Let me tell you a story. A boy was asked to tend a flock of sheep. He did his job everyday until he got bored that he thought of telling a lie. He cried that there was a wolf. The villagers hurriedly came but did not saw any ferocious beast. The boy was scolded by his mom because of the incident. However, he did it again. He shouted to the villagers that he saw a wolf. His neighbors came but did not saw any wild animal. His mom got angry and spanked him so hard that he promised not to tell a lie again. The boy continued his life as a young shepherd until one day a real wolf came. He called the villagers for help but they just ignored him because they were thinking that he was just telling a lie again. With nobody wanting to help, the boy watched the wolf as it eats his sheep one by one. When the last one died, the wolf decided to eat the boy. The animal slowly approached the helpless kid. It showed its fang and made one final leap to kill the boy. The kid already his accepted his fate but a flying arrow delayed his death.
This is not Aesop's famous story of the boy who cried wolf but my own version that I wrote for my beloved Taiwan. If Jiufen is the real life “Spirited Away” then Cingjing Farm can be said to be the inspiration of Aesops's fable. At least, for the Taiwanese version. With many bloggers who had visited Cingjing Farm before, it's about time to read a different kind of travelogue about Nantou's recreational farm in the heart of Taiwan.
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| I told the KKday driver that I would alight at the North gate entrance of Cingjing Farm. I don't speak Chinese but a fellow passenger translated the message in Chinese to the driver. For those taking the Hehuanshan tour in the morning, prepare the Chinese name of the destination that you want to alight for easier communication. |
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| The ticket prices in Cingjing Farm as of Nov. 6, 2016. I only paid NTD 120 since I am a student in Taiwan. |
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| Notes about the ticket prices. |
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| My ticket |
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| At the ticket booth |
So what happened to the boy? Did it survive the wolf's attack? And who came to save the kid? Before I tell you what happened, you should know how I reached Cingjing Farm. Our Hehuanshan tour bus [Reserve here] courtesy of KKday dropped us at the North entrance of the farm where we bought our tickets. Regular adult tickets cost NTD 200 but students in Taiwan only have to pay NTD 120. Travel Buddy Teklu and I felt really blessed for studying in Taiwan.
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| at the Green Green Grassland |
The weather was sunny but the cold wind made our visit a perfect timing to enjoy Cingjing. The farm was located in the mountains in Renai District of Nantou province and the temperature here is definitely cooler than in Taipei. If you think that it will be too hot in summer then autumn is a nice time to visit Cingjing. During this season, the grass will still be green. Cingjing's elevation of 1,748 meters is not a hindrance to visit this place since many buses climb the mountain every hour. If you are coming from Taichung then you can board the bus at either the Taiwan High Speed Rail Station or Gancheng bus stop. Most people usually buy a Cingjing Pass from the Nantou Bus Company. If you are coming with friends from Taichung Station and a taxi driver suddenly offers you a ride for a price of NTD 300 per person then take it. The taxi fare will be the same as taking the public bus.
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| A minsu near Cingjing Guest House |
Having been to Hehuanshan that day, I was able to see the “village” near Cingjing Farm. The houses were mostly minsus and overlooking the mountains of Central Taiwan. If a wolf will appear in Cingjing Farm, then the villagers will have a hard time to respond since they live far away from the pasture. The rakes, spades and the other farm tools that can be use to drive away a wolf will have to be transported first using a car.
Travel Buddy Teklu wanted to have a photo with the sheep.
If my estimate is correct, about twenty to thirty sheep wander freely in “Green Green Grassland” in the northern section of Cingjing Farm. It is a rolling hill and teeming with life as the green color of the grass covered its surface. Visitors wasted no time in taking their selfies with the sheep. They even bought food at the souvenir stores just to lure the kind animal and made them pose in photos. If ever someone shouted “wolf”, then nobody will care since most of the visitors speak Chinese. The correct word to shout is “láng” which is the Chinese equivalent of the word “wolf”. So shout “láng” and everybody will scream and run. Haha!
