The Official Bimonthly English Magazine of the Taiwan Tourism Bureau.Website: ht tp://taiwan. net .t w I S B N : 1 8 1 7 7 9 6 4

AROUND THE ISLANDDream of Many a Bicyclist

THE BEST ROUTES The Stunning Central Cross-Island Highway

/

HISTORYHistoric Buildings in Taipei

TAIWANESE OPERAMing Hwa Yuan Arts & Cultural Group

No. 44, 20113 4

A Day in the Life of a FishermanTaiwan’s Best Night Markets

Wood Art DIY in SanyiSeaside Rock Festivals

You and I can change the “nature” of our travel to make it more nature-friendly.

When traveling in Taiwan, choose accommodations that are green and prepare

your own toilet articles to support members of the hotel industry that are trying to

do their part in the global eco-protection movement. From each seed we plant,

good things will grow.

The EPA’s Green Action Relay Project – Your Support Is KeyTo encourage travelers to bring their own toiletries to hotels as part of the

adoption of a full green lifestyle, the Executive Yuan’s Environmental Protection

Administration has developed the Green Action Relay Project. A team of 69

hotels have signed up, and will appropriate NT$1-10 to national environmental

protection programs whenever guests bring their own toiletries and choose not to

change bed sheets and towels during their stay. Participating hotels are also

offering special green accommodation packages and rewarding guests who use

a single set of bed sheets and towels on multiple-night stays with premium gifts

and discount coupons.

For more information, please visit the EPA’s Green Living Information Platform at greenliving.epa.gov.tw

．Harbor View Hotel．華都飯店

．Dandy Hotel Daan Branch．Dandy Hotel Tianjin Branch．Taipei GARDEN Hotel．Kyoto Hotel．Tokyo International Hotel．Song Jiang Forward．Nan Gang Forward．Leder Hotel-Taipei．Hotel Double One．Yun Hsien Hotel．Hotelcolor．TAI-LEE BOUTIQUE HOTEL．九份喜來園景觀民宿

．Park City Hotel．Taipei (Danshui)．Happy 88 B&B．Gueylin Hotel．Taoyuan Hotel．Aspire Resort．歡樂汽車旅館

．Little Ding-Dong Science Park．土牧驛健康農莊

．山林雅境渡假農場

．炭鄉八八庭園民宿

．Flyingcow Ranch．YuanLin Hotel．Wuling Farm．Lakeside Resort．The Solars．NanTou Hotel．Cheng Pao Hotel．Leader Hotel—Chi-Tou．Leader House Lukang．永興大旅社

．秋田汽車旅館

．真珠大飯店

．文都旅社

．Li-gin Motel．鼎川大飯店

．優仕飯店

．Ying Shan Hotel．Childhood Resort Hotel．Chin Shan Hotel．Long Yun Holiday Farm．Atunas Holiday Country．JJ-W Hotel．YOHO Beach Resort．Kenting Chinatrust Inn．Kenting Maldives Hot Spring Hotel．Mingchih Forest Recreation Area．Cilan Forest Recreation Area．Forest Blockhouse Yilan Homestay．Forest Blockhouse Yilan Homestay．Yosemite Homestay．Leader Village Taroko．涵星民宿

．Vogue House．Taitung Hotel For Teachers Public Workers．Chinshang Pastoral Farm Resort．HOYO Hot Springs Resort & Spa．Dory Inn．MingJianStar Hotel．Chin-Be Village café．神農山莊

．馬吉民宿

．馬蓋先民宿

．璞舍藝文民宿

．麗堤飯店

INFOwww.hhotel.com.tw02-24202277www.dandyhotel.com.twwww.dandyhotel.com.twwww.taipeigarden.com.twwww.kyotohotel.com.twwww.tokyohotel.com.twwww.fwhotel.twwww.fwhotel.twwww.leaderhotel.comwww.leaderhotel.comwww.yun-hsien.com.twwww.hotelcolor.com.twtaileehotel.com.twwww.gold999.com.twwww.parkcthotel.comwww.happy88.com.twwww.gueylin.com.twwww.taoyuanhotel.com.twwww.aspireresort.com.twwww.okgo.com.tw/4133www.ding-dong.com.twwww.tumuyi.com.twwww.823801.com.twwww.8898.tw/tanshiang88www.flyingcowranch.com.twwww.facebook.com/YuanLinHOTELwww.wuling-farm.com.twwww.lakesideresort.com.twwww.solasresort.comwww.nantouhotel.com.tw www.chengpao.com.twwww.leaderhotel.comwww.leaderhotel.com05-227824605-231622205-227454605-2222380www.li-gin.com.tw05-234027705-2332030www.ying-shan.com.twwww.hotel-childhood.com.twwww.chinshan.comwww.long-yun.com.twwww.atunas-inn.com.twwww.jj-whotel.com.twwww.yoho.com.twkenting.chinatrust-hotel.com.twwww.kt-maldives.com.twwww.yeze.com.twwww.yeze.com.twwww.s888.twwww.yosemite.idv.twwww.leaderhotel.comwww.hzlfh.twwww.hl-star.com.twwww.windblown.idv.twwww.ttp-hotel.com.twwww.mongo.com.twwww.hoyaresort.com.tw/springshotel.matsu.idv.tw/doryhotel.matsu.idv.tw/mjstarwww.chinbe-village.com.twhotel.matsu.idv.tw/sengnongwww.matsu.idv.tw/hotel/machitour.matsu.idv.tw/hotel_magaixian.phptour.matsu.idv.tw/hotel_pushe.phphotel.matsu.idv.tw/liti

Travel Green, Love Mother Earth

童年 Childhood Resort Hotel

天水蓮 Lakeside Resort

明池 Mingchih Forest Recreation Area

富野HOYO Hot Springs Resort & Spa

棲蘭 Cilan Forest Recreation Area

Bring Your Own Toiletries and Help the Earth Become Greener

Welcome to Taiwan!

Dear Traveler,

It’s March, warmth is returning to air and earth, and we feel reenergized and in the mood to

get out and explore the world around us. If in the next while your explorations will be in Taiwan,

well, we have a number of ideas on how you might f ill your days.

The stronger sun beckons us out for bicycle excursions, and we bring to you a menu of the best

routes, with options running from leisurely to challenging. For the most ambitious, we plant the

seed of a round-island tour, a must-have feather in the cap for serious local and expatriate riders.

There’s also advice on where you can source your two-wheeler, where bicyclists can stay, and what

iconic foods can be sampled at places along your way.

For a four-wheel adventure, a west-east traverse on the Central Cross-Island Highway offers

everything from a magnif icent Buddhist complex to an alpine sheep farm to powerful high-peaks

scenery to the many moments of awe inspired by Taroko Gorge, a prime work of Mother Nature’s

public art.

Our next excursion puts us going on a f ishing boat for a trip off the East Coast at Nanfangao to

show you how local f ishermen go about their daily business. We then come back after a hard day’s

work to show you how to navigate the menus at the island’s popular harborside restaurants, where

the day’s catch may well arrive the same moment you do.

Back in Taipei, we switch from car to the many-wheeled MRT trains for an exploration of some

of the city’s most beautiful examples of heritage architecture, all on or quite near to Zhongshan N.

Rd. and all within easy walking distance of MRT stations.

Some of the other adventure selections on this issue’s menu are fun DIY sessions at Sanyi,

Taiwan’s woodcarving town, a few days at the biggest annual open-air rock-music festival on the

island, a tour of the best local night markets, and a day at the (Taiwanese) opera.

Whichever you choose and however long you stay with us, I wish you the warmest sunny days.

Janice Seh-Jen Lai

Director GeneralTourism Bureau, MOTC, R.O.C.

台 灣 觀 光 雙 月 刊

Travel in Taiwan BimonthlyMarch/April Issue, 2011www.tit.com.tw/vision/index.htmCopyright © 2011 Tourism Bureau. All rights reserved. Reproduction in any form without written permission is prohibited.

Publisher Janice Seh-Jen Lai editing Consultants

David W. J. Hsieh, Wayne Hsi-Lin LiuPublishing organization Tourism Bureau, Ministry of Transportation and Communicationsaddress 9F, 290 Zhongxiao E. Rd., Sec. 4, Taipei, 104, Taiwan Tel: 886-2-2717-3737 Fax: 886-2-2771-7036 E-mail: tbroc@tbroc.gov.tw Website: http://taiwan.net.tw

ProduCer Vision Int,l Publ. Co., Ltd.

address Rm. 5, 10F, 2 Fuxing N. Rd., Taipei, 104 Taiwan tel: 886-2-2711-5403 Fax: 886-2-2721-2790 e-mail: vision@tit.com.twgeneral Manager Wendy L. C. Yen dePuty general Manager Frank K. Yeneditor in Chief Johannes Twellmann english editors Rick Charette, Richard Saunders dir. of Planning & editing Joe LeeManaging editor Sunny Su editors Aska Chi, Aysel Then, Percy Kung, Min-Jing Yin, Vivian LiuContributors Mark Caltonhill, Rick Charette, Steven Crook, Joe Henley, David Bratt, Jessie LinPhotograPhers Jen Guo-Chen, Sunny Su, Maggie Song art direCtor Sting Chen designers Ting Ting Wang, Daemon Lee, Maggie Song, Rinka LinadMinistrative dePt Hui-chun Tsai, Nai-jen Liu, Xiou Mieng Jiang advertising dePt Vincent Lin, Pamela Leu, Stacy Cai, Mamie Yang, Paul H. Chang advertising hotline + 886-2-2721-5412

CONTENTS Mar ~ Apr 2011

30

8

Where you can pick up a copy of Travel in TaiWan abroadOffices of the Tourism Bureau in Tokyo, Osaka, Seoul, Hong Kong, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Frankfurt; Taiwan Representative Offices; Overseas Offices of the Ministry of Economic Affairs; Overseas Offices of the Central News Agency; onboard China Airlines, EVA Air and other selected international airways; selected travel agencies in Asia, North America, and Europe; and other organizations

onlineRead the online version of Travel in Taiwan at www.zinio.com . Log in and search for "Travel in Taiwan". Or visit www.tit.com.tw/vision/index.htm

in TaiWanTourism Bureau Visitor Center; Tourism Bureau; Taiwan Visitors Association; foreign representative offices in Taiwan, Tourism Bureau service counters at Taiwan Taoyuan Int’l Airport and Kaohsiung Int’l Airport, major tourist hotels; Taipei World Trade Center; VIP lounges of international airlines; major tourist spots in Taipei; visitor centers of cities and counties around Taiwan; offices of national scenic area administrations; public libraries

Photo/ Shu juan Lin

Bicycling is one of the best ways to discover the amazing attractions of Taiwan at a slower pace. (Photo by Jen Guo-Chen)

This magazine is printed on FSC certified paper. Any product with the FSC logo on it comes from a forest that has been responsibly maintained and harvested in a sustainable manner.

Travel in Taiwan 3

HISTORY51 Re-Built, Re-Modeled, Re-Furbished — A Tour of Taipei’s Heritage Buildings

THE BEST ROUTE30 Over the Hump — Driving the Central Cross-Island Highway

3651

Mar ~ Apr 2011

24

feaTure8 Bicycling — Cycling Two Decades of Cycling in Taiwan — eat Roadside Food — stay Accommodation for Cyclists — buy World-Class Bikes Made in Taiwan

16 Five Top Routes — Cycling the Highways and High Ways of Taiwan

1 Publisher�s Note 4 News & Events around Taiwan 6 Concerts, Exhibitions, and Happenings

23 Peculiar Taiwan50 Festivals and Events FESTIVAL

46 Beach, Ocean, Rock! — Taiwan’s Biggest Open-Air Festival Takes Place at One of the Island's Best Beaches

LEARnIng ExpERIEncE28 Working with Wood

— Assembling Simple and Funny-Looking Wood Sculptures in Sanyi

FOOD JOURnEY36 Gone Fishing — A Memorable Boat Trip to Find Out Where All that Fresh Fish Comes From

LET'S EAT40 Local-Style Teppanyaki — Gourmet Heaven is in Luodong

42 Fresh Fish Right by the Harbor — Eating Seafood at Nanfangao

MY pHOTO TOUR18 Skewed Views — It’s All a Matter of Perspective

nIgHT MARkETS54 Night Markets

— Delicious Snacks, Cheap Clothes, Lots of People

On STAgE/OFF STAgE24 Taiwanese Opera — A Synthesis of Old and New

Where to Get Your Bearings Wandering about Taipei with your

iPhone in hand but without a

clue where to go? Here’s what you need -- an

app introducing all the places of interest in the

city, easily found with the help of Google maps,

and all in English! This guide, called “Taipei

Uncovered” and prepared by Phil Dawson, can be

downloaded from the following website: http://

tinyurl.com/taipeiguide. For more information

about using the guide, visit www.taipeiuncov-

ered.com.

WHAT'S UP

News & Events

around Taiwan

New Record High for Visitor Arrivals in 2010The total number of travelers visiting Taiwan last year exceeded 5.56 mil-

lion, a staggering 1.17 million more than in 2009. The main factor in this

growth was increased arrivals from mainland China (1.63 million), replac-

ing Japan (1.08 million) as the largest single-country group of visitors

from abroad. Thanks to successful tourism-promotion

campaigns in Southeast Asia, growth in the number of

visitor arrivals from that region has been especially im-

pressive; the Malaysian market grew by an astonishing

71.11% year-on-year, with a total of 285,734 visitors

arriving from that country in 2010.

Sanzhi Visitor CenterIn order to better serve tourists

visiting the north coast area, the

North Coast & Guanyinshan Na-

tional Scenic Area (www.northguan-nsa.gov.tw)

recently opened the new Sanzhi Tourist Center,

located in the town of Sanzhi adjacent to the

birthplace of former ROC president Lee Teng-hui

(164-2, Putou Keng, Puping Village, Sanzhi Dis-

trict, New Taipei City).

Tourism

Travel Info

New Sun Moon Lake LandmarkA new visitor center

on the shores of Sun

Moon Lake has become the latest at-

traction at this premier tourist spot in

central Taiwan. Designed by acclaimed

Japanese architect Norihiko Dan, the

futuristic concrete building is a one-

of-a-kind architectural work featuring

gentle curves and a design that blends

smoothly into the surrounding lake-

and-mountain scenery.

Tourism

Tourism

Japanese Luxury Inn in BeitouA new chapter in luxurious hot-spring pleasures has recently been writ-

ten in Taipei’s Beitou District with the addition of Radium Kagaya, a Japanese-style five-

star hotel. What sets this new facility apart from other hot-spring hotels in Beitou is not

only the hefty room rates, running from NT$24,000 to NT$120,000 per night, but also the

focus on service. More than 70 women dressed in kimonos attend to guests’ needs, from

check-in to tea serving, bathrobe dressing, and meal arrangements. www.kagaya.com.tw

Hotels

Cherry Blossoms at Sun Moon LakeUntil the end of March the For-

mosan Aboriginal Culture Village

is offering a special discount on tickets, during

what is the annual cherry blossom season. An

entrance ticket + ride on the Sun Moon Lake

Ropeway is NT$550. For more info, visit www.

nine.com.tw.

Theme Park

Travel in Taiwan

5?Do You Know Taiwan?

If you know the answers to the following

questions, you are most likely an experienced

Taiwan traveler. If you don’t know the

answers, you can find them within the pages of this issue

of Travel in Taiwan.

1. How many kilometers does a bicyclist have to ride, approximately, in order to complete around- the-island Taiwan trip? (Find the answer on page 11)

2. What is the highest point of Taiwan’s highest highway? (Find the answer on page 34)

3. The town of Nanfangao in Yilan County is a good place to: stay at a recreational farm, eat freshseafood, visit an aquarium? (Find the answer on page 42)

Le Meridien Taipei and W HotelTwo brand-new top-of-the line hotels have recently been added to

Taipei’s hotel scene, both located in the ultra-modern and vibrant

Xinyi District close to the world’s second-tallest building, Taipei

101. The 160-room Le Meridien Taipei (www.lemeridien-taipei.com) introduces a

new dimension of timeless chic with a focus on contemporary art and new res-

taurant concepts, while the 405-room W Hotel Taipei (tinyurl.com/w-hotel-taipei)

offers a modern take on design, fashion, and music and brings an innovative and

distinctive experience to the city’s hotel market.

Tainan’s Airport Goes InternationalAt the end of this May the airport of

Tainan, Taiwan’s fourth-largest city, will operate as

an international airport. This will be Taiwan’s fifth

international airport, joining Taiwan Taoyuan, Song-

shan (Taipei), Kaohsiung, and Taichung. International

charter flights between Tainan and Asian neighbors

such as Japan and, possibly, mainland China are seen

as a means to revive the airport’s business, which has

declined significantly since the opening of the Tai-

wan High Speed Rail line in 2007.

Hotels Transport

Travel in Taiwan 5

Tell us what you think!We, the producers of Travel in Taiwan, wish to improve our maga-

zine with each issue and give you the best possible help when

planning – or carrying out – your next trip to Taiwan. Tell us what

you think by filling out our short online questionnaire at www.tit.

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pleted questionnaires each issue will receive three free issues of

Travel in Taiwan. Thank you very much for your feedback!

Read Travel in Taiwan Online! Read this, Taiwan’s best Eng-

lish-language travel magazine,

online and download it to your

mobile device (iPhone, iPad,

etc.) to have it handy anytime

in case you need some valu-

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Travel Info

CULTURE SCENE

Concerts, Exhibitions,

and Happenings

Taiwan has a diverse cultural scene, with art venues ranging from international-caliber concert halls and theaters to makeshift stages on temple plazas. Among Taiwan’s museums is the world-famous National Palace Museum as well as many smaller museums dedicated to different art forms and aspects of Taiwanese culture. Here is a brief selection of upcoming happenings. For more information, please visit the websites of the listed venues.

National Palace Museum

Fragrance Fills the Courtyard:Chinese Flower Paintings through the Ages歷代花卉名品特展

Coinciding with the Taipei Int’l

Flora Expo currently running

in Taipei (until April 25), this

exhibition gives visitors the

opportunity to enjoy the wonders

of flowers captured by Chinese

painters of the past. The selection

presented in this special exhibition

has been divided into four sections:

“Beautiful Scenes All Year Round,”

“Formal Expressions of the Mind,” “The Many Features in Painting,” and “Auspicious

Signs and Lucky Omens.” Flowers in bloom at specific times of the year have been

chosen to express their relation to the seasons and specific Chinese festivals.

These artworks also demonstrate how artists wielded their skill in compositional

arrangement and such basic techniques as ink outlines filled with colors, “boneless”

washes, fine ink lines, and freehand “sketching ideas” to transform apparently simple

subjects into a wide variety of forms in keeping with the times. The interpretation

of auspicious metaphors in the paintings also reveals how artists portrayed blossoms

from yet another point of view, allowing viewers to further appreciate the unique

beauty and diversity of the art of painting flowers.

1/1 ~

3/25

Kaohsiung Museum of Fine Arts

The Book of Faces – Secrets of Portraiture 臉書 神秘的肖像藝術

With this exhibition, the Kaohsiung Museum of Fine

Arts opens a book of faces – faces portrayed in the many

paintings in the museum’s collection. The exhibition gives

intriguing explanations on how the artists have viewed

their models and their surrounding world, and how they

have created their portraits. With this exhibition the

museum attempts to establish a network resembling the

popular social networking website Facebook, connecting viewers not only with the

figures portrayed in the paintings but also with each other in the real world.

