Hualien and Back to Taipei

My stopover in Taitung lasted two nights, after which I continued my loop around the island, heading north to the town of Hualien.  Hualien, like Taitung, has just over 100,000 residents, and the two towns are the largest on the east coast.  Although Hualien county is sparsely populated (compared to the west coast) it draws many tourists from across the country.  Visitors come primarily for the beautiful natural scenery, from the sandy beaches to the mountainous interior.

This time around I lucked out and found a local willing to host me through Couchsurfing.  Dylan, who grew up 40 minutes away from the town of Hualien, teaches at a primary school near his hometown but often stays with family in the city.  Even though he already had another guest scheduled to stay with him Dylan accepted my request; he's hosted over 150 surfers so an extra traveler didn't bother him one bit!

Dylan, probably with other couchsurfers

I spent three nights with Dylan - actually we stayed with his aunt and nephew in Hualien, both of whom were extremely hospitable.  The first afternoon I met Dylan at the train station in his home town where he showed me around before driving to Hualien.  Dylan is an Aborigine, part of the group of peoples whose heritage spans thousands of years on the island.

With Dylan's nephew, dressed in a
traditional Aboriginal outfit

Dylan makes an effort to speak his native language at home and enjoys taking Couchsurfing guests to Aboriginal cultural performances.  While in Hualien I saw a show where the participants danced, sang traditional songs, and wore clothing representing the various tribes in the region.  Today Aboriginal Taiwanese make up just over 2% of the population, with most living in the mountainous areas or major cities.  Those that move to the city, often in search of work, tend to lose elements of their culture.  Many now speak Mandarin and live similarly to their ethnic Chinese neighbors.  For years local indigenous languages were banned from schools, and Aboriginals were forced to assimilate.

at the cultural performance in Hualien

Fortunately Aboriginal culture is no longer suppressed by the government, and many activists and tribal leaders are lobbying for greater political self-determination.  Taiwan has made great strides but much work is still to be done.  Economic opportunities in rural indigenous communities are few and far between, and many in the younger generation who move to the cities lose their traditions and language.  Of the 26 known Aboriginal languages, over half are either extinct or near extinction (wiki).  Ordinary Taiwanese often dismiss Aborigines as musical and artistic but intellectually inferior.  Before going to Taiwan I had no idea that an indigenous community even existed on the island, but what I did learn was fascinating.  Hopefully Aboriginal culture will continue to survive and make progress in mainstream Taiwanese society.

My first evening in town we went to the train station to meet Christy, the other Couchsurfer who would be staying with Dylan's family.  Christy is from Connecticut and previously taught English in Korea before traveling to Taiwan.  Although Christy lived in Busan and I in Seoul we still had a lot of experiences in common from our teaching days.  The three of us, Dylan, Christy, and I, got on well and it was great to have two temporary travel companions.

Dylan had to work during the day but spent each evening with us; the first night we attended the cultural performance and our second night in Hualien we explored the night market.  Christy had never tried stinky tofu, so we split a serving.  It was my third time trying it, and I must say that although I'm not crazy about the stuff, each time the experience has been better.  I also ate a rice paper burrito (kind of a Mexican Taiwanese fusion), spicy sausage on a stick (meat on a stick seems to be a requirement at any Asian street food market), and finished it off with my go-to, a fruit smoothie.

crowds at the night market in Hualien

Stinky tofu: a pungent fermented tofu often sold at street food stalls.  I first
 tried it in Malaysia, and the scent seemed to blanket the entire block.  The
 tofu at the Hualien market seemed better; maybe I'm just getting used to it!

The first full day in Hualien Christy and I took the bus to Taroko National Park.  The park is named after Taroko Gorge, which cuts through the mountainside.  A road runs along the gorge with ample photo opportunities to capture the surrounding cliffs and river below.  Christy and I hiked a nearby trail, but unfortunately it was only partly opened; a section washed away during the previous rainy season and had yet to be repaired.  We also checked out the visitor center, which had a small restaurant where we ate lunch, a motel for overnight visitors, and a movie theater which showed a short film on Aboriginal customs (it was all in a local language with Chinese subtitles but I think we got the gist of the story).