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| Sheep Castle |
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There were lots of Cingjing Farm products to choose from. |
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| Searching for a wolf while enjoying my popsicle |
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| It was very difficult to look for one. lol |
the view from Cingjing Farm's windmill
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| Before the start of the 2:30 pm sheep show, visitors have a chance to ride one of these horses in the Performance Stage area. |
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| I don't have any experience in riding a horse and I got excited to have it in Cingjing Farm. |
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| Ticket prices: One person is NTD 100 |
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| My ticket |
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| I wanted to ride this white horse. |
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| Yehey! |
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| As 2:30 pm was coming near, the number of people had suddenly increased! |
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| Another look at the audience |
Before the start of the Sheep Show
The guide dog of the sheep
The sheep were roaming freely in the Performance Stage area.
But they were organized by the "cowboy" and the guide dog to formally start the show.
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| The show started with a group run of the flock of sheep. |
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| It was actually fun to watch a flock of sheep run. |
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| There was a dog and a cowboy (the man with the hat on the left side) that guided the flock of sheep. |
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| I sat in the second row and I the poor sheep got a free haircut. |
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| A sheep's fur |
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| The sheep is first put inside this wooden cage before the start of the show. |
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| The whip stunt. |
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| This brave guy was asked to hold a balloon until it bursted with one hit of a whip. |
The show ended with the passing of the sheep in front of the audience.
But the possibility of having a wolf inside the premises of Cingjing Farm will never happen. It was just my fantasy to have that wild animal inside the tourist spot and watch it eat some sheep. Talking about being helpless, the sheep were like that during the 2:30pm Sheep Show. A sheep with its overgrown fur became bald in front of the hundreds of visitors sitting at the Green Green Grassland Performance Stage. After the live shaving of the sheep's fur was a whip stunt. A man from the audience became also helpless as he volunteered to become a part of the show. He was asked to create a sound using the whip and without any experience using that tool he was able to make the audience clapped.
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| The Equestrian Stage. |
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| The show started with introducing the performers one by one. |
So there was no wolf in Cingjing and the place was all about seeing some sheep and laying down on the grass. But was it really the case? At 3:45 pm, Teklu and I sat at one of the benches in the Equestrian Stage. A family of horsemen was about to show their horseback riding skills. I looked closely at them and they seemed not to look like Taiwanese. They were wearing costumes and it gave me the hint that they came from Mongolia.
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| The performers have a large group photo at the left side of the stage. |
Introduction of performers
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| Let the show begins... |
first routine
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| a stunt while riding a running horse |
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| The performers shouted "Hey" as their horses run around the stage. |
the rest of the Equestrian Show
The performers were composed of an old man, young men, a woman and a cute kid who knew that she was a star of the show. They went around the stage while riding their horses and doing various stunts at the same time. Some of the female audience giggled upon seeing the amazing moves of a long-haired horseman. The guy did a headstand and also stood while riding his horse. His stunts were very difficult making him a crowd favorite. The kid also impressed the audience with her pony riding skills. Haha! At a very young age, she was already an expert in riding a little horse!
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| photo-taking opportunity |
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| The long-haired horseman |
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| Unfortunately, the kid performer was not in good mood. |
At the end of the show was a photo-taking opportunity. The gates of the Equestrian stage was opened and the audience entered inside. A lot got excited to have their photos taken with their favorite horseman. But the one that really caught my attention was the old Mongolian man. He was showing his clothes to some visitors and I got amazed when I saw it. His coat was made up of whole wolf skin!
So there is a wolf! There is a wolf in Cingjing Farm! Seeing the skin of the wild animal gave me the idea on how to end my version of the “The Boy Who Cried Wolf”. So here it is: The arrow struck the wild animal and it fell on the ground as it howl in an excruciating pain. The boy grabbed the chance to run and hide on a tree. He looked back at the wolf and he saw more arrows struck the wild animal. A group of huntsmen were the ones who targeted the wolf. When the animal died, they carried its body and brought it together with them. The sound created by their galloping horses awakened the villagers which hurriedly went to the grassland. They saw the boy near a tree looking shocked at his dead sheep. The kid told the villagers what happened but nobody believed him even though he cried “Wolf! Wolf! Wolf!”
THINGS TO DO IN TAICHUNG - CENTRAL TAIWAN
Sakura Series - Taiwan
2024 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
It is a beautiful city and the scenic beauty of the city is undefinable. There are many tourist spots worth visiting and many other places to get a wide and beautiful view of the green and lush mountains.
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