Many years ago, I had the idea of visiting Taiwan, but I never had a suitable opportunity. In fact, I returned to Qingdao as early as August 2013 to apply for a Taiwan travel permit and a G visa for a free trip to Taiwan. I remember that it was free to apply for a travel permit at that time, and only an endorsement fee of 50 yuan was charged. At that time, the Taiwan Entry Permit was a small book like a passport, valid for 5 years, and the cover was light purple. At that time, I praised it for its beauty. For many years, I have been looking forward to a suitable opportunity to travel to Taiwan, but it has never happened. I knew last year that there was a business trip to Taipei in October this year, so I calculated the time and applied for the Taiwan Pass and G endorsement for independent travel in advance. This new version of the pass is like a card the size of an ID card. It is valid for 10 years, but the validity period of the endorsement is still 6 months. It is not enough to have a pass and endorsement. You also need to apply for a Taiwan entry permit. The validity period of the Taiwan entry permit is 3 Months, issued by the Immigration Department of the Ministry of Interior of Taiwan. Therefore, we need to remind everyone that the time for applying for endorsement and entry permit should be reversed according to the time of entry to Taiwan. In addition, it needs to be reminded that at present, the Immigration Department of the Ministry of the Interior of Taiwan does not accept personal submissions to apply for a Taiwan entry permit. It can only be processed through third-party travel agencies such as Ctrip, because the additional handling fee is not high (about 70 yuan) and it is easy to save trouble. , Prepare the required materials, and upload them online for review, which is very convenient. The Taiwan Entry Permit is issued electronically, and you need to print it out and bring it with you when you enter Taiwan.
One more preparation before going to Taiwan is to exchange Taiwan dollars. The current exchange rate is about 100 RMB can be exchanged for 430 Taiwan dollars. I personally recommend changing more cash, because currently in Taiwan, especially places outside Taipei, taxis, homestays, and night market consumption Still the most convenient cash transaction. All major supermarkets and Eslite bookstores in Taipei City can use mobile payment.
The pre-departure preparations include, of course, reviewing strategies, making itinerary plans, booking hotels and homestays, ordering Taipei public transportation cards in advance, etc., which will not be detailed here.
This Taiwan trip is from November 8th to 18th, a total of 10 nights and 11 days. With my lover, mother-in-law and children. At the beginning of November, the autumn in Shanghai was crisp and clear, with blue sky and white clouds. Our journey departed from Shanghai. At noon, we took the Dream 787 of Juneyao Airlines and arrived in Taipei. We took a taxi from Taoyuan Airport to Taipei Railway Station. The taxi fare in Taipei was about 1200 Taiwan dollars. . Before the trip, my lover booked the Taiwan Railway from Taipei to Hualien in advance. We bought the Ziqiang train, which is a relatively fast train, and it took about 2 and a half hours to arrive at Hualien Railway Station. Taipei Taoyuan Airport is not big. Before entering the country, you need to carry out strict inspection and quarantine inspection on your carry-on items. Meat, fresh fruits and vegetables are not allowed to enter the country. If tourists violate the rules, they will be fined, and in serious cases, they may be refused entry. Here I want to complain about Taipei Railway Station. This is a very old station with a large interior space. There are subways and Taiwan Railways on different platforms underground. It is difficult for outsiders to find the place to board for the first time. There is no security check when entering the station, and there is no personal guide. In addition, the straight elevator from the hall to the platform requires staff to enter a code before it can be used. We searched and asked for a long time before we arrived at the platform where we took the Taiwan Railway. We were surprised that we didn't go through the security check and no one checked the ticket. From another perspective, it shows that the social security and public order in Taipei are very good.
Hualien, a small county on the east coast of Taiwan's Baodao, has a vast land and few people. Compared with the bustling and noisy Shanghai, it is more calm and calm. I remember that most of the news we heard about Hualien in the past was related to earthquakes and typhoons. This is related to its geographical location. It faces the vast Pacific Ocean to the east, and the towering central mountain range to the west. The address structure is between the Eurasian continental plate and the At the junction of the Philippine oceanic plate, there are trench cliffs with huge drop off the sea. The famous Qingshui cliff is a good example. After a day of hard work, it was dark when we arrived at Hualien Railway Station. Many restaurants here were selling "bento". We found a fast food restaurant in the station lobby and finished eating Taiwanese fried chicken. The chartered driver, Mr. Wang, came over. Pick us up and check in at the pre-booked homestay, and the child is already sound asleep in the car. The B&B we booked is 17 kilometers away from the urban area, which is a relatively remote place. After checking in, the owner of the B&B, Xiaoyue, immediately reminded us not to swim in the waters of Hualien because it is dangerous. Xiaoyue is a very nice person. Although we are very tired, we are still willing to sit on the landscape bench and chat with her. The sponge at night is dark, only the sound of waves can be heard, which also gives us infinite imagination about what it will be like when the sun rises on the sea the next day. The B&B we booked is a two-story detached building. Sitting on the terrace on the second floor, you can overlook the sea to your heart's content. The beginning of November belongs to Taiwan's off-season tourism, and coupled with the sharp drop in mainland tourists, the price is not high. The price per night is NT$2,000.
