7 awesome hot springs in Taiwan

When you travel to Taiwan in winter, the hottest thing to do is to take a hot spring. In addition to the well-known Beitou Hot Springs, in fact, all over Taiwan are hot spring hotels, and all kinds of theme hot springs will not get bored even if do it every day. By historical reason, there are many Japanese style buildings, some hot springs can also be boiled eggs while go to hot springs, below will recommend 7 Taiwanese favorite hot springs.

Wulai Hot Springs

A little further from Taipei, you will find the aboriginal village of Wulai which is also home to several hot spring resorts and a public riverside hot spring. The area is a very interesting place to visit even without the hot spring as there are waterfalls, a cable car, and even a mini-train to keep tourists amused. The riverside hot spring is the most popular, and it is pretty easy to find. Walk through the village and cross the bridge and there you will see the public hot spring area down by the river.

Wenshan Hot Spring

Hualien’s Wenshan Hot Spring is something of a hidden gem. As very few locals know about it, bathing in the pool’s shallow cave is intimate and memorable. While it does not feature large resort style facilities like many other hot springs in Taiwan, it is still provides clean and well-maintained showering and toilet facilities. A dip in Wenshan Hot Spring is a lovely end to a day exploring Taroko National Park.

Yangmingshan Hot Spring

Located in the Yangming Mountain area near the outskirts of Taipei City, because of its convenient transportation and beautiful natural scenery, it is ideal for couples dating and family travel. It is a hot spot for northerners to take a vacation. The Yangmingshan Hot Spring is distributed between the six caves and the seven caves of the Shabu Mountain in Shanxi. You can enjoy the cold water pit, the manger, the Gengziping and other places. The special feature of this place is that the spring is different and the functions are very different. A wide variety of options are available.

Kyomoto Onsen

Located in the Chihpen Valley of Taitung City, the Chihpen Hot Springs have been developed for a long time. As early as the Japanese era, it was gradually developed. The Chihhot Hot Springs are weakly alkaline sodium bicarbonate springs, clear and colorless, rich. Containing minerals, it has the effects of whitening, moisturizing and promoting blood circulation. The Chihhot Hot Springs have been developed as early as in the Japanese occupation period. Today's Zhiben Hot Springs is an internationally renowned Taiwan hot spring tourist area. It is a well-known hot spring town in Taiwan and is one of the top eight scenic spots in Taiwan.

Zhaori Saltwater Hot Springs

One of only three saltwater hot springs in the world, a trip to Zhaorion Green Island is a once in a lifetime experience. Fed by a combination of seawater and underground thermal waters of this small volcanic island. There are three pools that face the ocean, and they say that settling in the relaxing waters to enjoy the sunrise is an experience not to be missed.

Baolai Hot Spring

Baolai Hot Spring is located in Kaohsiung Six Turtles, which is located in the northeast of Kaohsiung. So when the Japanese troops came to Taiwan, they found it to be Penglai Wonderland. Baolai Hot Spring is a hot spring formed by geothermal heat. The spring is a sulfurized cyanide spring. The spring color is transparent, clear, colorless and tasteless.

It is said to have the function of strengthening the bones, beauty, and maintaining the immune system. Moreover, the hot spring water of Bora can not only be bathed, but also drinkable. The natural resources of Liugui District can be said to be very rich, and there are many tourist attractions to go around!

Jinshan Governor General Hot Spring

Opened in 1939 by the then Japanese Governor of Taiwan, these hot springs are unique in that due to the location you not only have different varieties of water available but you can also have a view of the ocean while you relax. This hot spring also provides both male and female naked pools, and for those uncomfortable with public nudity, there are private rooms too.

Read more: Top unique and interesting landmarks in Taiwan

Source Internet

Kare kare, dish that you have to try in the Philippines

While in the Philippines, you will have likely tasted lechon as well as traditional dishes and comfort food like sinigang and adobo. Perhaps you have challenged yourself to eat balot (unfertilized duck egg) and dinuguan (blood stew). But before you leave the country, you might as well taste and enjoy one classic Filipino dish – kare kare.

What is kare kare?

Kare kare is a stew of beef, tripe, oxtail, and ham hock in thick peanut sauce mixed with different vegetables such as eggplant, pechay (Chinese cabbage), string beans, and banana blossom. This dish is served with shrimp paste called bagoong to add flavor to the mild-tasting peanut sauce. Today’s version of kare kare uses peanut butter. With its thick sauce, it only means it has to be eaten with steaming hot rice.

Slow cooked until meat is tender, with the ham hock having a gelatinous texture, the vegetables should remain softened, resulting in some restaurants serving the vegetables on the side rather than mixing it all together. It has an orange color, a result of annatto.

