. Hualien County is the largest county in Taiwan and is located on the mountainous eastern coast of Taiwan. We board the Taroko Express which costs about TWD450 and the whole journey lasts about 3 hours. The ride was really comfy, almost as good as the bullet trains in Japan. There will be someone pushing a cart along the journey to sell bento boxes and beverages.

This costs around TWD80 and the portion is huge!

Upon arrival at Hualien station, our minsu owner was already waiting for us at the exit. We proceeded to the minsu as she introduced herself and recommend a few activities for the day. We decided to take a half day tour around some parts of the county since there is nothing planned out for the day.

The little things at the minsu that caught my eye. It's really heart-warming!

The taxi driver who took us around the county speaks mostly in Taiyu. Thankfully, I have similar exposure to the accent and some basic understanding since I speak Hokkien at home. It was quite an experience considering the fact that he's a local. I find it almost hilarious when he lamented on the fact that the place has been so commercialised and the tour guides create fictitious stories about the county to feed the visitors.

One of the places that I visited during the day tour is 立川渔场. The fish farm allows visitor to catch clams for TWD100 and the connecting restaurant will be where you send your fortune of the day to be cooked into various types of delicacies! I've not had so much clams in my whole life for one meal.

The scenic view at the farm

The farm is also quite a nice place to get some landscape photos. The operators have done a good job in maintaining the surroundings green and tidy. People actually bring their pets to take a walk around the pond as well! Taiwanese really love dogs, I must say. I've seen so many pet shops with a kaleidoscope of costumes and apparels for dogs. Most eateries are also pet-friendly!

One of the many beautiful little dogs I've seen during the trip

We also visited a hill to see the view of Hualien County. Lucky us, some rich families were setting off fireworks and getting to see the sparks from a higher ground really makes me change my perspective on such expensive things. From the top, Hualien can definitely be seen as an agricultural county. There is so much land, unlike the scarcity of land felt in Singapore. It also feels a bit like a laidback part of Japan. In fact, throughout my stay in Taiwan, I realise that the Japanese culture there is really strong, not just in terms of the dressing of the Gen-Z!

Hualien Sunrise Minsu
No. 192, Sec. 3 Zhongyang Rd.,
Ji-an Township, Hualien 973,
Taiwan Homestay registered in Hualien No. 115