The bus driver did not open the luggage compartment for us, so we had to drag our 20kg luggage up the bus. :( We alighted at the terminal stop, as our hotel is located all the way on the top of the mountain.
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| Gold Mine Hotel |
Gold Mine Hotel
Address: No. 28, Jinguang Rd., Ruifang District, New Taipei City
台灣，新北市，瑞芳區，金光路28號
Price: SGD 72 per night for a triple room (2 nights)
The hotel is strategically located at 金瓜石 hence it's relatively easy for us to explore around. Moreover, 九分老街 (Jiufen Old Street) is only a few bus stops away.
As usual, it was too early to check in. After storing our luggage at the hotel, we proceeded to explore 金瓜石!
We started with 四連棟日式宿舍 (Japanese style residence). Street-smart XY managed to convince the staff to let us enjoy the student privilege of free entrance using our Exchange Approval Letter. (We later found out that exchange students were not supposed to be entitled to the discount.) The staff was extremely nice to us and even gave us several food recommendations. (谢谢#2)
The short tour includes an introductory video about the brief history of the infrastructure and the process of rebuilding it. The guide spoke in a mixture of Chinese and Taiwanese so it was kind of hard to understand. (Especially so for JJ haha)
We then went for some food as we were hungry. Under the recommendation of the friendly staff, we proceeded to a nearby restaurant. Generally, food at 金瓜石 is pricey as it is mainly catered to tourists. (Friendly staff told us that they usually bring their own bento to work.)
We ordered JJ's favourite 炸甜不辣 (Fried tempura), 炒米粉 (Fried Bee Hoon), 燙青菜 (Boiled vegetables) and 滷肉飯. Apart from the fried tempura, the rest of the dishes weren't nice. T.T
It's finally time to check in! We were relieved that the hotel had porter services as we needed to climb several flight of stairs before we can reach our room. Definitely not manageable for us with our mega sized luggages.
The room is small but I STILL LOVE IT. Instead of individual beds, they have a large sleeping area with mattresses so there's plenty of space for me to roll around. That may be their only merit (cause everything else is sub-standard) but I'm satisfied as it means that I wouldn't have to oya-peya-som for the single bed. (I keep losing T.T)
We then proceeded to the Environment Museum but there's nothing much to see there.
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| Except this view taken by a Korean |
Off to the Gold Museum! Before that, we stopped to have a bowl of 山頂豆花 (Bean curd). It's really good and satisfying for a really sunny day.
The Gold Museum showed us snippets of how the British prisoners of war suffered during the World War 2 as they were made to mine for gold in terrible living and working conditions. It's saddening to learn about such history but to me, it also serves as a reminder to treasure the peace and stability that we currently enjoy. (I love history btw)
Next up is 九分老街! JJ dived into the 福州魚丸 (Fu Zhou Fishballs) shop once she saw it HAHA.
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| 福州魚丸 |
My favourite at Jiufen is still the 賴阿婆芋圓 (Lai Ah Po Taro Balls)!! They sell in a mix of sesame, green tea, mango, taro balls! :)
We managed to spot a small cute shop that sells beautiful postcards. JJ and I was so engrossed in postcard writing that we made XY wait for a little too long. :( (Sorry XY but I hope you had fun with the adorable cat in the shop :P)
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| Postcards sent by JJ |
The night view at Jiufen is ABSOLUTELY STUNNING. The effort to travel all the way to Jiufen is sooo worth it!
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| Gorgeous night view at 九份 |
Then came the worst incident of the day. We wanted to explore an alley that we've never been to. It ended up to be a super popular street that was featured in a lot of postcards that we saw. (Due to the street being the inspiration for Spirited Away.) We were stuck in the crowd for a full hour. T.T
We re-entered 九份 from our initial entrance and had more 福州鱼丸 for dinner!
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