One of our favorite places to visit in Taiwan is a small town in Hualien called Rui Shui. It's an important spot for us because Sam's mom grew up near there, in an even smaller village called Rui Mei. Since she's no longer with us, it's a way for us to feel connected with her and imagine what it was like to grow up in such a beautiful place. Rui Shui really is paradise. It smells like Hawaii, it's surrounded by lush farmland and everyone is crazy friendly.
The Duckling House invited us to stay with them for two nights while we were in town and omg -- it was the cutest place we've ever stayed!! The owners are obviously artists and the hotel is just filled with adorable decorations and carefully thought through details. And talk about kid friendly! Our room was mermaid themed and there was a koi pond filled with a hundred fish and food to feed them, and they even had a mini family farm, that had bunnies, chickens and a sweet pig on the premises. It was baby bliss!
They also had a fleet of bikes for guests, which is a perfect way to explore the little town of Rui Shui. Sam strapped Juniper into her carrier and off we whizzed. First we visited a temple near Sam's mom's old house, an ornately decorated building filled with bright yellow lanterns and fragrant incense, which visitors light at different stations in the temple and ask for blessings and make prayers. It's a lovely spot and a good place to cool off from the scorching heat. Next we headed down to the river, where Juniper played along the silty shore and skipped stones. So much fun!
Tired and hungry, we found a little noodle shack along the main road and got steaming bowls of homemade pho. Juniper had fallen asleep on the ride up from the river and the noodle shop owners kindly found us a folding chair for her to take a long nap. Back at the Duckling House, we all cooled off in our private pool. It was dreamy.
For the second part of our stay, the Sunshine Hot Spring B&B invited us for two nights, a deliciously modern hotel, nestled next to a river and at the base of a beautiful jungle trail, which we got a chance to hike up. Juniper once again had a private hot spring pool to practice her swim strokes and kicks in -- one afternoon we spent almost three hours splashing around in the water.
Relaxed, with pruney water-soaked skin, we headed north to Hualien City for our final stop. More photos coming soon!
我们最喜欢在台湾访问的地方是花莲的一个小镇叫瑞水。这是我们的一个重要的地方，因为Sam的妈妈在这里长大。由于她不再与我们在一起，这是一种让我们感觉到与她的联系，想象在一个美丽的地方长大的感觉。瑞水真是天堂。它闻起来像夏威夷，它被郁郁葱葱的农田包围，每个人都疯狂友好。
鸭子屋邀请我们住两个晚上，当我们在城里和omg - 这是我们住过的最可爱的地方！业主显然是艺术家，酒店充满可爱的装饰，仔细思考细节。和谈论孩子友好！我们的房间是美人鱼主题，有一个锦鲤池充满了一百条鱼和食物喂养他们，他们甚至有一个迷你家庭农场，有兔子，鸡，甚至一只甜猪在前提。这是宝贝的幸福！
他们还有一队自行车，欢迎客人使用，这是探索瑞水小镇的一个完美的方式。山姆绑着杜松进入她的运输车，我们whizzed。首先，我们参观了山姆的妈妈的寺庙，一个华丽的装饰建筑充满了明亮的黄色灯笼和香火，访客在寺庙的不同车站点亮，祈求祝福和祈祷。这是一个可爱的地方，一个很好的地方，从焦灼的热量冷却。接下来，我们向下走到河边，瞻博沿着泥泞的海岸玩耍，跳过石头。玩得很尽兴！
疲惫和饿了，我们发现了一个小面条小屋沿主要道路，得到了蒸煮碗自制的pho。杜松从河上爬下来睡着了，面店店主亲切地找到了我们一把折叠椅，让她长时间打盹。回到鸭子屋，我们都在我们的私人游泳池冷静下来。这是梦幻。
在我们入住的第二部分，阳光温泉B＆B邀请我们两个晚上，一个美味的现代化酒店，坐落在一条河旁边，一个美丽的丛林步道的基地，我们有机会远足。瞻博网络再次有一个私人温泉游泳池练习她的游泳冲程和踢 - 一个下午，我们花了几乎三个小时在水中飞溅。
放松，用水浸湿的皮肤，我们朝北到花莲市，我们的最后一站。更多照片即将推出！
xoxo,
Ariel + Sam + Juniper
