Detailed Postings for the Day
Stepping out into the cold for breakfast as the hotel didn't have resident restaurant, and arrangement was made with another eatery about 200 meters away and across the huge carpark of Alishan National Forest Recreation Area.
Taking photograph with the attraction marker. Interestingly, there's also a Lions International logo, which I chanced upon on Day Two, at the Freedom Bell in Chiayi City.
Photograph, in the cold, after breakfast.
Proceeded to Alishan Railway Station to check if there was any train tickets to Fenqihu Railway Town. I was all prepared to pay about S$100 for a private hotel transfer but we were fortunate to secure train tickets at just S$10 a person!
With a relieved heart, we decided to revisit the walking trails of Alishan, hoping that we can also check out the Giant Tree Plank trail which we didn't manage on Day Two.
Sadly, it started drizzling again! :(
Luck wasn't on our side after all.
Near Alishan Gou Hotel.
Elder Sister Pond of Tashan Trail.
Hiking in the drizzle was tiring!
Heavily drizzle again when we were about to embark the Giant Tree Plank trail! It was personally a disappointment for me as I so wanted to bring Alex there, as the trees along those trail were massive and there's even a sacred tree!
And it got heavier. :(
Informative map for reference. Both of us swore to return to Alishan again as there were just too many trails, and the weather that accompanied us for both days wasn't the most optimal to showcase the actual beauty of Alishan.
Dad took a photograph with the wooden statue while having hot ginger tea back in 2023! Now's my turn in 2025; I bought a cup of hot ginger tea too but too cumbersome to hold on to it as I took a selfie.
The humans looked so small beside the majestic trees...
Arrival of our train to Fenqihu Railway Town, which would depart at 11.50am. I am quite the traditionalist as such antiquated trains were so much more beautiful than modern ones, although I had to add that such trains are not as environmentally friendly.
Start of the scenic train ride! Even though we were informed by the ticketing counter that our tickets were non-seating, we could still sit so long there were available seats, and thankfully, there were!
More photographs of the train ride. For the separate posting, with even more photographs and maybe helpful information, please click "Train Ride from Alishan to Fenqihu".
Reached Fenqihu Railway Station right on time, at 1.19pm. Saying goodbye to the trusty forest railway train as it continued its journey to Chiayi City.
Famous ginger cat at Fenqihu Old Street!
I think it slimmed down a bit.
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First railway bento for Alex at Yahu Ekiben (雅湖鐵路便當). Well, the inclusion of bamboo shoots wasn't good news for Alex as he absolutely hates the taste of it, whereas I can still accept them.
Exploring the town, on foot.
Now, I enjoyed the snacks I previously had at Fenqihu in 2023 and one of them was the grass kueh from 街仔尾阿嬤草仔粿. Pity it was already sold out for the day!
However, I managed to relive the good old taste of hot, natural aiyu drink with chia seeds from the same store I got from in 2023! Same auntie, same taste! Shiok in the cool weather! We also had "muah chee" from 奮起湖明芳商店(515茶業).
More photographs. How the name fenqihu came about was quite interesting. The area of the town was said to be shaped like dustpan, given that it was surrounded by hills / mountains on all sides except for the south. The Chinese character hu means a lake but there is no lake here; the pronunciation actually came from the Hokkien term for low lying land.
My love for yam enticed me to give this a try. At NT$45 apiece, this pastry was expensive and served cold! The yam filling was thick in comparison with the pastry skin but the flavor was lacking. Saving grace? It wasn't obscenely sweet.
One of three complimentary tours from Fenchihu Hotel! To read more on what it entails, please visit the separate post for 3.00pm Complimentary Guided Tour from Hotel.
After the tour, we pressed on with Fenqihu 1912 Loco Shed (1912奮起湖機關車庫), which would have been well-liked my nephew, Jerald. For greedy persons, like I, I am happy to just indulge in the Wasabi and Sakura Ice Creams, especially the wasabi!
Another scenic outlook; one that was more accessible than the other one we were brought to for the guided tour. Granted more popular too.
Steep slope!
Queue for the donuts from 百年檜木甜甜圈 remained long and this time round, I was conservative and bought only one piece, to be shared! Strangely, the taste wasn't as good as the first time I had it, in 2023.
Making of the donuts, for reference!
Fenqihu Old Street isn't old enough as within the railway town was another street known as Fenqihu Old Old Street; note the double old. Out of curiosity, I would like to pay it a visit!
Outflow facility - now, I do read Chinese characters but once you combine them, the meaning could be lost on me, especially when Singapore doesn't use such references, and even if she does, we would rely on the English explanation. This seemed like some kind of water purifying facility; I could be wrong.
Birdie so cute.
Uphill walk back after checking out Fenqihu Old Old Street; and bypassed a police station, a Catholic church etc. Maybe due to the timing, the streets were devoid of people.
Winter blossoms.
An art installation known as "Moss in Forest" - made of felt wool balls, the purpose was to have the balls covered in natural moss, for which Fenqihu is known as a natural habit. For me, they looked like sticks of mushrooms; decaying mushrooms.
Continuing our walk.
Taiwan's sakura season was said to peak only in February and March and although we were too early; it was still exciting to catch the stunning mountain sakura in blossoms! p.s. mountain sakura is not the real sakura, according to our guide for the hotel's complimentary tours.
Back to the railway station, where we missed out on the pile of coal! Well, the early trains servicing the forest railway were powered by coal, a highly polluted fuel source that unfortunately, was still in use by many countries for their power stations.
Relaxation at Fenqihu Train Station; the town may not have anything to offer for party goers but for middle aged uncles like Alex and I, it was a much needed respite from the immense stress in the past months.
Back to Fenqihu Old Street and encountering a dog in clothes, patiently waiting outside a shop. Was it waiting for its owner, or playing the pity card for snacks?
Dinner at 奮起湖樂樂花園餐飲; loving the Wasabi Chicken Soup simply because it was nice drinking hot soup in cold weather, and the Bitter Tea Oil Chicken!
Stage surrounded by light blossoms.
In Alishan, Fenqihu is considered popular but more for day trippers. Therefore, the above video shows the situation at night when most tourists had left the railway town, leaving only a handful of tourists staying at a handful of hotels, motels and airbnbs.
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