Taichung

Finally rested and ready to hit the road, I quickly checked out and waited for my bus at the bus stop. Everything was going swell until I realized I had forgotten my ring at the hotel lobby while I was applying sunscreen for the day. I hurried back and as I got it, my bus left without me. Bummer. I went to Plan B which was taking the metro and I had also missed that one as well so Plan C was to wait at another bus stop that took me to a stop around a 10 minute walk from Rainbow Village.

This place was interesting because of the history and emotions tied to it which is why it was so disappointing to learn that it was recently vandalized by the very people who were supposed to take care of it. The Rainbow Village was a personal project done by the resident Rainbow Grandpa, a centennarian who had recently passed away early last year. His legacy was one of colors with red being the most predominant one. The vandals covered the walls with paint but a lot of the original paintings of Rainbow Grandpa were still there. With an almost whimsical and child-like style, every nook and cranny was painted over. From the floors, walls, doors, fence, and even the rooves were multi-colored. It was a small place and easily explored in 5 to 10 minutes but I was there quite early so I was able to experience it without the crowds. As I sat down eating banana muffins and some left over peanuts from yesterday, the crowds started to pour in. My bus took a long time to come and I wondered if it would ever arrive but it eventually did. I got back to Taichung Station and waited for another train going to Tai'an to visit Zhongshe Flower Market, a recommendation by Roy. It looked pretty though I wasn't sure if it was worth going all the way here just for that but I had a lot of time today. On the way, I discovered a peculiar spot simply labeled Tai'an Bald Cypress. Just a bunch of trees I thought but why on earth did it have 7,000+ reviews on Google Maps? I decided to check it out first before heading to the Flower Market. After a 20 minute walk, I started to see why. Bald Cypress trees lined up in full autumn foliage despite being winter with a pink flower field spreading right in front of it. I was already sold and excited it out. I had to pay a 60 NTD entry fee which was reasonable but I discovered that the place was more than what I bargained for. It wasn't just any random bunch of trees, it was a flooded forest. My second time seeing one though this one was man-made so it wasn't as awe-inspiring as Kazakhstan's but the vibe was entirely different. With the reddish-brown barks being perfectly reflected onto the still waters, and the fiery colors of orange leaves scattered all around, it felt almost like a fairytale. I was so happy I took this detour and quickly went around trying to take what photos I could. The fact that there were komorebi all around made things even more enchanting. It was a small space however and oddly enough, there was a single red car in the middle of a pond which functioned as an interesting focal point.

Satisfied with this spot, I proceeded to backtrack towards the station as the Flower Market was at the other side. I was also getting hungry and dropped by a random restaurant and ordered some noodles which hit the spot. Zhongshe was just a short walk away from there and it was...okay. It was definitely nothing to write home about in my opinion. The flowers were nice but I wanted to see the white piano surrounded by red flowers which unfortunately were already harvested. I wasn't such a fan of such things in the first place so I went back to the entrance to take a seat and pass the time while a Russian kid played drums. It was still a while before sunset but I was getting bored here so I booked an Uber going to Gaomei Wetlands.

I arrived around 4PM which was still an hour and a half away from sunset so I sat down at the benches nearby. I felt it was still a bit too early for me to go explore the boardwalk but the constant stream of crowds creeping in was definitely not making me excited, it was the weekend afterall. I put on some tunes and just watched the sun slowly set and getting lost at the cycles of the wind turbines. Once it got a bit close to 5, I decided it was time to start exploring as the hues of golden hour were already coating the landscape. I wondered why the people weren't just stepping on the marshlands but it turns out it wasn't allowed and I could now see why. There were tons of life all around like crabs and fish. I was particularly impressed by the textures of the sand and wetlands, especially the shadows that form due to the lighting. The main draw here was, of course, the wind mills. Now turning into dark silhouettes, I could see why this was one of the prime sunset spots in Taiwan. When I got to the end, I saw that people could walk on the shallow waters. I was tempted but I also thought that I might miss taking some photos, but then I thought: Why not both? I took of my shoes and socks and waded on the cool waters, feeling the wind, listening to the music while snapping photos of the wind turbines. No regrets here, this was the right choice. I went as far as I could before deciding that it was now time to turn back and capture the scenery as the sunset hit its peak. This was my strategy, allowing me to snap photos during the best times while fully being present and enjoying every moment. It was a good day and I felt euphoric.

It was also great that I booked my taxi all the way at the Visitor's Center which was still a 15 minute walk from here. This allowed me to capture even more photos of the wind turbines at various angles and colors of the sky. I dropped by the nearby Taoist temple to give thanks for an amazing day. At the end of the road, I was able to get the shot of the full line up of the wind turbines against a scarlet sky. I got a bit lost finding the actual entrance of the Visitor's Center, thinking I was late I rushed a bit only to find out that I was early notwithstanding the fact that the taxi itself was 30 minutes late since it couldn't enter or find the entrance which meant I was also late to catch my train going to Jiufen. I was nervous but I knew it would be alright.

My taxi made it just in time for me to catch an HSR to Banqiao. I just got some McDonald's for dinner which was quite disappointing as I haven't been giving myself the chance to eat Taiwanese cuisine. From Banqiao I barely made it as I rushed to the ticket gate only to be told that I had to get the ticket upstairs while only having 3 minutes left on the clock. I quicly went to buy it and the clerk doing his best to print out the ticket, I rushed back down and made it just as the final ring for the doors closed the train. Safe! From here, I was homefree though I was tired. I got to Ruifang and noticed that finally I was in a very unique setting, different from the usual cityscapes I have been seeing in Kaohsiung and Taichung. Ruifang had a much different atmosphere, like an old mountain town still stuck in the past. It was rustic yet picturesque. The air smelled great and the energy was palpable. I walked to my hotel, Police Home, which had check-in time until 10 PM. I arrived 30 minutes before that and quickly got settled in. The air conditioning was noisy and I was switching from turning it off and on until I realized I didn't really need it since it was cold, and I just put on my earbuds to block the sound of cars outside. I didn't get really good sleep that night though, I drifted in and out of nightmares yet I woke up feeling really good the next day.Read more