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| From Taiwan Pics |
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| From Taiwan Pics |
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| From Taiwan Pics |
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| From Taiwan Pics |
Because we only work every other week, we try to go on adventures during our weeks off. However, our adventures are usually limited to the Taipei area because it turns out that it’s rather expensive to have frequent free time. We really wanted to do one more exploration trip before we left Taiwan so we decided to hit up the islands off the southwest coast for a week and see what kind of adventures we could have, for as cheap as possible.
Penghu is an archipelago of more than 40 islands in the sea between China and Taiwan. The islands are rough hardened lava that have somehow managed to grow vegetation and beaches and everything you need for a lovely vacation. The three biggest islands are connected by bridges and we explored old military forts to fend of the Japanese, a depressingly bleak aquarium, a rock island that we could walk out to during low tide, crazy huge temples, blowholes, back roads, and ancient villages.
Magong, the biggest city of the island is known for its fishing and seafood, and walking through town that’s about all we smelled. After attempting to camp one night, we decided it was way too hot and bunked up in a cheap hotel in the middle of the city (US$21/night), where we were greeted each morning with the fresh scent of fish. After doing as much exploring as possible on these small islands, we attempted to take a ferry out to an even smaller island for a splash of fun.
Here is where it got complicated: Taiwan, especially Penghu is definitely not set up for the independent Western traveler. Taiwanese people typically travel in massive packs of people, usually filling a tour bus and it’s uncommon to see travelers fending for themselves and scurrying around on scooters. Combine this with a complete lack of English and organization at the boat ticket building, and you’ve two determined travelers, determined to do whatever it takes to get to the outer island.
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