Megan Lael Yancey: Sun Moon Lake 日月潭

On Saturday, we (Devin, Erin, Kristi, Laura and I) went to Sun Moon Lake. It is the largest lake in Taiwan. It used to be two separate lakes, Sun Lake and Moon Lake, but several years ago the Japanese used a hydroelectric dam to flood them into one, hence the name. Sadly, an aboriginal tribe, called the Thao, were forced to relocate. Prior to the dam project, they lived by the lakeshore. A very small area is left of the Thao land, called Lalu island. Their burial sites and main village were flooded.

Let's go back. Our journey to Sun Moon Lake was slightly interesting. We took the train to Taichung and proceeded to walk to the bus station. A man in his taxi followed us, yelling to us from his rolled down window. Never have I seen a taxi driver so persistent. We said, "Bu yao," and went on our way. When we got to the land of many buses, a man came running up to us and tried to get us to go with him. At first, I didn't realize that this was the same man. The deal was good so we went with the persistent taxi driver and got there in half the time (than a bus would have taken). On the journey, I learned that the many palm trees we see are actually betel nut trees. Isn't that nice. Just kidding. Betels are actually gross little green nuts with a brown-orange inside. Many people here chew these gross little nuts and spit out the juices--everywhere. Too bad they aren't banana trees. That would be much cooler.

Betel Nut Trees

The taxi driver dropped us off at Shueishe Village, where he got us a good deal on a boat tour. So accommodating was he. The first stop was near the Syuanzang Temple. We got to shore and several people were gathered around a rock. We watched Asian man after excited Asian man take turns getting a picture with this rock. It was hilarious. We found out that the rock said "Sun Moon Lake" on it. Wow. So special. There was another very similar rock not too far away with no attention.

Erin, Me, Kristi and Laura
Right before the boat tour

Laura, Me, Erin, Kristi, Devin
Our boat was the pink one behind us.

This rock was a big hit. We have idea why.

So, we got a picture with it too.

The other side of the rock.

The other rock.

We went on a 20 minute hike to the temple, took some pictures and came back down. As we waited for our boat, we got to see an aboriginal singing group perform. I love that sort of thing.

Hiking to the Temple

So tired.

This is for you Rachel.
I probably wasn't supposed to climb on the statue.
I almost got on its back. Hehe!

Syuanzang Temple

Om.

On to our next stop. The sparkling bluish green waters were so beautiful. I really wanted to jump in and go for a swim. The boat was so relaxing. I like the rocking. It almost put me to sleep, like a baby. It reminded me of days after wakeboarding, when I would sit on the front of the boat and fall asleep.

Lalu Island
(See first paragraph.)

Taiwan's slogan
You see this logo everywhere.

We next went to a market area. We bought lunch on the street and browsed the souvenir shops. I bought a 6-holed ocarina in the shape of Taiwan. Haha! It's not a very good one, probably because of the shape.

So yummy!

We walked along the boardwalk, and then went back to Shueishe Village. By bus, we went to the most impressive site of the day--Wenwu Temple. It is a three story temple set on a hillside. At the front are two stone lions that act as guardians to the temple. They are the largest in all of Asia. I really like the multitiered roofs which are very colorful. Woot!