![\"\"](\"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/study-abroad-in-asia\/files\/2022\/08\/IMG_0850-300x225.jpg\")
View from Treasure Hill<\/p><\/div>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/study-abroad-in-asia\/files\/2022\/08\/IMG_0845-225x300.jpg\")
Treasure Hill Artist’s Drawings of Buildings Throughout Taipei<\/p><\/div>\n
Despite the fact that our final exams were coming up on the following Tuesday, I decided to plan a rather last minute trip to Hualian with a friend and another ICLP student. We booked a hostel and Tai tie \u53f0\u9435 tickets, and took a risk in terms of our exam grades! The planning also included having to remit money to the hostel in order to allow for a later check in. Don’t judge, but performing a successful bank transaction in Mandarin was extremely exciting for me haha! The whole thing turned out to be completely worth it though, not too surprisingly. Hualian is a small city about halfway down the east coast of Taiwan. It’s also near the beginning of Taroko National park which encompasses Taroko Gorge, a massive gorge created by the Liwu River \u7acb\u9727\u6eaa\u3002 The park and gorge are named after the Taroko\/Truku people, the Indigenous tribe which lives in the area.<\/p>\n
After heading out Friday evening to our hostel, we woke up bright and early to catch an hour and a half bus to the park. We walked the Swallow Grotto (\u71d5\u5b50\u53e3\uff09trail, and then headed further west into the park to the Baiyang trail as well as the waterfall cave at the end (\u767d\u63da\u6b65\u9053\u548c\u767d\u694a\u6b65\u9053\u6c34\u7c3e\u6d1e\uff09\u3002Some notable events included seeing a monkey in real life in the wild! Actually it was a Formosan Macaque (\u53f0\u7063\u737c\u7334) , to be specific. This was actually a bucket list item for me on this trip but I had kind of forgotten about it, and felt really lucky that it let itself be seen! I also saw two of what I think are Masked Palm Civets, but sadly didn’t get a picture or video. I had never heard of a Civet before! Secondly, we got to go into the waterfall cave at the end of the Baiyang trail, and even though we didn’t realize we probably should have bought disposable plastic ponchos, a kind little girl and her mom handed theirs off to us. Unlike the ocean, the mountain stream water was freezing but incredibly refreshing after a long hike!<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/study-abroad-in-asia\/files\/2022\/08\/IMG_0928-300x225.jpg\")
Swallow Grotto \/\/ \u71d5\u5b50\u53e3<\/p><\/div>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/study-abroad-in-asia\/files\/2022\/08\/IMG_1009-300x225.jpg\")
\u7acb\u9727\u6eaa\/\u592a\u9b6f\u95a3 Liwu River and Taroko Gorge!<\/p><\/div>\n
Lastly, after having a small crisis about busses and whether we would ever be able to get back to the hostel (technology is your friend until very suddenly you can’t trust her!), we were able to visit the \u9577\u6625\u7960 (Everlasting Spring Shrine) which is a beautiful shrine dedicated to the workmen killed while building the Central Cross-Island Highway. It was definitely a good example of \u5929\u4eba\u5408\u4e00\u89c0\u5ff5\uff01<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/study-abroad-in-asia\/files\/2022\/08\/IMG_0963-225x300.jpg\")
\u9577\u6625\u7960 \/\/ Everlasting Spring Shrine (apologies for the poor image quality ;__;)<\/p><\/div>\n
<\/p>\n
That night we checked out Hualian’s \u6771\u5927\u9580\u591c\u5e02 (Dongdamen Night Market) and tried a couple of new foods including tofu french fries (which turned out to be quite similar to choudoufu) and the highlight for me, bamboo rice (rice cooked in a piece of bamboo) paired with wild boar. The last two come from Indigenous Taiwanese cuisine, and the boar is saut\u00e9ed with onion, garlic, and spices including \u523a\u8525 (prickly ash) which is a native plant often used in Indigenous Taiwanese cuisine. It actually has tiny thorns on it! The flavor was fresh and herby, and paired excellently with the boar and onions.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/sites.williams.edu\/study-abroad-in-asia\/files\/2022\/08\/IMG_0995-scaled-e1660061297901-300x225.jpg\")
Wild Boar and Bamboo Rice! \ud83d\ude1b<\/p><\/div>\n
After another 3 hour train ride aka exam study session we made it back to Taipei safe and sound, ready to face midterms on Tuesday!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Before getting starting yet another busy week, last Sunday I took myself on a little adventure to the Treasure Hill Artist Village (\u5bf6\u85cf\u5dd6\u85dd\u8853\u6751\uff09near Gongguan. The village was originally an illegal settlement founded by KMT military veterans, and later became a … Continue reading