Taipei adventures: The mystical town of Jiufen

‘I’ve never tried this before,’ I said to Julia punching my straw through a thin plastic covering into a cup of unsweetened soy milk. ‘Really? I think it’s fantastic and I drink it all the time,’ Julia responded with a laugh. A few sips later the watered down nutty flavor of soy had coated my mouth and secured in my mind that this was a drink to be had sparingly. It was 11pm, the last few hours had been a fruitless search for new boots as well as a quick stop at Costco and I was ready to call it day. Sipping on my soy milk I thought back to how it had all began at 5am that morning.

‘Who the hell forgot to turn off their cell phone!?’ was the first thought that bashed its way into my head as I awoke to a still dark room. Then I remembered, ‘oh, it was me,’ and reached down beside my bed to shut off the cursed Marimba tuned alarm. Why I continually subject myself to these early hours I have no idea. Well, actually I do…

I was interested in catching a look at the tai-chi that supposedly went on at the C.K.S. Memorial near my hostel. Being smart practitioners they did their practice before the suns light began to bake everything within sight, which meant that if I wanted to see them it would have to be an early morning.

So there I was, standing in front of the memorial but no one was doing anything remotely tai-chi’ish. Well, there were a few scattered people around going through routines but not the large groups I had expected.

Instead I was treated to the raising of the Taiwanese flag and their national anthem. It wasn’t spectacular and I wouldn’t recommend getting up at the crack of dawn to see them march down the mall but, meh, I was there so I watched it.

On my way out was when I stumbled across what I had been looking for in the first place. There were three groups of people. One was a group of middle to old aged women doing fan dances to soft music. Another was a group of old women doing some dance to loud, tinny music. The last and final group was the jackpot, sort of…a mix of men and women were in the middle of a routine. Unfortunately I was a bit too tired to really appreciate it and decided instead to head back for some more sleep.

When I finally awoke again around 9 it was time to plan the rest of my day (after first typing in and uploading a blog). I decided on Juifen, a place about an hour and a half away by a combination of bus and subway. There seemed to be enough interesting things, including an easily climbable mountain as well as street markets, so I figured I’d give it a go. After all, I was here for sightseeing and there was no way the 30 degree C+ and cloudless skies were going to stop me.

…

Have you ever seen the movie ‘Spirited Away,’ a film by Miyazaki and produced by studio Gibli? Well, the streets of Juifen were the inspiration for the market that little Chihiro wanders through in the mystical village and I got to walk through them (though I didn’t learn that little factoid until later as I left). At its widest point you could probably put 5 people side by side, but it would be a tight fit.

Stores crammed, and I do mean crammed, both sides. Masses of humanity had to work to move their way through these narrow passages that wound up, around, and down the side of the mountain. Trying to get off the beaten track, well, that was pretty much impossible. Once you got on the roller coaster you were pretty much on it until the end. Occasionally branches off to the left or right made themselves available but none of them seemed to lead anywhere.

The sights, smells, sounds, all pretty much forced themselves on your senses and there was no escape. All kinds of food, clothes, and other knickknacks were stacked high and deep with shopkeepers advertising their wares in loud singsong voices. A grin stretched my face from ear to ear as I waded through people drinking it all in.

Lunch was a quick bowl of noodles and beef. The portion seemed small but by the time I saw the bottom of the dish I was stuffed. The taste, well, it was excellent, and all for less then $3US.

I finally managed to break out and make my way to my real goal for the area, Mt. Keelung. By now it was about 2pm and the sun was in its burning prime. Clouds drifted through the sky but none of them ever seemed to block the ball of fire that beat down on me. Stairs stretched in front of me, always upward and always steep. The deep greens of the grass around me contrasted with the rich blues of the sky which were complemented by the earthy browns of my beloved stairs.

Sweat poured from my skin, soaking my clothes, and the breeze that occasionally came by did little to alleviate the heat. The only relief was my bottle of water, which I drank copious amounts of while wishing I had brought my 3 liter Camelbak.

The top, some 600m above sea level, gave a beautiful view of the ocean and surrounding mountains. You could even make Taipei out in the distance, thanks to Building 101 towering above the cityscape.

I took a deep breath and let out a laugh from deep within my belly. This was Taiwan and this was me exploring it! Seeing new things, overcoming obstacles, having a great time. Sure, someday in the (near) future I would have to settle down in many ways but for now I was free.

The hike down was much better than the hike up, though still tough. Sweat still poured from my arms and back but the sun had retreated behind a veil of clouds making things a bit more tolerable. At the base I decided I would go through the market again. It was still a few hours before I had to meet Julia and I wanted to make sure I drank the experience in full.

Walking down one of the alleys I was surprised by a light touch on my shoulder and a, ’Michael?’ I turned to face whoever had called my name and was confronted by the young girl who I had met in the hotel near Kansai Airport. ‘Oh my, what a small world!’ I chuckled. Some people might be stunned at the odds of meeting someone in a situation like that but, after all the things that have happened to me on my trip so far, I just smiled.

She had lost her father a few minutes previous (no she’s not a child, she’s about 20) and in the process of looking for him had found me. We ended up finding her father as well as the rest of her family and hung out all the way back to Taipei. I even joined them as they searched for Building 101 but had to split up because of my plans with Julia just as we found it. It’s awesome all the fun and interesting people you meet on trips. I just wish more of them would keep in contact…

Julia was eager to help me find a new pair of boots but I think the real highlight of the evening was the visit to Costco. Costco, if you’ve never heard of it, is a warehouse store (like Sam’s Club) that sells things in bulk and at discount (at least in America). The prices are usually pretty good and the selection great. For me, as I wandered through the aisles with my eyes sparkling and mouth hanging wide open, it was like a little taste of home. When I saw the sign that said ‘America grade A beef’ I almost cried.

I’m not homesick and I’m not one of those people who eats at McDonalds when he’s in a foreign country (Japan doesn’t count because I lived there) but sometimes it is nice to be around something familiar.

I finally made it home just after 11pm. Julia tried to take me to my hostel but due to my complete lack of direction in Taipei we settled on the C.K.S Memorial near the place. I was set on getting a blog typed and posted but when I stuck a movie in for some background sound in the common room my eyes gravitated to the screen. Before I knew it the film was over and I could barely keep my eyes open. I never thought Kung-fu Panda could be so interesting…

Related posts:

1. Taipei adventures: …and on the first day…
2. Taipei adventure: Another world
3. Taiwan: End of the second leg
4. Tokyo adventures: Yasukuni Shrine
5. Another day, another town