DAY 3: TRIP AROUND TAIWAN

After a good night's sleep, I got up early on Tuesday, July 7th, had breakfast, and left Hsinchu City (新竹市) at about 7 o'clock. I travelled to Zhudong Township (竹東鎮) on County Road 122 (縣道122號), and from Zhudong I travelled on Provincial Highway 3 (台3線). I passed Hengshan Township (橫山鄉) and stopped in Guanxi Township (關西鎮) to take a few photos. From Guanxi I went to Longtan Township, Taoyuan County (桃園縣龍潭鄉), pass the Shihmen Reservoir (石門水壩), and continued to Dasi Township (大溪鎮).

My first stop in Dasi was at the Cihu Mausoleum (慈湖陵寢). Cihu Mausoleum is the temporary resting place of Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石/蔣中正). When Chiang Kai-shek died in 1975, he was never buried in the traditional Chinese fashion but entombed in a black marble sarcophagus since he expressed the wish to be eventually buried in his native Fenghua (奉化) in Zhejiang Province (浙江省) once the Kuomintang (中國國民黨) recovered mainland China (中國大陸) from the Communists (中国共产党). Cihu literally means Benevolent Lake, and it refers to the lake located near the tomb-site. It was used to be called Green Water Lake (碧水湖澤), until Chiang Kai-shek renamed it as Cihu in 1962 because the scenery reminded him of his be-nevolent mother and his home town, Fenghua (奉化). Chiang loved the lake so much that he had an official residence built nearby to architecturally resemble the houses in Fenghua (奉化). He also named his favorite residence Cihu (慈湖). This house was converted to his mausoleum upon his death in 1975. His body lies in the main hall of the residence.

On my first visit to Cihu I went to the mausoleum, but this time I went to the new Cihu Sculpture Memorial Park (慈湖雕塑紀念公園). The Ci-hu Sculpture Memorial Park (慈湖雕塑紀念公園) was established in 1997 by the Daxi Town Council. It is the only memorial garden in the world dedicated to sculptures of a single person, in this case Chiang Kai-shek. As of November 2008, there are a total of 152 sculptures of CKS in the park in full figure, bust, seated, and standing forms as well as riding a horse.

From Cihu I went to the Dasi Old Streets (大溪老街) in Heping Road (和平路) and Jhongyang Road (中央路). Arriving at the old streets I had to find a place to leave my backpack, and then I walked al the way to the Dasi Bridge (大溪橋). To reach the bridge one has to walk through the Jhongjheng Park (中正公園) stap. Built in 1912, Dakekan Park was renamed Dasi Park (大溪公園) due to local restructuring of administrative districts and again renamed Jhongjheng Park (中正公園) in memory of the late President Chiang when he passed away in 1975. Taiwan first built parks during the Japanese Occupation Period. Before city planning was put into practice in 1937, there were only 23 parks and Dasi Park was ranked 12th.

After taking a few photos at the Baroque style Dasi Bridge, I walked to the Dacing Tunnel (大慶洞), and from there to the Dasi Old Flagstone Path (大溪老石板道路). From there I went back to the old streets. These streets have preserved a number of older brick residences and stores with exquisitely adorned stone facades, pillars and beams, and baroque-style archways. Many of the buildings are long and narrow, with the shops in front and the residences of the proprietors in the rear. I spent some time there taking photos, and then had to continue with my journey.

From Dasi I rode to Taipei County (台北縣), passing Sanxia Township (三峽鎮), Tucheng City (土城市), and Jhonghe City (中和市). Arriving in Yonghe City (永和市) I had to look for the Amigo Hostel. It is located at No. 14, Lane 157, Yonghe Road Section 2 (永和路二段157巷14號). Finding Yonghe Road was easy, but finding Lane 157 was a bit of a problem. I forgot that it is near the Dingxi Station (頂溪站) of the Taipei Metro (台北捷運). I ended up at the police station asking for help. None of the officers on duty was able to speak English. In the end, after making a few phone calls, they were able to direct me to my destination.

After riding about 128.3 km, I arrived at the Amigo Hostel at about 3:00 PM.

DAY 2: TRIP AROUND TAIWAN

After a good night's sleep, I woke up early on Monday, July 6th, to continue my trip. I first had breakfast, and went for a walk in Taichung Park (台中公園). I quickly went back to the hotel, got all my stuff, and set out for Hsinchu City (新竹市). I rode on Provincial Highway 3 (台3線 ) to Fengyuan City (豐原市), and from there on Provincial Highway 13 (台13線) to Houli (后里). From Houli I took a county road to Provincial Highway 1 (台1線).

I travelled to Hsinchu a few times during the past 5 years and decided not to stop at to many places. There are a few interesting places to visit, like the Flying Cow Ranch (飛牛牧場), Tongsiao West Shore Ocean Ecological Education Park (通霄西濱海洋生態教育園區) and Tongsiao QiuMao Garden (通霄秋茂園) in Tongxiao Township (通霄鎮). I stopped at the CiYun Temple (慈雲寺) in Yuanli (苑裡) to take a rest. From there I rode to Sihu Township (西湖鄉).

Arriving in Sihu, I went to the Matsu Rock Sculpture (西湖媽祖石雕) in Sanhe Village (三湖村). The holy statue of the Matsu Rock Sculpture has a total height of 26.66 m. Assembled from 299 pieces of Granite 603, this statue was beautifully accomplished in Macau (澳門) in 1998. It was regarded as the world’s tallest Matsu Rock Sculptured Statue with total height of 19.99 m. Despite being a landmark and popular scenic spot of Sihu Township, the Matsu Rock Sculptured Statue is also a religious center for many believers.

