about the same size as Vancouver Island

I’d been told “if you want to see all of China but don’t have enough time, Taiwan is a great alternative.” Settled by talented, creative and industrious Chinese who rejected communism under Mao Tse Tsung in 1945 and fled to what was then called Formosa, the little island (about the same size as Vancouver Island) has evolved into a technological powerhouse. However, it’s really the traditions of art, food and old-fashioned good manners that reveal the real Taiwan.
Ilha Formosa, which means Beautiful Island, was the name that Portuguese sailors gave to Taiwan when they arrived in 1517. Only 394 km long and 144 km wide, I discovered that — outside of cosmopolitan Taipei and the crowded west coast cities — the island boasts magnificent scenery ranging from lush rice paddies to mountain ranges flourishing with flora and fauna, to rugged coastlines and several unique offshore islands.
A complete circumnavigation of the island can easily be done in a week, starting with the modern capital. Taipei 101, the world’s tallest office tower, shows off the shiny steel and glass side of the city. The best of Chinese art can be found in Taipei’s huge National Museum, where 3,000 years of Chinese history evolve before your eyes. (The Nationalists took it with them for “safekeeping” when they fled the mainland.) Across town the Chiang Kai-shek Museum tells the story of more recent Taiwan in several glittering pavilions, all free. Colourful night markets and armies of scooters crowd the city’s busy streets.
I jumped on the bullet train and flashed south at 300 kph, stopping off for some side tours to visit old Hakka Chinese villages such as Beipu and Lugang. Under no circumstances should anyone miss the architectural gem of Nan Yuan in Hsinchu County, at 88-hectares the largest private Chinese garden in the world. Built in 1985 for private use, the garden was only opened to the public in 2008. Imagine a quiet life of meditation, conversation, poetry, painting, calligraphy and music, all hidden within a walled garden filled with rocks, water, trees, plants, sculptures and temples. In ancient times only the elite could dream of such a life, and to most people today such a vision is no more than pictures in a book or a Hollywood movie. In Nan Yuan the dream becomes a reality.
I headed further south down to Miaoli County where 47,759 lanterns of many shapes and sizes were on display at the 2011 Miaoli Lantern Festival, breaking the Guinness World Record. I visited with a man known only as the Old Lantern Master at his shop where, at 89, he still paints his traditional paper lanterns by hand in the style of his ancestors.
Few westerners seem to know that tropical Taiwan is mostly mountainous with the highest peaks in all of Asia. Hiking and biking trails criss-cross the island.
A paved cycling trail is being built to circumnavigate the entire island, and bike rentals are available everywhere. Surfing is apparently popular, in the (very) hot summer season, which is also typhoon time. Skip the blistering heat and go in spring or fall.
So far off the beaten track is remote Kinmen Island that even most Taiwanese have never visited it. The big surprise is that this tiny island is just a half kilometre off the mainland Chinese coast, so close that the two Chinas have fought several wars over control of its strategic location. In 1959 Mao’s forces bombarded Kinmen endlessly, forcing the fearful inhabitants to dig shelters and tunnels for survival. Today, with relationships between the two Chinas improving, several kilometres of tunnels have been opened as tourist attractions. A strange experience indeed is stumbling through these tunnels in the dark while listening to air raid sirens and simulated bombardments. I followed with a visit to Master Wu’s nearby knife factory where the renowned artist keeps busy turning a mountain of old artillery shells into expensive stainless steel knives and swords, a souvenir with a story to tell.
Heading back north up the rocky eastern coast, I ventured into territory few tourists ever visit. Surprising to me was the discovery that 14 aboriginal communities are alive and thriving in Taiwan. Bunun Village provides a glimpse of the traditions and lifestyles of this ancient aboriginal tribe. The Bunun lived in the mountainous regions of central Taiwan since their arrival several millenniums ago (from Indonesia or Polynesia) until the coming of Christian missionaries a century ago. The Bunun were known to be fierce warriors and headhunters. Today, they are better known for singing and dancing, with weekend shows attracting large crowds.
The entire east coast of Taiwan in inundated by hot springs. The Taiwanese love to bask in indoor and outdoor hot pools, but for me perhaps the strangest sensation of any of my trips in the world was the hot springs where a special breed of fish has been raised and trained to suck on your toes. Yes, totally true. The tiny piranha-type fish nibble dead skin off your feet when you stick your feet into their hot pool, truly an electrifying feeling. I jumped two feet in the air and lasted only a few minutes before fleeing in front of laughing villagers.
The National Centre for Traditional Arts in the northeast’s Yilan County is a 24-hectare park that should never be missed. Although the complex looked more like an expensive shopping mall than art gallery, I was wowed by the craftsmanship evident in the dizzying array oleather workrk, Chinese calligraphy, glassware, pottery, woodwork, puppets, and Chinese lanterns. This is pure shopping heaven for those determined to find “the real deal” and not replicas. Everything from food to hotels here, and all over Taiwan, is reasonably priced.
No visit to the east coast is complete without a tour of Taroko National Park, Taiwan’s own Grand Canyon, famous for its 19-km gorge through deep mountains, with a rushing white-water river working its way through sheer cliffs and bizarre marble formations. The entire northeast coastline is a photographer’s delight with high jagged cliffs tumbling down to rocky beaches.
Back in Taipei, those looking for the “real Taiwan” should take a stroll through the emerging Kang-Qing-Long District, a community of cutting-edge artists, writers and intellectuals operating tea houses, record stores, book and antique shops, all of who share a unique business model: “Earning life rather than earning money.” Here you’ll find owners and staff keen to discuss Taoist philosophy while selling you a record from the hippest underground bands in Asia or tea grown from the most select hillsides in the countryside.
Perhaps the biggest surprise from a visit to this “jewel of the Pacific” is not the art or landscapes, but the polite people and culture of modesty. In an increasingly globalized and jaded world where so many travellers wear T-shirts, old jeans and a baseball cap, the Taiwanese are radically different. Old and young, rich or peasant farmer, all Taiwanese seem to be well dressed, very polite and outgoing. Outside one museum I even read a notice that read: “No admittance for slovenly dress.” Now that’s certainly a sign you sure won’t see in Disneyland.
The only words you need to know are “née how? (“how are you?) and “shey shey!” (thank you) which roll off the tongue at every transaction. Thailand may be known as the Land of Smiles but surely that title should go to Taiwan. A journey to this exotic land swings back and forth between old and new, hip and traditional, keeping you surprised all the time. One thing is a constant, though, and it’s that the Taiwanese are classy people. Be sure to bring an entire box of business cards, because everyone will ask you for one as a memento of meeting you. Chances are you’ll make more friends from a trip to Taiwan than in a lifetime of other journeys.