Taiwan (Western Part) – 9 days Free n Easy Journey; Day 4 (3)

Hi there!!! Welcome to my posting if it is your first visit. In fact, you are following me on my journey to Taiwan.

Yup, we are still walking in the Alishan Mountain trail. Along the trail, we came to a temple. Lovely colour of the leaves. It is already beginning winter in Taiwan but you can catch autumn leaves.

  

It’s called Cihyun Temple.
  

Further down the trail,  Lots of giant cypress tree on the Giant Tree Broadwalk-1 & -2 trail.

Can you see the wooden trail down the slope?

Lots of steps but it worth the walk up especially with the wonderful cool weather.

Another beautiful walk on the trail through the trees.

Lots of moss on the tree roots. So you can guess there tress are really old…..

  

Hey… it is not the end yet. More to come, Just follow me and see what up on the next posting. =)

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Taiwan (Western Part) – 9 days Free n Easy Journey; Day 4 (2)

Hi!! We are still in Alishan Mountains in the Alishan Township in Chiayi County, Taiwan. It is located at Alishan National Scenic Park

We are currently walking along the walking trails in the old forest; Giant Tree Trail. If you have missed out my earlier posting, please do visit them and we will ‘e-wait’ for you till you catch up. No rush.  =)

Along the trail we came about a wooden shed which is the Alishan Museum.

An old trunk displayed in the museum. It shows how old these Formosan red cypress trees are.  Some are these tree are 2000 to 3000 years old!!! The oldest tree; “Alishan Sacred Tree” here was 3,000 years old by it felled by heavy rainstorms in 1997.

  

Nearby is the Stele of Merit,

Lots of really old red Cypress trees.

Just look at the size of the trunk……. Thousand Year Cypress

A shot from bottom up….

More pictures for you all to enjoy….

This is only midway through the trail. More pictures coming in the next posting. If you have not followed me yet, pls do follow so that you will not missed out on my next posting on this series of e-travel.

Taiwan (Western Part) – 9 days Free n Easy Journey; Day 4 (1)

Morning or good day to all!!! This is the 4th day of my e-travel to Taiwan (Western Part) of my 9 days trip. Hope that you re enjoying my e-travel series.

Today, we are on our way to Alishan Mountains. Yup, from Tainan, you can catch a train to Chiayi station and then hope on the bus or train to Alishan. For the train, for now, it only goes up to Fenchihu and you have to grab a van or bus up to Alishan Mountains.  For us, we took the bus as we did not manage to get the train ticket even though when we reached Chiayi station in the early morning. The train tickets sells like hot cakes. Do not worry, if you missed this, you can always catch a train down from Fenchihu. =)

The road heading up to Alishan Mountains is truly a winding road with a short stop along the way for a toilet stop in the van we took. The trip took us 2 hrs till we reach the Alishan town.

We left our bags in the hotel that we had booked as it was to early to check in. Saw other people’s bags which they left at the hotel front office. We did not want to waste too much time but to quickly started our walk along the forest trail of Alishan Mountain.

  

Lovely fresh air. We were quite lucky as earlier in the day before we arrived, it rained. The sky opened up (but I said it too soon)

This is what’s left a cherry blossom tree in winter. Bare!!! It was an easy walk with lots of wooden trails that were built for walkers.

A naked cherry blossom park.

This is totally naked!!!

If you researched Alishan on the internet, there are lots of walking trails which you can choose to walk. Most of them are easy walks. It just short or a long walk.

Walking along the trail, we can across the 3 Generation Tree…. and yes! They were really old! =P

By then, there were more and more tour buses coming up the later part of the morning. It can get really crowded with tourist in such a big place especially on the popular trail. Opps I am also a tourist. How silly of me. =P

Another shot of the old tree trunk and root of the 3 Generation Tree ‘family’. The root is really huge!

Well.. there’s more to see. So follow me on the next posting as I go in further into the walking trail and what’s more to offer. =)

Taiwan (Western Part) – 9 days Free n Easy Journey; Day 3 (6)

Hi there!!! Glad that you have followed me till this far. Hope that I did not ‘tire’ you out.

Anyway.. good news! Now it is time to catch some food to fill the empty stomach of ours. =)

First stop is stopping cooling after walking user the mid noon sun. Yup.. it’s the J-shape cone Korean ice cream; Jipangyi. This stall not only sell J-shape cones but also long spirals ones. Look at the whole load of stocks and size. Guess the girl in the picture ‘had’ the biggest of the biggest J-shape cone ice all for herself. HAHA!!! It’s even bigger and taller than her. Wonder how long it would take her to finish (or to even finish it) before the ice creams melts. =P
  Here’s a stall fried snack. Can’t remember what’s the name. Anyone?

Dried noodle with bean sprout, shrimps and hard boiled egg. This is yummy.

  Coffin Bread is a piece of remarkably thick toast that holds a seafood chowder pool with pork, mushrooms, peas, and carrots. It gets its name because it resembles a coffin.

