Taiwan Trip 2 20th March 13 to 26th March 13; Day 2: Hualien - Taroko Gorge Adventure - Zhuilu Old Trail, QixingTang,

Sunrise Minsu

I woke up feeling energized! Yay! The main highlight for the entire trip!

Waking up to this!

In fact, I wanted to explore this place while doing my research for my September trip. However due to time constraint, it was not considered then.

So, while we were still in Singapore, 2 days before the trip, Lin called and asked me exactly what we would be doing in Taiwan. I planned the ENTIRE trip...All on my own! And she only asked at the very last minute. She was pretty shaken when she found out that we would be embarking on a hell lot of adventure.

Well so fast forward to that morning..We woke up. Lin felt ill. She blamed me for talking too long with the guide at the river tracing place the previous day. She took the remains of some cough syrup which was kindly given by the minsu owners that was meant for their baby. Hehe. Thankfully, she gave in to me and went ahead with the trek.

So, Will from RoundTaiwanRound was our guide. I found his service online. Cost NT$5000 which is more on the steep side if you compare to ordinary cab drivers. But...The thing is... It is worth every penny.

Since we have decided not to attempt what tourists will usually do; the normal sightseeing covering places like Swallow's Gatto, Baiyang Trail and all, we opted for Zhuilu Old Trail. RoundTaiwanRound is the cheaper alternative as compared to the other outdoors trekking group I have found online. I am unsure if there are other Mandarin agencies out there but Will is definitely a very caring and responsible guide :)

So first, he drove us to 曾记。It's the most famous muah chee / mochi chain in Hualien. We went to their factory where fresh ones are made constantly.

Can't really tell the flavours here. There are red bean, sesame, peanut and yam. NT10 for one. Not bad. However, the freshly made ones have a short shelf life. So, to buy for friends there are others with preservatives available.

Lin was still feeling unwell. Will told us that he could refund us part of the money since there is no point in going up if one of us is sick. We decided to play by feel. So we went to the police station in Taroko Gorge to have our mountain permits verified for the last time. Oh ya Zhuilu Old Trail is only limited to 60 people on weekdays and 90 people on weekends. A local Taiwanese is needed to lead the team as there were instances where mishaps happened. Also, heard that there may be fugitives on the run moving from mountain to mountain and so they were pretty strict on this.

After we are done, we finally went to begin our trek.

The man at the gantry checked the permits and opened the gates for us. 

We passed by this bridge to begin a journey of a thousand steps.

Another bridge.

Will lending Lin a hand

I was really eager to see the peak. Could go faster also because Will helped me to carry 2 bottles of 1.5litres of water on top of the bunsen burner and stove he has prepared

The pretty mundane terrain for most of the journey

Seems like there was some paranormic stories

Finally we came to a point where we were able to see the clouds whooshing past! And I was surprised throughout the entire climb, there was reception - even at the peak! 

Forgot how many feet we were up there. It was really a ravishing sight.

Oh ya the helmets were rented way beforehand.. A rock we kicked at such high altitude would be falling stones for people down there going through the normal touristy routes.

Lin who finally felt better once she saw the breathtaking view.

This is how pretty the view is.

We were really lucky. Sun shone brightly and there was also drizzles which ended in 5 minutes. So when we reached up there, we could see clouds and the view was clear. As we stayed in the cave drinking our 爱心tea brewed by Will, there was more mist and it was just like heaven. Thankful to have witnessed the transitions right before our very eyes! 

Came and conquered!

As we made our way back to the same gantry, saw hordes of tourists from China. They eyed enviously at us as they are unable to step foot and experience for themselves the alluring beauty the gorge offers.

We raised our hands like we are some superstars as they stared at us :D

QixingTan 七星潭

We then made our way to the next destination since it was still pretty early.

As the car maneuvered itself across turns and twists, blasting aloud classic songs from Jay Chou, I can't help but feel a surge of emotions. What could be more enjoyable than an experience of a lifetime coupled with music from my favourite artiste? <3 I imagined myself returning to this place again with my other half once he appears in my life....

Because of my water sign, I am always marveled by oceans and seas. And right there, it is the PACIFIC OCEAN!!! Ok I know I'm a little sua ku, but the last time I saw such beautiful blue waters was 9 years ago in Bali. Haha. Hell yeah. Again the scenery totally captivated me. 

We made use of whatever time we have with the sunset and took as many photos as possible. 

失恋疗伤最美的声音 haha. Will said many Taiwanese will drive there just to destress. How I wish Singapore also has such a secluded spot that is not known to most people. I really love that feeling man. Listening to the sound of the waves just made me really thankful to be alive :D

Parting shot - we love this place!

