Hiking in Taipei

This post focuses on one of the maja day trips I did with my bro during our 4 day stay in Taipei. We decided to do a morning hike up&around Elephant Mountain + spend a quiet afternoon wandering Maokong Mountain. Let me just put it out there, if you ever find yourself in the magical-ness of Taiwan, you absolutely must go on a hike of some sort & I suggest this one (naturally). It is a bit of a stair-master of a challenge (no Big Buddha hike though) BUT well worth the sweat. You get an absolutely breath taking (whether you like it or not) view of the city, Taipei 101 & as far as the eyes can see. We decided to venture a little more & with a little luck+help from a nice local couple, we found ourselves atop one of the mountains with the most beautiful view of Taipei. After getting lost, finding ourselves on the wrong side of the mountain & hitch hiking back to a metro station, we then set off for Maokong Mountain. They have an abundance of tea plantations, shops & restaurants with gorgeous views that are an irresistible escape from the chaos of the city. The must-try is the tieguanyin tea (what makes this place famous) & the views of course. Anyways, enough blabby blab & more ogling over the pictures.

so many stairs (again)

first view of taipei

there's also a little gym up in the mountains...I can't make this stuff up

2nd view of Taipei - a weee bit tired

3rd view

& then we got lost...woops

Maokong 

famous tea that is DELISH

nommy nommy hot pot

tea plantations high up in the mountains

Jiufen = Joy+Fun

Jiufen, Taiwan. Well to say this a little bit of a tourist trap is an understatement. Don't get me wrong, this town located on the side of a mountain does have some breathtaking views & interesting hikes all around. But be prepared to battle it out with a few bus-loads of Chinese tourists while you're there. It's made famous for a few reasons; gold was found here, therefore mad goldrush back in the day, & it was the location for the 1989 film "A City of Sadness". Also, it has copious amounts of food+knick knacks if your heart desires. All in all, interesting place that is easily accessed by bus (about 30-45 minutes away from Taipei) but beware of pushy+crowdy tourists. If you don't have much time in Taiwan, it can be skipped but do as you may. And now for the photographic memories...

nom noms

fried tofu sticks?

could even begin to guess what this is...

more noms

the most interesting things

SQUIDS

some great tea

around Jiufen

annnd the view (a wee bit cloudy)