Taiwan

10/25/02 - Taipei  We took a train to Taipei and walked a couple of blocks to the Senator Hotel.  A small, simple and totally adequate room.  We then took the subway to the Chiang Kaishek memorial.  Very pleasant, probably excessive.  From there we walked to Lungshan Temple.  It was large and busy, the air thick with the smoke of incense.  On the way back to the hotel we happened upon Wuchang Street, a new and bustling shopping and entertainment area.  The street is now a pedestrian walkway and the area teems with cinemas, fast food, clothing and music stores, etc.  We checked out California Fitness hoping for an affordable short-term membership to no avail.  Our last stop was a CD/DVD shop where we loaded up with some more cheap DVDs. 

10/26/02 - Taipei  This morning began with a walk to Caves bookstore to find some travel books for our future destinations.  On the way to the subway we found a bakery and had a little bread and cheese lunch.  The next stop was Chiang Kaishek's former residence.   The large grounds were very busy, but in poor condition and not very interesting.  The residence itself was off limits.  So it was back to the subway and then a 35 min. bus up a winding road to Yangmingshan, a very large national park.  It too was a disappointment as it was more urban and developed than we expected (the bus left us off between Starbucks and 7-Eleven).  We both went for a run and then promptly caught a bus, then a subway to get back home.  We showered and left for the Hilton to meet Serena, a SERVAS member (a world-wide organization of people interested in meeting foreign travelers).  We met her, as well as Alice and Dewy, a Welch man teaching English in Taipei.  We went to Yoshinoya (a Japanese fast food noodle restaurant) and chatted.  Next we had some ice cream and then walked through a night market.  From belt buckles to duck heads it was all there.  Very crowded, very vibrant.  Things took a turn for the worse when we entered Snake Alley.  Here they'll gladly behead and gut a snake dinner for you.  If it tastes just like chicken, why don't they just eat chicken (or rooster)?  They also had a lovely variety of snake blood, venom and god-knows-what-else for the drinking.  Another fine establishment was lopping heads off of live turtles.  Shockingly, I found a snack elsewhere.

10/27/02 - Taroko Gorge  This morning we took an early 3 hour train ride to Hualien and then caught a 1 1/2 hour bus to Taroko Gorge.  The bus ride was a slow, twisting, death-defying ride into the beautiful and severe gorge.  We both arrived feeling a bit queasy so, being the good husband that I am, I walked off to the 4-star Formosa hotel (instead of the Catholic hostel) and swung a great deal for the night.  This is a beautiful place: shops restaurants, spa, indoor pool, etc.  Certainly not what you would expect in such a remote place.  We lounged in our room and enjoyed the luxury.  Leanne soaked in the large tub and I finished "The Grapes of Wrath", which I had started in Japan.  We used the gym and then showered in time for the kitchy aboriginal folk dance show.  Then it was dinner and sleep under our goose down comforter. 

10/28/02 - Taroko Gorge  Did I mention that the breakfast buffet was included?  If only I ate quail eggs.  After breakfast Leanne watched the World Series and I asked stupid questions about the game.  At 11:15am we took a brief bus ride to a t trailhead and began our 7 mile (3.5 miles each way) hike.  The gorge was beautiful and there were two pedestrian suspension bridges along the way.  They are not for the faint of heart.  The climb was strenuous, we ascended 1,500 ft.  On the way down we watched a troop of monkeys monkey around.  Once back at the trailhead we walked along the roadway back towards our hotel.  The road had several pitch dark tunnels that were a challenge to walk through.  We scurried along the narrow sidewalk either when a passing car illuminated the way or with the aid of our camera's flash.  Halfway along we were picked up by a couple we had befriended on the hike and we were able to avoid walking through the last dark tunnel.  Just before the hotel we started our second hike.  This was a flat 3 mile (1.5 miles each way) walk to a pleasant waterfall.  Oddly, the walk included several pitch dark tunnels in which we had to feel our way along the handrail.  We then returned to our posh hotel.  Did I mention the free passes to the onsen (Japanese style hot baths)?  We scrubbed, soaked and relaxed before dinner.  We then caught a 6:30pm bus and began our descent back to Hualien.  Tip to travelers: if you stow your bags in the compartment under the bus (you know the kind with the remotely operated power doors) make sure the driver isn't about to close the doors before you crawl in to retrieve a bag.  Leanne didn't, and well, nearly got eaten.  She got a conk on the melon and I screamed at the dazed driver in English.  It was kind of exciting - and cost me another night in a swank hotel.  I got ice for Leanne's head and we went to bed.

10/29/02 - Hualien  We had breakfast at the hotel and I then went for a run around town.  Leanne looked for an English language bookstore.  We got some microwaved Asian meals at 7-Eleven and ate them during our 3 hour train ride back to Taipei.  There we changed to the airport bus and caught a 7:10pm flight to Hong Kong.

Taiwan Summary  The cities we visited were all very busy and congested with scooters everywhere.  They were less clean and orderly than we had experienced in Japan and the stray dog factor was high.  It was interesting to observe a Chinese culture and we enjoyed our stay, but we were not overwhelmed.  Meeting the folks from SERVAS was an very enjoyable and a good education.  Weather: Warm to hot, mostly sunny.  Currency: $1 = 35 NT (New Taiwan dollars).