The next morning we left our hostel really early to catch the 7:36am HSR train from Taipei to Chiayi. Grabbed breakfast from 7-11 and hopped onto the train for a short 1.5 hour ride. From the HSR station, there was a shuttle bus that dropped us right opposite the tour shop where we had booked our taxi from. Yes, we decided to book a taxi to go up Alishan because Susan and I had such a terrible time with the transportation planning, this made it all a lot easier. Anyway it was only about S$30 per person for the entire ride up and down.
The taxi driver was really friendly! He recommended us Turkey Rice for lunch and it was like chicken rice levelled up. For just NT50 you get 3 side dishes {one thrown in complimentary by the auntie just because she thought it was yums!} and glutinous rice bursting with flavour buried in a mountain of succulent and juicy turkey meat. Never thought turkey could be tender? Well me neither till I tried this!
The driver then brought us to Heaven{above} and Earth{above above} bridge. We didn't get to go on the Heaven Bridge though cuz you might really go to heaven if you try to walk on it. The Earth Bridge is much like the HSBC suspension bridge in Bukit Timah Hill.
View from Earth Bridge
Along the way we also stopped by Fen Qi Hu, a cute little village which housed part of a movie setting as well as a retired railway. The roads here were really steep so it was a good time for some calorie burning.
Random sights in Fen Qi Hu.
Abandoned rail. Photo credit: Chair
Finally, it was off to Alishan itself. We booked a Japanese style room which was wonderfully decorated and all pretty and cosy, just perfect for four of us girls. Booked it from http://wanguo.mmmtravel.com.tw/?ptype=info at $37.50 per person.
Our room! The flooring is heated {or the mattresses forgot which}, but I didn't really feel it. Still freezing!
Alishan's air was crisp and cold, but the workout walking about the mountain was enough to keep up a heat within the self. We were lucky it didn't rain throughout our trail because there had been a typhoon just 2 weeks before our arrival and the whole of Alishan was closed because of it.
The following photos will represent a fraction of the mystery and beauty of Alishan's strange trees and foggy forests.
And of course, the much anticipated strange tree which Susan and I had so looked forward to meeting before we began the trip! We had seen it on other websites and were slightly afraid we might take the wrong path and fail to find this magnificent product of nature. You can actually go right inside the tree and walk all around it!
The whole experience was really rewarding and really easy to walk because the signs everywhere were clear enough so you would know right where you were [except at some parts where we were uncertain simply because we doubted ourselves]. The last part of our journey involved a trek past 20 odd forest giants and this was a killer trek. Uphill all the way and foggy mist shrouding our path, it did get quite scary at some point. But we made it out finally, and burst back out into the pathway near the Shen Mu, and then it was a long, long way back again to the entrance of the park.
The endless stairs...
We took comfort in dinner, which was HOTPOT! again! Hotpot is absolutely delightful in the cold of the mountain air and the dishes that came with it were more than we could ask for. We simply pranced into the first restaurant we saw after exiting the trail because we were THAT in need of a break after the walk.
To-die-for chicken.
Next Morning - Sunrise
We woke up at 3:30am to catch the train at 4.20am to the Sunrise viewing point. The sun was set to rise at 5:20am that morning. I had breakfast which I bought from 7-11 the previous day {yes! There is 7-11 on Alishan! Just gotta love 7-11 in Taiwan.}It was freezing, at 16 degrees, but the excitement kept us warm and awake as we rumbled through the darkness towards the sight that would give us the warmth of everyday.
Alishan Forest Rail
You couldn't really see a clear cut emergence of the sun from the horizon because it was so cloudy and the mountains were in the way, but it was a sight to behold nonetheless. There were also some vendors at the sunrise point so we could have hot soup or toast while waiting for the spectacle to happen. And have it we did, it was a great comfort in the freezing morning air!
After sunrise, we had a mini buffet breakfast at a restaurant using a complimentary coupon that came together with the hotel booking.
Name of the restaurant was JiuJiuJiu.
Goodbye Alishan!
After breakfast it was just last minute exploring and waiting for the taxi to bring us back down the mountain.
The verdict, certainly a place worth going at least once in your life. I think we didn't cover the entire trail, but we had seen enough to fulfil our expectations far and beyond and every moment here was a moment of sparkles and fairy dust. Couldn't ask for much more.
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