sandro in taiwan 2
Green Island
2013/04/04
With approaching Tomb-sweeping Day (and mid-terms after) I realized that it is the time to go to travel, if I really want to see something more distant than places in one day reach. I wanted to see the Alishan and several times planned to go there during the weekends, but I never went. And that was the same case like here. I checked the weather forecast and realized that no matter I want to go there already for more than a month and I already prepared everything, this time I (again) can't go to Alishan again.
After some small investigation I found out that during the Tomb-sweeping day (and adjacent holidays) it will be raining all over the Taiwan except one very place - the Green Island. “Well that’s good, I never went there and I definitely want to go” was m immediate thought. So it was decided and I went to Green Island.
I took my Lonely Plane guidebook in one hand, phone in the other and dialed the most recommended budget hostel there. I thought that if they are listed in the Lonely Planet, they will be able to speak at least some English – but well, that was a wrong assumption. And that is the important milestone, when I, first in my whole life, did a 10 minutes phone call in Chinese and successfully booked everything I wanted. I felt so proud to myself … that I almost exploded :-)
This all happened on Wednesday afternoon and if I wanted to go, I needed to catch the night train that day. Therefore I called to the TRA Customer Center and had been informed the train scheduled on the website at 23:30 is not operated that day and the only one remaining was leaving Taipei Main Station in 2,5 hours (at 9pm). Rush through shower, packing, and transport to the Taipei Main Station was at hand. However, when I arrived to the train station, they told me there is no train at 9pm. Funny part about that is, that the one at 23:30 was actually operated and therefore I took it. As many times before, this was the incompetency of Taiwanese administrative stuff, that usually knows literarily nothing. I wonder why Taiwanese tolerate it :-/
It was holidays and therefore all the seats were fully booked. It meant I needed to stand all the way from Taipei to Taidong! And I was truly standing all the way there, because I didn't even manage to get to the aisle or stay in the vagoon connection tunnel.
Completely tired, with no sleep what-so-ever, I arrived to Taidong and asked for directions to the pier where I can catch the ferry to Green Island. The stuff had really hard time to explain me how to get there in English, so later I rather confirmed the information in Chinese. Despite me total Chinese ignorancy, my Chinese was obviously still much better than their English.
After reaching the pier by bus (it took about 30 minutes to get there from Taidong train station), I realized that all the tickets for the morning ferry are sold out. I was upset, because I planned to start exploring Green Island from the very beginning of the day. The next ship was in next 2 hours, so I took at least some nap. (The tickets are often sold out and it is recommended to book ahead, therefore whoever would like to go, book it ahead or you will end like me :-). )
Just when I reached the pier at Green Island, I was asked by several locals to borrow a scooter from them. I intended to do so, but I was thinking about the unreasonable prices these front-line salesmen offer and proceeded more far from the pier. On the first road I turned left and in 3 minutes saw a building of some sort of municipality and offices related to fishing (?). The store where I borrowed the scooter was just across the street and they were really cheap. The scooter for 1 day cost me 300 NT$, which was about 200 NT$!!! below the Lonely Planet expectations from year 2007.
Driving clockwise around the island, in about 5 minutes I reached the Green Island Airport. This newly reconstructed building looks really beautiful from outside. Inside, it’s rather funny, as the space is really confined. The X-ray check with conveyor leading to the garden was an excellent example :-)
Within next 15 minutes I reached the hostel I booked. For 800 NT$ I have got a room for 2 with restroom included. The room itself wasn't really perfectly clean, but for the money it was OK. As before, we weren't able to communicate in English and everything had to be explained in Chinese. It was hard but I managed it. Next wave of proud filled my heart :-)
Just around the corner, when the route from my hostel met the sea shore, was a fantastic rock/lava sculpture pointing out from the sea. It was almost like in Iceland. I really enjoyed the view as it truly summoned my memories of the great time in Iceland. These rock formations are clearly visible along all the north coast and are fascinating dominant of that area. All the island has volcanic history and therefore lava is a common substance to be found anywhere around.
