A bit of Laguna in Taiwan

Valerie Swift

Greetings from the road, and welcome to the first chapter of the

Swifts’ travel log.

After a 16-hour flight, including a brief stop in Hong Kong, we

were safely delivered to Taiwan’s tangle of traffic and pollution

called Taipei. The city is typically host to fringe ex-pats and

inquisitive males. We seemed to be the only “Westerners” on holiday,

especially as a couple. Surprisingly, we found Taiwan to offer quite

a few worthwhile tourist attractions, a very agreeable attitude and

genuine friendliness.

Fletch’s childhood friend, a 12-year resident of Taiwan, agreed to

be our tour guide. However, after we had settled into our hotel, our

friend broke the news to us that we were on our own for the first

four days of our 11-day visit. We hadn’t planned for this and arrived

without either maps or a guidebook. Save a few mishaps with food, and

thanks to a Chinese map of Taipei, a nearby English bookstore and the

curiosity of Taiwanese locals, we didn’t do that badly.

In four days, we learned the efficiencies of the subway,

discovered local delicacies such as dumplings and beef noodles, rode

the escalators of the multi-level shopping marts (and we thought

South Coast Plaza was busy) and lingered at Taiwan’s most famous

sites and temples -- National Palace Museum, home to Asia’s largest

art collection, and the renowned Chiang Kai Shek Memorial. We even

hitched a ride with a young Taiwanese couple.

Exhausted from the possibilities of Taipei, our friend played

chauffeur and drove us nine hours through Taroko National Park.

(Well, it should have been a six-hour drive, but since none of us

could read the road closure signs in Taiwanese, we ended up driving

three-hours out of the way.)

We climbed more than 10,000 feet above sea level on a windy road

literally carved out of the side of the mountain. Speeding cars and

trucks were relentless at passing regardless of the no-passing signs

and single lane. It was a bit nerve racking, but the views were

spectacular and more than made up for the journey.

Our drive back to Taipei found us in the ex-pat community since we

were craving Western food. At this point, we would have given

anything for a Mexican meal from Wahoo’s, Javier’s or La Sirena.

After Taiwan, our itinerary called for a stop in Hong Kong, a hub

for Asia’s travelers. We planned a four-day layover in hopes of

acclimating to the steadily increasing heat before our final

destination, Thailand.

A city of cement peaks and valleys due to the vast number of

skyscrapers filling every square inch of the island, it seems that

there is one purpose for Hong Kong -- shopping. We challenged

ourselves to find the other reasons for Hong Kong.

This included a trip to Victoria Peak (a sky-high viewpoint

overlooking the islands of Hong Kong), a tram ride around the city

and a train excursion to nearby Lantau Island to climb the steps of

the mountain-top Buddha. Most spectacular was the nighttime view of

Hong Kong. It is a living neon billboard for some of the world’s

largest companies.

We didn’t expect to enjoy Hong Kong as much as we did, but its

“living large” feel in a limited space reminded us of home. All of

the automobiles seemed to be either Mercedes, BMWs, Rolls Royce,

etc., offering a striking resemblance to the streets of Laguna Beach.

Next stop, Thailand.

* VALERIE SWIFT is a Laguna Beach resident. This is the second of

four articles on her recent travels.