Taiwan Turns

Words & Photos: Jane Shearer

A few of the many sculptures we saw around Taiwan.

“There’s a typhoon forecast,” Chris said as we planned our route out of Taipei.

“A typhoon?” I was busy with work before we flew and hadn’t paid attention to news of any sort.

“Yes. It’s supposed to hit the island in three days.”

We left Taipei in a hurry and headed west and south, rather than our planned route through the mountains to the east coast. The typhoon was forecast to slam into the east coast. Two days later it shifted direction and was now forecast to slam into the west coast. We hunkered down for a day, waiting. The typhoon slowed to walking speed, just to taunt us. In the end, after hanging offshore for days, it tapered out and came onshore near Kaohsiung, in the southwest. The winds downed trees and broke signs but didn’t cause any substantial damage.

Orange sunset waiting for the hurricane.

Downed trees in Kaohsiung.

As a result of our typhoon avoidance tactics we circumnavigated Taiwan counterclockwise. We started off on ‘Route Number 1’ but found alternatives as we went. The majority of cycle touring information on Taiwan promotes Route 1 but the site you want to look at to figure out your route is www.taiwanbike.tw

Taiwan is a great place for beginner tourers or people wanting a straightforward trip on paved roads. There are cycle lanes on many of the large roads and traffic is very considerate. We cycled through some multi-kilometre tunnels in the northeast without incident. The northeast of the circle route had the most spectacular scenery, along that part of the route the guides tell you to get a train. We say, “Cycle!”

Cliffs dropping into the ocean in NE Taiwan,
reminiscent of the South Island’s West Coast.

An interesting aspect of Taiwanese road behaviour is the manoeuvre we called ‘Taiwan Turns’. When motorcycles or bicycles need to turn across the traffic (a left-hand turn in Taiwan as people drive on the right), they don’t sit out in the intersection waiting for a gap in the opposing traffic. Instead, they go partway across the intersection, swing around then go straight through once the light changes. There’s usually a marked box to sit and wait in.

Jane doing a Taiwan Turn.

A highlight of Taiwan was the food, all of it very affordable. A large plate in Taipei cost NZD7. The cuisine is a mix of Chinese and Japanese, as Taiwan was ruled by China from 1683 to 1895 than the Japanese from 1895 to 1945. After their defeat in WWII, the Japanese had to hand back Taiwan (along with all occupied territories outside their home islands). However, there was no clarity about who Taiwan (at the time ‘Formosa’) was being handed back to. There was a period of unrest, then in 1949 after the formation of the communist People’s Republic of China, Chiang Kai-Shek moved his Nationalist government to Taiwan and made Taipei the temporary capital of the Republic of China.

From rule under martial law into the 1980s, Taiwan transitioned into a democracy. Today, Taiwan regards itself as a country while China under Xi Jinping regards Taiwan as an errant island that will, in good time, be returned to the fold. We figured we had better visit Taiwan before China starts on that process in earnest.

The most relevant aspect of Taiwanese history to New Zealand is that Taiwan is the ‘birthplace’ of Austronesian people, based on studies of mitochondrial DNA as well as similarities in language, tattoos and physiology. Indigenous Taiwanese are not very obvious in Taiwan. They make up only 3% of the population and live largely in the tropical mountain spine that rises to 4000m along most of the length of the island, separating the west and east much like the Southern Alps splits our South Island.

Jane at the ‘aboriginal’ museum.

There were a lot more depictions of indigenous people than actual people visible.

We never made it into the centre of the island unfortunately – roads were closed as a result of the major earthquake earlier in 2024. We contemplated trying to sneak past the barriers but a small quake while we were on the east coast reminded us too much of Canterbury earthquake rockfalls and the potential for being squashed like a bug on a winding mountain road with towering cliffs above. The story of people being trapped in a tunnel for two days after the 2024 quake also did little for our nerves!

We made one small foray into the mountains, cycling up 500m in 5km then climbing another 600m in 7km along a surprisingly rugged trail to reach the viewless summit of Doulanshan. With humidity near 100% and temperatures in the low thirties, it was no surprise the people we met looked at Chris and motioned their arms in a breaststroke fashion – we looked like we had been swimming! We also found a few leeches on the trail.

Chris drenched on Doulanshan.

The geography of Taiwan is like the South Island reversed, with plains on the west side and extremely steep topography on the east side. The plains are where the majority of Taiwanese live, where there is major manufacturing (including the home of Giant bicycles), and significant agriculture (large bird farms are loud and smell bad). While the east is less populated, it is still considerably developed by New Zealand standards with big roads, huge power plants and concrete factories dominating small towns. Our experience of Taiwan was not a wilderness one – every time we found a sandy beach it was fenced off. We discovered ‘ecological reserves’ are not places you go – they are places you can’t go!

Jane with a nuclear reactor in the background on the south coast of Taiwan. Another is being built on the north coast.

Another highlight of Taiwan was the feeling of calm. That’s not something I expected, given looming China just across the gulf, wanting to reclaim Taiwan into the One China fold. Of course, no one can perpetually live as if they are under existential threat. South Islanders don’t live like the Alpine Fault will rupture any day. People in Taupo don’t live like the Taupo Volcanic Zone is due for an explosion. South Koreans don’t live like Kim Il-Sung might lob some missiles their way on a whim.

However, there was a far greater feeling of calm in Taiwan than in New Zealand. Here, people rush. We rush in cars and tell cyclists to get off the roads, or at least out of the way. We get impatient in queues if they aren’t moving fast enough. There’s an ever-present feeling of hurry that crept into our country sometime in the last couple of decades when I wasn’t noticing. In Taiwan, people don’t push to get ahead on the pavement, they walk slowly. Cars and trucks give you a wide berth or sit behind you waiting for a space to pass. People chat to the server at the counter of the 7-11 where you get your ready-meal heated – another aspect of easy cycling in Taiwan. There are regular 7-11s with a huge range of cooked meals in containers waiting for you to choose them. Maybe that’s why there are so many big roads – all the ready meals need to be transported round the country on a daily basis!

7-11s are open 24-7.

We wondered whether calm Taiwanese demeanours are a result of the saturation of religion in Taiwan. 93% of people identify themselves as Buddhists, Taoists, or practitioners of Chinese folk religion. Taiwan supposedly has the highest density of religious shrines of any place in the world – 1 per square kilometre. Buddhism is considered a religion of non-violence and peace so maybe there’s a link – one trip to the country is certainly not enough to draw conclusions of that type!

One of the many temples in Taiwan.

Overall, Taiwan is an interesting and cost-effective cycle touring destination. We took our bikepacking bikes because they are set up for touring but a light bike would be more practical, given the lack of unpaved roads. We took camping gear but temperatures in the 30s (we went in October when it was supposed to be getting cooler but wasn’t) did not make for comfortable camping and there was plenty of hotel accommodation to which you could turn up on the day. There’s no problem with resupply on the periphery of the island, given the plethora of villages and 7-11s. Some people speak English, many do not, but we didn’t find it a problem. There might be a typhoon but that will give you time to hunker down in town and eat lots of yummy food. We suggest you try a few Taiwan Turns, too!