Love the Life You Live. Live the Life you Love (Bob Marley)

Our final day at Sun Moon Lake was just as rewarding as the first few days. It started with a visit to the Xuanzang Temple (named after a famous Buddhist monk), followed by a 750 metre stair climb to the Ci'en Pagoda where from the top of the 43 metre high pagoda there was a scenic view of the entire Sun Moon Lake area. After walking back down we caught a bus to the east side of the lake and the spectacular Wenwu Temple complex, nestled half way up a steep slope. Built in 1938 when Japan decided to build a dam for power (that would have flooded two lower temples), and rebuilt in 1969, it featured 3 halls that were built in the manner of high ranking temples on several different levels. The lake view from the top was very scenic. We spent our last night once again at the Night Market, marking 4 consecutive evenings eating delicious street food.

The Xuanzang Temple, a short bus ride from our Sun Moon Lake stay in Ita Thao. The temple was named after a famous Buddhist monk who in the early 600's travelled to India to better understand the varying Buddhist beliefs and came back 20 years later a much wiser man. Some of his relics were kept on the 2nd floor.

A view of Sun Moon Lake and it's defining island in the middle, taken from above the temple.

The Ci'en Pagoda, a 750 metre mostly stair climb from the Xuanzang Temple. Former leader Chiang Kai-Shek had the pagoda built in memory of mother. Perhaps my children will do something similar for me one day.

The Wenwu Temple on the east side of Sun Moon Lake. There were two more levels beyond what is visible, with equally impressive buildings. There were vermilion stone tigers on each side of the entrance guarding the complex.

A 2 hour bus ride took us back to the west coast and the city of Taichung where we spent 2 nights. Our highlight there was the kick-off of the 2 week long Taiwan Lantern Festival which was held in Taichung this year. On Opening Night, the first full moon of the lunar calendar, we headed to the main festival area at the north end of the city which covered an area of almost 100 acres. We spent over 4 hours at the enormous site and discovered the next day that we only saw two thirds of the exhibits. There were themes for each of the many different sections with an ongoing contest rewarding the judges top picks. The light bulb lit, craft art lanterns, depicting animals, cartoon characters and scenes, were quite entertaining, and became even more so as the skies darkened, brightening the lanterns even more. The main stage area with music and dance groups performing all evening, was very crowded so we didn't spend as much time there. The festival will certainly be one of our favourite Taiwan experiences.

Picture taken at the Painted Animation Lane in Taichung. The lane way was filled with close to one hundred murals like this one. I had trouble locating this spot but an older Taiwan lady pointed me in the right direction after I pretended I was painting on a wall. Language knows no barriers.

My sweetheart, pleased as punch, when I took her to the famous Miyahara Ice Cream store in Taichung. By the time we arrived, late in the morning, there was already a significant line-up outside the door along the sidewalk. A lunch stop was not required that particular day.

One of the displays in the Animation section of the 2020 Taiwan Lantern Festival. The yellow dots that are visible on the characters are actually the light bulbs inside for brightness. When darkness arrived two hours later they were less visible and the lanterns appeared much brighter.

Japanese animation (Anime) is very big in Taiwan and can be seen throughout the country in murals, fashion and even TV shows. The Lantern Festival feeds off of the popularity. 

A lantern temple in the Religious Harmony section. The electrical bill for the 2 week festival must be massive.

This was as close as we could get, and wanted to get, to the main stage at the Lantern Festival. Nearby, there was a magnificent Tree of Light display, with a coloured light sequence that changed with the music. I captured a short video that turned out well.

From Taichung we took two trains, via Taipei at the north end of the island, to reach Hualien on the opposite side of the country, While the shortest distance would have been to cross the island, the Central Mountain Range which goes from the north to the south has limited traffic accessibility and the efficient train system made it a much quicker trip to circumvent the higher elevation. Our main reason for heading here was the popular Taroko Gorge National Park, and it did not disappoint. The NP is a one hour bus ride north of the city so we opted for a full day tour with a well reviewed, small tour size company. Together with 4 other tourists, we spent the day in awe of the steep and narrow, white marble stone gorge. Our guide led us on 3 relatively easy trails (Shakadang, Swallow Grotto and Tunnel of 9 Turns), across two suspension bridges, a steep climb to a 'wishing bell' tower, a couple of temples, and a bridal veil waterfall. Along the way we also stopped into a former aboriginal village where we learned about tribal life and sampled food they ate. It was a great day and we plan to bus it to the gorge once again tomorrow on our own to visit some additional trails and sights further into the NP.

The last 10 days have been a good run, leading up to the finish of our two month trip but we still have a short time left with another intriguing venture planned to the north end of the country.

The Taroko Gorge near Hualien on the east coast of Taiwan. This is the dry season so the water levels are low at this point. The bright, clear water, framed by the white marble rock made for mesmerizing views. The ongoing dialogue between rock and water continues.

The gorge walls at some points were carved out to allow the only road to pass through. In other spots, tunnels were used.

This picture was taken at the Tunnel of 9 Turns Trail. A tunnel replaced the former road which was damaged in an earthquake.....Taiwan has many of them......which now allows visitors to walk the 700 metre trail without having to worry about traffic. The other trails we walked were along actual walking paths used by the aboriginal tribes centuries ago. Descendants set up a couple of stalls and sold some of their crafts along one of the paths.