12/23 ~

3/27

Taipei Fine Arts MuseumAria of Life: The Art ofLiu Keng-I 　

劉耿一回顧展

生命感知與詠嘆

This exhibition is a display of 60 paintings

and dozens of handcrafted furniture items by

contemporary Taiwanese artist Liu Keng-I. In this

retrospective you can follow the artistic styles and

creative philosophies followed during different

stages of the artist’s life, starting from the 1960s,

when Liu began painting with oil and pastels, up

to the present day. In his art, Liu depicts scenes

of daily life that express some radical views of

society, as well as landscapes showing places

visited around Taiwan.

1/22 ~

4/3

Travel in Taiwan 7

VenuesTaipei

Taipei Zhongshan Hall Plaza（台北中山堂廣場）

Add: 98, Yanping S. Rd., Taipei City( 台北市延平南路 9 8 號 )

Nearest MRT Station: Ximen

Taipei International Convention Center （台北國際會議中心）

Add: 1, Xinyi Rd., Sec.5, Taipei City( 台北市信義路五段 1 號 )

Tel: (02) 2725-5200, ext. 3517, 3518 www.ticc.com.tw/Nearest MRT Station: Taipei City Hall

National Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall （國立中正紀念堂）

Add: 21 Zhongshan S. Rd., Taipei City( 台北市中山南路 21 號 )　　

Tel: (02) 2343-1100~3www.cksmh.gov.twNearest MRT Station: CKS Memorial Hall

National Concert Hall （國家音樂聽）National Theater （國家戲劇院）

Add: 21-1 Zhongshan S. Rd., Taipei City( 台北市中山南路 21-1 號 )

Tel: (02) 3393-9888www.ntch.edu.twNearest MRT Station: CKS Memorial Hall

National Museum of History （國立歷史博物館）

Add: 49 Nanhai Rd., Taipei City( 台北市南海路 4 9 號 )

Tel: (02) 2361-0270www.nmh.gov.tw Nearest MRT Station: CKS Memorial Hall

National Palace Museum （國立故宮博物院）

Add: 221 Zhishan Rd., Sec. 2, Taipei City( 台北市至善路 2 段 2 21 號 )

Tel: (02) 2881-2021www.npm.gov.twNearest MRT Station: Shilin

National Taiwan Museum （國立臺灣博物館）

Add: 2 Xiangyang Rd., Taipei City( 台北市襄陽路二號 )

Tel: (02) 2382-2566www.ntm.gov.twNearest MRT Station: NTU Hospital

Novel Hall （新舞臺）

Add: 3 Songshou Rd., Taipei City( 台北市松壽路 3 號 )

Tel: (02) 2722-4302www.novelhall.org.twNearest MRT Station: Taipei City Hall

National Dr. Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall （國立國父紀念館）

Add: 505 Ren-ai Rd., Sec. 4, Taipei City( 台北市仁愛路四段 5 0 5 號 )

Tel: (02) 2758-8008www.yatsen.gov.tw/englishNearest MRT Station: Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall

Taipei Arena （台北小巨蛋）

Add: 2 Nanjing E. Rd., Sec. 4, Taipei City( 台北市南京東路 4 段 2 號 )

Tel: (02) 2577-3500www.taipeiarena.com.twNearest MRT Station: Nanjing E. Rd.

Taipei International Convention Center （台北國際會議中心）

Add: 1 Xinyi Rd., Sec. 5, Taipei City( 台北市信義路五段一號 )

Tel: (02) 2725-5200 ext. 3000. 3151~52 www.ticc.com.twNearest MRT Station: Taipei City Hall

Taipei Fine Arts Museum （台北市立美術館）

Add: 181 Zhongshan N. Rd., Sec. 3, Taipei City( 台北市中山北路 3 段 181 號 )

Tel: (02) 2595-7656www.tfam.museum Nearest MRT Station: Yuanshan

Museum of Contemporary Art Taipei （台北當代藝術館）

Add: 39 Chang-an W. Rd., Taipei City( 台北市長安西路 39 號 )

Tel: (02) 2552-3720www.mocataipei.org.twNearest MRT Station: Zhongshan

Lin Liu-hsin Puppet Theatre Museum （林柳新紀念偶戲博物館）

Add: 79 Xining N. Rd., Taipei City( 台北市西寧北路 7 9 號 )

Tel: (02) 2556-8909www.taipeipuppet.comNearest MRT Station: Shuanglian

TaichungTaichung Zhongshan Hall （台中中山堂）

Add: 98 Xueshi Rd., Taichung City( 台中市學士路 9 8 號 )

Tel: (04) 2230-3100www.tccgc.gov.tw

National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts （國立台灣美術館）

Add: 2 Wuquan W. Rd., Sec. 1, Taichung City( 台中市五權西路一段 2 號 )

Tel: (04) 2372-3552 www.tmoa.gov.tw

TainanTainan City Cultural Center （台南市立文化中心）

Add: 332 Zhonghua E. Rd., Sec. 3, Tainan City( 台南市中華東路 3 段 332 號 )

Tel: (06) 269-2864www.tmcc.gov.tw

KaohsiungKaohsiung City Chungcheng Cultural Center （高雄市立中正文化中心）

Add: 67 Wufu 1st Rd., Kaohsiung City( 高雄市五福一路 67 號 )

Tel: (07) 222-5136 ext. 8908, 8909, 8910www.khcc.gov.tw (Chinese only)Nearest KMRT Station: Cultural Center

Kaohsiung Museum of Fine Arts （高雄市立美術館）

Add: 80 Meishuguan Rd., Kaohsiung City( 高雄市美術館路 8 0 號 )

Tel: (07) 555-0331www.kmfa.gov.tw Nearest KMRT Station: Aozihdi Station

Kaohsiung Museum of History（高雄市立歷史博物館）

Add: 272 Zhongzheng 4th Rd., Kaohsiung City( 高雄市中正四路 27 2 號 )

Tel: (07) 531-2560http://w5.kcg.gov.tw/khm/index.aspNearest KMRT Station: City Council

National Concert Hall

A New World for 88 Keys and Chinese Orchestra 88鍵的國樂新天地

A rare blending of Western piano music and traditional Chinese

music awaits music lovers in this special concert. Three

world-acclaimed pianists and the Taipei Chinese Orchestra will

come together to perform three remarkable compositions. Pianist

Pi-hsien Chen will tackle the Concerto for Piano and Chinese

Orchestra composed by Lei Liang, Chengzong Yin will play Yellow

River, the best-known Chinese piano composition in the world,

and Russian Mikhail Rudy will perform Rachmaninov's Rhapsody

on a Theme of Paganini.

4/14

Taipei Arena

Tanya and The Cities 蔡健雅–亞洲巡迴演唱會 The famous award-winning pop singer, songwriter,

and music producer Tanya Chua, from Singapore, will be in town

to perform at the Taipei Arena as part of her first-ever concert

tour through Asia. Enjoying a huge fan base in Taiwan, the arena

is expected to be packed with fans longing to hear her greatest

soulful love hits and see Tanya show off some new specially

choreographed dance moves.

3/26

National TheaterTianjin Peking Opera Theatre 天津京劇院經典名劇大匯演

Founded in 1995, the Tianjin Peking Opera

Theatre is one of the few successful Peking opera troupes not

based in Beijing itself, where Peking opera originated. Having won

numerous national prizes and other honors in mainland China,

the troupe frequently goes on tour abroad, presenting a selection

of the more than l00 plays in its repertoire to audiences around

the world. During this stay in Taipei, the troupe will perform

eight shows on seven consecutive days, each day presenting a

different play. Lovers of Peking opera are in for a real treat!

4/26 ~

5/1

FEATURE

NORMALFROM MAD TO

Two Decades of Cycling around Taiwan

By Mark Caltonhill

Taiwanese people thought me mad for cycling around Taiwan. They told me so. Repeatedly. For most of the first decade I lived here. Then, for the last ten years, local people have thrown themselves into cycling as a sport and hobby with characteristic passion. And now just about every dedicated Taiwanese cyclist has done a “round-island” trip or is thinking about it.

BICYCLING

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FEATURE

Travel in Taiwan 10

Things could hardly be different. Twenty

years ago, even though the bike I

had ridden back home in Britain and those of many of my

cycling friends had been made in Taiwan, af ter I arrived

here I found that most of these models were “export only”

and my choice of two-wheeler was extremely limited,

further restricted by my above-average height.

Nevertheless, I got hold of a nice, sturdy bike for round-

town use and, although not the touring model I would have

liked, found a mountain bike suitable for longer trips. That

there were no dedicated bike paths wasn’t such a shock:

I’d l ived in such cycling paradises as Denmark and the

Netherlands, but two decades ago there weren’t very many

bike paths in the UK either.

Being expected to give way to all larger vehicles in all

situations was more of a surprise, and even today overseas

visitors should not always assume that highway regulations

will be followed to the letter. This situation has improved

markedly, however, due to the construction of thousands of

kilometers of bike paths. Taipei alone has riverside paths

running north-south from Danshui to Xindian, and east-

west from the edge of Keelung out to Yingge and beyond

to Daxi in Taoyuan County. When I did a second round-

Taiwan trip last year, my f irst 60 kilometers and f inal 30

kilometers were on completely car-free bike paths, as were

many more in between. This was completely different from

the f irst such trip many years earlier.Another huge change has been in the number of fellow

riders. In the 1990s it was possible to cycle around the country without seeing a single other cycle-tourist; now one can barely go a kilometer. Taiwan’s cyclists fall into two main groups: one is made up of so-called credit-card tourers, on sleek top-of-the-range racing bikes, dressed in the latest styles, carrying little more than a water bottle and a credit card, staying in hotels and guesthouses, and eating wherever hunger demands; the other is made up of recently graduated students, recently freed-from-childcare mothers and other rookie riders, usually on mountain bikes, folding bikes or even “sit up and beg bikes,” carrying panniers f illed with everything they can imagine needing and covering rather fewer kilometers each day.

Despite the difference in appearance and ability, cycling in Taiwan is

exceedingly egalitarian. Riding a bike is a shared passion that sets cyclists apart from the rest of society, and cyclists indiscriminately urge each other on and swap information about routes and conditions.

Whichever group you fall into, good preparations are recommended. Many foreign residents and locals publish English-language blogs about cycling in Taiwan. These, as well as general forums such as www.f orumosa.com, provide insight on equipment, accommodation and routes, and are

FEATURE

Through an old railway tunnelBikeways are easy to f ind

Smaller roads lead you to mountains and waterfalls

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Along Taipei’s rivers

BICYCLING

Travel in Taiwan 11

as well good places to meet other cyclists if traveling alone is not to your fancy.

Round the IslandThere are two main “round-island” routes: one that

does pretty much circle the island, and one that takes a more inland route. The latter, known as the san-heng (“triple cross-island highway”) route, has more spectacular scenery, climbs to higher than 3,000 meters, and includes Taiwan’s highest roads. It is not for beginners, therefore; and moreover, since parts of the cross-island highways are occasionally closed following typhoon/earthquake-induced landslide damage, we shall concentrate here on the more accessible route that is by far the most popular way to circumnavigate Taiwan.

At around 1,000 kilometers in total, the trip will take different amounts of time for different people depending on the individual’s competence and interests. Typically, 100 kilometers per day is not excessive, so many cyclists allow about ten days, more for beginners – but apparently one nutcase has done the route in less than 48 hours, during which he slept for a couple of hours in the southeast coast city of Taitung.

While maintaining a steady pace is always important in cycling, it would nevertheless be a shame for visitors to miss out on the other treats Taiwan has to offer, so allocate more time if possible.

If you want to keep the stunning scenery of the east coast for last, circle the island counter-clockwise

History buffs should def initely take in the island’s oldest buildings in the city of Tainan; those interested in aboriginal culture should linger in the counties and cities of Taitung and Hualien; beach-lovers might want to include Kending, at the southern tip of the island; gourmets and gourmands will want to make innumerable stops (see page 13), and wildlife af icionados will be happy to know that their route passes through or near all the national parks of Taiwan proper.

On my f irst trip I took a half-day detour to cycle up and down Taroko Gorge, while on my amended

triple cross-island highway ride last year I took a two-day break to climb Yushan, Taiwan’s highest peak at 3,952

meters above sea level.The f irst choice in deciding your

route is between traveling clockwise or counter-clockwise. On both occasions I selected the latter, because as a fan of the outdoors I wanted to save the east coast’s

spectacular scenery for last. This route also means cyclists will be nicely warmed up by the time they encounter the hardest climbs of the trip.

The second choice concerns roads. Heading clockwise: On the east coast there are a number of routes connecting Taipei and Yilan County. Most popular are a) the No. 2 coastal highway via Keelung, Fulong, and Toucheng; b) the No. 106 and 102 through the mining towns of southeast

Typically, 100 kilometers per day is not excessive, so many cyclists

allow about ten days for the 1,000-km round-island route

More

FEATURE

Travel in Taiwan 12

since drinking alcohol is less popular here than in the West, cycling can be safer than at home. Nevertheless, a bike helmet, ref lective strips, and lights are thoroughly recommended (though most local riders seem to disagree). I even have a bright orange f lag on the end of a meter-long pole waving from the back of my bike.

Plan well but be open to changes. The more research you do before your trip, the more you will get to see and do. But by talking with cyclists along the route you will

f ind other places worth visiting, so try to build f lexibility into your plans.

And lastly, remember you are not mad. In fact, cycling around the island is now said to be one of the three

great outdoor challenges to be tackled in Taiwan (the others are joining the annual Sun Moon Lake swim and climbing Yushan). Indeed, no one has called me mad for over a decade. But

neither, now that there are thousands of cyclists on Taiwan’s roads, do the island’s hospitable residents wind down their car windows as they pass to offer me bottles of water, snacks, and shouts of encouragement, as they did on that f irst trip in that different era.

Taipei County (now New Taipei City), and c) the No. 5 connecting Taipei and Yilan via Pinglin.

From the port of Suao at the south end of Yilan County there is but one road to Hualien, the No. 9. But what a road it is! When my sister visited Taiwan shortly af ter a trip to California, she said it was better than the highly acclaimed Big Sur.

Af ter the city of Hualien there is a choice between staying on the No. 9 through the East Rif t Valley or taking the No. 11 along the coast. Beyond the city of Taitung, some cyclists follow the No. 9 to the west coast, while “purists” insist on taking in Taiwan’s southernmost tip at Eluanbi in Kenting National Park. (These same people will also extend their journey to include the north coast, of course, adding an almost-100-kilometer loop from Taipei to Danshui, Jinshan, Keelung, and back to Taipei, which is well recommended if time allows.)

The west coast, with its greater population and wide plains between the mountains and sea, offers a wide choice of routes. Travelers should f irst decide on which sights they would like to visit, then research accommodation options, and f inally select a route that joins these dots.

Naturally, choosing smaller roads will be more scenic and means less traff ic, but could add signif icantly to the time required. And remember, once you get to Taoyuan County, there is the option of taking a cycle path all the way back to Taipei.

A Few Final Tips: Always put safety f irst. Taiwan’s drivers are no more dangerous than anywhere else. In fact,

Travel in Taiwan 12

{ENGLisH & CHiNEsE}

Danshui 淡水

Daxi 大溪

East Rift 花東縱谷 ValleyEluanbi 鵝鸞鼻

Fulong 福隆

Jinshan 金山

Kenting 墾丁國家公園 National ParkPinglin 坪林

san-heng 三橫

Suao 蘇澳

Sun Moon Lake 日月潭

Taroko Gorge 太魯閣峽谷

Toucheng 頭城

Xindian 新店

Yingge 鶯歌

Yushan 玉山

From the port of Suao in Yilan County there is but one road to Hualien, the

No. 9. But what a road it is!

Sun Moon Lake

KentingNationalPark

YiLAN

Taipei in the evening, the perfect ending to a long bicycle tour

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TAiPEi

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HUALiEN

Taroko Gorge

Danshui

EAT

Travel in Taiwan 13

Different cities and towns around Taiwan are not merely famous for local specialty foods and dishes; sometimes their names have even been

appropriated to market the foods wherever they are sold. Thus soymilk is of ten called “Yonghe” soymilk even if it has no connection with the Taipei suburb, just as a papaya milkshake is of ten called a “Kaohsiung” papaya milkshake and custard apples are of ten sold as “Taitung” custard apples.

Cycling around Taiwan offers a chance to try many of these treats in their places of origin. Some of the better known include (traveling counter-clockwise from Taipei):

On a more practical note, visitors should note that cycling 100 kilometers can use up more than 3,000 calories of energy, and a trip around the whole island can therefore consume in excess of 30,000 calories. While cycling is an excellent way to lose weight, rapid weight loss is not healthy, and cyclists should consider supplementary sources of nutrition.

Even more important is the provision of water. Taiwan tends to be hot and humid, and sweating increases normal f luid requirements. Cyclists spending a long time on dedicated bike paths – which tend not to have convenience stores or restaurants – or heading into mountainous areas should prepare adequate resources of water as well as food.

• shenkeng stinky tofu 深坑臭豆腐• Longtan peanut candy 龍潭花生糖• Daxi dried beancurd 大溪豆干• Hsinchu rice-flour noodles 新竹米粉• Dajia butter pastries 大甲奶油酥餅• Taichung sun cakes 台中太陽餅• Puli shaohsing Wine埔里紹興酒• Changhua meatballs 彰化肉圓• Yuanlin preserved fruit 員林蜜餞• Chiayi turkey meat on rice 嘉義火雞肉飯

• Xiluo soy sauce 西螺醬油• Tainan “shoulder pole noodles” 台南擔仔麵• Anping beancurd blancmange 安平豆花• Dongshan marinated duck head 東山鴨頭

• Madou “bowl pudding” 麻豆碗粿• Kaohsiung goose meat hot pot 高雄鵝肉火鍋• Kaohsiung papaya milkshake 高雄木瓜牛奶• Wanluan pork trotters 萬巒豬腳• Taitung custard apples 台東釋迦• Hualien mochi 花蓮麻糬 • Yilan onion pancakes 宜蘭蔥油餅• Fulong railway lunchboxes 福隆火車便當• Keelung Miaokou Night Market tempura 基隆廟口夜市甜不辣• Danshui “iron eggs” 淡水鐵蛋• shilin Night Market large chicken steak 士林大雞排• Yonghe soymilk 永和豆漿

Madou “bowl pudding”

Shenkeng stinky tofu

Roadside FoodBy Mark Caltonhill

Something New and Delicious in Every Town

Changhua meatball

Hualien mochi

Hsinchu rice-flour noodles

STAY

On the east-coast leg of my f irst round-island trip in the early

1990s, I carried a tent, which I pitched at schools, temples, and parks af ter invites from generous local people. On the west-coast leg, I stayed in budget hotels. These were generally clean but basic, and cost around NT$500 per night. Most allowed me to take my bike into my room. They were easy to f ind around a town’s main railway or bus station.

At that time, these were pretty much the only options outside big cities other than f ive-star and business hotels. Since then, there has been a revolution in Taiwan’s tourism culture, partly due to a doubling of leisure time when work hours for white-collar jobs were reduced to a f ive-day week.

Budget hotels are still available (now at around NT$1,000), but there has been an explosion of other options, including niche and boutique hotels, family-run homestays, and backpacker hostels. The following are three

examples from the low-, middle-, and higher-end price ranges, all of which cater specif ically to cyclists’ needs.