Will brought us to this place which is famous for its dumpling soup, as a reward for such an exhausting day :) NT60 a bowl. After we left the place, I saw the stall next door selling Ru Wei! Totally in love with it after I went Shida Night Market. Ordered quite a bit and we shared this for supper. 

All the ingredients that I love. Super Super love this. Soupy and spicy. Totally brilliant <3

Alright that's all for Day 2! Shall continue the rest soon! 

Signing off!

Sarah

Taiwan Trip 2 20th March 13 to 26th March 13 Day 1; Changi Airport >>> Hualien River Tracing

Finally here to blog about my Taiwan Experience! Number 2 that is.

Well has been procrastinating a lot because of work and social commitments and also I was undecided whether to continue blogging here or change the URL.

So yup.

How it got started

Some time after my first Taiwan trip, I took part in this facebook contest organized by Tung Lok and won for myself air tickets for 2 plus a sumptuous dinner at Shinyeh, Taipei 101. It was not just by luck I won; credit has to be given to hard work and the fact that my sissy helped a lot. Yet, i couldn't give her the tickets because I didn't want a trip in the middle of her school term to affect her GPA. So I got Lin to go with me. She flew from Thailand to Singapore


Pre-Flight Preparation

Well, I was working till the very end that day. I remembered towards the end of an official working day, I was rushing like mad and my boss still told me to finish my work before going, I ignored her and passed it on to my colleague lol. So, I left with Jodie or I would never leave on time.

Rushed home to a savoury dinner prepared by mum <3

Then at around 8 plus, I tried to secure my lock on my luggage only to find that I have forgotten my password. I became so frantic and helpless. Wanted to ask Car if she remembered my password since she set for me during the last Taiwan trip but she did not pick up. Thankfully, eventually I got my combination correct.

Flight was due to depart at around 1215am. Since Lin has this Priority Lounge Card, we went to the airport early so that we could hang out in the priority lounge and help ourselves to the huge servings of food, or so we thought.

In the Airport

We met and waited a little before the counter opened. I forgot what actually happened. But after we met, acts of sotongness actually happened... We laughed at ourselves as we thought how we are going to survive, in a foreign country...

Priority Lounge

After we bade farewell to our family members, we rushed immediately to the priority lounge. First impression. Lady manning the counter was totally rude. Chatting on the phone the whole time. What impression does she want to give to tourists? Totally ruined our Singapore's service standards.

Right, so we found a corner and sat down, before helping ourselves to generous servings of food there.

Food was not really fantastic. In fact, one of the worst according to Lin, due to the lack of variety.

Then the most amazingly dramatic thing happened.

I was so tired from work. I said I wanted a quick nap. I wanted to set an alarm but Lin assured me that she could wake me up timely. So off I drifted to my lala land. After what seems like a while, I received a phone call. The man on the other side of the phone sounded annoyed. "If you do not come here in 5 mins time, the plane will take off". Whoa. What the hell? My heart was in my mouth! Lin said she has forgotten the clock on her phone was set to mirror that of Thailand's. Arghs. I took her luggage and carried all the way from one end of the terminal to the other end.

It was a really frantic dash. How could this have happened?

So, when we checked in, the ground crew called us blur sotongs. Why were they so pissed man? We weren't not even the last. Haha. Truly an experience to remember.

We did not even have time to refill our water bottles. Lin felt guilty and bought Evian mineral water for me. I was still in a frenzy state. I couldn't calm down. I thought of how we are going to survive on our own for the few 6 days there and instantly felt even worse. I need to be alert. I need to be more proactive.

Soon, our food came. Free from Tung Lok as well!

Food was awesome!

Then we took a nap..

As usual, while we were up there within the clouds, I thought of my family. I want to make it home alive and see them. Haha. 

Taoyuan Aiport 

And finally we stepped foot in Taiwan.

Was totally surprised that the airport doesn't look the same as the previous time I was there. It was only then did I realize I was at Terminal 1. Haha. Asked around and found out that the telco corner in Terminal 1 opens at 7am! So we could just wait for an hour and be assured of staying connected instead of making our way to Hualien and risk not getting picked up at the train station.

Got Chunghua Telco for NT500 if I am not wrong. 

Taipei Train Station (TRA)

We proceeded to take Kuo Kuang to Taipei Train Station. Departed the airport at around 7 plus and the journey into the city went right into an hour since it was the rush hour period. When we reached Taipei Train station, our trains which I have booked online were 3 minutes into departure. 

