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!