Day 14: Taipei to Taroko

We woke up relatively early this morning as we cleaned up, packed our carry-on bags, and boarded the buses at 8:10. We were each given a bag for luggage, so everyone would have the same size bag and that they would all fit. Our bigger luggage bags that we brought from home were stashed away in the basement of the Jiantan Youth Center, along with anything we didn’t need for the ten day trip.

As I said earlier, we are heading around Taiwan, circling the island clockwise: from Taipei, to Hualien, To Kenting, to Tainan, to Taizhong, and back to Taipei. Today, our destination was Taroko National Park, about half an hour west of Hualien, and a three to four hour drive South-east of Taipei.

We departed at around 8:40, and after passing classic Taipei icons like Taipei 101, we were on our way south to Yilan via the Hsuehshan (snow mountain) tunnel, the fifth longest tunnel in the world. It took fifteen years and $2.83 billion US to complete, opening in 2006 and cutting the travel time from Taipei to Yilan from two hours to half an hour.

We arrived at the National Center for Traditional Arts in Yilan. Its name sounds like a fancy museum, but essentially it’s a tourist hotspot. Throughout the area, there are stores selling specialities in Taiwan, including a whole lane for food, several shops for arts and crafts, and other places selling clothing, figurines, gems, and keychain ornaments. There was a small museum (ending with another gift shop), but after visiting the National Taiwan Museum and National Palace Museum on Sunday and Monday respectively, there was really nothing noteworthy. There were also performances though, including acrobatics and puppeting, but we didn’t have much time to sit down and watch. Nevertheless, despite the commercialism, the area was a beautiful place and the shops were interesting to browse around.

Pictures at the National Center for Traditional Arts

Left: Puppet Show; Right: Wenchang Temple

Left: Lots of cultural toys and activities, including masks, tops, and musical instruments

Right: the area behind the Traditional Arts Center, with mountains in the background

After about an hour and a half, we were driven to lunch not too far away. We were given room and table assignments for the next few days, and once again boarded the bus for a two and a half hour ride to Taroko. Thirty minutes in, we reached the eastern coastline, giving us a majestic view of Taiwan’s mountains alongside the Pacific Ocean. It’s hard to describe, but this is what I see when I think of when I picture Taiwan’s natural beauty:

Driving down the East Coast of Taiwan, you have the mountains on your right, and the Pacific Ocean on your left. You'll see a lot more of these photos in the days to come.

Here, the Eurasian plate meets the Philippine Sea plate (yes, plate tectonics). Taiwan rises right out of the sea.

We did have a rest stop; it was in a very touristy area too, where one had to pass ten vendors before reaching the washrooms. One shop, however, did catch my eye, and eventually my wallet – they were selling spicy ice cream, essentially, ice cream with chunks of chilli peppers in them to create a sweet-spicy dessert. It was quite tasty, worth the $40 NT (about $1.35 Canadian) for a small scoop, which is quite expensive by Taiwanese standards. I ordered the green mango flavour – it tasted very good, but it wasn’t very spicy, which was a bit disappointing. There was one option labelled “spiciest ice cream in the world”, but for $100 NT per scoop, that was a little too much.

Green Mango Chili Ice cream

I also tried their spices though (sans ice cream), including the one branded with the “spiciest in the world” label. It was good though – seeing that my tongue is still quite intact though, I don’t think it really lives up to its name =/.

At around 4:30, we arrived at Taroko National Park, Taroko being an aboriginal term for “magnificent and beautiful”.  The area is famous for its gorge, shaped by the Liwu River, surrounded by mountains with lush vegetation. We stopped at the visitor centre, which featured a small museum and a few displays. Behind the building were a small trail/boardwalk, and a few sculptures, greeting those who entered Taroko.

Entrance area to Taroko National park

We spent about an hour at the center and surrounding areas before heading to the Tianhsiang Youth Activity Center, located in the middle of Taroko National Park. We will be spending most of our nights at the youth centers, except in areas where they aren’t available. The building was constructed to match the mountainside, sloping down with the hill. The rooms were simple, with six mattresses on the floor. The balcony gave us a good view of the gorge though.

The Tianhsiang Youth Activity Center

After a brief bus meeting, we spent the night hanging out in the games room, playing cards, and using the computer (I posted Day 12, 13 at this time) – until they cut off the lobby internet at 10 pm. After some more chatting and watching TV, we went to sleep relatively early, before midnight, to catch as much sleep as possible before the 6:50 am wake-up call the next day – to see more of Taroko National Park. A lot more pictures of Taroko tomorrow, but here's one more!