They call it the Taroko Line and it takes about 2.5 hrs to reach Hualien.
Taking a photo while Daddy collects our train tickets.
Waiting for our train to arrive at the platform.
The train arrived punctually. When we entered, the train is new and clean. The seat is comfortable and we enjoyed the ride.
Enjoying the scenery of eastern Taiwan.
David was really excited about being on a speed train. The whole time he was busy looking out the window.
While his sister slept through the whole journey, until it was time for lunch. We bought some lunch boxes and ate them on the train.
Mommy also bought this green tea snack before the train ride. It taste good, and was not too sweet.
The train stopped by a few stations before reaching Hualien.
When our train was approaching Hualien, the weather was grey and gloomy. We were rather apprehensive and wondered if we were going to have a rainy time in Hualien.
We arrived at Hualien Train Station and the driver arranged by the minsu picked us up on time.
Streets of Hualien.
The way they read newspaper.
Along the way to our minsu, I managed to capture pictures of some official buildings.
Hualien's hospital.
A prayer house.
Police Station.
Gas station.
Nanbin Park (Day time) and Nanbin Night Market (by night).
Driving along the Pacific Ocean to our minsu.
We stayed at Sea-Hi B & B (Website: http://www.seahi.idv.tw/about.php).
When we arrived at our minsu, this was the scenery that greeted us.
The façade of our minsu.
The spacious greenery that the kids enjoyed running around....
with the ducks.
The windows on the 2nd storey to the right is where our room was.
The white opened door on the 1st storey is where the entrance of the minsu and reception was located.
Our room is double storey. As usual, the kids get so fascinated with the flight of stairs to the upper room that they would spend most of the time climbing up and down several times as long as we are in the room.
When we entered our room, daddy was not very happy that it turned out that a minsu was much like a chalet. Since it was not 5-star hotel accommodation, it took us a while to get used to it.
To make matters a little worse, there was no available wifi. And to add to daddy's dismay, there was not a single power point in the upper deck room. Otherwise, it would have been a perfect room for him to clear his emails at night.
The upper room.
View from the upper deck.
In the balcony. Our room faces the Pacific Ocean. We really enjoyed the sound of waves and the strong winds that blew non-stop.
And this is the next thing that the children were fighting over whenever we get into the room.
After settling down, we decided to have dinner at a nearby seafood restaurant. Just a stone's throw away from our min su, there is a well-known 055 Seafood Restaurant. However, according to the lady at the minsu, they have become so popular that prices are no longer competitive and their service standard has dropped.
At the recommendation of the minsu's caretaker, we were brought to another seafood place opened by his sister and brother-in-law. It is about 10 minutes walk from our minsu. However, the caretaker was kind enough to arrange his brother-in-law to come fetch us over to the seafood place.
Well, I wouldn't call it a restaurant because it is rather run-down. It is like a road-side make-shift shelter with second hand tables and chairs. Well, have to admit that it is in such places where you can find real authentic local food and reasonable-priced seafood.
Our first dinner in Hualien was perfect except for the stray dogs that were roaming around freely in the eating place, which scared the kids and me to the wits.
The fresh prawns was David's favourite.
And daddy's to-die-for dish ---- fresh from the ocean, lobster!
This lobster is slightly less than 1 kg and it costs us only SGD 66.00... where to get in Singapore?!
It was fresh from the ocean!
And we had the lobster steamed to perfection! Yumz... I still drool when I think about it too!
Deborah and David couldn't resist the big chunk of lobster meat too!
Fish soup that is full of essence!
Having this big bowl of hot fish soup really gave us the needed warmth on a cold autumn night.
After a heavy dinner, the best thing to do was to take a stroll.
It was kind of dark although there were street lamps. But thankfully, it was a short one.
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