Taiwan, standing for the wide variety of mouth-watering food from local restaurants and night markets, its convenient location and affordable price level, has always been one of the most visited countries for Hongkongers. With effective measures in controlling Covid-19 in place at the very beginning of the outbreak, Taiwan has become the world’s role model and I believe that it will surely be the first planned travel destination of many of us in Hong Kong after we get rid of the evil virus.
Instead of introducing Taipei for all the widely-known spots where you may have already been to for a few times and another city life like the one we are having every day, I would like to tell you more about Taichung which is in the middle of Taiwan. From its chilling and laid-back atmosphere to its stunning natural scenery, Taichung is definitely an ideal place for everyone of us to get back as much fresh air as we miss this year under the mask! This is going to be a healing journey to simply immerse into nature and enjoy ourselves. Forget about all the stress and follow through, I am sure you will find it interesting and plan for a visit soon!
Qingjing Farm
If you are a big fan of nice mountain views and natural scenery, Qingjing Farm is another highly recommended place. Qingjing farm is where cute sheeps are everywhere. Seeing them in a gang or lining up to walk one by one, it prompted me to capture more of their lovely movement and reaction. Thank God for the wonderful weather! The sky was still so cloudy in grey the day before when we went on a hike for sunrise. There are sheep shearing and housing riding shows too. The sheeps and horses were following the instructions so well like they knew our languages. After they do all kinds of astonishing talent shows, you would surely give them a round of applause without a second thought. Next to the wild grassland is a skywalk as the views are never too much! Endless mountains and animation-like clouds all above our head. They looked as close as we could touch with our bare hands. Spend a few hours there in the morning and you will never regret it.
Tips: As Qingjing is a rural area of Taichung, it is better to stay one or two nights in a hostel in this area. I had a pleasant stay in Chingjing Lake View Seasons with the incredible view from our private balcony. During the early evening when it was still not so dark, it is easy to see waves of clouds getting down in between the low mountains at your eye level forming the magnificent picture like this!
Gaomei Wetlands
Walk through the long wooden bridge till the end with windmills along the way at the side, you may get yourself a seat on the bridge to observe the slow drop of the bright round sun. Taking off your shoes, you may even take a further step to the wetlands to have a closer look. Seeing the golden sun high up in the sky gradually going down to meet the horizon, and finally melt in the mirror-like water of the wetland while the sky turned from bright yellow to orange or even pink as the night approached, I was more than grateful to enjoy moments like this with my dear family. What I feel the most mesmerizing about is that not even a second the whole picture would be the same. Every single moment counts! If you have noticed my last few blogs, you would know how often I include a perfect location for a sweet sunset. Being one of the most popular tourist spots in Taichung for its obsessive sunset and flawless reflection of sky colours, it is undeniably on my top 5 list of the best sunset I have ever seen. I was not leaving until the pinky sky was faded and covered by the thick dark cloud. Ending a day with a mind-blowing sunset like this would be all I ever ask for!
Rainbow Village
You will feel artistic and energetic once you step in the Rainbow Village which catches your attention right away. They are all street art from an elderly villager who wants to conserve the village and add colours to their daily lives. The use of diverse and bright colour as well as the wall paintings really bring every visitor back to their childhood. Red colour symbolizes happiness, festiveness and joy and I guess that is the goal of the artist to cheer everyone up when they make their visits. The design of the patterns, animals and characters on the wall with some extending to the ground is rather naive like paintings from kids but it looks really cute when all the elements are put together as one. Walking around the village allows you to just focus on the positive side and brings us hope and faith with some Chinese words being a little reminder for us. Don’t forget to have your camera and smile ready for some photos there spreading positivity too!
Food Hunt Never End
How could I not mention the local Taiwanese food as a little foodie? Getting lost in the night market with boba milk tea, deep-fry squids, braised snacks, taro balls...there is too much to mention! But the one I am missing the most right now is the local Taiwanese style pancake which is the best breakfast choice in Taiwan. From the outside, the texture of the pancake is absolutely the perfect crunch. When you have your first bite, the pancake with its stuffing is really a mix-and-match. There are a lot of stuffings to choose from as most Taiwanese restaurants do. I picked chives, potato cake and pork floss (my all-time favourite!!) as the stuffings. The crunchy pancake and the soft texture of the pork floss are so different yet compliment each other unexpectedly well. Couple with the unique savour spicy sauce, this couldn’t be done better. Go and explore your own favourite street food in Taichung!
