Mulloskeys Adventures Abroad

(Warning – lots of pics and video)

The only place open for food at 6:00am was McDonald’s and we sold our souls once more. From there, back to the train station. Before I forget to write about it later, there are some interesting anecdotes from inside. First is the clean air display that is kind of self explanatory; at the same time, not at all. There were holes in the plexiglass where you could suck in the ‘best air you can breathe’. Weird.

Also, as one travels you begin to recognize the universal use of certain symbols. For example toilet, elevator, hospital, airport, departures, exit etc. One that has yet to catch on, is the Taiwanese symbol for shopping centre/mall. Since there is a huge underground mall below the main station, there were signs a plenty from all around the station displaying what might soon be the universal symbol for shopping. Looks pretty exciting to me.

To our new readers, I am a huge train buff. Everything about the process is so exciting, as Jorkat now know at length. I like to get pictures with the train engines as the enter the station. Erin just missed it by milliseconds and my reaction is obvious.

Along the route we relaxed and took in the sites, including “turtle island” off the coast. See if you can make it out. The visibility was poor.

Quick sidebar here. Imagine how awful having a ‘Stage 5′ digestive emergency feels… We’ve all been there. Now imagine that in a foreign country. Pretty bad. Now add to the horror you must use a squattie pottie for said emergency. One’s idea of hell right? Now add in a moving train for good measure. Oh, did I mention there’s nothing to hold onto? Have fun. Well, poor Erin did have some ‘fun’ on that train ride. (Note: this photo was taken to capture the pottie in the next car. The pottie in question was now closed.)

We arrived in the charming seaside town of Huailen. As usual, the first thing we saw was a seven eleven. God they were everywhere. But they had Slurpees!!!!!! (There are no Slurpees in Korea – that’s why we were thrilled). As expected we were hounded outside of the station to hire drivers or book in at nearby hotels. We “bee-lined” it straight to our hostel, but not before the last thing a taxi driver said to us resonated. “Did she say a typhoon was coming?” One of us said to the group. Awkward silence fell. The silence was broken by the roar of jet fighters overhead, landing at a nearby base. The boys reacted as expected – “Wicked!”

We proudly negotiated the a driver down from $2400 TWD to $1600 TWD ($55 CND) for the whole day to take us to Taiwan’s best attraction – Toroko Gorge. Basically a whole bunch of volcanic stuff and ocean stuff, pressure, plates etc. Google it on your own. The product is soaring mountains and deep gorges all with marble stone walls. It was truly one of the most impressive natural wonders I had ever seen. Here is our arrival to the first (Shakadang) trail.

Check out the warning sign. Bears I can handle. Poisonous snakes – delicious! Falling rocks no problem here. Killer Bees????  Oh crap.

The land is protected as both a national park and reserved land for indigenous persons. We were virtually alone walking through a carved cliff wall along the most beautiful river I had ever seen. Beautiful marble stone; boulders the size of large buildings sat motionless amidst the neon blue rushing water. The blue was so bright. I wanted more than anything to touch it but there was no way down.

Further up the trail, our hopes were realized. A small souvenir table stood manned with two beautiful older indigenous women who welcomed us. We exchanged broken English comment on the beauty of the park and they invited us onto their land and down a path to the water. AMAZING!  I couldn’t wait to dip my head in it. I only wish we had our swim suits – but it wouldn’t have been appropriate or respectful to full swim in it.

Next stop – the Eternal Springs or Martyrs’ shrine. This is a shrine built to commemorate the 250 or so workers who died to build the cross country (cross/mountain) highway. The first impression, of the waterfall flowing through the structures, was Rivendell-esque. More modest, but no less impressive when seen up close.

The entrance to the trail offered us an unexpected set of large white Buddhas situated in a cave. They looked more like giant chess pieces. The floor was entirely marble. Pretty cool if it wasn’t in a cave and consistently wet. It was like walking on ice. Loyal readers will be shocked to learn Erin did not fall. There were some close calls.

It was a slippery and sketchy hike to the first landing. It’s tough to find the words here. So I will just throw out a bunch adjectives that come to mind but are grossly insufficient: amazing, awe inspiring, huge, majestic, humbling, beautiful, terrifying, wicked bad ass, et. al.

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I’ve added a page break here because I have written the rest of this post 4 times over the past 2 weeks. It seems the “safe draft” button is now “delete”. Even the hours taken to add photos – gone – arrgghh! If the rest of this post is brief, or has undertones of frustration – please forgive me.

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From behind the first shrine emerged stairs carved into the walls of the massive cliff face. We ascended the cliff not knowing how far it went, not realizing until too late how high we got. I am not good with heights. Here we are over a thousand feet up a wall with a humble chains to keep us safe. The pics just don’t do it justice.

At several points one is required to crouch and walk. Katie captured my worst moment when the foliage returned to the flat part of the trail near the top. The ground was wet,  overhang was low, and the side… straight down.

Often I try to think about how places like this were built. How some poor dudes had to carry concrete and materials up this cliff each day to make these stairs and the shrine itself. The shrine was to honor those who had died building the highway through the gorge and mountains to the other coast. One could not help but think of the irony: how many died building this shrine to commemorate those who died building the road? We neared the top..

