30 April 2023
3 stop tour
From Shilin to Beitou to Tamsui
A grey non hiking day. Rain was forecast. And yet so far still no rain.
Despite all that, I managed to get quite sun burnt on my visit to 3 different areas. I hate sunscreen, the boffins working on things we do not need like space travel and clean drinking water should really be working on effective ways to shade the earth from the sun, or alternatively some kind of permanent diamond coating I can have applied for a small fortune, dealers choice.
To achieve getting burnt, I went to 3 different places, I will describe each.
1. Shilin
This is where the largest and most touristy night market is. I was here at 8am where I got off the train to find a coffee, the earliest any cafe opens on a Sunday is 8am. I was successful, coffee was had, but there is a cheese shortage in Taiwan so bagels only come with butter these days. So an important reminder to all, if you are coming to Taiwan, bring your own cheese related products. After my bagel with butter I re-boarded the subway.
2. Beitou
This is where the hot springs live. As you shall see there is a spur line that goes up the hill so all the old folks can get to the communal pools and exchange foot fungus in the perfect combo of slightly acidic warmed to virus breeding temperature water.
It is a very popular spot and full of Onsen style hotels named after parts of Japan. I think Japanese people come here a lot to visit a hot spring town for half the price of doing so in their own country.
3. Tamsui
The name particularly annoys me as it is actually DanShui which means fresh water. Taiwan has mostly changed the names of places to the more westernised Pinyin, but not those that are well known names, including Taipei itself which is actually TaiBei, but I am on a rant now. Whoever made the old translations was deaf, drunk or both.
Anyway, I have been to Tamsui before, it is also a very popular place, with an old street and water front fair ground style attractions. It was not too busy on a Sunday morning. I decided to walk all the way north to the fisherman's wharf where a new tram connects back to the MRT (subway), this is how I got burnt. My top tip - fisherman's wharf is not worth the effort!
Here is the area under Shilin station. I was on the hunt for a cafe that was actually open. It was very grey, and cold! Locals were wearing their puffer jackets. In the breeze it felt like it was not ever 20c.
The subway here is above ground, like the Melbourne sky rail. You can get a great view, that is Yangminshan in the distance covered in cloud, possible destination tomorrow, although it is Labour day tomorrow so maybe not.
I got off at Beitou and walked up the hill rather than going on the little spur line train, this took me past a market, so I took a photo. Scooters ride through every market in Taiwan, it is annoying.
More of the Beitou market, it seems very clean! Actually everything so far has seemed very clean compared to what I remember from previous visits, old in many places, but clean.
Well, the sign says hiking trail, so I will see where it goes. Nowhere. Weird.
However if I did not follow the false hiking trail sign I would not have got to fight with this cat. He won.
This is now the start of the hot springs area. Multi coloured lilies greeted me. I really want to spell liliies with an extra L.
Thermal valley, probably the main spot to breathe sulphur, it is free. The hot springs where you soak your feet are free but I think you need a booking? There seemed to be 2 hour slots to enter and an app involved. Not that I would actually put my feet in the water, but I did want to take some zoom shots of barnacle covered old people feet.
The original train line did go here, there is an old train behind me, and this is the old very Japanese looking station. There is also a newer station further behind me with a train that goes 1 stop back to the main line along the coast as you shall see below...
The one stop train goes very slowly so you can look at the holographic art and take photos with anime characters. I did both.
Now to start walking around Tamsui. That mountain across the other side of the river is smaller than it looks, I climbed over it from the far side years ago, and then took a ferry back across to where I am standing here.
Along the Tamsui old street, you can find Taiwanese style Pachinko.
A view of part of Tamsui old street, one street back from the water front with the ice cream shops and children's rides. It goes for a long way, with lots of side alleys that are very crowded. I was too early of course, the food markets were very busy but the non food places were still opening. I am generally, too early, for everything.
Between Tamsui and the fisherman's wharf I followed a bike path along the water and got burnt. Here is the customs house or something like that. There are a few old buildings that are cafes, others are museums etc.
Now for fisherman's wharf. Someone spent a lot of money on an already failed development. Most of the shops have closed down. There is a giant hotel and I think there is a golf course. The bridge is just for pedestrians, but currently it goes nowhere. The only reason to come here currently is to go back again on the tram.
It is actually a working fisherman's wharf, but they seem to take Sunday off. That big red pole sticking up is a mechanical lookout thing that goes up the outside of it, or it used to, it has also closed down.
And for the final pic, a tram. Actually 2 trams. Just like the Melbourne trams. Fisherman's wharf is the end of the line, they take a very strange route back to the above ground subway which takes about an hour and goes at walking speed for extended periods. It is still new enough that locals enjoy taking photos of it, inside and out. Tomorrow I will be applying sunscreen.