If Disneyland is the happiest place on earth, Yunhsien Dreamland (雲仙樂園), is the most content, at least in the off season. The swimming pools have been emptied, many of the rides are under repair, and the throngs of children are noticeably absent. What the dreamland becomes during this time of year -- especially on weekdays -- is the perfect place to take a date.
For those unfamiliar with it, Yunhsien is an amusement park that sits atop the magnificent waterfall in Wulai, Taipei County. A two-minute cable car ride across the river takes you to the top of the adjacent mountain to a place that's half playground and half Chinese garden. Imagine the ponds and pathways of Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall placed on a picturesque mountaintop, but with games and rides instead of a monument to a dictator.
PHOTO: DAVID MOMPHARD, TAIPEI TIMES
During peak season, the obvious attractions are a large swimming pool and slide, a golf driving range and a bicycle rollercoaster that doesn't involve any coasting, rolling is difficult enough. There are a number of other rides like it that generally involve sitting in something that moves along a track for a minute or two. Unless you're six years old, they're largely forgettable with the exception of a haunted house ride that certainly every cunning teenage boy in the metropolitan area has taken his girlfriend to.
With many of those attractions shuttered and the teenagers in class, the place becomes a dreamland for young lovers, who would rather spend an afternoon rowing a boat on the large fishpond that feeds the waterfall or have their picture taken by the many streams that feed into the pond. Of course, the haunted house remains open for them, too. Some things never change.
A testament to just how romantic a spot Yunhsien is: it has a jewellery store with a plentiful supply of ladies' rings.
"I think we sell more engagement rings than any other jeweler in Taiwan," said Ms. Wu, who has watched the shop for a number of years. "I just hope they stay on people's fingers!"
The one major drawback to Yunhsien it's that it closes at 5pm, when the park empties and the cable cars fill with families heading home. But here's a little-known secret: the cable car leaves Yunhsien again at 6pm and 8pm. A good thing to keep in mind if your date is going well. If it's going particularly well, there's even a hotel and villas on the grounds, but be prepared to pay top-dollar for a room; after 8pm, you're a captive audience.
To get to Yunhsien Dreamland from the Hsintien MRT station, you must first take the bus to Wulai (
That US assistance was a model for Taiwan’s spectacular development success was early recognized by policymakers and analysts. In a report to the US Congress for the fiscal year 1962, former President John F. Kennedy noted Taiwan’s “rapid economic growth,” was “producing a substantial net gain in living.” Kennedy had a stake in Taiwan’s achievements and the US’ official development assistance (ODA) in general: In September 1961, his entreaty to make the 1960s a “decade of development,” and an accompanying proposal for dedicated legislation to this end, had been formalized by congressional passage of the Foreign Assistance Act. Two
March 31 to April 6 On May 13, 1950, National Taiwan University Hospital otolaryngologist Su You-peng (蘇友鵬) was summoned to the director’s office. He thought someone had complained about him practicing the violin at night, but when he entered the room, he knew something was terribly wrong. He saw several burly men who appeared to be government secret agents, and three other resident doctors: internist Hsu Chiang (許強), dermatologist Hu Pao-chen (胡寶珍) and ophthalmologist Hu Hsin-lin (胡鑫麟). They were handcuffed, herded onto two jeeps and taken to the Secrecy Bureau (保密局) for questioning. Su was still in his doctor’s robes at
Last week the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) said that the budget cuts voted for by the China-aligned parties in the legislature, are intended to force the DPP to hike electricity rates. The public would then blame it for the rate hike. It’s fairly clear that the first part of that is correct. Slashing the budget of state-run Taiwan Power Co (Taipower, 台電) is a move intended to cause discontent with the DPP when electricity rates go up. Taipower’s debt, NT$422.9 billion (US$12.78 billion), is one of the numerous permanent crises created by the nation’s construction-industrial state and the developmentalist mentality it
Experts say that the devastating earthquake in Myanmar on Friday was likely the strongest to hit the country in decades, with disaster modeling suggesting thousands could be dead. Automatic assessments from the US Geological Survey (USGS) said the shallow 7.7-magnitude quake northwest of the central Myanmar city of Sagaing triggered a red alert for shaking-related fatalities and economic losses. “High casualties and extensive damage are probable and the disaster is likely widespread,” it said, locating the epicentre near the central Myanmar city of Mandalay, home to more than a million people. Myanmar’s ruling junta said on Saturday morning that the number killed had
RSS