Snapshots from the Eastern Coast

If you want to travel down Taiwan quickly, take the high speed rail down the west of the island. But if you want to witness Taiwan’s real beauty, take the slow but scenic route along the eastern coast. While most of the cities and towns are clustered along the western part of Taiwan, the true treasure is the eastern coast of the island. Lush mountains and deep blue sea are only a part of the natural beauty that draws people to venture down this coast. There’s the awe-inspiring geology of the Taroko gorge, the monkey-inhabited forests of Zhiben, not to mention the fact that it is all as bike-able as it is photogenic.

[one_third padding=”0 2px 0 0″]liyu-1[/one_third][one_third padding=”0 1px 0 1px”]taroko-2[/one_third][one_third_last padding=”0 0px 0 2px”]hldriving-1[/one_third_last]

Things move a little slower here, both the pace of life and the trains. But traffic signs seem to be mere suggestions, so your chatty taxi driver will probably still get you where you need to be in record time. The towns are small. People converse in friendly Taiwanese, and everyone seems to know each other. Though much more spread out than the congested cities of Taiwan, the communities here are close and intimate. Travelers are welcomed into homes for family-style meals. Pretty soon, you become a part of the community.

The two main counties that dominate the eastern coast are Hualien and Taitung. Despite the fact that they are the largest and third largest counties (out of 13), they are the smallest in population on the main island. Hualien county is dominated by the Central and Haian mountain ranges. Only 7% of the land is actually populated. Taitung is also largely isolated by mountains. For many years, it was untouched by the urban development (and pollution) that came with the Chinese colonizers and today, it still has the highest population of aboriginal people in Taiwan.

[one_third padding=”0 2px 0 0″]dong-bike-1[/one_third][one_third padding=”0 1px 0 1px”]dong-park-1[/one_third][one_third_last padding=”0 0px 0 2px”]hlhouse-1[/one_third_last]

In the mountains and forests of Hualien and Taitung counties, aboriginal villages dot the green landscape. There, visitors can find pockets of culture unique to the region. Much like the bloody history of America, the indigenous people were ostracized from dominant society for a long time. In recent years, there has been a cultural resurgence and (likely due to many A-list pop stars being of aboriginal descent) an embracing of their colorful cultures and heritages. The Amis people are the biggest indigenous group in Taiwan and have traditionally lived in the area. Today, cultural centers give visitors the chance to join the various tribes in traditional song and dance while encouraging the preservation of their identities.

[one_third padding=”0 2px 0 0″]dong-bunong[/one_third][one_third padding=”0 1px 0 1px”]dong-organic[/one_third][one_third_last padding=”0 0px 0 2px”]dong-amis[/one_third_last]

The eastern counties are the perfect escape into the great outdoors. There is rich and diverse flora and fauna. There’s everything from water sports to biking to hiking to paragliding to (for those of us that aren’t so sporty) natural hot springs. It’s insanely humid. But that means orchids grow wild on the trees of the forest. And the rice grown in Taitung is famously good. There’s jackfruit the size of a third-grader. Even the major cultural events celebrate the outdoors. There’s music festivals in Hualien, and a famous hot air balloon festival in Taitung. Everything still feels pure and pristine, untouched by mainstream tourism.

[one_third padding=”0 2px 0 0″]dong-bridge-3[/one_third][one_third padding=”0 1px 0 1px”]dong-flower[/one_third][one_third_last padding=”0 0px 0 2px”]hlbeach-2[/one_third_last]

I had the opportunity to live in Taitung for a few weeks back in high school. I taught English at Ren Ai Elementary School in Taitung along with a few other volunteers from the US. We stayed with local hosts, and toured the county with their families on the weekend. I was seventeen, a city girl only beginning to discover that nature could be fun with a camera. I hadn’t really traveled yet. And sadly, I didn’t truly appreciate the invaluable experience of living and learning with welcoming locals.