  Fried oyster  omelet which is made up of sweet potato starch, oysters, egg and vegetables; bean sprout

Walking along Anping old street. It was a weekend and there were lots of people and also lot of food, snacks and drinks to choose from.

Something cool after a long walk; Anping Tofu pudding with sago. It’s worth trying if you have not.

Guess we had ‘filled’ our stomach. Now it is time to move on. Where to next? Wanna know? Then follow me……

Taiwan (Western Part) – 9 days Free n Easy Journey; Day 3 (5)

Hi! Welcome back. Where are we? We are still at Anping Tree House which is located Anping District of Tainan City. If you have missed out on earlier posting, do pop in there where you can get a brief history of this place.

Here are more pictures of Anping Tree House where the Banyan tree practically ‘occupied’ the whole warehouse.
  

Looks at those roots engulfing the whole place…..

What a sight, right?

  

The Banyan tree roots practically ‘clinging’ to the wall of this warehouse.

A panoramic shot….

Look at those roots!!! Old Tait & Company building is just next to Anping Tree House

What are these people doing here? Yup, they are ‘writing’ Chinese calligraphy on stone slabs with water. Well one thing for sure… the ‘ink’ will eventually disappear so that the next person can write his/her thoughts on stone (temporary).

Taking a (self) walking tour in the Old Tait & Company building.

Hope that you have  enjoyed the e-travel so far. In fact we are just only in Day 3 of the 9 days. So, if you do not want to miss out on this travel of mine, do follow me. =)

Taiwan (Western Part) – 9 days Free n Easy Journey; Day 3 (4)

Hi there! Guess you must be wondering why so much water/river views. If you have followed me on my last posting, we are at Taijiang Ecological Culture Zone in Tainan, Taiwan taking a taking a boat tour wetlands along Sihcao Wildlife Preserve and the Yanshui River.

What you see below pictures are Oyster farms at Qigu  Lagoon along the boat tour route.  You can see lot of the oyster farms partitioned by styrofoam and bamboo cranes standing in great numbers, as well as the oyster farmers busy shuttling through for harvesting.

What are these ladies and myself trying to photograph? Well, to our surprise, as we cruised along here, we could see pools of fishes jumping out and in to the water. I mean lots of them but unfortunately we can’t be seen in the picture else it would be great to share it.

The boat tour stopped clear the shore to show the visitors the wildlife living on the mangroves. You could see lot of crabs along the shore.

Well… after the boat tour we took a bus to our next destination. Guess on the bus I caught a teddy ‘hanging’ on tightly to the rail or was it doing chin-up exercises?

Our next stop was at Anping Tree House which is located Anping District of Tainan City. This is one of the sight where you see the interaction of human with nature or more like where you leave nature takes is course over human built structure over a long period. This building used to be the warehouse of Tait Marketing & Distribution Co., Ltd

The warehouse used to store all the goods ready to be shipped overseas but in the Japan Colonial Era, these companies were forced to close their business and Japanese government took over the building in 1911. The main building of Tait & Company was restored in 1981 but the warehouse was left untouched. What sort of tree you may asked that took over? It’s the banyan tree that actually took occupancy of this warehouse.

Then in 2004, the location was redesigned to be more walk able, with safety structure rebuilt in the building, wooden trails, and stairs, these make people to feel the atmosphere of the house. Looks cool right?

  They even built a platform that you could walk and see from higher ground.

  This is a panoramic view from the platform of the banyan tree taking occupancy of the warehouse.

Cool? More coming. Stay tune on the next posting. Where too? If you want to know, then follow me on my e-travel and hope you will enjoy the e-walk with me through my journey in Taiwan.

Taiwan (Western Part) – 9 days Free n Easy Journey; Day 3 (3)

Welcome back! Which part of Taiwan are you now if you just followed me? We are outside the Taiwan Salt Museum Qigu District of Tainan.  If you have missed my tour on the Taiwan Salt Museum, you can refer to my previous blog.

The museum has a nice structure which is like a pyramid shape. Worth the visit if you are there but do not expect super great expectation.

We are now heading back to Taijiang National Park to visit Taijiang Ecological Culture Zone. To get there, we are going to catch the tourist bus again. In fact, this is the last stop for the tourist bus.

Taijiang Ecological Culture Zone is the Sihcao Park which includes Dazhong Temple, Sihcao Artillery Fort, a small whale museum, walking paths, and the docks for boat tours of the mangrove green tunnel and the wetlands along Sihcao Wildlife Preserve and the Yanshui River just north of Anping. So you got a choice of what you like. On my previous visit, I have already took the boat tour on the mangrove green tunnel which was very interesting. It was a 30 mins ride. You can refer to my previous blog on this; Taiwan – Tainan; 2 Days Trip on History

This time around, I took boat tour to the wetlands along Sihcao Wildlife Preserve and the Yanshui River.  

This boat ride is much longer; 70 mins. We went on a much bigger boat, canopy-covered that spreads out into more open territory.  The first part of the trip is a little dull, but once the boat hits the Yanshui River, the ride really improves and also more sight to enjoy.

