For the past year in Taiwan, my circle of friends has been pretty small, mostly because I'm a fairly shy person and Changhua was not an easy place to meet new people. But two weeks ago I made some new friends and it has opened up my world.
It all began when I signed up for a language exchange event I found on Facebook, Buzzup Kaohsiung. I went alone and was so nervous I ended up accidentally sitting at the wrong table, but the people sitting there welcomed me. Karolina is from Poland and she has been in Taiwan for three years. Her girlfriend Chu is from Taiwan but has spent time in the US for school. We had a great time talking before we all switched tables for the Chinese speaking portion of the night.
At the end of the evening, as they were leaving Chu invited me to join them for hotpot the next day. They also ended up giving me a ride home when they saw me walking to the MRT.
At hotpot the next day, I met up with Chu and Karolina in my neighborhood, as well as a few other couples and another woman named Sean. We all chatted over bubbling broth, spending two and a half hours in the restaurant. I was grateful to meet some new people and had had a great time. As we were leaving, Chu mentioned going hiking and asked if I wanted to come along. Of course I said yes.
Fast forward to two weeks later, and I was added to a Facebook messenger group with a bunch of people I didn't know all discussing plans for the weekend. At first it seemed like the typhoons that have been sweeping over southern Taiwan for the past two weeks would rain us out, but the day before the weather forecast was clear and sunny. As we arranged carpools, Emily and I caught a ride with Peirene, who had been at the first hot pot dinner but had sat at the opposite end of the table, so I hadn't had a chance to talk with her.
During the drive to LiangShan Water Fall (涼山瀑布）we chatted with Peirene, who has spent the last five years studying and working in America, only returning to Taiwan because of the pandemic. It turned out that hot pot had been the first time she had met the group as well, so all three of us were excited to get to know everyone.
Once we arrived at the park, the whole group slowly trickled in. There were twelve of us all told, a mix of Taiwanese, Polish and Americans. Once introductions were made, we all set off on the hike, a lovely mix of Chinese, English and Polish floating in the air above us.
On the way up, I was so busy chatting that I didn't really take in the scenery. It was only after 1.8km of hiking, when we arrived at the 3rd tier waterfall, that I was able to take in the scenery. Water cascaded over a 30m drop, pounding into the rocks below and sending a cool mist into the air. The roar of the impact was deafening. We clambered onto the rocks and took pictures, getting soaked by the spray in the process.
After our photoshoot was complete, we retreated down the trail a bit to a spot where the river pooled between large boulders. Beers were stuck in an eddy to cool down, snacks were brought out, and we stripped down to our swimsuits to pop into the waist deep water. For a while we relaxed at the base of a mini waterfall, shaded from the blistering Taiwan sun by a copse of trees. On the other bank of the river, hikers trekked by on the way to the main waterfall. Hordes of butterflies fluttered in lazy circles around our heads, stopping occasionally on a shoulder or head to investigate.
After chatting for a while, Dolly, who has been on this hike before, told us about another waterfall with a swimming hole. This waterfall is the 2nd tier on the trail, and the entrance is boarded off with a wall and multiple signs saying no entry permitted, dangerous waters. Despite the intimidating signage, there were steps tied to the railing and ropes strung between trees to help with the steep descent to the river. We hopped the rail and clambered down the haphazard steps, ending with a bit of rock climbing to arrive at the bottom.
There we emerged into an oasis. A waterfall churned into a large swimming pool. At the edge of stone steps, a group of elderly men and women sat in swimsuits. An older man welcomed us, told us that we could use the tubes to float as long as we put them back and warned us about the deep spots. It was a little slice of heaven on earth. We dove into the crisp blue water.
After swimming around the edge of the lagoon, we discovered that there were ropes hanging throughout the waterfall. After a lot of struggling with slippery rocks, I managed to drag myself into a little crevice in the rocks. One of the grandpas swam out and climbed onto a rock in the very middle of the waterfall in two seconds, then leaned out to tell me that his way was easier and not as slippery. Basically I was schooled by an old man.
Everyone took turns climbing all over the waterfall. A few braver souls climbed into the middle, enduring the pounding water. A few of the grannies (one over 70 years old) dove in and used the waterfall as resistance pool, bobbing up and down right at the edge of the impact zone for twenty minutes. Then they pulled themselves into the waterfall and got a massage for their hard work. Yet again, the older generation in Taiwan continues to amaze me with their vigor. I can only hope to be like them when I am older.
After swimming around, we were reading for food. We hiked back out and drove to a famous hot pot place (新园牛肉炉 - 和生店）We crammed around a table and pigged out on the store's famous Warm Body Beef 温体牛 (aka very very fresh beef), squid balls, veggies, clams, scallops, lamb and much more. This was Emily's first experience with hot pot, so Max helped her out (and me as well, because I'm still a noob), telling us what everything was and helping to serve us. Family style meals aren't common in the US, but I think they need to become a thing. It's so fun! Everyone circled around the table, constantly putting food on your plate, passing you different things to try, filling your cup; it turns a group of strangers into friends very quickly.
At the end of the night, we all exchanged Instagrams, in a feat of 21st century engineering, by scanning barcodes. Everyone agreed that we need to do this again soon. I am so grateful to have met this awesome group of people who are all brilliant and funny and kind. I fell asleep tired from hiking, my cheeks aching from smiling all day.
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