Time to alight and make our way over, on foot.
First scene to hit up upon reaching the old street; the display of laundry racks that had red paper clipped to the edges. They were waiting for the one business that's literally the lifeline for this street.
Release of the sky lanterns - a popular activity in Shifen which was to originate in the mid 1800s, when the area had a lot of bandits, and villages will light to sky lanterns as a sign for other to come when the course was clear.
The area was also known for its mass lantern release on the 15th day of the 1st lunar month! Bet that will be impressive even though I can imagine the massive crowd when it happens. Not to mention the terrible traffic when everything ends.
We are tourists; and release of sky lantern was an included activity as part of our tour package! Penning down our wishes on the lantern that was co-shared with another family. Please click here for more photos!
After which was free and easy time! Someone was playing with fireworks and this piqued my interest as Singapore is strict with fireworks, and most Singaporeans would take the opportunity to play with them when we are overseas.
Only thing is that they are not cheap and I am stingy! Sometimes, I think I don't know how to enjoy life, preferring to watch on videos or watch others play as I don't wish to spend my hard-earned money.
Introducing my dad to the The Ice Cream Peanut Popiah! So familiar to us, yet so remotely different. Nevertheless, you wouldn't regret trying it!
Shifen is part of the Pingxi district of which there's a train line that runs along the a passage with buildings on both sides. Put it this way, it's similar to Hanoi Train Street, but wider, and seemingly less of a danger.
Train station and the platform.
Checking out the Jingan Suspension Bridge; not that old of a bridge at less than a hundred years ago, but lent a lot of charm to the area. And it's pretty with its shades of white and blue!
Of course, the one thing that you can find a lot at the old street would be the lanterns; different colors infer different auspicious meanings! There's actually a sustainable version which is more expensive at double the pricing; you may read here for more info.
Going up a smaller lane, away from the crowd, in seek of a lunch venue!
This angle accurately presented the crowd at Shifen. It was indeed that busy and I wondered where the tourists all came from as the roads weren't filled with tour buses and it was like all the people just miraculously just appeared!
To stand out from the competitors, this shop also offered free polaroids to those who bought a sky lantern with them. And aside from multi colored option, there's a unique 8-colored lantern that cost NT$350.
Fireworks again!
Frankly, fireworks in the daytime are waste of money.
What rises will descend and that's the plight for many sky lanterns. So what happens when they make their way down to land? With the blessing of the wind, some will travel far. Some, however, will eventually land on trees, on top of buildings, on power lines, resulting in fires, and ultimately contributing to unsightly waste.
So, should we continue to support such unsustainable activity? As a tourist, it's a question I often ask myself although I don't really have an answer to, especially when the activity is a tourist must-do.
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