Green Island

Given that I am not working for an income during our tenure in Taiwan, I have been designated ‘vacation planner’ as one of my ‘job titles’. It sounds easy enough until YOU try navigating your way around mostly Chinese web sites trying to translate!

So, I’m faced with finding places for us to go; however, our choices are somewhat limited. You see, we must stay in Taiwan for 4 months before qualifying for National Health Insurance, which is Taiwan’s subsidized health care system. OK, so someplace in Taiwan it is!!!

This being the week of Christmas seems like the perfect time to take a vacation. Only one problem….while everyone else is enjoying some well-deserved time off, I have Chinese school. Yes, in fact, class is in session even on Christmas day, sadly. So, I must skip school that day to spend it w/the family…but I digress…back to vacation!

After lots of internet surfing and asking around to various people here in Taipei, I booked us 4 days and 3 nights on Green Island, a small island off the south-east coast of Taiwan, in Taitung County. The travel agent I spoke with assured me that while it is low-season on Green Island, the average temperature is somewhere around 16-20 degrees (which is about 68-75 degrees). So, not knowing what to expect, I booked the trip, which included hotel, snorkeling, scooter rental, and a trip to a natural salt-water hot spring (one of only 3 in the world).

As few as 2 weeks ago, it was about 75-78 degrees in Taipei, so I felt we would be ok UNTIL….about 3 days before we left, the weather dropped significantly. On the day we left, the high was about 62 degrees. Always the optimist, I was not swayed as the southern part of Taiwan is typically warmer than the northern part. So, not knowing what to expect, we hopped on a train for the next 5 ½ hours down to Taitung where we would spend one night as the ferry to Green Island wouldn’t leave until Saturday morning. Our hotel was definitely very ‘local’….not quite as nice as a Motel 6, but it was clean, and it was only for one night, so I thought, why not?

Oh yes, I forgot to mention one key piece of information…it is quite common and expected that Taiwanese homes and hotels do NOT have heaters, as it doesn’t typically get that cold. To battle the cold weather, people either pile on the blankets else they purchase portable heaters.

Saturday morning, quite tired from getting to bed late Friday night, we boarded the ferry to Green Island. I had heard that the ferry could be rough, so we all took some Dramamine prior to leaving. I knew it was a bad sign when we noticed plastic baggies by every window. Terry looked at me nervously after we boarded and said ‘better sit towards the back…the security guard told me that is the best place to avoid motion sickness…she also said that today was an especially rough day’…an ominous statement indeed. To say that the ferry ride was rough is an understatement. Not one of us 4 took our eyes off the window during the entire 45 minute ride as the boat continued to get knocked around on the way over. Elaine giggled with glee over the process, and I was alright until the last 15 minutes, when my head finally began to feel a bit woozy. We were one of the lucky ones…many people got a LOT of use out of the plastic baggies J.

Upon arriving on Green Island, we were transported to our hotel, ‘Jack’s Boutique Hotel’, a charming name indeed. From the outside; however, it looked very ‘local’. A girlfriend of mine who recommended Green Island as a destination had mentioned that the accommodations at most places weren’t very luxurious; however, I was a bit surprised at how ‘local’ the place was! On the inside, the hotel looked like a surf shack, and it was about as nice as the hotel in Taitung. However, the hotel owners were quite nice and the place was clean, and given the price we paid….it wasn’t so bad. The only thing which I REALLY did not like was that the floors were all concrete tiles and with the weather being cold, the room was pretty chilly. Oh yes, and as part of our ‘service package’, we were expected to make up our own room…I don’t think I’ve ever stayed in a place where the beds weren’t made, but there’s a first for everything!

Given our bumpy boat ride over and the weather, I braced myself for a lot of complaining and whining. The girls were definitely not in the best of moods; however, after a hot meal and with some coaxing from Terry (who can help but be happy when Terry’s entertaining???), everyone got in the spirit. Our package included the use of 2 scooters, which everyone found WAY cool to ride on. Armed and ready to go, we went off to explore the island. First stop…salt water hot springs.

The hot springs on Green Island are one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen. The hot springs reside in a park built by Green Island which embraces the natural beauty of the coast line with the hot springs. The park is built right on the coast line and some of the hot spring pools are literally right on the beach…although they were closed when we went due to the high winds and cold weather. Outside in the elements, the park has a number of cooler pools with showers and gorgeous sitting areas surrounding the area, with one VERY VERY hot spring in the middle (it was too hot for any of us to try…even with the weather as cold as it was!). The park had one closed-in building which contained a hot spring pool where we all decided to congregate. It reminded me of an indoor pool you’d see in Hokaido (not that I’ve ever been) or in Tahoe. It was absolutely breath-taking. We all warmed up quickly, except Elaine who took about 45 minutes to get used to the temperature! I wound up holding her most of the time so that she wouldn’t get too cold. When she finally was able to get in, most of us were ready to go, but such is life, eh? With more relaxed attitudes and warm bodies, we rode our scooters into town to a place called ‘Crazy Fried’, which had a nice, bright cheery décor. We were greeted by a very friendly woman who promised us a great meal. We were not disappointed.

We warmed up with a hot bowl of rice soup, but the best part by far was the pork braised with basil…the best I’ve had since coming to Taiwan!! It was THAT good. Brianna ate about ½ the plate I think! We also had some ahi sashimi, of which Elaine ate ½. I guess the girls were hungry after all. We lounged for quite some time, chatting w/the owner about Green Island. We found that apparently, we picked the coldest weekend to come, as the owner said she’s never experienced such cold weather in all her 5 years here.

After discovering that there is NO night life on Green Island, we bought some UNO cards and some candy at 7-11 and went back to the room to goof off. Terry fell asleep fast, as he did not nap that afternoon when the rest of us did. The girls and I played cards for a few hours then watched movies until we were tired enough to sleep. We were hoping for a break in the weather, as apparently the best snorkeling time is at 8am. With the alarm set for 7am, I went to sleep with high hopes for a warm morning.

The next morning, I got up quickly and went out for a cup of coffee to see how warm the weather was. After riding my scooter the short distance to the 7-11, I realized that snorkeling in 60-degree WINDY weather was NOT the way to start the day. So, we opted for a nice breakfast and a scooter ride around the island instead. I tell you…riding these scooters around the island was the BEST part. The ride around the island is only about 1 hour, and the entire road is along the coast line. The island is lined with giant volcanic rocks and dramatic cliffs with the bluest ocean I’ve ever seen. We stopped quite frequently to take in the views, check out some cool caves, and just enjoy ourselves. Check out the climb in this picture. That tiny orange dot is me with the girls...climbing the 'Little Great Wall' out to the cliffs overlooking the island. The view was amazing!!

While the weather is less than perfect, it’s not as cold as I was expecting. With long pants and warm coats, we were all quite comfortable riding around in the elements. Yes, it was very windy, but the trade-off was that there were no cars or scooters on the road. We felt as if we had the whole place to ourselves. The food was fabulous and the girls had plenty of time to rest and watch their movies. As you can see, I’ve benefitted as well as I FINALLY have time to update my blog!!!

While I cannot say it’s the BEST vacation we’ve ever had, I will say that the Island is absolutely worth coming to. The place is very local, quite charming in its unspoiled way, and relaxing. Given the fast pace that life has taken since I’ve started Chinese class, this way definitely the break we all needed.

For the rest of the pics (taken w/Terry's fancy new camera), check out Terry's web album at:

http://picasaweb.google.com/tmohr2/GreenIsland#