Joser Bike Hostel Located behind a Giant bike store

at the end (or beginning, depending on which direction you approach from) of the spectacular clif f-hugging coastal highway between Suao and Hualien, Joser offers l ittle more than a bed. Little, that is, except the company of fellow cyclists, and the enthusiasm of its cycle-crazy boss, Joser. NT$500/800 for single/double; just 5 rooms, so book ahead. Add: 112, Suhua Rd., Sec. 5, Suao

Township, Yilan County (宜蘭縣蘇澳鎮蘇花路 5段 112號 )

Tel: (03) 995-1595

New Life Hot Spring Resort (紐澳華溫泉山莊 )

Originally the private villa of hot-spring-loving Leo Chen, this facil ity was later expanded into a resort. Now keen on cycling, Chen has converted

a couple of rooms into dormitories for budget travelers, but still offers them free hot-spring bathing and breakfast. Rooms are available from NT$2,500 to NT$5,000, bunk beds for NT$800 per person. Add: 41-5, (Antong) Wenquan, Yuli

Township, Hualien County

(花蓮縣玉里鎮 [安通 ]溫泉 41-5號 )

Tel:(03) 888-7333

Website: www.twspa.com.tw

Naruwan Inn (娜路彎會館 )

This newly opened section of Taitung’s upscale Naruwan Hotel focuses on cyclists’ needs. Rooms have twin beds rather than doubles, and wall f ittings on which two bikes can be hung. Rentals are available at NT$200 per day. NT$2,500 ~ 2,700 per room, breakfast included. Add: 385, Zhongxing Rd., Sec. 2,

Taitung City

(台東市中興路二段 385號 )

Tel:(089) 235-500

Website: www.naruwan-inn.com.tw

Travel in Taiwan 14

Accommodation for CyclistsPlaces Paying Special Attention to the Needs of BikersBy Mark Caltonhill

Naruwan Inn

New Life Hot Spring Resort

New Life Hot Spring Resort

BUY

Travel in Taiwan 15

When buying a bike, the

usual advice is to

spend as much as you can. This is

because a complete bike constructed

in the factory is better value than

buying the components separately.

Deciding that the bike you bought

needs upgrading can end up costing

a lot more than splashing out for a

good model initially, especially since a

good bike is going to last for decades.

Furthermore, unlike three or four

years ago when customers had to wait

months for a bike of their choice, most

models can now be collected almost

immediately.

This said, there are still many

decisions to be made. Most important

is whether to buy a race bike, touring

bike, mountain bike, folding bike,

something else, or some hybrid

combining features of two of these.

In Taipei, the Neihu District,

which has around a dozen bike stores

around the junction of Ruiguang and

Gangqian roads, is a good place to start

looking. Giant and Merida, Taiwan’s

two biggest cycle manufacturers, both

have stores there.

Asked about a model suited to

doing the round-island route, Merida

(100, Ruiguang Rd.) recommended a

mountain bike, with models ranging

from around NT$10,000 up to NT$40,000

that featured distinct improvements

for the extra costs. Mountain bikes,

staff argued, are sturdy and have

aggressive gearing to handle Taiwan’s

many hills.

The Giant branch (106, Ruiguang

Rd.) stocks a range of mountain bikes,

but staff said that most people are

opting for road bikes nowadays, since

these tend to be lighter and with a

geometry that puts the cyclist in a

posture that allows faster riding.

Neither store had what I would

call a classic touring bicycle. Both

companies bring out what they call a

tourer every year or two (though not

in 2010 or 2011), but these tend to be

on the heavy side.

Cyclists wishing to splash out

a bit more and receive customized service can try an independent dealer. One such, Howard Chen of Howard’s Bikes in Taipei (27, Lane 22, Guangfu S. Rd.), is an ex-triathlete who now organizes Taiwan’s Ironman events. He speaks excellent English and sits down with customers to discuss what they want from a bike. For touring, he recommended a hybrid road bike that is North American-designed but Taiwan-manufactured.

Giant, the world’s number one bike maker, also has the local rental market cornered. Rentals are available at most of its stores, as well as near railway stations and tourist attractions. For a l ist of its rental stations around Taiwan, visit www.giant-bic ycles.com/zh-TW /page/555/ (Chinese).

World-Class Bikes Made in Taiwan

Accommodation for Cyclists

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Places Paying Special Attention to the Needs of Bikers

There’s No Shortage of Quality Bicycles Available in Shops around the IslandBy Mark Caltonhill

{ENGLisH & CHiNEsE}

Neihu District 內湖區

Gangqian Rd. 港墘路

Guangfu S. Rd. 光復南路Ruiguang Rd. 瑞光路

FEATURE

Travel in Taiwan 16

Cycling the Highways and High Ways of Taiwan

Five Top RoutesBy Mark Caltonhill

I cycled more than 10,000 kilometers in Taiwan last year, the equivalent of going around the entire island 10 times. While this included almost daily trips to the market and countless predawn training

runs with the Yangmingshan Cycling Club, there were also bike races in the counties of Miaoli, Hualien, and Taoyuan, as well as in Kending in the far south, explorations of the outlying islands of Penghu and Kinmen, and a round-island tour that took in Taiwan’s highest public road. The trips I l ike best tend to be challenging, as I seek to get away from civil ization and into the mountains and these are of ten not suitable for all cyclists. The following f ive are representative of all levels, therefore; three for beginners, one for those of intermediate ability, and one that is a l ittle more diff icult.

Taipei City has hundreds of kilometers of bike paths, which offer a gentle introduction to cycling, but it was Kaohsiung that CNN selected as one of its “5 best biking cities in Asia” in 2010, crediting the local government with establishing a system of 50 self-service bike-rental kiosks and

creating 150 kilometers of well-designed bike paths.* One of these starts at the city ’s popular tourist site of Lotus Lake, passes the Indigenous Plant Garden, Tianhou Temple, and Kaohsiung Arena, then passes the Hakka Culture Museum, Kaohsiung Museum of Fine Arts, and Zhongdu Tangrong Brick Kiln along the Love River.

Allow a full day in order to give suff icient attention to these various attractions.

*htt p://www.cnngo.com/ex plorations/play /asias-most-bike-

f riendly-cities-982373

Lotus Lake and Love River

Many tourists consider Sun Moon Lake a must-see on any visit to Taiwan, and many of these enjoy traveling by boat between the various local attractions, among them Xuanzang Temple, the love-themed shrine at Longfeng Temple, Ita Thao (an aboriginal village), and Lalu Island

Sun Moon Lake

Measuring around 20 kilometers in circumference and featuring a combination of bike path and quiet roads, Lieyu (also known as Little Kinmen) is ideal for a tranquil ride. Smaller than the main island, Kinmen, but similarly within sight of the mainland China coastline, it shares many of Kinmen’s abundant touristic attractions. These include wetlands, military fortif ications, tunnels, disused salt f lats, and oyster farms. Moreover, with the Kinmen County Government and Kinmen National Park both keen to promote eco-friendly transportation, free bike hire is available for up to three days simply by showing your ID. For cyclists bringing their own bikes, the NT$50 bike fee for the ferry between Kinmen and Lieyu is waived.

Little Kinmen

in the middle of the lake. Cien Pagoda, on a hill above the lake, can be reached by trail or vehicle, and nearby Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village (a theme park) can be reached by cable car or vehicle. With the creation of the cherry-tree-lined bike route that circumnavigates the lake, cyclists have another option for visiting Sun Moon Lake’s sights – save for Lalu Island, of course.

Allow at least half a day for a leisurely tour.

TOP FIVE MOUNTAINS

Travel in Taiwan 17

a later adventure, most cyclists attempt the 55 kilometers of Highway No. 14, starting in the town of Puli. The route from here requires a total ascent of around 2,750 meters, equivalent to an average gradient of 5 percent.

Allow plenty of time, especially if you don’t have friends with a car to collect you at the top.

{ENGLisH & CHiNEsE}

Central Cross-Island 中部橫貫公路 HighwayCien Pagoda 慈恩塔

Formosan Aboriginal 九族文化村 Culture VillageHakka Culture Museum 客家文物舘

Kaohsiung Arena 高雄巨蛋綜合體育館

Ita Thao 伊達邵

Indigenous Plant Garden 原生植物園

Jinguashi 金瓜石

Jiufen 九份

Kaohsiung Museum 高雄市立美術館 of Fine ArtsLalu Island 拉魯島

Longfeng Temple 龍鳳宮

Lotus Lake 蓮池潭

Love River 愛河

Lieyu 烈嶼

Little Kinmen 小金門

Mt. Wufen 五分山

Northern Cross-Island 北部橫貫公路 HighwayPingxi 平溪

Pingxi Branch 平溪線 Railway LineTianhou Temple 天后宮

Wuling 武嶺

Xuanzang Temple 玄奘寺

Zhongdu Tangrong 中都唐榮磚窯廠 Brick KilnP

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The eastern part of New Taipei City (until recently “Taipei County”), where former mining communities cling to misty hillsides, has some of the most scenic cycling routes accessible from the capital. In addition to pure biking adventures such as the ascent to the weather station on Mt. Wufen, there are routes that take you through the old town of Jiufen, past the gold museum at Jinguashi, and along the Pingxi Branch Railway Line. More experienced cyclists take pleasure in following provincial and county highway Nos. 106/102/2 across the hills and along the coast toward Yilan, with some taking a different route back (such as Prov. Hwy No. 9 or, even more challenging, the Northern Cross-Island Highway [No. 7]), making a round trip of around 160 kilometers or more. Others take the bus back, which allows free transportation of bikes.

Taipei to Yilan

Anyone cycling for a while in Taiwan will hear of the fabled Wuling pass. At 3,275 meters, it is the highest point on a public road in the country. Along with doing a “round the island” trip, following the Central Cross-island Highway and ascending to Wuling is the ambition of most local riders. The road from west and east is thronged with two-wheelers on warm spring and summer days. Leaving the 90 kilometers of Prov. Hwy No. 8 from the Hualien County coastline – with some 13-percent inclines in sections – for

Wuling Pass

MY PHOTO TOUR

Travel in Taiwan 18

Photos/ Maggie Song

Skewed Views

It’s All a Matter of Perspective

Traveling is fun. Photography is fun. Taking photos while traveling is even more fun. But consider this.

Shooting too many photos of people making the “V” sign in front of landmarks tends to get boring

easily. If you want to ensure that your friends and family back home, invited by you to watch your 2-hour slide show, have a

great time, how about being a bit more creative while taking snaps? Smart positioning of your subjects in front of the lens can

yield amazingly funny shots. Be playful and have fun -- that’s what travel should be all about. And you will be amazed by how

much you will learn about the places you are visiting, architecture, public art, people around you… there is a whole world out

there waiting to be discovered!

Make use of your camera s

serial-shot function for

amazing action shots! Jump

over the National Concert Hall!

If you look closely, you`ll

discover many public art

objects in downtown TaipeiHee! Haw!

TAIPEI CITY

Travel in Taiwan 19

Skewed Views

Who doesn t want to embrace the world`s second-tallest building every once in a while?

Paying respect to

the founder of the

100-year-old Republic

of China

You could even try to

swallow a whole flagpole

Roofs are an easy target

for playful shots.

Group shots tend to be a

bit more challenging...

Oh! So heavy!

They stand in awe!

Changhua County is a place where clocks slow down and time passes more

slowly, giving people more time for each other. Where the culture of yesteryear

remains a part of the here and now, and the good old “days gone by” have not

gone by just yet. Where master craftsmen practice the trades of fathers and

forefathers, in heritage shops filled as much with the air of yesterday as of today.

Where beloved old ways are cherished and held close to the heart, still practiced

in timeless fashion in what is for you the visitor a county-wide living museum of

traditional Taiwan culture.

Yours to Discover

LugangStep into the coastal town of Lugang, one of Taiwan’s shining cultural assets, and you step back into Taiwan

pioneering time. Chinese settlement of Taiwan started at the same time as European settlement of North America, and Lugang was long one of Taiwan’s three main ports in the era of sail, the gateway to central Taiwan. Silting put an end to its economic prowess over a century ago, leaving the town frozen in economic time – good news for today’s tourists, for Lugang’s priceless trove of colorful temples, shophouses, mansions, and other heritage buildings, and its picturesque narrow streets and alleys, has survived almost intact, creating Taiwan’s most complete collection of classical-town architecture.

Lugang is home to more than 70 large temples, but its two greatest are Tianhou Temple and Longshan Temple, always thick with people and incense smoke. Tianhou Temple was built in the early 1700s as home to a late-1600s icon of Mazu, Goddess of the Sea, one of whose emperor-granted titles is Tianhou, Empress of Heaven. Lugang claims this as Taiwan’s oldest Mazu shrine, housing an icon said to have been brought by the admiral who took Taiwan for the Qing Dynasty from Chinese loyalists in the 1680s. Longshan Temple was built by early Chinese settlers to thank Guanyin, Goddess of Mercy, for their safe passage across the treacherous Taiwan Strait. This is one of Taiwan’s most artistically signif icant and best-preserved temples.

Traditional HandicraftsIn 1895 the Japanese took over Taiwan and abruptly closed down Lugang’s port and its crucial trade with the

Chinese mainland. Their trade cut off, local f irms turned to manufacturing such handicraf ts as wooden furniture and other articles for island sale. The town soon emerged as a key center for traditional-handicraf t production, and today scores of shops feature talented artisans wielding age-old skills introduced to Taiwan hundreds of years ago by their ancestors – religious icons and other paraphernalia, incense, kites, lanterns, oil-paper and bamboo umbrellas, tinware, fans, pottery, carved wooden furniture, and more.

Old Market Street and parallel Zhongshan Road teem with refurbished Qing Dynasty shophouses where you can ogle – and perhaps buy as take-home gif ts – traditional toys, craf ts, clothing, and other classical accouterments. Craf tsmen of ten work right in the storefronts, and visitors are welcome to watch and interact. Proof of Lugang’s status as Taiwan’s premier handicraf t center is the fact it has the most winners of the prestigious Living Heritage Award, created by the Ministry of Education to recognize Taiwan’s top artists and artisans. Here we meet some of these great masters, who have also won countless other cultural awards.

Changhua

Longshan TempleLongshan Temple

Gate of Tianhou Temple

Handicraft shop

ADVERTISEMENT

Photos/Changhua County Cultural Affairs Bureau, Vision int’l

Changhua County is a place where clocks slow down and time passes more

slowly, giving people more time for each other. Where the culture of yesteryear

remains a part of the here and now, and the good old “days gone by” have not

gone by just yet. Where master craftsmen practice the trades of fathers and

forefathers, in heritage shops filled as much with the air of yesterday as of today.

Where beloved old ways are cherished and held close to the heart, still practiced

in timeless fashion in what is for you the visitor a county-wide living museum of

traditional Taiwan culture.

Yours to Discover

LugangStep into the coastal town of Lugang, one of Taiwan’s shining cultural assets, and you step back into Taiwan

pioneering time. Chinese settlement of Taiwan started at the same time as European settlement of North America, and Lugang was long one of Taiwan’s three main ports in the era of sail, the gateway to central Taiwan. Silting put an end to its economic prowess over a century ago, leaving the town frozen in economic time – good news for today’s tourists, for Lugang’s priceless trove of colorful temples, shophouses, mansions, and other heritage buildings, and its picturesque narrow streets and alleys, has survived almost intact, creating Taiwan’s most complete collection of classical-town architecture.

Lugang is home to more than 70 large temples, but its two greatest are Tianhou Temple and Longshan Temple, always thick with people and incense smoke. Tianhou Temple was built in the early 1700s as home to a late-1600s icon of Mazu, Goddess of the Sea, one of whose emperor-granted titles is Tianhou, Empress of Heaven. Lugang claims this as Taiwan’s oldest Mazu shrine, housing an icon said to have been brought by the admiral who took Taiwan for the Qing Dynasty from Chinese loyalists in the 1680s. Longshan Temple was built by early Chinese settlers to thank Guanyin, Goddess of Mercy, for their safe passage across the treacherous Taiwan Strait. This is one of Taiwan’s most artistically signif icant and best-preserved temples.

Traditional HandicraftsIn 1895 the Japanese took over Taiwan and abruptly closed down Lugang’s port and its crucial trade with the

Chinese mainland. Their trade cut off, local f irms turned to manufacturing such handicraf ts as wooden furniture and other articles for island sale. The town soon emerged as a key center for traditional-handicraf t production, and today scores of shops feature talented artisans wielding age-old skills introduced to Taiwan hundreds of years ago by their ancestors – religious icons and other paraphernalia, incense, kites, lanterns, oil-paper and bamboo umbrellas, tinware, fans, pottery, carved wooden furniture, and more.

Old Market Street and parallel Zhongshan Road teem with refurbished Qing Dynasty shophouses where you can ogle – and perhaps buy as take-home gif ts – traditional toys, craf ts, clothing, and other classical accouterments. Craf tsmen of ten work right in the storefronts, and visitors are welcome to watch and interact. Proof of Lugang’s status as Taiwan’s premier handicraf t center is the fact it has the most winners of the prestigious Living Heritage Award, created by the Ministry of Education to recognize Taiwan’s top artists and artisans. Here we meet some of these great masters, who have also won countless other cultural awards.

Changhua

Longshan TempleLongshan Temple

Gate of Tianhou Temple

Handicraft shop

ADVERTISEMENT

Photos/Changhua County Cultural Affairs Bureau, Vision int’l

Wu Dun-hou is the island’s most celebrated master of the traditional Chinese decorated lantern, his Wu Dun-hou Lantern Shop located at 312 Zhongshan Rd. Master Wu

has been in the trade for more than 60 years, and has dedicated his l ife to passing on

the traditional skills and promoting traditional lanterns as art.

Chen Wan-neng is recognized as the island’s leading craf tsman working with tin, the leading light of the Chen family which has been creating traditional Taiwanese craf ts

out of tin for generations. His most famous work is his repertoire of legendary gods

and creatures of folklore and their exploits. The Wan-neng Tin Sculpture shop is at 81

Longshan St.

Wu Qing-bo is a sculptor, creating exquisitely detailed statues of Chinese-religion deities and other temple-worship items at his shop at 21, Lane 108, Minzu Rd. He

represents the f if th generation at this shop, and follows the classical sculpting style of

the Quanzhou area in China’s south Fujian, from whence his own ancestors came as did

those of a great many other Taiwanese.

Shi Zhi-hui is also a master wood sculptor who follows the Quanzhou style and specializes in Buddhist deities and other f igures of legend. Honing his inimitable skills

for over sixty years now, since he was 16 and an apprentice at the foot of his celebrated

father, he is noted for distinctive character poses and mise-en-scenes, as well as for the

dignity of his characters. His shop is at 655 Fuxing Rd.

Shi Zhen-yang was born into a carving family in 1946, and began his apprenticeship at the age of ten. He specializes in traditional architectural decorations, generally

closely related to folk religion, and has taken part in the refurbishment and building

of numerous famous temples in central and southern Taiwan. Shi specializes in

woodcarvings of large size, such as dragon pillars, inscribed boards, decorative carvings,

ceil ing panels, and wall reliefs.

Li Song-lin, master carver of religious iconry, unfortunately passed away in 1999. Thankfully, however, his skills have been passed on to his son, Li Bing-gui, who carries

on the emphasis in Buddhist imagery at the Song-lin Art Sculpture Center at 51 Putou St.

The Li clan came from mainland China almost 200 years ago to work on Longshan Temple

as woodcarvers, settling down in Lugang af terwards. The elder Li was noted for his

temple f igurines, some of which grace Tianhou Temple

Zheng Ying-xie is Lugang’s, and Taiwan’s, most famous goldsmith, at his trade 50-plus years. A poor farmer boy, he lef t for Taipei at 18 to apprentice in goldsmithing with

a famous China master, then opened his own Lugang shop in 1976, achieving fame with

magnif icent gold teapots and since then producing ever more complex works illustrating

Taiwan’s history, culture, and customs. His business is at 185 Zhongshan Rd.