I was lucky that the counter staff immediately changed the tickets to a later timing. If we were to reach the counter any time later than the departure time, tickets would be forfeited and we would have to fork out another sum of money. Brought my credit card and was offered some discount. I think the 2-way tickets to Hualien and back cost around $38 per person. What an adventure and thank Lady Luck to be on our side.

I next called our minsu owner and told her we will be late for our first activity of the trip - River Tracing. She told us she will get the operator to pick us up instead and we shall proceed straight to the event venue. I was thinking. Huh? Are we not supposed to be in a group? Why are other group members willing to wait for us? 

We had some time to spare. Lin went to brush her teeth first while I called home to report safety. 

This is how the interior of the train looks like. I forgot how long the journey took. Since I went in end March and I am going blogging in mid Sept! 

I think the journey took around... 1.5 hours.. If you manage to catch the earlier trains at around 7am, you are able to reach Hualien faster as they are the express ones; they do not stop at a lot of places.

After a while. the train master came and chopped on our tickets. Taiwanese service standards as excellent as ever. Greeted us politely before taking our tickets.

Got acquainted with an auntie and chatted a little. She then bought her 便当at NT80 I think. She got the bigger ones which look like this.

Wow blogging at 12.21am and looking at these photos really made my stomach growl like mad. 

These lunch sets are very popular and will be snapped up really fast. The auntie warned us. So, although it was just 10 plus in the morning, we decided to buy first and eat later. We got the smaller ones at NT60 each.

It does taste good. Kinda worth the money. I really love Taiwan food. 

As our destination pressed nearer, the climate outside seemed colder. I was a little worried. I have found out that River Tracing activities normally begin from April, with the peak traffic in July. I am so afraid of coldness, I was really scared how I was going to survive in such a weather.

Thankfully, after we got out of the train, the climate seemed friendlier - just like that of Singapore's.

I had missed my guide's call. I guessed he was really pissed with us. He didn't even offer us a hand with all the heavy luggages. The 2 of us towed our luggages on our own and into the mini bus.

River Tracing 索溪

We first went to the police station to get our paperwork done as venue at Sha Po Tang 沙婆塘 was a protected ecological area.

I asked if there was any mineral water and the guide told us to drink from the lake! It was indeed refreshing but there was too much calcium carbonate? Or don't know what chemicals. So too much of it will do the kidney no good.

Costumes were provided for us and we changed into them in the makeshift changing area.

Once we are done, under the instructions of our guide, we got accustomed to the water temperature. After which, our adventure truly began.

First shot before we set off.

The first obstacle. The guide I think his name was Xiao Quan / Xiao Huang? Anyways, he said that he, together with other guides would recce the place again after a major earthquake. Hualien is known for its earthquake by the way. It has since become a way of life for people living there. So he said that there was a big rock somewhere but the natural disaster totally destroyed it.

We trudged, we persevered, stretched our muscles, cut our fingers. It was indeed a wonderful experience. It brings trekking to a whole new level. And the best part is we have the guide to ourselves so we can really take our time and enjoy the moment. Haha.

We ended the activity with a cliff diving at the 2nd storey. I was really scared. The guide said to run off and jump right in. Lin went first because I chickened out. I told the guide to just push me from behind. But he said I may hit the rocks. I took a few more minutes psychoing myself before I made the plunge.

My landing was perfect I thought. Contact lenses were still safely stuck on my eyeballs. Hehe. Lin said she felt the water cut through her butt and hands like razor.

Us, after the plunge

We were then treated to maggi noodles by the stream side. Exchanged stories with the guide. The living conditions between the 3 countries (Lin is a Thai).  Life stories. Others' lives always intrigue me. It never fails to make me ponder life a little deeper. Really enjoy such cultural exchange.

After which, we were sent back to our Minsu.

Sunrise Minsu 

The guide drove us back to our Minsu. It was really pretty! We got the supreme room and paid a little more as the standard ones were full. It was for NT1599 per night.

There was no lift. We tugged our luggage and climbed up. Thankfully it was only on the second floor.

Zhiqiang Night Market 志强夜市

It was a 10 minutes walk from the minsu. Or slightly longer. Actually Hualien is really a small city so I guess it is pretty accessible for most minsus? Street lamps were quite dim. It was really dark. We sang our way to the night market hehe.

I like all of the above except oyster omelette and the smelly tofu. Singapore's oyster omelette still rules. And as for smelly tofu, it was my first time eating that, but I thought it was not smelly enough. Tasted just like normal tofu.

After walking home, we went 7 11 and bought breakfast for the next morning. Saw this:

So LOL right! But we didn't buy hahaha.

So that concludes first day in Hualien, Taiwan.

Day 2 is my main highlight of the trip! Stay tuned!

Signing off,

Sarah