We wanted to reach a town within the park to catch the bus back to Hualien, but by the afternoon we were still a long way off, not to mention on account of the closed path the only route was along the road.  There were numerous tunnels and narrow stretches of pavement - not the most ideal place for pedestrians.  Christy suggested we try and hitchhike; I wasn't so keen on the idea but we didn't seem to have any other options.  We were passed by numerous times, but eventually a church group van picked us up.  It was actually a group of college kids on a church camping trip to Taroko.  They were super friendly, and despite my reservations no one asked me to drink Kool-aid or run off into the woods.

Taroko Gorge

Good thing Christy was there to take a few photos!

A Buddhist temple in Taroko National Park

Or second day Christy and I rented a motorbike and drove along the coastal highway south of Hualien.  We stopped at a white sandy beach and several cliff-side lookout points over the ocean.  At our lunch spot we met three Thai university students who were cycling the entire coastal loop; biking around Taiwan is surprisingly popular and we saw a handful of riders along the road while we were driving (the elevation changes would be too much for me to handle!).  I didn't get an extended motorbike tour, but at least I had a day on the road.  All the reason to come back again!

on the motorbike with Christy

View of the ocean from the hillside where Christy
and I hiked

We dropped off the motorbike at the rental shop late in the afternoon, and my original plan was to leave Hualien for Taipei that evening.  When I searched online I had trouble finding a place to stay in Taipei though; the hostel from my first time around, like all the well reviewed hostels in Taipei, was showing no availability.  The only hotel options were out of my price range or far outside the city center.  I considered stopping in Yilan along the way, but since I had already been I decided just to wait it out and stay another night in Hualien.

The following day took the train to Taipei.  It was a good thing I waited because that morning I heard from Henry, one of the guys I met at the yacht party my first time in Taipei, and he invited me to stay with him.  It was a big relief to have a place to crash as well as a friend to hang with.  I do enjoy traveling solo - I think it forces you out of your comfort zone and you meet more people that way - but it can also get lonely, especially if you aren't used to it.

Henry (right), who invited me to stay at his place

I found Henry's place (like most unmarried twenty-somethings in Taiwan he lives with his parents) pretty easily once I got to Taipei that afternoon.  It happened to be Friday, and that evening he had organized a get together at his apartment.  A few of the same people from the yacht party showed up so I didn't feel like a complete outsider.  We ordered pizza and watched the movie Intersteller - like the boating affair it was kind of high schoolish to me (we even went around the room introducing ourselves as an icebreaker) - but it was a good time nonetheless.

Unfortunately Henry was going out of town on Saturday, so I was on my own again...or so I thought.  As it turns out Ryan, Justin's friend and the one who originally invited us to the yacht thing, said I could stay with him.  He lived outside the capital, in a a satellite city called Taoyuan - you guessed it, at his parents house.  His parents were gone for the weekend and he had the house to himself.  It actually worked well for me to stay out in Taoyuan because it's close to the airport and my flight was the next day.

Before heading out to Taoyuan I visited the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial
Hall, a monument in Taipei dedicated to the former President

changing of the guard at the Memorial Hall

That evening I met Ryan's friend and the three of us played pick-up basketball at an outdoor court.  There were actually six courts and easily over 50 guys playing.  Traditionally Taiwan is big on baseball, which is still popular to watch, but basketball is probably the most played team sport and gaining in popularity.  Pick-up games are a bit different in Taiwan; they play 3 on 3 half-court games instead of 5 on 5, even if there are enough players.  I guess you can get 12 people playing that way instead of only 10 with a full court game.  The basketball wasn't top quality, but they were no push overs, and I struggled to shake off the rust.  It's good to see the game is going strong in Taiwan!

It was great to play a pick-up game - the second on this
 trip (the first was in Vietnam)

That night Ryan and I had drinks at his place, but nothing crazy, which I guess was a good thing since I had my flight to catch.  It wasn't leaving until early afternoon on Sunday but I gave myself plenty of time, getting lunch at the airport and doing some last minute planning for my return to Thailand!