Contact InfoLugang Town Office(鹿港鎮公所)Tel: 04-7772006Add:168 Minquan Road, Lugang Town, Changhua County, Taiwan 505www.lukang.gov.tw/

Lugang Osmanthus Alley Artist Village

For more information about traveling in Changhua County, please visit the following website: http://tourism.chcg.gov.tw/english/index.aspx

Lugang Osmanthus Alley Artist VillageThis special cultural project has seen the saving and refurbishment of old, disused

buildings in Lugang’s old district – worker dormitories built during the 1895-1945 Japanese colonial period – now used both as a showcase for the architecture and culture of the past and as an incubator for new artistic cultural creation, with local and foreign artists (primarily visual artists) l iving in residence and provided with living quarters, workshops, and display space. This is an open-concept facil ity, with public visits warmly invited and with regular exhibits and performances plus a visitor center and educational facil ities, and is designed to serve as a place of creative ferment and inspiration for art in Taiwan’s central area. The artist village is located on Gongyuan Rd.

Zheng Ying-xie

Son of Li Song-Lin, Li Bing-gui

Shi Zhen-yang

Shi Zhi-hui

Wu Qing-bo

Chen Wan-neng

Wu Dun-hou

Travel in Taiwan 23

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You hear them coming before you see them. Out of the blasts of

music from drum, Chinese flute, cymbal, and gong comes the

head of the Chinese temple parade, impossibly oversized and extravagantly

costumed characters, each a puppet, each with a hard-working and

overheating young man inside. A god from a local temple is on an

inspection tour, or off to visit another god elsewhere. He is in a sedan chair

further back. In local belief the next world is much like this, except more a

reflection of imperial times. The ornate puppets at parade’s head are officials

and guardians in the service of their sedan-chair overlord, clearing the way

for their master, scaring off lurking evil. The young mortals inside take

great pride in bringing life to their puppet better than any other player,

strutting about with the pomp and grandiosity an imperial-day retinue had,

with impossibly wide gaits and swinging arms sometimes spanning ten feet.

For a light-hearted and deliberately kitschy look at these characters and

temple prayer, see the recent surprise international Youtube music-video

hit Bobee, by Taiwan entertainer Lotus Wang (王彩樺). “Bobee” (保庇) is

Taiwanese for “deity blessings and protection.”

By Rick Charette

Chinese Temple Parades

ON STAGE/OFF STAGE

Travel in Taiwan 24

ON STAGE / OFF STAGE

As the most prominent theater company performing Taiwanese opera (gezaixi, literally “Theater of Songs”) in Taiwan today, Ming Hwa Yuan Arts & Cultural Group puts on shows that adapt traditional Chinese drama to the tastes of a modern audience. In many ways, the lives of the actors in this group exemplify the synthesis of old and new that occurs whenever the group goes on stage.

A Synthesis of Old and NewTaiwanese Opera

Travel in Taiwan 24

By David Bratt

MING HWA YUAN

Travel in Taiwan 25

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As Ming Hwa Yuan is beginning its performance on a chilly

December night not far from the city of Hsinchu, I am struck by how many different worlds and eras are coming together in the moment. Behind me is the two-hundred-year-old Fumei Temple, which houses a statue of the god whose birthday the play is being staged to commemorate. Around me is a huge crowd of Taiwanese people, running the gamut from old to young, elegant to plain. On stage is a f if ty-strong group of actors, who are going to launch into their presentation of a story set in imperial China. There’s a keen sense of anticipation as people move from the food stands near the entrance to the temple complex back to the plastic stools in front of the stage as the play begins.

And what a show it turns out to be! The story centers on the struggle of a young prince – played tonight by Sun Tsui-feng, the shining star of Taiwanese opera and also the wife of Chen Sheng-fu, president of Ming Hwa Yuan – to overcome the slanderous accusations of one of the king’s scheming concubines and her cowardly son. Side plots abound, with a delightful performance by another of Ming Hwa Yuan’s husband-and-wife teams as a comical ne’er-do-well and his daughter, who ends up marrying the prince in a charming concluding scene. Delivering their l ines in Taiwanese and with the benef it of l ights, microphones, and all the other trappings of modern theater, the Ming Hwa Yuan actors give a performance that draws the crowd both in and together in a powerful way. And so it has been doing for seventy-two years.

This magic is intimately l inked to the genesis and development of Taiwanese opera as an art form. Taiwanese opera developed out of the folk songs that early Han Chinese immigrants brought with them to Taiwan from mainland China, settling into more or less the form it has today in the early 20th century. As in

Elaborate costumes and

stunning acrobatics are part

of Taiwanese opera

ON STAGE / OFF STAGE

Travel in Taiwan 26

companies have had to struggle with. Under the leadership of Chen Sheng-fu, who in 1997 took over management of the company from his father (who founded it in 1929), Ming Hwa Yuan has incorporated signif icantly more modern production techniques and props. While he admits that these reforms have been controversial in some quarters, Chen stresses that they are the types of changes that companies l ike his have to make in order to survive.

What hasn’t changed are the rigorous requirements that Ming Hwa Yuan imposes upon all actors who want to join the troupe. One critical skill that they all must develop is the versatil ity to play all four of the major character types. Chen explains that this requirement not only pushes the actors artistically, but also provides a large pool of understudies in case an actor is unable to perform

and someone else has to step in to play the part.

Secondly, actors must be able to play characters of the opposite sex ( fan chuan). When I talk to her in the Ming Hwa Yuan rehearsal space later in the week, Sun Tsui-feng describes

Peking opera, the lead characters in

Taiwanese opera are divided into four

broad categories: the male protagonist

(sheng), which Sun Tsui-feng plays

tonight to such great effect; the lead

female character (dan); the so-called

painted-face character ( jing), who

typically plays a powerful, loud-voiced

character such as a demon, general, or

minister; and the jester (chou). Even

though it became more formalized

over the years, Taiwanese opera has

never become rigidly formal – indeed,

early on it was seen as the simple,

even vulgar theater of the hoi polloi,

while Peking opera and other more

ref ined types of theater were viewed

as the entertainment of the elite. This

easy accessibil ity remains a primary

feature of Taiwanese opera to this

day: the actors do not sing in falsetto

(unlike in Peking opera), there are all

sorts of fun acrobatics, and there is

plenty of humor.

The question of how to preserve

the appeal and relevance

of Taiwanese opera in the age of

television and now the Internet is

one that Ming Hwa Yuan and other

and models in entertaining detail the many intricacies of deportment and demeanor that one has to master to play the opposite gender. “Women in general tend to have a more closed and demure posture. When I started to play male roles, I had to learn to sit with my legs wide open, to make sweeping gestures and, of course, to speak in a much deeper voice.”

The hard work involved in developing these skills inf luences the actors’ off-stage lives in interesting ways. Sun recalls that early in her career she would exhaust herself in her preparations. “Once, I had to play an emperor in a play. I was so fully invested in my preparations that I started acting like an emperor around my home, barking orders at my husband and children. Luckily, my husband is also involved in the theater, so he understood the pressure that I was under.” Sun recalls that as she grew more comfortable playing male characters, she was able to draw more clearly the line between life on and off the stage. “That changed, though, when my husband had me play a female character a few years ago. It may sound strange, but this was quite diff icult for me; it was a challenge relearning how to perform as a woman. Once again, I was bringing my work home, but this time I was acting extremely effeminate instead of masculine.

The line between home and

professional life is of ten blurred for the actors of Ming Hwa Yuan, because for many of them Taiwanese opera is a family affair – some of the actors are third-generation members, and there are several married couples among the cast and crew. The all-consuming pace of l ife for these actors can, of course, inf luence

Ming Hwa Yuan’s performances draw the crowd both in and together in a powerful way

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Typical fighting scene

Sun Tsui-feng is

the brightest star of

Taiwanese Opera

MING HWA YUAN

the l ives and career direction of their children. For example, Sun and Chen’s daughter, Chen Zhao-xian, who formally joined the company last year, recalls that she thought it was the most natural thing in the world that she played a minor role in a Ming Hwa Yuan production at the age of f ive. “My parents were always singing and practicing l ines around the house, and so many of the kids I grew up around were involved in the theater. It just seemed l ike the most

natural thing to me.”As I take a cab away from the

performance to the train station, I ask the driver (who has also just seen the show) what he thinks. He pauses for a second and says, “You know, when I was a kid I didn’t l ike stuff l ike what Ming Hwa Yuan does. But now, I don’t know, it is just so much fun.”

While I’m sure Director Chen wouldn’t l ike to hear the f irst part of what the cabbie said, he’d probably be pretty happy about the conclusion.

Travel in Taiwan 27

Edison Travel Service specializes in Taiwan toursand offers cheaper hotel room rates and car rental services with drivers .Edison welcomes contact with other travelservices around the world.

Ming Hwa Yuan arts & Cultural group 明華園戲劇總團 add: 132-7 Dali St., Wanhua District, Taipei City (台北市萬華區大理街132之7號)tel: (02)2772-9398, (02)2772-7863website: h t t p: / / twopera .com /

{EnglisH & CHinEsE}

Chen Sheng-fu 陳勝福

Chen Zhao-xian 陳昭賢

chou 丑

dan 旦

fan chuan 反串

Fumei Temple 富美宮

gezaixi 歌仔戲

Hsinchu 新竹

jing 淨

sheng 生

Sun Tsui-feng 孫翠鳳

A dressing room busy with Ming Hwa

Yuan’s many performers getting ready

for a show

Assembling Simple and Funny-Looking Wood Sculptures in Sanyi

Step 3

Once we had put together the figures it was time to add some hair. Using woolen thread and some glue, we created a fitting hairpiece for the hippie surfer. The body of the guitar player was covered with a fluffy boa.

Step 1

Zhamu Workshop has shelves full of fin-ished art objects, giving you an idea of the creative possibilities. We were given the choice of using a kit containing all the elements needed to create a figure or to go to the storage room in the back and pick out pieces of wood for our own freestyle creations. We opted for both, using one kit to create a guitar-playing dude and using our imagination to create a surfer hippie.

Step 2

The process of creating the figures couldn’t be easier. There are pre-cut wooden (Taiwan acacia) discs

and tiny bits of branches that already have holes drilled into them, so the only task is figuring out where to start and how to attach the pieces using the thin metal pins provided.

The small town of Sanyi in Miaoli County is not only Taiwan’s undisputed center for woodcarving but also a great destination for visitors who want to enjoy the slower pace of the countryside, go on leisurely cycling and hiking trips,

visit farms and historic sites, and do some wood-art DIY. On a recent trip to Miaoli we stopped by Zhamu Workshop to have some DIY fun assembling strange-looking wood figures. Here’s how we did it:

Working with Wood

2

1 3

LEARNING EXPERIENCE

Travel in Taiwan 28

4

During the week, Zhamu Workshop offers DIY courses exclu-sively f or groups of 10 or more; during the weekend individu-als and groups of all sizes are welcome (please call in ad-vance). Wood- f igure kits are priced at NT$250 (20% discount f or groups of 10 or more). To make it easy to take home these f ragile f igures, Zhamu Workshop prepares convenient gi f t boxes f or visitors.

Step 4

The final step was painting the faces using simple watercolors. Since we liked the natural feel of the wood we merely added some paint to create the eyes and accentuate the hands and feet of the guitar player. Creating the figures is easy and fun, especially for kids. We too had a lot of fun, and want to thank Ms. Zheng Yan-zhen for introducing us to her unique workshop!

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About Zhamu WorkshopZhamu Workshop, established in 2003, was originally a combination of private guesthouse (“homestay”) and wood-art workshop. Owners Lin Jin-chang, an accom-plished woodcarving master, some of whose work is on display at the workshop, and his wife Zheng Yan-zhen gave up the guesthouse operation in 2008 and moved their workshop to a new location deep in the countryside, on the road between two well-known tourist attractions, the old Shengxing Railway Station and the ruins of Longteng Bridge. The workshop has a work area accommodating up to 120 persons, with large wooden tables and a storage room full of material for woodwork. Zhamu Workshop is a great place to make a stop on a tour of the county of Miaoli, creating funny wooden sculptures and enjoying a cup of coffee on the patio while taking in the surrounding farmland and verdant hills.

{ENGLiSH & CHiNESE}

Lin Jin-chang 林進昌

Longteng Bridge 龍騰斷橋

Miaoli 苗栗

Sanyi 三義

Shengxing Railway 勝興火車站 StationZhamu Workshop 札木工房

Zheng Yan-zhen 鄭燕貞

Zhunan 竹南

GETTING THERE

To get to the city of Miaoli by train you have to take the Mountain Line of the Nor th-South railway connecting the major cities on the western side of Taiwan. The Mountain Line s tar ts south of Zhunan, and it doesn’ t take long from there before you are surrounded by the charming, rolling hil ls of Miaoli County. From the city of Miaoli it ’s 20 minutes by local train to Sanyi Railway Station, located at the far nor thern end of town. Since the dis tances between points of interest in the Sanyi area are significant and taking public buses is very inconvenient, your best bet is to rent a motor-scooter or a bicycle near the s tation to get around.

ZHamu WorkSHopadd: 21-2, Waizhuang, Neighborhood 3, Longteng Village, Sanyi Township, Miaoli County (苗栗縣三義鄉龍騰村3鄰外庄21-2號)Tel: (370) 881-125, 0921-635-360 (pick-up from Sanyi Railway Station can be arranged.)Web: www.zhamu.idv.tw

SANYI

Travel in Taiwan 29

THE BEST ROUTE

Travel in Taiwan 30

Driving the Central Cross-Island Highway

My contender for Taiwan’s most magnificent drive, taking you above deep valleys, down into deep valleys, soaring up to the island’s highest road-point and eye to eye with the peaks of an Olympian line of mountain giants, and down, down into and through a long and impossibly narrow thousand-meter-high gorge. The Central Cross-Island Highway. By Rick Charette

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CENTRAL TAIWAN

One of Travel in Taiwan’s other regular feature writers, Steven Crook,

insists the Southern Cross-Island Highway beats this route for sheer majesty. But I say I trump him with the fact that once you emerge from the Central Cross-Island Highway at the rugged east coast, where the mighty Taroko Gorge abruptly disappears and dis-gorges its river-sculptor into the Pacif ic, you can immediately launch on the Suao-Hualien

Highway, a grandiose engineering feat with long sections hugging sheer cliff averaging over 800 meters high.

Let’s get to it. The only way to go, for both this and the southern route, is self-drive, releasing you from time pressures and allowing as much time as you please at what turn out to be your favorite sites. So let’s get a car. Most travelers to Taiwan come in through Taipei, so we’ll assume this is

Central Cross- Island Highway at Wuling

THE BEST ROUTE

Travel in Taiwan 32

your base. Reputable rental f irms accustomed to dealing with foreigners advertise in the nation’s three English-language newspapers; another option is to visit the Taiwan Tourism Bureau’s website (www.taiwan.net.tw), which means vetting has been done (click on “Getting Around” – “Car Rental” on the English main page). You’ll need to present an international driver’s licence and your passport. For a trip of 2-3 days a small sedan will be about NT$2,000 daily, a larger sedan like a Toyota Camry about NT$3,000; prices include compulsory insurance and tax, and you’ll have to leave a deposit, likely NT$10,000.

Next, get the most detailed maps and tourist information available. The place to go is the Tourism Bureau’s Travel Service Center on the f irst f loor at 240 Dunhua N. Rd., near the city’s Songshan Airport, where staff speak good English and the stock of printed material is wide-ranging. Also, take note of the bureau’s 24h toll-free hotline (0800-011-765).

Time to trace the route. Lay out the maps, f inger at the ready. Also pull up Google Map, using the

satellite map option, which gives a good idea of the topography. Just south of Taichung City, National Freeway No. 3 connects with No. 6, which ends at the high-hills basin town of Puli, connecting in turn with Provincial Highway No. 14 for our high-mountain climb. Though on the ground you won’t notice a change and the road will continue to run straight and true, it becomes No. 14A at the town of Wushe and then No. 8 on the east “downslope” for our run to Taroko Gorge and coast.

From Puli to coast we’re on the Central Cross-Island Highway. Note that the true, original central highway was the full length of No. 8 – look on the map to the north, starting north of Taichung – but earthquake and typhoon has caused the likely permanent closing of a long section (shown clearly on the Google map).

In terms of length and time needed, you could drive from the start of No. 6 to the east coast in 5-6 hours, with minimal stops. The question is, why? The drive deserves three days minimum, including the (minimum) two-hour-plus drives to/from Taipei at trip’s head and tail. Stay the f irst night at one of the many f ine homestays or hotels at Qingjing Farm, and stay the second night right in Taroko Gorge. Here’s how things went on my most recent trip (I’ve been thrice now), just after Christmas. All sites visited are right on the highway, not a single detour needed.

The 37.5-km No. 6 is a great ride. Just a couple of years old, it is raised high above the ground, and as you shoot out of the many tunnels you’re high

above the valley f loors and small settlements below, with deep-green mountains on both sides as backdrop. It whisks you from Taichung to Puli in just 20 minutes or so, much faster than the building-crowded parallel section of No. 14.

As No. 6 enters Puli Basin, you see the town on the right. The massive Chung Tai Chan Monastery (www.ctworld.org) dominates the basin on the left (north). Take the Zhongzheng Rd. exit and go north following the signs on No. 21. The

WHAT’S UP ON THE WAY FROM CENTRAL TO NORTH TAIWAN There were many amazing things seen on this road-trip. Let me show you some!

1day

Qingjing Set tlement

Wuling

Tianfeng Pagoda at Taroko Popsicle of Puli Brewer y

CENTRAL TAIWAN

Travel in Taiwan 33

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Taichung City

Nantou County

View from Qingjing Garden

Chung Tai Chan Monaster y

Qingjing Garden

Silks Place Taroko Green Green Grassland

Chung Tai Chan Monastery

Puli

Tianxiang

Dayuling

Wuling

Mt. Nenggao

Mt. Qilai

Mt. Hehuan

Wushe

Green Green Grassland

Small Swiss Garden

THE BEST ROUTE

Travel in Taiwan 34

THE BEST ROUTE

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monastery, seeming to soar into the sky, is in the shape of a Buddhist devotee in the lotus position. The large halls and pretty parkland are home to statuary of striking size and wonderful aesthetic accomplishment. There is English printed info for the halls, and also in the f ine adjoining museum. Before leaving, go around back for a great view of the large pagoda built high up and right within the main tower. Visit before 11 am if possible, before the tour buses start rolling in.

Puli Brewery (in fact a winery) is in the heart of old Puli. Retrace your steps along Zhongzheng Rd. and keep going till you hit Zhongshan Rd., right downtown (passing Xinyi Rd./Highway No. 14 one block before). Turn right, and the winery is on the left (south side) a few hundred meters on. It is the famed producer of Taiwan’s version of Shaohsing Wine, made from rice. There is an interesting “wine culture” museum on the second level, with excellent English explanations. The downstairs food-vendor court is a lot of fun – try such inventions as Shaohsing popsicles, “chocolate wine sugar,” and Shaohsing-f lavored “salmon snack cubes” and sausages.

Onto the 14 now and out of Puli for the big-mountain climb. At a sauntering pace, with lots of photo-op stops as vistas become grander, about 90~120 minutes on the settlement of Qingjing looms into view, high above, stretching along what is now the 14A with deep valleys left and right, as though perched along the spine of a sleeping dragon.

The long thin settlement, with clusters of pretty

hotels hovering over steep slopes, is marked at bottom by a

7-Eleven and at top by another, the latter Taiwan’s highest

convenience store. By the way, all 7-Eleven and FamilyMart

stores on our route are tourist-oriented, bright and airy with

sparkling-clean washrooms. Make these your pit stops.

A f ine large homestay, more an inn, is Qingjing Garden

(www.cose.com.tw; Chinese), just below the higher 7-Eleven

at the 11.2-km mark. Below the highway, views from your

wide room windows – of small farms, deep valley, soaring

mountain chain beyond, and pastel sunrise and sunset – are

unobstructed and soul-caressing. Rooms are big, basic, and

clean, and Chinese breakfast is served in a cozy restaurant

with windows on three sides.

