Du lịch đến Đài Loan Travel in TAIWAN tháng11-12/ 2013 No60

Du lịch đến Đài Loan Tạp Chí Travel in TAIWAN tháng11-12/ 2013 No60

HIGH-MOUNTAIN DELIGHTS Qingjing and Mt. HeHuan No. 60, 2013 11 12 TOP TEN TOURIST TOWNS BEITOU HOT-SPRING DISTRICT BACKPACK BUS TOURS TRIP TO XITOU FOOD JOURNEY WATER CALTROPS IN TAINAN BMX Fun in Northern Taiwan Wannian Festival in Kaohsiung Hiking to Jialuo Lake Bulau Bulau Village in Yilan / Download the Travel in Taiwan iPad App for an even better reading experience! - More and clearer photos and media content! - Smooth and easy browsing! - Links to Google maps and Youtube clips! iPad App Download the iPad app from Apple’s App Store by searching for “Travel in Taiwan”! Welcome to Taiwan! Dear Traveler, Two words that bring joy to the heart of every person with a love of travel are “road trip!” In this issue of Travel in Taiwan we take f ull advantage of late aut umn’s cooler temperatures to hit the road on adventures using a variety of locomotion tools – car, bus, metro, bicycle, and feet – sometimes used in isolation, sometimes in combination. In our Feat u re section we go on a car trip up, up, up into the soaring central mountains, to the Mt. Hehuan area, where we then hit the high-mountain trails. On the way we spend time in Wushe town, populated mainly by members of the Sediq tribe, and Qing jing Farm, a place of alpine pastures, sheep, horse-riding shows, easy trails, and grand mountain views. As always in our Feature section, we also provide ideas on where to stay, where/what to eat, and what to buy. We stay in the central mountains in our Hiking department for a two-day trek to Yilan County’s Jialuo Lake, which is in fact a collection of some 20 lakes, capping the deep-mountain excursion with a hike up Mt. Jialuo (2,320m). Then, in Indigenous Villages , it’s down to Yilan’s lower elevations for a visit to Bulau Bulau Aboriginal Village, an Atayal-tribe settlement where residents seek to recapture the traditional lifestyle of their ancestors. Tourists are welcome, and are taken on an educational hike and walkabout. This issue’s Backpack Bus Trip adventure is to the mountainous region of Xitou in Nantou County, riding the hop-on hop-of f Taiwan Tourist Shuttle buses. Stops include a lantern f actory, tea-plantation area, nature education area, and “Monster Village.” Our Top Ten Tou r i st Tow ns section f eatures a Taipei Metro jaunt out to the Taipei suburb of Beitou for a Beitou hot-spring resort area walkabout. Taiwan’s oldest such resort, with a century-plus history, this is an enclave of heritage buildings, museums, mineral-water soaks, and pleasing vistas. We invite you to engage in somewhat more vigorous activity in our Active Fun article, introducing f irst-rate BMX biking facilities in nor t h Taiwa n. Taiwan road trips have f lavor and character a world apart f rom those you’ve experienced back home, but you wind up at the same end-point – lifelong memories, fondly recalled. Have f un. David W. J. Hsieh Director General Tourism Bureau, MOTC, R.O.C. 台 灣觀光雙月刊 Travel in Taiwan The Official Bimonthly English Magazine of the Taiwan Tourism Bureau (Advertisement) November/December, 2013 Tourism Bureau, MOTC First published Jan./Feb., 2004 ISSN: 18177964 GPN: 2009305475 Price: NT$200 www.tit.com.tw/vision/index.htm Copyright @ 2013 Tourism Bureau. All rights reserved. Reproduction in any form without written permission is prohibited. PUBLISHER  David W. J. Hsieh EDITING CONSULTANT   Wayne Hsi-Lin Liu PUBLISHING ORGANIZATION Taiwan Tourism Bureau, Ministry of Transportation and Communications CONTACT International Division, Taiwan Tourism Bureau Add: 9F, 290 Zhongxiao E. Rd., Sec. 4, Taipei, 10694, Taiwan Tel: 886-2-2717-3737   Fax: 886-2-2771-7036 E-mail: tbroc@tbroc.gov.tw Website: http://taiwan.net.tw Where you can pick up a copy of Travel in Taiwan abroad Offices of the Tourism Bureau in Tokyo, Osaka, Seoul, Hong Kong, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Frankfurt; Taiwan