Yingge Ceramic Town

A ceramic street sign in Yingge.

The huge ceramic dishes!

When I lived in Taiwan, one of my favorite activities was tour biking. Almost every week, I logged over 100 miles on my bike, visiting interesting parts of Taipei and New Taipei City, some of which are somewhat inaccessible by public transportation. One of my favorite places was Yingge District（鶯歌區）in New Taipei City, also known as "Ceramic Town" because the area produces the most ceramics in Taiwan. There are over 800 ceramic shops in there!

Yingge literally means "Golden oriole". As the legend goes, there was a Golden oriole rock that used to spit a miasma at travelers. One day, a General Koxinga ordered his army to shoot at the rock which allowed his men to pass by. Every since, the town has been called Yingge.

While it's easy to get to Yingge by train from Taipei Main Station, you might miss some of the interesting things in the outskirts of the city. Biking to the area is a cool way to enjoy everything. At some points the trail can become rough, but there are clear signs that direct riders to the "family trails" which are safer, especially if you're riding with children.

One of my favorite aspects of Yingge's outskirts are the large ceramics. To give a reference, I'm almost 5'7" and the plates are nearly twice my height! I really wanted to sit in the spoon and take pictures, but unfortunately there was no one around to take one for me because I came on a weekday when it isn't busy at all.

鶯歌陶瓷城

鶯歌城的跡象。

我住在台灣的時候，我每個禮拜，一，兩次騎自行車去參觀在台北有意思的地方。我兩次從淡水騎到鶯歌！我在鶯歌休息和逛街。因為普通用陶瓷很便宜，所以我常常買了一些。

我要一個！

在我的看法，傳樹林區以後，自行車道不但輕鬆，而且安靜。有很多小小的在山上的村，也有一些野生動物。別著急，不算太危險。如果你騎車跟小朋友的話，你可以選容易騎的自行車道。

在鶯歌的自行車道旁邊有很多有意思的雕塑。我最喜歡的是大大的陶瓷盤子，杯子，和勺子。我很想座在大勺子裡然後拍照片，但是人不在，沒辦法問別人拍我的照片。那天，在自行車道的人很少，可惜吧！

Huwei Fort（滬尾砲台）

Huwei Fort's entrance.
滬尾砲台的門口。

滬尾砲台（英語：Hobe Fort）是在淡水的名勝古跡之一。去這砲台很簡單，從捷運淡水站坐紅26公車到 “滬尾砲台站”；從公車站不太遠。

Huwei Fort (also known as Hobe Fort) is one of the historical landmarks of Danshui. It is easy to access; just ride the R26 bus from Danshui Station to "Huwei Fort". It's a short walk from the bus stop.

中法戰爭（1884－1885）的時候，為了加強台灣的港口，清朝政府建了一些砲台。說到砲台的樣子，劉銘傳州長決定了德國式砲台是最好的因為他發現外國軍隊的砲台比較強。一開始有兩座砲台在淡水，但是別的被摧毀了。

Governor Liu Ming-Chuan
劉銘傳州長
Source

During the Sino-French War (1884-1885), the Qing Dynasty government built a number of forts to strengthen Taiwan's ports. Speaking of their design, Liu Ming-chuan - the governor of Taiwan - decided German-style forts would be the best because he noticed foreign forts were stronger. In the beginning, Danshui had two forts, but one was destroyed.

因為在滬尾砲台沒有戰鬥，所以現在它差不多跟以前一樣。墻，門，和房的好狀態把我迷住了。我有在19世紀的感覺！我覺得去滬尾砲台很像坐上時間機器。

Because Huwei Fort never saw battle, it looks almost the same now as it did when it was built. The walls, doors, and rooms fascinated me because they are is such great condition. I felt like I was in the 19th century! I think going to Huwei fort is like riding a time machine.

Cherry blossoms @ Tian Yuan Temple (天元宮)

It kind of looks like the cherry blossoms are
growing out of my head!

Cherry blossoms are even more beautiful on
a sunny morning.

When I went to Tokyo, I missed the cherry blossoms there by a couple of weeks. Due to my schedule, I had no choice. Nonetheless, I don't regret it because Danshui is home to many cherry blossom trees in the mountains at the base of the scenic Tian Yuan Temple (tianyuan gong; 天元宮).

Every year, the flowers draw massive crowds from Taipei. Luckily, I lived 10 minutes away from the temple, so I could hop on the bus there without a hassle. However, the trip could take hours depended where you're coming from. If Taipei is your starting point, take the MRT to Danshui Station and take bus 875 of the cherry blossom viewing express straight to the temple. Naturally, the express only exists during cherry blossom season, yet the lines are long - extremely long. At the peak of cherry blossom season, they are even long on weekdays! However, the weekday crowd is definitely smaller than the weekend hoard.

The ride up the mountain to Tian Yuan Temple is fun, and the sights are majestic. One thing I love about the greater Taipei area are the rural pockets of semi-isolated communities and farm land. The morning I made my pilgrimage to the temple, it was gorgeous outside which significantly enhanced the view. I wasn't traveling far from home, but I still felt I was going on vacation. Once you're in northern Danshui's mountains, it feels like you're in a completely different city.

This was one of the few darker cherry blossom trees.

Tamkang University (淡江大學)

I'm an English (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages, TESOL) graduate student at Tamkang University (淡江大學).  The school is private and located in Danshui, one of the districts of New Taipei City (basically, the suburbs/countryside around Taipei).  It began as an English school, which is what attracted me to it. 

The building for the College of Foreign Languages and Literature.
The English department is located on the second floor.

Chueh-sheng Memorial Hall, where I attend the majority
of my classes my classes.

Bike ride through Danshui and Bali Township

Recently, I had the chance to rent a bike and take a ride through Danshui and the small township of Bali (八里), located directly across the river from Danshui. It was a beautiful day when I went, around 80F, not at all winter weather! But I wasn't complaining; I had sunshine on my skin, a smile on my face, and wonderful friends which accompanied me.

Taken from Danshui, that's Bali on the other side

We rented our bikes from a shop near MRT Danshui Station. To rent the bike all day (until 8 pm), it's 100NT. But, we got a 20% discount and paid 80NT since we're students. That's only about $2.75!