Qingjing Farm (www.cing jing.gov.tw), a major tourist attraction popular with local island folk, bills itself as “Little Switzerland.” The reasons are

clear. In the Green Green Grassland section (entry fee) sheep munch on rolling mountaintop pastureland (note: brown grass in winter, leading to upset magazine photographers). There’s the requisite tall-peak alpine panoramas, Swiss-façade hotels by the highway, small villages and hamlets seen far, far below, and even a windmill perched on a promontory. The Small Swiss Garden (entry fee) overf lows with bright alpine f lowers. Both sections are right beside the highway, closer to the lower 7-Eleven.

The climb from Qingjing to the road’s highest point, at Wuling, takes about an hour. You leave homes and buildings behind; all permanent dwellings seem to be far below you. There are a number of scenic places to stop, with good English posted telling you what you’re seeing. At Wuling (3,275 m), you’ve cleared forest cover and are amongst waving grasslands; just above, not more than a few hundred feet, is a world of bare rock. Mt. Hehuan’s east peak is right on top of you, the road running over its neck and down its back toward Taroko. Laid out to the right of the east peak is what seems like a scale model of ridges and peaks running far toward the island’s south, a who’s who of topographical stars lined up – Qilai Ridge, Nenggao Mountain, Yushan in miniature far at the end. All are now at eye-level, and you feel you can reach out and touch them all.

From here it’s all downhill – no, not scenery-wise, road-wise. You’ll meet up with Highway No. 8 and the sleepy town of Dayuling in about 30 minutes. Then it’s 57 km (2 hours) of twists and turns to Tianxiang at gorge’s head, down mountainside, into the impressive outer gorge, then your stop for the day right where impressive ends and

2day

Taroko Gorge

CENTRAL TAIWANCENTRAL TAIWAN

magnif icent begins, the inner gorge. On the Dayuling-Tianxiang run your vehicle will rarely reach over 60 km/h; do not eat heavily before this run, and note there is a gas station just east of Dayuling but no more until Tianxiang.

A great place to spend the night is the upscale Silks Place hotel (taroko.silksplace.com.tw), where stained wood is the dominant theme. It sits right where two rivers meet before rushing into the inner gorge for more sculpting. You’ve plopped yourself into the lap of luxury, but two stand-out highlights are the aboriginal (Truku Tribe) cultural performances at the large and lovely inner courtyard and the nightly rooftop bonf ires on the deck by the pool, with drinks served while stars and moon perform high above.

The Taroko Gorge (www.taroko.gov.tw) is 19 km of unremitting

wonder. You can putter through it in an hour without leaving the car, but it deserves, at minimum, your whole

day. I have an image of it being the result of a party of the immortals; the massive riverbed boulders are marbles lef t behind, and because of the thick layers of marble in the cliffs, it strikes me as a magical marble cake sliced clean through by an immortal knife, tops almost meeting again as knife passes through.

New highway tunnels have been cut in more recent years, leaving long sections of original cliffside road to pedestrians. You’ll f ind excellent information boards throughout.

Your central highway sojourn is now over, but your driving fun is not. Turn left at gorge’s end and coast for two hours on the Suao-Hualien Highway. Though you’ll be on it and looking right at it as it disappears round the next headland, you’ll spend much of your time thinking how impossible it is to build a road along sheer coastal cliff like this. After this it’s another 90 minutes of smooth sailing to Taipei on National Freeway No. 5.

{ENGLisH & CHiNEsE}

Central Cross-Island Hwy 中部橫貫公路 Chung Tai Chan Mon. 中台禪寺 Dayuling 大禹嶺Green Green Grassland 青青草原Mt. Hehuan 合歡山Nenggao Mountain 能高山Puli 埔里Puli Brewery 埔里酒廠Qilai Ridge 奇萊稜脊Qingjing Farm 清境農場Shaohsing Wine 紹興酒Small Swiss Garden 小瑞士花園Songshan Airport 松山機場Southern Cross-Island Hwy 南部橫貫公路 Suao-Hualien Highway 蘇花公路Taroko Gorge 太魯閣Truku Tribe 太魯閣族Tianxiang 天祥Wuling 武嶺Wushe 霧社Xinyi Rd. 信義路Yushan 玉山Zhongshan Rd. 中山路Zhongzheng Rd. 中正路

3day

siLks PLaCE taroko (太魯閣晶英酒店) add: 18 Tianxiang Rd., Xiulin Township, Hualien County (花蓮縣秀林鄉天祥路18號)tel: (03) 869-1155Website: taroko.silksplace.com.tw

QiNGjiNG GardEN (清境家園)

tel: (049) 280-3988 add: 206-2 Renhe Rd., Datong Village, Renai Township, Nantou County (南投縣仁愛鄉大同村仁和路206-2號)Website: www.cose.com.tw

FOOD JOURNEY

A merchant at Nanfangao’s f ish market presents the catch of the day

By Jessie Lin

A Memorable Boat Trip to Find Out Where All that Fresh Fish Comes From

The morning call came at 4:30 a.m. on the day of our trip,

and I could hardly believe that I was awake. I had

never been up this early – voluntarily at least. However, I was

fully alert and ready for my first-ever experience out on a fishing

boat. We were due to meet our sea captain at 5 a.m. sharp at his

boat. The cool, refreshing morning breeze blew softly on my face

as we reached the harbor. There were already early risers taking

strolls by the fishing dock. The harbor wasn’t very big, but it had

a very nice and cozy feeling as we walked along the shore. Just

as I was thinking there wasn’t a lot of boat activity, we saw one

come chugging into the harbor. We went over and saw that they

had been quite successful that morning, bringing back a large

amount of fish. The captain told us that he had gone out at 2:30

a.m. that morning.

The fisherman we were sailing out with was Captain Huang

Qian-hao, a tanned, medium-built gentleman in his mid-fifties

with about 20 years of fishing experience under his belt. He

greeted us with a friendly smile and invited us to step onto his

boat, introducing us to his two onboard workers. We soon left

the dock and were on our way to open sea,

but before hitting open water we were

privy to a time-honored ritual, the captain

reciting a short prayer and then tossing

some spirit money into the water in order

to show respect to the sea. To exit the harbor, we had to pass by

a security checkpoint, where our documents were checked by the

sea patrolmen. Then we were cruising out on full speed.

When we were beyond the harbor Captain Huang gave us a

quick tour of his boat. Inside the cabin were two small computer

screens that showed us our latitude and longitude, and the

captain also showed us the auto-pilot system, installed 10 years

ago, which allows him to move about and help out with the work.

As the sky slowly started to light up, it dawned on me

that this was the first time I was seeing the sun rise

while out on the ocean. The view put me in awe as the sun

made its grand entrance from the east. On the opposite side, we

admired the shimmering effect created as it lit up the beautiful

mountainous landscape of eastern Taiwan.

Our captain told us that he has four areas where he can set

up his net. He proudly noted that the eastern side of Taiwan

has a wide variety of fish and that each area where he fishes

yields different species of fish and other marine life. As the clock

closed in on 6 am, Captain Huang readied the net with his fellow

workers, dropping it into the ocean in time with the rhythmic

beat of a whistle blow.

While chatting with the captain, it became apparent how

passionate he was about fishing and how

much in love he was with the ocean. Much

of the process of catching fish is reliance

on accrued experience. We were one small

fishing boat out on the massive ocean, yet

Captain Huang seemed to instinctively know where to set the net,

showing a remarkable feel for what was going on, unseen, below

us in this vast expanse of “nothingness.”Pho

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uYILAN COUNTY

Gone Fishing

Travel in Taiwan 37

If you want to go to the source of the delicious seafood served around Taiwan, head to one of the countless fishing harbors that dot the long coastline of the island. We had the chance to go a step further when a local fisherman at the port of Nanfangao in Yilan County agreed to take us on one of his daily fishing trips.

It became apparent how passionate the captain was about fishing and how much in love he was with the ocean

FOOD JOURNEY

Travel in Taiwan 38

at the current level, and couldn’t imagine how I would be able to

stand straight with a level-8 wave hitting the boat.

The captain decided that it was better to return with one

catch. “Better not take any risks,” he said. “There’s always

tomorrow and the day after to catch more fish, whereas one

mistake can ruin an entire career.”

As the boat neared the dock, we were greeted by a flock of

seagulls eager to snatch the small fish scraps scattered about our

craft. There were already buyers standing around to see what

Mr. Huang had brought in that day. Other boats followed us in,

all skippers well aware of the dangers posed by the changing

weather. Everyone at dockside seemed to

know each other, joking and gossiping

with each other like good old neighbors.

Since Captain Huang had only taken in

one haul that day he decided to sell the

entire catch to a single merchant.

The merchant, with a prime location in the harborside

f ish market, had Captain Huang’s catch dumped into large

buckets f illed with ice water immediately after purchase

and moved to his site. Everything was cleaned one last time

before being separated into baskets for display. By this time

most of the f ish market was set up, and customers were

straddling in. Buying seafood doesn’t get any more local and

fresher than this.

There are two streets by the harbor. Each is lined

with restaurants on one side, all boasting of

their house specialties, and shops selling dried seafood goods on

the other. If you’re ever feeling the urge for a seafood run, this

is the place to visit. The restaurants pride themselves on using

After some time had gone by, and I had drifted into pleasant

daydreams while taking in the surrounding scenery, we were

notified that it was time to take in the first catch. As the workers

pulled up the net, a great swooshing flow of fish and other sea

creatures dropped onto the boat. Fish came in all shapes and sizes.

I immediately saw that there was one anglerfish, an ugly-looking

fish with a lamp-like figure dangling on its forehead. Other fish

that I recognized were red bulleyes, and lots of “meat fish.” Along

with the fish were small shrimps and sweet shrimps as well as

squid and octopus. The two workers quickly pulled several baskets

forward and began sorting the catch into different groups; all this

was done in a matter of minutes. Whatever

was deemed not sellable was thrown right

back into the ocean. They then cleaned and

stored the catch in ice in order to preserve

peak freshness.

Normally Captain Huang takes in three

catches in one day. His daily

routine starts when he sails out at 5 a.m.; he then spreads out his

first net at around 6 a.m. and takes in the first catch at around 8

a.m. He does this two more times before arriving back at the dock

at around 1 p.m.

This particular day, however, was different. Soon after the

first catch, Captain Huang told us that the breeze was picking

up and it would not be safe to stay out on the ocean for too

much longer. He mentioned that the current sea wave was at

about level 3, and was looking to go up to level 8. (Waves are

measured on a scale of 0 to 10, with 0 indicating a calm ocean

without a breeze and 10 a sea with waves that will knock a boat

dangerously back and forth.) I was already feeling a bit nauseous Pho

tos

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ska

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Fishermen and merchants were joking and gossiping with each other like

good old neighbors

Captain Huang Leaving Nanfangao Harbor in the early morning hours

RICE

Travel in Taiwan 39

Travel in Taiwan 39

only the freshest fish caught off the Yilan Coast on

the same day.

As we strolled along the harbor, we came across two

men preparing bait for catching mackerel. Hundreds

of bait hooks had been prepared and tied by hand to

fishing lines, each lure sporting a different flamboyant

color. We also stopped by a unique museum called the

Sun-Gan Factory Museum, housed in a former steel

factory built in 1962 where fishermen would go to get

their boats repaired, the oldest factory facility still

standing in Nanfangao. The museum houses many

different types of old machinery used over the decades,

as well as personal collectibles donated by the owner. It

is open daily 9 a.m. ~ 6 p.m.

Taiwan’s fortuitous location, floating on the high

seas and along major marine-life migratory routes,

makes it a mecca for seafood lovers. The methods

used in preparing seafood dishes are as plentiful

as the types of seafood the hardworking fishermen

bring to shore. Nanfangao is just one of Taiwan’s

many excellent destinations for the ultimate seafood

experience, and it was a privilege to visit the people

of this hard-working community and learn more,

first-hand, about the fishing industry in Taiwan

and its intriguing culture. Experiencing the life of

a fisherman for a day and meeting the friendly fishermen and merchants at the

market made me much more appreciative of the dishes that were placed in front of

me when we finally sat down at a local restaurant. The moment I tasted the first

dish, I was amazed at how much my perspective on eating seafood had changed

after my experiences of that day.

{ENGLisH & CHiNEsE}

anglerfish 鮟 魚安 魚康魚

Huang Qian-hao 黃千豪

“meat fish” 肉魚

Nanfangao 南方澳

red bulleye 紅目鰱

suN-GAN fACTorY MusEuM (三剛鐵工廠文物館)

Add: 81, Yugang Rd., Suao Township, Yilan County( 宜蘭縣蘇澳鎮漁港路 81號 )Tel: (03) 996-2465 (call in advance for guided tours)

E-mail: nana.kawa@msa.hinet.net

Sorting the catch

LET'S EAT!

Travel in Taiwan 40

Pho

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Insider Tip for Gourmets: Heaven Is in Luodong!

Local-Style

TeppanyakiIf someone tells you about a great teppanyaki restaurant with exquisite gourmet food, you’ll probably suspect it to be in the downtown area of a big city like Taipei, close to or inside one of the fancy shopping malls of the East District for example. But in Luodong, Yilan County? Deep-countryside Yilan? Don’t be put off by its remoteness. The amazing food at Shen Yen Teppanyaki makes any trip to Yilan a rewarding one indeed! By Sylvester K reut z

LET'S EAT!

Clockwise from top lef t: Bar and dining area of Shen Yen; Chef Ah-Yong; self-made soy sauce; deep-sea prawns; fried rosy seabass

SEAFOOD

Travel in Taiwan 41

There were many doubters in the beginning.

“How will you be able to make ends meet at this location?” friends and family would ask him. “Who will come all the way out here to eat teppanyaki?” But Cheng Zhi-yong had his vision, his dream, and he was going to realize it no matter what, based on the conviction that Yilan, the place were he was born and had spent most of his l ife, was the best location to do it. That was almost nine years ago. The restaurant has come a long way since.

Googling for Shen Yen Teppanyaki to get a f irst glimpse at what the restaurant has to offer, I am surprised by the large number of Chinese blogs with rave reviews about the food, the service, the prices and, most of all, the friendly family-like atmosphere. No reason at all, therefore, to not give it a try. When, a few days later, I f inally arrive at the restaurant, a lovely place decorated in warm wood and sandy colors, and sit down in front of the crescent-shaped teppanyaki griddle, I soon discover another reason for this eatery ’s success: the man in charge. Chef Cheng, called “Ah-Yong” by friends and regulars, has an enviable passion for cooking and a strong desire to share this passion with his guests. “I try to create a local-style teppanyaki, using the best farm produce and seafood of Yilan, an area with great mountains and great water, and share delicious food with my friends in an interactive way.” Friendly and thoughtful, l ike a good uncle taking care of his extended family, the chef creates a relaxed atmosphere where diners feel free to walk around, talk about food, and laugh a lot.

Part of Chef Cheng’s unique “interactive” method is

his recommendation for ordering food: “Allow yourself to be surprised!” The restaurant does have a menu, but most diners don't even bother to look at it, instead putting their culinary fate in the hands of the chef, letting him

make the decisions af ter tell ing him the desired price range or simply how hungry they are.

Since I have seafood on my mind I ask the chef to prepare a multiple-course meal with selected morsels from the sea. He shows me different types of f ish, and some very large deep-sea prawns, all f resh catch of the day selected and purchased by the chef himself a few hours earlier at the f ishing harbor in nearby Nanfangao.

Sipping some delightful high-mountain tea, I watch the chef go to work. First he prepares a platter of sashimi – thin slices of raw parrot bass and paradise threadf in. What a delightful sensation, feeling the f ish virtually melt on my tongue! The richly f lavored soy sauce which serves as the dip is produced by Chef Cheng himself.

Next come some more sashimi slices, but this time in

combination with crab eggs, leaves of garden chrysanthemum grown by the chef ’s mother, and fragrant chicken soup. Delicious!

Now come the bright orange prawns, still alive when placed on the hot metal surface. About 20 centimeters in length and f illed with a mass of white f lesh larger than my middle f inger, the prawns are cooked with just a bit of olive oil and a splash of water. “I prefer not to add any f lavors. The all-natural taste is always the best!” explains the chef. The sweet and succulent prawns are truly phenomenal.

Next on the griddle is a fat sl ice of f ish, purplish amber jack. It contains enough fat that no oil needs to be used to fry it. Just a few seconds and the outside is done, while the inside remains raw. A quick dip in the soy sauce and the sof t meat is teasing my palate. The next slice of the same f ish is cooked and quickly rolled up in a coating of crispy parmesan cheese. Sensational!

On to the highlight of the evening.

“You are lucky today!” says Chef Ah-Yong giddily, presenting a sizable red-skinned beauty of a f ish with huge dark eyes. “You don’t get such a big ang ao (rosy seabass) as this every day at the harbor.” This type of f ish, according to the chef the favorite of his two-year-old daughter, takes quite a bit of time to cook, but the long wait is well worth it. The crispy skin and tender meat remind me of some big trout my friends and I once caught in a Norwegian lake.

For the encore, my gastronomic tour guide presents omelet with Yilan scall ions and tiny f ish, a Taiwan-grown caramelized apple served with fresh mascarpone cheese and peppermint leaves, a glass of fresh-pressed guava juice – the fruit of Chef Cheng’s father ’s orchard – and f inally a glass of rich-f lavor house-made plum wine.

The dining experience is for me a true revelation, even without trying the many meat dishes Chef Cheng promises to prepare for me the next time. I’ ll def initely be back to visit this gourmet heaven in Luodong, Yilan County – and soon!

sHEN YEN TEPPANYAKi 響宴鐵板燒 TEL: (03) 965-7998 (reservation well in advance highly recommended)Add: 326 Hebin Rd., Luodong Township, Yilan County (宜蘭縣羅東鎮河濱路326號)(Shen Yen offers high-quality food at very affordable prices; a typical meal sets you back NT$1,000~2,000)

HoW To GET THErE: PubLiC TrANsPorT: Train from Taipei to Luodong (fastest train 1 hr 20 min.; NT$239) or bus (Capital Star from Taipei City Hall Bus Station; about 1 hr 30 min.; NT$120). From Luodong railway/bus station take a taxi to the restaurant. sELf-drivE: Freeway No. 5 to Luodong Exit (north side). Follow road under elevated free-way back in northern direction, turn left onto County Road 22 and follow this road all the way to the restaurant.

{ENGLisH & CHiNEsE}

ang ao (rosy seabass) 紅喉Cheng Zhi-yong 程智勇Eastern District 東區garden chrysanthemum 茼蒿Luodong 羅東Nanfangao 南方澳paradise threadfin 午仔魚parrot bass 石鯛purplish amberjack 紅甘Xueshan Tunnel 雪山隧道

LET'S EAT!

Travel in Taiwan 42

Located right alongside

the harbor

at the f ishing village of Nanfangao

on Taiwan’s northeast coast is the

popular seafood restaurant Zhengzhu Liuye Seafood. This restaurant has

just seven tables, and the small and

cozy setting allows the proprietor to

serve and chat with every one of his

diners. Make sure to show up early, as

the seats tend to f ill up quickly with

hungry customers eager to taste what

is the freshest possible catch of the

day. On a recent excursion to the coast,

as my group entered the restaurant

we were greeted by a friendly woman

f illeting a blowf ish in front of tanks

of freshly caught f ish. Toward the rear

of the restaurant we saw very neatly

hand-written signs specif ying the

specialties of the house. The attractive

call igraphy had all been personally

done by the owner of the restaurant.