Representative Offices; Overseas Offices of the Ministry of Economic Affairs; Overseas Offices of the Central News Agency; onboard China Airlines, EVA Air and other selected international airways; selected travel agencies in Asia, North America, and Europe; and other organizations onLine Read the online version of Travel in Taiwan at www.zinio.com . Log in and search for "Travel in Taiwan." Or visit www.tit.com.tw/ vision/index.htm in TaiWan Tourism Bureau Visitor Center; Tourism Bureau; Taiwan Visitors Association; foreign representative offices in Taiwan, Tourism Bureau service counters at Taiwan Taoyuan Int’l Airport and Kaohsiung Int’l Airport, major tourist hotels; Taipei World Trade Center; VIP lounges of international airlines; major tourist spots in Taipei; visitor centers of cities and counties around Taiwan; of fices of national scenic area administrations; public libraries Sunrise at Kenanguan near Mt. Hehuan (photo by Jen Guo-Chen) This magazine was printed with soy ink. Soybean is said to be more environmentally friendly than petroleum-based ink and to make it easier to recycle paper. This magazine is printed on FSC certified paper. Any product with the FSC logo on it comes from a forest that has been responsibly maintained and harvested in a sustainable manner. PRODUCER Vision Int , l Publ. Co., Ltd. ADDRESS Rm. 5, 10F, 2 Fuxing N. Rd., Taipei, 104 Taiwan TEL: 886-2-2711-5403 Fax: 886-2-2721-2790 E-MAIL: editor@v-media.com.tw GENERAL MANAGER Wendy L. C. Yen DEPUTY GENERAL MANAGER Frank K. Yen EDITOR IN CHIEF Johannes Twellmann ENGLISH EDITOR Rick Charette DIRECTOR OF PLANNING & EDITING DEPT Joe Lee MANAGING EDITOR Gemma Cheng EDITORS Sunny Su, Ming-Jing Yin, Chloe Chu, Nickey Liu CONTRIBUTORS Rick Charette, Stuart Dawson, Steven Crook, Owain Mckimm, Joe Henley, Cheryl Robbins, Rich Matheson, Hanré Malherbe PHOTOGRAPHERS Jen Guo-Chen, Maggie Song, Sting Chen ART DIRECTOR Sting Chen DESIGNERS Fred Cheng, Maggie Song, Eve Chiang, Karen Pan ADMINISTRATIVE DEPT Hui-chun Tsai, Nai-jen Liu, Xiou Mieng Jiang ADVERTISING HOTLINE 886-2-2721-5412 MAGAZINE IS SOLD AT: 1. Wu-Nan Culture Plaza, 6, Zhongshan Rd., Central Dist., Taichung City 40043 886-4-2226-0330   http://www.wunanbooks.com.tw/ 2. National Bookstore, 1F., No.209, Songjiang Rd., Zhongshan Dist., Taipei City 10485 886-2-2518-0207 http://www.govbooks.com.tw/ 10 26 CONTENTS November ~ December 2013 Travel in Taiwan 3 feaTure 10 Qingjing & Mt. Hehuan — Main Climbing Up to the Roof of Taiwan: A Wushe to Mt. Hehuan Highway Excursion — Stay/Eat/Buy Wushe/Qingjing/Mt. Hehuan – High-Mountain Stay/Eat/Buy Pleasures 1 Publisher’s Note 4 Taiwan Tourism Events 6 News & Events around Taiwan 8 Concerts, Exhibitions, and Happenings 21 Meeting Tourists 32 Fun with Chinese 54 Daily Life BaCKPaCK BUS TriP 38 Through the Mountain Mist — Taking a Taiwan Tourist Shuttle Bus to Xitou aCTive FUn 50 BMXing in Nangang — Having Fun and Meeting a Local Legend at the Extreme Sports Training Center 38 TOP Ten TOUriST TOwnS 22 The Hot Springs of Beitou — A Place of Warmth, History, and Mist-ery HiKinG 26 Jialuo Lake — Entering a World Apart inDiGenOUS villaGeS 42 Bulau Bulau Aboriginal Village — Reviving the Traditional Lifestyle of the Atayal Tribe FOOD JOUrneY 46 A Strange Fruit — Visiting a Water Caltrop Farm in Tainan 34 MUSiC TOUrS 34 The Sound of Drums — Visiting a Traditional Drum Maker in Xinzhuang SPlenDiD FeSTivalS 28 Zuoying Wannian Folklore Festival — A Great Fire Lion Visits Temples around Lotus Pond 28 Taiwan Cycling Festival ( 臺灣自行車節 ) Location: Qixingtan, Hualien County ( 花蓮縣七星潭 ) Tel: (02) 2349-1748 Web s ite: http://taiwanbike.tw Held from November 9th to November 17th, the Taiwan Cycling Festival has three main events. During the competitive Taiwan KOM Challenge, professional riders will start at Hualien’s Qixingtan on the Pacific coast and climb all the way up to Wuling on a branch of the Central Cross-Island Highway, 3,275 meters above sea level. This is an extremely challenging