To repair the dilapidated main building, the Forestry Research Institute invited two internationally renowned architects, Kuo Chungrui (郭中端) and Horigome Kenji, to come together as a team. According to Kuo, many historical documents show that the grounds of the Taipei Botanical Garden were often used as a key site for the staging of expositions by the Japanese during the occupation period, and that in its early days Nanmon-cho 323 served as a teahouse where guests were received. Therefore, the building’s design and construction was very different from the standard Japanese house. Professor Horigome, who is from Japan, is an expert in traditional Japanese wood architecture. Conducting research on the original structure and appearance, he and Kuo were able to rebuild and restore the building where needed to recreate its original appearance. Walk in the front entrance and you can inspect what is called shoin-zukun design: the doma, a space for household life with central and adjoining rooms, separated by fusuma, sliding panels of thick paper that act as doors. There is also an interior zashiki, a sitting room or parlor for entertaining guests, and a drawing room, where you can get a good feel for how visitors were received during the Japanese era.

The Forestry Research Institute also invited wellknown Japanese garden-landscaping master Oguchi Motomi, from Nagano, to create a Zen garden in the inimitable karesansui garden style, perhaps Japan’s most representative. Such gardens are considered “Zen” because they seek “emptiness” at their core, using coniferous plants. The gravel garden landscaping is sculpted using a handheld wooden rake, and the raking motions are highly practiced, almost as if in slow-motion, with the curving raked lines said to reflect the wave-like emotions of the soul. It is said that this style helps purify and heal the souls of visitors otherwise immersed in the fast, disconcerting pace of modern life.

In the subtle, minimalist outdoor-garden design, rocks are symbolic of mountains, while the raked gravel represents flowing water. While savoring the Eastern Zen ambience, visitors should look for another special touch, the small “turtle” and “crane” islands floating amidst the faux waters. These animals – and thus the islands – symbolize longevity. Oguchi’s hope is that when visitors spend time in his karesansui garden they’ll feel as though in a celestial realm, able to calm their spirits through the ethereal tranquility of Japanese Zen Buddhism.

Nanmon-cho 323 is hidden away in Taipei Botanical Garden. The black-tinted Japanese structure, surrounding emerald-green foliage, and snow-white gravel all contrast compellingly with each other, exuding a sense of tranquility. Come here on a winter afternoon and soak in this place’s proud old character. Make time to also visit the nearby Guest House of Imperial Envoys (欽差行臺), a city heritage site, and the National Museum of History (國立歷史博物館), and enjoy these examples of Taipei’s rich cultural inheritance.

Daan Park – The Lungs of Taipei

Daan Park (大安森林公園), located in Daan District (大安區), was designed as a metropolitan forest. This model city park is oft referred to as the “lungs of Taipei City”. It’s an expansive 25 hectares in size, and since its opening in 1994 has been an important Taipei landmark. The park is spacious, and its facilities comprehensive. It can be roughly divided into a bamboo forest area, banyan tree area, fragrant flower area, aquatic plant area, gallery forest area, pond and rockery area, amphitheater, children’s play area, and parking garage. In addition to the appealing green foliage within the park’s confines, the sidewalks around the outside edge are of interest as well, featuring different tree species. There are yellow flame trees along Jianguo S. Road (建國南路), camphor along Heping E. Road (和平東路), and paper-bark along Xinsheng S. Road. A medley of trees has been planted to complement the new Taipei MRT station being built on Xinyi Road, including Chinese pistache, Chinaberry, and Formosan sweet gum. Walking through Daan Park, you could almost feel you’re in a forest somewhere in the countryside.

The most distinctive manmade structure in the park is the amphitheater. The outdoor music stage is surrounded by fragrant flowers and plants. There is also a scenic pond, 0.7 hectares in area, which is home to many types of aquatic plant and fish such as carp and teal. Night herons, grey herons and moorhens can often be seen, while other bird species rarely seen in the city (such as Japanese green pigeons, magpies, and Muller’s barbets) can also sometimes be spotted. Nearly 30 bird species have been recorded in the park, a rare and precious mini-paradise for bird-watchers right in the heart of the city.

