After appreciating the scenery in Qixingtan my travel team decided to leave the famous pebble beach for the emerald waters of the Carp Lake. It is the biggest lake in Eastern Taiwan and originally part of a large river until its flow was cut off by the forces of nature. It was like a daughter that had lost contact with its mother. Time had passed and the daughter had grown into a beautiful woman with an irresistible charm. Men and women visiting Hualien come to this place to see the sparkle of Eastern's Taiwan hidden gem.
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| Bus 105 at the Qixingtan bus stop |
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| groupie inside Bus 105 |
Going to Liyu Lake from Qixingtan is a simple task of boarding a Taiwan Tour Bus back to Hualien Station and transferring to another Taiwan Tour Bus. However, one must take note of the timetable of the tourists buses so as not to wait long and waste precious time. We were very lucky to see an orange bus that goes back to Hualien Station at the bus stop. It was not the Taiwan Tour Bus but a local bus that takes 30 to 40 minutes to reach downtown. It was Bus 105 of the Hualien Bus Company and we swiped our EasyCard twice to pay the fare. We arrived at Hualien Station but the Taiwan Tour Bus going to Liyu Lake already left so were forced to ride a taxi. Our fare was calculated using the taxi meter and the 30 minute journey amounted to NTD 600 which is NTD 120 each since we were five people that boarded the car. The bus fare from Hualien Station to Liyu Lake via the Taiwan Tour Bus is only NTD 60.
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| I had my lunch beside the lake. |
Susi, Ali and Mrinal couldn't resist taking photos of themselves with the lake and as they have fun Fisoliya and I got hungry. We then looked for food and the restaurants around Liyu Lake were selling lots of seafoods There were also a variety of fried cakes to choose from ranging from shrimps, sweet potato and taro. The fried rice and the shrimp fried cake became my lunch and I ate it beside the lake. I just didn't know that a boat owner was already eyeing my travel team and the old lady sent one of its foreign workers to have a chat with my Travel Buddies and lure us to rent their boats.
We were offered a rental price of NTD 500 for a boat ride but I ignored the owner first and walked away until the price was lowered it to NTD 400. Mrinal congratulated me for my bargaining technique. haha! My team agreed with the price and then given life jackets before hopping into the boat with a dragon head. Mrinal and Susi sat at the back while Fisoliya, Ali and I sat at the front seats. Teamwork was needed for this activity with Mrinal and Susi who were at the back controlled the direction of our dragon pedal boat.
It was my first time to pedal a boat in Taiwan with four people who came from different countries. Imagine a Filipino, Pakistani, Zimbabwean, Indian and a Bangladeshi on one boat and we were united by our desire of exploring Eastern Taiwan. If I just went here alone then I would do a different activity. There are individual kayaking boats and it looks fun. There is also an option to rent a speedboat and tour around the lake in a fast way.
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| Waves created by a passing speedboat |
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| Our group photo after the boat activity |
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| The view from the watch tower |
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| There were fishes in the constructed wetlands. |
We were given 1 hour to explore the lake and we encountered other visitors enjoying their boat trip . There were lovers in their cute swan boat and a group of friends in a speedboat that created waves across the serene lake. Cycling around the body of water is another option one can do and we saw people riding their bicycles as we reached the side of the lake. There was also a wetlands that was constructed along the banks with large fishes hiding under the water lilies while a watchtower can give visitors a panoramic view of the surroundings.
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| Our combo tickets back to Taipei. |
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| at Luodong Bus Station in Yilan |
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| We were asked to exchange our the bus part of our combo ticket for a ticket at Kamalan Bus. Sometimes it's the Capital Bus company that accepts the combo tickets. Just present your combo tickets to the staff and the will gladly assist you. |
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| The Kamalan Bus ticket back to Taipei City Hall |
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| See you again Liyu Lake! |
Bus 1139 brought us back to Hualien Station. We were all tired but very happy with our day trip in Eastern Taiwan. Qixingtan pebble beach and the waters of Liyu Lake were just some of the places to see in Hualien. Unfortunately, one day is not really enough to enjoy them. There is a nearby museum in Qixingtan beach while near Liyu Lake is a forest park with an interesting story to share. The surprises really never end here and I promised to myself that I will return next week for a “2-Day Hualien Special”. (To be continued..)