ride. The second event is a 9-day/8-night round-the- island ride undertaken by seven groups, each starting from a different location. The third event is the Sun Moon Lake Come! Bikeday, a ride open to all, taking cyclists around the scenic lake in the central Taiwan mountains. Various governments and national scenic area administrations around Taiwan also organize their own bicycle events as part of this festival. The Taiwan annual festival calendar is filled with exciting events. Visit timefortaiwan.tw/cal_en to see which festivals are taking place the next time you visit this culturally fertile island. The following festivals, all taking place before the end of this year, will give you the chance to learn about Hakka cuisine in Miaoli, take part in organized bicycle rides, surf the waves along the coast of Taitung County, take in the floral beauty of Taichung, watch marching bands in the streets of Chiayi, and run a marathon in Taipei. And this is just a small selection of the events taking place over the coming months! Miaoli Hakka Food Festival ( 客家美食活動 - 客家粄仔節 ) Locations: Miaoli City, behind Miaoli Railway Station, Miaoli County ( 苗栗縣苗栗市後火車站 ) Tel: (037) 331-910 Each year the Miaoli Hakka Food Festival highlights the best of Hakka cuisine. The Hakka people in Taiwan are descendants of Hakka from mainland China, who began immigrating to Taiwan in the 16th century. There are about 4.6 million Hakka living in Taiwan today, comprising about 20% of the total population. Many Hakka live in the hilly northwestern counties of Hsinchu and Miaoli. During the festival you can learn about fine cuisine, snack foods, restaurants, gift options, and local produce. The festival’s wide- ranging program features various food-related activities, such as food preparation classes and cooking competitions, as well as a rich array of Hakka performing arts. Taiwan Open of Surfing ( 臺灣國際衝浪公開賽暨東浪嘉年華 ) Locations: Taitung County, Donghe Township, Jinzun Harbor ( 金樽漁港臺東縣東河鄉 ) Tel: 089-324-902 Web s ite: www.taiwanopenofsurfing.com This year’s Taiwan Open of Surfing, staged on the southeastern coast of Taiwan at Taitung County’s Jinzun Harbor, will include a competition rated as a 1-star event by the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP). The rating shows that Taitung is internationally recognized as a great location for surfing, with quality conditions. Water temperatures during the event are expected to be a pleasant 20~24 degrees Celsius, with left- and right-hand beach breaks giving surfers different options for showing off their skills. Surfers from Taiwan and abroad compete in various divisions, with the top prize for the ASP Men’s 1-star event set at US$15,000. Food, Flowers, and Lots of Festival Fun Festivals around Taiwan Nov. 1 Nov. 9 Nov. 13 23 17 17 TAIWAN TOURISM EVENTS 4 Travel in Taiwan Sea of Flowers in Xinshe ( 新社花海 ) Location: Xinshe District, Taichung City ( 臺中市新社區 ) Tel: (04) 2228-9111, 2581-1311 Web s ite: http://flowersea.coa.gov.tw/traffic.php Each year, Xinshe District in central Taiwan’s Taichung City attracts hundreds of thousands of f lower lovers, who come to enjoy vast fields of flowers, in Chinese often called a “sea of flowers.” The festival, which goes on for about a month, is a great showcase for local agricultural products and cuisine. There are special-theme exhibitions highlighting aspects of the local agricultural sector, stands where visitors can sample local specialties, and entertaining live stage performances. Tours to recreational farms are offered, and visitors are encouraged to stay at one of the many guesthouses in the area. Chiayi City International Band Festival ( 嘉義市國際管樂節 ) Location: Cultural Affairs Bureau of Chiayi City Concert Hall, 275, Zhongxiao Rd., Chiayi City ( 嘉義市政府文化局音樂廳嘉義市忠孝路 275 號 ), Culture Park ( 文化公園 ), Zhongzheng Park ( 中正公園 ), Chiayi City Cultural Affairs Bureau Outdoor Plaza ( 文化局廣場 ) Web s ite: http://cabcy.ehosting.com.tw/web/band/ This festival, staged each year since 