Itinerary

We went on a 23 days trip to visit Taiwan and Japan.  The Taiwan part of the trip was touring Eastern Taiwan in late March 2015 and the Japan trip was for Sakura (cherry blossom) in early April 2015.

Bella and Maggie (Houston friends), Fei and Tony were on the Taiwan Trip. South East Travel Service (東南旅行社) was the tour company which provided us a private 7-passengers van, a private driver/guide, and VIP treatments to tour Eastern Taiwan trip.

Maggie, Fei and Tony attended the Japan Trip provided by Signet Tours (超值旅遊).  The primary purpose of visiting Japan was for cherry blossom. Through Signet Tours' recommendation, we chose April 1 as the starting date for the Japan tour. And we were lucky to be able to view the full blooming of Sakura (cherry blossom). The timing was prefect.

The itinerary for Taiwan part of the trip is as the following:

3/18 - traveled from Houston to Taiwan

3/19 - arrived Taiwan

3/20 - visited family in Taipei

3/21 - Jioufen (九份) 

3/22 - Wufongchi Falls (五峰旗瀑布區), National Center for Traditional Arts (國立傳藝中心) 

3/23 - Kavalan Whiskey Distillery (噶瑪蘭酒廠), Jiancing Historic Trail (見晴懷古步道)

3/24 - Cueifang Lake National Walking Trail (翠峰湖國家步道), Taipingshan Villa (太平山莊), Chingshui Geothermal Water (清水地熟), Changpi Lake Scenic Area (長埤湖風景區)

3/25 - Qingshui Cliff (清水斷崖), Taroko Terrace (太魯閣台地), Shakadang Trail (砂卡礑步道), Swallow Grotto (燕子口), Jiugudong (九曲洞), Cimu Bridge (慈母橋） 

3/26 - Baiyang Trail (白揚步道), Buluowan (布洛灣), Liyu Lake (鯉魚潭), Mataian Wetland (馬太鞍濕地) 

3/27 - Fu-yuan Butterfly Valley (富源蝴蝶谷), Sanxiantai (三仙台), Little Yehliu (小野柳)

3/28 - Jhihben National Forest Recreation Area (知本森林遊樂區), East Rift Valley (花東縱谷), Bunun Leisure Farm (布農部落屋), Chu Lu Ranch (初鹿牧場)

3/29 - Kenting National Park (墾丁國家公園), Maobitou (貓頭鼻), E-Luan-Bi (鵝鸞鼻)

3/30 - visited family in Taipei, Yangmingshan (陽明山)

3/31 - visited friends and shopping in Taipei

The itinerary for Japan part of the trip is as the following:

4/1 - Traveled from Taiwan to Narita (Tokyo International Airport), Shinshoji Temple (新勝寺)

4/2 - Umihotaru (海營島), Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine (鶴岡八幡宮), Hase-dera (長谷寺)

4/3 - Lake Ashi (蘆之湖), Owakudani Valley (大涌谷), Imperial Palace (皇居外苑)

4/4 - Tokyo Mizube Line (隅田川遊船), Asakusa Senso-ji (淺草觀音寺), Tokyo Skytree (東京晴空塔), Sumida Park Sakura (隅田公園賞櫻花)

4/5 - Shinkansen Bullet Train (高速新幹線子彈火車) to Kyoto (京都), Miho Museum

4/6 - Kiyomizudera Temple (清水寺), Ninenzaka (二年板), Nijo Castle (二條城), Gion (袛園)

4/7 - Sagano Romantic Train Ride (嵯峨野浪漫小火車), Arashiyama Park (嵐山公園), Bamboo Walking Path (竹林步道), Sakura near Togetsukyo Bridge (渡月穚旁賞櫻花), Kinkaku-ji (金閣寺)

4/8 - Tenshukaku (天守閣), Todai-ji (東大寺), Kiku-Masamune Sake Brewery (菊正宗酒廠), Meriken Park (美利堅公園), Kobe Chinatown (南京町)

4/9 - Traveled back to Houston

March 20 - Taipei (臺北)

We met Fei's sisters and had wonderful beef noodle soup for lunch at D M Beef Noodle (德忞牛肉麵 - 杭州南路一段九十七號). In the afternoon, we did shopping at iRoo, Uniglo, and Moma with good results.  

In the evening, we met with Fei's families in Taipei and had a wonderful dinner at Song-moon House (松滿樓 - 濟南路三段三十一巷). The Vegetable Xio Long Ton Bao (素菜小籠湯包) was delicious.