The next day, we got up excitedly to watch the sunrise before dawn, but there was a strong wind outside the house. Unfortunately, the rising track of the sun was covered by thick clouds, so watching the sunrise also depends on luck. What do you want to see? It's one thing, but it's another thing whether Mr. Sun shows it to you or not. The room rate of the homestay we booked includes breakfast. In the morning, we walked around the manor near Yue Xuhai, and saw Xiaoyue getting into the kitchen early to prepare breakfast for the guests. The manor is not small. There are several guest rooms in the main building and 2 independent buildings. In front of the main building, there is a viewing platform. The director carefully placed a few benches, round tables and landscapes for photos. In front of the platform is a large lawn with sculptures, swings and There are parent-child facilities such as slides and props such as wooden boats and wooden houses. You can hold private parties, company team building and weddings, and you can also take wedding photos and portraits. The host family takes good care of it and regularly mows the lawn. There were only two groups of guests staying last night, including us. There were few guests, so Xiaoyue specially made a separate love breakfast, including fried eggs, sweet potato porridge, meat floss and side dishes. How comfortable is it to relax and enjoy a hearty breakfast facing the sea things! Today our itinerary is a one-day tour with a chartered car. The chartered car is contacted before coming to Taiwan. The cost of the day is 3,000 Taiwan dollars. There are 3 tour routes in Hualien to choose from, along the east coast line North Line, South Line and For the rift line of Chuanshan Road Ranch, we chose the northern line, which includes the most famous scenic spot in Hualien, Qingshui Cliff, Taroko Forest Park and Chihsingtan Beach.
The driver of our chartered car, Mr. Wang, is a native of Hualien. He is about 50 years old and has a pair of children. The most famous one is Hualien jade. There are more than 600,000 tons of jade mines in the area where Hualien is located, and the reserves account for half of the world's proven total. They are mainly distributed in the eastern mountainous area, around Hualien Toyota. After about an hour's drive, we came to the first scenic spot we visited that day—Qingshui Cliff, the cliff at the place where Qingshui Mountain faces the Pacific Ocean. It stretches for 21 kilometers. The geology is mainly gneiss and marble, forming a 90-degree angle. Straight into the Pacific Ocean, with a height of more than 800 meters. The shape of the cliff is like a sheath, the cliff is ten feet high, and the white waves are surging at the foot, which is very steep. The Suhua Highway (Suao-Hualien), built in the middle of the cliff, is also known as the most beautiful highway in Taiwan.
The second stop we came to the famous Taroko National Park, which is characterized by canyons and cliffs. Its main buildings include Changchun Temple, Yanzikou, Jinheng Park, Jiuqu Cave, Cimu Bridge, and Tianxiang; the main natural landscapes include Zhuilu Cliff, Liufang Bridge, Dayuling, Buluo Bay, Shakayu Trail, Lushui Confluence Trail, Qingshui Cliff Trail, Baiyang Trail, Huoran Pavilion Trail, Lianhuachi Trail, Golden Canyon. Now the advantage of chartering a car came out. Master Wang drove all the way to Yanzikou, borrowed safety helmets for us, and suggested that we get off the car to visit the most worthwhile section of the road. He was waiting for us at the front bridge. The marble cliffs on both sides of the river were eroded into many small holes under the action of flowing water. Smart swallows used these small holes as their nests, forming the spectacle of "Hundred Swallows Singing Valley", hence the name "Swallow's Mouth". Walking through this distance, I am in admiration of the uncanny workmanship of nature. The two banks are the surface rocks stripped off by the weathering and erosion of the central mountain range. The long-term erosion and incision of the Liwu River and the continuous uplift of the earth's crust form an almost vertical U-shaped canyon. At the bottom of the canyon is the stream of Pengteng, which is very spectacular! In this way, under the suggestion of Master Wang, we also walked through the Jiuqu Cave on foot. The Jiuqu Cave is the most dangerous section of the cross-road project. It is 800 meters long. Walking in this section, it seems to be in the seam between the sky and the earth. The feeling of being one with the sky and the earth is really amazing.
Next, we went to the train station to change the train ticket. The last scenic spot of the day came to Qixingtan Beach, which is very close to Hualien Airport (military and civilian mixed use). It is said that there were seven wetland lakes of different sizes here earlier. , hence the name "Qixingtan". Since the northeast monsoon usually blows in Taiwan in November, the style of the afternoon was so strong that we were frequently called cold as soon as we got out of the car. Everyone, including Master Wang, put on coats. We took our children to the beach, there were very few people, and no one went into the sea. We took some photos, but the wind was too strong. We stayed in the car for about half an hour and returned.
On the third day, our itinerary was easy, with no special plans or destinations. Xiaoyue recommended that we take the East Coast Line bus to Moon Cave. It took about an hour to drive. Most of the time on the way ran along the Pacific Ocean, and there was a section of walking through the mountains. This road is simply too beautiful! On one side is the endless sea, and on the other side are endless mountains.
In addition, the food in Hualien is not to be missed! Such as mochi, millet mochi, yokan, Hualien potato, flat food, small moon cakes, etc., are also excellent souvenirs for relatives and friends.
End the three-day itinerary in Hualien, and return to Taipei by Taiwan Railway Ziqiang. This time I did not go to Taitung, Kenting, Taichung and Kaohsiung, nor did I go to Sun Moon Lake and Alishan. I look forward to visiting again next time!
December 2019