1993, features marching bands from around Taiwan and abroad (last year one band from Russia and one from Japan took part) in a grand parade through the streets of Chiayi in southern Taiwan. Thousand of spectators line the streets to watch big brass bands and marching drummers, all dressed in colorful uniforms and festive costumes. Apart from the street parade, there are a large number of indoor and outdoor concerts at venues around the city, including outdoor stages at Chiayi Cultural Park and Zhongzheng Park. Nov. Dec. Dec. Taipei Fubon Marathon ( 臺北富邦馬拉松 ) Location: Plaza in front of Taipei City Hall, 1, Shifu Rd., Xinyi District, Taipei City ( 臺北市市民廣場臺北市信義區市府路 1 號 ) Tel: (02) 258-55659 Web s ite: www.sportsnet.org.tw/20121216_fubon/race_detail.php?race_no=20121216 Street running has gained much in popularity in Taiwan in recent years, and the number of annual running events as well as participants in those events has been increasing steadily. One of the most prominent annual runs in Taiwan is the Taipei Marathon, which each year attracts more than 100,000 runners. The race starts and ends at Taipei City Hall in the eastern city district of Xinyi, and runners of the full marathon will circle a large portion of downtown Taipei. Races include a full marathon (42.195km), half marathon (21km), 9km run, fun run (3km), and children’s run (2km). DEc. 15 mid End TAIWAN TOURISM EVENTS Travel in Taiwan 5 NOVEMBER~DECEMBER 6 Travel in Taiwan WHAT'S UP News & Events around Taiwan Tourist Sites Lighthouses Opened to Tourists The Ministry of Transportation and Communications recently announced the opening of two lighthouses to tourists – Baishajia Lighthouse in Taoyuan County and Green Island Lighthouse in Taitung County. Baishajia Lighthouse, located in Guanyin Township on the northwest coast, was built in the late 19th century, and is at 37 meters Taiwan’s second-tallest lighthouse (the tallest lighthouse is Mudouyu Lighthouse on Mudouyu Island, Penghu County; 39.9 meters). The lighthouse on Green Island, off the coast of southeastern Taiwan, is 33 meters high and was erected in 1938. Interestingly, the construction of the latter was financed with funds donated by members of the US public to the American Red Cross in response to the sinking of an American luxury ocean liner on a Green Island reef in 1937. There are a total of 35 lighthouses in Taiwan, of which eight are open to the public. The ministry plans to have half of Taiwan’s lighthouses opened to tourists within the next three years. Transportation New MRT Xinyi Line The long-awaited Xinyi Line of Taipei's MRT (Mass Rapid Transit) System, or Taipei Metro, will be in operation before the end of the year. The new line will connect the northern city district of Beitou, best known for its hot springs, with the modern eastern district, home to the Taipei 101 skyscraper and Taipei World Trade Center as well as numerous large department stores and hotels, on a single line. The establishment of this new line will mean that trains starting at Beitou Station will no longer proceed to the current terminal station, Taipower Building Station, instead proceeding to the terminus on the Xinyi Line, Xiangshan Station. The current Xiaonanmen Line, which connects Ximen and CKS Memorial Hall stations, will be extended by two stops to Taipower Building Station. Find more info about the Taipei Metro system at: http://english.trtc.com.tw. Transportation Direct Taipei-Fujian Ferry Link Travelers now have a new option for getting from Taipei to mainland China’s Fujian Province. The high-speed ferry Haixia , which also carries passengers and cargo four times a week (Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday) between Taichung in central Taiwan and Pingtan in Fujian Province, now also runs twice a week (Wednesday, Saturday) from New Taipei City’s Port of Taipei in Bali District to Pingtan. The trip takes about three hours, and costs NT$3,200 (return ticket NT$6,300). The Haixia is the world's fastest