~ DI.A.NA SIMPLI.CITY ~: 台中。南投。台北之旅

Warning: This is a photo heavy entry

2nd time we travel together
we as in jt & his bro plus me & sis
for 9D8N

So off we went to explore 台中。南投。台北
After flying 6hrs with transits in between at HK, we finally landed at 桃源机场

Part 1 of our trip: 台中

To get there we have to take a bus from the airport to Taoyuan HSR(High Speed Rail) station then board the HSR to Taichung

Upon reaching, our hired driver guide Mr. Liao is there waiting for us.

Checked in to our lovely 民宿（台中逢甲角落民宿）
recommended by Mr. Liao

After dropping luggages at our respective rooms, we brave the rain & head out to 逢甲夜市 to fill the starving foursome

With the expert recommendation from Mr. Liao, we sunk our teeth into 大肠包小肠，排骨酥，烤虾，豆乳鸡，刈包 & 木瓜牛奶　

A group shoot before we return back & rest for the day

Next day we woke up bright & early for some real good breakfast (complementary from 民宿)
拉亚汉堡 the current popular 早餐店 in Taiwan

And this marks the beginning of our foodie trip for the day

The next 2 stops that Mr. Liao brought us to was fantastic too
So good that i believed the pictures say all

Now that we are so damn full after all the eating, we are ready to start our first sight seeing stop - 薰衣草森林

Since we are still not hungry due to the overwhelming breakfast, Mr. Liao brought us to this No.1肉圆 store in Taichung for lunch

The shop only sell 3 types of food and the whole place is chaotic.
So packed, so busy.
Every customer that sat down basically just inform the store people the no. of bowls they want and the gluey 肉圆s will be served.
1 肉圆 per bowl.
淋上他们的特制米浆和辣酱，Super chewy 的外皮Q 到不行，我喜欢。

Part 2 of our trip: 南投

We immersed ourselves in the scenic wild greenery at 清境農場 located at 1,750 meters above sea altitude.
The main attractions here are 青青草原 & 绵羊

Animal lover me no like the 绵羊s there.
Too dirty & smelly. *Blah*

Next stop we moved on to 廬山 for their famous hotspring! Wee~

One of the random stop we made along the way as we saw some 野生sunflowers

By the time we reached up 廬山, night has fallen.
Time for dinner at a 野味饭店

me like their 山苦瓜土鸡汤 & 香酥溪虾 but no like their 清蒸鳟鱼.
After filling our stomach, we went for a stroll at the 老街 coz we can't soak hotspring right after meal.
And bought eggs to cook in spring water. Their famous 温泉蛋!

After that, we excitedly check in to our hotspring resort 樱宿温泉會館

Yup! We have the hotspring tub right in each room.
Apparently, according to Mr. Liao, Taiwanese do not like to soak in public hotspring pool (those open concept shared by everyone) as they find that it is not hygienic.
So they usually do a short getaway to these hotspring resorts to soak away in the private.

Our night entertainment after soaking warm hotspring is 喝台湾啤酒吃温泉蛋 before we get Zzzz

Next day's plan is to go Alishan but we stopped by 日月潭 first.
And we finally see some bright sunlight!
Did i mentioned it was all gloomy sky for the past few days?

Another random stop along the way cos we saw blooming cherry blossom!
In Nov! How lucky!

To 日月潭 we first made a brief stop at 埔里
to visit 18度c巧克力工房

酒廠 & have a 绍興香肠 each

And this is the famous 日月潭

The place didn't wow me away as it was pretty touristy place.
i just want to been there done that.

To fill our stomach, Mr. Liao made a detour to 嘉義 in search for good food.

i only tried the 嘉義肉羹 as the 黑松春饼 has got parsley which i don't like.
i must say i really like the 嘉義肉羹.
猪肉滑嫩，配料丰富（有大白菜、筍絲，还有香菇，金針菇）
湯头吃起來有很重的香菇味.
Reminds me of homecook food

While on the way up Alishan, the weather turned bad.
The clouds were all surrounding the area.
Making the visibility very low
Another random stop at a tea plantation.

Along the way, Mr. Liao made another stop at 奮起湖 a key scenic spot along Alishan railway.

i like this place. Rustic & nostalgia.
Mr. Liao wanted to bring us to this old grandpa who sells homemade 爱玉 but too bad it was closed on that day we visited. So we had to made do with other store located at the 老街.

Another random stop along the drive
See the thick mist surrounding us.
The mist was formed due to the clouds in this high altitude.

Finally we reached our Alishan 青山別館.
a quaint cozy resting place what keeps you warm

Our scrumptious dinner at Alishan

The highlights are 石头火锅 & 山猪肉. In fact the 山猪肉 was so good we ordered a second serving!
Since it was our last night before bidding Mr. Liao goodbye, we also had a good chat & drank with him. But the 高粱 is way too much for me to handle. Alcohol level is 58%!

Next morn, we woke up at 4.30am to make our way up Alishan mountain top for sunrise.
The top attraction in Alishan, the crowds board the predawn train for the 30min ride to the mountain peak on the east side of Alishan. There's even a viewing platform right next to the station which tells you how touristy this place is.

Although we have to woke up at wee hour,
Although we waited for more than an hour,
Although the 云海 wasn't very thick,
Ultimately when we managed to catch the beautiful sun ray,
i must say it was all worth it.

After breakfast, we bought some wooden postcards to mail back home from Post office located at the highest point in Taiwan.

Followed by 阿里山国家公园 tour lead by our lovely 民宿老板娘

Introducing you the most senior dog at Alishan - 海葛

How can we resist a photo shoot with this blooming maple tree just right outside the 民宿

Lastly, that's our lovely 民宿老板娘

And then we proceed on to witness the beauty of 玉山, the highest mountain in Taiwan.
With panoramic views, overlapping mountains, and deep, plunging valleys filled with 云海.
The sun was bright, the sky was blue, the clouds was white & fluffy.
Perfect photo taking spot!

Lunch was settled at an eatery that i know a certain Ms. Ong will like

How's some ice cream & milk tea for dessert?

never try the spring onion pancake as it's not my cup of "onion"

Along the way back to Taichung, a very colourful train caught our attention

Lastly, Mr. Liao brought us to buy some super nice 太阳饼 & 凤梨酥 and buy some betel nuts from 槟榔西施.
Before finally dropping us back at Taichung HSR station.
i am really happy to have booked Mr. Liao as our guide driver for this trip.
He really knows where to find good food for us to try, know how to read weather so that we can take the best opportunity for nice photo shoot & knows how to keep us entertained with his broad range of mp3 songs in his car.