The restaurant specializes in

two types of f ish: blowf ish and a

funky looking anglerf ish. Aside

from these two house specialties, the

By Jessie Lin

It’s not hard to find a good seafood restaurant in a Taiwanese fishing village. There are usually several options not far from where the fish and other catch come off the boats, and freshness is guaranteed.

Fresh Fish Right by the Harbor

Pho

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LET'S EAT!

Clockwise from this picture: The owner of the restaurant presenting squid; red bulleye; sweet and sour anglerfish; meat f ish

SEAFOOD

Travel in Taiwan 43

menu changes daily depending on what local f ishermen catch that day. The owner stresses three things for his restaurant: seasonal, local, and daily. He doesn’t cook anything that is caught outside of the Nanfangao area, and nothing from a catch made the day before will ever be served to customers.

The ordering process is unique and straightforward. The restaurant has a display of the freshest catch that day by the entrance. Customers can pick out a certain type of f ish and the owner will either recommend a way of preparing it or the clients themselves can specif y how they want the f ish cooked. Immediately af ter ordering, customers can help themselves to unlimited servings of rice. This is quite convenient, because diners usually want rice ref ills during a meal to complement the tasty seafood dishes.

The food is served in typical Taiwanese family-dining style. Dish af ter dish gets brought out from the kitchen window right af ter preparation. Eager and hungry customers slowly spin the lazy Susan on the middle of their round table until their favorite dish is in front of them.

This day, we ate f ish that had been caught on the local f ishing boat we had gone out on earlier in the day (see

pages 36-39). The chef used selections to create the following dishes:

Dish 1: Sweet and Sour Anglerfish Jaw – This dish is the star of the restaurant; no customer leaves without tasting this nicely f lavored offering. The jaw of the f ish is l ightly fried and then placed in a house special sauce. The chewy texture allows one to literally eat it right down to the bone. The dish is also nutritious, as it is a good source of collagen.

Dish 2: Pan-fried Red Bulleye – This was probably my favorite dish of the day. It sounds so simple, yet to properly pan-fry a f ish takes a lot of skill and experience. The skin was cooked to a perfect crispness. The meat was tender and full of f lavor. All you need is a bit of salt and pepper and a squeeze of lemon juice for the f inishing touch.

Dish 3: Steamed Meat Fish – Meat f ish is a small and f lat white f ish. Its meat is f laky; therefore, it is best to steam it. The dish is topped with ginger, green onion, chili pepper, and shuzi (the fruit of the fragrant manjack tree) to enhance the f lavor. The meat came easily off the bones, and the small size of the f ish made it the perfect portion for each person.

Dish 4: Blowfish Jelly – This was by far the most unique dish that I have ever tasted. Don’t let the name of the dish scare you off. This jelly

dish is made by cooking the skin of the f ish in water for about 10 hours in order for the collagen to form into a jelly-like texture (hence this was the only dish prepared with catch we had not brought in on our own boat). The cooked jelly is then f lavored and put into a mold along with some jujube. It is surprisingly light and tangy, and makes an excellent dessert. This is probably the only place where you’ ll taste something like this!

From start to f inish, the restaurant offered us the freshest seafood prepared f lawlessly. Everything about the restaurant, from its atmosphere, to the kitchen, to the owner, and f inally to its food, will surely satisf y any hungry visitor, seafood-lover or not.

ZHENGZHu LiuYE sEAfood 蒸煮流野海鮮 Add: 5, Nanning Road, Suao Township, Yilan County (宜蘭縣蘇澳鎮南寧路5號)TEL: (03) 995-5000Hours: 11 am ~ 8 pm (closed on second Tuesday each month)

{ENGLisH & CHiNEsE}

anglerfish 魚

blowfish 河豚

red bulleye 紅目鰱

shuzi 樹子

meat fish 肉魚

Blowfish

A Mother Honored by Bringing Back the Tastes of Her Kitchen

Recapturing Childhood Memories in Delicious Hand-Crafted Vietnamese FoodFour years after arriving in Taiwan newly married Ruan Huang-ying from Vietnam opened a small restaurant in Taipei’s Nangang District. Featuring just four tables, she proudly named it Huang Ying Vietnamese Restaurant. With a passion for creating fine food and showing an entrepreneurial flair, today her name graces the signboards of three restaurants. Back in her youth, Huang Ying’s mother ran a restaurant back in Vietnam, and her young girl was always at her side watching closely, learning all the secrets of the Vietnamese kitchen and authentic Vietnamese flavors. Before opening

her own restaurant she practiced incessantly to recreate these flavors, trusting to her brimming memory bank of wonderful aromas, opening her business only when she knew she was able to bring customers the authentic tastes of her mother’s kitchen.

After running her business for three years, Ruan plans to make regular trips back home to learn more about the cuisine of central and north Vietnam and bring new recipes back to Taipei for the enjoyment of her loyal clientele. Her efforts in introducing ever more of the light and refreshing tastes of Vietnamese treats has played a key role in the ever increasing popularity of this cuisine among Taiwanese in recent years, as has her refreshing approach. For example, her new Nanjing branch has thrown off the traditional design approach for Vietnamese restaurants, with a bar taking up fully one-third of the premises, and customers have been quite taken with this comfortable oasis for experimenting with Vietnamese beers and coffees.

Huang Ying Vietnamese Restaurant & Bar (Nanjing Rd. Branch)(凰鶯越南餐館南京東路店)Tel: (02) 2547-4518Add: No.5, Aly. 4, Ln. 133, Sec. 4, Nanjing E. Rd., Songshan Dist., Taipei City 105, Taiwan (R.O.C.) (台北市南京東路四段133巷4弄5號)

Website: http://oanh.e68.com.tw (Chinese)Hours: 11 am ~ 3 pm, 5 pm ~ 10 pm (open all week)Price per meal for one person about NT$200

Huang Ying Vietnamese Restaurant & Bar (Nangang Branch)(凰鶯越南餐館南港店) Add: 1F, 76, Xinmin St., Nangang District, Taipei City (台北市南港區新民街76號1樓)

Huang Ying Vietnamese Restaurant & Bar (Kunyang Branch)(凰鶯越南餐館昆陽店) Add: 1F, 4, Kunyang St., Nangang District, Taipei City (台北市南港區昆陽街4號1樓)

Pork with French BreadFor this dish an agent is introduced during mixing to promote fermentation in premium-selection ham, which is made into ball shapes with an attractive pink color. These are then placed inside savory French bread along with fresh vegetables and seasonings, created a filling and deliciously textured taste experience.

Vietnamese Spring RollsThe Vietnamese version of the spring roll comes cold, features fresh shrimp and a variety of vegetables, with leek prominent, and has a translucent skin that allows the palette of ingredient colors to show through. The rolls here are dipped in the special house-made seafood sauce, the taste cool and fresh.

Shrimp with SugarcaneShrimp meat is made into a paste and formed into rolls wrapping roasted sections of juicy sugarcane. You first take out the sugarcane, wrap the shrimp roll in lettuce and eat it, and then follow this up by chewing on the sugarcane for a sweet and juicy “chaser.”

Fried Pork Chop with RiceThis is the restaurant’s signature dish, a hearty selection abundant in terms of both visual appearance and tastes. A pork chop is fried to crispy perfection, cut into thick slices, and presented with a specially prepared steamed egg and three-layer shredded pork. Lemongrass features prominently in this dish.

Huang YingVietnamese Restaurant & Bar

A Mother Honored by Bringing Back the Tastes of Her Kitchen

Recapturing Childhood Memories in Delicious Hand-Crafted Vietnamese FoodFour years after arriving in Taiwan newly married Ruan Huang-ying from Vietnam opened a small restaurant in Taipei’s Nangang District. Featuring just four tables, she proudly named it Huang Ying Vietnamese Restaurant. With a passion for creating fine food and showing an entrepreneurial flair, today her name graces the signboards of three restaurants. Back in her youth, Huang Ying’s mother ran a restaurant back in Vietnam, and her young girl was always at her side watching closely, learning all the secrets of the Vietnamese kitchen and authentic Vietnamese flavors. Before opening

her own restaurant she practiced incessantly to recreate these flavors, trusting to her brimming memory bank of wonderful aromas, opening her business only when she knew she was able to bring customers the authentic tastes of her mother’s kitchen.

After running her business for three years, Ruan plans to make regular trips back home to learn more about the cuisine of central and north Vietnam and bring new recipes back to Taipei for the enjoyment of her loyal clientele. Her efforts in introducing ever more of the light and refreshing tastes of Vietnamese treats has played a key role in the ever increasing popularity of this cuisine among Taiwanese in recent years, as has her refreshing approach. For example, her new Nanjing branch has thrown off the traditional design approach for Vietnamese restaurants, with a bar taking up fully one-third of the premises, and customers have been quite taken with this comfortable oasis for experimenting with Vietnamese beers and coffees.

Huang Ying Vietnamese Restaurant & Bar (Nanjing Rd. Branch)(凰鶯越南餐館南京東路店)Tel: (02) 2547-4518Add: No.5, Aly. 4, Ln. 133, Sec. 4, Nanjing E. Rd., Songshan Dist., Taipei City 105, Taiwan (R.O.C.) (台北市南京東路四段133巷4弄5號)

Website: http://oanh.e68.com.tw (Chinese)Hours: 11 am ~ 3 pm, 5 pm ~ 10 pm (open all week)Price per meal for one person about NT$200

Huang Ying Vietnamese Restaurant & Bar (Nangang Branch)(凰鶯越南餐館南港店) Add: 1F, 76, Xinmin St., Nangang District, Taipei City (台北市南港區新民街76號1樓)

Huang Ying Vietnamese Restaurant & Bar (Kunyang Branch)(凰鶯越南餐館昆陽店) Add: 1F, 4, Kunyang St., Nangang District, Taipei City (台北市南港區昆陽街4號1樓)

Pork with French BreadFor this dish an agent is introduced during mixing to promote fermentation in premium-selection ham, which is made into ball shapes with an attractive pink color. These are then placed inside savory French bread along with fresh vegetables and seasonings, created a filling and deliciously textured taste experience.

Vietnamese Spring RollsThe Vietnamese version of the spring roll comes cold, features fresh shrimp and a variety of vegetables, with leek prominent, and has a translucent skin that allows the palette of ingredient colors to show through. The rolls here are dipped in the special house-made seafood sauce, the taste cool and fresh.

Shrimp with SugarcaneShrimp meat is made into a paste and formed into rolls wrapping roasted sections of juicy sugarcane. You first take out the sugarcane, wrap the shrimp roll in lettuce and eat it, and then follow this up by chewing on the sugarcane for a sweet and juicy “chaser.”

Fried Pork Chop with RiceThis is the restaurant’s signature dish, a hearty selection abundant in terms of both visual appearance and tastes. A pork chop is fried to crispy perfection, cut into thick slices, and presented with a specially prepared steamed egg and three-layer shredded pork. Lemongrass features prominently in this dish.

Huang YingVietnamese Restaurant & Bar

Travel in Taiwan 46Travel in Taiwan 46

Ocean, Beach, Rock!

FESTIVAL

Taiwan’s Biggest Open-Air Rock Festival Takes Place at One of the Island’s Best Beaches By Joe Henley

Travel in Taiwan 47

Ho-Hai-Yan Rock Festival

According to a legend of the Amis

indigenous people of Taiwan which

predates written history, the ancient

people of Taiwan discovered the sea, but

did not know what to call it. Listening

to the rhythm of the waves crashing on

the beach, they began to hear a distinct

melody emerge – “Ho-Hai-Yan.” From

then on, this has been the Amis word

for the ocean, and is now also the name

of the international rock festival held

annually in July at Fulong Beach in the

northeast corner of the island.

Located less than an hour east of

Taipei City by train, Fulong Beach is

a wide strip of white, flat sand that

looks out over a calm, blue bay. Every

summer, hundreds of thousands of music

fans from Taiwan and around the world

converge on the beach, gathering in

front of Ho-Hai-Yan Rock Festival’s two

stages to see both local and international

acts perform in a wide array of musical

styles, from rock and reggae to punk,

metal, indie, and anything else you can

imagine. The festival was founded by

43 Zhang, the head of the Taiwan Color

Music Company record label. Using the

Woodstock Festival as his model, he

started Ho-Hai-Yan with the twin goals

of promoting the Taiwan music scene and

helping people appreciate the beautiful

waters surrounding the island by holding

his festival at what is a magnificent

seaside setting.

Ho-Hai-Yan was first staged as a one-

day festival in 2000, and drew about

8,000 revelers that first year. As is still

the case today, attendance was free.

Since then, the event has been expanded

to three days, and has drawn upwards of

400,000 music fans in peak years. Since

2001, an important part of the festival

has been the “battle of the bands,” in

which Taiwanese artists compete for a

cash prize and instant recognition on

the Taiwanese music scene. Taking the

top prize at Ho-Hai-Yan is often a ticket Pho

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Travel in Taiwan 47

Travel in Taiwan 48

scenic south. Kending, once a sleepy

seaside village, has been transformed

into a top-notch tourist destination while

still hanging on to its small-town charm,

and Spring Scream has grown, in its own

organic and natural way, right alongside it.

Jimi Moe, an American expatriate

who, along with another American, Wade

Davis, founded the festival in 1995, is

quick to point out that while Spring

Scream has grown by leaps and bounds

from its unpretentious beginnings, it

hasn't lost the vibe of a small, tight-

knit group of friends getting together to

enjoy some great music. “It started small

and modest and humble,” he says, “and

now it's big and modest and humble.”

Davis and Moe met in Indonesia,

where the two attended the same

international school. Moe moved to

Taiwan in 1991, and Davis followed

shortly thereafter. The two were

roommates and played in a band

does have some beachfront guesthouses,

but they are inevitably booked far in

advance. Your best bet is to take the

train out for the day and stay in/

return to nearby Taipei City, or book

a guesthouse/homestay in one of the

other cozy coastal communities nearby

along Taiwan’s northern coast. Ho-Hai-

Yan Rock Festival will take place in July

this summer – don’t miss out on the

chance to hear some of the best music

that Taiwan and the world have to offer

while enjoying a glimpse of the laid-back

beach lifestyle of the northern coastline.

For more info about the festival, visit

www.hohaiyan.com.

Spring ScreamIn early April, Spring Scream, Taiwan's

other big little multi-day music festival,

gives tens of thousands of music and art

fans, the young and the young at heart, a

chance to unwind in the island's idyllically

to stardom for Taiwan’s bands, and is a

vital stepping-stone in getting signed

to a major label and earning valuable

airtime on local radio and MTV.

Fulong Beach fronts

the small town

of Fulong Village in Gongliao District,

New Taipei City. For most of the year

it’s a sleepy town, known primarily

for its beach and its white-rice boxed

lunches that were first championed on

the railway system and then by Taiwan’s

truckers.

During the three days of the Ho-Hai-

Yan Rock Festival, Fulong is transformed,

awash with a sea of people. The beach

is just a short walk from the railway

station. Be prepared for large crowds at

the station and at the beach, but also for

a warm, friendly, and safe atmosphere.

People of all ages attend, though most

are college students enjoying their first

taste of summer vacation. Fulong Village

During the three days of the Ho-Hai-Yan Rock Festival, Fulong is transformed,

awash with a sea of people

Travel in Taiwan 49

together. By the mid-nineties, the two friends had decided to stage a music festival, simply as a way for a few bands to get together and jam. Almost all the bands played cover songs, as Taiwan's then nascent music scene had yet to flourish.

“I think over the weekend we heard one Green Day song three times, a Bon Jovi song twice, and a Clash song that two different bands played, but it was great,” Moe recalls. “Everyone had a great time.” Nevertheless, Davis and Moe, wanting to encourage bands in Taiwan to start concocting their own musical formulas, decided to stipulate that if bands wanted to play Spring Scream in the future they had to mostly play their own material.

Fast -forward 15 years to the present, and Spring Scream

sees between 8,000 and 10,000 people on its busiest days, about 5,000 on the slower days, and the festival roster has swollen to include over 150 bands playing on anywhere from six to eight stages over four days. Taiwan's music scene has exploded as well, and has gone from having about ten bands doing their own thing in the festival's early days, to over 500. The Eluanbi Lighthouse area, which is part of Kenting National Park, serves as the festival's current, stunning seaside location. “It's a site of gorgeous, lush, sloping grassy fields that overlook the ocean,” says Moe as he sets the scene. “It's a beautiful place to look at the water.”

The multiple stages are spread out across this superlative setting, far enough apart so as not to drown each other out with competing and eclectic sounds. Indeed, fans of everything from rock, to pop, to punk, to metal, to reggae, funk, folk, and everything in between will find something that

appeals to them at Spring Scream. The most popular stage belongs to the DJs, however, who spin all manner of electronic music; at any given time, 500 to 1,000 revelers can be found dancing the day or night away at the DJ stage.

Another thing that makes for

a great festival is the ease with which people can get around the town of Kending. All the action occurs along and just off the town’s main road, Kending Road (Prov. Hwy No. 26), and there is easy access from this road to the town's two main beaches. The festival grounds are a few kilometers east of the town, so renting a scooter or a bike is advisable if you're staying close to the town center.

Kending's range of guesthouses, hostels, high-end resort hotels, and homestays/B&Bs mean that all budgets can be accommodated. The lighthouse area also has its own campground adjacent to the festival grounds. Taiwan's High Speed Rail can get you from Taipei in the north to Kaohsiung in the south in just 90 minutes; from there, you can take a bus or team up with other travelers to split the cost of a taxi to get to Kending. It's about a 90-minute drive by car from Kaohsiung.

Spring Scream will take place from April 1 to 4 this year. For more information, check out www.springscream.com.

{ENGLisH & CHiNEsE}

Amis indigenous people 阿美族

43 Zhang 張四十三

Eluanbi Lighthouse 鵝鑾鼻燈塔

Fulong Beach 福隆海水浴場

Fulong Village 福隆村

Gongliao District 貢寮區

Ho-Hai-Yan 貢寮國際海洋音樂祭 Rock FestivalKending 墾丁

Kenting National Park 墾丁國家公園

Taiwan Color 角頭音樂 Music Company

Spring Scream hasn’t lost the vibe of a small, tight-knit group of friends getting together to enjoy some great music

Travel in Taiwan 50

UPCOMINGFestivals and Events from March to May 2011

JUN 6

Bitan Dragon Boat Culture Festival 碧潭龍舟文化節暨園遊會

Location: Bitan Lakeside Park, Xindian District, New Taipei City (新北市新店區碧潭水岸公園 )Tel: (02) 2960-3456Website: www.ntpc.gov.tw

Now ~ MAY 31

Hakka Tung Flower Festival 客家桐花季

Locations: New Taipei City (新台北市 ), Taoyuan County (桃園縣 ), Hsinchu County (新竹縣 ), Miaoli County (苗栗縣 ), Taichung City (台中市 ), Changhua County (彰化縣 ), Nantou County (南投縣 )Tel: (02) 8789-4567Website: www.hakka.gov.tw

Now ~ MAR 20Yangmingshan Flower Season 陽明山花季

Location: Yangming Park (陽明公園 ); 26, Hushan Rd., Sec. 2, Taipei City (台北市湖山路 2段 26號 )Tel: (02) 2861-6533, 2861-3388Website: www.ymsnp.gov.tw

For more information on upcoming festivals and events visit the website of the Tourism Bureau at http://eng.taiwan.net.tw and click on“Festivals,” or call the 24-hour toll-free Travel Information Hotline at 0800-011765.