ship of its kind, with a maximum speed of 96 nautical mph and a capacity of 782 passengers. Green Island Lighthouse MRT Daan Park Station Travel in Taiwan 7 WHAT'S UP Website Smart Tourism Taiwan Directed by Taiwan’s Board of Science and Technology under the auspices of the Executive Yuan, Smart Tourism Taiwan ( www.vztaiwan.com ) is a helpful website providing information about Taiwan that helps visitors plan their tours with itinerary-planning tools that can be synced across smartphones, Google calendars, and web browsers. The website provides introductions to a wide range of tourist attractions, and gives visitors myriad ideas for tours, dining, and shopping. Hotels New Arrivals in 2013 The tourism industry in Taiwan is flourishing, and new hotels are opened frequently. Here are some of the hotels recently added to the local hospitality scene. Fleurlis Hotel ( www.fleurlis.com.tw ) is in central Hsinchu City, located close to the railway station. The hotel has 72 guestrooms, with room rates starting at NT$9,000. Reloading Hotel ( www.reloading-hotel.com ) is a small backpacker-friendly hotel in central Taichung City. Located close to Electronics Street, the hotel features a unique circuit-board theme. It has 47 rooms, with rates starting at NT$1,800. Two Hotel Cozzi ( www.hotelcozzi.com ) facilities have been opened in Taipei this year, one on Minsheng East Road and the other on Zhongxiao East Road. Both are modern and chic, with an emphasis on providing a warm and convenient accommodation option. Room rates start at NT$4,600 (Minsheng) and NT$6,000 (Zhongxiao). The Hoya Resort Hualien ( www.hoyaresort.com.tw ), located in Hualien City, is a modern hotel catering to tourists visiting eastern Taiwan. It has 189 guestrooms, with rates starting at NT$4,600. For a comprehensive list of accommodation options in Taiwan, visit http://eng.taiwan.net.tw and click on “Accommodation.” TELL US WHAT YOU THINK! We, the producers of Travel in Taiwan , wish to improve our magazine with each issue and give you the best possible help when planning – or carrying out – your next trip to Taiwan. Tell us what you think by filling out our short online questionnaire at v-media.com.tw/survey/travelintaiwan.html . Senders of the first 10 completed questionnaires for each issue will receive three free issues of Travel in Taiwan . Thank you in advance for your feedback. Travel in Taiwan E-Magazine App Travel in Taiwan is also available as an e-magazine edition in the Apple Newsstand. iPad users can now enjoy more content, and a convenient interactive reading experience. The e-magazine contains more images than the print version, some of which can be shown in full-screen mode, and also has multimedia content such as audio and video clips. The user-friendly interface allows for convenient navigation through the magazine. Download the magazine free of cost from the app store and read it on you mobile device wherever you go! Museum Red Dot Museum Taipei Since 1955, the Design Zentrum Nordrhein Westfalen in Essen, Germany has awarded product designers from around the world the Red Dot Design Award, with winning products exhibited in Essen’s Red Dot Design Museum. The museum has about 2,000 exhibits, presenting a complete range of contemporary product design. In 2005 a second Red Dot Museum was opened in Singapore, and this year a third has been established in Taipei. This museum is located inside Songshan Cultural and Creative Park and showcases a large collection of Red Dot Design Award products, from jewelry and household items to furniture and vehicles. For more information about Songshan Cultural and Creative Park and the new museum, visit www.songshanculturalpark.org. Reloading Hotel 8 Travel in Taiwan CULTURE SCENE Concerts, Exhibitions, and Happenings Taiwan has a diverse cultural scene, with art venues ranging from international-caliber concert halls and theaters to makeshift stages on temple plazas. Among Taiwan's museums is the world-famous National