Day 19: Yangmingshan Mountain, Beitou Hot Springs, & a Fun Night Out -- Today was a very very good day!

We were accompanied by Jackey #3 and Carol (two of our favs) to Yangmingshan National Park. The park was a great place to spend a few hours.  One of the park's main geological sites is a now extinct volcano - here, the strong smell of sulfur fills the air and you can see gases rising through a large barren scar on the side of the mountain. 

Yangmingshan is the perfect city getaway because it is surrounded by majestic mountains, bamboo forests, hot springs and many walking trails. People come here for hiking, birdwatching, and to look at the diverse flora and fauna.

Beautiful views of the mountains in the background

Group shot after a hike on the trails

After we worked up an appetite we headed over to Shilin District for lunch at Cha for Tea.  The food was amazing.  Most of the food at Cha for Tea is infused with green tea.  We had tempura green tea leaves, green tea noodles, green tea bubble tea, green tea dumplings, and green tea cheesecake.

Tempura Green Tea Leaves

Sipping on our bubble teas - I cannot get enough of these!

Green Tea Noodles

Green tea dumplings

Next on the list was Beitou Hot Springs and Thermal Valley - one of my favorite stops so far! Beitou is one of Taiwan's oldest resort areas, because of it's many hot springs. Travelers come here for soaking in the area's sulphurous waters.  The waters have been known to be excellent for one's skin - maybe that's why the Taiwanese have such great skin?!

On a side note - most Taiwanese protect themselves from the sun like no other! They would rather walk outside in long pants and long sleeve shirts in 95 degree/90% humidity weather than get sun on their skin.  They carry umbrellas everwhere to keep themselves shaded as well.

The hot spring seen below in Thermal Valley reaches tempertures of 200 degrees farenheit! You definitely wouldn't want to fall in there. You can see the steam rolling off the water below. Due to the smell of sulphur and the constant rising of steam, the Beitou valley has the appearance of a witch's cauldron, and so the Aboriginal inhabitants of the area named it paktaaw, meaning witch.

A nature lover's paradise

We had a chance to stop at one of the hot springs, where we soaked our tired feet. Although the water was hot, it did feel very soothing. Hot springs are also known for their healing abilities and can be very good for sore muscles or aches and pains.


Taking a soak



A view from the top of the hot spring resort area

With Jim and Carol

That evening we had a fun-filled night out after dinner. Jackey #3 and Carol took us to a place on Yongkang St where we had a few spirits and laughs and reminisced about our new memories from the trip.

Walking to the MRT (Taiwan's Metro) after a night out

Our night out with Jackey and Carol was a classic night to remember.  I'm very fortunate to be on a trip with so many great and fun-loving people. I'm so excited for my new frienships I've made on this trip!