March 21 - Jioufen (九份) & Shopping in Taipei (臺北)

We heard about Jioufen (九份) for quite a long time and never had a chance to visit. Since we have free time staying in Taipei during this trip, we decided to make an effort to visit this place.  In the old days, Jioufen was a gold mining place discovered by Japanese when they occupied Taiwan. Japanese mined this area and took all the gold; and Jioufen became a small town in the history. In 1989, a famous movie director Hou Hsiao-hsien (侯孝賢) used Jioufen as the backdrop of his movie "A City of Sadness (悲情城市)". When the movie became a big hit in theaters, Jioufen revived and became a popular tourist attraction place. 

It is a hilly town with a lot of steps up and down along with lots of food stores on both sides of the narrow stair walk-paths. It also has a beautiful scenery to look out to the nearby ocean.  Unfortunate, it was raining on the day we visited, we couldn't see much of the ocean scenery. However, the rain did not stop any of the tourists, there were a lot of people there. Visited the hilly old town in the rain gave us a different experience and felling of visiting this famous attraction.  We tried some famous snacks recommended by Fei's sisters and niece such as Yu-yuan(芋圓) and red bean cake. The red bean cake did bring back lots of memories of having them when we were very young. We visited the old town square and the nearby oldest movie theater. Both the old town square and the movie theater were part of scenes in "A City of Sadness".

When we got back to Taipei, the weather was still cloudy, therefore we just did indoor activities - shopping.  Per recommendation, we shopped at iRoo.  In the evening, we went back to one of our favorite restaurants KaoChi (高記) at Yong Kang Street (永康街) to enjoy their House Steamed Chicken Soup (原盅土雞湯), Shanghai Iron Pot Fried Bao (上海鐵鍋生煎包), and Green Bean Noodle Soup with Fried Beancurd (油豆腐細粉).

March 22 - Jiaoxi (礁溪), Yilan(宜蘭)

Our driver/guide Mr. Charles Liao picked us up on time and drove us to Yilan (宜蘭) via Hsuehshan Tunnel (雪山隧道) which took 16 years to complete. It is 12.6 KM and takes 10 minutes to go through it. The engineering effort is truly impressive. 

The first attraction was the Wufongchi Falls Area (五峯旗瀑布區) which has 3 falls along hiking trails. Unfortunately, it was raining on that day and the condition of the trail leading to the 3rd fall was not suitable for hiking and was closed down, therefore we only saw the first 2 falls.  There is a Catholic church on the other side of the hill and it was well maintained. We took quite a few of photos there.

Next, Charles took us to a local hot spot (柯氏蔥油餅) to try green onion pancakes made with the famous Sansing green onion (三星蒜). There was a long line of people waiting to buy this famous snack. It was very tasty and we were very happy to have the opportunity to try it.

Charles did check with us to find out the type of food we would like to try, and we told him that we would like to try local specialities.  Therefore, he took us to Laofu Fish Ball Rice Noodles (老福魚丸米粉店) to enjoy Fishball Rice Noodles (魚丸米粉). It is one of Yilan's famous local specialities since 1978.

After lunch, we visited the National Center for Traditional Arts (國立傳藝中心). It was a surprise to find such a cultural worthy establishment in Yilan. We saw several Taiwan local traditional artists' exhibitions with high quality work including the following:

• Sliver Arts : the Lin Chi-feng Family; Lin Chi-feng focused on mastering the techniques of making silver headdresses for temple gods for about 50 years. They brought exquisite silver craft to the level of fine art.

• Gongs : the Lin Wu Family; Lin Wu’s beautiful gongs have made his name synonymous with Taiwan’s Peikuan (北管) music bands and religious parades. His gongs have contributed to the festive atmosphere in Taiwan’s traditional activities by their excellent quality sound.

• Tin Arts : the Chen Wan-neng Family ; Chen Wan-neng’s tin metal art has a history of four generations lasting nearly a hundred years and made tremendous contributions to the development of traditional tin art in Taiwan.

They had Taiwan Opera performances to introduce Taiwan Opera. They also had a lot of setups to celebrate "the year of the sheep". The most impressive part was that they have done a great job in maintaining the whole complex. It was a very pleasant experience to have the opportunity of visiting such a cultural worthy attraction.

At night, we went for dinner at a local restaurant recommended by Charles.  It was OK, nothing special.

We checked into Jiaoxi Chuangtang Spring Spa Hotel (礁溪川湯春天溫泉大飯店) where they provided individual hot spring spa in each guest room. They also have public spa next to the hotel lobby area.  The hot spring industry in Jiaoxi dates back to the Japanese colonial era (1895~1945). The hot springs of Jiaoxi are at a temperature ranging from 22 to 33 degrees centigrade and it is rich in iron, manganese, magnesium, calcium and other trace elements. Jiaoxi’s hot spring type is sodium bicarbonate with clear and tasteless water qualities (礁溪的溫泉是含碳氫鈉, 所以沒有硫磺味)。

By the way, Taiwan is ranked among the world's top 15 hot spring sites, harboring a great variety of springs, including hot springs, cold springs, mud springs, and seabed hot springs. More than one hundred hot springs have been discovered in Taiwan, located in different geological areas including plains, mountains, valleys, and oceans.

