????TAITUNG TRIP -- DULAN, with BIG COCONUTS... (台東都蘭)
Second day of our trip to Taitung with stops at Liji Badlands, Lalulan Seaside Park, Water Running Up, Dulan Sugar Factory, Tian Mama Restaurant, Moonshine Inn, Jiamuzi Bay, and Low Pressure Guesthouse.
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Restaurant Info:
Tian Mama Restaurant (都蘭田媽媽廚房)
Add: No. 307-2, Neighborhood 35, Dulan Village, Donghe Township, Taitung County (台東縣東河鄉都蘭村35鄰307-2號)
Tel: (0955) 548-965
Cafe Info:
Moonshine Inn (月光小棧)
Add: No. 420-8, Dulan Village, Donghe Township, Taitung County (台東縣東河鄉都蘭村420號之8)
Tel: (089) 530-012
Guesthouse Info:
Low Pressure Surf
Add: No. 99, South Donghe, Donghe Township, Taitung County (台東縣東河鄉南東河99號)
Tel: (089) 896-738
Website:
English and Chinese
Dulan 都蘭
Jialulan Seaside Park 加路蘭遊憩區
Jiamuzi Bay 加母子灣
Liji Badlands 利吉惡地
Taitung 台東
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Also watch the latest video on this channel: {Trip} LALASHAN on the Northern Cross-Island Highway (北橫拉拉山)
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Travel in Taiwan May/June, 2016:
Xiaoyeliu was our first stop inside the East Coast National Scenic Area (eastcoast-nsa.gov.tw), which stretches from just north of Taitung City to just south of Hualien City. Beyond its sheer beauty, this natural stone-sculpture scenic area is highly info-taining for those types – like your writer – thrilled with matters geology-related. Along the shore you’ll find large rock formations – honeycomb rock, mushroom rock, tofu rock, cuestas – and in the visitor center well-crafted models and rock samples introducing the geological features of Xiaoyeliu and the coastal mountains.
A short distance north is Jialulan. This is a seaside art park – and an eco-engineering showcase, on a transformed waste-soil site created during construction of the adjoining air-force base – with works spread out over an expansive grassland. Most are of wood, and most of the wood is of coastline-gathered driftwood, a popular Taitung-artist medium. My favorite installation features a wood-weave shell stuffed full with the human-created detritus that washes ashore in monster storms – things you’d expect, like fishing gear, but also much that’s bizarre. A stethoscope? A calculator?
Another short drive north brings you to small Jiamuzi Bay, at the foot of Mt. Dulan. This is a place of stunning archetypal tropical scenery – the mountain sloping right down to the coast, coconut trees along the shore, attractive coral reefs just offshore, disappearing under frothy waves and then popping up again. This is a popular spot for surfing, snorkeling, and other watersports.
The Water Running Upward attraction, a must-visit spot for the tour-bus crowd, is just south of Dulan village. And just what is it? A long, narrow, shallow irrigation channel comes down from the hills, running through a small sculpted park. And for all the world, it looks as though the gurgling waters defy gravity along this 100m stretch. Real or illusion? We inspected the waterworks from every angle; the stream, counter-intuitively, seems not to slow down or pool up at all. Take the riddle on for yourself with a first-hand gander. (Nevertheless, I give you the answer at article’s end.)
The sprawling, big-shouldered old Dulan Sugar Factory, in Dulan village, one of the coast’s largest Amis-tribe settlements, makes sugar no more. The heritage complex, now protected, is today a place for local and expat artists and craftsmen. There are artist workshops, a cultural-creative boutique, a café, a craft brewery, Taiwanese and Japanese restaurants, a quick-food kiosk, a driftwood stage, and other attractions. The big action is on Saturday nights, when there is free live music, with both local and expatriate talent performing.
On the slopes of Mt. Dulan just to Dulan’s northwest, on a road that leads to the popular Moonlight Inn café (see Stay/Eat/Buy article), is the Dulan Site. The short paths to the spread-out finds on view, which include a sarcophagus and large stones from a long wall used in worship rites, start at roadside and have clear signage. They are from what is called the Qilin culture, and date to about 3,000 years ago. It is believed that the local tribal inhabitants likely moved up here after the coast was hit by a tsunami. Mt. Dulan is revered as a divine presence by the area’s Amis and Bunun tribal groups.
Travel Vlog 10 Days Taiwan: Taipei, Kaohsiung, Liouciou, Taitung, Dulan, Jioufen and more
Travel Vlog 10 Days Taiwan: Taipei, Kaohsiung, Liouciou, Taitung, Dulan, Jioufen and more