The northern part of the island is a kind of connection of small villages and a prison area, where the most dangerous prisoners had been held captive during the autocratic reign of Kuomintang, back in 1950s’ to 1970s’. Since then many things changed and original prison became a museum. Instead of this old prison with memories to crimes on people that never did anything illegal and still spent most of their life behind the bars a new prison have been built, close to the location of original one.
If you continue along the old prison, at the end of the last village the road turn right and within 5 minutes you emerge on a hill. Just close to the viewpoint for observing the sea is a cave which (according to legends) should work as a lighthouse long time ago. However the truthfulness of such statement is of course very sporadic :-) In these days the caves are some sort of shrine, where candles burn all the time. But it’s not so nice anyway, so don’t bother yourself :-)
If you still keep the road clockwise around the island along the coast, in one moment you can reach a small junction with road to the left. It is easy to miss, but missing it would be very uncunny! Among two rocks that are the edges of 2 hills you are driving on, there is a small bay with old tribal houses and beautiful rock peeking out from the sea. It is a must-see stop, because the area down there is really beautiful. If you would walk along the coast for a while (only walking, no road there) you can see even much more, like caves, beaches and coral reefs. The swimming is forbidden but I saw some Taiwanese doing so anyway.
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Passing around a few farms and again driving directly on the shore, I found a hiking trail that claimed to be for 1 hour and should offer marvelous views over the island. I parked my scooter on parking lot created for such crazy guys like me and started the ascent to the nearby cliff by wooden stairs. That took about 20 minutes. The stairs were in the middle of growing trees and the humidity there was really killing me. The worse, however, was, that the top place didn’t offer any view at all, only view around partly cultivated and partly destroyed part of a cliff, which was probably under some sort of "reconstruction".
I took the other way along the cliff down to the coastal road in order to complete a small 4km circle that will finish my hike. Along the way down I didn't see really anything interesting, thus I don't recommend taking this path, at least not this year. Back on the coastal road, I turned left and proceeded along the shore about 1.5 km till I reached my scooter again. Along the way, I saw the famous sea-water hot springs and checked the price. 220 NT$ is pretty fair price for unlimited entry till midnight :-) “Let’s go there later, when the sun will be setting down”, was my first thought and also what I exactly did.
I (again) proceeded clockwise along the coast, passing the hot-springs and continuing to the famous beach on the south of Green Island, about 3 minutes of ride from the hot springs. Unfortunately, it was low tide and therefore it was hard to go swimming, so I at least enjoyed the beautiful coral reefs and ate the rest of the food I had.
At the evening, I finally entered the hot-springs! Swimming dress and swimming hat is compulsory, so bring it or buy it on place for 50 NT$ (hat). There are about 20 different pools with different water temperature ranging from cold (20 °C) up to 42 °C (well, pretty hot when you sit there for longer time). Each of them is different and in some of them you can have a massage by water stream, in others you can swim, and some of them are rather for kids, so you can lay there and just relax (but not really move).
I stayed there about 4 hours, enjoying the night view. Especially the pools close to the shore, that are really almost touching the sea, were great, because there is not much artificial light and it is easy to observe the stars from the pool while laying in the pool and enjoying the warmness of the water there. This area was also less crowded, because it was not so straight forward that it is adjacent to the hot spring. The path down is dark and during the night many people were reluctant to go there. What a pity though, it’s really a good place to relax after all day trip!
Around 11pm I decided to turn back and go to my hostel. The scooter didn't have good front light and the trip along the coastal road, with no street lamps along, was a thrilling experience. Several times I truly hoped the road is proceeding that way and not the other. You can say it was sort of a Russian roulette, as some of the turns were very sharp and their presence was sometimes quite surprising.
I reached my hostel around 23:30 and fell to sleep immediately. Waking up at 9am, I (by far) exceeded my original plan. But after almost no sleep the night before, I indeed needed to somehow restore the energy. I drove into the village to by some breakfast and ask for the coral reef sightseeing boat trip with snorkeling. Everything set and we should have left the pier around 2pm. I didn't know, though, that the sea will get pretty wild that day and therefore we had to cancel it :/ Despite I have heard about this organized snorkeling activities and heard its kinda lame, I wanted to see the coral reefs at least for a while - which I didn't
On the other hand I saw few other places that day that were worthy a description. The best of them was definitely the north-east coast tip. While going there I passed around a Deer Park, which was closed for already several years (so don't even bother to go there) and reached the area around 11am. I stayed there till 1pm because it was really a great place, resembling me a lot of my experience from Iceland in many ways.
