烘炉地南山福德宫 Hongludi Nanshan Fude Temple

I believe I came across this idea for a day hike within Taipei in some travel magazine, and decided to go for it. (probably spurred by some ingress goals)

how to get there: alight at NanShiJiao Station 南势角站 and start walking! it’s a long walk but there are many shops along the way for you to grab a bite and a drink before you hit the base of the hill.

from here onwards, the climb starts in earnest. the good thing is that it’s all stairs and no muddy trails. I believe I did the climb in ballet flats.

and you’ll be rewarded with a view!

there were portals here, but it’s not the end of climbing, lol

more stairs

and then it’s the temple itself

although, since I’m not Buddhist, I enjoyed the view instead

and now the descent, to the night market for a good meal

it’s a nice activity for half a day!

Xinjiang: The Bayanbulak Swan Lake (with no swans)

Grazing animals are lovely to watch.

China has a thing about fencing up natural wonders and charging (exorbitant ticket prices) for them. They do so for lakes, and prairies, and mountains… I understand charging a fee for landscaped parks and historical wonders, collecting donations for museums and places of worship, but charging for natural wonders is simply being opportunistic. Paying for services is acceptable, as is paying a fee for maintenance upkeep, but for a view…? Perhaps I am merely being naive and miserly.

(The descriptions in English can be read if you enlarge the photographs.)

Here, we were given some time to take a walk (uphill) to see a meandering river.

I was super cold, and luckily there were coats for rent (100RMB, 50RMB refunded on return of the coat). The domestic Chinese tourists had some good-natured fun teasing me, a foreigner, for wearing the Red Army coat.

Yes, I do look warm enough to hike the Himalayas, not some highland lake. Ignore my messy hair and check out the curvey river behind!

Given that there were no real swans around…are swans migratory? Or is ‘The Swan Lake’ merely a description of the graceful arches of the river?