Now ~ JUN 18Kaohsiung Spring Art Festival 高雄春天藝術節

Location: Bureau of Cultural A�airs, Kaohsiung City Government (高雄市政府文化局 ); 67 Wufu 1st Rd., Kaohsiung City (高雄市五福一路 67號 )Tel: (07) 222-5136 Website: w4.khcc.gov.tw/ksaf2011

Now ~ APR 5Hsinchu Glass Art Festival 新竹市玻璃藝術嘉年華

Location: Glass Museum of Hsinchu City (新竹市玻璃工藝博物館 ); 1, Lane 15, Dongda Rd., Sec. 2, Hsinchu City (新竹市東大路二段 15巷 1號 )Tel: (03) 562-6091Website: www. hcccb.gov.tw

MAR 11 ~ APR 24Zhuzihu Calla-Lily Festival 竹子湖海芋季

Location: Zhuzihu, Yangmingshan, Taipei City (台北市陽明山竹子湖 )Tel: (02) 2725-6598Website: www.dot.taipei.gov.tw

Now ~ MAY Dajia Mazu International Festival 大甲媽祖國際觀光文化節

Location: Taichung City (台中市 )Tel: (04) 2228-9000Website: www.culture.taichung.gov.tw

TAIPEI

Travel in Taiwan 51

A Tour of Taipei ’s Heritage Buildings

Taipei is a modern city, with many big, tall, bold, and beautiful buildings jostling for

your attention. But the city is also graced with a great many buildings of more mature

countenance that are no less attractive. These heritage buildings have served as silent

witnesses to the unfolding of Taipei’s, and Taiwan’s, modern history, and we head out

now on an MRT and foot tour of a prized collection, all but one opened to the public as

tourist/cultural sites after thorough renovations only in the past 10 years or so.

Our launch point is Taipei Railway Station (MRT Taipei Main Station),

and all sites are along or close to Zhongshan North Road.

By Rick Charette

HISTORY

Travel in Taiwan 52

National Taiwan Museum (國立台灣博物館)

This imposing and majestic structure,

at the north entrance of 228 Memorial

Peace Park, was built by the Japanese in

1915 in Greek Revival style to house the

findings of their researchers on Taiwan’s

natural history and aboriginal peoples;

the Japanese controlled Taiwan as a

colony from 1895 to 1945. This collection

remains the key source for today’s permanent exhibits.

The building’s façade is defined by fluted Doric columns. In

the stately lobby are large columns standing atop marble bases

that form the foundation for the large stained-glass dome. Note

the two fine Wall Street-style bull sculptures before the museum

– these were originally placed along the approach to Japan’s main

Shinto shrine in Taiwan, where the Grand Hotel is today, the

shrine destroyed by the incoming Kuomintang after WW II.Add: 2 Xiangyang Rd. (襄陽路 2號 ) (Five minutes south from MRT Taipei Main Station)Website: www.ntm.gov.tw

Huashan 1914 Creative Park (華山 1914 創意文化園區)

This complex of old cement buildings was constructed in 1914

as a Japanese sake-production facility, then served as the Taipei

brewery for the state-owned Taiwan Tobacco and Wine Monopoly

Bureau for 40 years after WW II. When production was moved out

of the city in 1987, the site was abandoned until an avant-garde

theater troupe began using it in

1997. Today the site thrives, in a

public/private partnership, as a

venue for exhibits, performances,

and workshops for the cultural-

creative arts, with many of the

elements from the former brewery left intact. The “Huashan” in

the name is Chinese for Kabayama, reference to Count Kabayama

Sukenori, the first Japanese governor-general of Taiwan; the area

around the sake factory was known as Huashan. Add: 1, Sec. 1, Bade Rd. (八德路一段 1號 ) (A few minutes east of MRT Shandao Temple Station)Website: www.huashan1914.com

Museum of Contemporary Art Taipei (台北當代藝術館)

MOCA Taipei is housed in a two-story red-brick building

that was built in 1919, and originally served as an elementary

school for Japanese children,

with some select Taiwanese.

The building later served as

Taipei City Hall, from 1945

to 1994. The architectural

style is a hybrid of Victorian

and Edwardian elements, with perhaps the most visually

compelling attraction of the pleasantly symmetrical design

being the bell tower rising from the center of the roof. The

building was meticulously refurbished before being reopened

in 2001 as Taiwan’s first museum dedicated exclusively to

contemporary art, concentrating on the themes of art, design,

and architecture, with no permanent exhibits.Add: 39 Changan W. Rd. (長安西路 39號 ) (Less than 10 minutes southwest of MRT Zhongshan Station)Website: www.mocataipei.org.tw

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National Taiwan Museum

Huashan 1914 Creative Park

Taipei Story House

Travel in Taiwan 53

SPOT-Taipei Film House (台北之家)

This pretty two-story

white-stucco mansion was built

in 1925 in a loose American

antebellum style, first serving

as the US consulate and then

as the residence of the US

ambassador. Abandoned for a time, it was saved and renovated by

the city and opened to the public in 2002 as a complex dedication

to art-house film. Among the many attractive interior-design

reorientations was the transformation of the original expansive

garage into a cozy 98-seat cinema, with daily screenings from

11:30 am to midnight. The C25 open-air café on the first level,

and Sixth Avenue wine lounge on the second (with seating on

balcony), are both very popular.Add: 18, Sec. 2, Zhongshan N. Rd. (中山北路二段十八號 ) (About five minutes northeast of MRT Zhongshan Station)Website: www.spot.org.tw

Lin Liu-hsin Puppet Theatre Museum (林柳新紀念偶戲博物館)

This museum consists of

two interconnected historical

buildings, donated by the

widow of Mr. Lin Liu-hsin, an

important name in traditional

Taiwanese puppet theatre. One

building houses the museum displays, the other a performance

theater. Regular shows are staged, with English assistance

available (the director is a Dutchman, Robin Ruizendaal),

and there are also regular workshops on puppet carving

and traditional performance techniques, plus puppet-master

demonstrations. Add: 79 Xining N. Rd. (台北市西寧北路 79號 ) (About 15 minutes west of MRT Shuanglian Station; or 5 min. by bus R33 from station).Website: www.taipeipuppet.com

Taipei Story House (台北故事館)

This two-story Tudor-style mansion was erected in 1914

by a leading local tea merchant, based in Taipei’s Dadaocheng

area, as a countryside villa. It stood beside what was then the

Japanese imperial promenade stretching from the old walled

city to the main Shinto shrine in Taiwan, on the promontory

where the Grand Hotel is now perched

overlooking Taipei Basin. The villa was

later used for a period as a place for the

detention and interrogation of political

prisoners. The building was restored to

its original grandeur in 2002/2003 and

today houses a museum, the Taipei Story

House, filled with antiques, old photos

and music records, and a wealth of audio/visual materials

demonstrating the luxurious lifestyle of Taiwan’s elite in

the early 20th century and telling the story of tea and the

Taipei Basin’s economic flourishing. Attached is also a lovely

courtyard teahouse/restaurant.Add: 181-1, Sec. 3, Zhongshan N. Rd. (中山北路三段 181-1號 ) (Five minutes east of MRT Yuanshan Station)Website: www.storyhouse.com.tw

{eNGLisH & CHiNese}

228 Memorial Peace Park 228和平公園Dadaocheng 大稻埕

Kabayama Sukenori 樺山資紀

Kuomintang 國民黨

Taiwan Tobacco and Wine Monopoly Bureau 菸酒公賣局

Zhongshan North Road 中山北路

TAIPEI

Museum of Contemporary Art Taipei

SPOT-Taipei Film House

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No visitor to Taiwan should leave without wandering around at least one of the island’s 300-odd night markets. Every bit as colorful and bustling as Middle Eastern bazaars, these after-dark attractions are places to eat, shop, and slowly wander around while soaking up iconic Taiwan sounds and smells.

Delicious Snacks, Cheap Clothes, Lots of People

Night Markets

THIS might surprise you, but night markets (which

typically run from dusk until nearly midnight)

are very different from morning or day markets. At the latter

– which early-birds will f ind well worth visiting – housewives

stock up on vegetables, fruit, meat, and fish.

Night markets sell very little in the way of fresh cooking

ingredients. Instead, they’re renowned for offering tasty snacks

like squid-on-a-stick, oyster omelets, steamed sweetcorn, and

something that resembles a doner kebab – but with pork rather

than lamb, and a conventional bun instead of a pita.

Here’s another surprising fact: Even if the food doesn’t tempt

you at all, spending an hour or two exploring a night market

still brings many a reward. Photographers will lap up the visual

possibilities: Piles of gewgaws, racks of clothes, games to play,

and people of all shapes and sizes. Taiwan’s most famous night

markets include:

By Steven Crook

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LET'S GO OUT TONIGHT!

Travel in Taiwan 54

You’ll see some creatures you might never have eaten before, such as puffer fish

Fengjia is especially good for inexpensive, youth-oriented fashions and accessories

Travel in Taiwan 55

NIGHT MARKETS

Depending on wind direction and the time of day, mouthwatering wafts of tempting aromas from Taipei’s best-known night market might well reach you before you’ve even exited MRT Jiantan Station.

One of the few night markets housed in a permanent building, the Shilin bazaar boasts well over 500 vendors, some of whom keep going until two o’clock in the morning. Not all of these mini-eateries are open every day of the week, but you can be sure of f inding something that’ll make your palate very happy indeed.

One of the most famous snacks here is dabing bao xiaobing, literally “small bun wrapped inside a big bun.” The small bun

is a deep-fried dumpling filled with red beans or sesame. It’s placed inside a larger bun a bit like an Indian chapatti, then thumped with a stick. Dabing bao

xiaobing are quite f illing, but happily enough you’ll still have space for something else.

If you read Chinese, you’ll guess why Keelung’s busiest night market is called “Miaokou” (you may also see it transliterated as “Miaokow”). Miao means “temple” and kou is “entrance”; this market developed around Dianji Temple, one of Keelung’s two most important places of worship. Nowadays it’s much more famous than the shrine. Gourmands from all over north Taiwan come here, attracted by the market’s single-minded focus on food.

Keelung is a major port, and those expecting seafood won’t be disappointed. In addition to the usual fresh fish and delicious crustaceans, you’ll see some creatures you might never have eaten before, such as puffer f ish.

Lethally poisonous if incorrectly prepared, puffer f ish taste exquisite when cooked right. Great numbers of people eat this delicacy at Miaokou each year without mishap, so it's fair to assume the chefs here know what they're doing.

Miaokou's success means that the 60-odd stalls in the official, open 24/7 section (on Ren 3rd Road, between Ai 3rd and Ai 4th roads) are joined each evening by at least 100 others at the end of Ai 4th Road nearest the Tianliao River.

Keelung is linked to Taipei by dozens of commuter trains and buses per day. From Keelung's train station it's a leisurely 15-minute stroll to the night market.

Unlike some of Taiwan’s other famous night markets, Flower Garden (a direct translation of its Chinese name, Huayuan) is open only three days per week: Thursday, Saturday, and Sunday.

There’s a good reason for this – the authorities want to give those who live nearby some relief from the great presses of fun-seekers and traffic jams. Flower Garden gets exceptionally crowded; I’ve been in Taiwan for almost two decades, so when I say here you can see what locals mean when they talk of “people mountain, people sea,” believe me – it gets packed. Arrive on two wheels or, even better, take a taxi to Haian Road, Section 3.

There is, of course, a reason why this night market is so popular. Per hectare, the range of foods (meals you sit down for as well as morsels to munch on while walking) is pretty

much unbeatable.

Named after the adjacent university, Fengjia Night Market is way out in the suburbs of Taiwan’s third-largest city. Yet if you arrive at eight o’clock on a pleasant evening, you’ll encounter crowds that make the downtown seem deserted by comparison.

Fengjia is said to be Taiwan’s largest night market. This claim is hard to verify (night markets, by their very nature, grow and shrink over time), but no one can deny that it’s very big indeed.

It’s especially good for inexpensive, youth-oriented fashions and accessories. Before browsing handbags and baubles, f ill your stomach; if you’ve not tried it before, go for some of the braised snacks Mandarin-speakers call luwei.

A mixture of tempura, soy-based items such as tofu, and animal parts that will delight lovers of exotic cuisine (think giz-zards, hearts, and necks of chickens, ducks’ tongues, and various pig innards), luwei is usually eaten with noodles – but it can also be enjoyed as a main dish.

Now a district within the Kaohsiung City mega-municipality, Fengshan used to be a down-at-heel city that all but a few tourists skipped. In recent years, it’s been made over. It used to be a walled settlement, and among other initiatives the 200-year-old gun emplacements have been tidied up. The banks of the canal, which dates from the late 1830s, have been turned into an appealing promenade.

Tainan’s Flower Garden Night Market

Keelung’s Miaokou Night Market

Taichung’s Fengjia Night Market

Fengshan’s Zhonghua Street Tourist Night Market

Taipei’s Shilin Night Market

Travel in Taiwan 56

{ENGLisH & CHiNEsE}

Ai 3rd/4th Road 愛三/四路Dianji Temple 奠濟宮

Fengjia Night Market 逢甲夜市

Fengshan District 鳳山區

Flower Garden 花園夜市 Night MarketHaian Road, Sec. 3 海安路三段 Miaokou Night Market 廟口夜市

puffer fish 河豚

jelly fig 愛玉

kou 口

luwei 滷味

miao 廟

“people mountain, 人山人海 people sea“

Ren 3rd Road 仁三路

shaved ice 剉冰

Shilin Night Market 士林夜市

“small bun wrapped 大餅包小餅 inside a big bun“

Tianliao River 田寮河

Weixin Road 維新路

Zhonghua Street 中華街觀光夜市 Tourist Night Market

Zhonghua Street Tourist Night Market, which last year placed in the top 10 in a poll on Taiwan’s most popular night markets, isn’t a collection of mobile vendors but rather a strip of eateries less than a 10-minute walk from Fengshan Railway Station (taking the KMRT Orange Line to Fengshan Station gets you even closer).

If you want great food at night-market prices but without strangers brushing your elbows as you eat, this could be the place for you. Shaved-ice and jelly-fig desserts go down well if you feel you’ve been overloading with oily food.

If you’re happy to stand up, head for nearby Weixin Road. Vendors there specialize in dumplings, but be prepared to queue.

For more information about Taiwan’s night markets visit: www.2010night.com/en.

LET'S GO OUT TONIGHT!

What's this?

Vegetable rolls

Bubble tea

Small sausages wrapped in big sausages

www.taipeieye.com

TIMEMonday, Wednesday, and Friday at 8:30pm Saturday at 8:00pm

LOCATIONCement Hall at Taiwan Cement Building 113 Zhongshan North Road, Sec. 2, Taipei Take Jinzhou Rd. Entrance

TICKETING INFORMATION NT$550 on Monday, Wednesday, Friday (60mins Show)NT$880 on Saturday(90mins Show) Tickets at Cement Hall, TaipeiEYE Box OfficeTicketing Inquiries 886-2-2568-2677

15% discount if paying with Citibank credit card or upon showing international student card

AdvertisementHOTEL INFORMATION

Travel in Taiwan58

No. of Rooms: 241Room Rates: Superior Room NT$ 7,000 Premier Room NT$ 8,000 Deluxe Room NT$ 9,000 Junior Suite NT$ 10,000 Garden Suite NT$ 16,000

(All rates are subject to 10% service charge)

Desk PeRsoNNel sPeak:Japanese, English, Chinese

RestauRaNts: La Fusion Restaurant, La Fusion Bakery, Hanazono Japanese Restaurant, La Fusion Bar, La Fusion Deli

sPecial featuRes: Fitness Center, Business Center, Conference & Dining Facilities; (Rooms Facilities) 32” LCD TV/Pay Broadband Internet Access/Multi Channel Satellite TV with Domestic and Foreign Programming/En-suite Shower and Bath/TOTO Washlet

1, Zhonghua Rd. Sec. 2, Zhongzheng District, Taipei City 10065

1 0 0 6 5台北市中正區中華路二段1號

Tel: 886.2.2314.6611 Fax: 886.2.2314.5511 E-mail: fo@taipeigarden.com.tw

www.taipeigarden.com.tw

TAIPEI GARDEN HOTEL台北花園大酒店 Taipei 台北

No. of Rooms: 93 rooms, 28 offices, 4 meeting roomsRoom Rates: Superior Room NT$ 5,600+10% Executive Room NT$ 6,000+10% Junior Room NT$ 6,800+10% Excellency Room NT$ 7,800+10% Premium Suite NT$ 8,800+10%

GeNeRal maNaGeR: Te Yao

Desk PeRsoNNel sPeak: Chinese, English

sPecial featuRes: Free wireless acess, VIP lounge, private meeting rooms and secretarial services, private office rental services, high-speed ADSL broadband Internet, non-smoking floors, safety deposit box, laundry service, limousine service, airport transportation, base-ment parking, gym

11F, 495 Guangfu S. Rd., Xinyi District, Taipei City 110

1 1 0台北市信義區光復南路49 5號 1 1樓

Tel: 02.8780.8000 Fax: 02.8780.5000 E-mail: pbc.taipei@msa.hinet.net

www.businesscenter.com.tw

PACIFIC BUSINESS CENTER太平洋商務中心 Taipei 台北

No. of Rooms: 538

Room Rates: Superior Room NT$ 12,000 Deluxe Room NT$ 13,000 Junior Suite NT$ 20,500 Corner Suite NT$ 30,500 Residence NT$ 17,000 Elite Suite NT$ 24,500Desk PeRsoNNel sPeak:English, Japanese, Chinese

RestauRaNts:Szechuan & Cantonese Cuisine, Japanese Cuisine, Steak House & Teppanyaki, Lounge Bar, Buffet, Café

sPecial featuRes: Executive business center, fitness center, sauna, rooftop swim-ming pool, SPA, ballroom and convention facilities, parking, laundry service, 24-hour room service, wireless Internet, airport transportation service

41 Chung Shan (Zhongshan) N. Rd., Sec. 2, Taipei City, 104

1 0 4台北市中山北路二段41號

Tel: 02.2523.8000Fax: 02.2523.2828

www.grandformosa.com.tw

THE REGENT TAIPEI台北晶華酒店 Taipei 台北

No. of Rooms: 203Room Rates: Deluxe Room NT$ 7,000 Business Room NT$ 8,000 Executive Deluxe Room NT$ 9,000 Boss Suite NT$ 13,000 Premier Suite NT$ 18,000

GeNeRal maNaGeR: Linda Chu

Desk PeRsoNNel sPeak: English, Japanese, Mandarin, Taiwanese, Cantonese

RestauRaNts: Rain Forest Café, Garden Terrace, Lounge 81

sPecial featuRes:Business center, Pyramid Club - luxury executive floor, multifunctional room, Internet service, 32-inch LCD TV, garden terrace, bar, fitness club, outdoor pool, sauna, spa, aromatherapy, car park

83 Civic Boulevard, Sec. 3, Taipei City, 1041 0 4台北市市民大道三段8 3號

Tel: 02.8772.8800 Fax: 02.8772.1010E-mail: info@miramargarden.com.tw

www.miramargarden.com.tw

MIRAMAR GARDEN TAIPEI美麗信花園酒店 Taipei 台北

No. of Rooms: 487 (Suites: 57)Room Rates: Single/DBL NT$ 5,700 – 11,000 Suite NT$ 15,000 – 28,000

Desk PeRsoNNel sPeak: English, French, Spanish, and Japanese

RestauRaNts: Western, Cantonese, Northern China Style Dumplings, tea house, coffee shop

sPecial featuRes: Grand Ballroom, conference rooms for 399 people, 10 breakout rooms, business center, fitness center, sauna, Olympic-size swimming pool, tennis courts, billiards

1 Chung shan N. Rd., Sec. 4, Taipei City, 10461 R.O.C1 0 4 6 1台北市中山北路四段1號

Tel: 886.2.2886.8888Fax: 886.2.2885.2885

www.grand-hotel.org

THE GRAND HOTEL圓山大飯店 Taipei 台北

Hotels of Taiwan

V isitors to Taiwan have a wide range of choice when it comes

to accommodation. From five-star luxur y hotels that meet the

highest international standards, to affordable business hotels , to hot-

spring and beach resort hotels , to privately-run homestays located in

the countr yside there is a place to stay that satisf ies ever y traveler ’s

needs. What all hotels of Taiwan — small and big , expensive and

affordable — have in common is that ser ve and hospitality are always

of the highest standards. The room rates in the following l ist have

been checked for each hotel, but are subject to change without notice.

