Hiking Taiwan

The Four Beasts is a local hiking trail by the infamous Taipei 101. It is a small series of mountains that stretch on the city's outskirts and then travel around New Taipei City and eventually down the central part of Taiwan. Each "beast" is named accordingly: elephant, tiger, lion, and leopard. There are also other peaks (that I know of): 9-5 Peak and Mt. Thumb. All are connected by a series of intricate hiking trails that wind through the mountains. It's very cool to see all of the plant life and animals!

The hike to Elephant Mountain starts right from the road. You first take a hike up a long flight of steps, which is a bit challenging if you haven't hiked in a while. It probably took me about 15 minutes to scale the steps, but I was very tired and sweaty by the end! But once I reached the top of the mountain, there are a few large boulders decorated with the carvings of people's names or quotes, and a few benches. You can certainly climb the boulders for a fantastic view of the city!

During this specific hike, I wandered further into the densely jungle-covered mountains and came upon a series of temples. It was very quiet, giving the mountains almost a sense of spiritual power. Statues and shrines decorated the mountain sides. As the afternoon waned on, the monks in the temples began their daily chanting, which echoed throughout the entire mountain side. It was one of the most incredible things I've encountered. It was like the mountains themselves were singing. If I could stay in those mountains for days, I definitely would. 

However, my favorite peak (Mt. Thumb) was a little difficult to get to. I had to travel far into the back of the mountain chain, turned off the beaten path onto a series of small stones that led up the mountain side in a zig-zag fashion. As I got higher and higher, the view became all the more spectacular. Eventually though, I came upon a sheer uprising that required the use of ropes to climb the side. That was what I was looking for! The ropes were slippery though, so I kept sliding down (it was storming that day). But after about 15 minutes I made it up the side and continued on to a small park. From there I took a turn to climb higher which turned into a bare rock face. From there was Mt. Thumb, where all of Taipei could be seen! (The below picture is on a good day) Just being up there, alone, with the wind blowing and the sun shining... it was spectacular. One of my favorite spots in all of Taipei, just to sit and think...

In Northern Taiwan is a national park called Yangmingshan, which incorporates several hiking trails twisting throughout the park. Within the park is a mountain called Seven-Star Mountain, which attracts hikers from all around to climb! Although I wasn't able to climb it (getting lost), I was able to hike through the rest of the park. There were plenty of waterfalls, shrines, and interesting pavilions built to protect the hikers from the rain. In the central part of the park is a large exhibit of flowers, in which is made a huge spectacle every year called the "Yangmingshan Flower Festival." Below is what it looked like! There were hundreds of trees, bushes, and plants everywhere in full bloom, giving an array of color everywhere! Since it was cloudy that day I went, the colors really brightened up the day. :) 

Also in Northern Taiwan is a famous geological park called Yeliu (Yehliu). It is famous because of the odd rock formations that were made by the change in sea level, which made unique pieces that seem to stand on thin pillars. It was really amazing, attracting hundreds of tourists! However, if you could sneak past everyone, there was a path that led up to a small mountain which then looped around to the other side. On the other side there were only a few people, either fishing or enjoying the ocean view. But because of the unique geological formations, I decided to climb up the side of the small mountain and climb around. It was really fun! It provided a really nice view of the ocean crashing up onto the shore. Especially on that sunny day, only the horizon was the limit of what I could see. The smell of sea water, the cool ocean breezes, the quiet of the mountain. What a place!

The last spot is called Zhinan Temple (Chih Nan Temple), which resides high in Monkey Mountain in Muzha, New Taipei City. It is a Taoist temple that is on the hidden side of the mountain that faces West. Barely anyone is up there, so the serene solitude and beauty of the mountain is wonderful. I decided to hike up the mountain, which took a lot longer than I thought. But it was well worth it. The jungle was the same as the Four Beasts, but huge golden orb weave spiders filled the trees. They were nearly as big as my hand (!) dangling from above. Haha, I was on alert the entire time. But once I reached the temple, I knew that it was well worth the time. 

These three spots were some of my favorites. They allowed me to just think, and to be with nature. After being in bustling Taipei for long days during the week, it was good to get away and see Taiwan for what it naturally is. 

