Outing in Tao-Mi Village and Nan-Tou Mountains
The staff and Board members of Good Samaritan Women Concerns Association had a weekend outing in Nan-Tou county. We arrived at Sun Moon Lake just before 3 p.m. and decided to take a boat ride around the lake. Our boat docked at various tourist spots inside and around the lake. Our first stop was a floating garden, of what used to be a small island in the middle of Sun Moon Lake but submerged during the 921 earthquake 10 years ago. The floating boardwalk and planters provided a 360 degree angle to see the surrounding hill around the lake. The next stop was the Suen Kuang Temple, from the dock we climb uphill for about 15-20 minutes to reach the temple. There were so many tourists from China, eager to take pictures and pay respect to the statues at the temple. From the temple, we went to the aborigines’ village. There was a group of aborigines, belonging to Taya tribe singing. One of them invited me to dance and some in our group also joined in. It was so much fun to dance with aborigine dancers and their music. We walked around and bought some food like grilled sausage, a beverage with rice wine, sliced guava and fried little fishes from the lake. We came back to the port just in time to go to our destination for the night. We rented a private bed and breakfast place in Tao-Mi, Puli district. We got there just before dark. The owner Mr. Liu, welcomed and showed us our rooms. The rooms are built next to the owner’s house, has a rustic flavor to it. The rooms resembled a Japanese style accommodations with wooden floors, the beds are thin foam sprawled on the wooden floor. At the back of the main house, is a huge refectory where they serve the meals for their guests. That night, we enjoyed a sumptuous meal prepared by Mrs. Liu. After dinner, Mr. Liu invited us to go frog watching at around 7 pm. Before going to the river he took us to the famous “Paper Church” or “Paper Dome”. A beautifully engineered open building made of paper columns. It was impressive. The design and paper columns were a donation from Japan, to commemorate the 921 earthquake. After the 921 earthquake, the residents of this little village Tao-Mi did not have much left and rehabilitation was needed. The New Homeland Foundation in cooperation with the government trained the residence of this village into eco-tourism. Tao-Mi is home to Taiwan swamplands. The village changed their mindset into environmentally concerned citizens. Each year, the residents have two training on how to be eco-tour guides. We went down to the river wearing our rubber booths and flashlights looking for different kinds of frogs. Later that night, after we came back, Mr. Liu prepared tea for our group. The theme of the whole village is frog. Even the restrooms are designed like sitting frogs!
The next day, we were served a hearty breakfast after everyone came back from morning walk in the surrounding villages. We had a short morning prayer together. Just before 9 am, we all left the Tao-mi and went into the walking trail in the swampland area. All 7 of us tried the pulling trolley that takes us to the other side of the swamp filled with lilies…it was a great idea! Afterwards, we drove around the valley and mountain roads until we reached the top of the Second Mountain of 9 Mountains. On top of this mountain is a one-story house tipped into a sliding position by the 921 earthquake. Apparently, the mountain which was 2 km away from the house became their backyard after it moved forward to where the house is. This
place was the memorial site of the 921 earthquake. Further up, we went to the place where they called “mountain explosion”.
The entire side of the mountain rolled down to the valleys. It was quite, very few onlookers were there. Truly, it was a powerful reminder of the continuing movement and change of earth’s surface which is catastrophic to those who inhabit the mountainside. The residents had a change of heart, they know they have to live harmoniously with their environment.
We went home and enjoyed “huo-guo” for lunch at Kao A-yi’s restaurant. Nowadays, the little bamboo plant from Tao-mi is beginning to adopt in our little garden in front of the center.
The staff and Board members of Good Samaritan Women Concerns Association had a weekend outing in Nan-Tou county. We arrived at Sun Moon Lake just before 3 p.m. and decided to take a boat ride around the lake. Our boat docked at various tourist spots inside and around the lake. Our first stop was a floating garden, of what used to be a small island in the middle of Sun Moon Lake but submerged during the 921 earthquake 10 years ago. The floating boardwalk and planters provided a 360 degree angle to see the surrounding hill around the lake. The next stop was the Suen Kuang Temple, from the dock we climb uphill for about 15-20 minutes to reach the temple. There were so many tourists from China, eager to take pictures and pay respect to the statues at the temple. From the temple, we went to the aborigines’ village. There was a group of aborigines, belonging to Taya tribe singing. One of them invited me to dance and some in our group also joined in. It was so much fun to dance with aborigine dancers and their music. We walked around and bought some food like grilled sausage, a beverage with rice wine, sliced guava and fried little fishes from the lake. We came back to the port just in time to go to our destination for the night. We rented a private bed and breakfast place in Tao-Mi, Puli district. We got there just before dark. The owner Mr. Liu, welcomed and showed us our rooms. The rooms are built next to the owner’s house, has a rustic flavor to it. The rooms resembled a Japanese style accommodations with wooden floors, the beds are thin foam sprawled on the wooden floor. At the back of the main house, is a huge refectory where they serve the meals for their guests. That night, we enjoyed a sumptuous meal prepared by Mrs. Liu. After dinner, Mr. Liu invited us to go frog watching at around 7 pm. Before going to the river he took us to the famous “Paper Church” or “Paper Dome”. A beautifully engineered open building made of paper columns. It was impressive. The design and paper columns were a donation from Japan, to commemorate the 921 earthquake. After the 921 earthquake, the residents of this little village Tao-Mi did not have much left and rehabilitation was needed. The New Homeland Foundation in cooperation with the government trained the residence of this village into eco-tourism. Tao-Mi is home to Taiwan swamplands. The village changed their mindset into environmentally concerned citizens. Each year, the residents have two training on how to be eco-tour guides. We went down to the river wearing our rubber booths and flashlights looking for different kinds of frogs. Later that night, after we came back, Mr. Liu prepared tea for our group. The theme of the whole village is frog. Even the restrooms are designed like sitting frogs!
The next day, we were served a hearty breakfast after everyone came back from morning walk in the surrounding villages. We had a short morning prayer together. Just before 9 am, we all left the Tao-mi and went into the walking trail in the swampland area. All 7 of us tried the pulling trolley that takes us to the other side of the swamp filled with lilies…it was a great idea! Afterwards, we drove around the valley and mountain roads until we reached the top of the Second Mountain of 9 Mountains. On top of this mountain is a one-story house tipped into a sliding position by the 921 earthquake. Apparently, the mountain which was 2 km away from the house became their backyard after it moved forward to where the house is. This
place was the memorial site of the 921 earthquake. Further up, we went to the place where they called “mountain explosion”.
The entire side of the mountain rolled down to the valleys. It was quite, very few onlookers were there. Truly, it was a powerful reminder of the continuing movement and change of earth’s surface which is catastrophic to those who inhabit the mountainside. The residents had a change of heart, they know they have to live harmoniously with their environment.
We went home and enjoyed “huo-guo” for lunch at Kao A-yi’s restaurant. Nowadays, the little bamboo plant from Tao-mi is beginning to adopt in our little garden in front of the center.