They took us everywhere from an hour north to an hour south, from the top of a mountain to the oceanfront. They introduced us to dozens of unique plants (that all looked about the same to me…), and took us to a farm to have fresh jackfruit (and when we didn’t care for it so much, took us to a family-owned grocery store to have jackfruit ice cream and homemade grass jelly instead). We visited a European baker who opened up shop in Taitung, of all places. And had an interesting experience meeting the (rather aggressive) monkeys that lived in the forests. We even went (to my horror) to a fish market and saw bloodied up fish fresh off the boats measured and arranged on the slimy floor for auction. Our guides told us that the interesting geology in Xiaoyeliu were called “tofu stone” because of the resemblance to squares of tofu. They explained the (spoiler alert!) optical illusion of the “water running up” phenomenon. They even took us to a fertility shrine (read: large stone penis sculpture).

[one_third padding=”0 2px 0 0″]dong-bamboo[/one_third][one_third padding=”0 1px 0 1px”]dong-fishmarket-2[/one_third][one_third_last padding=”0 0px 0 2px”]dong-flowers[/one_third_last]

All of these memories have nearly faded away. I haven’t been to that part of Taiwan since, and I don’t think about it often. But when I dug up photos (sadly, only a portion could be found – I was not a very organized 11th grader…), everything came flooding back. It was like I was looking through photographs of a forgotten dream. And when I started remembering more and more, I realized how much our hosts poured their hearts into developing the itineraries, making reservations, renting a bus to charter us around. I want more than anything to go back and say thank you. We were ungrateful teenagers, undeserving of such a genuine and pure experience. But I think deep down they know that despite all of our grumbles and scowls, they touched each of our hearts. And I can only hope we touched theirs.

[one_third padding=”0 2px 0 0″]hldriving-2[/one_third][one_third padding=”0 1px 0 1px”]hlhouse-2[/one_third][one_third_last padding=”0 0px 0 2px”]hlfarm-2[/one_third_last]

The next year, in the summer of 2012, I visited Taiwan with my family. We decided to take a trip within a trip and headed to Hualien through a Taiwanese tour company. We boarded a themed train and chugged our way through the scenic coast. This was my first time seeing the coast from a train (I had flown from Taipei to Taitung last year – ain’t nobody got time for a 6hr train ride when it’s a 40 min plane ride!), and I finally understood why the trains were in no rush. The journey was a destination in itself!

Once we were there, a small van took us and a few other tourists around to key attractions. The most important of which, of course, was Taroko Park. A humbling feat of nature that draws way too many tour groups for it’s own good.

[one_third padding=”0 2px 0 0″]liyu-2[/one_third][one_third padding=”0 1px 0 1px”]japanese-2[/one_third][one_third_last padding=”0 0px 0 2px”]taroko-4[/one_third_last]

The experience was charming as a whole. Our guide provided (on top of history and fun facts) friendly political commentary as he chartered us from one stop to another. We had a personal tour on the last day, where the guy basically took us wherever he felt like. He even stopped at the side of a road to show us a leaf with a huge green grasshopper-like thing on it. We met a couple on a farm who were absolutely tickled to meet people who lived in America (and baffled as to why we didn’t look “American” aka “golden haired”). I will admit that the short trip left me wanting more, but all the more reason to go back! Next time there’s no need for tours – just a great Airbnb and a reliably knowledgable taxi driver.

[one_third padding=”0 2px 0 0″]train[/one_third][one_third padding=”0 1px 0 1px”]dong-monkey[/one_third][one_third_last padding=”0 0px 0 2px”]dony-rocks-3[/one_third_last]

There’s no easy way to discovering the oasis of Taiwan’s eastern coast. Public transportation is spotty, few people know English, and nothing is really close to each other. But if you keep an open mind and heart, it’ll prove its worth a hundred times over!

Given that my own itineraries are rather dated, here are some resources to get started on planning your adventure.

Resources for exploring Taiwan’s Eastern Coast

HUALIEN

TAITUNG