I was enjoying my time in Taipei. It was a strange city that was full of clashing architecture and cultures. The old and the new coexisted with each other closely in this city as did the natural and modern world. I had been enjoying the city of Taipei a lot, so it seemed like a good time to try and embrace the outdoors a bit more. One of the first places I went was up North to the hot springs at Beitou. These have been a source of comfort and relaxation for people in the area for years. I went and looked out over the waters, smelling the tangy sulphuric vapours. In the area were several villas and spas, so I treated myself to some time relaxing and soaking in one of these villas.
Numerous people had also mentioned to me that the forests to the South of Taipei were worth exploring. I went out there in search of these great sights and found a fairly sizeable cable car which took visitors to the top of the mountain. The ride up was as scenic as you can imagine, with the city growing smaller in the distance and the deep green forest slowly taking over everything I could see. It was a nice change from the griminess of the city.
Once I reached the top, I pulled out my phone and started following the map to a tea house that had been recommended to me by a colleague. I walked along a winding road for a while. There were tea houses dotted along the road, but I had been assured that the one I was going to was the best. I hoped that the advice was correct as the views were already quite beautiful on the slow walk there. As I got closer, I started to understand why this particular tea house was so good. Not only did it overlook the green hills in the area, it also sat directly above a tea plantation.
Inside, I found myself a table on the lower levels looking directly over the tea plantations in the area. I ordered tea and dumplings and just sat back and relaxed. I breathed in deeply the mountain air and tried to embrace this lovely tranquility. Around me there were different groups of people also enjoying this location. These groups were either families socialising together or couples trying to have a romantic moment with one another. In both cases, they gave me glances as I sat by myself, slightly confused as to why I was undertaking this very social activity by myself. I didn't care at all as I was enjoying myself immensely.
The first few months living in Asia had been a bit of a whirlwind. It was good to be able to decompress a bit, to sip some tea and to just be by myself for a while.
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