Continuing from Our Journey from Sun Moon Lake and Ita Thao, we arrived at the Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village, excited to explore and learn about the cultures of Taiwanese indigenous peoples.
What We Want to See
The Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village consists mainly of two sections — the cultural village and the theme park.
Due to our very limited time (we arrived at nearly 3pm and the place closes at 5pm on weekdays), we gave ourselves only two main objectives — (1) to watch the tribal performances at the Naruwan Theater and (2) to get to the European Garden (歐洲宮廷花園)at the theme park area to ride the little train (水沙連小火車), which we believed Dar would love dearly.
The performance at Naruwan Theater was scheduled to start at 2.55pm but when we arrived at the location 10 minutes before time, the place was void of visitors and staff. We started wondering if we had gone to the wrong place or if the performance been canceled due to bad weather.
Formosan Tribal Performance at Naruwan Theater
Fortunately, while we were thinking what was our next step, a large group of school children arrived at the theatre. This was one of the few times that I appreciate a noisy crowd, as we thought we were the only visitors interested in the performance. We then found some seats and sat down, while more visitors started to flow in.
The Formosan cultural performance then started with several men and women donned in a generic tribal costume appearing on the stage. They began performing dances and songs, while trying to portray the characteristics of the different tribes in Taiwan.
However, since their costumes remained unchanged throughout the performance, we found it harder to appreciate the distinctiveness of each of the nine tribes. Still, it was an entertaining show for us since we do not get it see this locally. As for Dar, he was more interested in the park map which he was holding in his hand, nudging me and pointing at the train ride. I bet he could not wait for the show to end.
Heading to European Gardens
When the show ended, it was already 3.45pm, leaving us with only a meagre 90 minutes left to explore the rest of the park before it closes for the day. Fortunately, the rain was getting much smaller so we had an easier time as we headed towards the European Gardens.
Formosan Cultural Village
Cat was interested in learning more about the various tribes so we made sure to pass by the cultural village where mock houses of the various tribes were erected. It was interesting to see the different structures and experience the lives of these tribes through the wax statues. There were signs with detailed english and chinese information on them telling us what the exhibits were about.
Formosan – Houses of Taiwanese Aboriginal Tribes
Spooky Dark Interior
The interior of the hut was dark and we were a bit apprehensive in entering it at first. In one hut, it was dark but the lights came on automatically when we walked in focusing on a group of wax men. It surprised us totally! The huts showed the living conditions and areas where they cooked and slept.
In one particularly memorable hut that we went in, we learnt that the people actually buried their deceased parents right under their beds, as they believed that no matter life or death, they are still one family. It was rather spooky.
Tribal Houses Low Ceilings
We also noticed that most of these huts had low ceilings, meaning that these tribal people were most likely much smaller in size than us (later we learned that they were only around 150cm in height for men).
Dar was probably the only one who did not find the need to bend his head down as he entered and exited the houses. He was also not afraid of the wax figurines at all and thought it was fun to go in and out of the houses. The house below was actually a tribal gathering house for young adults so it was even lower.
Formosan Aboriginal Souvenir Crafts
On the way, we came across a souvenir shop which showcases handicrafts by one of the tribes. A bag attracted Cat’s attention and we set foot into the shop, and had a nice conversation with the friendly lady manning the place.
After getting a sling bag and a decoration depicting the different tribes, we left the shop and continued our journey towards the theme park area.
Formosan – Huge Park
We soon realised the enormous size of the park as it took us another 15 to 20 minutes of brisk walking before we could reach there. Luckily, we had our stroller with us and we could stroll Dar on it so we would not need to slow down and wait for him. Despite our tired feet, we persevered on while checking our watches and map constantly to make sure we could still make it to the train ride in time and had gotten our directions correct.
Formosan Theme Park – Amusement Isle
Just when our legs were giving way, we spotted the entrance to the Theme Park and hurried on towards it. It was late and we could only glance wistfully at the beautiful entrances with their rides before rushing towards another part of the park to ‘European Garden’.
Formosan European Gardens –
Landscaped Gardens
At first glance, the garden was pretty impressive and big with interesting landscapes and structures.
European Gardens Train Station
Our destination, the Garden Train Station, was still somewhere quite far and we started rushing towards it again. Our hearts were in our mouth and we kept hoping the train would not just suddenly start moving and leave us behind. So near yet so far!
By the time we finally arrived at the train station in the ‘European Garden’, it was already 4.40pm. According to the train operator, it was his last train ride for the day! Phew! We were glad and thankful that we had managed to make it in time, or we would really be very upset since we knew Dar had been looking forward to ride on it ever since he read about it from the park’s website before our trip.
Steam Engine Train Ride
We sat in the frontmost carriage (after strong request from Dar) and could see and smell the steam coming out of the funnel in front. It did not smell great of course but was an invaluable experience. Dar loves it as he had been watching videos (real-life and animated) of steam engines back home.
Train Ride – Sights Along European Gardens
The ride along the perimeter of the beautiful garden was interesting, with lever crossings along the way which moved down to restrict the access of the pedestrian crossings as our train was passing through. We also got up close to the colonial-style building (now being used as an administrative complex for the park?) and went through a bridge before completing one round which lasted for about 10 minutes.
Formosan European Gardens – Photo-Taking
Although the rest of the theme park looked very interesting and tempting, with some One Piece (a famous Japanese anime) themed rides and shows, we simply did not have the luxury of time to tour them. Making use of whatever time we had left before the park was to close, we decided to stay within the garden’s premises and had a fun photo shoot by the fountain.
