Well it's a Marvelous Night for a Moon Dance

Two weekends ago, I took off on a second overnight trip to a stunning portion of Taiwan called Sun Moon Lake. It is called as such due to it's shape- on one side of the lake, the coast line jets out like a blooming sun, while on the other side, the lake takes a crescent shape. While the Sun side is the larger side, the moon side is in the seventh house, while another side looks like Jupiter, aligning with Mars, and they say on clear nights, that peace will guide the planets, and love will steer the stars. But this is only folk lore according to locals and The Fifth Dimension.

But, with all cheesy 70s lyrics aside, the trip was rather enjoyable. We began the evening with a traditional aboriginal dinner as displayed in the photograph below. The delights came complete with wild boar and shrimp from the lake (which I changed to salad)!


With the completion of our tasty meal, we retired for an early night because we had a long, and early, day the next day. And just how early you ask? Well, somewhere in the vicinity of 5:30 AM. I didn't even know that there was a 5:30 AM! But we woke up met our personal driver for the weekend (more on him to come), and he drove us up to the top of a mountain to see the sunrise over the lake and surrounding mountains. We arrived just as the silhouettes of the mountains could be discerned in the distance.
Shifting colors blending into amorphous shapes. Until, finally, the landscape could be made out. Mountains and hills dotted the scenery. Engulfed by ancient fog, lush tea plantations stretched up out of the fog as if to greet the sun with us.
The air was cold and fresh. We waited a long time for the sun- because it came up from behind a mountain. But when it did, beams of light were cast upon the lake, and tea, and fog filling our eyes with color and life. What a show!


Our driver then drove us back down the mountain. Now, I am sure you are wondering- how did you get a driver? Well, we told the hotel that we didn't have any transportation and asked if that would be a problem. The manager said, "Of course not, my husband can drive you around anywhere! Including to see the sunrise at 5:30 in the morning." I'm sure the old man was saying to himself, again and again, "For better or worse, for better or worse, till death do us part... hmmmm, death...." But, as it went, we had our own personal driver.


Our next stop was an Aboriginal Cultural Amusement Park, with one side dedicated to recreating the lifestyles of the Taiwanese aboriginal civilizations, while the other part of a class B amusement park with moderate thrill rides. Some parts were a bit of a knock off from Disney, with rides like Space Mountain and Splash Mountain, and the Monorail, but it was OK. We did go up a gondola and had a spectacular view of the mountainous region around Sun Moon Lake.

After our driver picked us up, he took us to a pottery class where I made a bowl. I made and carved everything. On one side is a moon, while on the other is a sun, for Sun Moon Lake. In the center is a Chinese proverb, roughly meaning that one hopes there will always be harvest left after one season to cultivate a new one the next. Or, as we should understand it, "May this bowl always be filled with food."


After that it was a dinner and a night walk around the lake before bed.

The next day, we were given free tickets to take a boat tour around the lake, stopping off at temples, islands, and the floating homes of fisherman. In the center of the lake is a sinking island. For the aboriginal people, this is a sacred island and sadly it is disappearing. When the Japanese controlled the island, they damned up part of the lake, causing the waters to rise and swallowing the majority of the island. Then, about ten years ago, Taiwan experienced a deadly earthquake that sent almost the rest of the island to the bottom of the lake. Serious conservation efforts are underway to protect the island. This photo is what is left of the holy ground.


After the boat tour, we boarded a bus and made our way back to Taipei to renew and refresh after a long and wonderful trip to the center of Taiwan. So with that, I wish you a happy new year from your Sun Moon Lake black tea drinking, bad joke making blogger extraordinaire, Michael.