Lantern Festival (燈會 denghui)

The Chinese New Year goes on for two weeks, and each of the days has a different corresponding activity that the people do. On the last day, celebrating the new year once more, there is a lantern festival. It show cases the schools' and groups' lanterns around the city. They are all handmade, and quite the magnificent works of art! Some are traditional lanterns, some are contemporary types of the typical lantern, and some are just fun. I saw the basic spherical lantern with designs on the outside, tubular lanterns made by local artists, and even "transformers" made into lanterns. Thousands of people showed up, from near and far. And thus, you can probably tell the about the crowds. It was packed and I was being pushed around in all directions!

I went to the Taipei Lantern Festival one evening to see what all the business was about. It was jam packed! I could barely get 100 meters without have an ounce of trouble. Haha! But the lanterns were impressive! A good amount of them were made by elementary and middle school students. Why couldn't we make these lanterns when were their ages? They were huge, and super artistic! Such detail and difficulty... I was amazed. 

There were even shows going on: puppet shows (puppeteering is a popular art here in Taiwan, it is both fun and traditional!). There was also an acrobatic show by the Taipei Opera House, which was really cool. 

However, I didn't stay in Taipei, I went back to Lukang to visit my host family once again to see the Taiwan Lantern Festival. Here there was many more people, more than I had ever seen. But the sights were truly not to miss. It was very similar to the festival in Taipei, that with lanterns being showcased from students, artists, and different groups. But in the middle of the festival grounds was a huge lantern made to be a dragon. When it was lit, there were lights, lasers, fog, and music going everywhere! People cheered and shot off fireworks; the entire place had this aura of pure joy. It was super cool. 

Plus, there was a bunch of food to go around, and we got to try some new things. But I was being picked out by some locals to get their pictures taken with me! What can I say, I'm famous! Haha. 

The next day we went back to the grounds and toured around in the daylight. Disneyland Tokyo came to the festival and held a huge parade with dancers, bands, and even some characters! That was a real treat, because they didn't just do the spectacles you see in Disneyworld, but traditional dances from Japan and Taiwan. Everywhere there were groups putting on different dances and music (some where even on stilts!). 

I can say, the Taiwanese definitely know how to party and celebrate. The Chinese New Year is the most important festival to them. It's like our Christmas, and it's extraordinary, indeed. But with the new year coming to a close, it starts the year with great memories and good wishes for the upcoming days ahead. 

Chinese New Year

The Chinese New Year is a huge spectacle in Taiwan and in many Asian countries. It is a celebration of the renewal of the lunar calendar, which on this year fell in late January. For an entire week people close down shop and spend time with their families, occasionally going to an event. But there's massive amount of eating and drinking. And let me tell you, I was stuffed!

For the New Year I went down to Lukang in Changhua County, which is about 3 hours south of Taipei by bus. The trip down there was alright, but I had to unexpectedly change buses. The driver pulled to the side and turned off the bus. Thinking I was there I just got off. He stopped me and said: "Where are you going to?" (In Chinese of course) And I answered him. At my response he kind of freaked out, grabbed my arm and my luggage, and quickly dragged me across the highway which we were on, and told to make a break for it to the nearest bus station. It was crazy! I ran.... and ran... thank God that the bus driver saw me and waited for me. Phew! Haha!

But once I arrived in Lukang, I was met by my wonderful host family. It turned out that the TA in one of my classes was in my host family. So I already knew him! That really helped actually, because when I meet new people I am very shy, but since I knew him, I felt like I could ease into being the normal me easier. Of course, I was still shy, but the family was definitely open and hospitable.

Right when I arrived, "Mom" (haha) had dinner all ready! But before I could see it, we had to go to the third floor of the house and honor the ancestors. It is a traditional belief to let the ancestors "eat" and bless the food first before you eat it. In that sense, spirit money, which is specially designed pieces of paper, is burned in a furnace. Spirit money is a way of sending good tidings to the spirit world. Nick (my TA) told me it was so they could have fun in the spirit world. Haha, I don't know if that's true or not. But anyways, he got the point across.

Then we went down to eat, and it was a massive set of delicious foods, most of them I had never seen before! There was shrimp with rice noodles, chilled pork, prawns, seafood hot pot, greens (namely qingcai), cabbage, and various other delicious dishes. Two specific dishes that I remember were three seafood dishes. At first Nick gave me a prawn and put it in my bowl. I looked at him and said: "What do I do with this?" They all laughed and taught me how to eat it. I was quite impressed with myself, and I ate it too! Then they gave me a toothpick with a piece of pear and a brown-reddish chuck of something on it. When I asked what it was, they told me it was compressed and dried fish eggs. The saltiness from the eggs goes well with the sweetness of the pear. That was actually pretty hard to eat, as I am not keen on seafood, especially fish eggs. Haha, but it went down. And lastly they opened up a plastic container of dried mini shrimp. I looked up at "Dad" (haha) and he just popped it in his mouth, head, legs, and all. I was shocked! But it did it, with plenty of Taiwan Beer to wash it down! Haha!

