20 December 2011
From Juifen, Mr Xi took us to the town of Jinguashi (金瓜石) where the attraction here is the Gold Ecological Park. Jinguashi is a town that was developed during the gold rush by the Japanese. The mines were now closed and the Gold Ecological Park (GEP) now serves to educate visitors on the mining history, culture and environment.
Our first stop in the GEP was the Information Center where a few very eager and helpful ladies manning the Center pointed us the way to the Benshan Fifth Tunnel and Gold Building. The route took us on a path up a hill. The look and feel of this place made us feel like we were in Japan.
The entrance to the Benshan Fifth Tunnel and the Gold Building are located next to each other but the ladies manning the ticket booth of the tunnel advised us to visit the Gold Building first.
The Gold Building is like a museum showcasing the mining equipment of the past, photos of the old days. Here, you could get your hands on a 220.3 kg pure 999 gold brick. It would be yours if you can lift it, according to Mr Xi.
It was too big to fit into my pocket, so I left my gold brick there and went to the tunnel next.
50NT per person was the price of entry and we had to wear a helmet as a safety precaution. I think the helmet also contribute to the overall tour experience as it helped to make me feel like one of the miners as I entered the dark tunnel.
Plastic models demonstrated how gold was mined in the old days - using explosive, hand tools and old mine carts.
We were the last tour for the day and as we came back out from the tunnel, we found ourselves shrouded by mist that had rolled in.
It was quite a different but nice experience to walk in the misty weather down towards the entrance where we came from. We stopped by a small cafe known as The Miner’s Canteen. The cafe provides snacks, simple dishes and miners’ boxed meals normally but as it was almost closing time, we bought some hot coffee to take away.
It was fun and interesting to have the opportunity to shoot some photos in the dark, misty condition. The photo (above right) is taken at the entrance of the Gold Ecological Park where we met up with Mr Xi again.
From the Gold Ecological Park, Mr Xi drove us down a winding road towards the coast. We stopped by a waterfall known as the Golden Waterfall or Jinguashi Golden Waterfall.
Mr Xi explained the yellowish colour of the water contains lead and other toxic metals. He pointed out the plants growing within the waterfall and how some plants at the top were green but those plants with roots that are in contact with the water were black or darker in colour.
It was now about 5.15 PM with the dark winter sky and mist. It was not the best condition for photo-taking using a point and shoot camera…. but a long exposure shot of the waterfall, at small aperture, turns out quite OK (above picture) but I think the waterfall would be more impressive under brighter conditions.
Continiung on, we arrived at the Coastal Highway 2, where we could see the Yin Yang Hai (陰陽海), a bay where the sea is a mix of yellow and blue! The water from the Golden Waterfall flows into the sea near here. The Yin Yang Hai has two colours; yellowish brown from the river water and blue of the Pacific Ocean, hence the name.
From here, it was a short distance along Highway 2 to Keelung (基隆) City. Our destination is the MiaoKou Night Market (廟口夜市). A visit to Miaokou Night Market for dinner is the perfect ending to a long day.
We passed by the Keelung port with the distinctive containers area before stopping at the night market. Miaokou is located adjacent to Keelung Harbour and is famous for its seafood. Given its proximity to the port, Keelung is the centre of Northern Taiwan's fishing industry hosting hundreds of fishing ships catching all kinds of fresh seafood from the sea.
We bought some takeaway fried crabs from this vendor to try before settling down at one the the many seafood stalls to have a proper seafood dinner.
From there, it was an hour’s journey back to Caesar Park Hotel, our hotel in Taipei, arriving at 8.30 PM.
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