Hualien

Hello again everyone,

As I write this particular notation, I am riding the long and winding train back home from Hualien.  At the bequest of a dear friend that I have met since my study term first began here last August, Yider, I visited what can be considered a home town of hers, and one of the widely reputed “Most Beautiful Places in Taiwan”, Hualien City, and the mountainous region that lies nearby, Taroko Gorge.  Hualien is located between two features that the local Pittsburgh region is lacking: a vast Ocean front, and many jutting peaks of newly formed mountains.  All due respect to Appalachia, but they are the old kids on the block.  Even in the States, the Rockies are the younger, hipper range.  Comparatively, the mountains of Taroko, located in the seismically active region of Taiwan, are the even younger and steeper.  In video game lingo, the Appalachian Mountain Range is the Atari, the Rockies are roughly the equivalent of, lets say, the Playstation 1, and the Taroko Peaks are the X-Box 360 of this group.

Upon first observation of the landscape, there lies a terrific comparison; the steep mountains to the West and the endless blue expanse of the East.  Even driving along the roads in the city, you are often treated to a very scenic panorama of mountains, the tips of which are obfuscated by wispy clouds.  This appreciation for natural beauty only increased as Yider and I traveled to the Taroko Gorge.  Yider, a former worker at the Taroko National Park, was a terrific guide in showing me the highlights and impressive features of the Gorge.  The Trail of 9 Turns, the Eternal Spring Shrine, Swallow Gorge, and other amazing features really reignited my passion for the wilderness that was once so long ago set by a trip to Yellowstone National Park.  Due to the flawed nature of memory, I will save both the reputation of Yellowstone and my own by not forcing a comparison between the two places.

In addition to the trips to reveal the natural beauty that Taiwan holds, Yider also informed me of much of our mutual passion: history.  It seems that this area in particular has a wealth of indigenous history from the tribes that originally populated these lands before Chiang Kai Shek traveled here after his war with Mao and even before the Japanese occupied the land during the 19^th century.  Yider, also a historian, made a terrific travel companion for this particular excursion.  As one may guess, I “owe her something huge” for her services.

In any case, Hualien also afforded me the opportunity to travel southward into a large valley.  Below Hualien lies another mountain range that comes up from the sea, giving the traveler a different experience but an hour or two South.  We hit several other areas, with Yider showing me an old logging city established during the Japanese occupation that worked to harvest rare, pungent wood,  a modern sugar factory, which sported, among other things, a wonderfully well-stocked coi pond full of not-to-surprisingly well-fed fish, and a small Japanese Shrine, where I was able to speak some with one of the volunteer, whom involved me in a talk about Buddhist values to some school-children.  It was enjoyable and provided me with one of the things that I require most: something to think about.

Over the three days that I spent in Hualien, I traveled to deep valleys and high cliffs, walked tribal trails and forest compounds, and got to experience much on both philosophical, intellectual, and emotional levels that have left me feeling content and fulfilled for the time being, not to mention a bit tired.  I fear I must bring this writing to close now, as I am beginning to notice another, more immediate feeling creeping into me: motion sickness.  So I bid you farewell for now and hope that the pictures that I will attach will provide you with a small idea of the natural beauty of the region.

Thanks as always,

Alex

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~ by Alex Kuchta on February 12, 2010.