First, we stayed in Beitou, a part of Taipei known for its hot springs! Most of the hotels in Beitou offer private hot spring baths in your room, which was just awesome. How can I get one of those in my home someday? We also checked out Thermal Valley, where you can enjoy the sulfuric smell and uncomfortably hot steam of the 90 degree Celsius (nearly 200 degree Fahrenheit) hot spring pool. You obviously can't go in this one, since it would burn your skin off.
The must-do activity in Beitou is to take a dip in the public hot springs, of course. That was quite an experience! We waited in a long "Taiwanese line," which is much more like a pushing and shoving mob. They don't really believe in taking turns here. Then, we paid about $1.30 USD to get in and fight for a spot in one of the hot spring baths that varied in temperature from comfortably hot to scalding. They also had some cold springs to help you cool off. At these hot springs, you had to wear a swimsuit, but from what we hear, there are many in Taiwan that require you to bathe in the nude. Glad we went to this one! My favorite rule was that you were absolutely not allowed to just dip your feet in...all or nothing!
There was also a lovely little hot spring creek running through the park, and we discovered a spot that seemed to be a popular local hangout.
On Sunday, we headed to the very last stop on the MRT heading north in Taipei called Tamsui. The train station lets you off right on the river walk, overlooking the river and surrounding mountains. It was a beautiful day and the views were stunning! All along the river, there are endless amounts of arcades, souvenir shops, and market food vendors. It was busy, hot, and crowded, like most places in Taiwan, but it was a lovely afternoon nonetheless. We did some shopping, ate some delicious snacks, and took a little boat tour across the river to see thousands of little crabs scampering around the river shore. Couldn't have asked for a better afternoon!
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