Dajia Riverside Park – Prime Green Environs for Cycling and Riverside Walks

Dajia Riverside Park (大佳河濱公園) is in Zhongshan District (中山區), in the straightened-out Dajia section of the Keelung River (基隆河). It takes up developed land on the left bank of the river between Dazhi Bridge (大直 橋) and Zhongshan Bridge (中山橋). The park is expansive, the views are wide and lovely, and the park has become one of the city’s favorite riverside-access venues. Enter the park from Binjiang Street (濱江街) at water gates 8, 9, or 10. The park greets you with a wide expanse of jade-green grass. In the middle is the large Fountain of Hope (希望之泉) which shoots a central column of water up to 75 meters high and has a main fountain 125 meters in diameter. There’s a 30-minute fountain show every two hours between 10 am and 4:30 pm, which blooms like the petals of a flower and features a kaleidoscopic 80-color underwater lighting array, creating some arresting waterscapes. The grounds are also graced with eight splendid bronze horses, each different, and (among many other attractions) a new children’s play area and sandpit play area, which are perfect for family fun.

Among the many other facilities are basketball, tennis, and badminton courts, a croquet field, and a multi-kilometer grid of cycle paths that is a favorite with riders on weekends and holidays. In recent years the park has also become a favorite with myna birds, which create a riveting tableau each time they suddenly flock up into the sky.

Xinsheng Park – A Large Park of Many Functions

Xinsheng Park (新生公園), nearly 20 hectares in size, was one of the four contiguous parks used as the site of the 2010 Taipei Int’l Flora Expo. Taipei’s secondlargest park, it was completed in 1978. Located near Taipei Songshan Airport, it lies along the flight path for landing planes, which pass directly overhead like giant birds with wings outstretched, and feel so close you could almost touch them. Because of this, the park is a favorite venue for aircraft spotters – but obviously it’s not the place to go to fly your kite!

Among the park’s many sports and exercise facilities are baseball and softball fields, basketball courts, tennis courts, an indoor heated swimming pool, and a cobblestone path for foot massage. Elsewhere is the Lin An Tai Historical House & Museum(林安泰古厝民俗文物 館), a classical Qing Dynasty-era four-sided courtyard residential complex in the south Fujian style. Also nearby are the Pavilion of Dreams (夢想館), Pavilion of Angel Life (天使生活館), Pavilion of Future (未來館), and Taipei Robot Pavilion (臺北機器人館), all world-class exhibition facilities in which the best in high-tech and green building techniques are integrated. This area’s many unique elements make it a worthwhile day-trip destination.

Bihu Park – A Community-style Leisure Park

Bihu Park (碧湖公園) in Neihu District (內湖區) is 16 hectares in size. Its north sector is hilly and wooded and in its middle is the large Dapi Lake (大埤湖), used for agricultural irrigation under Japanese rule (1895- 1945). The site was converted into a park in 1987, and the idyllic hill and lake immediately became a popular leisure spot with local residents. Located beside a residential area, the park has numerous breezy Chinese-style rest pavilions, and its zigzagging Nine Turns Bridge (九曲橋) has a quaint, traditional beauty. The many different plant species along the lake-encircling path – willow, bald cypress, golden shower, and flame trees, plus hibiscus and azalea flowers – burst into bloom in spring and summer, adding to the lovely lake and hill scene.

Local residents have nicknamed the park's management office (a bright, eye-catching white European-style structure beside the lake) the “Little White House” (小白宮). The park also enjoys abundant fauna in addition to its rich flora, and one or two dozen little egrets, along with numerous anglers, can always be seen, both fishing for their supper. Beyond enjoying the uplifting scenery, visitors can also head upward, along the six hill paths laid out on the hill above the lake. There are numerous rest pavilions, and you’ll come across many local folk out for their daily exercise.

Guandu Nature Park – A Natural Habitat for Bird Watching

Guandu Nature Park (關渡自然公園) is located at the confluence of the Tamsui (淡水) and Keelung rivers. This spot, an important stop for migratory birds, is also a favorite destination among birders. The wetland here covers an area of 57 hectares, and the park administration organizes a wide selection of wetland environment education activities, weekend and holiday lectures, family DIY classrooms, and camps, giving people a better understanding of wetland ecology. Among the park’s facilities are nature trails, bird watching huts, and a nature center. The trails run through a coastal forest area, riparian ecology area, freshwater pond ecology area, crab observation area, and lowelevation forest area. The wooden bird-watching huts, spread throughout the reserve, give observers a quiet and unobtrusive space to check out the many different species. This pristine birding enclave, which has been called “north Taiwan’s last piece of pure land,” hosts migrating birds in great number from October through March, with over 200 species recorded. There are also wetland endemic plants, fiddler crabs, mudskippers, and other flora and fauna, making this one of the city’s most important edutainment assets.

