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| Bike set up |
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| The damsel took more than 20 minutes to unpack and repack before she could begin setting up her bike!!! |
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| These pros had to help her! |
Rolling out after a long delay, it was difficult to adjust ourselves to riding on the right side of the road. We had to recondition ourselves! Time after time, we got disorientated after maneuvering a turn.
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| Note the white box on the road |
Luckily for us, KC was around, guiding us to stop at the little white box at major junctions. Painted white on the road, the box serves as a stopping point for all 2 wheeled vehicles.
Taking the route suggested by YC, we rode to our hotel via the elevated pass for both pedestrians and cyclists, whilst taking on the view of The Eye of Kaoshiung and 85 Sky Tower. Later, we rode close to the wharf before diverting to a more scenic view along the Love River. When it became necessary, we braved the busy Jiuru Road 3 to arrive at the doorsteps to our hotel.
It was way past lunch hour when we docked at J Hotel. All of us were famished except for Christoph who was seen cradling a take-away coffee in his hands. He could have snacked as well, arriving at the hotel by train with lots of time to spare. Time which he chose to spend on the phone instead of collecting his rented bike from the nearby Giant bike shop as instructed!!!
After dumping our heavy weights by the reception desk, we went out in search of food. This we quickly found, a stone’s throw away from base and midway to the train station. A shop specializing in take-away lunch boxes, they come in a few selections of pork ribs, fried chicken and others; accompanied by rice and 3 side dishes of choice. As the food was piping hot and it was our first meal in Taiwan, we relished every bite!
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| E Bike |
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| Pedal powered bike |
When we were done nursing our hunger, we proceeded to the train station to get our tickets for Douliu. Then, we crossed the road to Giant Bike Shop to collect Christoph’s bike before proceeding to the lanes behind to buy our Taiwanese simcards. It was all long but necessary procedures to get us started on our holiday!
Returning to the hotel for a quick check in, we began our Taiwan tour, riding out to Oceanside Café for a sunset view of the ocean. It was a scenic ride passing by the ferry terminal and lighthouse. However, to get to the cherry of the cake, we had to take a long steep climb, passing by the university campus and hillside farms!
The café itself, has a wide verandah on the rear portion. The best views were all taken up when we arrived hence we were just thankful to secure a table to ourselves. Anyway, we weren’t on any romantic moods and staring at a blurry horizon with a few ships can get quite boring after awhile!
On our way back, we made a detour to Sizihwan Bay Tunnel, a historical monument built in 1927 by the Japanese. This tunnel connects to National University of Sun Yat Sen and was once used as a shelter from US bomb raids during WWII.
Entering the city center, it was total chaos. A race event was ongoing and one lane was totally blocked off for runners. This created a bumper to bumper traffic.
When we did escape the throngs of sweat infused flesh, we bumped into a glitzy, live, stage performance. The loud song rendition in hokkien was another call for escape but KC was mesmerized by the singer in cabaret glitter and feathers! Turning back, he had disappeared amongst the small crowd of bored old men and had to be plucked away!
That evening, after savouring Kaoshiung’s famous dumplings, we returned to Giant Bike Shop for a final tweak on Sue’s bike. Either that or she was totally smitten by the 2 young technicians!
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| At the oyster omelette and noodles shop |
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| Desserts before calling it a day |
Later, we had to satiate her “hunger”, offering her food instead of “young flesh”! We hit Rehe St and found the place filled with endless street food. One thing for sure though, the food offered on the streets kept repeating itself…oyster omelette, oyster noodles, wantan mee, fried foods… oyster omelette, oyster noodles, wantan mee, fried foods… oyster omelette, oyster noodles, wantan mee, fried foods.
That’s probably what lulled us to bed that night!!! Not sheep but food!!!
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| Rehe Street |
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| Rehe Street |
Lunch : NT500 for 6 pax
Train tickets (Kaoshiung to Douli) : NT203 per passenger. Bicycles on board is charged the same rate
Sim card : NT500 for 2.2 GB
Photo courtesy :
1. KC
2. Sue
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