In addition to the sights listed, I thought I would delve more deeply into my favorite activities during the two weeks (outside of food, which deserves an entire post of its own).
#1: Shifen
Just about an hour outside of Taipei, we visited this little town the day after Chinese New Year, which meant that it was just packed. Which actually added to the fun, in a way (outside of finding parking) because all of the shops were open and all of the vendors were out and lots and lots of lanterns were being sent skyward.
Including ours!
The main part of the town is a small street lining a rickety old train track; every forty five minutes or so you'd hear a train whistle and all of the pedestrians would empty off of the train tracks and take pictures of the absolutely jam-packed trains and then swarm onto them again once the train passed. The tracks were also where the lanterns were lit and released from, to avoid hitting buildings or getting tangled in telephone wire (both of which happened while we were there, so we got to see their New Years' dreams sadly burn).
The lanterns are four-sided, and can be painted along the train tracks outside or inside one of the shops, and then designated attendants are there on the tracks to help light the lanterns appropriately and take pictures.
#2: Shrimp fishing!
So hilarious. Big indoor pools of murky water, where you pay by the hour to catch shrimp they throw in there themselves. After your time is up there are sinks to clean the shrimp and big grills to grill the shrimp and tables to eat the delicious shrimp. Colton and I caught eight shrimp in an hour (which, compared to when Dallin and Colton tried and failed to get any, is pretty darn good!), but some people were pulling them out every couple of minutes. I was uncharacteristically a wuss and had a really hard time ripping off their claws and removing the hooks (pretty funny video to follow), but they sure were delicious!
#4: Bike riding!
No pictures, unfortunately. But Baga and I took a delightful daily ride along the Danshui River near their house, and there are typically more bike riders along the streets of Taipei than pedestrians.
#4: Hiking!
We did not make it down to the iconic mountain ranges of central Taiwan, but we did hike some nearby "mountains" in Taipei and the scenery was beautiful. Yes, the trails were paved and mostly made of stairs, but it still felt like you were no longer in the middle of a big city and the views were incredible.
Happy year of the goat, everybody!
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