Taiwan Days 6 and 7 - Sun Moon Lake and Taichung
Day 1 - Jingtong and Yilan
Days 2, 3 - Yilan and Hualien
Day 4 - Taroko Gorge
Days 4 and 5 - Cingjing
Sun Moon Lake
Day 6 - We were at the halfway mark of our trip already.
We departed from Cingjing and headed towards Nantou's famous Sun Moon Lake.
The Chinese New Year week-long holiday was over by then so the crowds were gone so it was very peaceful. I was a bit upset that the weather was so warm and muggy in comparison to the cool mountain air we had been experiencing the past few days!
We took the Sun Moon Lake Ropeway cable car across the lake. The half hour ride was quite uneventful and maybe even a bit boring ;) We also skipped visiting the Farmosan Aboriginal Cultural Village (a theme park) because we don’t fancy theme parks.
Our guide Sky then brought us for a ferry ride across the majestic lake.
The kids were quite mesmerised by the lapping waves in the wake of the boat. We saw small fishing huts and Lalu Island, a tiny patch of land in the middle of the lake which is believed to be the home of the Thao aboriginal people’s ancestral spirits.
We got off when the ferry docked and wandered along Ita Thao Shopping Street, the main settlement for Thao aborigines - Taiwan’s smallest ethnic group. There wasn’t very much to see or do so we hopped on the next return ferry.
We had lunch at one of the restaurants along the lake. We ate an interesting meal of wild boar meat (I think), pickled mountain vegetables, small fish caught from the lake. I was very fascinated by our plates and cups which were intricately carved from bamboo. Dessert was coffee jelly topped with condensed milk and sugar balls.
There were quite a number of souvenir shops here. I bought a lot of local snacks such as dried mushrooms, fish/cuttlefish snacks and wheat biscuits (in sakura, basil and chili flavours) to bring home.
En route to Taichung, we stopped for icecream at the popular 18degC Chocolate Factory in Puli.
Taichung
We arrived in Taichung in the late evening. It was our first city stop during the trip. Sky deposited us at the famous Fengjia night market for a wander.
It was very crowded and I had no choice but to strap Ry in the carrier to stop him from running all over. Argh, night markets are really not meant for active toddlers!
We did try some interesting street food, like a ngoh hiang wrapped in glutinous rice, fried chicken chop, wasabi takopachi and starfruit juice. I plucked up my courage to try smelly tofu that night but alas (or should I say, fortunately?), the stall was closed for the night.
We got cheap sunnies for the kids and some Korean hair accessories for myself before checking into a hotel for the night.
Next morning, we travelled northwards from Taichung city towards Miaoli.
Along the way, we made a stop at Lavender Cottage, a dreamy little lavender plantation/souvenir shop/cafe in the middle of nowhere. It was well worth the long drive.
We took a little hike to check out the terraced lavender slopes, wrote our wishes and hung them on a tree (Sean drew a funny pic of him and 'ugly didi') and tried some lavender and cherry blossom icecream at the cafe. I also couldn't resist buying toiletries to bring home as gifts.
It was a very peaceful and charming experience I felt like I was in another world altogether. If you are ever in Taichung, I would highly recommend visiting this place :)
And then, it was onto the Flying Cow Ranch in Miaoli.
PS. Click on the Taiwan tag below to read more about our trip.
Days 2, 3 - Yilan and Hualien
Day 4 - Taroko Gorge
Days 4 and 5 - Cingjing
Sun Moon Lake
Day 6 - We were at the halfway mark of our trip already.
We departed from Cingjing and headed towards Nantou's famous Sun Moon Lake.
The Chinese New Year week-long holiday was over by then so the crowds were gone so it was very peaceful. I was a bit upset that the weather was so warm and muggy in comparison to the cool mountain air we had been experiencing the past few days!
We took the Sun Moon Lake Ropeway cable car across the lake. The half hour ride was quite uneventful and maybe even a bit boring ;) We also skipped visiting the Farmosan Aboriginal Cultural Village (a theme park) because we don’t fancy theme parks.
Our guide Sky then brought us for a ferry ride across the majestic lake.
The kids were quite mesmerised by the lapping waves in the wake of the boat. We saw small fishing huts and Lalu Island, a tiny patch of land in the middle of the lake which is believed to be the home of the Thao aboriginal people’s ancestral spirits.
We got off when the ferry docked and wandered along Ita Thao Shopping Street, the main settlement for Thao aborigines - Taiwan’s smallest ethnic group. There wasn’t very much to see or do so we hopped on the next return ferry.
We had lunch at one of the restaurants along the lake. We ate an interesting meal of wild boar meat (I think), pickled mountain vegetables, small fish caught from the lake. I was very fascinated by our plates and cups which were intricately carved from bamboo. Dessert was coffee jelly topped with condensed milk and sugar balls.
There were quite a number of souvenir shops here. I bought a lot of local snacks such as dried mushrooms, fish/cuttlefish snacks and wheat biscuits (in sakura, basil and chili flavours) to bring home.
En route to Taichung, we stopped for icecream at the popular 18degC Chocolate Factory in Puli.
Taichung
We arrived in Taichung in the late evening. It was our first city stop during the trip. Sky deposited us at the famous Fengjia night market for a wander.
It was very crowded and I had no choice but to strap Ry in the carrier to stop him from running all over. Argh, night markets are really not meant for active toddlers!
We did try some interesting street food, like a ngoh hiang wrapped in glutinous rice, fried chicken chop, wasabi takopachi and starfruit juice. I plucked up my courage to try smelly tofu that night but alas (or should I say, fortunately?), the stall was closed for the night.
We got cheap sunnies for the kids and some Korean hair accessories for myself before checking into a hotel for the night.
Next morning, we travelled northwards from Taichung city towards Miaoli.
Along the way, we made a stop at Lavender Cottage, a dreamy little lavender plantation/souvenir shop/cafe in the middle of nowhere. It was well worth the long drive.
We took a little hike to check out the terraced lavender slopes, wrote our wishes and hung them on a tree (Sean drew a funny pic of him and 'ugly didi') and tried some lavender and cherry blossom icecream at the cafe. I also couldn't resist buying toiletries to bring home as gifts.
It was a very peaceful and charming experience I felt like I was in another world altogether. If you are ever in Taichung, I would highly recommend visiting this place :)
And then, it was onto the Flying Cow Ranch in Miaoli.
PS. Click on the Taiwan tag below to read more about our trip.