First Time Taiwan: Hiking, Biking and Train Trips
My partner and I enjoy hiking and biking when we travel, and one day we read an article about doing just that in a place called Taroko Gorge in Taiwan. It sounded like an incredible experience, so we made up our minds to travel there as Taiwan was a country that we had not previously visited, and we’d also heard it was a gourmand’s delight!
We ended up seeing a lot of Taiwan in the 10 days we were there. For older travellers who have not been there before and would like to see more of the country’s natural attractions than its city life, our itinerary is one that I can highly recommend, except for the overnight stay in Kaohsiung which I would try to avoid on any future trip.
I flew into Taipei, the capital city, at the end of November to escape the beginning of winter in Budapest. My partner joined me from Australia. The island of Taiwan has a population of 23.6 million and covers an area of 36,200 square kilometres.
Taiwan has a long and tumultuous history of occupation and war. Modern day Taiwan has taken a little bit of each part of its history to make the country what it is today. Many Taiwanese would like to be completely independent from mainland China, but the Chinese government still views the island as a breakaway province.
An overhead urban railway line in busy Taipei.
Taipei is the political, economic, and cultural centre of Taiwan. The country is warm for most of the year and because it is situated in both tropical and sub-tropical zones, it is subject to typhoons from July to September. The climate in November was tropical and for the most part wet while we were there. We had prebooked accommodation through Airbnb. Our digs in Taipei were a stylishly renovated apartment in a nondescript apartment block in the Wunshan District, 15 minutes by train or bus from the city centre.
Despite our concerns that language might be a barrier, we found the staff at the train stations all spoke English and the signs were in both Chinese and English. The public transport was clean and efficient and the Taiwanese people excessively polite.
Our first morning outing was to the Maokong Gondola, a 4.3 km lift transport system that saw us dangling in a glass-bottomed cable car above lush tropical rain forest. The French-made gondola operates between the Taipei Zoo and the tea growing region of Maokong in the hills. We stopped and walked through the meandering town of Maokong where a fine tropical mist was falling the whole time. This area is a proliferation of teahouses and small restaurants. We ate from a roadside vendor. The first of many delicious meals in Taiwan.
Upon our return, we visited the Taipei Zoo and I saw real pandas for the first time. The Taipei Zoo has a successful breeding program for these endangered beauties. The zoo is set in lush gardens and is close to public transport.
The Maokong tea plantations are easy to reach from Taipei.
Our first night saw us at the Raohe Night Market in the Songshan District. The night markets in Taipei are second to none. The smell of delicious and not-so-delicious aromas hits you straight away. The local delicacy of fermented tofu (Stinky Tofu) is a smell that I never became accustomed to. However, the delicious smells were too good to ignore. We had heard that the Taiwanese black pepper buns were something of a local delight. A meat and spice filled dough that is baked in a hot cannister. We were not disappointed. The queue was long, but the wait was worth it.
The following day we visited the National Palace Museum. An impressive building full of nearly 70,000 artefacts encompassing 8,000 years of history. It is home to the Jadeit Cabbage, Taipei’s answer to the Mona Lisa, which has the locals queueing up to view. Word has it that the cabbage belonged to Jin Fei, consort of the Qing-dynasty Guangxu Emperor.
A visit to Beitou Hot Springs on the north side of the city the next morning was an interesting experience. The Taiwanese take their bathing seriously. Neck-to-knee costumes were required and if you only had your bikini or briefs, long shorts could be purchased for a small cost. We found that we were fish out of water, being the only westerners at the baths. After having the whistle blown at us several times for doing the wrong thing, we finally worked out how it all worked. There are a series of baths of increasing temperature that you are supposed to move through until you feel like a boiled cabbage.
With wobbly legs and feeling suitably boiled, we set off to find lunch. This time hunting down another market that we had researched in the Beitou district. The Beitou Market was a joy to behold. Sushi and fresh produce as far as the eye could see. We ate like kings before heading back to our apartment to prepare for the next leg of our journey.
Fresh sushi for lunch at the Beitou Market.
The following morning, we travelled three hours by train to the township of Sioulin (also spelled Xiulin) at the foot of the majestic mountains of the Taroko National Park in Hualien County about 100 km south of Taipei, to embark on the hiking and biking adventure that we had come so far to do. We had prearranged a homestay in Sioulin at Taroko Lodge. The family had a modest home set at the foot of the mountains, with room for travellers.
Rihang, our host, picked us up from the train station. He had organised entry passes to the national park so we could both trek and mountain bike ride during our two-night stay. We completed two hikes and a downhill mountain bike ride. It was an exhilarating couple of days during which we enjoyed some breathtaking views and clean mountain air.
It was definitely worth going all that way to the Taroko National Park which we seemed to have almost to ourselves. There are several hiking trails — some not for the faint hearted! Rihang and his family made us feel very welcome, a delicious freshly cooked breakfast each morning and transport to wherever we pleased.
We were sorry to say goodbye to the family when we got back on the train to Taipei. Once in Taipei we transferred to the high-speed rail for our (very fast) 350 km journey along the west coast to Kaohsiung City. The high-speed railway consists of one line that reaches down the coast and the train travels at an astounding 300 km/hour. Extremely comfortable and over all too quickly. By this stage, the smog on the west coast was very thick. The pollution from China very often encompasses Taiwan in a thick smog, one reason why many locals wear face masks.
The rugged scenery of the Taroko National Park.
Kaohsiung City was not somewhere I wished to spend any more time than we did. Kaohsiung is a massive port city and the island’s largest industrial centre. Pollution was particularly bad while we were there so this may have contributed to my dislike for the city. We slept the night in a hotel where the most exciting thing was the toilets that flush, wash and heat up your behind all with the press of a button.
The next morning, we caught a train to Kenting National Park. The coastal town of Hengchun is a holiday destination for locals, so it had all the trimmings of a holiday town — nightclubs, bars, and music playing. It was the first time we had seen people drinking alcohol outdoors since our arrival in Taiwan.
We stayed in the 4-star, Caesar Park Hotel in Hengchun for 3 nights. Once we had assessed the transport situation, we hired an electric scooter the next day to explore the Kenting National Park. A wild coastline with stunning aqua ocean and reefs, known as a prime spot for diving.
We noted that the Taiwanese and Chinese who visit, tended to have little interaction with the environment. Quite often we were the only people out hiking, swimming, or walking. Full busloads of local and Chinese tourists would arrive at a lookout, disembark, take several photos, and then get back on the bus.
The coastline of the beautiful Kenting National Park.
Because our flights back to Australia were leaving from Taipei, we returned to the city on the high-speed train to enjoy our final few days. Our accommodation this time was a 4-star hotel with views of the city. We took the opportunity to explore the night markets we had yet to visit, as well as some small local restaurants. We found some terrific Japanese restaurants and some funky themed bars.
The Taipei City Mall, an incredible underground market that spans 825 metres with 28 entrances and exits was also on our list of things to do. The mall boasts 187 shops and a carpark on the second floor underground. The shopping experience was quite overwhelming, and it was then we realised why there weren’t many people on the streets.
Taiwan was well worth the visit. Taipei delighted and surprised us. We felt truly privileged to see the beauty of the Taroko National Park and the wild coast of Kenting. If we get the chance again, we will return.
All images: © Lisa Ikin