According to the Hydraulic Engineering Office, Public Works Department (工務局水利工程處) of Taipei City Government, natural landscaping was considered an important aspect of the flood-control works right from the outset of planning. The watercourse of the Dagouxi (Dagou Stream) was preserved, an artificial wetland habitat was created, and other measures were taken to create an inviting watery space where peak flows can be reduced during periods where flooding is a risk. Perhaps the park’s most visually arresting addition is the stunning “sea of flowers” (花海) tableaux created by an approximately 4,000-square-meter swath of cultivated flowers, arranged in bands of various colors to create a long, winding ribbon of colorful flowers, delighting visitors.

The Hydraulic Engineering Office specially recommends that you ascend the steps of the Dahu Shanzhuang Ladder Trail (大湖山莊階梯步道) for a great overview of the sea of flowers. Also popular with visitors is the park’s waterside Qinshui Trail (親水步道), which offers a splendid changing landscape. In different seasons, many different creatures can be seen, including butterflies, dragonflies, fireflies, egrets, Taiwan blue magpies, and other frequent visitors. Visitors are often startled to discover that such a beautiful place in fact doubles as an important flood control measure.

If after exploring the park you still have energy to explore further, note that the end-point of the Qinshui Trail is an entranceway to the trails of the Wuzhi Mountains (五指山系), taking you to the Bihu Hiking Trail (碧湖步道), Bishanyan (碧山巖), Baishihu Suspension Bridge (白石湖吊橋), Jinmian Mountain (金面山), Liyushan (Mt. Liyu; 鯉魚山), and other well-known spots, making for a scenerypacked full-day outing.

The eco corridor, which has an area of 2,500 square meters, is located on the south side of Treasure Hill in Yongfu Park (永福公園), straddling Wansheng Stream (萬 盛溪), beside its confluence with the Xindian River (新店 溪). The Department of Urban Development has covered the slopes of the bio-friendly corridor with grass, created a dragonfly-friendly habitat along the stream’s banks, and planted floating primrose, small shellflower, and other hydrophilic plants. Thus an urban Shangri-la of interwoven greens and bright colors has been given life.

Many are curious as to how Treasure Hill happens to be home to such a rich natural eco-treasure. The Department of Urban Development says that squirrels, kingfishers, and dragonflies are common on Treasure Hill, and that it hopes to add to the bio-friendly corridor and dragonfly habitat in the future with the reintroduction of such indicator species as the little egret, common moorhen, Eiffinger’s tree frog, grey treepie, and red-bellied tree squirrel, presenting even more Treasure Hill treasuresfor visitors to enjoy.

department has been fastidious in its methods to enrich the local ecology. For example, it has used water-permeable materials, debris caging (instead of rock berms), and planted high grass in the top part of the site to merge into the original tree cover. To increase the wetland area and create a habitat for dragonflies, a new strip about 1.5 meters wide featuring hydrophilic plants such as floating primrose and red hot polygonumwas created along the land/water exchange zone.

Next time you visit Treasure Hill, in addition to enjoying the distinctive architecture of the local homes and the many attractive works by its resident artists, don’t forget to take a stroll through the eco corridor, which has brought to the area a wonderful balance of culture and ecology, art and nature.

Fudekeng Eco-Park

Fudekeng Eco-Park (福德坑環保復育園區) is in the Wenshan District (文山區), on what was originally the Fudekeng Sanitary Landfill Site (福德坑垃圾衛生掩埋場). The landfill was filled and closed down in 1996, and green remediation work started. This was the country’s first such project, serving as a model for others. The eco-park’s attractions are varied, among them trails, rest pavilions, over 3,000 trees of various species, grass skiing and remote-control aircraft flying areas, and an indigenous park area. Located on a height, the views are expansive. Grass ski carts are available for free at the wide, sloping ski area. The remote-control aircraft area, an open secret among local enthusiasts, is at the park’s highest point. On weekends and holidays, it fills up with people testing out their skills on an impressive variety of planes. This facility is, in fact, Taipei’s only legally authorized remote-control aircraft flying field.

