Monday we woke up early to go bird watching and got to see and hear many indigenous birds of Taiwan. Some included Steer’s Liocichla, White-tailed robin, Brown bullfinch, and the Taiwan Sibia. Steer’s Liocichla and the Taiwan Sibia are endemic to Taiwan which means that they are only found here. Something cool that came out of this bird watching was that we were able to see first-hand how one does research on birds. Two students were collecting Steer’s Liocichla for their research project and we got to see how they collected their data.

After bird watching we took a tour around Meifeng. Our tour guides pointed out various plants that were used by aboriginal tribes to repel insects, keep from being thirsting, etc. Then we went to the temperate greenhouse where we saw a lot of plants that I am familiar with: sage, rosemary, hydrangea, snapdragons and begonias.

After lunch we had a lecture on table waste composting. The lecturer was from Quebec but moved to Taiwan in 1964. It was very interesting to hear a person with a French accent speak Chinese. From his lecture I learned that a household in Taiwanproduces 2.6 kg of table waste every day. This means that roughly 12 million kg of table waste is produced every day throughout the island. He said never compost meat, seafood, or milk products. He owns a 1 ha farm on the north coast of Taiwanand produces his own compost. The compost is used on his crops and he says that there are no insects, no metals, and has saved peoples lives. This lecture was pretty interesting and I might try composting when I get back home.

After lecture we harvested sugar-beets. They challenged us to pick the heaviest beet and the top two would be used to create juice. I didn’t even weigh mine because I knew it couldn’t beat the ones that had already been weighed. We cut the beets, apples and pineapples and blended them all together. After tasting the juice we decided to go through the hedge maze just up the road; it reminded us of Harry Potter!

We had a night moth observation and got to see many different types of moths. We even got to see the bats that were feeding on the moths. After observing the moths we star-gazed and I saw a shooting star! Being so high up in the mountains made me feel like I could reach up and touch the stars.

Sunday we went toHehuan Mountain and hiked two trails. Driving up there was pretty sketchy, but when we arrived it was definitely worth all the mini heart attacks I had. The mountains were so beautiful and majestic. Also, I could finally enjoy a cool breeze and no humidity, it was wonderful!

After the hikes we had lunch and then went to Cingjing Farm or The Evergreen Grasslands. We saw a show where they herded sheep and then sheared one. Next, we went to see a honey stand where they showed us how they harvest the honey; it was pretty good. Then we went to go see the equestrian show. This place was a joke and was a poor representation of farm life. Most tourists that go to the farm are from the city and have never seen farm animals before. To be brutally honest, it was a waste of time and money.

 

 

After eating dinner we had lecture on the introduction to Meifeng Farm. The farm was established in 1937 by the Japanese to provide equipment and manpower to promote teaching and research of NTU and other agricultural and biological institutions. The total area of the farm includes three areas totaling 1,092 ha. The Truwan area is natural forest, the Chun-Yang area produces vegetables, ferns, aquatic plants, and orchids, and the Mei-Feng area produces crops such as cabbage, sugar-beets, peaches, and provides eco-tours for visitors. I learned that Mei-Feng actually means “without wind.” I also found out that it usually snows every 5 years here, but because of global warming it snows every 10 years. We are staying at Mei-Feng Farm which is 2,100 meters above sea level; this is a big change from Taipeiwhich sits at 10 meters above sea level. Luckily I did not get altitude sickness. This farm is also one of Taiwan’s top 100 places to visit.

