A journey to celebrate 16 years of friendship @ Hualien

We reached Hualien around 7pm and the driver drove us to "Zhi Qiang" night street market for dinner.

1. Zhi Qiang Night Market

Zhi Qiang night market is the smallest market I've been in Taiwan. The food variety were not much as compared to Feng Chia night market. However, one of the stalls that sold barbequed kebabs, chicken, cuttlefish and some other kind of meats was quite popular and we had to queue for at least 45 mins for the food. I personally find the food so-so and hence was quite puzzled with the long queue.

We also ate at one of the restaurant that sold steak at very cheap price of SGD10. However, the quality of the steak was bad and I shan't say further on the taste. I will never recommend anyone to patronize the restaurant if he/she visits Zhi Qiang night market. I also queued for the grilled corn sold at one of the stalls. The corn was overly grilled and was hard to bite.

The so-so stinky tofu

The so-so grilled corn

The worst steak I've had

2. Check in Fanlin House @ Hualien

Fanlin House is located at a quiet location @ Hualien, Xincheng Township. The minus is a quirky property that is nestled within a landscaped garden. The property boosts beautiful wood decorative elements, even in every rooms.

We booked a family room for our 2 night stay at Hualien. It was a beautiful duplex room with the bedrooms at the 2nd level while the bathroom was on the ground floor. Outside of our room, there was a hug balcony for us to sit and chat. Overall, I enjoyed my stay at Fanlin House and I would like to compliment the morning coffee brewed by the host. It was the best coffee I've had in Taiwan.

Our duplex family room

Spacious balcony outside our room

Best coffee I've had

Minsu cafe

Minsu café, very cosy

3. Ching Shui Cliff

Situated between Heren and Chongde on the Suhua Highway, lies the Ching Shui Cliff. It stretches 21km and rises vertically from the Pacific Ocean. We got off at one of the viewing points and were marveled by the sight before us. Looking down from the enormous cliff with the boundless pacific ocean below, feeling the breeze and listening to the sound of crashing waves made me feel like I was at a corridor in the sky.

4. Seven Star Sea, Chisingtan Beach

I personally adore this beach. The beach has no sand but lots of small pebbles which can be a little painful to step on. These pebbles really make the beach unique. Also, the beach is very long and has an endless ocean view into the horizon. I loved plating with the waves which stretched long onto the shores. Water was cold in autumn but the coldness was super shiok. I really had a great time playing by the beach with the girls.

5. Shitiping

The shoreline at Shitiping, which is situated at the 65km point on the coastal highway, was formed when the volcanic rock worn smooth by sea erosion was uplifted in layers that resemble stone steps.

As the sea water gushes into the rocks or boulders, it splashes up and creates a scene of water bursting through the pipe-holes. Get ready your camera and snap quickly when you feel that the seawater will splash upward anytime.

We had fun watching the seawater shoots up every few second. The cooling breeze and the magnificent view was really liberating.

6. Lin Tian Shan

Lin Tian Shan was once conquered by the Japanese during WWII and was being used for lumbering. After 1938, the lumbering industry expanded and the area saw the construction of a lumbar transportation railway, freight transport ropeway, clinics, dormitories, rice store, barber center and fire department. However, there was history. Lin Tian Shan is now converted to a recreational area and housed a museum that preserved a variety of living articles, fire-fighting tools used in the past, lumbering machines and tools, books, music and CDs from 1950 to 1970s.

As we walked around the forestry park, we saw the remains of several cultural traces such as the railway tracks and the ware-houses that were used to store the rice. It was a peaceful place indeed where time seems to stand still.

View of Hualien City

7. One of the best "Ru Rou Fan" in Hualien

Along our way to Hualien, we stopped at one small town to have lunch. It was at this restaurant that I had tasted the best "Ru Rou Fan". The gravy was flavourful and the rice was so Q! It was a pity that I cannot remember the exact location or the name of the restaurant.

8. Hualien Night Market

There is a slightly night market at Hualien City, much more bigger than Zhi Qiang night market. The Hualien City night market also has plenty of stores for ladies to shop for shoes, bags, clothes and the array of beauty products. We had our dinner @ one of the seafood restaurant. The food were great and I had tasted the best "Ge Li" in this restaurant.