野柳地質公園 is located on the cape on the northern coastline of the Taiwan island. Due to its geographical location, the sandstone has been exposed to years of sea erosions and weathering and transformed into a unique landscape.
We were free to explore the entire park and walk among the "candle rocks", "mushroom rocks", "Queen's Head" and many other stones that were interestingly shaped. The weather was however very tough and the heavy rain and strong wind made it hard to stay for any longer. I'm sure it would have been much more enjoyable if the weather was a bit better. We all ended up with wet shoes and socks after the visit!
There was a small market outside the exit of the park selling souvenirs and snacks. We shared a nice cup of 姜母茶 there, which was amazingly satisfying on a cold day like this!
Honeycombed rocks
Sea grooves and sea caves
From 野柳 we headed off to 九份 by bus. We first took 基隆客運 to KeeLung Station, then another bus to 九份. It took us more than an hour altogether as the train was not accessible from 野柳. 九份 sits on a hill northeast of Taipei and used to be the a gold mining town. Since it has got its fame from the film 悲情城市, it has now become a tourist attraction famous of its teahouses and local dishes.
The weather continued to be cold and misty for the rest of the day, which added a mysterious and serene feeling to the place. Walking through the alleys and down the stairs was the best way to explore Jiufen. It was such a charming and cute village and was probably one of my fave spots in the whole trip!
The nostalgic streets of 九份
昇平戲院
九份舊道and the misty view from the hill
Shop selling cute toys, souvenirs, postcards and delicious local foods
Leaving Jiufen, we first took a bus to 瑞芳站, from which we caught a very crowded train back to Taipei. We skipped dinner and went straight to 士林夜市! Despite its name 士林市場 is closer to 劍潭站, which is connected to the night market by a underground tunnel.
Apparently the entire market used to be on the ground level. Most of the food stores have now been moved to the basement while the stalls selling clothes, souvenirs and game stalls were in the covered area on street level. Not that it made a difference to me or anyone who went there for the first time. We tried as much food as we could including fried chicken fillet, oyster omelette, beef and lamb skewers, pancakes, buns and some icy drinks. I honestly cannot comprehend how Taiwanese people stay slim!
The last on this day's itinerary was another must-go; 誠品信義店, which was walkable from 捷運市政府站. Among the many outlets in Taipei, 敦南店 is the main store that operates 24/7. But we were informed by a guide book that 信義店 has a larger collection of books and decided to visit this one instead.
This building had a total of 8 levels from Basement 2 to 6/F. Apart from the bookstore which spanned across levels 2 & 3, the rest of the outlet consisted of restaurants, cafes, stationery store, music shop, boutique children's area, a florist and even a saloon. Calling it a bookshop is such an understatement!! I can't wait for them to open the first outlet in Hong Kong!
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