As the bell tower in the garden began to chime, we knew it was time for us to leave and we headed out towards the main entrance which was a short walk from the garden. We were informed earlier by our homestay host that a bus service is available daily at 5.25pm which would bring us straight back to Shueishe.
Bus Stop to Shueishe
We found the bus stop situated just outside the entrance without difficulty and sat down in it, waiting patiently for the bus to arrive. It was very cold as it got darker and darker.
Long Wait For Bus
However at 5.35pm, our bus had not arrived and we began to feel uneasy, since there were only two other people besides us and the place was quite deserted with only occasional vehicles leaving the park. We were approached by a cab driver earlier when we first left the park but rejected him as we were confident the bus would arrive.
Took Another Bus
At that time, another bus by the same company but going onto another route arrived at the bus stop. We quickly checked with the driver’s female assistant about the bus to Shueishe that we were waiting for. She replied she had never heard about the bus (!!) and advised us to board their bus instead. They would then drop us at Yuchih (魚池), a town in the vicinity. From there, according to her, we would be able to find transport to bring us to Shueishe.
We trusted her and took her advice, paid the fares (about NT$50 for two adults) and boarded the bus. Along the way, I noticed a bus going past us and overheard the lady whispering to the driver that the bus could be one we were waiting for! Since we were already on the ‘pirate ship’, I decided to say nothing more and see how things unfolded.
Yuchih (魚池) Stop
As agreed earlier, they dropped us in Yuchih and instructed us to wait at a designated location across the road, before driving off and leaving us stranded in an unfamiliar town. We saw a bus stop sign at the spot we were directed to but none of the bus timings was anywhere near. Feeling sceptical about what the lady said, we tried to look for cabs to flag down but none was in sight. In fact, we hardly saw any vehicle or people in this sleepy town, which added to our unease.
We waited for the next 10 minutes to no avail and decided to call Greg to see if he could help us. Just when I was trying to explain our situation, I spotted a bus heading towards our direction and flagged it down. I then told Greg that we were fine after checking with the driver that the bus was indeed traveling towards Shueishe. In fact, this was the same bus that we spotted heading towards Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village earlier! Looks like they had arrived at that place late, or the timetable we had was not updated.
Anyway, we were glad to get onto the right track again and arrived safely back at Doris Home soon after.
[IN SUMMARY]
Time it takes from Shueishe Pier to Ita Thao: Boat ride of 23 mins
Time it takes from Ita Thao to Ropeway: 15 mins walk
Ropeway to Entrance of Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village: 15-20mins
Time We Spent in the Theme Park: Slightly more than 2 hr (Closes at 5pm)
Overall experience (Cat):
If you are interested in learning a little about the minority tribes of Taiwan, this place provides lots of information in information boards and wax exhibits of the nine different tribes. The entire place was so huge that we did not have the time to thoroughly explore it. There were many themed areas and to explore all of them would need an entire day. One could easily spend a few hours on the rides.I enjoyed learning about the culture and exploring the huge European Garden. It was well-maintained with lovely flowers and European style architecture. Again, it was so huge that we need to walk for sometime from one end to another. Of all the theme parks in Taiwan, I chose this one because I felt it offered more than ‘just a theme park’.
ALTERNATE ROUTE: Take the hired cab directly to the other entrance of the theme park. First stop would be the European Gardens, then the One Piece Theme Park Rides. After that, take the internal ropeway to the top to explore the Tribal Village and get on the ropeway back to Ita Thao at 4pm.
That way, we might have more time to explore. I guess we were tired of sitting in a cab again and wanted to enjoy a cruise in Sun Moon Lake. Also we wanted to view the scenery over Sun Moon Lake when it was still in the day. If we had taken it at 4.30pm, the skies would have been quite dark and not great for photography. We might also miss out on the walking and eating in Ita Thao since we planned to have dinner in a nice restaurant. The food was quite interesting and delicious.
[ STAY . SLEEP ]
Doris Home 朵麗絲的家
The second storey was where the home stay’s three rooms were situated, with our ‘Garfield’ room being the inner-most room. Entering our room, we felt at ease despite the absence of any window. Instead, a small garden was situated beside the bathroom which provided some greenery and serenity to our room. The third storey led to the owners’ living/dining areas followed by the pharmacy. There was also a nicely setup garden with a small lake just behind the home stay.
Walking out of the garden led us to the back of the place, where the famous Sun Moon Restaurant was located right beside the home stay. This was also the exit we took for our cycling trip the next morning.
Dinner
Greg was concerned about us and ensured that we were alright. We then had a quick wash up before going to the Sun Moon Restaurant next door for our dinner.
Play With Cats
After our meal, we were considering whether to take a walk along the streets while the shops were still open. However, Cat was not feeling well after the chilly ordeal so we retreated back to our room. After our shower, Dar and I went upstairs to chit-chat with the friendly home stay owners and played with their two cats while Cat rested in the room. The two cats were shy so Dar had a busy time looking for them after they scurried into their hiding places every now and then. The owners also asked about our itinerary and journey so far, while I learnt about how they ventured into the home stay industry from their initial pharmacy business.
{ Breakfast }
Breakfast consisted of toasts, bacon and eggs with a nice glass of warm soya milk. There was also some special things such as sweet potato with cheese and a delicious fruit/veggie/egg mayonaise salad. You can also ask for tea or coffee.
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Taiwan 30Oct to 6Nov 2012: Day 2 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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