Yesterday we got to go to Taroko National Parkand hike the Shakadang Trail. The park’s elevation is from sea level to over 3000 meters. It was amazing to see how the river carved out the gorge that the trail ran along side. We stopped at one point to go down to the river and enjoy the cold water. This was a fun hike! I also got to see the fern that we ate the night before. For lunch I tried sea cucumber (not a fan) and finally had guava. It smells like an apple and has the texture of a pear, it was good. After lunch we headed back to Taipeiand arrived to the dorm around 5pm. I wanted a hamburger and french fries so bad, so we asked our NTU friends where we could get one without having to go to McDonalds. They suggested Second Floor Café which is super close to the dorm, but they warned us that it is a very popular restaurant and we might have to wait for up to two hours to get seated. We got there around 5:30 and did not have to wait, we were so surprised. There was only one beef burger on the menu and it was called the Logo Burger. I had no idea what was on it because the menu was in Chinese, but I thought to myself: ‘who cares, as long as it has beef on it I want it!!’ So I ordered it and was the happiest person on the planet. It had a beef patty, slice of ham, fried shrimp, lettuce, tomato, red onion, pickle, and mayonnaise. IT WAS SO DELICIOUS!!! This is the first American meal I had since leaving the States.

Fern we ate for dinner on Thursday

Finally an American meal!

Today we set out on our 11 day trip down the west coast and into central Taiwan. We ate lunch at a restaurant where a wedding party was in full swing. The bride was beautiful! After lunch mis amigas y yo wanted to go across the street to get some fruit at the store. I have gotten used to the fact that I frequently shop at 7-11, Target (bakery), and street markets so I had no idea that they had normal grocery stores here. The place was amazing; it had cereal, oatmeal, pretty much all the things that I miss from home.

 

 

It took us almost all day to get to Meifeng Farm in Nantou County. It is beautiful here and the weather is amazing, it is so cool and there is no humidity. We just open the windows and the outside air is our AC! It is also super quiet here and it reminds me of the Ranch during deer season, except there is no cedar. We rested for about two hours and then went to go eat dinner near the hotel. Afterwards we had more free time and walked up to see the gardens. I found that they have a couple of lavender rows, radishes, pecan trees, and even a maze to get lost in. Tomorrow we will be hiking in the mountains and it’s going to be chilling, but I am excited!

Thursday we packed up, left Shifen and headed to KingCar OrchidPark. Before we went into the greenhouses we had a lecture on Phalaenopsisproduction in Taiwan. I learned that to promote vegetative growth the greenhouses must be kept at 30˚C during the day and 25˚C at night. To force flowering, the orchids are kept at 25˚C during the day and 20˚C at night. The professor also stressed the three most important things to keep your orchids alive and healthy:

(1) Watering- do not over water!

(2) Light- orchids require at least 6 hours of light a day, move plants away from or toward the window to manipulate the amount of light they receive

(3) Fertilizing- to see blooms on a regular basis apply a weak fertilizer solution every time you water them

After the lecture we were able to take a tour through the various greenhouses. I was wondering why we were able to go through the greenhouses without de-contaminating ourselves and at the end of the tour our tour guide explained to us that these greenhouses are specifically used for tourist visits. We were able to see the orchid in all of its stages, from seedling to full bloom. They were so beautiful! Another interesting fact is that Taiwanis the only country allowed to export Phalaenopsisto the U.S.with its medium, which is sphagnum moss.

After lunch we winded our way down the east coast and stopped at Cingshui Cliff. When we first pulled into the stop I was wondering what was so special about this spot. Little did I know, we were not staying on the Cliff, but we were walking down to the ocean! I was so excited!! It was a rocky beach and the waves broke right on shore. I thought I was standing far enough away from the breaking waves, but I was wrong, and my whole butt got wet! With the towering cliffs behind me and the crashing waves in front of me, I definitely felt the power of Mother Nature.

After spending some time on the beach we got back on the bus and headed to Hualien to settle into our hotel. We had dinner and I tried kidney and fern. The kidney was disgusting and the fern was so-so. After dinner we went to a store that is famous for making mochi. I had peanut with mochi and taro with mochi, they were both delicious. We attempted to make it to the city’s night market, but what we thought was going to be a fifteen minute walk one way turned into a forty minute walk and we did not even make it to the market. If you ever go to Hualien and want to go to the night market make sure you are hungry and take a cab!