Shanshuilu Ecological Park

Located in the southeast corner of Nangang District (南港區) in the border area with New Taipei City’s Shenkeng District (新北市深坑區), Shanshuilu Ecological Park (山水綠生態公園) is on what was originally the Shanzhuku Sanitary Landfill Site (山豬窟垃圾衛生掩埋 場), Taipei’s second large-scale sanitary landfill site. Remediation was started in 2003, and a formal request for a change to the present name was submitted andgranted in 2011.

This spot was long ago named Shanzhuku, which literally means “wild boar hole,” because wild boar would gather at a local drinking hole. The new name, which contains the characters for “mountain,” “water,” and “green,” signifies the return of abundant flora and fauna following remediation. The site’s pretty landscaping includes a forest-hut cafe, flower slope, and tung trees. Expected to open in August, this will bea fine spot for a green escape.

Neihu Waterside Park

Located beside the winding Keelung River, the landfill beside the NEI-HU Refuse Incineration Plant (內 湖垃圾焚化廠) was left covered over and unused for 20 years before remediation work was begun in 2006. The anticipated completion date for the work is the end of this year. A public naming contest will be held down the road, stimulating interest in the park and the site’s new lease on life.

An eco-sensitive approach was taken to cleaning up Neihu’s mountain of unincinerated garbage. Instead of just hauling the garbage to another site, it was screened, classified, and underwent another round of recycling. The refuse left over was then incinerated, and the site backfilled with soil, assisting recovery. When work on the riverside park is completed there will be a 40-meter-high terraced viewing platform and 20,000 trees will have been planted. From the top of the
lookout visitors will have a bird’s-eye view of the Keelung River and riverside bike paths in the foreground and of the soaring Taipei 101 in the distance. The park will be a proud new landmark showcasing the city’s embrace of green consciousness.

This novel marriage of architecture and art can beadmired from three angles—from the front and the twosides—bringing three entirely different perspectives.From one a rainbow gradually forms over the sea. Fromanother sparkles of light skip over waves striped in bluesand whites. And from another you see the refractionof light on the surface of a shimmering, sparkling sea.These symbolize the grand and multifarious cultural mixthat defines Taipei's personality, and at the same timeare a nod to the origin of the name“Shuiyuan,”(lit. water source) a seemingly endless supply of water.The artist has also brought the concept of “time”into the mix, creating a dynamic aesthetic that is ableto interact with the viewer—as you move to differentpositions, the images seem to seamlessly move andtransform, changing along with your perspective.

Walk out of Exit No. 1 at MRT Zhongshan Station on the Tamsui Line and head toward MOCA Taipei on Chang'an W. Rd. you'll find yourself in the 600-meter-long Linear Park. What will strike you at once in this tuckedaway garden oasis is the large-scale works of installation art here, a decided improvement on the drab monotone that characterized this site when it wasused solely as a place for generator facilities.

These creations were just completed in February. The project was initiated by the city's Department of Cultural Affairs, at a cost of NT$21 million. Management of the artwork was entrusted to MOCA Taipei, which then turned to four Taiwan artists for the four works now in place, all of which exude a sense of childlike play. Each of the works was specifically designed to complement its surrounding environment, and each follows one of the following themes:“Youth Stage and Family Space”,“Popular Fashion and Consumer Culture”,“Natural Ecology and the Aesthetics of Place”, and“Sci-Tech Aesthetics and Visual Culture”.

In the middle section of the park is “BIGPOW”, designed by artist Akibo Lee and featuring three humorous characters. This is a favorite with the kids, who can't resist coming over to touch and inspect the robots. The robots are in fact metamorphosed hi-fi equipment, and if you connect your MP3, iPod, or other device to the robots you'll be able to share your musical tastes with everybody on the scene.

Over in one corner of the park, on the wall of a generator station, artist Li Yi-xun has depicted his whimsical“Taipei Tales”, a series of mosaics created using ceramic tiles. He has created many playful vignettes. These include what looks like a treasure vault on a wall, shopping bags popping out through an open zipper, a hen leading a line of baby ducks with one atop her back, snails and rabbits in climbing contests, a fiddler crab and mudskippers originating in the Tamsui, and a cub and owl awaiting inspiration while taking a hot-spring bath.

Near the MRT Zhongshan Station's Chang'an W. Rd. exit is a wall covered in lush foliage. Look off a little ways and you'll spot seventeen brightly colored balloons seemingly escaping into the air. This is Liang Ren-hong's contribution, entitled“Sending Secret Signals with the Wind” . The balloons, which look like big lollipops, are in fact stainless-steel artworks that appear to be dancing with the breeze in lilting rhythm.