March 23 - Kavalan Whiskey Distillery (噶瑪蘭酒廠) & Jiancing Historic Trail (見晴懷古步道)

Today, we were traveling on highway #7 to Taipingshan National Forest Recreation Area (太平山森林遊樂區).

The first attraction we visited was the Kavalan Whiskey Distillery (噶瑪蘭酒廠) in Yuanshan, Yilan (員山鄉, 宜蘭). It was an extra attraction added by Charles.  Kavalan has been making whiskey since March 2006 and released their first bottle in 2008. Soon afterwards, in January 2010, one of the distillery's products caused a stir by beating three Scotch whiskies and one English whisky in a blind tasting organized in Leith, Scotland. The distillery has since been named by Whisky Magazine as the World Icons of Whisky with earning "Whisky Visitor Attraction of the Year" for 2011, and its products have won several other awards. In 2012, the acclaimed guide Jim Murray’s Whisky Bible named Kavalan’s Solist Fino Sherry Cask malt the “new whisky of the year.”  According to Time magazine’s recent report in 2015 that Kavalan Solist Vihho Barrique is now officially the best single malt whiskey on earth named by the World Whiskies Awards. They also produce and market Mr. Brown Coffee in Taiwan.  At the same time the owner loves orchid and has a greenhouse full of blooming orchids. We had a wonderful time touring their orchid greenhouse and whiskey distillery. We also had a nice whiskey tasting session.  Then, we had a light lunch at their cafeteria.  

The next attraction was Jiancing Historic Trail (見晴懷古步道) which was a trail for logging in the past.  Now it is just a hiking trail with some of remaining logging rail tracks and a suspension bridge.  There were a lot of Taiwan cypress trees along both sides of the trail. The total length is 900 meters and it was recommended to take a whole hour for the hike. However, it was raining, therefore we have to try to enjoy it in the rain and to speed up the hike by getting out of the rain. 

We checked into Taipingshan Vliia (太平山莊) and had a relaxed afternoon tea followed by dinner.  Due to the continuous rain, we couldn’t make out to many beautiful nearby hiking trails.

Taipingshan is situated in the northern county of Yilan and is one of Taiwan’s three major forest recreation areas.  With a moist climate and abundant rainfall, it has nurtured an environment rich in ecological resources.  The forests in the area consist of such valuable trees as Taiwan cypress (台灣檜木-紅檜及扁柏), and Taiwan hemlock (台灣鐵杉).  This area is also blessed with geothermal energy at the Renze Hot Springs (鳩之澤溫泉), the largest alpine lake on the island Cueifang Lake (翠峰湖), and a variety of other enchanting sceneries. 

March 24 - Taipingshan National Forest Recreation Area (太平山森林遊樂區)

We drove further west to visit Cueifang Lake National Walking Trail (翠峯湖國家步道). Again it rained, therefore, we had to carry our umbrella to hike around well built wood-deck  walking trails. There are more dirt road trails which were impassable during rain.  However, we were able to walk far enough into the trail to see the Cueifang Lake (翠峯湖). 

Then, we went back to Taipingshan Vliia (太平山莊) trying to do a little more hiking around there and to have lunch.  Even in the rain, we were able to see wonderful Taiwan cypress trees (台灣檜木-紅檜及扁柏) along the well built wood-deck walking trails.  The mood and feeling were definitely different with seeing these beautiful natural sceneries in the rain. 

One of the attractions in Taipingshan is "sea of cloud" (雲海). If the day after rain is sunny, then the chance of seeing "sea of cloud" is very high.  Unfortunately, it was raining for 2 consecutive days when we visited, we can only look the photo Charles took when he visited previously and saw the "sea of cloud".

After lunch, we visited Chingshui Geothermal Water (清水地熱) and Changpi Lake Scenic Area (長埤湖風景區)。At Chingshui Geothermal Water, the geothermal water is an alkaline spring with 95 Celsius and slightly yellowish sulfur spring water. They sell eggs, corns and yams; and rent out baskets to allow you to cook them in their hot spring water pools. We did cook all 3 items and it was a new experience. Changpi Lake is a camping ground with lake and hiking trails. Unfortunately, the rain prevented us to do any hiking.

We drove back to Jiaoxi (礁溪) again and stayed at the same Jiaoxi Chuangtang Spring Spa Hotel (礁溪川湯春天溫泉大飯店).  We were able to enjoyed the hot spring spa one more time.  

