Taiwan - Taichung

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Suzanne here...

We were a little sad to leave the Changhua Hotel as all the ladies there were so friendly, the room (although small) was comfortable, and we knew there was lots more to see in Taipei. We originally felt a month in Taiwan would have been too long so we only have 13 nights. We've now realised we'll never fit everything in. Our next stop was to be Hualien, but it's the opposite side of the island. We're already regretting skipping it but something has to give and as it's all about the outdoors in Hualien, and it's winter here, we decided to move straight to Taichung.

We bought a bus ticket easily and within ten minutes were on the U-bus. Oh my God. It was the Hotel Fleuris of the bus world. I have never in my life been on such a comfortable bus. The seats were huge, with loads of leg room, even for 6ft 3" David. He settled down to blog while I snoozed. Well I say snoozed, I was so comfy it was a full-on sleep. In my defence I was still ill and had been sleeping badly. It was only a two hour journey and I really did not want to get off.

Well apparently staying on the bus was not an option, and we were soon walking to the Trans Inn, about 20 minutes away. It was around 13.00 but we are realising that the Taiwanese just don't do early check in. Part of this German-like efficiency - official check in is 3pm and not a minute before. For once we didn't mind. With so much to do on this trip we can't afford the slacking around we've got into the habit of on this trip. So we dumped our bags and headed out again. Although before we left we did grab a slice of pizza from a stall near the hotel. Sold by the slice, they were just taking a pepperoni pizza out of the oven as we rocked up. Result. It was about twenty times better than any Filipino pizza.

We had a plan for the afternoon, the Taichung Fine Arts Museum. We arrived with some trepidation as we'd both been bitterly disapointed by the Taipei one. This one was free, how good could it be? Well the answer is very. In fact it was exceptional. Loads of great Chinese and Taiwanese art, and lots that we loved. We were there for ages, well worth the trip. We also bought a really cute figurine in the shop.

Afterwards we tried to get coffee, but when we got to the museum cafe we discovered it was a tea house (no coffee). However, encouraged by the asian art, we decided to give it a go. Of course we had no idea what to order so just picked a random pot of tea. It was actually a lovely experience. The tea was nice enough actually, but the whole ritual of it seemed special and just a lovely thing to do. Of course we were not entirely sure what we were doing, so I hope that pouring the tea from the pot, into the jug, then into the little cups, was correct!

We didn't get back to the hotel until 6pm. The room was lovely, very modern. It's clearly a new hotel, there is still building work going on (not that we heard it). In fact we liked it so much we almost immediately booked an extra night. The hotel was smack-bang in the middle of the Xhongxiao night market. Emboldened by our successful day we decided to eat there. Well, it was a massive FAIL. Look, I like to try different cuisines, really I do. But although I get cross with myself for it, I just don't want to put unidentified shiney odd-coloured meat into my mouth. Everything was in Mandarin, and we just couldn't work out what stuff was. I'd got it into my head that I wanted to try the stinky tofu. The problem is, it really was too stinky. I could not stand the smell long enough to order it. I thought that a single portion, away from the stall where they cooked it, might be bearable so asked David if he would get me some. He looked horrified, muttered something about his dad's feet, and refused. To be fair, it was rank. We had another look around and gave it a good go, but in the end admitted defeat.

We walked for bloody ages looking for an alternative. We were heading for a bar we'd spotted earlier. It was much further than we remembered and when we got there had the same collection of random bits of unknown animals on sticks. Just before we lost the will to live we spotted a restaurant. I have no idea of the Mandarin name, but the sub title was 'chargrilled steak and stirfries' - we were in. We asked if they had an English menu. No. We then asked if she would help us. Yes, she would try. Cue 10 minutes of hillarity as we tried to order two steaks. She let us order one, but not two. Nobody spoke much English, and of course our Mandarin/Taiwanese is non-existent. We genuinely could not work out if a) she just didn't understand we wanted two b) it was against some sort of rule to only order steak (I know this seems unlikely but everytime we asked for two she shook her head) or c) she just really wanted us to try their Taiwanese food. Three other people, and Google, got involved. In the end we caved and ordered one steak and one mystery Taiwanese chicken dish. Oh, and two beers of course. Well, it was all fine. Nice steak, soup, salad chips, bread and a slightly odd but nice pastry (did we order all this? No idea) then rice and chicken. Oh, two large. Taiwanese beers (we even sneaked another). Actually a tasty meal, and at just over $1000, one of the cheaper meals we've had here.

The plan for the following day was Sun Moon Lake, but after faffing around until 1.30 am the previous night, getting up was a struggle. So after a sandwich in bed (our hotels' idea of breakfast, ok actually) we finally got out at about 9.30am (quite good for us!) and made our way to the station. We decided to go to Lukang instead. The internet said it was the 9018 bus from the rear of the station. Well, we walked around every bus stop, bay, and station to no avail. We asked at the bus station and were told either bus 77 in front of the station, or a train. However bus 77 did not exist, so we asked at the station. Apparently it was a train to Changhua (19 km away) and then a bus. We came close to giving up, but we are bloody stubborn. In the end the train and bus worked well and we got to Lukang about 1pm. Much later than planned, but we were there.

