As 2013 turning to an end, I went to Taiwan for a 7-day around the island tour.  I saw many attractions and ate a lot of good food.  Taiwan people are nice and warm.  I like Taiwan, it was a delightful experience.

Since I like nature, Taroko National Park, Sun Moon Lake and Island’s Most Southern tip gave me deep impression.  Taroko NP located in Hualien County, it is one of the nine national parks in Taiwan and was named after the Taroko Gorge, the landmark gorge of the park carved by the Liwu River.  The name, Taroko(formally as Truku), means "human being" in the Truku language of the Truku indigenous tribe.  Long ago a Truku tribesman saw the beauty of the azure Pacific when he walked out of the gorge.  On seeing the magnificent scene, he cried "Taroko!".  And so it became the name of the place, in a fashion not dissimilar to how the island, Formosa, got its name.

Sun Moon Lake is the largest body of water in Taiwan, located in Nantou County.  The area around the Sun Moon Lake is home to the Thao tribe, one of aboriginal tribes of Taiwan. Sun Moon Lake surrounds a tiny island called Lalu. The east side of the lake resembles a sun while the west side resembles a moon, hence the name.  I enjoyed the boat ride in the lake and walking around the lake.  Taking a break to watch local Taiwanese people sing and dance at the pier was delightful.

Eluanbi Park is located at the southern tip of Taiwan and part of Kenting National park.  The name 'Eluan' (鹅銮) is derived from Paiwan language meaning "sail" while the Chinese word 'bi' 鼻 which means nose, refers to the shape of the cape.  Though a little windy, the view of the seashore was amazing.

When you go to Taiwan, you must visit a night food market, there are so many delicious foods to choose from, it’s a foodie’s heaven.  I went to Kaohsiung’s Liu He Night Market 六合夜市 and tried some tasty snacks including grilled squid and other delight.  When you are in Tainan, be sure to eat the well-known Tainan noodle, it’s yummy.

Some of the other things I enjoyed to do are: visiting the National Palace Museum, it has some of the most beautiful jade collection in the world. Going to the top at Taipei 101, 360 city view from there was superb.  Visiting Teresa Teng’s museum and listening to her album, Teresa Teng is my favorite pop singer of my time, her sweet voice and songs are timeless.  I like many of her songs, too many to name a few.