Drinking and eating are very important parts of Chinese New Year. It brings people together to enjoy food and each others' company, and it is a blessing in the bounty that we share. So, I had plenty of stuff to drink. When I didn't want anymore beer (because I couldn't handle anymore), they brought out the hard Kaoliang liquor! And when I couldn't handle anymore of that, they brought me over to their next door neighbors (relatives) and brought out the whiskey! Man, I was done by the end of the night. But it was a good night, filled with laughter, singing, and lots of new friends.

The next days we went around the town, touring through the markets, temples, and shops, and seeing the different sights. We took tons of pictures and had really funs moments. They tried to get me to try some new soup in the market. It was brown and think with tons of noodles in it. I asked what it was: "Oh, that's a soup with the things in the ground, that birds eat." EARTHWORMS?! Oh my gosh... I didn't want to eat that at all. But, they had already ordered me a bowl before I could say anything. Thank God though, it was just noodles. No worms. PHEW! Haha! Those guys.... :P

We also went up to the mountain and saw the giant statue of Buddha. It is an 80+ foot statue of the Buddha sitting on a giant lotus flower. The statue itself is on the tallest mountain in the area, so it can be seen from all around. Supposedly the area is haunted because the statue is built on a graveyard, and thus the people put Buddha there to comfort the dead and to help those in this world. I think that's pretty reasonable.

To end the week, we ate more and more, drank lots and lots, and visited many more people, singing songs and enjoying each others' company (with mahjong and KTV). Haha. It was a fantastic weekend and a memory I will never ever forget. I regard them as my second family, as they treated me like a son. It is truly astonishing how the Taiwanese are so welcoming and friendly. They welcomed a complete stranger into their house, and right from the start, accepted me into their family and loved me. What a wonderful family!

Holidays in Taiwan

Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's Day, three holidays which are big in the West, but small in the East. In fact, they have really only been receiving popularity in the past couple of decades. Of course, these are more Christian and American holidays (save New Years), but, as you might say "our holidays" are slowing making way into the Eastern world.
As Thanksgiving was coming, I was not for one to skip out on one of the few times of the year that I could pig out more than usual. So I searched and searched for Thanksgiving celebrations in Taiwan: either a parade, an event, or even just a place to have dinner. Nothing. Well, nothing more than the occasional bar putting on a "Western Thanksgiving Evening." Now, being away from America I was kind of speculative of a full-out Western Thanksgiving. But I really wanted to give it a shot, as I couldn't miss out on an important holiday for me!
So I grabbed some friends and we went out to a bar called "The Tavern," which was more of a sports bar: with tv's all around, nice booths, and plenty of beer and alcohol you could have for all your sports. But when we arrived the place wasn't that full, but at the far end of the room was a huge buffet of food. I rushed over and saw turkey, potatoes, stuffing, ham, desserts, and even some Chinese dishes to fill in the gaps! YES!

Now Christmas was a different matter. Christmas is celebrated over here due to the Christian tradition, but it is not filled with the Baby Jesus theme. Instead it is everything BUT that. I mean, sure, you can find places with Jesus in them (churches), but otherwise the tradition of gift giving, gathering for food, and decorating are all in big themes. For instance, Taipei 101's shopping mall and surrounding grounds were decorated with lights, Christmas trees, and even a "Christmas Lover's Lane" which had little shops. Pretty cool! Christmas music was in the air, and a certain joy was everywhere. I definitely felt Christmas here, but with no snow and asian cuisine :)

(This is a photo of the "Leg Christmas Tree" near Taipei 101. A little twist on the traditional tree)

New Year's Eve was a different prospect though. Although it wasn't the thing where everyone gathered around and watched football or whatnot, but everyone gathered to the Taipei 101 area to enjoy concerts by various Taiwanese pop stars, shows, and great food. There were tons and tons of people, filling every possible intersection and road where you could clearly see the 101. The 101, however, was decked out with tons of fireworks that went up in a show of massive proportions. It was spectacular! Below is a video of how it worked out.