Alishan Trip

Yesterday we went a little into the mountains. We took a regular train from Tainan to Chiayi and then switched to the Forest Railway. It chugged slowly up the mountain and offered us a beautiful view of palm forests and banana plantations. After a typical Taiwanese lunch at the intermediate station in Fenqihu, we took the Tourist Shuttle Bus to the Alishan Station, where our hotel was located. After a quick check-in and unloading our luggage, we visited the National Forest Recreation Area in Alishan. The forest was impressively beautiful. We saw ancient trees and enjoyed the mystical atmosphere.

In the evening, we made ourselves cup noodles and went to bed early. Unfortunately, our room neighbors were not in a sleeping mood yet. With very little sleep, we got up at 4:15 a.m. and took the train to Zhushan for the sunrise, which was also very beautiful. After these early efforts, we allowed ourselves some more sleep and are now on our way to Taichung, my home for the next 5 months.