Bamboo Lake

It was a beautiful Fall morning. The sun was high and the air was crisp. We all woke up early and thought we needed to get out and enjoy the sun. So we packed up and went up to Yangmingshan, the largest national park in Taipei. We randomly chose to go to Bamboo Lake, since that was the last stop on the bus that went up the mountain to the park My parents thought there would be a nice view from up there. The bus was jammed full of people who all had the same idea to go out into the great outdoors. We crashed into each other as the bus made quick turns through the windy road, dodging oncoming traffic, up the Yangming mountain. On the way, we passed through sulfurous rocks with steam coming out of them, countless hot spring resorts, terraced farm land, and best of all, nice views of Taipei 101, the tallest building in the world, whenever the trees cleared.

We got to the top and my mom asked someone where Bamboo Lake was. We were surprised to find out that Bamboo Lake was not a lake but the name of the area that used to be a lake hundreds or thousands of years ago. So, to deal with our disappointment, we decided to have lunch. We found a nice place with terraced dining overlooking a flower garden. The food was also good. The restaurants in the area feature free range chickens and wild mountain vegetables. After lunch we walked around the area which was full of calla lily fields. This was a very nice way to spend a sunny Autumn Saturday.

The first photo is the view from our table.











We took the bus down the mountain but didn't feel like going home so we went to our favorite coffee shop near Guandu station. We had a coffee, a lychee beer, and orange juice. Oh, and a pound cake with rose petals. Yummy! When the cake came, I decided to sing Happy Birthday to myself.