Wulai (03/30/2010-03/31/2010)

The beautiful mountain village of Wulai, just less than an hour's bus ride away from Xindian, Taipei, was my final destination in Taiwan.  After 5 months of new sights and sounds, great people, fantastic food, beautiful scenery, and wonderful rich culture, I concluded with a peaceful and relaxing couple of days at a hot spring resort.  No visit to Taiwan is complete without spending a good amount of time soaking in piping hot sulfur or chlorine spring water after a long mountain hike.   From the pictures you can tell I spoiled myself a little here :).

However, as I walked along the trails leading from the cable car and through an old neglected amusement park I felt a touch of sadness of a time that is slowly fading away as lives and priorities change. I will miss Taiwan.

A Day of Fish (03/29/2010)

One place I had never expected to find myself was a private fish farm/resort in the natural mountain lakes of Taiwan. A kind friend and mentor happened to own two of these fine establishments and we visited both.  It was a beautiful relaxing day and I got an idea of how resorts get constructed and how fish get farmed. What was quite unique about the second one (fresh water trout) was that the trout were raised on natural spring water and the temperature of the water was cold enough that it killed all of the parasites that normally require piles of antibiotics in farms with warmer water. The trout was delicious and the fish themselves were raised very clean (hence the sashimi!) -- thank you again for this unique and wonderful experience.

Alishan, Jade Mountain, and Jiji (03/26/10-03/27/10)

This had to be the highlight mountain trip of my time in Taiwan. I had wanted to climb Jade Mountain since I arrived to Taiwan, and while this never happened, I at least got to drive up it! Thanks to friends of the owner of Eight Elephants Hostel, I was able to partake in this amazing weekend getaway to central Taiwan. I had the great fortune of seeing tea plantations, walk through Alishan National Park (including the cloud forest containing giant red cypresses over 2,000 years old), and go biking in Jiji, a city severely damaged by the 9/21 earthquake.  It was eerie walking through abandoned structures, and on the actual Alishan Forest Railway, which was out of service due to a heavy typhoon.

Pingxi Sky Lantern Festival (03/06/2010)

Another Chinese New Year-related festival I had the great fortune of attending was the Pingxi Sky Lantern Festival, located an hour east of Taipei in (predictably) Pingxi.  Originally thought to be a way of communication, the purpose of the festival appears to be to send one's wishes and prayers into the heavens aboard these beautiful (and highly flammable) wax (kerosene?) paper and plastic  This year over 3,000 were released, most of them in time and colour synchronized waves from a public school yard. Piles of people, great night market food, and overall a wonderful (and less dangerous) experience than Yanshuei. Also have a video for this one too (see bottom)!

Video here: