We had planned this trip to Orchid Island even before our previous one into the mountains. We’d booked the accommodation and transportation, and then waited for around four months.
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| Go to Google Maps |
Booking rooms on Taiwan’s
outlying islands has a quirky idiosyncrasy.
This unique practice applied now as it had in 2018 when I traveled to
Matsu Islands in the Taiwan Strait.
While one reserves as usual through the online companies (Booking.com or
Agoda), a deposit is immediately payable via bank transfer. ... Shriek! This sounds exactly like a scam, and I
wouldn't dream of complying in a country I didn't know. Here, however, I am less suspicious..... The deposit protects the hosts against late
cancelations, whether by a guest’s own decision, or due to weather-induced
transportation woes. Then one sends a
copy of the transfer slip to the host, whereafter a barrage of communication in
Chinese pictographs ensues and I get my knickers in a knot. Fortunately, one of my companions on this
trip was Taiwanese, and I soon asked her to take over all communications.
The weekend that gave us the time to reach this distant destination would last four days – Thursday was the Mid-Autumn Festival, and Friday was an extra holiday; we had had to pay it forward by working the previous Saturday. So, on Thursday, Tonya (who’d stayed at mine) and I woke perilously early and made our way to the High Speed Rail Station.
We were booked for a
06:35 departure, or were we? Escalating
to the platform at 06:27-ish, I suddenly noticed that the ticket read
06:25! We’d just missed our
carriage! Now we had to wait for an
hour, and then we’d need to ride in the unreserved carriages, which offered no
guarantee of a seat! I felt like an
ass. We had our breakfast on the
platform, and then boarded the train. It
was packed, and until the next stop, we had no seat. I apologised profusely to Tonya. Luckily, at Tainan we were able to snatch a
couple as passengers left the train.
We rode to Koahsiung, whence we would be shuttled to Houbihu
Port in Pintung County. Kasania met us
in Kaohsiung, having taken a later train.
By the time we stood in the queue to board our vessel, we’d already been
on the move for seven hours. The ferry
would last two and a half hours.
Boarding, I was thrilled to no longer be waiting. We whisked out of the port and into open waters. That’s when the trouble began. The ocean was in a rage. The vessel was thrown around, swaying from side to side, rising at the bow and dropping like a roller coaster. Some passengers shrieked at times from the violence of the turbulent resistance. Many emptied their bellies into sick-bags provided all around the boat. I am not one to get seasick, but even I got a bit queasy. Kasania did too, despite having taken medical precautions. Notwithstanding the discomfort, we arrived on the island safely and our spirits lifted instantly.
Our hostess
was at the port, packed our bags, and showed us to a scooter rental
company. Then she drove our baggage and
we scooted behind.
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After check-in, I was eager to go for our first ride, so we
mounted our steeds and rode north, stopping at a 7-11 to get supplies. It was overcast but warm. I was overjoyed that we weren’t melting. At times a light drizzle dampened our attire
but not our spirits. (Ten years earlier,
Kasania and I visited Green Island together in mid-summer. That island lies only slightly north of this
one. It was so unbearably hot that I
spent much of the midday hours indoors at the accommodation.)
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We rounded a corner (which turned out to be the northwestern tip of the island) and the wind suddenly began to howl wolfishly. We decided to turn around and call it a day.
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| These two statues guarded our village; one stood at the southern end and the other to the north. |
We returned to our rooms, rested for a bit, and then walked back to around the 7-11, where there were also a couple of restaurants.
Tonight we’d take our dinner at a BBQ restaurant. I’m not really one to cook my own food in an eatery, but it was good to spend time with Tonya and Kasania, and the food tasted great despite my inexperience at this genre of cuisine. That was then it for the day.
Friday morning....
.....began with a snorkeling trip for Tonya. Kasania was concerned about her ear, whereas, for me, the appeal of waterborne activities has faded over the years. But before that, Tonya and I took breakfast nearby. We had the best Taiwanese bacon cheese pancakes we'd ever tried. They were fluffy and delectable. This part of the village was crowded.
Then Kasania and I took our second ride, southbound, noting first at what time to return to meet the snorkeler.
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En route, we happened past the island’s airport just as a plane came in to land. The airport here, provincial as it is, is surrounded by no more than a low fence. The runway stretches along the seafront. The craft that carry travelers here are Viking DHC-6-400 Twin Otters, carrying only 19 passengers.
They fly to this airport only from Taitung Airport on the main island.
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| Literally: Lanyu Airline Stand |
Continuing on from here, we came upon a café
which Kasania announced was famous on Instagram. We decided that we’d lunch here, but before
that, we’d head back to collect the third of our party. Riding again past the airport, the same plane
had been reloaded and was getting ready to take off. We stopped to watch.
Arriving back at the café, Rover in English, though no sign declared this Anglophone title (I found its name on Google Maps), we were told to expect a 50-minute wait for our sandwiches. I huffed and puffed and got up to leave immediately, bullying my companions to leave in protest with me (though I wasn’t aware how intolerant and inconsiderate I was being).
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We drove
on, looking for another place to eat.
After a few unsuccessful stops, I suggested that we focus instead on the
surroundings and stumble upon a restaurant whenever we did. I also started to realise that I’d not
considered their needs before storming out of the previous place, and offered
the first of my apologies. Kasania later
said that tardy service on the island is a common complaint among travelers on
social media.
The island did not disappoint with its views. We headed further south, reaching the bottom tip before turning north on the eastern side of the mountains.
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At this southernmost point, I got these two shots of the wildlife – in one, the subject’s face was hidden, while in the other, the subjects were sure to show their faces.
There was also the most interesting Christian installation I’ve ever seen. There were crosses all around the island, so the faith is obviously strong here, but it must be mixed with traditional beliefs to produce something like this.
We passed a number of villages, and in one of
them, Ivalino Village, we did find a place to eat. I now understood completely that I’d been an
ass earlier, and apologised again.
Anyway, this establishment had a spectacular view and delicious
smoothies, though the food was just okay.
On the beach of the next village, Dongqing, we finally came
across the iconic Lanyu boats. (The
people of this island are aboriginal Taiwanese – they are not Han Chinese. They are Austronesian people, their closest
relatives being Filipinos. During the
Japanese occupation of Taiwan, travel to this island was prohibited. The prohibition continued when control was
handed to the Republic of China at the end of World War II. As a result, local traditions and culture
were preserved longer than those of the aborigines on the main island. It was only in the 1960s that tourism was
first permitted. Schools were built and
instruction in Mandarin was made compulsory.)
These iconic boats are used for fishing, which is very important since
vegetables and fruit do not flourish in this island’s soil. It is permitted to photograph the boats, but
touching them or boarding them is strictly prohibited without the owner’s
permission. They are quite pretty and
distinctive. Tiny reproductions are
popular souvenirs, and there is the chance to buy a much more expensive
hand-carved version. I came close, but
eventually settled on the cheap trinket.
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On we rode. We soon came
upon Five-Hole Cave, where we dismounted and wandered about. While I was within the rock, a group of eight
muscular, young Taiwanese gay men sat on a ledge overlooking the ocean. They were excited and cute to watch as they bubbled
enthusiastically before mounting their rides and disappearing around the next
corner.
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When we were done here, it was only a short distance before we found ourselves back where we’d ridden to yesterday, the northwestern tip of the island. We agreed to return to the accommodation and rest before dinner. At a restaurant just a few doors before the 7-11, I had wild boar prepared according to a traditional recipe. Kasania had duck while Tonya ordered shrimp. We were all quite satisfied with our choices.
After the long day on scooters in the sun, we
could manage no more and returned to the rooms.
I slept like a log again, this time for over nine hours.
Saturday morning started lethargically. We had to check out at 10:00. I had been up for a while by then, but there was no urgency to do anything.
Once we’d vacated our rooms, we returned to Rover Café for brunch. Arriving at 10:10, we were shown to tables and offered menus. When I went to place the order, I was told that service only started at 10:30. We were going to wait no matter how hard I’d tried to avoid it! This time I obediently returned to our table. Tonya and Kasania used the time to ride a few metres on to the health centre (the only place on the island where any kind of medication was available – there were no pharmacies), where Tonya wanted to get some seasickness pills – she’d also become somewhat queasy on the ferry two days ago. By the time they got back, our drinks had arrived. The chicken-tomato Panini sandwiches which followed were likely the best I’d ever tasted, loaded with scrumptious ingredients.
We wanted to browse the tiny gift shop beside this eatery, but for that we’d have to wait until 13:00. Afterwards we rested down the road for a while, then returned to our small town, Yeyou Village, to use facilities.
We rode back south, this time stopping at the airport just to take a look.
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Next we popped into the gift shop beside Rover that had earlier been shut,
before heading
to the Lanyu Museum. There was a small
exhibition hall with artifacts on display and trinkets for sale. Outside were a raised pavilion and an
underground house.
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It was now time to make a final trip back to the port with a
quick stop at the 7-11 for refreshments.
Finally we dropped our scooters and queued up. The return ferry was nowhere near as bumpy as
it had been two days ago, and I was able to read for most of the journey. In Koahsiung we separated, as Kasania would
stay there for two more nights, while Tonya and I would hurry back to
Taichung.
In conclusion, Orchid Island is astonishingly beautiful. It is a great place to visit for a day or two, though Kasania said she’d happily stay longer. The only trouble is the length of the trip to get there. It is possible to fly from Taitung, as I mentioned, and one can also fly from Taipei to Taitung, which would shorten the journey, but since flights often get canceled due to wind, it hardly seems worth the risk.
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| This is a screenshot of a video on YouTube by one David O'Connor Orchid Island Adventure |
Apart from the iconic boats, visual depictions of aboriginal
aspects of life adorn various parts of villages and country roads. Here are some of them.
Then there were the lamp posts and school carrying aboriginal symbols.
Here is some more of that life-depicting art.
This was on the side of a supermarket.