There is a famous restaurant serving Cherry Valley Duck dish in Yilan.  We went there and had a nice dinner at Cherry Valley Restaurant (櫻桃谷 - at 72, Section 7, Jiaoxi Road, Jiaoxi, Yilan).  At first, the name of the dish attracted our attention (we were on our way to Japan to see the cherry blossom later), then we found out it has nothing to do with cherry tree; it is special breed of ducks in Sansing Township (三星) with its pollution free water and advantageous environment.   This is a variation of roast duck dish by servicing a duck in three different ways, and one of them looks like sashimi. The Cherry Valley Duck has also been recognized as the topnotch mouth-watering crispy duck gourmet delicacies in Yilan.

March 25 - Taroko National Park (太魯閣國家公園)

We traveled along the Suao-Hualien Highway (蘇花公路 Taiwan Highway 9) to Taroko National Park (太魯閣國家公園). This is the most famous highway in Taiwan with its beautiful rocky mountain cliffs on one side and Pacific Ocean on the other side. It resembles the highway 1 in California. It was unfortunate that the rain cut down the viewing distance along the way.  

This is a very dangerous highway too. Due to some previous accidents with tourist groups from mainland China, Taiwan government sets a rule to prevent any tourist bus going thru it with mainland China tourists on it, therefore we saw a lot of empty tour buses passing by from the other direction.  We were told that these buses dropped their customers at Hwalien and let them ride the train to Yilan and then get on the bus to continue their trip.  

Before we got on Suao-Hualien Highway (蘇花公路), we stop by Suao (蘇澳) harbor and nearby seafood market.  It is also the starting point of Suao-Hualien Highway, Charles even stopped by one of the Guanine (觀音菩薩) Temple to pray for our safe journey on this highway.

On the way to Taroko National Park (太魯閣國家公園), we visited Qingshui Cliff (清水斷崖) for photos and we stopped at the entrance point of Central Cross-Island Hightway (中部縱貫公路 - Taiwan Highway 9) for more photos. 

First, we stopped at Tarok Terrace (太魯閣台地).  This is the visitor center of Taroko National Park.  The center of the building is occupied with key exhibition areas, such as Our Environment Hall, Humans in the Environment, Environmental Education Hall and Special Exhibition Room, providing educational and traveling related information. We watched several presentations to learn about the beauty of the park. We also walked nearby trails to just get a feel of the Taroko's hiking trails. 

On the way, we also stopped by the Shakadang Trail (砂卡礑步道 ) which is a walking trail along the beautiful Shakadang River (砂卡礑溪). Shakadang Trail is also known as "Mysterious Valley Trail" (神秘谷步道) and was renamed to "Shakadang Trail" in 2001. This trail was built along the river cliff so travelers can easily observe both the rock folds and plant ecosystem in the river valley. 

Then, Charles dropped us at the Swallow Grotto (Yanzikou) Trail (燕子口步道) to let us walk across the most beautiful portion of the Taroko National Park.  At Yanzikou (Swallow Grotto), the rock cliffs of the Liwu River Gorge (立霧溪峽谷) seem to reach to heaven while the river runs its swiftest, and the distance between the gorge walls so narrow that they almost seem to touch each other. Along the Yanzikou (Swallow Grotto) trail which runs about a half kilometer starting from the entrance to Swallow Grotto to the Jinheng Bridge, you can enjoy the sights of the Liwu River from nearly straight above the water, the potholes on the cliff faces, the springs sprinkled along the lower parts of the walls, as well as the famous rock formation "Chieftain's profile rock” (印地安酋長岩). Due to safety concern, everyone is required to wear a hard hat.  Even with the ugly hard hat and the rain, we still enjoyed the wonderful natural beauty along this trail.

Next, we walked through the Jiugudong (tunnel of Nine Turns) Trail (九曲洞步道).  This is the most magnificent part of the Taroko Gorge, where sheer cliffs face each other. During the exploration stage, this is the most difficult and dangerous part to explore. The distance between the cliffs is only around 10-meters wide. 

Next, we visited the Cimu (Motherly Devotion) Bridge (慈母橋). It is a H-Shape hanging bridge with marble stone lions on each ends and with marble lotus stones on two sides. A pavilion was built by late President Chiang Jing-guo, in memory of his mother, during construction of the cross-island highway. 

Then we checked into the Silks Place Taroko (太魯閣晶英酒店). it is a wonderful 5 or 6 stars hotel in the middle of mountains. It was a totally surprise to us to find such a wonderful hotel in this remote location. The facilities and services are first class. The surrounding natural beauty are just breathtaking. It was raining while we stayed there for just one night. But we were truly impressed with the beautiful natural scenery surrounding it, even in a rainy day. It is the best hotel we stayed during this Taiwan trip. After a wonderful dinner, they also provided an aboriginal singing performance.