Head out of the underground Zhongshan Metro Mall via the R4 exit and you'll enter an out-of-this-world work of the imagination entitled “Welcome to the Milky Way Railway Station”. The artwork on the walls of this long, narrow stairway sweep you along to the ground-level exit. The work is by Xu Tang-wei, who has used translucent colored cuttingsheet paper to create a world of illusion. You'll always find people here trying every which way to capture this magical space on camera.

The kid in you is no doubt i tching to get out now and see these flights of the imaginat ion, and there's even more good news to report, for MOCA Taipei is now offering fun and informative guided tours of the works for groups. See you in the park!

Information

MRT Zhongshan Station Linear Park Location: Between MRT Zhongshan Station Exit No. 1 and Chang'an W. Rd. Exit R4 Guided Group Tour Registration: (02) 2552-3721 (foreign-language guides must be booked in advance) Website: www.mocataipei.org.tw (Chinese)

]]>Tue, 01 Jun 2010 16:00:00 GMThttps://english.gov.taipei/News_Content.aspx?n=5B4F7F92DDE44A8E&s=7B9BCC9D584D4823In 2002 the Beitou Hot Spring Park was the proud winner of the Community Participation in Space Development Outstanding Achievement Award as a part of the first Taipei Urban Landscape Awards. The space is centered on the Beitou Stream and thus has a thin, elongated layout, and has the comfortable, rustic Beitou Open-Air Public Hot-Spring Baths as its core attraction.

The facility is built sloping down toward the hot-spring stream. On the way up to the stream valley you pass by the exquisite landscaping of Xinbeitou Park, the distinctive aboriginal flavour of the Ketagalan Culture Center, and the exquisite Beitou Hot Spring Museum, a heritage site of the third grade sitting within the lovely Beitou Hot Spring Park. In the valley you finally come to the fabulous fairyland of the mystical Hell Valley with its thick wafts of sulphurous steam twisting skywards. The expansive park takes up a total of about 60,000 square meters, a grand outdoor display room of Beitou’s natural and manmade scenic wonders. What you can do is hop on the MRT system, get on the Tamsui line, and get off at the Xinbeitou Station. From there walk no more than 10 minutes and you’re face to face with the Beitou Open-Air Public Hot-Spring Baths. Head inside and ready yourself for fun. You’ll have to choose between hotmineral- water soaks at four different temperatures, in four pools. These are adjusted according to varying winter and summer climatic conditions. Because the mineral waters here are from nearby Hell Valley, and have a PH value between 1.2-1.6, even though they have been diluted, you must switch between hot and cold pools if you have sensitive skin in order to avoid problems. That is why the facility has two cold pools using piped water.

The manager advises that the Hell Valley waters contain minute traces of radium, and thus radiation. This is a very special phenomenon, foundin only one other place on the globe, Japan’s Akita prefecture. The enhanced waters’powers are superb for convalescence, health-enhancement,and beauty embellishment. Your entry into this magical world is just NT$40, with absolutely no time limit. Visitors also love a round or two

Information

Beitou Hot Spring Museum Tel: (02) 2893-9981 Add: 2,Zhongshan Rd., Beitou District Hours: Tues-Sun 9:00am-5:00pm; closed Mon Entrance: Free Hell Valley Add: Zhongshan Rd. near entrance of Wenquan Rd., Beitou District Hours: Tues-Sun 9:00am-5:00pm; closed Mon Entrance: Free

in the coin-operated massage chairs in the entrance area. Locals say this is the great value for, and the locals know what they’re talking about! Note that in the communal pools here, meaning ladies and gentlemen bathe together, swimgear is obligatory. Didn’t bring any? Not a problem, there’s some on site for sale. As said, the source of the hot-spring waters at the Beitou Open-Air Public Hot-Spring Baths is Hell Valley. Management of the operations is entrusted to a private group by the city government. In 2000, Ma Ying-jeou, then the mayor of the city and now the president, presided at the official opening of the baths and also had a soak and a chat with other hot-spring-loving citizens. Because of this the baths are also sometimes unofficially referred to as the “Millennium Baths”.

