2020 was anything but normal. As the world was struck by the Pandemic, Taiwan was carry on as per usual. So for the summer, my whole family went on a cross-country road trip.
DAY 1: We kicked-off the trip by visiting Lugu Township (鹿谷鄉) in the Xitou Nature Education Park (溪頭國家森林遊樂區) first. Ｗe spent our first night in Xitou Education Center (溪頭教育中心) located inside Monster Village Hotel 妖怪村主題飯店. As the hotel location is right inside the park surrounded by multiple hiking routes, we woke up early in the morning for walks inside the thick forest fog. Surrounded by mountains on three sides, Lugu is a rural township well-known for containing high levels of Fendolin and Anion. So if you’re visiting the area, make sure to bring your walking shoes because forest bathing with trees like cedars, cypresses, and ginkgo biloba might just be the key to immortality. just kidding, of course.
DAY 2: We drove north and went back to one of my favorite travel destinations in Taiwan, Sun Moon Lake 日月潭. The name, Sun Moon Lake comes from its shape. The eat side of the lake looks like a sun and the west side od the lake looks like a moon.
The iconic lake is a well-known attraction for local and abroad tourists. Bike Cruising around the mesmerizing lake is a must as you can enjoy a different view of the lake from different angles. So if you’re like me who can’t ride a bike, make sure to travel with someone who can. In addition to biking, there are various lake activities you can sign up to do but swimming is not one of them, as it is not permitted.
DAY 3: Sun Moon Lake has many attractions including The Paper Dome church.
DAY 4: Since we spent the first couple of days exploring national parks, we thought we would take a break from hiking and spend it on eating instead. So we went from one insta-famous cafe to another when a rainstorm came suddenly. Good thing we decided to stay indoors.
555, Nantou County, Yuchi Township, 文化巷41號
555, Nantou County, Yuchi Township, 香茶巷31-6號
DAY 5 & 6: We went to Qingjing Farm (清境農場) High in the mountains with beautiful different sceneries all four seasons of the year. The road up the mountain could be quite turmoil for people with car sick so make sure to take breaks at rest stops. Most of the rest stops have 7-11 and in case you don’t know, Taiwan’s 7-11 is da bomb!
Qingjing is well-known for its sheep shows so I was really excited to go. However, we went during the summer time and the parking lots were full as well as the access road up and down the hills. So we didn’t get to see the sheeps. Instead we did more sightseeing in Wuling (武嶺) and the view was phenomenal.