Room rates at the hotels apply.

AdvertisementHOTEL INFORMATION

Travel in Taiwan59

No. of Rooms: 220

Room Rates: Deluxe / Single / Twin & Double NT$ 7,800~8,500 Suite NT$ 9,500~20,000

Desk PeRsoNNel sPeak: Chinese, English, Japanese

RestauRaNts: La Fontaine (Western), Chiou Hwa (Chinese)

sPecial featuRes: Coffee Shop, Fitness Center, Business Center, laundry service, meeting and banquet facilities, non-smoking floor, parking lot, airport transfer service

GLORIA PRINCE HOTEL TAIPEI華泰王子大飯店 Taipei 台北

369 Lin-sen (Linsen) N. Rd., Taipei City, 104 1 0 4台北市林森北路3 6 9號

Tel: 02.2581.8111

Fax: 02.2581.5811, 2568-2924

www.gloriahotel.com

No. of Rooms: 226Room Rates: Superior Single NT$ 3,200 ~ 3,500 Deluxe Single NT$ 4,000 ~ 5,000 Superior Twin NT$ 4,000 Deluxe Triple NT$ 4,500 Deluxe Twin NT$ 4,800 ~ 5,000 Deluxe Suite NT$ 7,000 ~ 10,000 Family Triple Room NT$ 4,300

Desk PeRsoNNel sPeak: Chinese, Japanese, English, Cantonese

RestauRaNts: Shanghainese, Cantonese, Taiwanese snacks, Jiangzhe cuisine, Gelato Café, coffee shop

sPecial featuRes: Conference rooms, flower shop, barber shop, souvenir shop, parking area

43, Chunghsiao (Zhongxiao) W. Rd.,Sec. 1, Taipei City, 100

(MRT Taipei Main Station, Exit 3)1 0 0台北市忠孝西路一段4 3號

(台北捷運總站3號出口)

Tel: 02.2361.7856 Fax: 02.2311.8921 Reservation Hotline: 02.2311.8901

Reservation Fax: 02.2311.8902 E-mail: cosmos@cosmos-hotel.com.tw

www.cosmos-hotel.com.tw

COSMOS HOTEL天成大飯店 Taipei 台北

No. of Rooms: 48Room Rates: Standard Room NT$ 6,000+10% Deluxe Room NT$ 6,500+10% Superior Suite NT$ 7,500+10%Desk PeRsoNNel sPeak: English, Chinese, Japanese,

RestauRaNts: Lobby Lounge (Western and Chinese buffet breakfast)

sPecial featuRes: Full-amenity meeting rooms, gym, business services, airport limousine service, laundry service, free mechanized parking lot, tour arrange-ments, currency exchange, close to the MRT system and major commercial and tourist sites.

71, Sec. 1, Jinshan S. Rd., Zhongzheng District, Taipei City 100

1 0 0台北市中正區金山南路一段71號

Tel: 02.2397.9399 Fax: 02.2397.1399Res. Hotline: 02.2396.9321

www.sunworlddynasty.com

ROYAL BIZ TAIPEI金來商旅 Taipei 台北

No. of Rooms: 60

Room Rates: Deluxe Room NT$ 12,000 Grand Deluxe Room NT$ 12,500 Premier Room NT$ 13,000 Premier 9 NT$ 15,000 Éclat Suite NT$ 35,000

(All rates are inclusive of 5% VAT and subject to 10% service charge)

Desk PeRsoNNel sPeak:English, Taiwanese, Chinese, Japanese, Cantonese,

RestauRaNts: Ming Yuen, Éclat Lounge, George Bar

sPecial featuRes: Member of Small Luxury Hotels of the World; strategically located in the most fashionable and prestigious district of Taipei; offers guests great convenience for business and entertainment; Wi-Fi connectiv-ity and in-room business facilities; variety of meeting rooms providing the ideal venue for professional meetings, corporate functions, and social gatherings.

370, Sec. 1, Dunhua S. Rd., Da-an District, Taipei City 1061 0 6 台北市敦化南路一段37 0號

Tel: 02.2784.8888 Fax: 02.2784.7888Res. Hotline: 02.2784.8118

www.eclathotels.com

HOTEL ÉCLAT怡亨酒店 Taipei 台北

No. of Rooms: 211Room Rates: Superior Single Room NT$ 4,800 Superior Twin Room NT$ 5,400 Superior Triple Room NT$ 6,000 Superior Family Room NT$ 6,600 Deluxe Family Room NT$ 7,800 Deluxe Suite Room NT$ 8,800 Executive Suite Room NT$ 16,800(All rates are subject to 10% service charge)

Desk PeRsoNNel sPeak: English, Taiwanese, Chinese, Japanese

RestauRaNts: Western buffet-style, Chinese

sPecial featuRes:

Multifunctional banquet and meeting facilities, business center, male and female saunas, rental facilities for cars and bicycles, lounge bar, children’s games room, fitness center, chess room, outdoor swimming pool, green eco-pond, free transport to railway station and airport.

No.2, Yongxing Rd., Hualien City, Hualien County 970609 7 0 6 0花蓮市永興路2號

Tel: 03.823.5388 Fax: 03.822.1185 hualien.chateaudechine.com

CHATEAU DE CHINE HOTEL花蓮翰品酒店 Hualien 花蓮

No.23, Zhongzheng Rd., Sun Moon Lake, Yuchi Township, Nantou County 55546

5 5 5 4 6南投縣魚池鄉日月潭中正路2 3號

Tel: 049.285.6788 Fax: 049.285.6600www.fleurdechinehotel.com

No. of Rooms: 211Room Rates: Mountain View King Room NT$ 13,000~14,000 Mountain View Two Queen Room NT$ 13,000~14,000 Zen Mountain View Room NT$ 13,000~14,000 Lake View King Room NT$ 15,000~16,000 Lake View Two Queen Room NT$ 15,000~16,000 Washiki Lake View Room NT$ 15,000~16,000 Governor Lake View Suite NT$ 20,000~21,000 Royal Lake View Suite NT$ 25,000 Summit Lake View Suite NT$ 120,000 Penthouse Suite NT$ 150,000

(All rates are subject to 10% service charge)

Desk PeRsoNNel sPeak: Chinese, English, Japanese RestauRaNt:Chinese food, buffet, teppanyaki, afternoon tea, lobby lounge, rooftop restaurant

sPecial featuRes:Banquet and conference facil-ity, VIP lounge, boutique, wireless internet, e-butler, laundry service, room service, parking, SPA, hot-spring, play ground, swimming pool, gym, HSR transportation service, out circular concourse, trail hiking, etc.

FLEUR DE CHINE HOTEL雲品酒店 Sun Moon Lake 日月潭

No.3, Sec. 1, Chengde Rd., Taipei City 10351

1 0 3 5 1台北市承德路一段三號

Tel: 02.2181.9999 Fax: 02.2181.9988www.palaisdechinehotel.com

No. of Rooms: 286Room Rates: Superior Room NT$ 11,000 Deluxe Room NT$ 12,500 Family Twin Room NT$ 14,500 Executive Superior Room NT$ 15,000 Executive Deluxe Room NT$ 16,500 Junior Suite NT$ 18,000 Executive Suite NT$ 21,000 La Rose Suite NT$ 100,000 Charles V Suite NT$ 150,000(All rates are subject to 10% service charge)

Desk PeRsoNNel sPeak: English,Chinese, Japanese RestauRaNts: La Rotisserie, Le Palais, Le Thé, Le BarsPecial featuRes:Gym, business center, ballroom and function rooms, VIP salon, wireless internet, gift shop, room service, E-butler service, airport transportation service, located in an area of the city with heritage sites and tourist attractions.

PALAIS DE CHINE HOTEL君品酒店 Taipei 台北

No. of Rooms: 79

Room Rates: Superior Room NT$ 7,500 Business Room NT$ 8,500 Deluxe Room NT$ 9,500 Executive Deluxe Room NT$ 9,000 Executive Suite NT$ 10,000 Sense Suite NT$ 15,000Desk PeRsoNNel sPeak: English, Chinese, Japanese

RestauRaNts: Sen Salon Restaurant

sPecial featuRes: Business center, fitness center, meeting rooms, Club House with luxury furniture and advanced media facilities for private meetings and gatherings, wood-floored open-air Sky Garden, parking tower, close to the MRT system near Zhongshan Elemen tary school MRT station and key commercial and entertainment districts.

HOTEL SENSE伸適商旅 Taipei 台北

477, Linsen N. Rd., Zhongshan District, Taipei City 104

1 0 4台北市中山區林森北路47 7號

Tel: 02.7743.1000 Fax: 02.7743.1100

www.hotelsense.com.tw

AdvertisementHOTEL INFORMATION

Travel in Taiwan60

No. of Rooms: 153

Room Rates: Superior Room NT$ 3,800 Classic Room NT$ 4,600 Deluxe Room NT$ 6,800 Theme Room NT$ 6,800 Azure Suite NT$ 12,000 Desk PeRsoNNel sPeak: Chinese, English, Japanese

RestauRaNts:Taiwanese/Hakka cuisine, brunch, Western cuisine

sPecial featuRes:Guestrooms with floor-to-ceiling windows, views of Pacific Ocean or Central Mountain Range, multifunctional public space, Azure Club, gym, pet hotel, KTV, board game and computer game room, located in Hualien City center, close to snack food and shopping streets

590 Zhongzheng Rd., Hualien City, 970970 花蓮市中正路590號

Tel: 03.833.6686 Fax: 03.3.832.3569 www.azurehotel.com.tw

AZURE HOTEL花蓮藍天麗池飯店 Hualien 花蓮

No. of Rooms: 79

Room Rates: Standard Room NT$ 4,000 Superior Twin NT$ 4,200 Superior Triple NT$ 4,800 Superior Double Twin NT$ 5,600 Superior Suite NT$ 6,000 Classic Suite NT$ 10,000

Desk PeRsoNNel sPeak: Chinese, English, Japanese

RestauRaNts:Chinese, Western, and Inter-national cuisine, afternoon tea

sPecial featuRes:1/2F public area with unlimited Internet access, broadband Internet access in guestrooms, notebooks available at meeting room, free self-help coffee and tea, free parking, central location (5-min. walk to railway station), pick-up service, projector and screen available at conference room, newspa-pers and magazines, LCD screen TV-sets

139 Guolian 5th Rd., Hualien City, 970970 花蓮市國聯五路139號

Tel: 03.835.9966 Fax: 03.835.9977 Reservation: 03.833.6066

E-mail: service@classichotel.com.tw

www.classichotel.com.tw

HUALIEN CITY CLASSIC RESORT HOTEL花蓮經典假日飯店 Hualien 花蓮

362 Jiuru (Chiu Ju) 2nd Rd., Sanmin District, Kaohsiung City, 80745

8 0 74 5 高雄市三民區九如二路3 6 2號

Tel: 07.311.9906 Fax: 07.311.9591E-mail: ksthotel@ms33.hinet.net

www.kingstown-hotel.com.tw

No. of Rooms: 150

Room Rates: Business Single Room NT$ 2,640 Deluxe Single Room NT$ 3,080 Business Twin Room NT$ 3,080 Family Twin Room NT$ 4,400

( Prices above including 10% Service Charge )

Desk PeRsoNNel sPeak:Chinese, English, Japanese

RestauRaNts:Chinese and Western style food, delicious buffet, cold dishes, fruit, and salad bar

sPecial featuRes:Business center, non-smoking floors, wireless Internet access, 32” LCD TVs, newspaper, free parking, tourist map, currency exchange

KING’S TOWN HOTEL京城大飯店 Kaohsiung 高雄

No. of Rooms: 35

Room Rates: Scenery Suite NT$ 6,600 Honey Suite NT$ 6,600 Fragrant Suite NT$ 8,600 Superior Suite NT$ 9,500 VIP Suite NT$ 12,000(Prices above not including 10% Service Charge)

GeNeRal maNaGeR: Mr. Jen-Shing Chen

Desk PeRsoNNel sPeak:Chinese, English, Japanese

RestauRaNts: Chinese, Café, Courtyard

sPecial featuRes: Broadband Internet access in guestrooms, business center, Souvenir Shop, Gazebo, 1950’s dance hall, foot massage

ALISHAN HOUSE阿里山賓館 Chiayi 嘉義

16 Sianglin Village, Alishan Township, Chiayi County, 605

6 0 5嘉義縣阿里山鄉香林村16號 ALISHAN Tel: 05.267.9811 Fax: 05.267.9596 TAIPEI Tel: 02.2563.5259 Fax: 02.2536.5563

E-mail: office@alishanhouse.com.tw

www.alishanhouse.com.tw

No. of Rooms: 268Room Rates: Single NT$ 6,000~ 8,800 Twin NT$ 6,800~ 9,600 Suite NT$ 8,000~ 36,800 Desk PeRsoNNel sPeak: English, Japanese, Chinese

RestauRaNts: French All Day Dining (French), Chao Ping Ji (Cantonese & Dim-Sum), Sumie Nouvelle Japonaise Cuisine (Japanese), Pozzo Bakery, Zorro Bar

sPecial featuRes:

Two minutes walk from MRT ZhongXiao Dun-hua Station. Business Center, Fitness Center, Conference Room, Banquet Room for 500 people, Free Parking for Room Guests, Free Broadband Internet Access in Guestrooms, In-Room Safe, Express/Dry Cleaning Service, Fine East and West Art Collections on Display

172 ZhongXiao East Rd., Sec. 4, Taipei City, 1061 0 6台北市忠孝東路四段17 2號

Tel: 02.2772.2121 Fax: 02.2721.0302 E-mail: reservation@sanwant.com

www.sanwant.com

SAN WANT HOTEL TAIPEI台北神旺大飯店 Taipei 台北

No. of Rooms: 160

Room Rates: Single Room NT$ 4,200 Deluxe Single Room NT$ 4,600 Deluxe Twin Room NT$ 5,000 Suite Room NT$ 6,600

Desk PeRsoNNel sPeak:English, Japanese, Chinese

RestauRaNts: Golden Ear Restaurant (Western semi buffet); Golden Pot (Chinese Cuisine)

sPecial featuRes: Business Center, meeting rooms, airport transfer service, parking lot, laundry service, free Internet access, LCD TV, DVD player, personal safety box, mini bar, private bathroom with separate shower & bath tub, hair dryer

186 Songjiang Rd., Taipei City,1041 0 4台北市松江路18 6號

Close to Exit 1 of MRT Xingtian Temple Station on the Luzhou Line.

Tel: 02.2541.5511 Fax: 02.2531.3831Reservation Hotline: 02.2541.6888

E-mail: galahtl@ms18.hinet.net

www.galahotel.com.tw

TAIPEI GALA HOTEL慶泰大飯店 Taipei 台北

No. of Rooms: 90Room Rates: Business Single Room NT$ 3,900 Deluxe Single Room NT$ 4,100 Deluxe Twin Room NT$ 4,500 Business Suite NT$ 5,600 Deluxe Suite NT$ 6,800 (All rates are subject to 10% service charge)

Desk PeRsoNNel sPeak: English, Chinese, Japanese

RestauRaNt: Breakfast Lounge

sPecial featuRes: Located in the center of the city, spacious rooms with wide views, 24H self-service business center, free Internet access, gym, multifunc-tional meeting and banquet rooms, coin laundry, free indoor parking, Tainan Railway Station and shuttle-bus stop for High Speed Rail close by, beside major university campus with century-old trees and jogging opportunity.

2, Daxue Rd., Tainan City 701

台南市大學路2號

Tel: 06.275.8999 Fax: 06.209.3567

www.zendasuites.com.tw

ZENDA SUITES成大會館 Tainan 台南

No. of Rooms: 738Room Rates: Deluxe Room NT$ 7,700 Premier Room NT$ 8,200 Junior Suite NT$ 9,200 Deluxe Suite NT$ 11,500 Executive Suite NT$ 17,500

EXECUTIVE CLUB FLOOR

Deluxe Room NT$ 9,000 Premier Room NT$ 9,500 Deluxe Suite NT$ 15,000 Executive Suite NT$ 21,000

Desk PeRsoNNel sPeak: Chinese, Japanese, English

RestauRaNts: Le Parc Café, Magnolia Court, Canton Palace

sPecial featuRes: 738 large-size guest rooms with high ceilings, incl. 42 suites. Grand lobby entrance with magnificent atrium. Outdoor swimming pool heated during winter. Fully equipped gym, fitness center, sauna, and aerobics room. Fully equipped business center. Hi-speed broadband Internet access. Safety deposit box. Express laundry service. Limousine service, airport pick-up. State-of- the-art audiovisual equipment.

100 Dun Hua North Road, Taipei Taiwan R.O.C.台北市敦化北路10 0號

Tel: 02.2719.7199 Fax: 02.2545.9288 E-mail: bc@sunworlddynasty.com.twwww.sunworlddynasty.com

SUNWORLD DYNASTY HOTEL TAIPEI王朝大酒店 Taipei 台北

I S S N : 1 8 1 7 7 9 6 4

200 NTDG P N : 2 0 0 9 3 0 5 4 7 5

“Taiwan – The Heart of Asia” is the new brand used by the Taiwan Tourism Bureau in its efforts to promote tourism in Taiwan and make the island a top travel destination in the world. It replaces the brand “Taiwan, Touch Your Heart”, which was successfully used since 2001. Accompanying the new brand is a new heart-shaped visual identity showing

things representative of Taiwan, such as a temple, Taipei 101, tea and dumplings, birds and butterflies, flowers, indigenous art, and fine cuisine. The new logo signifies a new era in Taiwan tourism, an era during which visitors will be able experience the warmth and hospitality of the Taiwanese people and find out why Taiwan is the “Heart of Asia”!

www.taiwan.net.tw

FEATURE

Travel in Taiwan 18

Spectacular scenery awaits travellers following the highway between Hualian and Suao.

TOP FIVE MOUNTAINS

Travel in Taiwan 19

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FEATURE

Travel in Taiwan 20

TOP FIVE MOUNTAINS

Travel in Taiwan 21

Bicycing on Little Kinmen allows you to get close to nature and explore this fascinating island.

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FEATURE

Travel in Taiwan 22

Breathtaking scenery along Central Cross-Island Highway near Hehuanshan.

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TOP FIVE MOUNTAINS

Travel in Taiwan 23

Among the greatest challenges of bikers in Taiwan is riding up to Wuling Pass in central Taiwan.

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Travel in Taiwan 24

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Travel in Taiwan 25

The East Rif t Valley attracts bicylists with paddy fields, tea plantations and towering mountains as backdrop.

FEATURE

Travel in Taiwan 26

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Travel in Taiwan 27

In recent years, bicycling in Taiwan has become a popular way of spending weekends and holidays.

FEATURE

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Travel in Taiwan 29

In Taipei and Kaohsiung dedicated bikeways can be found along the cities’ major rivers.

FEATURE

Travel in Taiwan 30

The port town of Danshui is a popular destination for bicycle trips in northern Taiwan.

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TOP FIVE MOUNTAINS

Travel in Taiwan 31

At New Life Hot Spring Resort in Hualien bicylists can refresh their weary bodies in soothing hot spring pools.

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FEATURE

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Travel in Taiwan 33

Buying a quality made in Taiwan bicycle is very convenient in one of the many bike shops on the island.