I then rode through Houlong (後龍) and stopped at the Dragon (Longhe) Palace (龍湖宮) in Zaociao Township (造橋鄉). The temple is next to the Longsheng Lake (龍昇湖). In the gardens around the temple you'll find statues of the Laughing Buddha (笑佛), Sun Wukong, the Monkey King (孫悟空),and the Four heavenly kings (Sì Tiānwáng 四天王). The Four Heavenly Kings are also known as the Door Gods. They are the protectors of the world and fighters of evil, each able to command a legion of supernatural creatures to protect the Dharma. Zēng Zhǎng Tiān (增長天)wears a sword, Chí Guó Tiān (持國天) is the guy with the guitar (pipa) , Duō Wén Tiān (多聞天) carries the “Umbrella of Chaos”, and Guăng Mù Tiān (廣目天) has a man-eating snake.

After riding 160 km, I reached the Eastdoor Hostel (東門雅舍) in Hsinchu City (新竹市) at about 2 o'clock the afternoon. Later that afternoon I went to the 17 Kilometers of Splendid Coastline (17公里海岸風景區). I stopped at the Splendor Coastline (風情海岸). Splendor Coastline adjoins the largest wetland in northern Taiwan - Xianshan Wetland (香山溼地) where the beauty of the sunset was recorded as one of the eight attractions in Hsinchu in a Ching Dynasty document. This wetland has been designated as a wildlife reservation. The stone with the carving of Splendor Coastline (風情海岸) by which Vice President Lu named the city's coastline, and restrooms transformed from pillboxes are the most renowned attractions there.

I then rode on, past the Rainbow Bridge (彩虹大橋), Haishan Harbor Sea Viewing Stage (海山漁港觀海平台), Blue Sky Bridge (藍天橋), and White Cloud Bridge (白雲橋) and stopped at the Nangang Bird Watching Area (南港賞鳥區). I took a few photos of the not-so-beautiful beach, and then walked to the White Cloud Bridge and Blue Sky Bridge to take a few photos. By the time I got back to the Nangang Bird Watching Area it was already dark and time to head back to the city.

DAY 1: TRIP AROUND TAIWAN

Sunday, July 5th, I left Chiayi City (嘉義市) for my trip around the island. I travelled on Provincial Highway 3 (台3線) through Chiayi County (嘉義縣) and Yunlin County (雲林縣). I've travelled along this road many times and decided to stop at only a few interesting places. My first stop was at the 921-Earthquake Memorial Park of Shadong Palace (Zhao Jing Earthquake Park照鏡臺地震公園) in Jhushan Township (竹山鎮). I was now in Nantou County (南投縣).

The Shadong Palace used to be a temple, but it was destroyed during the 921 Earthquake (九二一大地震). The destroyed temple and the park around it is now a memorial park. The Chelongpu Fault (車籠埔斷層) passes through the town. In Mingjian Township (名間鄉) there's another interesting 921 Earthquake Memorial. It's the The Tilting Electric Tower (地震斜塔紀念地) in the Earthquake Park (地震公園).

After passing Nantou, I stopped at the YuanMan Church (圓滿教堂) in Wufeng Township, Taichung County (臺中縣霧峰鄉). It's a 1045 square feet with ancient Roman, Baroque, Rococo and Gothic-style architectural features. The church is on Jinlingshan (金陵山), not far from the 921 Earthquake Museum of Taiwan (九二一地震教育園區). Not far from the church they are busy building a new YiGuanDao Founder Memorial (一貫道祖師紀念館).

After travelling about 128 km, I arrived in Taichung City (臺中市). Late afternoon Jay and I went to the GaoMei Wetlands (高美溼地). It's in Qingshui Township (清水鎮). It's one of the best wetlands I've visited in Taiwan.

Planning a scooter trip around Taiwan 台灣

Since arriving in Taiwan I wanted to go on a scooter trip around the island. As I wasn't going home for the summer vacation, and had no classes, I decided it was time for my trip. The last weekend before the summer vacation I started planning my trip. It was easy deciding where to go. I drew a map of Taiwan, and marked the major cities on it. I decided to make it a 13 day trip, going from Chiayi (嘉義)to Taichung City (台中市), then on to Hsinchu City (新竹市). From Hsinchu I would go to Taipei (台北), and then to Yilan (宜蘭). From Yilan I would go to Hualien City (花蓮市), where I planned to spend three days. Then I'd travel through the East Rift Valley or Hua-Tung Valley (花東縱谷) to Taitung (台東), spend a day or two there, and then ride to Kaohsiung City (高雄市), and from there back to Chiayi City (嘉義市).
Finding accomodation and making reservations was more difficult, and took a long time. It's easy to find hostels and cheap hotels in the cities. I had a limited budget, and finding affordable accomodation in smaller towns can be a problem if you can't speak or read Chinese. With Jay's help everything was sorted out, deposits paid, and all the info printed. I had maps, brochures and the Lonely Planet guide ready for my trip.
Next time I'll start telling you about the trip, and all the ups and downs of travelling alone!!

New Blog - Introduction!!

So, here I am, an "old" man starting my own blog. Maybe you wonder about the choice of name? Well, after living in Taiwan for nearly 6 years, I sometimes feel like I'm Taiwanese, except I can't speak Taiwanese or Chinese. I've travelled all over Taiwan and would like to share my experiences with everybody. Taiwan is a beautiful country with a lot to see and experience: beautiful oceans, valleys, mountains, hot springs, nice food, strange (for us foreigners) food, etc.