3rd stop out of 5: Yilan

On Monday we said good bye to our new friends in Hualien and headed about one hour north to a small, very beautiful town called Yilan. The locals call it small but in our eyes Yilan is big compared to Samford, Morris, Cooperstown, Delhi and Ithaca. Yilan is located on the flat plains between the east coast mountains and the Pacific Ocean, which makes it the perfect place for outdoor activities, from hiking in the mountains, whale watching in the ocean and exploring the rice patties and agricultural land in the plain. The views in every direction are beautiful...jungle mountains, cliff coastlines and rice patties that resemble patchwork quilts. The surrounding villages are filled with natural hot and cold springs too.

Upon arrival in Yilan, we headed to the National Center for Traditional Arts, where we were given a brief tour and allowed some time to look around the small shopping area which only sells handmade goods. Despite the rainy weather, we all found some great traditional Taiwanese gifts to bring home.

Yilan's Rotary Clubs joined together to host a Welcome Party for us on Monday night. Held in a banquet hall in the heart of downtown, we were treated to several unique gifts, a feast of food and drinks and a night full of karaoke! One big difference we've encountered in our travels is the prevalence of karaoke! From hotel rooms, to bars, to everyday living rooms--every place is equipped with a karaoke machine. Fred and Lauren took one for the team and serenaded the Rotary Clubs of Yilan with a beautiful rendition of 'Knock Three Times' with one of our host mothers, Wendy. Lauren turned out to be the hit of the night when she was invited back on stage to dance!

Welcome Party  

Lauren, Fred and Wendy sing karaoke

Our very own Dancing Queen!

Welcome Party--Four clubs combined to welcome us to Yilan. Great night!

The sun finally broke through the clouds on Tuesday as we headed just outside of town to an agricultural leisure area. To add income and increase tourism to the area, the farmers and craftsman have joined forces to create a DIY (do-it-yourself) tour destination. Tourist can rent bikes or travel by car to each location and learn a skill or trade. We started off the day with a brief introduction of the area at the Welcome Center, then stopped at our first DIY location....green tea ice cream! Our tour guide was a tea expert and along with the ice cream, he helped us learn many of the different techniques to harvesting tea. His family owns and maintains several acres of tea fields and he could easily answer any question we had. 

Tea field view from our ice cream classroom

Bryan and Lauren shaking their ice cream with yet another adorable baby of Taiwan!

Reaping the benefits of our labor--green tea ice cream with hot green tea...so very healthy!

Ice cream entourage

After ice cream we stopped for lunch at an organic restaurant in the middle of the agricultural village. Another interesting, yet delicious meal with Rotarians. Our afternoon DIY included a tea shop/cafe and make-your- own chopsticks. 

Bryan, Kim (host brother) and Derek in front of a small temple outside of the restaurant

Afternoon: Tea Shop/Cafe--After our first round of tea and an explanation of the homemade tea oils, lotions and soaps, we were treated to a tour of the property, where the man pouring tea above taught us the different uses for almost every plant that growing. To us the plants looked like weeds but to the Taiwanese everything in nature serves a purpose. What a great rule to live by!

Dried tea

Chopstick DIY

Finished chopsticks!

Tea fields

Although our schedule is booked tight, the lifestyle in Yilan is much more relaxed than Taipei or Hualien. The change of pace is welcomed after a busy two weeks. 

Much more to come from Yilan...stay tuned! We've crossed the halfway mark, see you in two weeks!