It turned out to be a good day. The town was nice and there were some lovely temples. I could sit for a long time in a good temple, it's so relaxing. Our favourite was Longshan. And the best thing about temples in Taiwan? You don't have to take your shoes off! On our wanders we had coffee and a bagel each, failing once again at Taiwanese food. We were a bit cross at first. But then we thought about it and decided that we have loved the food in every country so far. There is no shame in admitting that Chinese/Taiwanese food is just not for us. Although David did have a 'fire sausage' on a stick which he quite enjoyed. So how did we get back to Taichung? Bus 9018 of course! Just sitting in the middle of town. No idea why nobody in Taichung had heard of it. As soon as we got back we found the bus stop for Sun Moon Lake, to avoid another morning of aimless wandering the next day.

One big problem we've had in Taiwan is getting money. Most ATM's don't accept David's card. We have not had this in any other country. Just as well when we think back to some of the single ATM towns. So, after getting off the bus it was a long walk (in the opposite direction to our hotel) to find one that would actually give us some money. Thank Christ we found a Citibank. Just as well as we're finding Taiwan quite pricey. Of course partly this is due to the Brexit clusterfuck and the plummeting pound. Everything is around 23p per pound more expensive than before last June's disaster. Thanks a bunch Cameron, you utter bastard.

Our idea was to find food on the way back to the hotel so we could just settle in for the evening once we got back. We held out little hope, then spotted a Japanese barbecue place called Woo Cool. It looked a bit posh, and we had been walking all day so were a little skanky, but what the hell? Well, it was fab. The food was delicious, and cooking it ourselves on the the grill was great fun. The best meal we have had in Taiwan.

So then it was back to the hotel, picking up cake and beer on the way. It seems that Taiwan do fantastic cakes, another way they remind us of Germany! It was only about 8pm but we had hotel booking / research / blogging to do. In any case we wanted an early night to ensure we'd get up promptly the following morning.

We succeeded in getting up early the next day, and were out of our room at 7.30am. Annoyingly we had to pack all our stuff up and leave our bags at reception. As I've mentioned, we'd added another night, but unfortunately some contractors had been booked to do something or other in our room. So a bit of a faff, but not the end of the world. We collected our breakfast sandwiches on the way out, to take on the bus. Our research the previous day paid off and we easily caught the bus to Sun Moon Lake. The journey was uneventful, apart from one very minor incident. The young woman in front of us kept fussing with her curtain, trying to block out as much light as possible. She looked rather pained, and kept glancing back at me. I knew what she wanted, but feigned ignorance. In the end her boyfriend turned to us and asked us to draw our curtain. We refused, explaining that we wanted to enjoy the view. He looked a bit shocked when we said no. "But the sun is strong!" he protested. It wasn't strong at all. It was 8.20 in the morning. They were being ridiculous. Everyone on board was a tourist, why on earth would you not want to enjoy the view?

After a pleasant journey (with nice views of the scenery) we arrived at Shueishe at about 10am. Right next to the bus stop was a ticket booth selling combination boat and cable-car tickets for $380 each, which seemed reasonable. The first boat stop was disapointing, one small new looking temple. The bigger, older temple and pagoda were at the top of the hill, and the path was closed. We got the next boat and headed to Ita Thao, and the cable car. This was great fun, with spectacular views of the lake. There was a small theme park and tribal village at the top, but we were not too bothered and it was quite expensive. So, we just headed down again, getting a car to ourselves this time. It was fine though, very much about the ride not the destination for us.

Back by the lake we found a bench and had a lovely time sitting in the sun with beers and crisps. The view was great, as was the weather. After a few cool days, it was like a British summers day. So, not exactly an action-packed day, but relaxing and well worth the trip. After a while we caught the boat back, and after a little walk along the other side of the lake we decided to head back to Taichung.

We stopped for a coffee on the way back and lusted after, but resisted, the cakes. We planned to have pizza and knew they were quite big. Back at the hotel we settled into our new room (pretty much the same as the first) then David went to get the pizza. We wanted a whole pizza from the place we'd had a slice from on day one (Slice n Dice on Zhongxiao Road) as it was so good. After a while David returned - with the biggest pizza in the world. At 20 inches it was enough for four people. I'll admit we can be a bit greedy, but it was too much even for us. Still, it was only $400, so our cheapest meal so far. It was also bloody delicious, easily the best pizza since Regina in Bali.

So that was Taichung. We're enjoying Taiwan a lot. The food had been a slight issue, as is the language. But there is something about it we really like. I was going to say it seems pretty western, but I'm not sure that is quite true. More accurate to say that it seems more modern than some Asian countries. Anyway, we finished off our delicious pizza for breakfast and reluctantly left the comfortable Trans Inn for the station.

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