You’ll see a lot of fishing nets, mangroves, water birds and various other flora, fauna, and fishing activities. A guide, yes, a guide that gives an informative explanation of the trip, but it’s only in Chinese. So if you do not understand Chinese, do not worry. Just enjoy the view like what I did. =P

  

Mangroves…..

It pulls in close to many of the sandbanks that are home to dozens of bird species. Along with various egrets and ibises, many spoon-bills and other feathered creatures make their migratory stops here, especially in the spring and fall.

Stilt house long the river banks.

Well, the boat tour is still on. Has not ended yet. Follow me to see what we got to see next. IF you haven’t followed me on my e-travel, then quickly follow me. =)

Taiwan (Western Part) – 9 days Free n Easy Journey; Day 3 (2)

Hi!! You have reached Cigu Salt Mountain, or Qigu Yanshan which is the last stop for the tourist bus before it heads back to town.

This area’s long history of generating salt and its current contribution of over 60% of the nations salt production. It is pretty clear why the area is so renown for this mineral substance. This place (the the museum) can give you little background into the salt industry, but it’s worth seeing just for how bizarre it is.

Chigu Salt Mountain….. mmm I think a small hill would be more appropriate. =P. The mountain itself is a two hectare mound of salt left over from the Taiwan Salt Corporation’s Cigu Salt Fields.

  Look like the ‘mountain’ is high from here but…..  Th hill is climbable, and the surrounding view of the ever-flat area surrounding it is enjoyed by busloads of aged tourists on a daily basis.(but do not put too much high expectation when you are up there. =P) . Steps have been carved into the hard salt to make for easy climbing.

 

Exhibitions of characters made from salt

Taiwan Salt Museum . The shape and the look of the salt piles are strategically designed so that the two piles look like two white pyramids rising out of the salt field.

The museum exhibits does tell you the history of the production from the beginning till salt field ceased production in May 2002. It is very interesting museum if you are not familiar about salt production in pan field.

More exhibits…..

Cute cartoon characters that molded out from salt

….very interesting items; ‘cabbage’ made from salt

Ever wondered how they made them?

These are some of the exhibits which you can in the museum.

A model of the salt production factory back then.

Want more? Follow me if you have not. =)

Taiwan (Western Part) – 9 days Free n Easy Journey; Day 3 (1)

This is 3rd day in Tainan, Taiwan of my 10 days free n easy trip. Where to today? Oh.. before that, let’s grab some food for breakfast.

Just outside out Dorm 1828 hostel, there was a stall that sells typical breakfast meals that Taiwanese would have.

  

There were a lot of choice to choose from but the menu was in Chinese. Guess I got someone to help me to translate. =) This was our meals for breakfast.

Fried Chinese pancake with egg….

Chinese burger with ham and egg. Well… a good start for the morning before heading of to our first destination for the day.

Catching a bus in Tainan was quite easy. They has 2 buses that served the route of the most of the tourist area around Tainan; # 88 and #99. We took #99 as the stop we wanted was on its route.

Some snap shots along the way.

One of the stop along the way was the salt pan in Tainan located in Taijiang National Park.

That’s a wide area of sal pans. Read somewhere that this salt pans cover 1,976 hectares!!

Another view shot with some read up for my reader. =)

  

Some history where the visitors can stop and read. I believe you can even try out panning the salt but that’s wasn’t on our plan. It was just short stop (5 mins) by the bus for toilet break for the driver. So we passengers got a chance to walk around and stretch our legs.

More? Yes.. more coming. What’s the next stop you ask? Follow me and you will find out. =)

Taiwan (Western Part) – 9 days Free n Easy Journey; Day 2 (5)

Nice to have you back visiting my blog.  You are currently joining me on an e-travel trip to Taiwan back in late 2014. If you have missed out on my earlier write-up, do click here; Taiwan (Western Part) – 9 days Free n Easy Journey so that you can catch up with me. Ok?

Back to my e-travel. As mentioned, Tainan has lots and lots of temples to visit and see. Too many to see in a day or so. If you love temples, then this is the county that you must visit in Taiwan.

Below is another temple that we visited. It is located inside some small alley.  

They are really colourful…..

Walking further down, you can see old colonial buildings which are well kept or converted to museum or offices. Below is the National Musuem of Taiwan Literature (formerly the Office of Tainan Prefecture)

Inside the Taiwan Confucian Temple grounds, there is a large park for people to walk or take a stroll.

This is one of the inside of the building.

Was lucky to see an exhibition during that time where an organisation was putting a paper dears for Christmas on the Taiwan Confucian Temple grounds.

Aren’t they cute?

Not sure how many but for sure there were lots of them everywhere.

The entrance to Taiwan Confucian Temple grounds. Lots of people as it was evening and also a weekend too.

Directly across the entrance of Taiwan Confucian Temple grounds is an alley leading to a row of weekend street stalls where you can stroll and enjoy a light walk and also get your stomach filled. =)

Nice? If you like what you have read, then don’t stop. More to come. If you not followed me, then follow me so that you do not missed out on my next write-up on this e-travel series. It’s a 10 days travel and we are only on the 2nd day. So….. join me. =)