The area itself resemble Grimsey island, which is actually the only place in Iceland behind the northern Artic circle. Why? Well even there you would not find much snow (actually none) and the area is of volcanic origin with grass with very vital green color, proving the nutritiousness of the lava fields :-) The north-east tip of the Green Island was almost the same, just no Artic circle there and there was more tourists and less (none) papuchalks (arctic puffins) . However the cliffs were as marvelous as those on Grimsey and in several moments, I found myself thinking about Iceland constantly.
The slopes were very steep with several areas good for observation of the surrounding area. Goats and sheep are the inhabitants of these slopes, walking and jumping on places none of us dare to enter by foot. On the top, the wind was very strong and it made me feel uncomfortable to stand on a top, looking to the viewfinder with one eye closed and have problem to handle the balance due to the blowing wind. Eventually I took several great pictures anyway.
On the bottom, there was a cave accessible from the main road, close from the prison area (below). The cave itself wasn’t so superb, so I don't think it’s necessary to go there. Originally a pavilion area was built there, but it was torn down by typhoon or something, thus only remains were visible.
On the way to the port I made my final stop in the former prison, where also the former vice-president Annette Lu was held during the regime period. The area is a sad commemoration of the deeds happening in that time. Exhibition is in Chinese, only with few signs in English, but much of it is pretty straight forward. It is interesting experience, but not everybody may enjoy it, though.
I had to return ma scooter at 14:30. Arriving there at 14:25 was just in time. But in fact, they somehow forgot. When I gave them the scooter, they even didn't want me to pay. Of course I did, because I would feel really bad to cheat them this way. But their approach was a bit funny. Maybe they were so afraid to deal with a foreigner that they rather choose to lose the profit than to speak with me :-).
The boat back should depart at 4pm, so I searched for some local food. Found several really not-too-good-looking restaurants and all of those recommended were closed. So I decided to rather suffer and eat in Taidong.
Well, it would not be me if I wouldn't have an ending story, right? If you are expecting one, there it is: When I came to the ticket booth at the Taidong train station, the stuff told me they don't have even standing tickets to Taipei this night. But he proposed to take a train to Hualien and then switch. Train was leaving in 3 minutes. Buying the ticket and running to the platform was just enough to jump into the train and hear the click of the doors closed behind me. I sat on my seat and slept happily for next 3 hours. That for the boring part of the story – now lets make it more interesting.
When I reached the Hualien, I was supposed to buy the ticket to Taipei. I waited the line for about 20 minutes and then the girl suddenly told me that the computer JUST broke down and she is not able to issue me the ticket and I need to wait till morning. Arguing a while didn't help much first, but later the woman just told me to go to the gates and tell the ticket collector that the computer doesn't work so I want to go inside and pay inside. Heh, what the hell, right? Of course they would not let me in, because I didn't have ticket, didn't have any proof and wasn't even able to tell them in Chinese! I tried to explain her that they will not understand. And then she came up with a brilliant idea! She took a stripe of ticket paper and wrote a message in Chinese for the ticket collector, signing her name and TRA ID.
When I approached the ticket collector, his eyes made several circles as a matter of surprise, but he let me in. In the train, I did the same thing and the ticket collector there let me sit in the first class! And the best thing about it was, that I didn't pay ANYTHING! :-)
At the end, I reached Taipei at 23:30 and managed to catch the last MRT and be back in my dorm about 00:30. I exceeded my expectation about 10 hours. Well, coincidences can happen. Don't believe in fate :-P
2013/04/04 - Green Island [40 pictures]
Green IslandGreen Island AirportTaiwanese Hot SpringsAnnette LuGrimsey
Green Island Phorum [0 posts]
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