Beside the current public baths, just down to the valley, you’ll see the attractively ornate Beitou Hot Spring Museum, housed in a large, classical building built by the Japanese during their era of colonial rule to house public baths for the people of that time. In today’s museum you’ll gain deeper understanding of the Beitou hot-spring culture and history of yesteryear. Up-valley and upstream from today’s public baths you soon come to mysterious Hell Valley, known as one of the “eight natural beauties, twelve scenic wonders” of the Japanese era. Here, throughout the year a thick mist simmers and saunters up and out of the narrow valley, strangely and hauntingly changing hue in the shimmering sunlight. The phenomenon has led to the lovely moniker, “Jade Mist of the Sulfur Springs”.

]]>Tue, 09 Sep 2008 16:00:00 GMThttps://english.gov.taipei/News_Content.aspx?n=5B4F7F92DDE44A8E&s=9A09901D52832938The Marshal Zen Garden is one of priceless treasures in Beitou, located at the unparalleled naturalcultural landscape of the unique Hell Valley area, matched with the nearby hot-springs, important historical architectures, and Beitou Hot Springs Museum. With a history of a centuryplus as a hideaway hot-springs spa oasis, the area’s abundant traces of history can still be clearly discerned in everywhere you see. Marshal Zen Garden facility was part of the complex of the Xin Gao Hotel, built in the 1895-1945, Japanese colonial peroid. In 1920, it was made as a club for the Japanese military; it was also a final R&R spot during WW II for kamikaze pilots before they headed out on their do-and-die missions. After 1949, it became a place of house arrest for Manchu warlord Marshal Zhang Xue-liang (of China’s Xian Incident ) when Chiang Kai-shek brought him to Taiwan. Lucky for us, owners after this period were all devoted to keeping all original features intact – even down to the trees and bushes, including Zhang’s favorite cherry trees.

Located directly above the steaming, mysterious Hell Valley, great wafts of sulphurous white steam and cloud often come curling up slowly from the buttom. The building is a centerpiece of a wonderfully pretty tableau, of classical Japanese design, windows intricately latticed, the peaks of the majestic Yangmingshan massif serving as magnificent scenic backdrop. This is a much-loved escape from the city hubbub below, the city’s Arcadia, its Xanadu. Standing here, far away you can clearly make out the distinctive profile of Mt. Guanyin. The view is especially scintillating as the sun sets. Whether day or night, the views of the Guandu Plain and Tamsui River rolling by, like miniature movie sits, are riveting. But seeing is believing – best get out there yourself, don’t you think?! Marshal Zen Garden, which covers 1000 ping (1 ping = 36 sq. ft.), is divided into two main sections, a restaurant and the Emerald Tea House. Both were main areas in Marshal Zhang’s residential quarters. The interior, of Chinese cypress with ancient Japanese atmosphere, has a compelling rustic simplicity and elegance, and the roof tiles were specially flown in straight from specific Japanese makers. Great care and much time has been poured into maintaining the site’s dignity and style, and from the gallery of the Emerald Tea House you can enjoy a good, close look at the exquisite Japanese roof tiling, stimulating a deeply evocative sense of the artistry and ambiance of vintage cultural flavor.

The right side of the restaurant was the main living space of Marshal Zhang. In the former master bedroom visitors now see a large, round, 16-person banquet table for eating Chinese cusines. Elsewhere, the former study, guest room, dressing room, and other rooms have each been made into dining spaces with a round table for 10 diners. Spread out along the restaurant’s left side are the abundant ingredients of the expansive Mongolian BBQ buffet, with the soothing musical accompaniment of either a vocalist or a band from Wednesday to Saturday, from 7 to 9 in the evening.

Information

Marshal Zen Garden Tel: (02) 2896-5700 Address: 34, Youya Rd., Beitou District (beside Yangtou Highway) Website: http://www.sgarden.com.tw/en/index_en.html

Don’t leave immediately, dear readers, there are more you need to know about!As a bonus for guests, helping them enjoy more in the beauty of Beitou’s hot-springs sites in Marshal Zen Garden, the management has specially installed open-air white-sulfur-spring SPA facilities on the grounds. Manager Ray Chen states that the Garden’s white-sulfur waters are all-natural, unfiltered, and contain minute muddy particles that make it murky. That is, of course, the best condition, for the mineral-rich waters are thus at their most curative.

The whitish waters are what locals admiringly call “milk soup”, chock-full of minerals, believed for enhancing the body’s immunocompetence and great for bones, joints, and relieving arthritis. Diners can enjoy a soft, soothing, salubrious soak for an additional outlay of a mere NT$100, making for two wonderful body-stimulating experiences in a single outing.