Since our flight was scheduled at midnight, our first night in Taiwan was mostly just about resting and unpacking our baggage. The real adventure started the next morning. We kicked off our first day in Taiwan really early. After eating breakfast in our rented apartment, we headed out and prepared ourselves for a full day trip to Taiwan’s Northeast Coast.
The first spot we visited was Yehliu Geopark, which is a good 45-minute drive from Taipei. Located within a 1.7 km stretch of cape in Wanli District, New Taipei City, this reserve is home to unique, mushroom-like rock formations that have been shaped naturally by erosion and other extreme weather phenomena over the years. Many of the rock formations here are said to look like ice cream cones, gorillas, and even sweet buns, but none are more famous than the Queen’s Head.
Unfortunately, the place was already crawling with tourists when we arrived and the heat was a bit unbearable that we didn’t get the chance to take a picture with the Queen’s Head. We were content just by looking at it from afar because of the long queue. We took pictures with other rock formations, and that was it. We went back to the entrance to buy some snacks (we tried fried cuttlefish, pork sausages, and fresh fruit juice—they’re really yummy!).
Personally, I think the rock formations are really interesting. Take away all the people and the heat, I bet you’ll feel like you’re in some strange alien planet. After getting some snacks, we headed back to the van for our next destination.
Shifen Old Street and Shifen Waterfalls
Now, this is one of the experiences I truly
looked forward to—the Shifen Old Street sky lantern experience! The place is
not that far from Yehliu, maybe just a quick 30- to 40-minute drive away, but
you will need to walk for about 15 minutes to get to the old train station
where the sky lantern activities take place. Each sky lantern costs anywhere
between 150 NTD and 350 NTD, depending on the number of colors (each color
represents a certain life essential, such as money, career, and happiness). We
opted for a four-color lantern that costs 250 NTD (group price).
It was a fun experience because we got to write our personal wishes on it before releasing it to the sky. The funny part was, the girl who assisted our group strictly required us to do certain poses whenever a specific side of the lantern faced the camera. The overall experience lasted for about an hour, including some pictorial of sorts and snacking along the way.
Afterwards, we went straight to the Shifen Waterfalls. It was afternoon and the scorching August sun has started to take a toll on our energy. We didn’t get a proper lunch and instead settled on some snacks while walking towards the waterfalls. To be honest, I was really tired at this point that I could barely move my legs and feet, but I had no choice because we had to walk for at least 20 minutes (including stairs) to get to the falls and another 20 minutes to head back to the van. The falls was nothing short of gorgeous, though. It didn’t disappoint. After taking a handful of pictures, we went back to the van to head to Jiufen.
Jiufen
Jiufen is also a must-visit spot, especially for me because I love Spirited Away! This town is known to be the inspiration for Studio Ghibli’s most famous and award-winning animation masterpiece. It’s also popular for its tea houses and beautiful red Chinese lanterns hanging outside each store. Most of all, it is home to Taiwan’s most popular dishes and pasalubongs, and these, of course, come with free food tasting! We got full just by trying out a free taste of different local snacks and drinks. If you happen to visit this place, don’t miss out on their unique, delicious food! Some of the treats you should try are pineapple cakes, taro balls, peanut ice cream, yakult milk tea, and nougat. I swear, these snacks are BOMB.
Overall, this is probably the one-day tour you should do if you had time for just one during your stay in Taiwan. You’ll find yourself at interesting locations across the country’s Northeast Coast without travelling too far from Taipei. I, for one, enjoyed every stop on this tour, though my favorite was Shifen Old Street (and fine, Jiufen, because of Spirited Away!).