An interesting history of kare kare

Will it come as a surprise that “kare kare” comes from the word, “curry”? Word repetition is the Malay style connoting something faux-like (or “something like [object]”). Thus, kare kare is a faux-like version of curry. After all, kare kare doesn’t resemble any Indian curry dish, except for its orange color.

Unbeknownst to many, the British briefly occupied Manila from 1762-1764 bringing with them 500 Indian soldiers, known as Sepoys. When the British withdrew, the Indian soldiers deserted and remained in the Philippines. They successfully assimilated to Philippine society and married local women, eventually settling in Pasig, Taytay, and Cainta.

These Indian settlers then introduced kaikaari, a saucy dish of vegetables and oxtail. Since curry was not available in the Philippines at that time, the Indians used local ingredients like peanut and annatto.

Kare kare and the birth of Filipino-style eateries

The cultural role of kare kare in Philippine cuisine extends to the birth of roadside eateries known as karenderias. Cainta and Taytay are pilgrimage towns, and these former Sepoys set up roadside stalls, serving “kaari” to devotees on their way to their pilgrimage to Antipolo.

Pilgrims would dine along the way first to these “kaarihans” where curry is served. Later, “eria” was added following the Spanish grammar. Hence, “karenderia” means a place where there is “kaari.” At present, all towns in the Philippines have karenderias (also spelled as karinderia or carinderia) or small eateries along the streets serving affordable meals.

Different versions of kare kare

Kare kare itself evolved from the classic recipe with new variants such as seafood and even “crispy” kare kare. Some recipes use oxtail and beef, some only used pork. In Pampanga where the modern recipe was first introduced, it is served during fiestas and special occasions taking pride in cooking authentic kare kare – cooking its peanut-based sauce from scratch.

There are many dishes you must try before temporarily saying paalam to the Philippines, but kare kare is available all over the country, served in most Filipino family restaurants. Kare kare is not an everyday home-cooked meal in the Philippines due to the level of difficulty and meticulous preparation of its different ingredients. That is why this dish is a bestseller among many restaurants – most Filipinos can only have kare kare when dining in a restaurant. So the next time you dine in a Filipino restaurant, ask for a serving of kare kare.

See more: Explore typical breakfast in the Philippines

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Interesting facts you may not know about Lotus Pond, Taiwan

Lotus Pond offers a seemingly perfect balance between local religion and ostentatious architecture, and locals and tourists alike love it. This scenic man-made lake and popular weekend haven on the east side of Zuoying District in Kaohsiung City is nothing short of astounding and well worth a visit. But before you go, here are some interesting facts about the pond.

It’s not really a pond

At over 42 hectares, Lotus Pond is probably the biggest ‘pond’ in the world. The area is actually a man-made lake and is one of the largest in Taiwan (although not the largest, as that honor goes to Sun Moon Lake). The network of cycle paths and footpaths around the lake are so extensive that they would take hours on end to navigate, a pastime in which the locals like to indulge in the late afternoon when the sun is at its lowest.

It’s home to over twenty temples

The pond in its current state was built to celebrate nature, culture and history and was opened in 1951. It has around 20 temples worshipping different deities surrounding it. With numerous photogenic pagodas, fairy-tale statues and colourful temples at the water’s edge, it’s something of a photographer’s dream.

It’s surprisingly quiet

You can forget all the noise and bustle of the city at Lotus Pond, a tranquil place that is surprisingly only five kilometers from the city center. It’s hard to imagine that a lively city could have a man-made lake that is so serene and peaceful within its limits, but there’s a reason why this place is so popular with locals.

It wasn’t always called Lotus Pond

Over 300 hundred years ago, the pond was a much smaller natural body of water. A local mayor decided it would be a good place for a temple, and once the temple was built, he planted lotus plants in the pond. The pond was expanded twice since then, but the name of Lotus Pond stuck.

It’s a great place to watch the sunrise

Although it’s not quite the kind of area that tourists would expect to sit out and watch the sunrise, the pond is extremely popular with locals who want to do just that. It offers an incredible view and, if the sky is just right, some pretty amazing photo ops. Head down here at 5am any morning, and there will be dozens of people on the paths that surround the pond.

It’s got plenty of history

Although the lake and many of its surrounding temples have a very modern feel to them, the area of Zuoying is quite old and dotted with historic buildings just a short walk from the lakeshore. For this reason, visitors often come to the area and spend the entire day here visiting temples and exploring the old shops and restaurants of Zuoying.

See more: Kaohsiung's best places to have the best food experience

Source: Internet