On top we were rewarded with a magnificent view and deep satisfaction for the pain and fear endured to get there. Our time at the shrine can be summed up in this 1st photo of Jordan and Katie:

I almost forgot about a little detour Jordan and I took on the way down. We took this side trail and explored, against the better judgment of our wives and our ever more sore legs. A small memorial to not sure who – we deemed him the namesake of the Gorge – “Joe Toroko”.  Be it exhaustion or being alone with an equally immature buddy, we had some fun. No disrespect to ”Joe” intended.

Getting down was just as hard as getting up. On the way down, near the end, Jordan did us the service of running ahead to our driver and then running back so he could take some pictures of us across the gorge. It gives you some perspective of the size of this place. You can make out Erin’s pink shirt in the first photo. Remember this is the BOTTOM of the cliff.

Back in the car, we snaked our way though winding mountain roads and tunnels. It was easy to appreciate what this place looked like during monsoon season. A raging torrent flowed down these banks 2 months a year. Our driver told us that several sections of road are simply washed away annually. That sucks. In fact, we were hoping to visit a popular hot spring but it had been closed due to a mudslide that killed some tourists. Eeep.

Last stop:  “Swallow Grotto” which for the benefit of our dear friends Mr and Mrs Gratto, is actually called “Swallow Gratto”. We all had a good chuckle. May we never be rid of utterly juvenile behaviour. This one is for you Cat.

The second thing we noticed, after the sign, was a suspended walking bridge over to the other side of the gorge. We (they) were disappointed to learn that it was closed to the public and for use of park staff only. Alas.

As we walked and admired the terrain, I kept thinking about the indigenous people who lived there. How could they survive, let alone thrive, in such a harsh place? How did they gather food, water and supplies for shelter among such steep slopes? Some humans are just simply cool. With regards to the gorge, let’s let the pics and video do the talking.

Last but not least, we were directed to the rock wall of the river’s edge in the distance. Our driver pointed out that it looked like “an Indian Chief” I corrected him by saying first nations but he just stared at me blankly. See if you see it.

Here it is close up – look at the right side of the river bank

There is nothing like a cold beer  the end of a long day of exercising, unless that beer is in the car with you on the way home (our driver wasn’t participating of course). Being able to drink anywhere in Asia is a real plus, something I will miss when I head back to the strict licensing of Ontario.

Hotel. Shower.

After some R&R, we ventured out to main street to find some food. We stumbled on a Malay fusion place that had some English on their menus and a street front table. After placing our order we watched the cook’s dog run into the street chasing another dog almost getting hit 10 times. We were panicking and trying to save it and get the cook’s attention. When he came out to see where is dog was he gave us a look, laughed to himself and went back inside. This was normal. The highlight of the meal was a kid of the owners of some business next door who kept chasing stray dogs away. He saw us and joined our table, but every time Jordan tried to peak to him he ran away, came back, then ran away again. It was a great time killer for the hour we waited to get our food.

After dinner we hopped a cap to the seaside district. It’s fun not really knowing what to expect. A few paragraphs in the Lonely Planet travel guide often deliver misguided expectations. This was sort of the case. First, another carnival like atmosphere… markets, games, bars and music and dance. I beat Jordan again at basketball. I used my long arms to cheat. During the baseball throw he insisted on a full major league wind up. At least he won something this time – a Spongebob key chain. I enjoyed the archery.

There were more markets too. Fresh fruit, BBQ squid, various mystery meat products abounded. It seems a bit out of place, but what should be in place? We were in Taiwan after all. Further down the makeshift alleys was a spectacle to behold. Not sure if it was traditional dance or just some B-level local scouts group strutting their stuff. I am going to err on the side of unique cultural experience.

It was beer o’clock – time to hit the beach and the pubs along side. We pictured a boardwalk, white sand and a scene out of Coney Island (Asian style). It was a concrete beach, literally. Between the beach and the only bar was a huge mound to protect from Typhoon storm surge. The bar was blasting loud annoying Chinese Karaoke music.  Our only refuge were some tiny food stands down the road where they had some cold bottles of brew for sale and plastic chairs and table. Perfect. The stray dogs were an added bonus. No one wanted to guess whether this little guy at our feet was sleeping or dead.

The night was over – only one thing left to do… grab a triple cheeseburger nightcap. Not that I really wanted one – but Ive always wanted to have a beer with my happy meal. So, I did. Oh yeah, one more thing left to do – Massage! We learned a valuable lesson form the previous night. Easy on the feet. We found a back, neck shoulder massage with foot soak for $15. Since it was a little busy when we walked in they had to get some extra help from out back.

We sat down as one by one beautiful women entered and took up spots behind us for the massage. Not that I cared about what they looked like, just that they wouldn’t be strong enough to hurt me. Wouldn’t you know it, the last woman to enter, mine, was a bear. No, like a real bear. No neck. Not fat either. Just a for real bear. Like the wife of Rob Schneider’s character in “50 First Dates”.  “Gulp”.  It was torture. Especially when she used her elbows. They felt like knees. I am still sore weeks later.  I vowed – that would be my last massage of the trip. It was.