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Hello from Hualien! We have been here the past days enjoying the Taiwanese nature. We arrived here on Friday by train around 10:30 and checked in to Amigos, a very nice and cozy hostel. We got a lot of help right away from a older gentleman from New Zealand and planned our weekend. So we started with renting bikes and had a ride along the beautiful costline. Though the cyckle way made sometimes quite funny turns into a industrial area and a dumpyard...but it just made the rout more interesting. We were also followd by stray dogs...but they where not agressive. The Beach was beautiful, but a darkening sky made us turn back. On the way back we took a peak into the Stone sculpture museum and saw a lot of statues of marble...everything here is from marble, it was explaind to us the next day when we visited a marble factory. After buffet dinner we got early to sleep. We had woken up for a early train and the next morning we were booked for a tour to Taroko Gorge that started 7:30.
Right in the begiing of the tour I was reminded that we were again tourists in Asia. We tought we had a tour to Taroko for hiking, but we also got the extra stuf....visit to marble factory, gem stones and lunch. Yea...I should have known better, but when I was able to change my expectations I had fun again. that was around the time we arrived to Taroko Gorge.
It was an amazin place. In the national park there i over 100 3000m peaks. And it was good thet we were on a tour coz we were able to stop on all the good spots and get all the nices photos. There was some walks we could do some shorter walks and we got to know the other tourists. A couple from canada and their adult son. The couple was traveling around the world and the boy was visiting his parents and checking up on them. It was very nice to here their experiences. Then we meet Norman from Singapor who later in the night took us for the best dinner here in Taiwan. It was a hot pot dinner with a all you can eat buffe...soooo much food and so delicious!
Anyway the Taroko Gorge national park was a highlite. It is beautiful and we decided to return the next day for some hikes. Hopefully I get som photos up soon because they show at least a bit what I am talking about.
In the evening after the dinner with Norman we took a walk to the Night Market and on the way bak I spoke out a wish to experience a earth quace...just a mild one were no one gets hurt. And you cn guess I felt wierd when I woke up the next night in a shaking bed. FirsI tought it was just Elina Turning around in her bed, but soon I realized what was going on. I was still so in sleep I didn'tget afraid at all. I try to talk to Elina, but when I didn'tget any respns, I tought she was a sleep. In the morning the whole thing seamed unreal and when Elina didn'tconfirm my toughts about the earth quace I gave up and tought it was a dream... but I was right!!! Later we got to know it was really a 5,6 earth quace...how cool is that!
Today it was Elinas turn to face our fears. We got lost on a Trail in Taroko and got on a wrong one that took us to a 1000m peak. Elina is super afraid of hights, but I am really proud she made it. And up there at Huoran Pavilion (abit funny name for the finns, huora means prostitute)we meet a marvelous view. When we got down we got help from some other tourist to find the actuall trail to some waterfalls and had time to make it too. So in the en it was a great day and we also got the hiking part of Taroko.
Now back at the hostel we are waiting for our return train to Taipei were we will be around midnight and there we still have a lot to do and see! So back to the City!
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