Touring Taipei

Taipei was a time for us to get caught up, exercise, and give the girls some time to explore on their own.  We really didn’t know what to expect in Taiwan in general, but without a car, not wanting to travel with an organized tour, we decided to home base for just over a week in the capital.  

Acupressure classes with dozens of older men and women (some in wheelchairs) in the park.   

Lifting weights at the community gym with local meatheads and a few older people who looked to be a 100.

Pony Burger’s most amazing burgers and the lovely couple who runs the place.

Our daily walk past a brothel and explaining the details of that one to the kids.  

The girls taking off for the day on the subway.

The double mothers day, once with kids, movie, water parks and fun (but no mention of it being mothers day) and the second celebration two days later on the day they thought was mothers day (all these time zones and international date lines seem to throw us all off), giving me a chance to count my blessings twice.    

And bubble tea, so much bubble tea.

Like a spring getting ready to let go, Taipei was a great resting place for us to spring into South Korea and on to the next adventure.

Taroko Gorge

The bus ride up Taroko Gorge was breathtaking and beyond what I had expected.  As we stepped off the bus and took a long deep breath of the fresh, moist mountain air, Lily looked at me and said mom, “I really, really missed nature.” “Yes my girl, me too, me too.”

The Taroko Gorge is a stunning marble gorge outside of Hualian.  It is called the “Grand Canyon” of Taiwan, but it is so very different: deep lush forest, huge mountain faces and deep gorges with crystal water rushing over white marble cliffs.  The area is impressively protected, much like Zion or Denali national park where almost everyone travels by public bus or tour bus with a few side trails. 

Most people stay at the base and visit for a day as there limited lodging in gorge, but we lucked out with a deal and stayed for 2 nights in the gorge itself landing us in a mountain bliss were we all agreed we could stay all month.  As road bikers passed, and hikers explored I just wanted to get out on foot and see and feel as much of it as I could.  We hiked, explored, enjoyed, but for me, the highlight was the last day.  I wanted more time, I wanted to see and feel the gorge, and so Traverse and the kids spent some extra time in the pool and then took my bag down on the bus as I ran the length of the gorge taking in the sites as I went.  My mind wandered as my feet hit the ground thinking back to Norway, Croatia, Bhutan, Vietnam, and the many roads and places we have seen, again so grateful for the moment, stunned by the beauty of this place and the opportunity of this year. 

Reflecting back on where the road has taken us.

The beauty was stunning.

And the road was a work of art

The trail took us through 7 tunnels the last one will if waterfall curtains.

Headed up

I could have looked at this rock forever - stunning marble carved slowing by the forces of water and time.

Fun time in this stunning pool

Beautiful temples in the heart of these mountains.

Loving the time to explore

Letting the bus pass on this impressive road

More magic roads

A hike after the run up a stunning valley

discovering

A pool of duckies - yes please

Fun all around

Landing in Taiwan

We landed in Tapie caught the MRT (Taiwan’s train system) into the city center and like hearing underwater, the world was suddenly both the same and profoundly different.  It first struck me getting on the escalator and seeing a massive line for the right side (where you ride down) and the rest of the escalator and stairs were totally clear. The physics of the escalator were the same, how to use it was completely different.  We moved from a land of chaos to a land of rules.

It has made me think a lot about these social rules and expectations we have and apply to our surroundings.   A friend posted on facebook about how “inappropriate” a man was who “grabbed her arm for a selfie.” I had to read it a few times to see what was inappropriate, as that was a daily experience here in  Asia, but had to remind myself not so much at home. Old women regularly grab Lily’s braids and say how beautiful she is almost daily. Women pretending to “faint” on how handsome Traverse is, Isabelle, being totally undressed and “handled” during a shopping trip for a swimsuit top.   Later that day she said, “mom six months ago that would have freaked me out, now it is just the norm.” As we hit the modernity of Taipei it made realize how much this year is shiting our experience and expectations and I think I am going to miss the random selfies.

As we adjust our gears to a new country and a new culture we have been reminded that the goal of the year was not to be comfortable, but build resiliency.  And when our first nights hotel was accidently booked for the wrong month and we were searching for a place to stay that night, or the town we thought we would love for 3 weeks turned out to be more a sprawling suburb -we found ourselves stumbling with google translate as the language hurdle was larger than we anticipated.

But we adjust, we prioritize and do what we always do when life doesn’t go like you planned, head to the mountains. Taiwan's backbone is comprised of towering mountains reaching almost 10,000 ft tall shields the productive cities of the westside that have transformed Taiwan into the ’little dragon’ of Asia or this ‘modern miracle’ of industrialization.  The east coast is still rugged an beautiful and much in the same condition as it was when the Portuguese sailors in the 1500’s “described” it, naming it “Formosa” or “beautiful island.” So off to the hills we go to see the sites and re equilibrate.

Grabbing a picture of this stunning view

Welcome to Taipei!

The train system has made getting around the island much more straight forward and enjoyable

Speeding down the coast

Finding a local art studio

End enjoying the art along the way

Impressive bike infrastructure

I love seeing how comfortable they have become in all sorts of new places and settings

Headed back on the train

Some days there was English writing that made sense

Other days we tried google translate. Never ending entertainment “please don’t waste your face.”

And most of the time it all worked out

Another thing we could not get over were the short, fat shaved dogs.

And the random fun beautiful art along the streets