Zhunan is a bigger township than I thought. It took me a while to get out of the town proper. Along the way, I saw many industrial buildings and complexes. It seems that this town has turned itself from a train hub into a major industrial center. The sign on the side of the highway expresses the town’s aspiration to be a township of technology and humanity.
I took Highway 13 and turned into Highway 1, going north. The wind has died down a little bit today but it is still felt all over. The surface of a big pond next to the highway looks wrinkled and stirred.
Against undulating ripples, I paused and contemplated what this trip has meant to me. A long-anticipated and presumably pleasurable cycling adventure has turned into two weeks of anguish. The first week was a disappointing disruption by Typhoon Megi, and the second week a daily dose of torture and agony from the fierce and untimely seasonal wind. Before the trip, I have read other cyclists’ travelogues. Their trips are of sunny skies and abundant beauty. But mine, except for a couple of days on the east coast, is a different story. Mimic a smart lady's saying: if everyone's trip is a bowl of cherries, why is mine in the pits?
Many times I have to wonder if there is a lesson or message from His Almighty in subjecting me to these torments. I’ve lived a life of uneventful existence. I studied diligently, worked industriously, and retired contentedly. I am now older and want to make a small mark in my life’s story by cycling around Taiwan. Merely like a little egret wishes to leave a crawl print on a quiet sunny beach. So why did HE unleash a tempest to this beach, just to teach me something? And what exactly is the gist of the lessons? As a wise man used to say “All I really need to know I learned in kindergarten”. I have learned enough to come to this stage of my life. I don’t think I really need any more lessons.
His Almighty never answers my questions. I think HE may be preoccupied with deciding who the winners are for the upcoming big elections in Taiwan, especially the Five Cities Election (五都選舉) – mayoral races for five largest municipalities.
After my brief Zen moment by the water pond, I came across an old wooden train station house, Xiangshan Station (香山車站), on the side of Highway 1. Given the ubiquitous artifacts of prosperity I witness along my journey, it is surprising to see an operational train station in such a neglected state. I asked a group of chess playing senior citizens nearby and was told that the town was small and poor.
But less than 200 meters away from the train station, a very well constructed Catholic Church stands next to the highway. The town does not seem poor at all.
The weather report predicts that the temperature will get lower as the day progresses. At 10:45 AM, this temperature display at a street intersection in Hsinchu City (新竹) showed 21 degrees Celsius.
Tou-Chian-Shi Bridge (頭前溪橋) is the city boundary between Hsinchu City and Zhubei City (竹北). The bridge has a dedicated lane for motorcycles and another dedicated lane for bicycles and pedestrians.
Highway 1 passes through Zhubei City. A continuous uphill for the next 15 kilometers starts from here until the township of Yangmei (楊梅).
On the side of Highway 1 is the busy campus of Ming Hsin University of Science and Technology (明新科技大學). It was known as Ming Hsin Technical College (明新工專) when I lived in Taiwan. Classical columns of the building behind the campus gate remind me of a similar building at MIT.
By lunch hours, I rode by two security guards on the side of the highway directing traffic. I stopped and observed that they were directing cars in and out of the driveway of a restaurant. It must be a good place for lunch. I pulled into the parking lot behind this restaurant, LaoPiGer Beef Noodle (老皮哥牛肉麵).
The inside was spacious and busy.
The beef noodle soup was very good. Next to it was a plate of cold cuts that was average. The small bowl was sweet bean jelly (豆花), which was of unlimited supply and free of charge. Next was a plate of vegetables. The cup was soy milk (豆漿), which too was of unlimited supply and free of charge.
The incline continues on Highway 1. The grade is not very steep. But on the fifth day of battling with the wind, I was really exhausted, so the uphill seemed to last longer than I expected.
North of Zhubei City is a town called Hukou (湖口). It was once known as the site of an attempted coup d'état against Chang Kai-shek by an armored force of Taiwanese Army in the early '60s (湖口兵變). Now this town is best known as the site of an old street, Hukou Old Street (湖口老街), established in the late '10s and early '20s. The street is a popular tourist attraction.
This section of Highway 1 runs parallel to the railroad. Many train stations sit right next to the highway. Here is a sample of these train stations.
Inside the city of Chungli (中壢).
At 3:50 PM, a display at Chungli showed the current temperature of 15 degrees Celsius. The temperature was dropping fast. The sky was darkening also. The sign of an impending rain made me speed up my pedaling.
A giant building on the side of Highway 1 is the Taoyuan Hospital (桃源醫院). After passing this hospital, the rain started to come down. I put away the camera and didn't take any more pictures for the rest of the day.
By the time I reached the city of Taoyuan (桃園), it was already nightfall. I wanted to find a hotel near the temple, where a famous night market was nearby. But streets in the city were jammed with after-work traffics. I couldn’t find my way around and eventually walked into a police station for help. The cop on duty, for reasons unfathomable to me, referred me to a seedy hotel, Huayu Hotel (花語玈館), near the outskirt of the city.
When I walked into the hotel, the front desk personnel looked surprised and puzzled. I realized that it was a mistake, but it would take another 20 minutes to ride back to the center of the city. I was too tired, so I relented and asked for a room. It was NTD $700 (USD $23.33) for a small room with a circular bed. It couldn’t have been tackier.
There was no restaurant within walking distance of the hotel. I ended up having a bento box at 7-11.
The first map shows the full island of Taiwan. My bike ride for the day was from 11 o’clock position to 12 o’clock position. The second map gives a closer view of my ride.
Vertical profile of today’s ride. The big climb starts at Zhubei and levels off at Yangmei.
Summary of today’s ride. The wind was weaker today than yesterday. I didn’t get a higher average speed because on this fifth day of continuous fighting with the wind, I was really exhausted.
-Joe
Next: 20101030 Day 11 - Joe's Cycling around Taiwan (Taoyuan 桃園 to Hsinzuang 新莊)
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