For Day 2 of our Taiwan Trip, we headed to Sun Moon Lake from our homestay near Alishan National Forest Recreation. We would be checking-in to a new Minsu/Homestay at Sun Moon Lake and touring the area.
On our way to Sun Moon Lake, we passed through a small district and got some drinks from 7-Eleven (known as ‘Seven’ in Taiwan). It was so big that it even had restrooms inside for us to take a toilet break. The driver also told us a little about betel nuts (檳榔) plants after seeing a truck carrying it.
JiJi Train
As we neared Sun Moon Lake, the Jiji (集集) Train> passed us by. It came from the Jiji Railway Station which is a very old station for more than 70 years. Though we liked to explore train-related places, we did not stop to go to there as we really needed to reach Sun Moon Lake so we could have more time to go to our destination, the Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village.
Sun Moon Lake – Homestay
We arrived at Doris Home in a drizzle and were glad we had hired a cab driver to bring us right to the doorstep. We could not imagine how we would end up if we had to carry all our luggage from the bus stop at the Visitor Centre to the homestay in that wet weather.
Shueishe Wharf 水社碼頭
After settling ourselves and getting directions from Greg, our host in Doris Home, we set off towards Shueishe Wharf to catch our ferry to Ita Thao. When we bought the ferry tickets from Greg (at NT$100 instead of the normal price of NT$300), he had told us to look for the staff donned in blue. It didn’t take us too long to find them, who asked us to wait for a while before their next ferry was to depart.
Ferry to Ita Thao
After about 10 minutes or so, one of the staff informed us to head towards their spacious ferry and there was only another couple on board besides us. The ferry soon departed for Ita Thao and we enjoyed the ride while enjoying the scenery. Dar was also very excited since that was the first time he is on a yacht. To prevent him from getting seasick, we occupied ourselves with sweets and some snacks along the way.
Arrived at Ita Thao – Rubber Stamp Ita Thao
When we arrived at Ita Thao, the rain got heavier and we quickly headed into the Visitor Centre. While preparing to wear the raincoats which we had brought along, we also remembered to find the ink rubber stamp in the center with Ita Thao written on it. We had brought along a little booklet specially for this purpose. From what we had read, most of the places of interest /railway stations in Taiwan would have such rubber stamp counters for visitors.
Explore Streets of Ita Thao
Donned in our raincoats, we started walking onto the streets of Ita Thao, where food stalls were lined up on both sides. Unfortunately, quite a number of stalls were closed and we wondered if it was because of the rain, time of the day (was around noon time then) or was it due to the off-peak weekday.
Lunch – Snack at Ita Thao
Anyway, we found ourselves some delicious snacks from a stall. I was especially impressed with the cheesy meaty wrap, which consisted of mushrooms, black pepper wild boar meat, veggies etc. The crispy crust was easily broken into pieces when we tried to pick it up using the toothpicks given to us, thus giving us a little hard time scooping up the disintegrated pieces into our mouths. We also bought six tea leaves eggs as it was cheaper to buy more and it was nice to eat these hot eggs while the weather was cold.
Boardwalk Route
We pushed Dar in his stroller as the rain became smaller and was glad that the boardwalk route towards the station was stroller-friendly. It was also an interesting walk along the coast of the scenic lake.
Ropeway Station (Cable Car)
Since we had already bought our tickets for the ropeway and the Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village (they are usually sold together) from Doris Home at a discounted rate earlier (NT$650 instead of NT$780), we simply had to present them to the staff at the station and got onto the ropeway. Dar rode for free.
Views from the Ita Thao Ropeway
Inside the ropeway, we first ascended uphill till we reach the top of a hill. Thereafter, we crossed a valley towards the hill on the other end. During the ride, we got to look down at the picturesque scenery overlooking Sun Moon Lake and its surroundings. The 10-minute ride then ended with a descent down the hill and towards the entrance of the cultural village.
>> Read Next Post : Taiwan: Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village where we watched a tribal performance and enjoyed a steam train ride.
>> Read Previous Post: Taiwan: Alishan Tea Garden Morning
Taiwan 30Oct to 6Nov 2012: Day 2 Sun Moon Lake Itinerary
- Morning Alishan Tea Garden Homestay
- Shueishe Pier at Sun Moon Lake / Ita Thao
- Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village
- Sun Moon Lake Restaurant
- Homestay B&B – Doris Home
Read More on Taiwan Itinerary 2012: 8-day Taiwan Itinerary (Chiayi, Taipei, Hualien, Nantou)
Read our Summary Itinerary Post for Taiwan Nov 2018 Yilan | Taipei : 5-Day Taiwan Trip Itinerary: Nature and Fun
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