Palace Museum as well as many smaller museums dedicated to different art forms and aspects of Taiwanese culture. Here is a brief selection of upcoming happenings. For more information, please visit the websites of the listed venues. Cirque du Soleil: OVO 太陽劇團：蟲林森巴 November 19 ~ January 5 Parking Lot at TWTC Nangang Exhibition Hall The famous Cirque du Soleil, the largest theatrical producer in the world, is coming to Taiwan. For nearly two months local audiences will have the chance to watch OVO , the company’s 25th production, featuring a dazzling array of acrobatic surprises, including a stunning and extremely difficult flying trapeze act with performers flying as high as 14 meters. The name “OVO,” Portuguese for “egg,” was chosen as symbol for the show’s theme, a colorful ecosystem teeming with lively insects. Dressed like insects, the world-class acrobats complete breathtaking feats that seem to defy the limits of what is humanly possible. More about the show at www.cirquedusoleil.com.tw. Wings of Desire is based on the film Der Himmel über Berlin , directed by acclaimed German director Wim Wenders. Internationally renowned choreographer Yao Shu-fen has collaborated with German opera director Thilo Reinhardt to assimilate Wenders’ points of view while inspecting her own inner being and exploring the interactions between city, nature, and human beings. With the help of holographic technology, dancers’ figures interweave and overlap, implying the clustering of people. Paper is the main theme in Ho Hsiao-mei’s work My Dear, which is built on stories depicted using Chinese paper-cutting. Dancers wander between the worlds of unreality and reality in order to explore the meaning of love, hatred, anger, and persistence. Yao Shu-fen: Wings of Desire & Ho Hsiao- mei: My Dear December 27 ~ 29 National Theater 姚淑芬《蒼穹下》& 何曉玫《親愛的》 Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa is the world's most famous portrait painting, and has an iconic presence in Western cultural history. Her appearance not only signifies the full flowering of the Renaissance, but also heralds the coming of the new age of humanism. Throughout the past 500 years, her image has constantly been imitated, borrowed, and interpreted by artists. This exhibition, shown earlier this year at the Kaohsiung Museum of Fine Arts, has four parts: “About Leonardo da Vinci,” which traces the art of da Vinci and his followers; “About Mona Lisa,” which presents a series of paintings inspired by and derived from the Mona Lisa; “Leonardo and Mona Lisa in the Modern World,” which looks at avant-garde artists' creative takes on the Mona Lisa; and “Models and Inventions,” which displays da Vinci's far-ranging talents and experimental spirit. The exhibition allows visitors to investigate da Vinci’s challenging, enigmatic life, better understand key issues in art history and contemporary culture, and travel back 500 years to enjoy a banquet of classical art while traveling from the Renaissance to the present day. Leonardo - Mona Lisa – The Myths 蒙娜麗莎五百年：達文西傳奇 Until February 10 National Palace Museum December 6 National Concert Hall Lalo Schifrin, Argentine pianist and composer, is best known for his film and TV scores, such as for Mission: Impossible and Rush Hour . He has received four Grammy Awards and six Oscar nominations. In this musical feast, Letters from Argentina , Schifrin combines tango and Argentinean folk music with classical music to create a fresh, new sound reminiscent of his homeland, Argentina. The celebrated violinist Lin Cho-liang will lead a group of internationally distinguished soloists to portray this musical tango journey. Letters from Argentina 來自阿根廷的信 . issues of Travel in Taiwan . Thank you in advance for your feedback. Travel in Taiwan E-Magazine App Travel in Taiwan is also available as an e-magazine edition. Mandarin Chinese, Taiwanese, and Baiyi). Travel in Taiwan 15 FEATURE QINGJING/MT. HEHUAN The climb from Qingjing to Highway 14A’s highest point, at Wuling,