Sakura Series - Taiwan
2025 Forecast
Taipei 101 first flowers
Tianyuan Palace backyard
Taipei Flower Test Center
Pingjing St. Lane 42
Broadwood Park
Sunshine Sports Park kawazu sakura
Wuling Farm (武陵農場)
SYS kawazu sakura
Formosan Aboriginal Culture Village
CKS Memorial Hall
Shibafen Yoshino Sakura
Hope River
Dongfang Temple
Tianyuan Palace
Neicou Stream Trail
Orange Garden Cafe
Yangming Park Visitor Information Center
Yangming Park Service Center Bus Stop
Huashan Road
Qianshan Park
Zhongshan Hall Entrance
Tenglong Sakura Farm
Flower Test Center Shōwa Sakura
Neihu Creek Trail
Shulin Land Office
Xióng Kōng Cherry Blossom Forest
Lung Yen Sakura Forest
Yangming Park cherry stream
Yangming Park fountain
CKS Memorial Hall Tairyō sakura
Wugu District Tianyi Road
CKS Memorial Hall yaesakura
Loving Farm
Yong Long Farm
Zhongbaling Sakura Road
Sun Link Sea
Tai'an Police Station
Cherry Hill Slope
Hsinchu Park
Taipei 101
Kāng Gào Kēng Creek
New Garden City
Broadwood Park
Tianyuan Palace backyard
Pingjing St. Lane 42
Alishan Ranger Station
Alishan House
Alishan Police Station
Alishan Forest Railway
Alishan Station
Alishan Entrance
Alishan Gou Hotel
Alishan Magnolia Garden
Wulai tour
Wun Chang Elementary School
Bishanyan
Sanzhi Sansei Trail
Sakura Series - Taiwan
Nei Cuo Stream
Orange Garden Cafe
Sansei Trail
Tenglong Sakura Farm
Yangming Park Cherry Stream
Yangming Park Fountain
Flower Test Center
Broadwood Park
New Garden City
Yinghua Park
Pingjing St. Lane 42
Yangmingshan Visitor Center
Taipei 101
Tianyuan Palace backyard
Sakura Series - Japan
Kamonyama Park
Near the Nippon Maru Memorial Park
Shinko Park
Minato-mirai 21 area
Tokyo Tech Suzukakedai Campus
Onda River
Tenryuji
Byodoin
Kiyomizudera
Himuro shrine and Yakushi-ji Temple
Hōryū-ji Temple
Nara Park attractions
Tokyo Tech Ookayama Campus
Sumida River
Tsuruma Park
Gion
Maple Series
Taipei Aowanda
Shimen Dam
Alishan
Aowanda
Shanlinxi
Taoyuan Valley Garden
Fushoushan Farm
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| Yehliu to Jiufen? Yehliu to Shifen? Cheaper than yellow taxis |
The "Taipei kong mahal" (My beloved Taipei)
Always in my heart
MRT birdman
Valentine's Day
Tulips Festival
2018 Taipei Lantern Festival
City of Azaleas
Linji Huguo Temple
Nanjichang Night Market
Gudetama Chef restaurant
Dalongdong Bao'an Temple
Shilin hollyhocks
Ningxia Night Market
Ximending graffiti
Discovery Center of Taipei
Chunghwa Postal Museum
Double-Decker Bus
Shilin Cold Balls
Jingimoo
GomanMango
mud volcanic ice
Fire and Ice Dumpling
Opium Fen-Yuan
Ichiran Ramen
Liu Shandong Beef Noodles
hydrangea flowers
National Palace Museum
Other attractions in Taipei
Taipei on a budget
Japanese buildings
Dāoxiāomiàn beef noodles
Presidential Office Building
Yongkang St. and Elephant Mountain
CKS and SYS Hall
City tour
Beitou ramen
MRT Monopoly Game
Winter city tour
Zhicheng Park
Shilin Plum Blossom
Art museums
Shopping in Taipei
Summer desserts
Qingtiangang
Qixingshan hiking
2015 Calla lily
2016 Calla lily
Beitou tour
Beitou-Zhuzihu tour
NTU
Confucius Temple
2015 Dadaocheng Festival
Puppet Museum
Fantasy Ice World
2016 Bread Show
Strawberry picking
2015 Rose Garden
Modern Toilet
Shilin Night Market
NASA Exhibit
Raohe Night Market
Longshan Temple
2013 Taipei Zoo
Maokong Gondola
Lupin flowers
Taipei 101 day visit
Taipei 101 night visit
Tiger Mountain
Din Tai Fung
Taipei Story House
2014 Flower Show
Chrysanthemum Show
Miramar Ferris wheel
Miniatures Museum
Archery
1600 Pandas
Wulaoguo hot pot
Upside Down House
2016 101 Fireworks
New Taipei
Tamsui Pumpkin Tunnel
Shifen Waterfall
2017 Sand Sculpture
Dragon Caves
New Taipei tour
2016 Kite Festival
Pingxi Crags
Bitou Cape
2016 Sand Sculpture
2015 Christmasland
Juming - Jinshan
Houtong - Pingxi
Sandiaoling Waterfall
Jiufen foodtrip
Guanyinshan hike
Yehliu Ocean World
2014 Kite Festival
Pingxi Rail tour
Jinguashi tour
Vigor Kobo Pineapple
British Consulate
Yehliu Geopark
2014 Sand Sculpture
Paragliding
2014 Christmasland
2014 Pingxi Lantern
firefly watching
Yingge Ceramics Street
Jiufen tour
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